NAALIEst. 2020 · Nashville, TN
A 501(c)(3) literacy & workforce institute

Every book opened is a door unlocked.

The National African American Literacy Institute builds literacy, education, and economic pathways for underserved communities — from the classroom to the bookshelf to the boardroom.

Publish a book Explore The Scholar's Compass Academy →
Ask yourself
Click to add your book to the shelf →
Who we are

Founded in the middle of a crisis. Built for the long term.

01 — Our history

Answering a disrupted system

The pandemic exposed how inflexible traditional schools, workforce systems, and blended-learning models had become, leaving children without access, vision, or hope.

NAALI was founded in 2020 as a 501(c)(3) headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee, by Dr. Cheryl Pruitt and a team of educators and community leaders, built around a four-phase process for closing educational and workforce gaps.

02 — Our staff & volunteers

90+ years of combined experience

Our co-founders, board members, officers, and volunteers are subject-matter experts across education, healthcare, social justice, and entrepreneurship.

Their work has driven higher grade-level literacy, increased graduation rates, and reduced dropout rates and community violence in underserved communities in as little as two years.

03 — Our focus

Literacy as the center of gravity

We work at the intersection of healthcare, education, and economic disparity — with literacy as the throughline connecting the school-to-prison pipeline, graduation rates, and entrepreneurship.

Our HUB delivers research-based programs that close the learning gap, alongside a capital and education platform supporting minority-, women-, veteran-, and LGBTQ-owned businesses.

“

This is not a program we are running. It is a legacy we are building — for the generations who will inherit what we start today. Every family, every student, every author on this shelf is a page in a history NAALI is writing right now.

Est. 2020 · Nashville, TN · Still being written
From the TEDx stage

Authenticity, accountability, and the power to transform.

How authenticity makes you a better leader — Dr. Cheryl Pruitt, TEDxGary Watch on YouTube →
TEDxGary

How authenticity makes you a better leader

NAALI co-founder Dr. Cheryl Pruitt shares the leadership story behind the Institute's work — showing her own mugshot on the TEDx stage to make the case that accountability, not perfection, is what earns trust in a community.

11K+Talk views
90+Combined years of expertise
2020NAALI founded
Where the work happens

Programs built to close the gap.

A division of NAALI · Gary, Indiana

The Scholar's Compass Leadership Academy

A private, nonprofit high school microschool serving grades 9–12, extending NAALI's literacy and leadership mission into a full academic home for students.

Visit SCLA.io →
Bring NAALI to your city

Start a microschool in your community

Scholar's Compass began as one campus in Gary. If your city needs the same — a small, literacy-first, leadership-driven high school — we'll walk you through what it takes to open one.

Inquire about a campus →

The HUB

Research-based, results-driven programming that bridges the learning gap for underserved children.

Capital & education

A web-based platform supporting minority-, women-, and veteran-owned, government, and LGBTQ-owned enterprises.

Athlete & entertainer partners

Working with public figures who invest in and own businesses supporting underserved children.

Literacy publishing

Helping authors bring books that serve our communities into readers' hands. See below.

Books & authors

Publish a book with NAALI.

We help authors get literacy-centered books onto the shelf. Submit your title below and it joins our live shelf — the first stop toward publication support from the Institute.

11K+views on the founder's TEDx talk
501(c)(3)nonprofit literacy institute
Livepublic shelf, visible to every visitor
Award-winningfounder & published author

Featured titles from our network

UNSHAKEN book cover
Leadership · Memoir

UNSHAKEN

Dr. Cheryl Pruitt & Dr. Eric Kellogg

A leadership memoir on authenticity and accountability, built from the same TEDx talk story above — co-authored by NAALI's own co-founder.

Find the book →
From Welfare to the Mayor's Chair book cover
Memoir · Education

From Welfare to the Mayor's Chair

Eric J. Kellogg — An Educator's Journey

A former mayor's account of moving from a difficult childhood in Harvey, Illinois to public office, and how he used it to open doors for others.

Find the book →
Human Dignity Literacy book cover
Education · Framework

Human Dignity Literacy

Dr. Cheryl Pruitt

A framework for centering dignity in classrooms and communities — part of the same body of work behind NAALI's founding mission.

Ask about the book →
The Child Behind the Data book cover
Signature Work

The Child Behind the Data

Dr. Cheryl Pruitt

"She doesn't know she's a data point yet. Lead like she's watching." A call to leaders in education and healthcare to place human dignity alongside accountability.

Ask about the book →
01

Submit your title

Tell us about your book — title, genre, and a one-line synopsis. Takes under two minutes.

02

We follow up

Our editorial team reviews every submission and reaches out by email within 5 business days.

03

You're on the shelf

Your book joins the live shelf below, visible to every author, partner, and visitor who lands here.

Submit your book

Tell us about the manuscript. Our editorial team follows up within 5 business days.

Submissions post to NAALI's shared, public shelf below so every author's title is visible to visitors.

The NAALI shelf

Books submitted by authors, on display for every visitor.

Loading the shelf…

    Partner with NAALI, or bring the Institute to your community.

    naalinstitute@gmail.com

    Get in touch →