Carmen Attikossie, is a young professional who holds a bachelor's degree in International Relations from St. Catherine’s University in St. Paul, MN. She currently works for Local First Arizona (LFA) as the Sr. Small Business Development Manager, leading the We Rise Business Accelerator. Prior to joining LFA, Carmen worked for Uber Technologies as a Learning & Development Specialist in Phoenix, AZ. At Uber, Carmen was in charge of learning initiatives for Uber’s Risk & Compliance businesses in community operations. Prior to working for Uber Technologies and LFA, Carmen spent 2 years living and working on the African continent for the African Leadership University (ALU), a company that was listed in 2019 as the #1 innovative company in Africa and ranked #39 globally by Fast Company - Most Innovative Companies. During her time at ALU Carmen was part of the founding team that was mandated to build the African Leadership University Rwanda in the country’s capital Kigali. At ALU Rwanda Carmen designed, built, and was head of the Student Ventures Program (SVP), an initiative designed to expose young Africans to entrepreneurship and doing business in Africa. During her tenure as the lead for SVP Rwanda, she coached and mentored a group of students to win $30,000 for the Hult Prize national competition along with coaching a group of students to win $10,000 through the Tony Elumelu foundation for emerging entrepreneurs in Africa.

I am an Arizona native and a proud product of public schools. As a child of two public school teachers, I grew up in the Washington Elementary School District and attended high school in the Glendale Union High School District. I graduated from Arizona State University with my Bachelor's in both Special Education and Elementary Education. After graduation, I taught for 6 years in Peoria Unified School District and for one year in Dysart Unified School District. I went to teach at Foundation for Blind Children as a Teacher of the Visually Impaired before deciding to stay at home with my youngest child. My husband and I live in Phoenix with our blended family. I have six children and one step-son. My background includes teaching Self Contained Emotionally Disabled students, Self-Contained students with autism, general education first grade, and junior high resource. I believe in supporting teachers and students in a collaborative setting. I am a strong advocate for all students and teachers and am committed to supporting policies that enhance student outcomes and a positive school environment. I believe money should stay in the public schools and schools should be fully funded. I became involved in local politics at the end of February when I decided to run for Governing Board Member in the Paradise Valley Unified School District in this November’s election. As a mother of a child with autism and a child who is transgender, I knew I had to do whatever I could to advocate for and support them. As a member of the board, I can help drive policy to help all students in our district.

Austin Bates is an advocate for the American Dream. His upbringing as the son of an English second language teacher and small business owner exposed him to a revolving door of cultures and ideas. The wide range of people he grew up around influenced his decision to obtain a Bachelor of Arts degree in American Studies from Franklin & Marshall College. He is currently pursuing a master’s degree in Public Policy from Arizona State University. Austin works to combine cultural and policy analysis to bridge communities, improve governance, and equitably expand the American Dream. He has previously worked in voter turnout, social work, and as a constituent services liaison at the Arizona Governor’s office. Austin is currently working at the Arizona Auditor General.

Debra Jo is a passionate educator and social justice advocate. Her teaching experience ranges from Pre-K, K-6, Secondary, Collegiate, to Graduate levels, in many subject content areas. She holds a K-12 Music Education Certification and is currently a candidate with the National Board of Certified Teachers. Most recently, Debra Jo served on Superintendent Watson’s Maricopa STAT Team for the 2021-2022 school year. She has also participated with the local, state, and national teacher unions, having been a site leader, and also held elected positions for the state and national delegate and representative assemblies. Holding an MA degree in Social Justice & Human Rights, she lectures on intersectionality and advocates for causes that impact equality. With her husband of 17 years, Debra Jo ventured into parenting biological, adoptive, and foster children. She wrote curriculum for the pilot music program at ASA Now and Jacob’s Mission Community Center to help bring Sophie’s Place to children impacted by foster care. She has given testimony for essential reforms needed in the Arizona Department of Child Safety, has worked to bring awareness to gender bias in medical testing for Autism, and is outspoken in her LDS religious community about gender equality for women and LGBTQ+ communities.

Ryan is interested in building communities and uniting people to build power. Her work has been rooted in communication, community organizing, union organizing and research. She is passionate about climate change, economic power dynamics that create inequity, and how these types of issues effect people within her community and the world. Ryan has worked for a community development non-profit, local public health department, the Urban Water Innovation Network, and the Service Employees International Union. She is a first generation college student, earning a bachelor's degree in Environmental Studies and Public Health in 2020. Ryan looks forward to leading through lifting up others, developing leaders within her community, and building coalitions among people.

Kamy was born in Champaign-Urbana, Illinois, but has lived in North Phoenix, Arizona for 24 years. Kamy is a disabled person who is in her final year at Arizona State University where she is working on her BS degree in Psychology with a minor in Disability Studies. She is also a part of Barrett, the Honors College at ASU, where she is currently working on her thesis which focuses on social stigmas of disability representation in the mental health field and community. Kamy’s experiences as a disabled person witnessing the inaccessibility and systemic barriers in Arizona’s medical and mental health communities, taught her the need for self-advocacy. She intends to be a licensed therapist in the state of Arizona after grad school. Being a Psychology student, she has exposure to many topics of the mental health/psychology field and plans to utilize that knowledge and help expand future research. Kamy continually looks to improve her own activism and ways that she can advocate for the disabled population in the Psychology field. Most recently, Kamy completed her volunteer hours as an Inclusivity & Accessibility Assistant.

