Empowering Change through Leadership, Education, and Justice

With extensive experience building and leading social impact organizations, I am dedicated to the ongoing work of Transmuting white supremacy and patriarchy in both my personal and professional life. From my time as a high school teacher and principal in Oakland, CA, to serving as the COO of a national racial equity organization, I’ve been at the forefront of systemic transformation. As a facilitator and coach, I work with executive teams, boards, and staff to guide organizations toward true racial equity and inclusive leadership.

Beyond organizational development, I’ve also served as a Police Commissioner and community organizer, focusing on ending police violence against marginalized communities, especially Black people who bear the brunt of state violence.

After 30+ years in education and social impact work, I am even more committed to reshaping our governmental and educational systems to dismantle the historical disparities that continue to harm marginalized communities. The tools of Cultivating Intersectional Leadership are my commitment to a lifetime of unlearning and transformation.

Co-creator of Cultivating Intersectional Leadership with Diedra Barber
Cultivating Intersectional Leadership is an online course designed to empower individuals and organizations to understand, interrupt, and transmute white supremacy and patriarchy. This course allows participants to engage in deep reflection and practical action while developing leadership that fosters true equity, inclusivity, and justice. Through this transformative journey, leaders gain the tools to confront and dismantle oppressive systems in their personal and professional lives, creating lasting, systemic change.

Chief Operating Officer and Director of Summit, Pacific Educational Group
Pacific Educational Group is dedicated to achieving racial equity in education. I facilitated spaces that transformed beliefs, behaviors, and results, helping schools and organizations move toward sustainable racial equity. My commitment to justice and equity guided my approach, particularly in developing strategies to combat institutionalized racism within educational systems.

Founding Principal, Youth Empowerment High School, Oakland, CA
At YES, we applied principles of personal and academic empowerment, social consciousness, and critical engagement to foster a healthy, justice-driven learning community. I led efforts to involve students, staff, and community members in governance, decision-making, and continuous reflection on our practices. Through a shared commitment to equity, we worked to ensure that all voices were heard and valued, creating a safe space where students could explore their potential and prepare for impactful futures.

Reform Coordinator, Fremont High School, Oakland, CA
As part of the movement to create smaller, more personalized schools within Oakland, I helped establish new, autonomous schools at Fremont High, focusing on addressing the achievement gap and promoting student-centered learning. I worked directly with community leaders to build a school model that would challenge the status quo and provide underserved students with the support and resources they needed to succeed academically and socially.

English Teacher, Fremont High School, Oakland, CA & Cross Keys High School, Atlanta, GA
Through teaching English in diverse, underfunded schools, I developed a keen understanding of how education must evolve to meet the needs of marginalized communities. I used my platform to foster critical thinking, creativity, and self-expression, while simultaneously challenging students to engage with the world around them and question systems of power and oppression.

Director of HIV/AIDS Educational Youth Outreach, Emory University/Red Cross, Atlanta, GA
This role deepened my commitment to health equity and youth empowerment. By leading educational outreach programs in marginalized communities, I ensured that young people had the knowledge and resources needed to protect themselves and their communities from HIV/AIDS. The experience reinforced my belief that systemic change is necessary to address public health disparities and that education is a powerful tool for change.