Dr. Elijah Heyward III is a native of Beaufort, South Carolina. He holds degrees from Hampton University, Yale Divinity School, and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and recently completed his Executive MBA at Columbia Business School. At Hampton, he majored in History with a minor in Leadership Studies, graduating from both the Freddye T. Davy Honors College and the William R. Harvey Leadership Institute. He also co-founded the Bigger’s Circle, which supports the Hampton University Museum.
At Yale Divinity School, Elijah served in several leadership roles, including the Student Council, Curriculum Committee, Admissions Committee, and as Co-Chair of the university-wide Yale Black Graduate Network. He was awarded the Yale President’s Public Service Fellowship, through which he founded the Youth Scholar Academy—a national college access initiative developed in partnership with the Institute for Responsible Citizenship supporting young men.
Elijah served as Chief Operating Officer of the International African American Museum in Charleston, South Carolina—a cultural institution encompasing a musuem, Family Reserach Center, and African Memorial Gardens dedicated to exploring the legacy of the transatlantic slave trade and the contributions of African Americans to every facet of American life. During his tenure, he provided executive leadership across brand strategy, capital fundraising, and the successful delivery of the museum’s $100+ million physical buildout, guiding the institution through pivotal phases of growth and organizational development.
He earned his Ph.D. in American Studies from UNC-Chapel Hill, where he curated Beyond Walls: Designs for 20th Century Murals at the Ackland Art Museum and contributed to a national traveling exhibition on Ronald Lockett. His academic focus includes Southern Studies, African American Religion, popular culture, and Gullah/Geechee heritage. His writing appears in The Unfinished Business of Unsettled Things (UNC Press, 2023), and he contributed to Southern as Soul Food, a PBS special exploring the cultural and historical significance of Southern cuisine. He also served as Consulting Producer for the PBS documentary After Sherman, which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival and won Best Documentary at the Santa Barbara Film Festival.
Elijah’s work spans philanthropy, cultural strategy, arts management, strategic investing, and fundraising. A trained artist, he enjoys supporting emerging talent and advancing projects like the Yale Portraits initiative—honoring figures such as Rena Karefa-Smart and James W.C. Pennington—that deepen cultural memory and leaders whose legacies warrant wider recognition.