Dr. Akilah R. Carter-Francique (Ph.D., University of Georgia) is the Dean for the School of Education, Health and Human Services at Benedict College. With 20 years of experience in higher education, an extensive research background and a strong vision for leadership in the field of education, Carter-Francique served sporting spaces that center experiences of equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI).

Carter-Francique examines issues of race, gender, social class and their intersections with sport, education, and society. She has presented at regional, national, and international conferences and written several articles and book chapters across academic disciplines to include being the co-editor of Athletic Experience at Historically Black Colleges and Universities: Past, Present, and Persistence and Critical Race Theory: Black Athletic Experiences in the United States.

Carter-Francique serves as a research council member and consultant with Laureus “Sport for Good”; academic advisory council member for Athlete Voices; advisory committee member with Adapted Sport LABS; co-organizer with the Wall of Song Project; editorial board member for the Journal of Issues in Intercollegiate Athletics & the Sport Social Work Journal; 2018-2019 President of the North American Society for the Sociology of Sport; and co-founder of Francique Sport and Education Consulting, LLC with her husband Alleyne Francique, OBE, OLY.