This week, we are excited to profile Dr. Miranda Ming, superintendent at Momentum Schools in St. Louis, Missouri.
Dr. Miranda Ming’s journey into education began in seventh grade when a pivotal moment changed her trajectory. “I was on the edge,” she said, “caught between rebellion and not applying myself.” After a suspension, a teacher pulled her aside and handed her an adolescent fiction book. That book — though the title escapes her now — opened new doors in Miranda’s mind, sparking dreams she hadn’t dared to imagine before. It was literacy that gave her a new way to envision possibilities beyond her immediate world.
“Literacy has shaped every aspect of my life,” she said. “It allows you to access critical thinking, to communicate, to dream—and it drives everything I do as an educator.”
The adolescent books she read gave her a window into the lives of kids like herself, young people who shared her experiences but lived in different cities or countries and had access to other opportunities. Literacy became the key to not just academic success but belonging and advocacy.
Today, as superintendent of Momentum Academy in St. Louis, Missouri, Miranda draws directly from that experience, ensuring that every student has access to tools that empower them to think critically.
“If kids are empowered to read, to communicate, to express themselves, then they can literally do whatever they want in this world,” she said.
Raised in St. Louis, the youngest of two sisters, Miranda describes herself as “still the same since 14” — strong-willed, vocal, and unafraid to stand up for others. Early in her career, she served in the Jennings School District, just miles from where Michael Brown was killed. The community was in pain and grieving, and trust in the schools had eroded. Miranda felt it in the classroom.
Rather than retreat, Miranda leaned in.
In 2015, Miranda partnered with the University of St. Louis to help launch Collaborative Laboratory Internships and Mentorship Blueprint | UMSL The program offers paid six-week summer research internships for high-ability, low-opportunity high school students in disciplines like biology, chemistry, and computer science. The program has expanded to five districts in St. Louis.
“I saw a community that was angry and harmed start to believe and hope again,” she said. “When kids say, ‘I have a job at Worldwide Technology’ or ‘I work at Emerson,’ it’s transformative.”
Her work with interns not only transformed the students but also challenged adults’ assumptions.
Changing Mindsets, Expanding Perspectives
Miranda recalls a moment when a corporate partner questioned whether her students were “professional” enough because they wore sneakers. The comment seemed small, but Miranda understood what it represented.
“They said Jordans weren’t appropriate,” she remembers. “I told them, you wear sneakers too. Yours are Cole Haans or Aldos. Theirs are Jordans.”
It wasn’t really about footwear. It was about assumptions, about who gets to define professionalism and whose version of it gets taken seriously.
A year later, the company quietly changed its dress code. For Miranda, the lesson was clear. Students weren’t the only ones learning from these internships. Sometimes, adults, especially those in positions of power, needed their perspectives challenged as well.
“Our students didn’t need to change who they were,” she said. “Others needed to see the strength and brilliance they already brought with them.”
A Leap of Faith in Charter Leadership
In 2020, Miranda took on the role of Executive Director at Momentum Academy, a public charter school in Missouri, during the COVID-19 pandemic and arguably one of the most uncertain moments in modern education. She was also facing uncertainty; her infant daughter had come home from the NICU, and she was learning to navigate life as a new mother.
What she found at Momentum moved her.
“It was an environment of people who loved the differences among our kids,” she says. “They loved them — whether they came polished and refined, or whether their speech was curt or beautiful — and I had never in my career in education been around people like that.”
A Culture of High Expectations and Deep Care
That kind of authentic care wasn’t just refreshing — it became the foundation for reinvention. During her early listening tour, inspired by her new role as a mom, Miranda realized that the school’s students weren’t the only ones who needed support. The teachers and staff of the community had been selflessly making sacrifices for these children.
“You can’t say something is a priority if your budget, your schedule, your policies haven’t created the ‘how’ for teachers to work that way,” Miranda said. “COVID gave us the appetite to be honest about where we were falling short. People were willing to dream.”
Miranda led Momentum through a complete reimagining of its mission, values, and systems. The team hired a Director of Adult and Scholar Culture, rewrote wellness policies, and began asking tough questions about how to make school a place where everyone, including teachers and staff, felt supported. At Momentum, excellence and empathy go hand in hand. From revamped maternity leave to staff PTO and student leadership opportunities, the school’s culture is designed to support whole people, not just performance metrics.
“We often act like we have to choose between high expectations and care. But we don’t,” Miranda said. “If people are well and supported, the magic in classrooms is undeniable.”
A Vision for Sustainable Change
In 2022, Miranda co-authored The Path Less Traveled with Dr. Rhonda Key, offering a framework for equity-driven change. But the blueprint she’s most invested in is the one unfolding daily at Momentum where academic rigor, cultural relevance, and radical teacher support come together.
“We have an opportunity — maybe never again in our lifetime — to redefine what it means to educate at a high level,” she said. “And that means educating people. Not test scores. Not discipline data. But actual humans.”
For Miranda, leadership isn’t about charisma or command, but about culture, a culture where people are allowed to be their whole selves.
That focus on sustainability is also guiding the next chapter. In 2025, she was named a Pahara Fellow, joining a network of leaders working to transform public education. This year, after five years at the helm, she is passing the baton to an internal successor — Chief of Schools Liz Valerio with deep roots at Momentum. Miranda will remain for the 2025–2026 school year to ensure a smooth transition.
“I’ve helped build two special organizations that changed lives — but when leadership or the board shifted, it unraveled,” she says. “I didn’t want that to happen here. And for the first time, I’m not scared. We’ve built something that will last.”
Looking ahead, Miranda hopes Momentum continues to grow as a place where high standards and equity work together, empowering staff and teachers alike.
This confidence traces back to that pivotal moment in seventh grade, when a teacher believed in her potential and handed her a book that opened a door. Now, Miranda is opening doors for countless others and leading with a vision that builds a legacy for St. Louis.