Amie Ninh

Head of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion and Learning & Development, Clever

Amie Ninh is an equity strategist, coach, learning and development designer, facilitator, and former teacher with experience spanning tech, design, and education industries. She specializes in transforming people processes, systems and policies across the employee lifecycle for more equitable outcomes. Currently, Amie serves as the Head of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DE&I) and Learning & Development (L&D) at Clever, the most widely used single sign-on platform for K-12 education. Prior to joining Clever, she worked at IDEO on the Global L&D team, at Google as a Racial Equity Strategist at the former Center for Racial Equity and Systemic Transformation, and at Teach For America. As a certified professional coach, she weaves together a practice grounded in anti-racism, core energy, and mindfulness philosophy to support others to fully stand in their power and move toward liberation. Amie is the daughter of Vietnamese refugees and currently lives in Chicago with her husband, Kenneth, the son of Vietnamese refugees, and their terrier mix (rescued 8 years ago), Peppers.

Katie Medina

Senior Total Rewards Analyst, NextRoll

Meet Katie Medina, a seasoned Total Rewards professional with a passion for excellence and a heart for people. With six years of versatile industry experience under her belt and armed with an MBA from Lindenwood University, Katie brings a unique blend of strategic insight and practical know-how to the table. A staunch advocate for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI), Katie is committed to fostering workplaces where every individual feels valued, respected, and empowered to thrive. Her dedication to creating safe and inclusive spaces is at the core of her professional ethos, shaping cultures where authenticity reigns supreme. Katie is a beacon of empathy and support, always ready to lend a helping hand during life's most delicate moments. Whether it's navigating the complexities of the healthcare system or celebrating milestones like marriages and the birth of a child, Katie is there, ensuring that employees feel cared for and supported every step of the way. As Katie takes the stage as a panelist, expect nothing short of strategic knowledge and authenticity. With a genuine passion for driving positive change and expertise to back it up, Katie is poised to inspire and uplift others, leaving a lasting impression wherever she goes.

Brandon Samuel

Director of Global Talent, HackerOne

Brandon has 15 years of experience in talent strategy, nonprofit support, consulting and government contracting, partnering with organizations seeking to enhance their team dynamics and drive success. Brandon started his career as a Statistician Analyst, working for the Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division. He pivoted into recruiting 10 years ago, supporting mid-size tech, big tech and is now supporting a scaling tech company. During his tenure at Meta, Brandon played a pivotal role in growing and developing public policy, communications, and governance teams, gaining firsthand experience in one of the world's leading tech companies. Prior to this role, he was responsible for recruitment strategy at Blackboard. One of his most notable accomplishments was being a part of the task force, dedicated to offshoring efforts of Blackboard's engineering team to Bogota, Colombia. Currently, Brandon is Director of Global Talent at HackerOne, a cybersecurity tech company, focused on protecting consumer data worldwide. In addition to leading talent, Brandon is the chair of HackerOne's Black@ employee resource group. His active focus is to make hiring practices equitable across the organization. Most recently, he led efforts to abolish the requirement of a degree for roles outside of legal, accounting and finance. Brandon was raised in the Bronx, New York and currently resides in Washington, DC. He holds a Bachelor's degree in Business Administration from Howard University and a Masters in Human Resources, focused in Organization Development from Georgetown University.

Kym Ali

Founder, Kym Ali Consulting

Kym Ali, an award-winning Registered Nurse, Speaker, Consultant, and Coach, is revolutionizing organizational health in the federal and energy sectors. Recognized as a 2024 Enterprising Woman of the Year, 2023 Maryland Governor Citation Award winner, and Top 25 Speaker of 2023, Kym brings compassion and expertise to her work at Kym Ali Consulting. Using her proprietary A.D.P.E (Assess, Diagnose, Prescribe and Evaluate) Framework, Kym helps organizations nurture their most valuable asset – their people – by identifying and addressing the root causes of challenges. As the host of the "Energy Culture Unplugged" podcast and a sought-after speaker featured on Fox Business, Kym inspires leaders to prioritize employee well-being and drive sustainable success.

