Michaela M. Leslie-Rule is a researcher, cultural strategist, and storyteller. For over two decades, she has supported communities, nonprofit leaders, and philanthropic institutions to advance racial and gender justice by leveraging the power of stories.
""How do young people see themselves in relation to where they want to go and how they plan to get there? This is arguably the fundamental question of late adolescence and emerging adulthood. Leslie-Rule offers answers from young people themselves and shares their responses in a framework that will prove immensely helpful to those who want to support this critical life transition. Her narrative is deeply attuned without being paternalistic, practical without being simplistic, and thought-provoking throughout.""--Michael Nakkula, Penn Graduate School of Education, and coauthor of Understanding Youth: Adolescent Development for Educators ""Education change efforts frequently focus on scalability and structure--patching gaps and deficits in career preparation. By listening to young adults and understanding their aspirations and experiences, Leslie-Rule creates critically complementary frameworks, not formulas, for supporting their agency to strive toward thriving visions for their lives, including meaningful work.""--Joel Vargas, vice president of education, Jobs for the Future