Our Consulting Team

Yashika Smith is a Senior Consultant and Sexual Liberation Coach passionate about promoting racial equity and social justice. She founded Thomas and Smith Consulting and Editing LLC. This company provides equity audits and coaching services to organizations seeking to dismantle systems that uphold white supremacy culture ideology while supporting organizational growth embedded in equitable practices, collaborative partnerships and sustainable solutions.

Yashika's work is grounded in her experience related to decolonizing herself from white supremacy culture and ideology. She draws on her extensive background in equity and inclusive engagement practices across different sectors to support her clients in embedding equity into the culture of their organizations.

In addition to her coaching and consulting work, Yashika leads long-term equity cohorts focusing on dismantling systems that uphold white supremacy culture ideology and organizational culture centered around profit over people philosophies. She is committed to helping organizations move away from a charitable mindset towards accepting, acknowledging, and attempting to dismantle systemic racism and the disparities that result from it.

With a community engagement, curriculum development, and healthcare management background, Yashika brings a wealth of skills and experience to her work. Her dedication to promoting equity and social justice makes her a valuable partner for any organization seeking to create a more just and equitable society.

thomasandsmithconsulting@gmail.com

-I am a garden. I only accept living things. I only produce living things. Dead things have no place in my garden.

-Yashika Smith 

With a passion for the inclusiveness and human rights related to race, LGBTQIA+ and differently-abled citizens, Teriyiah is an invaluable asset to the firm. As the Inclusive Consultation Apprentice, Teriyiah is the first point of contact with our clients, she informs the content in the curriculums we write and she facilitates follow-up sessions with new and existing clients. Teriyiah's educational goals are to practice Family and Criminal Law, to own her own Law Firm and a Veterinary Clinic.

tsmith.thomasandsmithconsulting@gmail.com

The only limits I have in life are the ones that I set in my own mind.

-Teriyiah Smith

Yolanda Grant is a community-oriented professional with over 20 years of experience in preventing evictions for subsidized housing residents and effecting systemic changes as the current Madam President of the Knoxville Knox County Homeless Coalition. With a degree in Social Work and an associate degree in Hospitality, Yolanda is Director of Housing Systems at United Way of Greater Knoxville and specializes in convening and supporting partners, stakeholders, and the community to address systemic housing disparities. She brings a unique and realistic lens to diversity, equity, inclusion, and housing systems work, drawing on her own lived experience as a single mother.

Yolanda is highly skilled in supervision, facilitation, and operations management, with excellent verbal and written communication skills that are critical in working with individuals, groups, and community leaders. Her extensive experience in working with non-profit organizations, mental health awareness, Fair Housing, Department of Housing and Urban Development relations, planning, and evaluating services and projects has honed her ability to grow community leadership and organize collaboratively. Her expertise in these areas is critical to her ability to influence systemic change and create more inclusive, equitable communities.

ygrant.thomasandsmithconsulting@gmail.com

There is melanated brilliance everywhere I go!

-Yolanda Grant 

With a heart for single mothers and the houseless population, Shakira Davidson is a vital part of the thread that keeps our firm together.  She enjoys learning new skills and expanding her knowledge around equity, inclusion and connecting people to resources that support their success. She has an extensive amount of lived experience that inevitably makes a great thought partner and advocate.  

 kira.thomasandsmithconsulting@gmail.com 

Everything starts with a seed. Every joy, every accomplishment, every dream brought into fruition started as a seed. I believe that it is a fine time for us all to sprout.

-Shakira Davidson

Meet Jasmine, an equity professional with over 8 years of combined lived and work experience in racial equity, inclusion, diversity, and community engagement. With a passion for social justice, Jasmine has dedicated her career to removing barriers and creating more inclusive and equitable organizations. She brings a broad skill set to her consulting work, including administration, capacity building, leadership, grant writing, development, and project management. Jasmine is committed to supporting community organizing, collective impact, and community-centric solutions that empower underrepresented and under-resourced communities. She is skilled at building relationships and creating collaborative partnerships that leverage the strengths and resources of all involved. Jasmine is dedicated to creating a more equitable world and is always looking for new ways to make a positive impact.

jharp.thomasandsmithconsulting@gmail.com 

Breaking cycles of poverty through equity and community empowerment. Passion, purpose, persistence and perseverance; all can be found in community and community determines success.

-Jasmine Harper