The Minority Leaders with Algene Sajery

Dear Minority Leaders,

Today I’m delighted to speak with fellow Howard University graduate and Delta Sigma Theta soror Charmion Kinder. Kinder has devoted her career to corporate responsibility and social impact, with over twenty years of communications experience. Her resume includes the Obama and Biden administrations, Disney, Apple, the Peace Corps, and others.

We discuss her experiences working with former first lady Michelle Obama and vice president Kamala Harris, as well as how an individual’s background and experiences can reinforce their skills as a leader. We also touch on the importance of Kinder’s current work with the Peace Corps, an institution that can be a positive and transformative experience for both young leaders and communities around the world.

Kinder shares her vision for the future, including removing barriers to leadership for young innovators. We also discuss how to defeat imposter syndrome, maintain your passion, and truly prepare for leadership roles. This is a wide-ranging conversation that explores the importance of language, service and the environment that makes valuable, invigorating listening for anyone interested in becoming an agent of change.

To find out more about Charmion Kinder and her work, please check out these links below:

IG: @charmionkinder

Twitter/X: twitter.com/charmionkinder

Website: charmionkinder.com

Peace Corps: peacecorps.gov/bold

More from Algene Sajery

IG: theminorityleaders

Website: algenesajery.com

LinkedIn: Algene-Sajery

This is a Redd Rock Music Podcast

IG: @reddrockmusic

www.reddrockmusic.com

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Dear Minority Leaders,
Before we jump into this episode, let me thank you all for your positive feedback on the reboot of this podcast. I appreciate all your kind words of encouragement. Please take a few seconds to show your support for this incredible platform by giving us a 5 star rating, subscribing,writing a quick review, and by sharing this podcast with the future minority leaders in your life. I want to keep bringing this community wonderful words of wisdom and dynamic conversations, and your quick show of support will go a long way towards ensuring I can keep sharing this little passion project of mine with you all.Speaking of passion, if you know me, you know I am passionate about parenting. So today I am proud to be kicking off a series of episodes featuring women of color advocates on parenting, caregiving, and educating children in different abilities. I am elated to be joined by one of my oldest and dearest friends- and fellow Howard University alum, Dawn Allen - co-founder of The Autism Grind. Dawn and I discuss her journey from a young mom of a child on the autism spectrum to leading advocate and educator for parents of kids with different abilities, especially kids of color.Dawn is an accomplished autism advocate, skilled instructional designer, and former educator. With a Masters of Education in Elementary Education and a Bachelor of Arts in English from Howard University, her academic journey underscores her proficiency and commitment. Beyond her professional accomplishments, Dawn’s role as a mother of three, including a non-verbal autistic son, significantly influences her mission, driving her unwavering commitment to fostering understanding and inclusivity within the autism community.
Our conversation today explores our journeys as parents of children on the spectrum, her work with the education system to help teachers have the necessary tools to adequately support children on the spectrum, and the importance of assistive communication devices. We discuss her YouTube program, Friday Night Grind, which I’ve had the privilege of joining, and how Dawn has traversed the developing landscape of providing community to all parents of children with special needs. Please stick around to the end to hear Dawn’s insightful answer to the very important question of “What is the biggest myth in the autism community?” Her response is both informative and enlightening. It was the perfect way to cap off such an important conversation.
To find out more about Dawn Allen & The Autism Grind check out the links below.The Autism Grind : theautismgrind.orgIG : @theautismgrind
Facebook: www.facebook.com/TheAutismGrindFollow

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Please join us on this leadership journey by subscribing, supporting, rating, reviewing and sharing this episode! Also follow us here:

• Instagram: @theminorityleaders and @algene_1913
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In Episode 4, host Algene Sajery welcomes Kendra Gaither and Brionne Dawson from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce to the show to discuss their unique career paths, democracy and rule of law, and the value of public-private partnerships in international economic development. Guest Bios:Kendra Gaither is the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Executive Director for the Americas, where she assists members with economic policy issues across the Western Hemisphere.​ ​She also leads the Chamber’s Rule of Law Coalition that highlights the private sector’s commitment to promoting good governance across global markets. Kendra previously served as a global initiatives advisor at Carnegie Mellon University after spending a decade in the State Department as a diplomat and a civil servant.Brionne Dawson is the Chamber’s Senior Director for East & Southern Africa, where she manages the U.S.-Africa Business Center and advocates for increased trade and investment in the region. She served under the Obama Administration as a Congressional Liaison Specialist for USAID and has years of experience doing democracy promotion work in the African continent.Get ready to be inspired by these two dynamic women! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Support the show