Joel Berg

CEO, Hunger Free America

Joel Berg is a nationally recognized leader and media spokesman in the fields of domestic hunger, food security, obesity, poverty, food-related economic development, national service, and volunteerism. He is CEO of Hunger Free America, a nationwide advocacy and direct service organization working to enact the programs and policies necessary to eliminate food insecurity in the U.S. He is also the author of All You Can Eat: How Hungry Is America? , the definitive and most well-reviewed book on American hunger of the last decade. Seven Stories Press just published his second book, America We Need to Talk: a Self-Help Book for the Nation, which Nobel Prize-winner Toni Morrison called important and entertaining. Joel currently leads Hunger Free America, formerly the New York City Coalition Against Hunger. Joining the organization in 2001, Joel has grown the nonprofit into a multi-million-dollar, respected national champion for Americans struggling to obtain nutritious food. Operating on the philosophy, “Ending hunger lifts us all,” Joel and his team advocate for systemic change across the country, seeking higher wages, more living wage jobs, and a stronger nutrition safety net. Joel has recently appeared on MSNBC’s Morning Joe, New York One’s Inside City Hall with Errol Louis, and on C-SPAN. He has also been featured in The New York Times, The Washington Post, and a host of media publications, both domestic and international.

Dr. Yulanda McCarty-Harris, J.D.

Assistant Professor of Practice, Dept. of Educational Leadership & Policy, University of Texas, Austin

Dr. Yulanda L. McCarty-Harris, J.D., is an accomplished and dedicated senior leader and attorney who has 23 years in the public/private sector, including 17 years in higher education. McCarty-Harris serves as an Assistant Professor of Practice in the Executive Ed.D. in Higher Education Leadership Program in the Department of Education and Leadership and Policy at the University of Texas at Austin (UT-Austin). She also is on special assignment as the Director of Assessment in the Office of Admissions on the Recruitment Team at UT-Austin. Prior to that she served as the Director of Culture, Employee Engagement and DEIB in the Texas Development Office working in Talent Development. She has served as a senior leader on three different college campuses, including her additional service at UT-Austin as Director of Missional Critical Initiatives in the Institute on Domestic Violence & Sexual Assault (Steve Hicks School of Social Work); Executive Director for Organizational Culture and Inclusion and Executive Director for the Office of Inclusion and Equity within the Division of Diversity and Community Engagement. McCarty-Harris received her Doctor of Education at UT-Austin in 2022 and is the first African American to graduate from the Executive Ed.D. in Higher Education Leadership Program. She is also a licensed attorney in Texas and Ohio and received her undergraduate degree from UT-Austin and her Juris Doctorate from Southern Methodist University School of Law in Dallas, Texas. Prior to coming to UT, she spent 18 years in Ohio serving in various leadership positions. She served as the Director for the Office for Institutional Equity at Cleveland State University and was also the university’s Title IX Coordinator. She was also the Director of Equal Opportunity and Diversity at Youngstown State University and was a director and senior employment lawyer for the City of Toledo. She is an affiliate practitioner for the nationally acclaimed program, Courageous Conversations about Race, an award-winning protocol for effectively engaging, sustaining, and deepening interracial dialogue, and has a Diversity and Inclusion for HR Certification (Cornell University). She serves on the Governance Committee for Leadership Austin and served as the First Vice President for the American Association for Access, Equity and Diversity (AMAED), the oldest operating association of professionals in the equal opportunity/affirmative action profession (aaaed.org).

Yehwroe S. Martyn

Resilience Loan Fund Program Director, Rise Economy

Yehwroe S. Martyn is a leader in the field of philanthropy and racial and economic justice, currently spearheading the Resilience Fund Program at Rise Economy (formerly the California Reinvestment Coalition). As the driving force behind this groundbreaking $4.5 million initiative, Yehwroe is dedicated to providing capacity building, technical assistance, and grants to a cohort of emerging BIPOC-led Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) across California. With her expertise in project management and a deep understanding of philanthropic initiatives, she ensures that the program makes a lasting impact. Yehwroe brings invaluable firsthand experience to her role at Rise Economy, having worked closely with BIPOC communities historically excluded from mainstream financial systems and lacking access to capital. Her previous positions at advocacy organizations such as the NAACP, Prosperity Now, and the Columbus Urban League have honed her skills in strategic guidance and oversight. She has played a key role in designing and developing funds and investment vehicles aimed at addressing the unique needs and opportunities within BIPOC communities. Outside of her professional commitments, Yehwroe is a dedicated wife and mother to two preschooler boys. Despite her busy schedule, she remains committed to her personal growth and is currently pursuing a part-time graduate degree at USC's Marshall School of Business. When she finds a moment to unwind, Yehwroe enjoys indulging in the soulful melodies of R&B classics. Overall, Yehwroe S. Martyn's unwavering dedication to advancing racial and economic justice shines through in her work and personal life, making her a respected leader and catalyst for positive change.

