Jennifer L. Williams is a data - oriented diversity, equity and inclusivity expert, with experience crafting nimble, people-centric policies and programs for companies of all sizes. She is passionate and intentional about creating world-class Employee & Organizational Experiences. A native Washingtonian, Jennifer received her BS in Communications from Howard University, and she quickly fell into HR upon moving to NY.
With over 15 years of experience in various industries (inclusive of Tech, The Senate, and Fashion) Jennifer is well versed in Business best practices, and the creation of thoughtful and productive change initiatives, especially in the start-up space. As collaborative as she is creative, Jennifer loathes ‘HR as usual’, and looks to ensure that both company and employees are supported and empowered.
Here is a link to her New Pathways Talk:
 
Jennifer Williams on "Building an Equitable Future: Weaving HR and E & I During & Post COVID-19"

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Orientation to Group Building Exercises | Group Building and Sociodrama
​Date of Talk: February 9th | February 23rd

BIO: ​Principal of Green River Coaching & Consulting,
Kevin Thomas’ career has been based on the principle that humane values lead to better results in organizations. His background in psychology gives him a keen eye for the importance of healthy, functional relationships as the hallmark of a successful organization. His experience as a Learning & Development professional in Human Resources in higher education, with its decentralized, highly autonomous culture, has led him to develop strategies for generating genuine commitments to change that create value at every level of an organization. For more information about his experience and qualifications, click here.

Kevin lives in the Berkshire hills of Massachusetts with his wife and his dog Banjo. He enjoys hiking, biking, and long books.
https://www.greenrivercoaching.com/

| Feb 16th

Allyship: Embodying the Power of vulnerability: - Newell Eaton gives a glance into his walk in allyship and navigating his experience with whiteness. Seeking to make change after George Floyd, Newell keeps the conversation of commitment and action alive through cyclical self reflection. Newell invited the group to reflect on their experiences of internalized racism and how those experiences can affect hidden biases and judgements. To whom do we hold apprehension? What type of people are neutral to us? Are we aware of the judgements we hold towards others? And how does that relate to their color, race, gender, clothing, etc? Newell gives us his insight into his own inner judgements and what method he uses to respond. For those who are just beginning their racial justice work, Newell provides recommendations to assist others to getting towards a more desensitized place. ​

BIO: ​Newell has been sought out as a meeting facilitator by community, business and government leaders for his creative and responsive approach, his capacity to facilitate productive conversations, and his depth of experience building cross-disciplinary collaborative programs. He has helped many large and small groups identify, plan and achieve their project goals in a wide diversity of complex and challenging situations including many strategic plans, leadership transitions and organizational change projects.
 
As an innovation facilitator Newell has designed and facilitated thousands of hours of meetings with a broad range of groups, usually on topics for which he had limited prior content knowledge. Meeting participants have included scientists, engineers, technicians, business leaders, bankers, college profs, librarians, school teachers, MDs and nurses, elected and appointed governmental officials, civil servants, union leaders, citizens/taxpayers, neighbors, parents, adolescents, teachers, clergy, homeless people, and even lawyers.

Newell received his facilitation training from the Institute for Generative Leadership, the Creative Education Foundation, and the NLP Center of New York. He is an active member and frequent trainer of coaches and facilitators at the International Association of Facilitators, Creative Problem Solving Institute, Mind Camp, and the Hudson- Mohawk Chapter of Association for Training & Development. He is a graduate of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, focusing on the study of group behavior and change. For 26 years he was Director of Strategic Planning for New York State’s Office of Children and Family Services.

What does it take to be an inclusive leader? | Mar 9

BIO: ​Leticia Smith-Evans Haynes is the Vice President for Institutional Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at Williams College, a role she has held since 2015. 

Prior to her work at the college, Haynes directed the Education Practice at the NAACP Legal Defense & Educational Fund, Inc. (LDF) where she advocated for equal access to educational opportunities for students of all ages.  With more than two decades of experience as an administrator, educator, civil rights advocate, and lawyer, her past experience includes serving as a judicial law clerk to the late Honorable Dickinson R. Debevoise of the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey, an associate at a global law firm, a policy advisor to a former Wisconsin Governor, and an elementary school teacher. 

Haynes has contributed to and helped shape the national dialogue around promising practices to curb racial injustice and discrimination, and led coalitions working to advance the rights of individuals with disabilities, racial and ethnic minorities, members of the LGBTQIA+ community, and immigrants.  She has successfully argued before state and federal trial and appellate courts and is co-author of Eliminating Excessive and Disparate School Discipline: A Review of Research and Policy Reform in Inequality in School Discipline (2016) and Unlocking Opportunity for African American Girls: A Call to Action for Educational Equity (2014); and, author of Ensuring Equality in School Discipline Practices and Policies and Dismantling the School-to-Prison Pipeline in A Call for Change: Providing Solutions for Black Male Achievement (2012). 

Haynes holds a B.A. from Williams College and a J.D., M.S., and Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Personal Tools for Showing up Skillfully in Uncertain Times | Mar 16th

BIO: ​I am a Mexican psychologist who is passionate about human behavior at its best.
Inspired by Martin Seligman’s work, I chose to take his Program at UPENN and I graduated with a Master’s of Applied  Positive Psychology in May 2009.
I have experience working as a therapist with children and families, victims of domestic violence and as a professor in Mexico and in the United States.
My signature strengths are love of learning, creativity, curiosity, appreciation of beauty and excellence, as well as gratitude. Recently my family relocated from Connecticut to the southern Berkshires in Massachusetts. Here, we have found, wonderful loving and caring people.

