Transformative Social Change in Organizations and Institutions: A DEI Perspective

Reverend Dr. Jonathan Wesley is a millennial, critical, interdisciplinary, culturally responsive pracdivist (Practitioner-Academic-Activist-Artist) who is an ordained member of the clergy and identifies as queer in every possible way. Having a tri-vocational career, Dr. Wesley has served a diverse portfolio of higher education institutions, government agencies, faith communities, and non-profit organizations in various roles which have provided him with the necessary experience to be an effective agent of personal, systemic, and structural change. He lives by the mantra "If I can help somebody as I pass along, then my living will not be in vain." While living authentically and proudly as he is per his intersecting identities comes with a cost, Dr. Wesley believes it is a price worth paying unapologetically. Dr. Wesley earned a BA in Sociology (Claflin University - HBCU), an M.Ed. in Higher Education Administration (Columbia College), graduate certificates in Leadership and Pastoral Counseling, an MA in Religion and Public Life (Emory University, Candler School of Theology), and a Ph.D. in Educational Policy Studies (Georgia State University) where he received the competitive Provost's Dissertation Award. He is also a proud member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Incorporated which is affiliated with the Divine 9. As an experienced and passionate leader in diversity, equity, inclusion, belonging, and social justice, Dr. Wesley has over 10 years of experience transforming systems and lives. He has served in various roles throughout his career and leads through the lens of diversity, equity, inclusion, belonging, and social justice. He has skills and experiences that include but are not limited to teaching, training, research, programming, project management, strategic planning, community relations, policy, change management, advocacy, management, and assessment. With the knowledge and expertise that Dr. Wesley has, he shares them with all communities that he has the honor of serving. For more information about Dr. Wesley, please visit his LinkedIn profile.

Dr. Adrian J. Mack , PhD, MBA is a transdisciplinary academic, business developer, strategist, and business operator with a background in social impact. He serves as an adjunct professor at Southern New Hampshire University, teaching courses in diversity, popular culture, and perspectives in the liberal arts, and serves as a DEI consultant and government contracts and grants consultant. He regularly publishes and speaks about his doctoral research focused on media, technology, and society through a diversity, equity, and inclusion lens. His research was grounded in arts-based research methods, specifically fiction-based research. Additionally, he has collaborated with organizations such as All Tech Is Human on AI and tech ethics research projects. Dr. Mack has experience in both the public and private sectors, including the Department of Defense, Amazon, nonprofits, R&D companies, and now works in innovation consulting and venture capital, specifically working with emerging tech startups and tech startups in the cybersecurity industry. He serves in board and advisory roles for different startups and community organizations, such as NASA’s Astrophysics Division’s Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Accessibility Council, the Lucy Daniels Center, and Peak Beginnings, and previously served as a Commissioner on the Durham City Council's Human Relations Commission. Dr. Mack has a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Virginia, a Master of Arts from Duke University, a Master of Arts from Liberty University, a PhD from the California Institute of Integral Studies, and an Executive MBA from Quantic School of Business and Technology.

Dr. LaKeisha Thorpe spent 16 years as a higher education administrator and instructor and has spent the last decade researching, teaching, and presenting on diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging and social justice issues. Dr. Thorpe has taught college courses on cultural humility and racial theories, womanist and feminist theories, and pop culture and arts-based research methods. She is passionate about social justice, cultural humility, and a transdisciplinary approach to the navigation of transcultural spaces. Her doctoral research is squarely grounded in the narratives surrounding food habits, food pathways, and their importance to our cultural identities. Her work, an arts-based research project, theorizes what might happen if we became the culture and ethnicity associated with the food we ingest. Dr. Thorpe is dedicated to ideologies that celebrate differences and creating space for uncomfortable conversations. She has presented, taught, and/or facilitated conversations on diversity, equity, and inclusion and justice at Cedar Crest College, Providence College, and Bryn Mawr College, Lafayette College, Moravian University and Princeton University, Chestnut Hill College and Villanova University. Dr. Thorpe has served on several boards and committees throughout northeastern Pennsylvania. She's been an editor, a guest lecturer, and spent 4 years as a radio show host in Philadelphia, Pa. She currently serves as the Executive Co-Director of Culture, Strategy, and Green Business Development at Green America and teaches in Villanova University’s masters of education and counseling program.