Allyship Certificate Series

Anne brings over 25 years’ experience helping organizations advance their diversity, equity & inclusion goals. She is adept at assessing an organization’s strengths and challenges and tailoring her approach to its context, culture, and goals.

With extensive experience in training, teaching, curriculum development, and training of trainers, Anne has delivered hundreds of workshops and classes for thousands of participants in corporate, government, higher education, non-profit, healthcare, small business and faith community settings.

Anne built a successful diversity and inclusion leadership program at the University of Minnesota, with a focus on emotional intelligence (EI), and she is an EI Practitioner certified in the EQ-i2.0 and EQ360 methods. As Director of Education at the University of Minnesota, she was responsible for developing and implementing their successful Certificate Program, a series of 10 workshops designed to increase capacity for diversity and inclusion work across every part of the institution.

A seasoned consultant, Anne is able to work with small and large organizations on a variety of diversity, equity & inclusion needs, including diversity assessments, diversity action plans, customized diversity training, and inclusive leadership development. Anne earned her PhD in Philosophy and Feminist Studies from the University of Minnesota and lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Kaitlin brings over 10 years of inclusive leadership experience and business innovation to the team. With a strong corporate background in crisis and change management, she is passionate about building empowered teams and organizational cultures that interrupt systems of oppression and marginalization.

Kaitlin serves as a Diversity Educator and on the Chancellor’s Commission for LGBTQ People at the University of Tennessee, where she earned a Masters degree in Educational Psychology with a research focus in Critical HROD and Queer Empowerment. Her approach to social justice work balances reformist activism with mindfulness and emotional intelligence.

Kaitlin lives on the Little Feminist Farm just outside of Atlanta, where she and her partner enjoy sustainable homesteading and host holistic wellness workshops and sanctuary retreats.

SooJin is passionate about increasing workplace diversity, fostering inclusion, and creating access and opportunity for those who have been historically left out, in order to level the playing field. That is why she has devoted the past two decades working to center the lives and experiences of historically marginalized peoples in her roles as a professor and DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) professional. As a self-care practitioner, SooJin has led workshops across the country on how to maintain work/life balance and how to take care of yourself when taking care of others. SooJin is a subject matter expert in all things DEI, as she has taught courses on race, gender, class, and sexuality and U.S. history and culture at various colleges and universities in the Twin Cities area. A dynamic speaker and educator, she is skilled in making learning interactive, interesting, and relevant to the lives of workshop participants.

An alumna of Howard University, SooJin received her MA in English. She earned her PhD in American Studies at the University of Minnesota, specializing in women of color feminism, critical race theory, and comparative race and ethnic studies (African American, Asian American, Latinx, and American Indian studies). She is the author of From Orphan to Adoptee: U.S. Empire and Genealogies of Korean Adoption (University of Minnesota Press, 2014). Her writings on DEI, self-care, motherhood, African American literature, and Korean adoption have appeared in various journals and anthologies.

Linda Wolford currently serves as the Interagency Coordinator for the Disability Services Division of the Minnesota Department of Human Services. She coordinates employment, workforce shortage and other Olmstead initiatives across DHS, the Department of Employment And Economic Development and other state agencies. In addition, she is currently the co-chair of the Employees with Disabilities Employee Resource Group. She formerly worked at DHS doing home care policy, working on employment initiatives and consumer directed personal care assistance services under several federal grants.

Linda has spent the majority of her career at the University of Minnesota where she served as a manager for 9 ½ years at the Disability Resource Center and previously as Director and formerly Associate Director of the Diversity Institute where she provided training about many aspects of human difference and diversity. Linda has done numerous trainings, workshops and keynote speeches on the topics of disability and diversity on both the local and national levels.

Linda obtained her Masters in Science in Counseling Psychology with a Rehabilitation emphasis from St. Cloud State University and a B.A. in Criminal Justice Studies also from St. Cloud State. She has served on the board of numerous nonprofits and in various community service capacities.

Linda is a consultant for Strategic Diversity Initiatives specializing on issues of disability and inclusion. She resides in Roseville, MN and enjoys music, hanging out with friends and traveling.

Gina is owner of Revelation Road, a coaching and experiential training company. Her two scopes of work intersect where people are seen, heard, and valued.

 As a CPCC, Gina coaches business leaders and individuals leading in their lives, to tap into their personal resourcefulness, potential and identity, further expanding their capacity to learn, grow, and achieve results. She is on a mission to help more people live with purpose, create impact, and define life on their terms.

Certified in Conversational Intelligence, a communication methodology based in neuroscience,

Gina works with leaders and teams to help them experience greater trust, connection, and shared success by elevating the quality of their conversations through human-centered skills and conversational practices. She believes conversations are most powerful when they are used to create belonging, inclusion, equity, and innovation. 

Known as an inspirational leader for her intuitive, creative, and authentic approach, Gina has 25+ diverse years in leadership, professional development, employee engagement, and culture transformation. She is trained in 4mat learning methodology, a design approach that recognizes the differences in how human beings learn and provides a dynamic way to move groups through learning and training.

She would tell you that one of the most meaningful acknowledgements she has received is being called a “people whisperer” and for her ability to create safe and courageous space for growth and transformation to take place. Gina resides in beautiful Knoxville, TN with her partner, John, and her dog, Ladybird.