Chris Altizer
Currently consulting and teaching, Chris Altizer, MBA, MA has led teams and worked with CEOs and senior leaders around the globe.
A retired, recovering HR executive with every unearned advantage short of height, Chris now consults and coaches executives globally and teaches at Florida International University College of Business and the FIU Center for Leadership. From this privileged position, he joins Gloria in addressing the elephant in the room – the elephant of unearned advantage.
Chris’s unusual combination of experiences as a business leader and mindfulness teacher have greatly influenced his work in diversity, equity, and inclusion. Dissatisfied with current approaches and facing a polarized landscape, he invites readers to experiment with well-researched, non-religious contemplative practices to help them explore the elephant of unearned advantage and grow the elephant of earned advantage – for all.
A published author, researcher, and cited expert in human resources, Chris holds an MBA with honors from Columbia University, MAHRD from Northeastern Illinois University and BA from Hampden-Sydney College as well as MBSR teacher qualification through UC San Diego. He is a certified Yoga Teacher and 5th degree black belt martial artist. More about Chris.
Gloria Johnson-Cusack
A servant leader and changemaker, Gloria Johnson-Cusack, MPA, provides consulting services to leadership teams and boards of public and private foundations committed to advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion in education, financial security, and health.
Gloria teaches frequently at the graduate School of Professional Studies, Columbia University in New York and serves as Board Chair of the Firelight Foundation supporting communities in Africa. She has been an executive in philanthropy, government, academia, business, and nonprofit sectors
Gloria is a speaker, lecturer, and consultant providing strategic counsel to leadership teams and boards globally regarding diversity/equity/inclusion, governance, change leadership, and strategic planning for resource development and advocacy.
As a person of African-American and Haliwa-Saponi ancestry, Gloria came from a segregated background in the United States and moved from being middle-class to working-poor to decidedly privileged. From and through this journey, Gloria aims to use her lived-experience to build bridges.
Gloria has a wide range of professional experiences across academia, government, and non-profit sectors. Previously Senior Advisor to the President of Florida International University, she has served as a lobbyist for the charitable sector, Executive Director of Leadership 18 (an alliance of 18+ CEO’s responsible for leading national nonprofit organizations), Board Chair of National United Cerebral Palsy, Director of the Office of Congressional Relations at the U.S. Peace Corps, Senior VP for a cause-marketing advertising firm, and Special Assistant to the President in the White House Office of National Service. Gloria holds graduate and undergraduate degrees from American University and Columbia University. More about Gloria.
