In this session, you will learn the value of shared language around diversity, equity, and inclusion, explore the business case for “winning” with DEI, and 5 quick wins to supercharge your business strategy for inclusion.

Keynote Speaker
Kuma Roberts, IOM (she/her)
Senior Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Consultant
Arrowhead Consulting

Kuma Roberts, IOM is the Senior Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Consultant for Arrowhead Consulting and has over 10 years of organizational development experience specializing in the business case for diversity, equity & inclusion, cultural competence, implicit bias, strategies for becoming an equity centered organization, inclusive workplace language as well as other elements of diversity, equity and inclusion.

As a graduate of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Institute of Organizational Management she has spoken to hundreds of businesses, non-profit and chambers of commerce on the best practices for developing a strategic plan related to DEI.

Kuma is passionate about racial and social justice with emphasis shifting policy and practice vs. hearts and minds and speaking to how more companies and organizations can harness the power of DEI to enhance their competitive advantage.
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When Kuma isn’t speaking, she loves cooking for her husband, wrestling with her three-year-old son and arguing with her 16-year-old daughter.

​This roundtable discussion will feature three prominent local leaders. Hear their discussion on how they use effective DEI practices in their organizations – large and small.  

Moderator
​Carol Moser (she/her)
​Executive Director
Greater Columbia Accountable Community of Health

Carol Moser has served as Executive Director for the Greater Columbia Accountable Community of Health since 2014.  

Prior to her position with Greater Columbia ACH, Carol served six years as the Executive Director of the Benton-Franklin Community Health Alliance, one of the original health care collaboratives in the state of Washington.  

Carol was appointed by Governor Christine Gregoire to serve on the Washington State Transportation Commission from 2006 to 2011, appointed by Governor Gary Locke to serve on the Freight Mobility Strategic Investment Board in 2000, and was a member of the Richland City Council from 1995 to 2006.  She served as Mayor Pro-Tem from 2008-2010.

Carol received her Master's in Business Administration from Seattle Pacific University, and a Bachelor of Music from Pacific Lutheran University.  She is an active member of Columbia Center Rotary, a Board member of the Benton-Franklin Workforce Development Council, and the WA State Health Workforce Council.

Panelist
Dolores Broeske
President & CEO
HAPO Community Credit Union 

Dolores Broeske was named President/CEO April 1, 2020 of HAPO Community Credit Union with over 23 years of working for the credit union. She joined the HAPO team after relocating to the Tri-Cities and previously working for West One Bank and First Interstate Bank of Boise, Id. Through the years, Dolores has served in various roles, including, SVP/Chief of Staff, VP of Human Resources, Director of Strategic Management, Special Projects Manager and managing multiple Financial Centers. She was instrumental in establishing the HAPO Dealer Lending Program and created the credit union wide Financial Coaching Certificate Program at HAPO.
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Dolores is a member of the Northwest Credit Union Association, CUNA (Credit Union National Association), AWB Board Member, is a corporate member of the Soroptimist International of Pasco-Kennewick, founding partner of the HAPO IMPower Women in Leadership Series, charter member of both the Tri-Cities Diversity & Inclusion Community Leaders Group and the Tri City Cancer Center – Cancer Crushing Executives group. She is a Junior Achievement Volunteer, Tri City Union Gospel volunteer and finds passion in helping others.

Panelist
Pam Henderson
CEO & Founder
​NewEdge

As the CEO and founder of NewEdge, Pam has been involved in innovation and organizational growth for the past 25 years. Pam pioneered NewEdge’s Opportunity Thinking™ approach to innovation that has assisted organizations in creating sustainable growth by focusing on opportunities rather than ideas. Pam was formerly on the faculty at Carnegie Mellon University and later worked with the US national lab system, VCs, angel investors and Washington State University to commercialize over 200 early stage technologies. 

"In the spirit of corporate growth, I strongly believe that your company won't grow by 10% if your people aren’t growing by 10%."

Panelist
Junus Khan
Founder & Chairman
​Carbitex 

Born and raised in New Jersey, Junus graduated from Rutgers University with a BS in Environmental and Business Economics. Rather than starting a career in finance he ventured (to the bewilderment of his parents) into the automotive industry working in a several areas from launch planning to concept development. Before starting Carbitex, he was the North American Manager for Swedish supercar manufacturer Koenigsegg Automotive.
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Junus founded Carbitex based on his intrigue of carbon fiber and with the core belief that the human race strives for progress and more times than not progress advanced materials are a prerequisite. In 2018, Junus moved to Hong Kong to establish Carbitex’s presence in Asia.
 
