Minkara Tezet

Minkara Tezet is a cultural educator, curriculum developer, community wellness practitioner, and transformational leadership coach with more than 25 years of experience in cultural healing, behavioral health, education, housing, and community development. He serves as Chief Griot of Psychology and Psychiatry at the Cultural Wellness Center in Minneapolis, where he advances the Invisible College and leads cultural self-study, transformational leadership development, cultural consultation, truth-telling, community healing rituals, ceremonies, and rites of passage. His work centers on the power of culture and collective knowledge to strengthen self-determination, wellness, and community relationships.

Minkara has developed and led initiatives supporting boys and men of African heritage, Black activists and organizers, fathers, care providers, and community leaders. His experience includes the Black Legacy Fellowship, Community Solutions for Health Equity, Seeds of Greatness within Blackness Rites of Passage, the Trauma Recovery Project, Change Network Minnesota, and partnerships with health systems, government agencies, universities, museums, and community-based organizations. Earlier in his career, he held leadership roles in clinical services, supportive and transitional housing, family wellness, and human services education. He earned a Master of Science in Marriage and Family Therapy from the University of Wisconsin–Stout and a Bachelor of Arts in Religious Studies from Augsburg University. Across his work, Minkara creates learning and healing spaces that honor cultural identity, deepen self-knowledge, and support lasting personal and social transformation.