Sara Makeba Daise: Centering Black Southern Stories Through History, Culture, and Community

Sara Makeba Daise ’12 has built her work around a deep love for Black people, their histories, and their possibilities. A graduate of Communication–Media Studies, with a minor in African American Studies, Daise carries the insight and confidence she developed at the College of Charleston into her work as an author, public historian, and cultural worker.

Based in Georgetown, South Carolina, Daise holds an MA in Public History, with Distinction, from Union Institute & University. Her work centers Black people, particularly African American women and MaGes from the South, and reflects her interests in Gullah Geechee history and culture, Africana spirituality, and Black women’s studies.

For Daise, African American Studies helped her understand her own experiences within a broader historical and cultural context. That foundation continues to shape the stories she tells, the communities she engages, and the futures she imagines.

Finding Connection Through African American Studies

Daise describes African American Studies as an essential part of her experience at the College of Charleston.

The program offered courses and conversations that connected directly to her lived experiences while providing historical and anthropological frameworks for understanding the world around her.

“To be honest, I don't know how I would've made it out of College of Charleston without engaging courses and programs that spoke exactly to my lived experiences, and offered historical and anthropological contexts for why things are the way they are.”

Through the program, Daise encountered Dr. Consuela Francis and Dr. Bernie Powers, whose teaching continues to influence her professional life.

“I carry insight, wisdom and confidence I gained in their classrooms into every professional space I enter,” she says.

Those classroom experiences helped cultivate a lasting commitment to African American Studies and to work that centers Black life.

“My love of African American Studies was cultivated here,” Daise explains. “And anyone who knows me knows that I love US. Real bad.”

Centering Black Life in History and Cultural Work

As an author, public historian, and cultural worker, Daise brings that commitment into work focused on Black people, particularly African American women and MaGes from the South.

Her interests span Africana spirituality, Black women’s studies, Gullah Geechee history and culture, the Black South, Womanism and Black feminism, and self-publishing. Together, these areas reflect her attention to how Black communities understand, document, and share their experiences.

Her community involvement includes serving as Co-Founder of the Mutha Made Media Writing Collective, a mentor with the Campbell-Wright HBCU Gullah Geechee Internship Program, and a Ferrette House Advisory Board member.

Across these roles, writing, history, mentorship, and community engagement provide different ways to carry forward the questions and commitments she developed through African American Studies.

Lessons She Carries Forward

When reflecting on what her undergraduate education continues to contribute to her work, Daise emphasizes close reading and the importance of recognizing one’s value beyond institutional expectations.

Read beneath the surface. Daise continues to draw on the practice of closely reading African American literature, particularly fiction, for insights into Black life that may not be immediately apparent. This approach asks readers to slow down, pay attention, and consider what a story reveals beyond its most obvious meaning.

Recognize your value beyond institutional requirements. Daise also distinguishes between successfully navigating an institution and understanding one’s own worth.

“I've also maintained that institutions will often make you jump through various hoops—and your ability to do so successfully says very little (if anything) about your value, intelligence, or ability to lean into the work of your heart.”

For Daise, these lessons support both careful inquiry and confidence in pursuing meaningful work. They encourage attention to the stories being told while leaving room to question the systems through which those stories—and the people telling them—are evaluated.

Recognition and Community Leadership

Daise’s graduate education and community involvement reflect her commitment to history, culture, and collective work.

Among her accomplishments and roles are:

• MA in Public History, with Distinction, Union Institute & University

• 2018 Brian Webb Award for Outstanding MA Thesis in History & Culture, Union Institute & University

• Co-Founder, Mutha Made Media Writing Collective

• Mentor, Campbell-Wright HBCU Gullah Geechee Internship Program

• Advisory Board Member, Ferrette House

Daise is also interested in contributing as a guest speaker and facilitator, sharing her knowledge across subjects that include Gullah Geechee history and culture, Africana spirituality, Black women’s studies, Womanism and Black feminism, and self-publishing.

An Education Rooted in Liberated Futures

For Daise, the value of African American Studies extends beyond understanding the past. It also shapes how people imagine and build the future.

“Deeply loving, understanding, and considering African American History & Culture is imperative to the building of new worlds and liberated futures.”

That belief connects her undergraduate experience to her work today. The historical context, literary inquiry, and confidence she gained at the College of Charleston remain part of how she approaches writing, public history, and cultural work.

Her path illustrates how an African American Studies education can support a life of inquiry and community engagement—grounded in a love for Black people and a commitment to the stories, knowledge, and possibilities they carry forward.