Dr. Fatima Lawson, an educator with many years of experience. She is currently a school principal with the Saint Paul Public Schools and a passionate advocate for education and social justice. She was born and raised in northern Nigeria, in a community where (Western) education was often discouraged, particularly for young women. However, driven by her curiosity and thirst for knowledge, she first completed undergraduate and graduate degrees at the University of Ife in Nigeria, and then continued to complete another master’s and a Ph.D. from the University of Minnesota.
Today, as a Minnesota-based educator, in addition to teaching as an Adjunct Professor in some Twin-Cities universities, Fatima keeps busy as a community member, volunteer. In addition to serving two terms on the Governor’s Council for Minnesotans of African Heritage (CMAH), she currently serves on may boards, including Books for Africa. She is the chair of the Board of Minnesota Africans United (MAU), an organization that represents all the interests of immigrants from all the 55 countries of Africa. She draws on her lived experiences, bringing her international perspectives from around the world into her work, relationships with others, and community involvement, as she finds ways to connect with both her communities here and abroad. She embraces the multiple experiences that co-exist in our communities and seeks to expand her horizons through civic engagement. She is the recipient of several community and international awards, and is involved in many professional organizations. She finds pleasure in whatever she is involved in, as she strives to improve human condition through service and education. When she takes off her professional mask, she enjoys reading, writing poetry, being with family and friends, eating with her fingers, traveling, and just being herself!
Today, as a Minnesota-based educator, in addition to teaching as an Adjunct Professor in some Twin-Cities universities, Fatima keeps busy as a community member, volunteer. In addition to serving two terms on the Governor’s Council for Minnesotans of African Heritage (CMAH), she currently serves on may boards, including Books for Africa. She is the chair of the Board of Minnesota Africans United (MAU), an organization that represents all the interests of immigrants from all the 55 countries of Africa. She draws on her lived experiences, bringing her international perspectives from around the world into her work, relationships with others, and community involvement, as she finds ways to connect with both her communities here and abroad. She embraces the multiple experiences that co-exist in our communities and seeks to expand her horizons through civic engagement. She is the recipient of several community and international awards, and is involved in many professional organizations. She finds pleasure in whatever she is involved in, as she strives to improve human condition through service and education. When she takes off her professional mask, she enjoys reading, writing poetry, being with family and friends, eating with her fingers, traveling, and just being herself!
Ian Oundo is a Ugandan-American, community builder, social entrepreneur, and a systems shifter. Born and raised in the East-African country Uganda, Ian is passionate about advocating for issues he deeply cares about. Ian believes that protecting human rights, expanding economic and educational opportunities, and improving the health and well-being for all people is key to building a healthier and just community. Ian is committed to building pipelines to success in every part of peoples' lives, through making connections and empowering people, by creating awareness and exposure to good examples of leadership. Ian has years of experience as an advocate, connector, community builder, organizer, and mobilizer. As the Deputy Political Director, and later as the Civic Engagement Director for the Minnesota Democratic Party, Ian worked closely with faith leaders, elected officials, community organizations, as well as community leaders/stakeholders, to build strong partnerships in communities of color, marginalized, black and brown communities, and bringing people together to speak a common language and align their efforts to fight for the issues they care about, that most affect them. Ian is also the Founder & CEO of Makesi Creative Strategies, LLC, a leading political consulting firm in public affairs, communications, and research services in Minnesota and the Midwest for candidates, causes, and companies dedicated to bettering our collective future and peoples' lives. A first generation immigrant and new American, Ian believes in the collective power of the people, and that We Are Stronger Together, and ANYTHING is possible when we come together.
Jude Nnadi is the Founder of Paadio Consulting. A serial entrepreneur Jude Nnadi, is guided by the formative experiences of early life to create inclusive business empowerment, rebuilding the social and economic fabric of communities in need one person at a time. Jude was born into the upheaval and economic devastation left in the wake of the Nigerian Civil War. His kind-hearted, collaborative, forward-thinking approach to micro-business and cross-scale partnership development are heavily influenced by the radically cooperative apprenticeship model that has transformed the economic welfare of the Igbo people of South East Nigeria post conflict. Jude’s philosophy for nurturing talent and shifting people from subsistence to surplus is built around replacing the social and economic capital many immigrants leave behind when coming to the United States. The Paadio methods of entrepreneurship reconnect individuals with diverse resources across all sectors and economic strata.Drawing on his own experience of launching multiple successful ventures early in life on the other side of the Atlantic, Jude is reinventing pathways to prosperity and inclusion again in the Twin Cities. With deep connections in enterprise business, the African immigrant community, local governments, and politics, Jude does an amazing job of matchmaking across sectors and between small and large players. Raised in agriculture and trained as an engineer, Jude transitioned into health sciences engineering working for Medtronic upon arriving in Minnesota. He worked his way up from production line to management. After going out on his own, he returned as a consultant to successfully launch Medtronic’s West African portfolio of partnerships. As a consultant and independent entrepreneur Jude has launched and led successful businesses in construction management, healthcare, real estate, financial services, and environment. Jude has been deeply devoted to volunteering his expertise and time to others in need all along his path of business development success. In founding Paadio Consulting Jude has blended his drive to create positive business ventures with his unfailing community advocacy. Jude’s kindness, pragmatism, optimism, and tenacity guide Paadio Consulting, breeding faith, trust, confidence, and authenticity across all our programs and initiatives.
