My name is Tori Battieste, a 45-year-old native of Texas. I am married and have a 16-year-old daughter. I completed my undergraduate studies at Howard University and currently hold the position of South Central Regional Account Manager for Union Supply Group in Irving, Texas. Additionally, I am honored to serve as the Board Secretary of the Excellence and Advancement Foundation.

The objectives of the Excellence and Advancement Foundation resonate deeply with me on a personal level. Born to young parents in a middle-class family, I was raised with education and potential. However, within a year of my birth, my father was incarcerated, leaving me to grow up questioning his absence. As an adult, I have come to understand how easily one can become ensnared in the school-to-prison pipeline, a consequence of ineffective legislative and educational policies that criminalize children. Justice has historically been unequal for marginalized and underprivileged communities, but the Excellence and Advancement Foundation is committed to changing this narrative. Our prevention programs are designed to nurture the potential in all children by enhancing their self-perception, thereby empowering them to influence how they are perceived by the world. Our intervention services offer support and essential resources to those directly affected by the criminal justice system.