Monica Raye Simpson is the Executive Director of SisterSong, the southern-based national Women of Color Reproductive Justice Collective. Monica is a proud Black Queer Feminist born and raised in rural North Carolina and is a graduate of Johnson C. Smith University, a historically black university (HBCU). For nearly 20 years, Monica has been organizing for LGBTQ liberation, civil and human rights, and sexual and reproductive justice. As a creative and cultural strategist, Monica lives by the charge set by Nina Simone that says, “It’s an artist’s duty to reflect the times” and is deeply committed to using the power of cultural organizing to educate the masses and dismantle systems of oppression. Monica is also a member of the Trust Web and has been committed to dismantling poverty mindsets and organizing across class to develop pathways for personal and systemic transformation around wealth. She is certified in “Power, Innovation & Leadership from the Harvard Kennedy School and has been featured on major news outlets such as MSNBC, CNN and Democracy Now. Monica has received numerous awards for her innovative leadership including – Fast Company Queer 50 awardee, STATUS List awardee, being named a New Civil Rights Leader by Essence Magazine and being named as one of TIME 100’s most influential people of 2023.

Charlene Polite Corley combines data and storytelling to amplify the power of historically excluded audiences from women’s sports to Rural America.

As VP, Inclusive Insights at Nielsen, Charlene is the principal researcher for Black/African American audiences on the Business Impact, Inclusion & Belonging Thought Leadership Team. Her work showcases media trends and the influence of Black culture to highlight opportunities for brands and programmers to connect through inclusion.

Charlene brings over 15 years of experience in sales, client service and market research roles to her current role. As a thought leader, she has been featured on Good Morning America, Essence, AfroTech, Cannes Lions, SXSW and more.

Charlene is a proud graduate of Florida A&M University, wife, and mom of two.

Imani Greene, M.B.A. is the Founder and CEO of AAmplify MEDIA, a Washington, D.C.–based agency specializing in paid media strategy, influencer integration, and behavior change campaigns. With over 30 years of experience, she has led groundbreaking initiatives in public health, policy, advocacy, and consumer marketing.

Imani is recognized for directing some of the nation’s most visible campaigns, including the largest federal media buy in U.S. history—a $750 million effort to promote COVID-19 vaccinations. Her expertise spans every channel, from television and radio to programmatic, social, and influencer-driven activations, where she designs campaigns that move audiences to evaluate, and then reevaluate.

Widely respected for her strategic acumen and clarity of vision, Imani is a frequent speaker and trusted advisor, shaping conversations on media, culture, and impact across industries.

Anthony Ramos is a Grammy®-winning artist, Golden Globe® and Emmy® nominated actor recognized for his dynamic range across film, television, music, and Broadway. Ramos is known for inaugurating the dual roles of “John Laurens” and “Philip Hamilton” in the Tony Award-winning phenomenon Hamilton, earning an Emmy® nomination, before going on to star as “Usnavi” in Jon M. Chu’s In the Heights. His portrayal earned him a Golden Globe® nomination and recognition from IndieWire and W Magazine’s year-end Best Performance round-up. He also starred in Universal’s tentpole feature, TWISTERS, directed by Academy® Award nominee Lee Isaac Chung. Ramos can be seen in Sony’s recent feature, DUMB MONEY, directed by Craig Gillespie. He is currently in development with Mattel Films, Shadow Machine, and Jennifer Lopez’s Nuyorican Productions on a new animated version of BOB THE BUILDER that he is producing and will also star in. In October 2025, Ramos will star in Kathryn Bigelow‘s A HOUSE OF DYNAMITE at Netflix, alongside Idris Elba, Rebecca Ferguson, Greta Lee, and more. Next year, he will go on to star in Ryan Murphy’s The Beauty on FX alongside Evan Peters, Ashton Kutcher, and Jeremy Pope.

