Sonia Gipson Rankin

Professor of Law, The University of New Mexico School of Law

Inform. Inspire. Innovate. Professor of Law with a research focus on technology, race, and the law. Published scholar and award-winning professor for excellence in scholarship, teaching, and service. Higher education administrator with extensive experience in leadership, strategic planning, and curriculum and program development. Recipient of local and national awards for higher education administrator for excellence in curricular and co-curricular development. Featured in international and local media outlets to provide legal insight on constitutional and criminal matters. Sought after public speaker on matters regarding implicit bias, artificial intelligence, race, and criminal justice.

Bashan McLeod

Transportation Engineer, Maryland State Highway Administration

Ms. Bashan McLeod is a detail-oriented Civil Engineer – Transportation Engineer with 5+ years of experience and enthusiasm for solving complex problems. Ms. McLeod received her Master of Engineering Degree in Civil Engineering from Morgan State University in May 2017. She currently works as a transportation engineer and project manager at MDOT SHA. In this role, she compiles and completes the necessary tasks and requirements needed to finish projects; from feasibility studies to sidewalk installations, and major highway projects. She assists in planning, design, and traffic-related functions which could include the following: meeting project milestones, developing alternatives, attending public meetings, evaluating design criteria against project constraints, creating estimates performing constructability reviews, reviewing and designing roadway plans, performing construction inspection for proposed roadway improvement projects, providing traffic/travel demand information, and conducting or reviewing traffic engineering analysis. She also owns two successful businesses. An event planning/decorating company as well as a travel agency. She has been in business for over 5 years as a planner and 1 year as a travel agent. She balances this work along with her corporate work with grace and care. Ms. McLeod is a well-rounded individual who excels both personally and academically. She is highly dedicated to the work she performs and has the capability to learn quickly. She displays optimism and determination well and she believes anything is possible as long as you set your mind to it. Success is not given but earned. In all that she does, Bashan puts forth her best effort to succeed.

Kendrick McLeod

Assistant Solicitor, City of Baltimore

As an Assistant Solicitor for Baltimore City’s Law Department, I provide legal counsel and representation to the city's agencies and officials on various labor and employment matters, such as disciplinary matters, discrimination, harassment, wage and hour, and civil rights. I also handle litigation, arbitration, mediation, and administrative hearings, as well as draft and review policies and agreements. I have a strong legal background and skills, with a degree in Law from Widener University School of Law and a study abroad experience in Comparative Constitutional Law and Family Law at University of Nairobi. I have also obtained a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in the Workplace Certificate from USF Corporate Training and Professional Education, which demonstrate my commitment to fostering a fair and inclusive work environment. I am proficient in Microsoft Word, Excel, and Office, as well as legal research and analysis tools.

Jarrett Carter Sr.

Vice President of External Affairs, Communications, and Advancement (Howard Community College)

Jarrett Carter Sr. is the founding editor of the HBCU Digest (2010-2021) and worked with dozens of historically Black institutions, higher education advocacy groups, corporations, and nonprofit organizations to foster stronger ties between the HBCU sector and diverse industries. As a corporate communications and higher education subject matter expert, he specializes in crisis and external communications, executive search, programmatic development, and constituent relations. As a reporter, Carter covered every significant legislative, financial, and policy-based action impacting America's HBCUs over a career spanning 12 years. He was the authoritative fact-gathering and editorial voice on issues concerning accreditation action, federal guidance on Title IX policy, appropriations, cultural phenomena, and leadership trends. In print, he has been featured in Black Enterprise, Ebony Magazine, the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, the Washington Post, The Economist, the Huffington Post, and the Chronicle of Higher Education, in addition to dozens of industry publications and local news affiliates. In broadcast, he has been a featured education expert on CNN, MSNBC, Huffington Post and NBC. In private industry and government, his stops as communications lead and spokesperson include Morgan State University, Volunteers of America, BGE, and Howard County Government. A native of Seat Pleasant, MD, Carter's expertise areas include accreditation, crisis and external communications development, faculty and student engagement, recruitment, legislative lobbying and monitoring, corporate engagement and relationship building, media training, and academic program assessment and development.

Rolicia Martin

Assistant Director for Advising Training & Technology, Office of Student Success and Retention

Education is my passion! I am a driven higher education professional eager to successfully grow the next generation of STEM professionals shaking up the research arena. I work closely with university vice presidents, academic deans, department chairpersons, and program directors to create a robust first-year experience that sets the foundation for retention and graduation. With nearly eight years of academic advising and retention experience and four years as an educational technology specialist, I am committed to providing the highest level of higher education administration and management in student success. In my free time, I enjoy creative arts and traveling.