This is Your Brain... On Bias | Apr 13th

This is Your Brain... On Bias: - Are we born biased? Are we born completely doomed to microaggress against others? How can I help my team (and myself!)? In this highly interactive workshop, Dr. Eden-Renee Hayes trains participants on the biology behind implicit bias and how bias interferes with our initiatives and progress as an organization. She engages in out-of-the-box approaches to self-reflect and more effectively work with our teams. In the words of Dr. Hayes, " the brain is suppose to work the way it is supposed to work to keep us alive, but that doesn't mean that we can't circumvent and rewire differently". ​

​BIO: Eden-Reneé Hayes, Ph.D. is the Director of The Davis Center at Williams College in Williamstown, Massachusetts. 
She plays a critical role in advancing campus-wide engagement with complex issues of identity, bias, and equity. She has been involved in cultural competency, retention efforts, and inclusion in organizations for over 15 years. An expert in the social psychological factors related to bias, and the intersecting identities of race, class, and gender identity, she has presented papers on her research at a number of conferences including, The American Psychological Association, The International Convention of Psychological Science, and The Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues and has published her research in various outlets including The Handbook for Feminist Diversity.  Dr. Hayes also serves on the editorial boards for journals including Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology. Her passion for being Involved in the community includes mentoring with the Rights of Passage and Empowerment Program and serving on the Board of Directors for several organizations focused on diversity and inclusion. Dr. Hayes earned a bachelor's degree from Wesleyan University and an MS and Ph.D. from Tulane University before being awarded a National Science Foundation postdoctoral fellowship to conduct research at The Pennsylvania State University. 

Race Equity in the Arts | Apr 20th

Race Equity in the Arts: - Michael Bobbitt, Executive Director of Massachusetts Cultural Council, led a poignant discussion acknowledging the white favored business model of some arts industries and the steps he uses to change it. Do your discounted tickets still not increase your attendance rate? Do your outreach programs fail to consistently attract multicultural people? According to Michael, programs and policies used to encourage diversity and inclusion are only a bandaid and may fail when the business model is one designed for white people, by white people. It is exclusionary in nature. This session, the Cohort learns how to design a new business model that is inclusive and full of perspective. According to Bobbitt, "...one way to get policies that exist on the bell curve is to make sure that the decision makers are diverse so that you have the perspective in the room..". Build trust amongst multicultual people through action and use the vulnerability there to accept feedback. When building an antiracist plan, you need antiracist ideas. Racism starts with an idea. Then, the idea gets institutionalized and funded. How can we institutionalize non racist ideas? ​

BIO: ​Michael J. Bobbitt, Executive Director, Mass Cultural Council
Michael J. Bobbitt has dedicated his professional career to arts leadership. He is a director, choreographer, and playwright. On February 1, 2021 he joined Mass Cultural Council as Executive Director, becoming the highest ranking cultural official in Massachusetts.

Since March 2019 he has served as the Artistic Director of the New Repertory Theatre in Watertown, MA; immediately prior he held the same position at the Adventure Theatre-MTC in Maryland for twelve years. While in Maryland Bobbitt led the organization to be a respected theatre/training company in the DC region, as well as a nationally influential professional Theatre for Young Audiences. He led a merger with Musical Theater Center, increased the organizational budget and audience, commissioned new works by noted playwrights, transferred two shows to Off-Broadway, built an academy, and earned dozens of Helen Hayes Award Nominations, garnering eight wins.

Bobbitt gained extensive experience in non-profit arts management by training at Harvard Business School’s Strategic Perspectives in Nonprofit Management, The National Arts Strategies Chief Executive Program, and Cornell University’s Diversity and Inclusion Certification Program. He has served as an Associate Professor of Theatre at Boston Conservatory at Berklee and volunteered on numerous non-profit boards, including Non-Profit Village, Maryland Citizens for the Arts, Leadership Montgomery, Weissberg Foundation, Watertown Public Art Commission, and ArtsBoston.

Bobbitt has directed/choreographed at Arena Stage, Ford’s Theatre, The Shakespeare Theatre Company, Olney Theatre Center, Studio Theatre, Woolly Mammoth Theatre, Center Stage, Roundhouse Theatre, The Kennedy Center, and the Washington National Opera. His national and international credits include the NY Musical Theatre Festival, Mel Tillis 2001, La Jolla Playhouse, Children’s Theatre of Charlotte, Jefferson Performing Arts Center, and the Olympics. As a writer his work was chosen for the NYC International Fringe Festival and The New York and Musical Theatre Festival. He has plays published by Concord Theatricals/Rogers and Hammerstein Theatricals, Broadway Publishing and Plays for Young Audiences. Bobbitt has received the Excel Leadership Award (Center for Nonprofit Advancement), the Emerging Leader Award (County Executive’s Excellence in the Arts and Humanities), and Person of the Year Award (Maryland Theatre Guide).

Gender and Racial Justice in Leadership | April 27th

Gender and Racial Justice in Leadership: - Tuti Scott of Changemaker Strategies, brought awareness to the inequities faced in the areas of gender and race and provided key action steps to bring us closer to restoration and healing. Tuti describes herself as a servant leader who's goal is to inspire the servant leader model in gender and racial justice. The Cohort learned about holding the whole of the culture, person and the work. They witnessed the power of masculinity and patriarichy and learned how detrimental it could be to the growth and development of a society if used harmfully. A major impactor is access to money. Tuti recommends investing in, women, girls and women of color and provided more information on gender lens when investing. Tuti asserts the focus should be on love, then profit . In her words, "when you focus on people and social purpose, the revenue follows". Money and power are intertwined; all systems need to address toxic masculinity. ​