Love, and What Comes Next

After ten years at the Interaction Institute for Social Change, I will be transitioning to my next opportunity. Leading IISC has been one of the most powerful and evolutionary experiences of my career, and even though it’s hard to leave, I am so proud of what we have built together and what this transition makes possible.

How We Have Built Together

Decades ago, I met Renae Gray, a Black woman activist and group facilitator, who sat cross-legged in a chair, raised her hands to the group, and animatedly led us in a conversation about strategy and organizing. She wasn’t the voice in the room; she was the container through which we opened our hearts and processed the harsh realities of our failing justice campaigns. That experience shaped how I came to understand leadership and facilitation – it’s about creating the conditions for others to step fully into their own clarity and power.

That thread carried me through my early experiences with facilitation, through learning from leaders like Valerie Batts of VISIONS, Inc., and eventually to IISC: as a participant, partner, and later as a member of the team. When IISC faced financial challenges and a leadership transition, I stepped in as Interim President, and together we navigated a period that required steadiness and trust from all of us.

When I was formally hired as President, we anchored our work in racial equity as a central driver of collaboration, strengthened our financial position, navigated COVID, and responded to a growing demand for racial justice. We leaned into shared leadership and deepened our work with clients, partners, and networks. We received $2 million without asking and used it in service of our mission and community care.

Transitions as a Strength

At IISC, we have learned that transitions are a natural part of work. As Miriam Messinger, our former Director of Practice, wrote in Passing the Torch: What It Means to Transition with Care, leadership changes are often treated as crises, when they can instead be opportunities to build trust, deepen relationships, and grow collective capacity. 

Over more than 30 years, the IISC team has developed practices for leading through uncertainty and organizational transitions. Shared leadership, collaboration, and love are part of how the organization operates and continues to grow.

In July, I will step into a new role as Director of Transformation at the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, where I will work with the team to advance its networked organization grounded in racial equity, leadership, and community. 

Collective Courage

I have been shaped by you and will carry you with me into this position and my future. 

I have deep trust in the people carrying forward IISC’s work. New leadership is taking shape, fresh ideas are emerging, and IISC is helping communities at every level cultivate collective courage, love, and vibrant networks. 

Stand tall in these times for collaboration, for racial equity, and never forget how powerful you are, and we are together.

Always, Kelly