She is the editor (as Layli Phillips) of The Womanist Reader (Routledge, 2006) and the author of The Womanist Idea (Routledge, 2012); her third volume, Womanism Rising, an edited collection of work by emerging womanist scholars, is in production.
Prior to coming to Wellesley, she held faculty positions at Georgia State University and the University of Georgia. She has served as a Fulbright Specialist at the University of Liberia as well as a Contemplative Practice Fellow of the Center for Contemplative Mind in Society.
Her past civic engagements include the National Council for Research on Women, National Center for Civil and Human Rights, the University Consortium for Liberia, and Foreverfamily. Currently, she sits on the Board of Directors of the Global Fund for Women, the Advisory Council of the Center for the Study of Men and Masculinities at SUNY-Stony Brook, and the Ms. Magazine Council of Scholars.
A graduate of Spelman College, Layli earned an M.S. in psychology from Penn State and a Ph.D. in Psychology from Temple University. In addition to her books, Layli has published over 30 journal articles and book chapters on topics as diverse as identity and identity development, the history of Black psychology, Black LGBTQ and sexuality studies, Hip Hop studies, spirituality, activism, and, of course, womanism.