Lensa Idossa is an emerging leader and advocate for vulnerable populations. Currently, she is the Supervisor for the Dislocated Worker and Federal Adult Programs team at the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED), where she directs and manages multiple state and federal employment and training programs to ensure effective and efficient operation and implementation. Ms. Idossa has worked with various agencies and organizations domestically and internationally including the National Marrow Donor Program® (NMDP)/Be The Match®, Hennepin County Department of Health and Human Services, and Population Council, delivering exceptional service and program success, as well as growing public awareness of various programs while leading a highly motivated team. Ms. Idossa has been in public service for more than 10 years working with diverse populations including refugees, seniors, youth at-risk and individuals with disabilities, domestically and internationally. Ms. Idossa holds a Master’s degree in Public Health with a concentration on vulnerable populations/global health from Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, and a B.A in Psychology with a minor in Leadership from the University of Minnesota
Lulete Mola is committed to social change that is intersectional, asset-based, and led by communities most impacted. As the Chief Strategy and Innovation Officer at the Women's Foundation of Minnesota, Lulete puts this commitment to action as at the lead strategist and co-visionary of community investments, field-building programming, strategic communications, and bold fundraising that enable large-scale systems change. In this role, Lulete also leads the Young Women’s Initiative of Minnesota, a multi-million-dollar public-private partnership to achieve equity in opportunities and improve the lives of Black, Indigenous, and young women of color. Lulete is devoted to engaging in and supporting community organizing, movement building, and work to advance women's political leadership. Lulete is Founder and Co-chair of the Philanthropic Collective to Combat Anti-Blackness & Realize Racial Justice, a coalition of foundations and philanthropic organizations transforming the field of philanthropy and establishing a historic, Black-Led Movement Fund. She is on the Minnesota Council of Foundations Board of Directors, the VoteRunLead National Advisory Board, and serves on Minnesota’s Advisory Task Force on Expanding the Economic Security of Women. Lulete leads engagement and professional development initiatives in Minnesota’s East African community and is active in the movement for Black lives. Lulete is the recipient of the 2020 SOAR fellowship with the Aspen Institute Forum on Women and Girls, Humanity in Action Fellowship, Ibrahim Leadership and Dialogue Project Fellowship, and the Scholarly Excellence in Equity and Diversity Award. In 2017, Lulete was named Young Professional of the Year Finalist by the St. Paul Chamber of Commerce. Lulete graduated summa cum laude from the University of Minnesota.
Mamady Konneh is a cybersecurity professional and speaker with more than a decade of experience in the healthcare, finance, retail, and hospitality industries. In the last 4 years, he has managed and led the design and full deployment of a cybersecurity program from the ground up. He also researched and built a secure digital identification program for an entire West African country during his master’s program at the University of Minnesota - Twin-Cities. Mr. Konneh is also the Founder and Executive Director of WeNetworkNow – a non-profit that connects people of African descent to opportunities via professional development and mentorship programs. Since its inception, WeNetworkNow has transformed many lives – and this work was recognized by the State of Minnesota – thus winning him the recipient of the 2021 Outstanding Refugee and Immigrant awards. Mr. Konneh's passion for community service stems from his upbringing – from helping his parents do house chores – working with his grandparents at the farm during his vacation times – to caring for his siblings at a young age. For Mr. Konneh, serving his community is what gets him out of bed every morning, and it is what brings him a sense of meaning and purpose in life.
Margretta Getaweh is the Director of Community Outreach and Partnerships at Planned Parenthood North Central States. Margretta has worked with Planned Parenthood since January 2015 and is responsible for leading parent programs and supports staff working in the African Immigrant and Latinx communities. Previously, she delivered the African youth sex education program at PPMNS. Prior to joining PPMNS, she worked as the Program Coordinator for the Miss Teen African Pageant for 5 years, a pageant that inspires young women to take pride in their identity, build positive self-esteem and be significantly involved in their communities by becoming advocates for public health in the African community. She was the Youth Leadership Facilitator for the Minnesota African Women’s Association, African Girls Initiative for Leadership and Empowerment. A program that focused on sexuality education, civic engagement, and helped African girls connect with education and other resources. Margretta currently serves on the organizing team for the African Immigrant Professional Development Conference a conference gear toward providing African immigrant professionals and students with skills and resources to attain professional success. Margretta attained a Master of Arts Degree in International Development and Service from Concordia University in 2014. She has experience working with adolescents in and out of the United States. Margretta was recently promoted to Director.
