My name is Jarritt Ahmed Sheel, and I am an artist who just wants to place all of the yearnings & desires given to him by the Lord... on the canvas of humanity. I love playing music and doing my art to the best of my ability! I love cooking, traveling, learning, teaching, and most of all performing in front of others. I am a musician(trumpet) who is really into Gospel, Funk, Jazz, Punk, Reggae and most of all HIP-HOP! One day soon I look forward to opening up a community based arts school that focuses on learning that revolves around the discussion of freedom and democracy, through experiences with Hip-Hop and Jazz. I am really interested in family and making it and God the center point of my life. 

I recently accepted an assistant professor of music education position at the Berklee College of Music, and I am a Ed.D. candidate  in music & music education at Teachers College, Columbia University. I attended Florida A&M University where I attained my B.S. in Music Performance, Northern Illinois University for my M.M. in Jazz Studies and I recently achieved my Ed.M. in Music & Music Education from Teachers College, Columbia University. My research interests are focused on the intersections that occur between hip-hop and music education. I am a huge fan of critical theory (CRT & Whiteness Theory) and follow the writings of Stephen Brookfield, Steven Preskill, Michel Foucault, Cornel West, Maxine Greene and Roland Barthes. I find that critical theory is becoming increasingly more relevant in music education's march toward progress. I am interested in investigating teacher preparation and the performance experiences that pre-service teachers engage in. As the demographic of the U.S. of America changes, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, by 2043 minorities will become the  majority, thus changing the terrain of American education.   

I am currently interested in these subjects: Critical Theory, Philosophy, Music Education, Teacher Preparation, Hip-Hop, Culturally Relevant Pedaogies and Social Justice or maintaining memberships in these organizations: National Association for Music Education (NAFME), Pi Kappa Lambda, NAACP, Kappa Kappa Psi (Delta Iota & Kappa Nu Chapters), John H. Clarke Honor Society, Technology in Music Education (TI:ME), NAACP, AERA, College Music Society (CMS).