Additional credits include HBO’s reimagining of the Emmy® Award-winning series  IN TREATMENT opposite Uzo Aduba, his role opposite Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper in the Academy® Award-winning film A STAR IS BORN, starring as ‘Mars Blackmon’ in Spike Lee’s critically-acclaimed Netflix series SHE’S GOTTA HAVE IT, playing ‘Mr Piranha’in the animated feature BAD GUYS for DreamWorks, voicing ‘King Trollex’ in Paramount’s animated feature film, TROLLS WORLD TOUR, and starring as ‘Noah Diaz’ in TRANSFORMERS: RISE OF THE BEASTS.  He also took on the role of the Hood in Marvel’s limited series, IRONHEART, for Disney+ and appeared in BAD GUYS 2 alongside Sam Rockwell, Awkwafina, Zazie Beetz, and Mac Maron. Ramos earned rave reviews for his role as ‘Manny’ in Reinaldo Marcus Green’s award-winning film MONSTERS AND MEN, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, winning the Special Jury Prize.

Beyond acting, Ramos, a multi-hyphenate, is a recording artist that embraces his Latin music roots like never before on his recent singles “I Was The One,” “Vicariously,” and “Se Fue.” He is also partnering with Brooks Running to train for his first marathon in November 2025.

Born and raised in Bushwick, Brooklyn, to Puerto Rican parents. Ramos also owns Milly’s, a bar and restaurant in Bed-Stuy named after his mother. Created in partnership with his brother and close friends, the project is a reflection of his deep roots in family and community.

Vanessa Sewell is the Head of Monetization at Zip, where she connects payments and commerce media to drive growth for merchant partners. She leads initiatives that enhance partner performance and expand co-marketing opportunities across sectors such as fashion, electronics, and travel. Her work spans launching innovative in-app campaigns, structuring direct merchant partnerships tied to revenue outcomes, and creating new revenue streams in digital commerce. Prior to Zip, Vanessa held roles at Block, THG Beauty, and Publicis Groupe.

Audrey Cochran is the VP of Television and Digital Research for Urban One, the country’s largest African-American owned and operated multi-media company. She is a skilled media scholar whose experience spans over 25 years researching and promoting the value of the African American consumer market for cable networks, including: Urban One, Black Entertainment Television (BET), UPTV, and ASPIRE TV. For most of her illustrious career, Audrey has been responsible for conducting research on the television landscape, particularly marketing and targeting diverse viewers.

Tracy Sturdivant is a culture shaper, trend-spotter, and champion for change.

As the founder and CEO of The League, Tracy helps brands, creators, and communities connect the dots between culture, current trends, and social impact—translating big ideas into action. With a deep understanding of how culture shapes how we see, think and show up in the world, she has spent her career helping movements and brands create groundbreaking campaigns that shift narratives, drive civic engagement, and inspire people to take action.

Before launching The League in 2017, Tracy made her mark as a pioneering leader in social justice and innovation. As Executive Director of State Voices, she raised millions to empower grassroots organizers and mobilize voters across the country, pioneering a game-changing model that put cutting-edge data and technology in the hands of state and local changemakers.

A sought-after thought leader, Tracy has taken the stage at SXSW, Cannes Lions, Glassdoor’s Equal Pay Roundtable with Secretary Hillary Clinton, the Atlantic’s “Inclusion in Action” Summit, and more. Her work has been featured in The Washington Post, The New York Times, Fast Company, Refinery29, Elle Magazine, and Glamour, and she has been a guest on Sirius XM News, NPR, and Women’s Radio Network.

Recently. Tracy’s impact was recognized with four Anthem Awards in 2024, including a Silver Anthem Award for Best Influencer Collaboration in Human & Civil Rights, a testament to her leadership in leveraging culture and community to drive real impact.

When she’s not shaping the culture of change, Tracy is feeding her creative side by testing new recipes, discovering live music festivals, and sharing adventures with her son.

With over 15 years in the sports industry, Megan brings deep expertise in brand strategy and development, media relations, cross-functional content strategy, broadcast production, and retail management. As Senior Vice President of Ketchum Sports, she leads work across the Olympics, NFL, MLB, and international soccer, helping global brands deliver breakthrough marketing and communications strategies that connect with fans worldwide. Megan began her career with the Washington Nationals, advanced through roles with Special Olympics International, and later served as Senior Director of Marketing for the Washington Capitals before joining Ketchum.

