Based in New York with a background in cultural anthropology, art history and fashion studies, Kimberly M. Jenkins is the Founder, Director and Principal Researcher of The Fashion and Race Database, a one-of-a kind learning platform about fashion and race, as well as the consultancy Artis Solomon, which provides bespoke research and insight about fashion history and theory. 

Kim held the role of Part-Time Lecturer at Parsons School of Design and Visiting Assistant Professor at Pratt Institute in New York for seven years, and for two years, she was an Assistant Professor of Fashion Studies at Toronto Metropolitan University (formerly Ryerson University) in Canada before making the decision to take her work private.

Kim is best known for creating and running the course, Fashion and Race, at Parsons, and for working as an education consultant for Gucci (Milan and Hong Kong) to support their efforts on cultural awareness. In 2018, Kim was nominated for the “Distinguished Teaching” award, and won the award for “Outstanding Achievements in Social Justice Teaching” at The New School. As an undergrad, Kim won the student award for “Outstanding Contribution to Anthropology” at the University of Texas at Arlington, and as a grad student she won the award for “Outstanding Contributions to the Fashion Studies Program” at Parsons School of Design, The New School.

Executive Director of Cool Culture since 2007, Candice has devoted her career to improving the wellbeing educational opportunities and life outcomes for children and families from historically marginalized communities. Previously, she served as Director of Child Care and Head Start Collaboration at the NYC Administration for Children’s Services, and as Senior Policy Associate for Child Care, Education and Youth Development at Citizens’ Committee for Children of New York, NYC’s premier child advocacy organization. Candice has received the Brooklyn District Attorney’s Extraordinary Women award, has an MS in Urban Planning from the New School for Social Research, received her B.A. from Oberlin College and in 2010 became a graduate of the Executive Level Program at Columbia Business School’s Institute for Not-for-Profit Management. In October of 2015, she was appointed by NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio as a member of the Cultural Affairs Advisory Commission and also sits on the NYC Department of Education’s Arts Committee to the Panel of Educational Policy.

Ms. King serves as the chief executive officer for Leadership Newark, Inc., a non-profit organization in the State of New Jersey. Her responsibilities include the overall management and oversight of numerous leadership development programs, which has an emphasis on public policy enrichment and civic engagement for both adults and youth. Celia is responsible for ensuring each program is of high quality & relevant based on the state of affairs nationally, regionally and statewide. In her role, she strives to expand and improve the network of civic and community leaders in the greater Newark area. As an advocate of civic participation, Celia takes her role seriously in engaging the public to be informed and involved. Ms. King feels community building as well as a commitment to social and civic responsibility requires the development of servant leaders through community leadership programs. Prior to assuming her current position, Celia worked in the field of healthcare as an administrator for more than 10 years, as a senior level executive with oversight in behavioral health services, substance abuse and ambulatory care. Celia M. King is a former Councilwoman from Maplewood, New Jersey, serving for 8 years. During her tenure she served in the capacity of Deputy Mayor 4 years. 

In February 2020, Francisco Tezén became President and CEO of A Better Chance, a national nonprofit that places talented young people of color into the leadership pipeline through increased access to academically rigorous secondary schools. Throughout his career, Francisco has created and managed growth, visibility and partnership strategies for educational and social service organizations with community-based, national, and global reach. Tezén, a first-generation Peruvian-American, leads the nonprofit when racial equity, educational opportunity, diversity, access and inclusion are at the forefront of our nation’s collective conscience. “My parents, an immigrant father and a black mother from rural North Carolina, stressed the importance of education to climb out of poverty and realize our American dream,” Tezén said. “As an alumnus of a college preparatory program, I have experienced firsthand the transformative effect of efforts that open pathways of opportunity for people like me. I am honored to lead A Better Chance in writing the next chapter in its venerable legacy.”

He joined A Better Chance from the Food Bank For New York City where he served as the Chief Development Officer.  Prior to the Food Bank, he held positions at Year Up, The New School, and Columbia Business School. Francisco earned his B.A. in History and Latin-American Studies at Wesleyan University and his M.S. in Nonprofit Management at The New School.