His interests include reading, Brazillian jiu jitsu, chess, snowboarding, and tinkering.

​An effective Diversity, Equity and Inclusion toolkit is valuable for any organization. Join our presenter to review a comprehensive example and get suggestions on how your organization can create a toolkit and implement the practices described. 

Presenter
Sharee Adkins (she/her)
Executive Director
​Northwest Credit Union Foundation

Sharee Adkins is the Executive Director of the Northwest Credit Union Foundation. In this role, she amplifies the impact credit unions have in our communities by forging and leveraging partnerships to achieve ambitious goals in the Foundation’s priority areas of asset building, economic empowerment, and cooperative development.

​Adkins holds a bachelor’s degree in Sociology from Boise State University and a master’s degree in Organizational Leadership from the University of Idaho. Adkins heads up the Northwest Credit Union Foundation after 15 years leading fundraising efforts and implementing large-scale initiatives at public and nonprofit organizations in Idaho and Washington.

Moderator
Lynn Carlson (she/her)
CEO
Gemini Corps

​​Lynn is the founder and CEO of Gemini Corps, LLC. She is a Certified Diversity Professional (CDP®) and Organizational Development practitioner with a master’s degree in Organizational Psychology. She has 23 years’ corporate experience as an operation’s executive and Agile PMP with a proven track record implementing inclusive leadership, diverse team recruiting and retention, culture of belonging, and equitable policies and practices. Her work is informed by her lived experience in under-resourced communities in the south. She is facilitator for the City of Pasco Inclusivity Diversity and Equity Commission (IDEC) and a member of the Tri-Cities Diversity & Inclusion Council, the Tri-Cities Racial Equity and Social Justice Coalition (RESJ), and MyTri 2030 Inclusion Council. Lynn is an active volunteer in local community groups serving youth and adults including eMerge, Junior Achievement, WA STEM, and SCORE.

Panelist
Pharoah Bolding (he/him)
Organizational Development Specialist
Portland Community College

Pharoah Bolding is the Organizational Development Representative at Portland Community College, an anti-racism and equity consultant, trainer, and facilitator, and the (self-proclaimed) World's Greatest Comic Drawing HR Professional! He's worked with teams and organizations in everything from the tech sector and local government to nonprofits, higher ed, and even sports and entertainment. Pharoah's work focuses on dismantling white supremacist workplace cultures, building inclusive and equitable work cultures focused on human connection, ethical and empathic recruiting, and teaching equity, inclusion, and anti-racism through discussions and trainings. You can find out more about Pharoah and his work at www.pharoahbolding.com.

Panelist
Madison Butler (she/her)
Founder
Blue Haired Unicorn

Madison Butler is a native New Englander who has brought her east coast energy to Texas. She is a Black, queer woman, and she is also a survivor. She is the owner/founder of Blue Haired Unicorn, a consulting agency. Her work is focused around designing spaces and creating scalable strategies to achieve psychological safety. She is an outspoken advocate for mental health, removing the stigma around trauma and advocates for being “human at work’. She is passionate about facilitating hard conversations through storytelling, data and tough empathy. 
 
Madison has been featured in major news outlets such as New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Fast Company, Business Insider and Der Spiegel. She has been recognized by Linkedin as a top Black voice to follow. She was also recognized as Austin’s rising star by DivInc in 2021.She is looked upon as an expert in her field and is passionate about using her platform to have the hard conversations.
 
Madison is committed to deconstructing the status quo and rebuilding corporate America, one organization at a time. Her mission is to ensure that no one ever feels like spaces were not made for them because we all deserve to live out loud. She is a start-up enthusiast and is passionate about building inclusive teams from the ground up with early stage companies. Madison is committed to helping change the narrative around what it looks like to be “human at work”, and hopes to reshape the way we look at ourselves at work and in life.

Panelist
Sacha Thompson (she/her)
​Leadership Coach, DEI Consultant, Speaker

Sacha Thompson is the founder of The Equity Equation, LLC, a diversity coaching and consulting firm based in the Washington, DC area. With nearly 20 years of experience within the education, non-profit, and tech industries, Sacha has seen the challenges faced by executives with good intentions struggling to make decisions around diversity; where executives are motivated to do the ‘right thing’ regarding diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) but may be hindered by their own biases and fears. She’s also seen and experienced the damage endured by Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) employees when they feel they are not centered/valued in their company’s DEI efforts.

Sacha’s work is about removing barriers and providing support in order to get to a place of equality. She helps executives and leaders have that meaningful dialogue and coach them to the necessary, long-term changes that develop institutional cultures of DEI.

