RISING SOUTH About Rising South
We bring art, culture, and learning into community efforts to prevent violence and widen opportunity.
Art that invites healing. Learning that creates choices.
Rising South Literacy School is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit committed to celebrating the voices of youth, survivors, and community members. We work to revitalize community vision and pride through health and wellness activities, cultural expression, and education. We address barriers to growth, create space for youth and survivors to be heard, and use art to support personal and community healing.
Community voice
Arts programs invite young people, artists, victims of violence, and survivors to tell stories in their own words.
Learning
College and scholarship guidance helps students see and pursue more paths forward.
Prevention
Creative projects and conversations bring attention to violence, trauma, and ways to build peace.
Our history and direction
Rising South is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit whose roots in community service reach back more than two decades. Dr. Dedra Muhammad and her late husband, Phillip Muhammad, founded the organization around the belief that art, literacy, and leadership can transform communities across North Alabama.
We believe change moves faster when neighbors, educators, artists, businesses, and community organizations work together. Rising South aims to be a place where people connect around literacy, cultural expression, health, and safer neighborhoods. We celebrate excellence and encourage young people to seek knowledge, create, and lead.
Our community work has included sharing meals with neighbors facing hardship, health workshops, and conversations about violence in local neighborhoods. Rising South’s documented programs also connect literacy, youth development, career readiness, scholarships, STEM learning, and cultural expression.
The Phillip Muhammad Leadership Foundation
Empowering tomorrow’s leaders today.
The Phillip Muhammad Leadership Foundation is a subsidiary of Rising South Literacy School. Its mission is to increase community safety through programs designed to encourage excellence among young people.
Dr. Dedra Lori Muhammad
Dr. Muhammad is the co-founder and executive director of Rising South Literacy School. She founded the organization with her late husband, Phillip Muhammad. An educator, counselor, author, and community builder, she connects literacy and cultural expression with opportunities for young people to learn, lead, and serve.
She has worked in education for nearly three decades and serves as a college and career readiness counselor at Sparkman High School. She holds a Ph.D. in Counseling and Human Services from Capella University, a master’s degree in Counselor Education from Indiana University, and a bachelor’s degree from the University of Michigan.
Selected moments in our history
Our published work includes a 2022 youth conversation with Chuck D about gun violence and conflict resolution, the Hidden Princess Book and Movie Retreat, and the Run for Hope, Walk for Peace initiative. These highlights are part of a larger story that we will continue documenting.
Explore selected highlights Explore our programs
See Rising South’s nonprofit listing ↗ and published projects ↗.