Please join us on this leadership journey by subscribing, supporting, rating, reviewing and sharing this episode! Also follow us here:

• Instagram: @theminorityleaders and @algene_1913
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/algene-sajery
• Facebook: @theminorityleaders

Happy Holidays, Minority Leaders!
This time of the year many of us are taking stock of all the blessings in our lives. One thing I am blessed with is a village of smart, supportive, and inspiring women leaders. Today I am excited to speak with one of my closest friends, Crystal Lander, Chief Strategic Engagement Officer at Pathfinder International.
Crystal is a high profile and internationally recognized senior leader with 20 years of experience in global health and development, project and program management, and professional training and development. She manages Pathfinder's global advocacy, communications and engagement teams and sits on the management team. Crystal has experience working in more than 15 countries with extensive travel to more than 53 countries. She has proven expertise in civil society development, influence policy and advocacy, communications campaigns, and coalition building. She is multilingual advocate with a passion for promoting awareness and conducting international speeches on women’s health issues and leadership including HIV, reproductive and maternal health, and cancer. She has given hundreds of speeches, trainings and workshops worldwide on advocacy, policy, global health and policy development. She is a graduate of the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Spanish and Economics and a Master of Public Health from Tulane School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine with a degree in International Health Policy.
When I think about someone who gives back to her community, I think of Crystal. To me, she is super woman. She is truly the busiest woman I know. She is an active member of the Jack and Jill of America, Inc., president of the Alexandria (VA) West Rotary Club and president of her local chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., to name a few. Indeed, Crystal is a super volunteer-- someone you can count on to activate and inspire others to drive impact in their communities both here at home and globally. I honestly don't know how she does it all!

We discuss her esteemed career; the influence of her parents on her drive to give back to her community; her decision to become a 'single mom by choice' at 40 years old; how her son Caleb keeps her grounded; and the huge role her parents and family- through blood as well as friendship- play in helping her thrive as a working single mom and community leader. She also offers sage advice to the net generation of Minority Leaders.
Crystal is truly a gift to everyone in her circle and I am happy to share her with you in this holiday episode. Enjoy!
Have a blessed holiday!
Algene & The Minority Leaders Podcast
*PS- Check out our Holiday Travel Playlist featuring some of my favorite episodes celebrating friendship and community!

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Please join us on this leadership journey by subscribing, supporting, rating, reviewing and sharing this episode! Also follow us here:

• Instagram: @theminorityleaders and @algene_1913
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• Facebook: @theminorityleaders

Happy New Year, Minority Leaders!
In this first episode of 2024, we are joined by Larisa Hovannisian, Founder and CEO of Teach For Armenia. I love this conversation because it is deep, inspirational, and highlights the power of diasporans to impact the communities where they or parents once fled.
I am proud to say that is our first international episode because Larisa speaks with us from Armenia. She moved back to her birth country just over a decade ago with just two suitcases. Larisa explains how a college course on social impact business inspired her to abandon plans for a career in fashion merchandizing to eventually launch Teach for Armenia. As a diasporan, her motivation to abandon life in the U.S. to help bring quality education to underserved children of Armenia is nothing short of inspirational.
Larisa discusses the challenges of launching a national non profit, especially after many of her personnel and the children she serves were impacted by the renewed conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over Nagorno-Karabakh ( Artsakh). As Larisa describes, and CNN and others have reported, Nagorno-Karabakh has been "under blockade since December 2022, when Azerbaijan-backed activists established a military checkpoint on the Lachin corridor. The blockade prevented the import of food, fuel and medicine to Nagorno-Karabakh, prompting fears that residents were being left to starve" (CNN). In September 2023, Azerbaijani forces rapidly seized the region after 24 hours of fighting and the ethnic Armenians fled to Armenia. Nagorno-Karabakh's government has said the self-declared republic will cease to exist by this month- January 2024 (BBC). Larisa and her team at Teach for Armenia are now dealing with the impact of the conflict on its students, two of whom were killed in the conflict according to her.
You don't want to miss this powerful episode. We look forward to bringing you more compelling stories of power women leaders serving their communities here in the United States and across the globe in 2024.
***Special thanks to my good friend, Jirair Ratevosian for helping me find Larisa. Jirair is a champion for human rights and the Armenian people, and I am proud to help support his work to help shed light on the crisis in Nagorno-Karabakh.

Read more on the conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh :
Council on Foreign Relations
Eurasianet.org
New York Times
Foreign Affairs

Support the show

Please join us on this leadership journey by subscribing, supporting, rating, reviewing and sharing this episode! Also follow us here:

• Instagram: @theminorityleaders and @algene_1913
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/algene-sajery
• Facebook: @theminorityleaders