Jennifer Davda

Chief People & Inclusion Officer, Loeb & Loeb

As Chief People & Inclusion Officer, Jennifer leads Loeb & Loeb's People & DEI efforts to create and implement strategies that support the firm’s goals and objectives. As a former practicing attorney, Jennifer is in a unique position to view the employee experience across the entire firm and enact strategic changes to drive business success while cultivating an inclusive environment. Jennifer and her team partner with leadership to ensure that firm policy and procedure foster a culture of excellence, inclusiveness, and innovation across the organization. Jennifer’s approach is a holistic one, collaborating with key stakeholders and professional development partners to embed principles that elevate firm performance and integrate DEI. With more than 15 years of working at law firms, Jennifer draws on her prior experience to effect change institutionally and individually. In addition, Jennifer is a guest lecturer at Pace University, where she collaborates with the faculty at the Lubin School of Business to help develop cutting-edge curriculum for those interested in pursuing a master's degree in Arts and Entertainment. She holds an undergraduate degree from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and a J.D. from the University of Chicago.

DeMario Bell

Senior Community Manager, Culture Amp

DeMario Bell is a first-generation college graduate and a recognized community builder with a passion for mentorship and diversity & inclusion. He serves as the Senior Community Manager at Culture Amp, an Australian-founded human resources software company. DeMario co-leads the Culture First Community, a global network of over 100,000 HR and people leaders. He has been honored as LinkedIn’s Top Community Voice in 2023 and recognized by CMX as the Best B2B Community Professional and Best Growth Marketing Community in 2024.

Ngozi Okeh

Editor, PracticalESG.com

Ngozi Okeh is an experienced leader with a history of driving efforts to conceptualize, define, assess and promote diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) as strategic business processes. Ngozi is currently the Director of DEI at a leading marketing technology company where she develops and executes enterprise-wide DEI initiatives through rigorous strategic planning efforts, community partnerships, leadership collaboration, strategy evaluation, and careful management of communication and buy-in as well as policies and procedures. Previously, she worked at an independent mortgage bank, where her work resulted in a significant increase in the recruitment, engagement, and retention of employees from underrepresented communities, in addition to increased production of over 10 million dollars by empowering communities of color. As a consultant, Ngozi also partners with associations and companies to develop clear and actionable strategies that drive internal and external DEI objectives. She develops, implements, and monitors programs to attract, engage, and retain diverse teams and communities by leading organization-wide initiatives. She is also a dynamic educator with extensive experience developing training curriculum for all audiences. Ngozi has a master’s in human resources management with an emphasis in diversity and inclusion from Georgetown University. She has a bachelor’s degree in political science and a bachelor’s degree in philosophy from the University of California, San Diego. In her spare time, she enjoys traveling and running half marathons.

Chamraine Brown

Chief Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Officer, United Way Worldwide

Charmaine Brown is the Vice President and Chief Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Officer at United Way Worldwide. In this role, she is responsible for advancing the organization’s DEI commitment by leading the development and implementation of equitable and inclusive strategies that leverage the power of diversity both internally and externally. Prior to joining United Way Worldwide, Brown was Vice President of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at Finance of America Companies where she was Chair of the ESG committee and President of the Finance of America Foundation. Brown was also appointed as one of three Co-Chairs of the Maryland Commission on Climate Change, (MCCC) where she leads the Climate Justice Steering Committee to ensure that equity the lens is applied to the Commission’s recommendations for State’s Green House Gas reduction goals. Previous roles include Director of DEI at the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA). Before her time with the MBA, Charmaine spent 24 years at Fannie Mae. Here she helped to increase access to affordable housing for underserved communities and played a major role in standing up the organization’s Office of Community and Charitable Giving. She also served as Director of DEI at Fannie Mae’s Office of Women and Minority Inclusion (OMWI) for ten years. Charmaine holds a master’s degree in communications from Johns Hopkins University. She completed the Diversity Management Program at Cornell’s ILR School, as well as the Education, Diversity, and Inclusion Leadership Program at the Harvard Kennedy School for Executive Education. Charmaine has been lauded for her success as a leader in business development, corporate social responsibility, and community relations.