Dr. S. Miata Getaweh is a Human Resources Manager at Lutheran Social Service of Minnesota and an Adjunct Professor in the Human Resources Program at the Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota. Dr. Getaweh has worked in the human resources field for over a decade, providing strategic human resources planning and support to organizations. Prior to joining Lutheran Social Service, she worked as the Director of Human Resources at AccessAbility. Dr. Getaweh is passionate about changing the narratives of the African Immigrant and event planning, which led her to transform her dissertation findings into the African Immigrant Professional Development Conference, combining both of her passions while making a difference.
Dr. Getaweh holds a Bachelor of Arts in Business from Bethel University, St Paul, Minnesota, a Master of Arts in Human Resources and a Doctor of Business Administration with Strategic Management concentration from the Saint Mary University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN.
Dr. Getaweh holds a Bachelor of Arts in Business from Bethel University, St Paul, Minnesota, a Master of Arts in Human Resources and a Doctor of Business Administration with Strategic Management concentration from the Saint Mary University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN.
Morgan Kinross-Wright, VP Community Relations & executive director of the Land O’Lakes Foundation, joined Land O’Lakes in 2019. Her responsibilities include developing and nurturing strategic external relationships; leading the work and philanthropy of our member-funded Foundation; and creating and promoting opportunities for all Land O’Lakes employees and members to be engaged community citizens. Morgan joined Land O’Lakes with significant leadership experience and success with premier nonprofit and academic organizations. Most recently, Morgan served as senior vice president of development with Junior Achievement of the Upper Midwest (JAUM). In this role, she led fundraising – including a $17 million capital campaign – and developed partnerships with businesses. Prior, at the Carlson School of Management at the University of Minnesota (UMN), Morgan worked as executive director of Corporate and Foundation Relations and led the Carlson School Undergraduate Business Career Center, linking students with representatives from over 800 companies. In addition, Morgan now leads the Land O’Lakes Global Food Challenge Emerging Leaders for Food Security Program and in her previous life, had the honor of being selected as the academic representative from UMN in 2016 and 2017. As an academic representative, Morgan mentored GFC Emerging Leader students and had the opportunity to travel to Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and South Africa to learn about global food security issues facing the agriculture industry. Morgan grew up on a ranch in Big Timber, Montana, and she now lives with her family and her husband, a retired Brigadier General for the Minnesota Army National Guard, in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Rita Apaloo is a creative connector of people, ideas and things. She has worked in the nonprofit field for over 20 years in various roles including development, marketing, program evaluation, education, and outreach, among others. Rita’s current role is Director of Development and Marketing at AccessAbility, Inc. She is also a published author of African Women Connect. How I created and grew a networking group of African immigrant women for friendship, business, and community. Having a strong passion for community development and social justice, she is always involved in several initiatives, including nonprofit board service. She is a 2018 VOICES Awards Nominee for Nonprofit Leadership. Rita has a B.A. degree in Strategic Communication, an Executive Master's in Business Communications, and she is also a Certified Professional Project Manager (CPPM). Rita is a native of Liberia, West Africa, and has resided in the Twin Cities since 1993.
Teddy Bekele is the Chief Technology Officer at Land O’Lakes, Inc. He has a passion for researching, developing and implementing innovative technology solutions to help retailers and farmers produce more nutritious food while using fewer resources in new and sustainable ways. Prior to joining Land O’Lakes, Teddy held several leadership roles at Ingersoll Rand where he led teams in IT Program Management, developed technology strategies for Engineering and Innovation, and custom software development. He holds an MBA from Indiana University and a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from North Carolina State University. Most recently, he was appointed as Chairman of the Minnesota Broadband Task Force as well as Chairman of the FCC Task Force for Precision Agriculture Connectivity and Adoption. Teddy is a thought leader in emerging technology. He has been featured in the media including Fortune, ComputerWorld, MIT Sloan Management Review, BBC and 60 Minutes. In 2017, was selected as a Minnesotan to Meet by WCCO.
He has lived in three different continents and speaks fluent Italian and Amharic. He currently lives in Minneapolis, MN with his wife Michele and 7-year-old son, Teddy Jr. and their daughter, Luna.
He has lived in three different continents and speaks fluent Italian and Amharic. He currently lives in Minneapolis, MN with his wife Michele and 7-year-old son, Teddy Jr. and their daughter, Luna.