Nikelene Mclean, Ph.D.

Faculty Research Assistant, University of Maryland

I am a geospatial biologist with a diverse array of experience in environmental parameterization, ecological monitoring, climate adaptation and international environmental policy. I am keenly interested in promoting the use of data and tools which can be used to support the management of marine and coastal resources. I believe that these data and tools, in collaboration with earnest stakeholder engagement and strategic partnerships, can help support the equitable development of sustainable environmental resources and communities on a global scale.

Tiara Riley

HR Manager, Flytrex

Meticulous, responsive, and thoughtful Human Resources Professional who is passionate about serving her employees and managers. Proven ability to juggling multiple priorities while performing with excellence, integrity, and compassion. Well-rounded in full employee life cycle with a passion for operational culture, training & development, and leadership engagement. An experienced leader with proven ability to manage a team of 5 - 125+ and up to a $110M budget with over 15 years’ experience in the Human Resources field.

Dia'Monique Morton

Executive Recruiter, Orbis Clinical Staffing

Hi I'm Dia'Monique! I currently work at Orbis Clinical Staffing as an executive recruiter. Orbis Clinical is a leading global recruiting partner to the life sciences industry; we have been driving the success of our clients, consultants, and employees in staffing and consulting services since 2004. We provide multiple solutions spanning permanent and temporary placement to clients ranging from venture-backed start-ups through Fortune 500 firms. Our mission is to provide the world's leading life science companies with expertise essential to treating devastating diseases.

Julian Culver

Postdoctoral Research Associate at Brown University

Greetings! I’m Julian Culver, and currently serve as a Postdoctoral Research Associate in Brown University’s Department of Sociology. I earned a BA in Psychology/Sociology, and MS in Sociology from the University of Texas at San Antonio, and Ph.D. in Sociology from Rice University. My passion for equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) drives me to create positive change through research and collaboration. I develop the department’s EDI initiatives, manage and analyze administrative data, conduct interviews on departmental climate, and construct reports based on my findings. I present my findings within the Department of Sociology and across various departments at Brown University, advancing the department’s EDI initiative goals. My academic training prepared me to seamlessly connect theory and practice, yielding the best outcomes for each initiative. Moreover, in close collaboration with department staff, I led the creation of our first Diversity and Inclusion webpage. This resource hub educates readers about the significance of EDI in their professional and personal lives. Specifically, I included modules that delve into topics such as implicit bias, cultural sensitivity, and resolving workplace conflict. On top of that, I routinely publish heritage month spotlights that honor the histories and contributions of historically marginalized groups. These spotlights provide an opportunity for individuals to learn about the histories of those who have triumphed over adversity to create opportunities for everyone. I believe in the strength of diversity, and I take great pride in my work and its ability to spark meaningful conversations and positive transformation. Let’s connect and discover how we can cultivate a more equitable and inclusive world within and beyond academia.

Savon V Bardell

Program Manager

King's College London MA Critical Theory & Literature MA Highly motivated and intellectually curious individual pursuing a Master's degree in Critical Theory at Kings College in London. With a research focus on literature and composition, I am dedicated to exploring the intricacies of literary reproduction and its impact on the cultural landscape. I aspire to further develop my understanding of the literature industry. University of California, Berkeley Bachelor of Arts - BA, Rhetoric and Composition, Image and Narrative Activities and societies: The Undergraduate Rhetoric Society, Black Pre-Law Association

Kamden Strunk

Associate Professor, Foundations of Education

Dr. Kamden Strunk is an Associate Professor in the Research, Assessment, and Evaluation concentration in the Department of Foundations of Education. He primarily teaches quantitative research methods, and has also taught in the areas of educational foundations, social justice, educational psychology, and human development. His research focuses in three broad areas: critical quantitative methodologies, intersectional queer studies in education, and critical approaches to the psychology of education.

