Kathleen M. Murray was appointed the 14th president of Whitman College in 2015, becoming the school’s first woman president. She previously served as provost and dean of the faculty at Macalester College, as provost at Birmingham-Southern College, and a Professor of Piano, Dean of the Conservatory, and Dean of the Faculty at Lawrence University. 

Martha Piper served as the first woman president of the University of British Columbia and has been a director of the Bank of Montreal, Shoppers Drug Mart, and TransAlta Corporation. An Officer of the Order of Canada, she was born in Lorain, Ohio, and lives with her husband, William Piper, in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Indira Samarasekera served as the first woman president of the University of Alberta and is a director of Magna International, TC Energy, and Stelco and has served as a director of the Bank of Nova Scotia. An Officer of the Order of Canada, she was born in Colombo, Sri Lanka, and lives in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Santa Ono is the 15th President and Vice-Chancellor of the University of British Columbia. He also serves as Chair of the U15 Group of Universities, is on the Board of Directors of Universities Canada, and is Past Chair of Research Universities of British Columbia. In 2018, he served as co-chair of the Tri-council advisory committee on equity, diversity, and inclusion policy. He was previously the 28th President of the University of Cincinnati and Senior Vice-Provost and Deputy to the Provost at Emory University. He is a recipient of the Reginald Wilson Diversity Leadership Award from the American Council on Education and the NAAAP 100 Award from the National Association of Asian American Professionals.

Sundeep Hans is the inaugural Director of Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion at the University of the Fraser Valley. She is an EDI strategist with over 13 years of experience in healthcare (William Osler Health System), education (Waterloo Regional District School Board), and non-profit space (Seva Food Bank, Oxfam, Vision Brampton) in Ontario. Specializing in organizational change management, strategy, and stakeholder engagement, she provides tangible and workable solutions through an anti-racism and anti-oppression approach. She has a History degree from the University of Southern California and a Global Diplomacy degree from the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London.

Dr. Moussa Magassa is the UVic Principal Strategist, EDI, Anti-Racism Education and Community Engagement. He focuses on enhancing understanding of the university’s human rights, equity, diversity, inclusion, and anti-racism education goals and commitment to community engagement and participation. He facilitates collaboration between campus partners and Victoria communities to design an EDI and anti-racism project charter. Dr. Magassa is also an associate faculty in the UVic Social Justice diploma program and in the intercultural studies and practice program. He also teaches in the MA in Global Leadership program at Royal Roads University, and at the UBC Centre for Intercultural Communication.

Scott Vignos joined Oregon State University in October 2015 and has served as Interim Vice President and Chief Diversity Officer since September 2021. In this role, Scott collaborates with partners across the university to design and lead the Office of Institutional Diversity’s portfolio of DEI initiatives. Scott is guiding the implementation of the university’s diversity strategic plan — Innovate and Integrate: Plan for Inclusive Excellence — and consulting with university leaders to create a more just and equitable Oregon State. He serves on the President’s Cabinet, and several university-level committees and task forces. His lived experience as a multi-racial, gay man informs his intersectional approach to advancing equitable organizational transformation.

Handel Kashope Wright is the inaugural Senior Advisor to the President on Anti-Racism and Inclusive Excellence; Director of the Centre for Culture, Identity, and Education; and Professor of Educational Studies at the University of British Columbia. He is co-editor of the book series African and Diasporic Cultural Studies (University of Toronto Press) and Nuances of Blackness in the Canadian Academy (2022, University of Toronto Press); Associate Editor of the journal Critical Arts; and serves on the editorial boards of several cultural studies and education book series and journals. He has published extensively on Black and African cultural studies, qualitative research, cultural studies of education, and critical multiculturalism and its alternatives.

Chelsey Megli is the Chief of Staff for Advancement for University of Oregon Advancement, where she leads a team specializing in recruitment, career planning, professional development and training, organizational development, and employee relations. She has coached, advised, and trained many development professionals from interns to deans to vice presidents. Prior to her time at the University of Oregon Chelsey established the program TalentED at Bentz Whaley Flessner (BWF), a leading development consulting firm. Megli is a leader in research and discourse on the topic of talent management in development and has been featured in several publications, including CASE’s Currents Magazine and the AHP Healthcare Philanthropy Journal.

Tahsin I. Alam is Associate Dean of Advancement for the Foster School of Business at the University of Washington (UW) in Seattle. He is a member of the Foster Advisory Board, the Dean’s senior leadership team, and the University Advancement’s Executive Leadership Team. At the Rutgers University Foundation, Alam served as the Vice President for Advancement Services and Talent Management. Alam is a Consulting Partner with BWF, one of the leading consulting firms in the advancement industry. With over 17 years of experience in Presidential and Advancement professional searches, Alam holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Politics, Economics, and Theater from Bates College and a Master’s in Organizational Communications from Rutgers University.

Christoph Clodius has been a leader in the executive talent management sector for over a decade. He works exclusively with charities and social profit organizations on their recruitment and leadership development needs, and has partnered with hundreds of universities, colleges, and institutes across the country. Clodius also has extensive first-hand knowledge of working in the sector, having been a senior fundraiser for over a decade as well. He is inspired by those in sector who are passionate about their work and he finds great motivation in finding, encouraging, and supporting people making change for the better.

Kirsten Nicholson is the Executive Director, Development at the University of British Columbia (UBC) where she oversees fundraising for six units, including Corporate and Foundation Relations; Regional and Global Development; and the Faculties of Forestry, Land and Food Systems, Science, and Applied Science. She began working in major gift fundraising at UBC in 2001 and has worked in various roles in faculty and centrally based units. She was recently the Director of Corporate and Foundation Relations. After working as an Associate Investment Advisor at RBC Dominion Securities, Nicholson’s fundraising career includes working at the Arts Club Theatre and the BC Cancer Foundation. She holds a BA from UBC and has a Certificate in Fundraising Management from BCIT.

Jason “JT” Thomas serves as the Associate Director, Talent Management for the Oregon State University Foundation. He focuses on the OSU Foundation’s recruiting efforts by developing relationships, networks, and candidate pools across all positions using all recruiting channels. He has helped recruit for positions of all levels of the 160+ OSU Foundation staff, and he has seen what it takes for someone to successfully go through a job search in today’s competitive environment. He also serves as one of CASE District VIII Opportunity and Inclusion Co-Chairs, as well as serving as a member of the CASE District VIIII Cabinet.

Derek Juno is a social entrepreneur, speaker, and Vice-President of Business Development for the social enterprise Dollar Donation Club (DDC), which aims to create the world’s first collective billionaire super-philanthropist to address humanity’s biggest challenges. Previously, Juno oversaw growth of Mealshare from a small start-up to a national organization as its Executive Vice-President. He also founded Elysium Retreat, a two-day personal development retreat package. In addition, he is an elite triathlete and Ironman, and he represented Canada at the 2017 Ironman 70.3 World Championships.  

Samra Zafar is an award-winning speaker, author, and educator for equity, mental health, and human rights. She has been named among the Top 100 Most Powerful Women in Canada, the Top 25 Most Inspirational Women in Canada, and Top 25 Canadian Immigrants; and is the 2021 recipient of the Desmond Parker Outstanding Young Alumni Award at the University of Toronto. She’s currently pursuing an MD at McMaster's DeGroote School of Medicine to become a physician promoting inclusive mental health. Her book, A Good Wife: Escaping The Life I Never Chose, about her escape from an abusive child marriage to pursue her education, is a national bestseller and is being adapted for TV.