Sacha is a Certified Professional Diversity Coach and 4 Stages of Psychological Safety Certified Coach. Sacha received her bachelor’s degree in Sociology, concentrating on Cultural Diversity &Ethnicity and a Master’s in Educational Policy, Planning, and Leadership from The College of William and Mary. She has also acquired her Masters of Business Administration from Johns Hopkins University, where she focused on management and marketing.

Panelist
Jared Karol (he/him)
Public Speaker, Author 

Jared Karol is the founder of JaredKarol.com, a consulting firm specializing in guiding White people to confront racism and be unapologetic antiracists. As a trusted advisor, he guides executives, people managers, and dedicated change agents at Fortune 500 companies, startups, and nonprofits. A sought-after professional speaker, panel moderator, leadership coach, and facilitator of difficult conversations, Jared’s storytelling approach inspires and influences individuals and groups worldwide. His new book, A White Guy Confronting Racism: An Invitation to Reflect and Act, launches November 15, 2021. An avid reader, accomplished musician, and active meditator, he lives with his family in the San Francisco Bay Area. Learn how you can bring Jared to your organization at JaredKarol.com.

​Diversity is a foundational aspect in every organization, yet it looks different from one employer to another. Join our panelists for an informative discussion about how their organizations navigate the various dimensions of diversity.

Moderator
Tanya Bowers (she/her)
​Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion/ Equal Employment Opportunity Manager
​Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

Tanya’s professional experience in diversity, equity, & inclusion and organizational development began in 1998. Both as a consultant and an in-house employee, she has led diversity change management efforts for not-for-profit organizations, educational institutions, corporations and governmental agencies. She helps majority organizations develop competency and underrepresented communities build capacity. Her work has taken her around the United States, to the Caribbean, and as far as South Africa. 

Prior to receiving a master’s degree in Psychology with a specialization in Applied Community Psychology, Tanya graduated with honors as an interdisciplinary University Major in Urban Studies. She completed programs at Columbia University Graduate School of Architecture, Planning & Preservation, Columbia Business School's Institute for Not-for-Profit Management, and the North Carolina Outward Bound School. 

Not long after moving to eastern Washington State, Tanya was appointed to the City of Pasco’s Planning Commission; she currently chairs the commission. In addition to being a part of the Tri-Cities Chapter of the Links, Inc., she has been involved with African American Community, Cultural, and Educational Society.

Panelist
Kevin Edwards (he/him)
Chief Diversity & Inclusion Officer
Bechtel National, Inc.

​Kevin is responsible for developing a vision, strategic Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DE&I) roadmap, and enterprise plan to implement key program actions to support progress in our DE&I efforts. This often includes programs to advance diverse talent within leadership roles; talent acquisition process updates to drive intentional and deliberate actions to improve opportunities for existing and new early career diverse talent; and cultivating work or learning environments that encourage and support diversity and inclusive practices.

The overall objective of the DE&I efforts is to ensure each employee can show up to work as they are, have hope and continuous opportunities to advance within our organization, regardless of their race, gender, age, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, sexual orientation, or disability.

Before leading diversity and inclusion, Kevin led the Quality and Six Sigma Infrastructure functional team and other Corporate EPC quality roles. Prior to his quality assignments, Kevin was field engineering manager (PFE) for the Dulles Corridor Metrorail project in Virginia. Kevin has also served in roles including lead field engineer, lead resident engineer and project engineering.

Kevin has a Master of Engineering in environmental engineering from Stevens Institute of Technology, and a Bachelor of Science in industrial engineering from Rutgers University.

Panelist
Kauser Gwaduri (she/her)
​Coordinator, MOSAIC Center for Student Inclusion
Washington State University Tri-Cities

Kauser Gwaduri joined Washington State University Tri-Cities in April of 2021 as the Coordinator for the MOSAIC Center for Student Inclusion. Prior to this, Kauser graduated with her Master of Education in Student Development Administration from Seattle University where she worked with international students, co-hosted the university’s first Interfaith Fair, and facilitated a Students of Color Retreat. Kauser originally hails from Florida where she graduated with her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and Sociology with a minor in Community Leadership from the University of North Florida. During her time there, she studied abroad in England for an academic year, had an internship on womxn’s empowerment and mentorship, and was highly involved with the university’s Housing and Residence Life. 

Since being in the Tri-Cities, Kauser has joined the Tri-Cities Diversity and Inclusion Council, the Immigration Coalition, performed at the Celebration of Community Diversity & Culture, volunteers with Support, Advocacy, & Resource Center (SARC), and is the Aga Khan Education Board member for the Ismaili Muslim community in Seattle.