Tracee Perryman: Helping Others Define Their Greatness

By Linda Nelson
Sojourner’s Truth Reporter

Some things about Tracee Perryman, Ph.D., have changed since our first interview 13 years ago. Her Big Sister/Little Sister program, which she began in her church, has now expanded into a burgeoning nonprofit organization and her quest for entrepreneurship, through a janitorial franchise and a women’s retail hat shop, has now transitioned into a directive toward community leadership through her strategic programs, academic research and music. But there is one thing about Tracee Perryman that has remained unchanged over the years: her message of resilience.
 

Perryman, executive director of Center of Hope Family Services, Inc., graduated from Toledo’s St. Ursula Academy in 1997. She completed her undergraduate degree in psychology at the University of Michigan, earned her master’s in mental health counseling from Bowling Green State University and, in 2016, received a doctorate from Ohio State University College of Social Work.

She talked about some of the principles behind her evolution. “When I came out of school I was aggressive about my career,” Perryman said. “Thirteen years ago I wanted to be great, and a for-profit entrepreneur. Today I want to help people define their own greatness.”
 

Today, Perryman describes herself as a social entrepreneur working to offer youth, women, and people of color access to fundamental tools that can help them achieve their own goals. Whether she is implementing expedient procedures for the Center of Hope youth development and family support programs, developing best practice models and creating policies through her academic research, or bringing messages of endurance through the songs she writes and performs, she says that her central objective is to reduce the achievement gap by exposing navigational supports to those who have been marginalized due to race, gender and class.

“Society tries to put you in one box,” Perryman said. “When people don’t understand you and you don’t fit into that box with which they are comfortable, you can face dismissal or isolation. This can often stunt your growth.”
 

Perryman knows first-hand some of the obstacles in society that can obstruct one’s course for success. “Being born a woman of color can be challenging,” she said.  “In our society, women are likely to hear continual messages that contribute to feelings of inadequacy and a sense of being less than.”

She credits her tenacity, in part, to early affirmations she received from her parents: DL and Willetta Perryman, pastor and first lady of Center of Hope

“From the time I was a little girl I was raised to believe that I could,” said Perryman. “I always heard the messages that countered what society was telling me.” She said those messages reminded her to never take no for an answer, to always stand up for herself, and to never cower away because she had nothing to be ashamed of.
 

“I’m one of the one’s who has had the audacity to think outside of the box, and now I want to transfer those same messages to those who may not have heard them before,” she said.

But despite the accolades she’s received, because of her education and social status, Perryman believes that the true markers for success are not always visible.  

“I appreciate recognition, but it isn’t so much about what my title might be,” she said. “But it’s also about what happens when those external measures of success cease to exist. Success emerges when you determine your path and you’re comfortable with who you are. So be upfront and unapologetic about what you want in life, and then begin to hone and shape that path, then once you’re there pay the way forward for someone else.”

Some of her markers for success include: “If you can wake up and feel that you have been just, responsible, reliable, and fair and are doing what God wants you to do, then you have a good chance at success,” she said.

For now Perryman says that her plate is full as she continues to work toward building on existing framework and establishing new programs at Center of Hope. She said that her future academic work will include collaborations with other professionals and contributions to publications. And she will continue to write songs that translate her message to a wider audience. The lyrics to her recent release, ‘Fight Song’, embody her beliefs of persistence and determination and are among the things that she wants to be remembered for.

“I want people to remember me as someone who pushes the paradigm, and helps to translate dreams into realities,” Perryman said. “I want people to push the envelope in their lives and to do things that society may not acknowledge that you can do. People said it was crazy for me to start a nonprofit and be successful. Today, I am proud that I have been able to do things that others said I shouldn’t try to do. Going after the impossible can be possible for you.”

Copyright © 2017 by [The Sojourner's Truth]. All rights reserved.
Revised: 08/16/18 14:12:38 -0700.

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