With 20 years of experience as an Inclusion and Belonging Strategist and Professor, I’ve been deeply committed to helping organizations build inclusive workplace cultures in which all employees feels a sense of belonging and have the ability to achieve their full potential. As the Founder and Principal Trainer of Shakti Training, I design and facilitate actionable professional development experiences that promote inclusion, intercultural intelligence, and equity. Over the last two decades, I've mastered creating and leading impactful learning experiences that equip adult learners with the essential awareness, skills, and tools necessary to be catalysts of inclusion and agents of change, empowering them to cultivate a culture of inclusion and belonging. My work ensures that organizations not only attract top talent but also retain them by fostering a genuine sense of belonging.I'm also an award-winning tenured professor of Communication Studies at the College of Lake County (CLC), specializing in Intercultural Communication, Public Speaking, and Online Learning. In addition to my faculty role at CLC, I founded the Diversity and Equity Infusion Project (DEIP), an institutionalized training program dedicated to preparing faculty to foster a classroom culture that is inclusive to historically underrepresented student populations for over a decade. I currently partner with Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Nonprofit Management, where I teach and coach on the topic of inclusive leadership.My commitment to inclusion extends beyond my professional life into community engagement. I co-founded the Chicago Women’s Leadership Accelerator, a conference dedicated to increasing representation of women in leadership roles, positively impacting over 200 Chicago based leaders since 2022. I am also a co- founder of the South Asian Solidarity Movement, a social impact organization that creates educational opportunities and community building experiences designed to encourage a commitment to anti-oppression, inclusion, and cross racial solidarity. Furthermore, I established and co-chair the Women of Color Employee Resource Group at the College of Lake County.If you are looking to transform your organization through inclusive practices and expert strategies, let’s connect. My diverse background and extensive experience make me uniquely positioned to help you attract and retain top talent by building an inclusive and thriving workplace culture.
