Transparent Dialogues

For 157 years, DAVIDA ANDERSON’s family has called the Wilmington area home. After finishing her doctorate in educational policy and leadership studies in May, Anderson has returned to Wilmington where she is ready to share her message of inclusivity, equality, and compassion with the area’s residents.

Locals will get two chances to hear those messages in the coming weeks as the motivational speaker will share ideas of positivity for listeners to “embrace, encourage, and empower” themselves.

Anderson is the founder and executive director of the nonprofit Strong Sister, Silly Sister, Inc. and through her business, DLA LLC, Anderson provides motivational speaking and life coaching.

Anderson hopes to build bridges through relevant and meaningful conversations, she says.

“I want to impact people from the inside out. It starts with being introspective and finding areas of growth to make us better human beings through authentic, transparent dialogue,” Anderson says.

Through her certification in mediation from Northwestern University, Anderson is “trained to have difficult dialogue,” she says.

Anderson grew up in York, PA, but in her junior year of high school, her family moved to Indiana where Anderson says, “God had a plan, and it turned out to be an amazing opportunity.”

Anderson attended Purdue University where she studied political science. During that time, she began to take notice of what was going on around her.

“There was no program to facilitate, integrate, or build a community for the young African American women on campus,” Anderson says.

With the support of Purdue University’s Director of the Black Cultural Center, RENEE THOMAS, Anderson developed Strong Sister, Silly Sister, Inc. in 2004. It became a nonprofit in 2014.

The program’s vision is to “motivate first-year collegiate young ladies to achieve success by choosing the right life brand, being their best self and impacting others to do the same,” according to the website.

The nonprofit provides interactive educational information and networking opportunities for its young African American women members.

For the past 15 years, the peer-led program has trained “strong, student leaders,” and the mentorship program has expanded to offer scholarship opportunities, as well.

“Sometimes it is a matter of just $500 that means the difference between dropping out or finishing that degree,” Anderson says.

After Anderson finished her undergraduate degree, she moved to Chicago where she worked in “corporate America” and attended Loyola University for her master’s degree in higher education.

“I felt like I could maximize my skills and experience, what I was already doing with Strong Sister, Silly Sister, but with a wider reach working in higher education,” Anderson said.

Going “full circle,” Anderson returned to York, PA to York College of Pennsylvania where she worked in administration and served on a diversity, equity, and inclusion committee. Still, she was called to do more.

Anderson, with the support of her family, returned to school at the University of Iowa to earn her doctorate in educational policy and leadership studies.

From there, Anderson sought to engage with audiences and individuals by providing educational presentations and personal lifestyle change skills through DLA.

Anderson’s public speaking and coaching topics include diversity, equity and inclusion, leadership, mental health, personal growth, women’s empowerment, among others.

On February 22, Anderson presents “Singing through Singleness,” and on March 21, she will share “Women Power: Standing on her Shoulders,” free to participants at tekMountain.

The “Women Power” session includes information on how women can create synergy and stay empowered when power is running low.

“To so much is given, so much is required,” Anderson says. “This was a way to utilize my privilege to elevate the next generation, my peers, and the overall society to become better.”

To view more of photographer Terah Wilson’s work, go to terahwilson.com.

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