I am a proud multi-racial, Black and Indian identifying woman who grew up in the suburbs of New York. After studying Industrial and Labor Relations at Cornell University, I worked in human resources, with a focus on giving individuals the tools they need to thrive and support those around them, resulting in organizational structures that create value by enabling people to succeed. With a desire to transform an organization that was close to my heart, I returned to work at my alma mater, the Dwight-Englewood School, serving as the Director of Student Activities. During my time there, I supported much of the work relating to diversity, equity, and inclusion. One of my greatest honors has been to serve as a facilitator for the annual Student Diversity Leadership Conference hosted by the National Association of Independent Schools for a decade, which focuses on identity work and empowering students to become change agents through engaging others in dialogue. As a graduate student at Soka University of America, from 2017-2019, I studied the experiences of Black individuals who attended independent schools, using culturally relevant pedagogy and social justice education frameworks, to explore how their experiences at these schools impacted their racial identity development. I am humbled to have the opportunity to help build out of the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at Soka centered on our university mission and creating a model for genuine belonging based on respecting the dignity of life. I have a toddler and one more child on the way, and everything I do in this space (including currently pursuing my Ph.D.) is with them in mind—with confidence that consistently centering on the next generation, we can create spaces and systems that honor the dignity of life.