Soul Ground Leadership Coaching

khalif has spent more than 25 years working at the nexus of organizational leadership and social change spanning education, nonprofit and philanthropy sectors where he’s held both executive and program directorships, and supported many leaders in dynamic institutional and cultural contexts during pivotal times of change. His background in non-profit management, school leadership, program development, relational philanthropy, and facilitation has focused on fostering transformative capacity in school systems and communities toward greater equity and deeper learning and supported and elevated efforts to bring social justice and sustainability to the center of our purpose as educators and learners. He believes in collaborative, relational leadership that’s grounded in a liberatory mindset and spirited self-awareness as the key to unlocking the transformative capacity in individuals, teams, and organizations. khalif is a mixed African American, cis-gender man born in the Allegheny Mountains. In addition to Soul Ground, he’s a consultant, educator, and gardener who works with ecosystem rebalancing efforts where he makes his home in coastal Maine

Jonah’s Website

Jonah Canner is an ambassador from the world we have not yet built. He believes in people, community, and the sacred obligation we have to make positive change in the world around us. Jonah’s primary areas of focus include racial equity, restorative justice, experiential education, and working through conflict. Jonah has been on the founding team of a public high school, a summer camp, a national education organization and an international change initiative. He has worked as a classroom teacher, a summer camp director, and a consultant offering mentoring, training, and support for individuals and organizations. Jonah has a Masters in Education from the New School University in New York. His current work projects include: How’re You Doing with Your Whiteness - a course for white educators working to embody an Antiracist practice; the Oregon Racial Justice Institute - a fellowship and series of monthly learning sessions supporting educators of color across the state of Oregon. Jonah also works as an advisor supporting summer camps across the US and Canada. In his free time Jonah is writing a collection of memoir essays that explore questions of grief, identity, ancestry, and place.

Lori’s LinkedIn

Lori Tapahonso (Diné/Acoma Pueblo) is a multifaceted creative and communications consultant, deeply rooted in the realms of public relations, journalism, theater, and film. With a passion for education and a commitment to preserving cultural heritage, she serves as a cultural liaison, educator, and advocate for accurate Indigenous representation in the entertainment industry.

Lori's journey in the entertainment sector is defined by her unwavering dedication to equity, social justice, and authentic portrayal. As the founder of Indig●Image, her innovative business venture, she not only produces compelling TV and film projects, but also provides culturally specific consulting, imparting invaluable insights as an Indigenous professional in filmed entertainment.

Educationally, Lori possesses a rich academic background, having earned a master’s degree in Liberal Arts- Management and Leadership from Baker University, a bachelor’s degree in Communication Studies from The University of Kansas, and an associate’s degree in Theater Arts from Haskell Indian Nations University. Her extensive higher education background has not only honed her skills, but also equipped her to bridge the gap between academia and the entertainment industry.

Beyond her institutional roles, Lori is a natural storyteller, gifted jeweler, and seasoned actor, utilizing her creative talents to shift false and amplify accurate Indigenous narratives. As a consultant, she crafts Communication-specific and culturally responsible training seminars and programs for organizations and tribal nations, emphasizing the importance of authentic communication and understanding in diverse contexts.

Defined by her tireless advocacy for Indigenous voices, her dedication to education, and her pivotal role in reshaping the landscape of entertainment, she creates inclusive, equitable, and culturally sensitive spaces. Through her diverse skill set and unwavering commitment, she continues to inspire change and create impactful, culturally resonant narratives in the world of media and beyond.

SeeChange

Aimee Craig is an experienced facilitator and strategist. She is skilled at guiding groups to shared decisions and creating processes that honor lived experience and diverse perspectives.

Aimee works with leaders to clarify and live their mission, vision, and values through their meeting and process design, engagement, and communications. Directing communications and public affairs in the non-profit and government sectors, Aimee has led engagement processes with students, teachers, families, and school administrators and designed multi-year strategic communications plans. With partners in early learning, K-12 education, and philanthropy, Aimee has facilitated multi-year learning communities and short-term, decision-making workgroups. She prioritizes joy and connection as tools for change.

Delma Jackson III is a father, a facilitator, writer, and lecturer on multiple social justice topics. He is also a Senior Director at Metropolitan Group, and a Senior Fellow at the Center for Whole Communities.

His academic background includes a BS in African-American Studies and Psychology from Eastern Michigan University and a Masters degree in Liberal Arts with a concentration in American & African-American Studies at the University of Michigan.

He has twice conducted research on Afro-European identity in the Netherlands in both 1999 and again in 2014—studying slavery in the Netherlands, 21st century migration and immigration across Western Europe, and the impact of racialized pop-culture on Afro-Dutch identity.

He has lectured and/or facilitated workshops at a host of national agencies, and academic institutions including: New York University's, Tisch School for Performing Arts, the University of Michigan Ann Arbor, the National Conference on Race and Ethnicity in Higher Education (NCORE), the United States Conference on AIDS, The Office of Sustainability at Dartmouth College, the US Fish and Wildlife Service, the US Forest Service, and across various regions of Planned Parenthood, and the National Education Association.

Ashley Stapleton, MBA, (she/her) leads strategic communication and organizational strategy and innovation projects for nonprofits, foundations and organizations. She works to interrupt dominant narratives and centers relationships throughout all of her work. Her experience is largely in the philanthropic sector and has a decade of experience working with national funders on their strategic communication strengths and needs. She has a strong attention to detail while continuously holding space for the larger strategy and overarching project or organizational goal.

Scott Nine’s Website

Moving into a more emergent and powerful future calls for courage, spirit, practice, and commitment. Scott is an eager student, playfully intense, and drawn to the intersections of spirit, justice, and governance.

