Dr. Keith Mayes is an Associate Professor in the Department of African American & African Studies at the University of Minnesota. Teaching and research interests include the civil rights and black power movement; desegregation and civil rights policy; black holiday traditions; race and education pedagogy; the history and practice of Ethnic Studies; multiculturalism and diversity; and the history of African Americans. Dr. Mayes is the author of
Kwanzaa: Black Power and the Making of the African-American Holiday Tradition (2009) and is completing
Civil Rights and Black Power: The Struggle for Black Equality in the United States (2012), both published by Routledge. Dr. Mayes was hired as a content expert and consultant for a documentary on the holiday Kwanzaa, called “The Black Candle,” narrated by Maya Angelou.
Dr. Mayes established the Mayes Educational Group, which provides consultant, workshop and training services in the areas of institutional diversity and multiculturalism; evaluation and assessment; curriculum re-development; critical Ethnic Studies pedagogy; and black mentoring and student retention. Some of his clients include Minneapolis Public Schools; District 279-Osseo Public schools; District 196-Apple Valley, Eagan, Rosemount Public Schools; Michigan Works!-the state of Michigan’s workforce development agency; National Geographic; the History Channel; and the Minnesota Humanities Center.