Theresa Noni Charles African-centered foundation began in Chicago, where she attended Shule Ya Watoto preschool, and continued at an African-centered elementary and middle school. This foundation was further strengthened at home.

After earning a B.A. in Marketing and Management from Clark Atlanta University, she founded an event production company that produced three Afrocentric bridal shows in Chicago. After completing an event management program at George Washington University, she took a course in heritage tourism that inspired her to travel abroad.

In 1999, she co-organized a Rites of Passage Research Study Tour to Ghana, West Africa. In 2002, Theresa founded SankofaSpirit, a non-profit organization whose mission was to provide cultural and educational programs and services. She continued coordinating groups to Ghana and expanded to the Gullah Sea Islands. In 2005 she hosted the first Movies with a Mission film screening in her home that later expanded to a monthly film series held in Atlanta, Chicago, and DC area. Her passion for youth led her to create in 2007 Passport 2 Adventure, an educational travel program for young people to discover the cultural connections between Africa and the Diaspora. This program was designed to explore destinations in Africa, South and Central America, the Caribbean, and Europe.

Today SankofaSpirit, still true to our mission, now provides an online learning lab of enrichment classes and cultural resources.