Scott has recently returned to consulting after spending four and a half years launching and leading the Office of Education Innovation and Improvement at the Oregon Department of Education. He is an accomplished leader, facilitator, organizer, and strategist with a knack for operationalizing big ideas. He has a strong understanding and skillset to support the kinds of teams, culture, strategies, and communities needed to attend to the promises and dreams of young people, families, educators, legislators, and community partners. He’s spent two decades organizing, writing, speaking, and learning about what it takes to foster equity for students and rewire public education systems.

Meeting the present from a big future horizon now has Scott’s focus. This includes cultivating leaders of all ages who are ready to step into sacred stewardship for land, water, people and place.

Scott doesn’t work alone. Teams of teams is where the action is. No one is alone. Deep change doesn’t take everyone, but it starts with purpose and a crew. He’s been blessed by amazing teammates and colleagues who continue to bring energy, clarity, and wisdom to the world.

Once upon a time, Scott taught middle-school English. He has a Master’s degree in Social Work from Arizona State University, and has led five start-up projects of very different scales.

Licensed Clinical Social Worker

Rita is a licensed clinical social worker and has worked at the intersections of community wellness, education, and healthcare equity for 20 years. As a facilitator, consultant, and healer, she strives to uphold a healing justice framework, recognizing and addressing the impact of individual, collective, and systemic trauma on our bodies, minds, and hearts.

Rita believes that by centering the body in liberation work, we welcome in wholeness and are better equipped to move with integrity and in alignment with our values. Through sharing accessible practices and frameworks that bring us into relationship with our bodies, Rita supports individuals and groups in drawing from this innate wisdom and leaning into transformative change.

In addition to direct practice as a therapist and clinical supervisor, she has crafted embodiment-centered workshops around Cultural Humility, Resilience and Justice, and Healing from White Supremacy Culture. Rita draws from her own healing journey to facilitate embodied liberation for all and is passionate about somatics, meditation and movement, reproductive justice, intergroup dialogue, and ethical nonprofit management.

Founder, Rise Consulting

Sarika (Sah’-ri’-kah) Tandon facilitates, consults, speaks, teaches, writes, and collaborates at the intersection of race, liberation, and environmental issues. Sarika is deeply committed to working for racial, environmental, and climate justice, and to center the power, brilliance, agency, and well-being of communities of color.

In her work, Sarika partners with organizations and communities to support the well-being and healing of BIPOC communities, re-imagine programs and professional learning to center justice and liberation, and to support racially equitable processes and outcomes. She served as Curriculum Director of the Racial Equity Leadership Lab at The Nature Conservancy’s Cities Network and is a Network Facilitator for the IDEA Institute’s Racial Justice Institute.

Sarika has been a Lecturer at the University of Vermont, where she has taught about Race and Racism in the US and is a former Adjunct Faculty member at Antioch University New England Graduate School of Environmental Studies. She is a Board Member of the Haymarket People’s Fund.

Sarika is a first generation Indian-American, who grew up in the suburbs of Rochester NY. Her family comes from the foothills of Himachal Pradesh. She earned dual degrees in Peace and Conflict Studies and Conservation and Resource Studies at the University of California at Berkeley, where she was deeply inspired by the East Bay Area’s rich activist history. Sarika holds a Master's degree from Antioch University New England’s Department of Environmental Studies with a concentration on in Social Justice and Sustainability. She lives in the Abenaki homelands with her human, and animal family.

Jimmy Snyder, PhD, (he/him) is a citizen of the Kickapoo Tribe in Kansas. He is an Assistant Clinical Professor and Assistant Director for the Institute for Native-serving Educators (INE) at Northern Arizona University. He helps provide collaborative leadership for INE programs, as well as serves as Anchor Faculty for INE’s newest initiative entitled, Preparing Indigenous Teachers for Arizona Schools (PITAS). He recruits, teaches, and provides leadership for the paraprofessional cohort. He has taught social studies on the Kickapoo reservation in Kansas, the Navajo Nation in New Mexico, and has years of experience working on a tribal college campus. Research interest and areas of expertise include Indigenous education, philosophy, and history, settler colonial theory, Indigenous feminism, athletic coaching, social studies education, curriculum development, and teacher education.

Regina D. Laurie is an experienced facilitator, creator of reflective group processes, and coach to people and organizations committed to building equity from the inside out. Her approach to working with groups supports genuine community engagement, fosters a commitment to equity and inclusion, and helps work through conflict in healthy ways. She has worked extensively with neighborhood groups and organizations to strengthen relationships and center resident voices. Regina has taught future health professionals to understand their social identities in order to better serve patients who differ from them and to understand the impact of structural factors on health. Most recently, she has focused her wisdom and practice on racial healing as part of the Truth, Racial Healing, and Transformation initiative in Flint, Michigan and the Oregon-based Racial Justice Institute. Regina holds a B.A. in Psychology and African American Studies from the University of Michigan-Flint. She loves in action, being with her nature relatives and cherishes her role as an aunt, god-grandmother, and sister.

Jenni’s website

Jenni Kotting, PhD (she/her) is a Communications strategist and graphic designer with a PhD in Human Geography from University of Minnesota who believes in narrative shift as a brace for political change. She brings a decade of Communications experience in collaboratively producing strategic messaging, branding, storytelling, and innovative media through a strong racial and social justice lens.

Kris Nine is a curious and enthusiastic administrator, writer and communicator. He is a recent graduate from The University of Vermont, where he studied Political Theory and English. Kris also has 7 years of customer service experience, and brings knowledge from a variety of roles he has held with news publications, political campaigns, and state universities.