Dr. Nikki Cristobal

Executive Director, Kamāwaelualani/ Director of Policy and Research, Pouhana O Nā Wāhine

Nikki Cristobal was born and raised on the island of Kauaʻi. She holds her Ph.D. in Educational Administration and Policy, an M.A. in Psychology, and a B.A. in Sociology and Women’s Studies. Her greatest accomplishment is the recent birth of her child, Zenith. Nikki is the Principal Investigator for the Hawaiʻi Missing & Murdered Native Hawaiian Women, Girls, Māhū Reports and is the Director of Policy & Research for Pouhana O Nā Wāhine. Nikki is a Founder and the Executive Director for the Kauaʻi-based grassroots community education nonprofit, Kamāwaelualani. Nikki's inspiration to do anti-violence work comes from her own experiences as a survivor of gender-based violence and finding healing in the mutual relationships she cultivates with the land, culture, and community for the benefit of the next generations.

Maha Elgenaidi, M.A.

Executive Director, Islamic Networks Group (ING)

Maha Elgenaidi is the Founder and Executive Director of ING. She has authored training handbooks on outreach for Muslim Americans and developed training programs for organizations and institutions on cultural literacy and bridging diverse religious and ethnic communities. Maha has received several prestigious awards, including the “Director’s Community Leadership Award” from the FBI-San Francisco Field Office, and the “Civil Rights Leadership Award” from the California Association of Human Relations Organizations, etc.

Mestisa C. Gass, PsyD

Program Director for Mental Health America of Hawai‘i

Mestisa's education and experience has been focused on diverse populations including inpatient acute adolescent care, community mental health, and military mental health. She is a member of the Mental Health Task Force, the Statewide and Oahu Suicide Prevention Task Forces, and a board member for the Waipahu Aloha Clubhouse and American Foundation for Suicide Prevention-Hawai‘i Chapter. She has been working in Hawaii since 2006, being originally from a small, farming community in the Appalachian Mountains. She is passionate about bringing education, support, and resources to rural communities, like those in which she spent her childhood.

Dr. Ron Hassner

Chancellor’s Professor of Political Science and Helen Diller Family Chair in Israel Studies, UC Berkeley

Ron Hassner is a political science professor who studies religion and international conflict. He is the author of several books and articles on religion and war. In March, he engaged in a two-week sit-down in his Berkeley office to protest Antisemitism on his campus.

Victoria Roland, M.S.

Statewide Program Administrator for the Trafficking Victim Assistance Program

Victoria Roland holds a BS in Psychology and a MS in Administration of Human Services. She has over 15 years of professional experiences in advocacy, research, residential care, and anti-gender based violence work for victims and survivors experiencing exploitation, homelessness, immigrant injustices , the criminal legal system, substance dependence, and sexual violence. Her journey as a subject matter & lived experience expert in sexual exploitation and recruitment started in 2005 which aided her with being the Program Manager in 2018 for the first and only Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children (CSEC) specific shelter for minors in Hawaii.

She is currently the Statewide Program Administrator for the Trafficking Victim Assistance Program (TVAP) at Susannah Wesley Community Center. She continues to work alongside victims, survivors, the community, service providers, healthcare staff, judiciary, and law enforcement specifically on the issue of recruitment and the intersectionalities of exploitation.

Kaleikūkamakani "Kalei" Ruiz

Counselor, Leeward Community College

Kalei serves as a counselor at Leeward Community College, working with advising, financial aid, and student support technology. As a queer māhū, he has conducted research geared towards decolonial understandings of gender and sexuality and provided sessions on these perspectives at various conferences within the University of Hawaiʻi as well as the community. He currently serves as Commissioner on the UH Commission on LGBTQ+ Equality. Kalei created and coordinated the first Queerify series, as well as Queerphoria, in Spring 2023, providing a platform for queer and māhū voices to be heard, amplified, empowered, and connected.

Jessica Shaffer, Esq. (she, her, hers)

Investigator and Compliance Officer, Office of the Vice President for Community Colleges

Jess Shaffer is an Investigator and Compliance Officer, partnering with UH Community Colleges on a variety of civil rights issues, including sex discrimination. She also currently serves as the Co-Chair of the UH Commission on the Status of Women. Jess has devoted her career to public service and is especially passionate about gender equity. She previously worked on Title IX Investigations at Harvard and served as an Assistant District Attorney, prosecuting crimes like domestic violence and harassment.

Karen Stiller, M.S.S.A.

Senior Director of Jewish Affairs at the Jewish Community Relations Council

Karen Stiller started her professional career in social work and nonprofit management and has since worked in the Preventive Defense Project at Stanford University. Karen has been with the Jewish Community Relations Council since 2002, first as Peninsula Director and currently as Senior Director of Jewish Affairs. She has been deeply involved in interfaith work over the years, including helping start up two local interfaith councils. Karen is an ING Speaker, who speaks on Judaism.

Professor Najeeba Syeed, J.D.

El-Hibri Endowed Chair & Interfaith Institute Executive Director, Augsburg

Professor Syeed is a tenured and full professor of religion. She has been a professor, expert practitioner and public speaker for the last two decades in the fields of conflict resolution, interfaith studies, mediation, restorative jJustice, education, and social, gender and racial equity. An award-winning educator, she has taught extensively on interreligious education and published articles on faith and community-based conflict resolution, restorative justice, and interfaith just peacemaking. Syeed also brings significant executive experience with organizations focused on conflict resolution in community, higher education, and government settings, including the Western Justice Center Foundation and the Asian Pacific American Dispute Resolution Center. In 2021, she served as chief of staff to the first Asian American woman elected to the Los Angeles city council. She holds a law degree from the Indiana University School of Law and a bachelor of science degree from Guilford College.

Syreeta Washington (she, her, hers)

Syreeta Washington is an educator with a heart for service and a personal commitment to fostering positive change. A dynamic speaker, she has lent her expertise to a variety of topics, including mental health and LGBTQ+. She is lauded for her engaging presentations that challenge societal norms and inspire growth.