David Chartash

Lecturer in Biomedical Informatics and Data Science

Dr. Chartash's interests are in understanding the adage in medicine that, The history is the foundation of diagnosis, management and rapport with the patient, and that diagnosis is based on, first, a focused and meticulous history, followed by a focused and confirmatory physical examination and ending with a parsimonious ancillary investigation. — Crombie, D. L. "General Practice Today and Tomorrow. X. Diagnostic Methods." The Practitioner 191 (1963): 539-545. Methodologically, his research aims to model information within the medical record and clinical encounter through the use of cognitive science, computational linguistic and complex systems science approaches. Dr. Chartash earned his bachelor's degree in engineering science from The University of Western Ontario in electrical engineering, focusing on biomedical signals and systems analysis. He completed a masters degree in health science by research at the University of Toronto in clinical engineering, during the course of this degree, practicing as an engineer at the Toronto Health Economics and Technology Assessment Collaborative and Toronto General Hospital. He holds a doctorate in philosophy from Indiana University Bloomington, specializing in medical informatics and complex systems. During the course of this doctorate he was a fellow at the Center for Biomedical Informatics at the Regenstrief Institute, as well as the Department of Pediatrics at the Indiana University School of Medicine.

Sandra Barnes

Professor and Department Chair

SANDRA L. BARNES is the C.V. Starr Professor of Sociology. Prior to coming to Brown University, Barnes was a joint appointed Professor of Sociology in the Department of Human and Organizational Development in Peabody College and the Divinity School at Vanderbilt University (2008-2019). She also served as the Assistant Vice Chancellor for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion at Vanderbilt (2016-2018). Dr. Barnes was the first female African American Assistant Vice Chancellor in the history of Vanderbilt University. Professor Barnes is engaged in mixed-methodological research on race and religiosity, in general, and the Black Church, in particular, as well as religion/spirituality and sexuality. Her scholarship also considers ways in which poor and working class urbanites are adaptive and resilient. Phi Beta Kappa, her academic record includes: 9 books; 3 edited volumes; over 60 peer-reviewed articles; 10 book chapters; 3 documentaries; a seven-year stint as editor of Issues in Race & Society: An Interdisciplinary Global Journal; and, PI or Co-PI on grants totaling over $2.5 million dollars. Some of her book publications include: Kings of Mississippi: Race, Religious Education, and the Making of a Middle Class Black Family in the Segregated South (with Ms. Benita Blanford-Jones, Cambridge University Press 2019); Empowering Black Youth of Promise: Education and Socialization in the Village-minded Black Church (with Dr. Anne Streaty-Wimberly, Routledge Press 2016); Live Long and Prosper: How Black Megachurches Address HIV/AIDS and Poverty in the Age of Prosperity Theology (Fordham University Press 2013); and, The Costs of Being Poor: A Comparative Study of Life in Poor Urban Neighborhoods in Gary, Indiana (SUNY Press 2005). Her articles have been published in SOCIAL FORCES, Social Problems, Journal of African American Studies, and Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion. Professor Barnes’ 2018 Emmy-nominated documentary, “Gary, Indiana: A Tale of Two Cities,” examines the influence of Black churches in poor urban spaces (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uVNKiGCD9r0). Two subsequent documentaries, “About the Kids: Vol. 1 and 2,” focus on public education in Gary, Indiana (https://youtu.be/nNMrjD2vors and https://youtu.be/oPpWXGArFN0). Professor Barnes served as the two-time President of the Association of Black Sociologists (2010-2012) and has presented her research in Beijing, China, Curitiba, Brazil, Dublin, Ireland, and at the Congressional Black Caucus of the Congress of the United States in Washington, D.C. Professor Barnes is the recipient of the 2019 Cox-Johnson-Frazier Award conferred by the American Sociological Association.

Katie Doucet

Student Advisor

Katie Doucet is the Advisor in the Yale School of Public Health Student Affairs Office for the PhD/MS program. Prior to joining Student Affairs, she was the Assistant Director of the Development Core at Yale University’s Center for Interdisciplinary Research on AIDS (CIRA) and managed the day to day operations of the Development Core including the Peer Review Program, Pilot Project Program, Yale AIDS Prevention Training Program (Y-APT), the Research Education Institute for Diverse Scholars (REIDS) Fellowship, and other activities. Katie's previous positions include the Program Coordinator for the Becoming Breastfeeding Friendly research project and the Global Health Concentration, both within the Yale School of Public Health. In these roles, she was the principal source for information on policies, procedures, and office activities across the programs, and managed communications, grant support, and support staff. Additionally, she contributed to the creation of peer reviewed articles, providing editorial support, literature reviews and data organization. Prior to her time at Yale, she spent 12 years working in the UK Civil Service on policy development and implementation both in central government and at the local level. Katie holds a Bachelor of Arts (hons) degree in Sociology from the University of Essex, UK.