Gina Griffiths is the Assistant Director of Community Inclusion with the World Institute on Disability and the Director of Strategic Innovation and an independent consultant with Honoris Group. She is passionate about civic responsibility and strives to make positive change. She has spent 30 years working with individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. She has a commitment to quality services and supports, advocacy for change, and community equity, working to integrate tools and policies into systems to elevate opportunities for individuals with disabilities to be fully included in communities. Gina is also and advocate and activist for LGBTQIA+ human rights, with an emphasis on the rights of transgender people to live authentic lives.

Gina has a commitment to service and currently serves on the board and Advocacy Committee of Neighborhood Outreach Access to Health (NOAH); on the Board of the Arizona Autism Coalition; on the Policy Committee for GLSEN Arizona; on the Executive Committee for the Arizona Sexual Violence & Disability Network (ASVDN); and as the Chair of the ASVDN - Training and Prevention Work Group. She has previously served as an officer for the Arizona Association of Providers for People with Disabilities (AAPPD); on the AZ Employment First Core Team; and on the Governor’s Task Force on Long Term Care Visitation.

Gina is a current fellow with Leading For Change. She is a graduate of Scottsdale Leadership, Class 29. Gina was named Field Educator of the Year by the ASU School of Social Work in 2021. She was honored to receive the MLK Diversity Champion Award from Scottsdale Communities Celebrating Diversity in 2017 for her advocacy work with individuals with IDD.
Gina has a Bachelor’s degree in Social Work from Northern Arizona University and a Master’s degree in Social Work from Arizona State University. She is the proud mom of three energetic and active children. She and her husband love to take the kids camping and traveling.

My name is Tu-awva-Wendell Honanie Jr, and I am from the Hopi community of northern Arizona. Since I was young, I have inherited the nickname of Awva and established a bountiful spirit within myself. Being raised in a family of both cultural and intellectual value, it has been my passion to create and share meaningful mentoring experiences in all spaces I have collaborated with. Over the years providing profitable service for many people and companies, I have discovered my talents for: creativity, inclusivity, mentoring, mental innovation and igniting the passion for building young future leaders. My current role has been within providing sustainable governmental efforts for sovereign communities that have been processing the complexities of a western world. Through this, my talents and efforts for business, mentoring and inclusivity have paved the foundations for sustainable programs and agencies.

I have been working in the detention/corrections field for nearly 15 years. In that time, I have come to see the fundamental issues in our legal system and have worked to advocate for changes. From the day to day operations of one department to state and federal changes to the way the system works. I am currently working towards my bachelor’s degree in public administration and look to the future to run for public office to make the change I know needs to happen.

Stephan Anthony Kingsley has been in education for over 15 years, the past twelve as a secondary English teacher. He earned a B.A. in Elementary Education from Arizona State University, and an M.S. in Educational Leadership in Arkansas State University. He is now a doctoral candidate in industrial and organizational psychology at Grand Canyon University. Stephan consults professionally and collaborates on diversity and inclusion initiatives with business, education, and community leaders as well as researchers at the national and international level. He also volunteers with GLSEN Phoenix, and works with different advocacy groups to fight for the rights of LGBTQ youth.

I come alive when I can use my creativity to produce content and collaborate with partners to achieve shared goals. I am an artist, focused on oil and acrylic painting, as well as a chef and baker. I was an AmeriCorps VISTA for The City of Avondale, Neighborhood and Family Services department and have my Bachelor of Science in Anthropology and a Master of Arts in Global Affairs and Management from The Thunderbird School of Global Management.
I am a nonprofit professional, having worked for organizations such as Make-A-Wish, Net Impact, and Per Scholas. In the various roles I’ve held, I have played an integral part of an Agile Transformation, developed training documentation and change management strategies, constructed a social media strategy, and managed a variety of interactive virtual events. In my current role as Sr. Manager of Internal Communications at Per Scholas, I built new strategies, guidelines, coalitions, and content to create a sense of belonging and community within our organization. Additionally, I fundraised $2500+ and ran the 2022 New York City Marathon on behalf of Per Scholas.
Beyond my professional experience, I’m an active volunteer for The Phoenix Zoo and a Fundraising Board Member for Minorities in Shark Science (MISS). I’ve served as Co-Chair of the Public Relations Committee at the Phoenix Committee on Foreign Relations, and a member of the Phoenix Global Shapers. More so, I’m a 2022-2023 fellow for Leading for Change, using my desire to lead progressive change to achieve a better tomorrow.

Lisa McCormick, is currently providing services to kinship families in Maricopa County as a manager with Duet: Partners in Health and Aging. She is also in the process of helping co-found EPIC Disability Advocacy, currently serving as the Director of Development and Secretary of the board. Lisa is a native to Arizona. She obtained her Bachelor in Social Work in 2017 from The College of Saint Scholastica, finding her true passion in supporting individuals and families in the community to build on their foundations to better their potential. Lisa is certified and trained in ACEs providing trauma-informed services; she is proficient in creating individualized services through building rapport and utilizing person-centered planning methods. Her professional experience includes; five years as a family support specialist at Southwest Human Development, where she received over 100 training hours in a variety of parenting curricula, child development, and crisis management. She also sits on several non-profit committees and coalitions to support the advocacy work needed to support families within the community. Prior to finding her career passion, she married her high school sweetheart Kurt, raised three daughters and became a proud Oma in December 2021.