As Chief Brand Officer, Shana Renee Stephenson oversees strategy and day to day management of branding, marketing, creative, game presentation, performance marketing, digital content, and brand innovation for the New York Liberty. With her visionary leadership, Shana shepherded the Liberty through a transformational era, culminating in the team’s first WNBA championship win in franchise history and New York City’s first professional basketball championship since 1973. Stephenson’s brand and marketing strategy has positioned the Liberty at the epicenter of New York City culture and made significant contributions to the current renaissance of women’s sports. She previously served as Vice President of Marketing with the Liberty for three seasons.

Shana joined the Liberty family in 2018 before they relocated to Barclays Center and played a key role in the team’s transition to Brooklyn. As a native New Yorker, she drew inspiration from her hometown as she led the team’s complete rebrand. Core to her responsibilities are engaging and maintaining strong connections with the Liberty’s existing fan base, as well as attracting and building relationships with new fans. Her work securing critical partnership and sponsorship deals, boosting game attendance, growing the Liberty fan base, and turning mascot Ellie the Elephant into an icon in her own right continues to elevate the Liberty’s presence as a leading team of the WNBA and professional sports.

Featured in Fast Company, Andscape, The Washington Post, Billboard, The Guardian, Sports Illustrated, and more, Shana’s vision and innovative leadership has been recognized across the sports industry. She was honored as Ad Age’s Leading Women 2024, took home Gold in the CLIO Sports Awards 2024 for Gameday/In-Game Experience for creating “Ellie the Elephant: A Cultural Icon”, and was named to Crain’s New York’s list of Notable 2023 Black Leaders. In October 2020, Shana was named to the Sports Innovation Lab Women’s Sports Leadership Board, the first of its kind, specifically dedicated to accelerating the growth and commercialization of women’s sports.

A former ESPN marketing professional with nearly twenty years of sports industry experience, Shana has a passion for storytelling – adding a unique perspective, relatable relevance and necessary perspective to the sports community. Her keen knowledge of sports inspired her All Sports Everything, a New York centric sports blog with a range of lifestyle, news and other sports-relevant content. She has also contributed to Bleacher Report, espnW, Essence, Madison Square Garden, MSNBC, and Refinery29, to name a few.

Shana currently resides in Harlem. She received her BA in Psychology from Spelman College, and her MS in Sports Business from New York University.

Yvonne Bryant is the Commercial Head of Hemoglobinopathies at Novo Nordisk, Inc. (NNI) with over 20 years of experience in the healthcare industry. Starting out in Clinical Research & Development, Yvonne progressed through commercial roles in Marketing and Market Development. She joined NNI in 2015 in Rare Disease where she launched new products and developed brand strategies for Hemophilia. Yvonne later joined the Obesity Business Unit and led Strategic Planning that helped lay the foundation for future Obesity market growth. She went on to become the Market Development and Partnership Lead, driving new and innovative approaches to Consumer Marketing that span across Diabetes, Obesity, & MASH. Yvonne also led the US insulin launch team.

Today she is responsible for leading the strategy and approach to successfully launch assets in Sickle Cell and Beta Thalassemia. This new Therapy Area plays an essential role as a future growth driver and supports diversification for Rare Disease and Novo Nordisk.

Yvonne is a graduate from Temple University with a B.A. in Sociology and is also a graduate of the University of Delaware, where she earned an Executive Master’s degree in Business Administration. She has attained certifications from the Association of Clinical Research Professionals and the Drug Information Association.

Prior to joining Novo Nordisk, Yvonne worked in clinical research and development for 11 years at CSL Behring and Covance. She has been recognized as Marketer of the Year, and received awards such as NNI Visionary Award, SABRE Award, PRSA Anvil Award and was recognized as one of the top Forty under Forty by the Network Journal. Yvonne has served as co-lead for Black Employees in Novo Nordisk and Women in Novo Nordisk. She also led diversity & inclusion efforts at NNI inclusive of sharing best practices across the organization.

Yvonne serves on the board trustees for the Delaware County Christian School and is a member of Women of Color in Pharma, and Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.

She lives in Pennsylvania with her two children, Chloe and Joey.