Ms. Jeri Perkins is a proud graduate of a Historically Black College & University (HBCU), Lincoln University of Missouri Class of 2018. A recent Master of Social Work graduate from Arizona State University’s Watts College of Public Service and Community Solutions. Ms. Perkins is the CEO & Founder of Impact Action Network Advocacy Consulting Agency where we “Educate to Liberate so that Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Belonging, & Justice (DEIBJ) is a priority and not a checkbox.” While at ASU Ms. Perkins served as an Inclusive Design for Equity & Access (IDEA) Jr. Scholar. In this role Ms. Perkins passionately amplified the work of heritage month influencers on the AZ Watts Influencers podcast series on podbean. Additionally, Ms. Perkins created a space for BIPOC students to engage in community building and connect with a network of resources to learn how to strategically navigate the culture of racist and oppressive systems of higher education and institutions of academia. Ms. Perkins gained knowledge as a part of the State of Black Arizona’s African American Leadership Institute Class of 2021 cohort and served as a graduation speaker on, “Answering the Call to Black Leadership.” Ms. Perkins presented in a workshop at the Statewide Child Abuse & Prevention Conference this past July on Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE’s) and the “Intersectionality of Childhood Trauma.” Ms. Perkins was recently selected as a speaker for the annual ATTITUDE: Mental Health Summit for African American Women and Youth Word Education Project’s Urban Experience Conference where she will educate on the “Intersectionality of Historical and Generational Trauma.” Ms. Perkins is a Doctoral Candidate of Education, in Organizational Leadership with an emphasis in Organizational Development at Grand Canyon University. Ms. Perkins earned her start in the media industry as an Emma Bowen Foundation Fellow with corporate sponsor NBC Bay Area News. The multi-year summer internship program laid the foundation for Ms. Perkins career ambitions and pursuits, and is where she found her voice as an activist. Ms. Perkins serves as a Board of Director for the Social Roots Foundation, a non-profit dedicated to eliminating the shame and stigma associated with accessing mental health care services in Black/African American and Native/Indigenous communities.