Sandra Upchurch (Memphis, TN) is a Memphis native who graduated from Northside High School and later from LeMoyne-Owen College with a major in chemistry and minors in mathematics and computer science.
 
Sandra manages a unique environmental high school laboratory. Her program (TP3- Tennessee Pollution, Prevention) is part of a state-certified Tennessee green school, the only school that collaborates with the Corps Reform Network.
 
While Sandra worked as a teacher in the Memphis City School System, she earned a master's degree in Human Resources and Development from the University of Tennessee in Knoxville . She participated in research projects funded by the National Institute of Health (NIH) and Center for Disease Control (CDC) and agricultural research sponsored by Monsanto Chemical Corporation in genetically manufactured crops at A & L Laboratories. Sandra has taken coursework in chemical engineering technology and, pending gradation, will earn her second master's in Education Leadership from Christian Brothers University .
 
Sandra has been appointed by the Mayor to serve as a Memphis City Beautiful Commissioner and on the Cypress Creek Health Exposure Committee. Sandra is active member of the American Chemical Society, (ASC) and is a member of the Office of Legislative & Government Affairs (OLGA) and Openness for R& D Research. The Smithsonian Institute has archived her accomplishments as an African American Pioneer.