Lena is an independent filmmaker and teacher. She has produced, researched, shot and edited multi-platform programs for WHUT-Howard University Television, Fusion TV, Nomadic Wax, Sesame Workshop India, Cultural Survival, Cuba Skate, and the Smithsonian Folklife Festival. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in International Relations from Georgetown University and a master's degree in documentary film from the University of California, Santa Cruz. Her master's thesis, Crenshaw follows the closing of South Los Angeles Crenshaw High School and the destabilizing effect that school closure has on its students, teachers, parents and the surrounding community.