Tessara Dudley is an alum of the McNair Scholar Program at Portland State University. They graduated in 2017 with majors in Black Studies, Liberal Studies, and Social Science, and minors in Writing, and History.

Tessara brings a deep love of learning and a passion for equity wherever they go. Determined to explore as much of the world as possible, they have worked in a dental lab, non-profit development and communications, student government, and the Portland State University Queer Resource Center. They started a micro-press in 2015 to publish socially conscious poetry and memoir; were a member of the Bread and Roses Feminist Collective at KBOO Radio; and have written for Black Girl Dangerous, and the Portland Observer. They have led workshops on poetry writing, oral storytelling, community representation, feminist zines, and disability justice.

Studying race, class and gender in labor history, Tessara hopes to foster in their community the same love of history that professors brought out in them. Their undergraduate research focused on the experiences of African-descended women in labor and the US economy.