Michon A. Benson

“The feeling of empowerment is one of the most valuable gifts a teacher can give to her students.”

– From Michon’s Academy application

Michon Benson comes to Houston A+ Challenge with 17 years of secondary and college-level teaching experience and a rich background in non-profit arts education administration.  Born and raised in Houston’s Third Ward community, she is a graduate of Jack Yates High School.  After earning her Bachelor of Arts in sculpture from the University of Texas at Austin, she received her secondary teaching certifications in English and Fine Arts and returned to her high-school alma mater to teach pre-Advanced Placement 9th – 12th grade English.  In 1996, she earned her Master’s degree in English from Texas Southern University and, for a brief time, worked as a graduate instructor at that university. In 1999 Michon was admitted into the Doctoral program at Rice University, and earned her Ph.D. in English in Fall 2007.  Her areas of interest are Youth Cultural Studies and African American Literature.