Ma’at Lands is Founder and Executive Director for Rooted School- Indianapolis. In this role, she is responsible for setting the direction of the organization, carrying out its mission according to the strategic direction, managing its operations, and driving results of the organization. Prior to the Fellowship, Ma’at serves as as Principal of Rooted School Indianapolis and Assistant Principal at Lighthouse Academies in Indianapolis, where she led efforts to increase state accountability ratings from a “C to “B,” led ELA tem that received the 2nd highest growth scores in ELA and the 2nd highest scores among Mayor’s Sponsored Charter Schools in proficiency, and decreased referrals and student suspensions by 70%, increasing OEI ratings from “does not meet expectations'' to “exceeding expectations” in all culture domains. In 2021, Ma’at was awarded the Surge School Practitioner of the Year Award.
Ma’at is currently pursuing her Phd in Organizational Leadership. She holds a Master Degree in Teaching from Marian University with a certificate in Educational Administration, and a B.S. in Biology from Tennessee State University. She is also a globally recognized facilitator in Cultural Intelligence and Unconscious Bias from the Cultural Intelligence Center.