Wade Antonio Colwell gratefully serves learning communities as an author, circle keeper, cultural advocate, education consultant, facilitator,  lyricist (MC), media creator, music curator (DJ), performer, restorative practitioner, singer, speaker, and teacher. 

As Co-Founder of Youth Equity Stewardship (YES!)  and Equity Stewardship, Wade is inspired by a growing social movement of collective reciprocity, where students, teachers, families, support staff, administrators and the community at large, realize the mutual benefit of healthy relationships, inclusive practices, and equitable educational environments. 

Wade released the YES!-themed album “Borderless” with Benjie Howard in 2017. While teaching middle school, Wade co-founded pioneering educational hip-hop group Funkamentalz and released the album “One Time for the Mind” with Baba Iletunje Oyadare Kennedy in 1998.  

Over the years experiencing “creativity” as a powerful catalyst for institutional uplift, Wade strives to artfully integrate professional disciplines such as musical expression, restorative practices, humor, environmental advocacy, hip-hop culture, multilingual communication, healing arts, visual and video aesthetics, cultural ceremony, improvisation, mass media analysis, movement/dance, technology, ethnic studies, and soundscape design into his work. 

Wade is also a graduate of Stanford University (Health & Developmental Psychology / BA) and the University of Arizona (Language Reading & Culture  / Post Bac)  with secondary teaching certification in Spanish with ESL / Bilingual Education endorsement. 

Wade credits his mother Catalina, a painter & philosopher, and his father Paul, a musician & lyricist, laying the foundation for his sustained enthusiasm as a learner.

Additional Professional Roles:

  • Counseling in Schools (New York City) – Coordinator of Restorative Practices 
  • Community for Youth (Seattle) – Education Director
  • TUSD Mexican-American / Raza Studies (Tucson) – Curriculum Specialist/ Resource Teacher
  • University of Arizona / UA Presents (Tucson) – Community Engagement Director
  • Chicanos Por La Causa & Nosotros Inc. (Tucson) – Educational Consultant