Inside DOIE

Role within the Division: Learning and Development Specialist

How long have you been at UMBC? Since August 2025

How would you describe your role within the Division of Institutional Equity? 

I see my role as an educator and thought partner committed to cultivating campus culture change. I design and facilitate learning experiences that deepen staff and faculty engagement with questions of belonging, identity, and justice, while supporting them in translating those insights into meaningful and sustainable changes in their practice, relationships, and scholarship.

Can you share a moment or experience that shaped your passion for equity and inclusion work?

Both of my parents were Black activists and community organizers, so from a young age I understood the importance of working toward collective liberation, particularly the role education can play in shifting hearts and minds. As I got older, I found myself involved in Queer and Trans advocacy and justice work, motivated by my desire to ensure that no student would experience the same identity-based institutional barriers I had experienced. We've made some progress on that front but there is still so much work to be done.

What is one initiative or project you’re currently working on that excites you?

I’m especially excited about the Culture Builders cohort this year. It creates space for faculty and staff across campus to build meaningful relationships and think more intentionally about how culture change happens—not just through sustained learning, but through how people make meaning of and act within their everyday institutional contexts.

Outside of work, what’s something that brings you joy or helps you recharge? 

I love to cook and have an ever-growing collection of cookbooks, so I’m often trying out new recipes and hosting friends for dinner. I care deeply about creating spaces where people can rest, connect, and laugh together.

Can you share a book/quote/movie or something others can engage with from your perspective of inclusive excellence?

A book I often return to is On Being Included: Racism and Diversity in Institutional Life by Sara Ahmed. It’s shaped my approach to understanding the gap between institutional commitments to inclusion and the lived realities of the practitioners tasked with making that work happen. 

Guiding quote: "All that you touch, you change. All that you change, changes you" - Octavia Butler