Leadership for Social Justice

Featuring: Dr. Mia Settles-Tidwell

Dr. Mia Settles-Tidwell is a visionary leader, strategist, and justice-driven innovator with over 30 years of executive experience in higher education and TK-12 systems. As the Founder, President, and CEO of Set-Up for Success, she has guided hundreds of mid-level and C-suite executives within top-tier organizations, helping them achieve transformative personal, professional, and organizational growth.

A seasoned executive, Dr. Settles-Tidwell has served as a Vice President, Assistant Vice Chancellor, Chief of Staff, and Chief Operating Officer within both the University of California (UC) and California State University (CSU) systems, as well as in TK-12 education. Her leadership has shaped policies and practices that center equity, inclusion, and sustainable institutional change.

She is the architect of groundbreaking initiatives, including the OUSD Equity-Based Budgeting System and Strategic Regional Analysis of Schools, UC Berkeley’s COVID-19 Recovery Management Equity Guide, and the Believing, Becoming, and Being Framework and Mural Project at Sacramento State. These efforts reflect her deep commitment to justice, systemic transformation, and community empowerment.

Beyond her institutional impact, Dr. Settles-Tidwell is a prolific writer for justice and the author of Unscathed: A Harm Reduction Strategy for Women of Color in the Workplace—a powerful guide for navigating, resisting, and thriving in professional spaces.

With a legacy defined by bold leadership, strategic innovation, and unwavering advocacy, Dr. Mia Settles-Tidwell continues to challenge inequity, elevate leaders, and drive meaningful change at every level.

Hodari – Chief Innovation Officer, Edutainment for Equity

Hodari is a visionary educator, creative strategist, and cultural architect dedicated to equity, artistry, and futurism. As the Chief Innovation Officer (CIO) and Partner at Edutainment for Equity, he merges education, entertainment, and activism to drive transformative change.

For 35 years, Hodari has been a dedicated educator in Black Studies, shaping minds and movements in classrooms and communities. His teaching journey includes his impactful tenure at Berkeley High School, where he helped cultivate one of the nation’s most renowned high school Black Studies programs.

He holds an M.A. in Education from San Francisco State University and an M.A. in Educational Administration from Sacramento State University. Currently, he is pursuing his Ph.D. at UC Davis’s School of Education.

A dynamic speaker and thought leader, Hodari has presented at conferences worldwide, engaging diverse audiences on issues of equity, youth empowerment, and creative resistance. He is the former National Program Director of Youth Speaks and the Executive Producer of the Brave New Voices International Youth Poetry Slam Festival, amplifying the voices of young artists on global stages. As the Founder and Executive Producer of the Life is Living Festival, he has cultivated a space that fuses environmental and racial justice with arts and activism.

An Afrofuturist at heart, Hodari serves as a Foresight Essentials Faculty Member at The Institute for the Future, where he explores visionary frameworks for Black futures and social transformation.