Saro Mohammed

11/22/2024 |

Executive Director, Capacity Catalyst

Saro Mohammed (she/her), PhD, fights the injustice of knowledge-hoarding by deeply and meaningfully connecting research and practice to improve lives. As a member of the communities she serves, Saro is co-creating a data-just world in which individuals and communities are the primary owners and beneficiaries of their data, including their lived experiences. In this future, each person knows and understands their experiences and the outcomes that they are most interested in, and can use this knowledge about their experience to access supports, resources, and opportunities, to achieve their desired life outcomes and their most personally meaningful potential. As Executive Director of Capacity Catalyst she leads the organization’s core programs: a high touch, mentored, social sector externship; and, in partnership with MEASURE, Huston-Tillotson University, and others, the Community-Engaged Research Course. She is Founder + Principal of Ed Research Works, a consulting firm; and a Lecturer of social justice informatics at UT-Austin’s School of Information. With over 15 years’ experience as a researcher, evaluator, and advisor, Saro conceptualized the Just Ed Research design principles in 2020. Saro holds a PhD in Educational Psychology from UT-Austin, and a Bachelor of Science in brain and cognitive sciences from MIT.

Jennifer Bloom Greenberg

11/22/2024 |

Co-Founder, Emerging Perspectives, LLC

Jennifer Bloom Greenberg (she/her), SM, is a facilitator, poet, social innovator, scholar, and co-founder of Emerging Perspectives, LLC. With a BA from Yale University and a Master of Public Health from Harvard, she has over twenty-five years of experience working health departments, nonprofit organizations, academic institutions, and communities to design, implement, and evaluate programs and strategic plans. She is a skilled facilitator who crafts conversations and processes to inspire innovative thinking and approaches to planning within organizations and communities. Jennifer loves to weave the intellectual and creative worlds together to inform one another. Her work integrates her contemplative and poetry practices as well as her continued studies through The Neuroleadership Institute, The Mindsight Institute, and Prosocial World. She is passionate about possibility and considers her role to be that of meaning maker and sacred space holder, whether she is designing a program evaluation, facilitating a retreat, or engaged in a writing project.

Sunjit Khamba

11/22/2024 |

Senior Consultant, Mission Capital

Sunjit Khamba, MBA, BEng, is a Senior Consultant on the Consulting, Learning, and Leadership team, specializing in organizational change within communities of color. With over eight years of experience, Sunjit combines human-centered design with JEDDI principles—Justice, Equity, Diversity, Decolonization, and Inclusion—to develop impactful, community-driven strategies for public sector clients. Sunjit’s academic background in Engineering and an MBA enhances his unique approach, balancing analytical rigor with deep empathy. Known for fostering inclusive workspaces, he ensures that all voices are heard, empowering participants to co-create solutions. Sunjit is committed to driving systemic change through thoughtful, equitable design.

WyKisha Thomas-McKinney

09/30/2024 |

Owner & Lead Consultant, The Mission Mentor Group

WyKisha R. McKinney (she/her), MNM, is a nonprofit leader with over 20 years of experience in program management, community engagement, and strategic planning. She holds a Master of Nonprofit Management from Regis University and a Bachelor of Arts in Organizational Management from Ashford University. From her early days as a YMCA Camp Counselor to serving on national boards like the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, WyKisha has consistently focused on community development and social change. She is known for her strategic thinking, expertise in community outreach, and ability to foster collaboration among stakeholders. WyKisha excels at developing comprehensive strategies, facilitating large-scale events, and working with funders to set key performance indicators for grant-funded programs. Currently, as a nonprofit consultant through her company, The Mission Mentor Group, and owner of a social enterprise, The TwenTea Company, WyKisha continues to leverage her passion to create lasting, positive change in the communities she serves.

Sonal Shah

09/30/2024 |

CEO, The Texas Tribune

Sonal Shah is the Chief Executive Officer at The Texas Tribune. She has started and led social impact efforts in academia, government, and the private and philanthropic sectors for over 25 years. Previously, she served as interim executive vice president at United Way Worldwide. Sonal founded The Asian American Foundation in Houston and founded and led Georgetown University’s Beeck Center for Social Impact and Innovation. Her background in government and policy include leading the White House Office of Social Innovation and Civic Participation in the Obama administration, serving as an international economist at the Department of the Treasury, and as policy director for Pete Buttigieg’s presidential campaign. In the private sector, Sonal led Goldman Sachs’ environmental strategy and Google’s global technology and impact investment initiatives. Sonal grew up in Houston, earned a B.A. in economics from the University of Chicago and an M.A. in economics from Duke University.