Member Spotlight: Savannah Keith Gress

By Kate Jostworth

Savannah Keith Gress’ reflections on her upbringing and the cultures she’s experienced living across multiple continents have led her to explore how communities can be truly just and support us all in flourishing which she brings to her work within the Women’s Impact Fund. 

Can you provide a brief background on yourself for those who do not know you? 

I’ve been lucky to have had a few different adventures in life including living on four different continents, raising two wonderful kiddos with my love, and now starting my own social justice venture. I suppose a throughline is a curiosity about cultures and how we can all be free to be our fullest selves. It started for me in Tupelo, Mississippi where I had an idyllic childhood—playing barefoot in the neighborhood creek until the streetlights called me home for big southern family dinners. Being raised in the Deep South taught me many beautiful things—a big love of family, how to pass perfect evenings just sitting on the porch, and that anything can be rigged up with some elbow grease and 2x4s.  

However, as a young White girl growing up not two decades after Mississippi was forced to integrate schools, I also witnessed the complexities of life. Without ever receiving an explicit lesson on sexism, classism, or racism, I was nonetheless educated on how our identities impact our experiences of the world. Those formative years and much learning since have fueled nearly two decades of working for justice in education. However, specializing in data and research at Harvard taught me that we don’t need more research or data to address the glaring inequities all around us. Rather, we must confront how oppression operates in us, our relationships, and our systems and together create more free paths forward. I recently launched my venture, Liberation Collective, where I collaborate with partners to support schools, religious groups, non-profits, and individuals in pursuing our collective liberation.  That includes supporting school staff in unpacking our inherited beliefs about “good” and “bad” behavior and how they manifest in discipline disparities as a starting point for creating more just practices. I also expose the myth that school ratings identify higher quality schools and show how they actually identify wealthier and Whiter, but not better, schools that increase inequity. Charlotte has a rich community of folks working toward justice, and I’m grateful to collaborate and contribute where I can.  

I moved to Charlotte almost three years ago with my amazing husband, Aaron, and two kiddos, Miles (8) and Journey (5). We are grateful to put down roots in the warm community on Charlotte’s Historic West End and hope to contribute to its rich legacy of creating a more just and inclusive city.  

What makes our purpose or mission meaningful to you? 

I value WIF’s commitment to continued learning. While living in Rwanda, I saw that good-hearted philanthropy doesn’t always do good. Toms Shoes, for example, undermined the local footwear economy each time it opened its truck full of free, low-quality shoes. Furthermore, pictures of Westerners giving handouts to smiling Africans perpetuated toxic beliefs. Right here in Charlotte, we live in the legacy of women’s groups calling for the demolition of the historic Brooklyn neighborhood thereby deeply harming that vibrant Black community and Charlotte broadly.  If we are to strengthen communities, we must be wise in the ways we may be missing the mark and relentless in learning to do better.  Being a part of WIF is meaningful to me because of its sincere commitment to learning and evolving—prioritizing doing good over feeling good. 

What energizes/ motivates you?  

I feel energized and renewed when I’m in nature. Two highlights for me last year were a three-day backcountry hiking trip in the Smokies with my husband and finding multiple swimming holes in Pisgah National Forest to splash around with our kids. 

What are you the most excited about for the 20th anniversary year? 

I am excited to hear what this community of women has learned over 20 years. I’m eager to hear what has been learned—the lovely and the challenging—on this journey so far.  

Advice to make the most out of your Women’s Impact Fund membership? 

First of all, join with other wonderful women in your life! I’m grateful that my fabulous sister-in-law, Sarah Orlousky (two-time past health grants committee member!), told me about this dynamic group of women working to strengthen our community and enthusiastically enrolled my dear mother-in-law, Carol Gress, and me. Second, the hype is real about joining a committee! It’s been a fabulous way to get to spend quality time with fun and amazing women. Shout out to the wonderful Women LEAD Committee!  

What is your favorite restaurant or activity in Charlotte? 

We are big Whitewater Center fans. Whether we’re enjoying the winter lights trail and ice skating, jumping off the 100ft jump with our kids, or soaking up some live music, we love the chance to play outdoors as a whole family.