Polaris Leadership Summit

Jordan Braswell | Philanthropy & Ministry

Jordan is a Charlotte-based civic and faith leader working at the intersection of community development, public theology, and economic justice. He is a program officer at Local Initiatives Support Corporation Charlotte, where he supports administration of $2 million in philanthropic capital focused on historically disinvested communities. His work emphasizes financial stewardship, institutional sustainability, and translating capital into long-term, community-centered outcomes.

Jordan also serves as youth pastor at Sanctuary Charlotte Church, where he focuses on leadership formation and vocational discernment, helping young people integrate faith with public life. Jordan holds a bachelor’s degree from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical University and a Master of Divinity from Duke Divinity. He is pursuing a master’s in real estate at Georgetown University. He serves on nonprofit boards and has been recognized as a Knight Foundation Emerging City Champion and with an Elevate Lifestyle Top 30 Under 30 Future Leader of Charlotte award. His vocation is rooted in the conviction that faith communities can be stewards of both people and place.

Chandler Carrington-Cotton | Education

Chandler is a 23-year-old Tulsa, Oklahoma native, and the youngest of three children. He serves as an educational administrator at the charter school that once shaped him, which is a full-circle moment that defines both his work and his purpose. Chandler earned a degree in biology from Tennessee State University, where years of student leadership prepared him for professional moments that require steadiness, discernment, and courage. As a young administrator of a charter school, he is learning in real time the honor of being entrusted with something as sacred as children and their futures.

Chandler leads with honesty, consistency, and care. His commitment to pour back into the same community that poured into him is one of intention, resilience, and personal significance. He is guided by a belief in what is possible when someone chooses to come back home and build.

Kristin Coleman | Health Policy Analysis

Kristin is a native of North Carolina and currently resides in the Washington, D.C. area. She is an advocate for public health as she holds a bachelor’s degree in public health with a minor in economics, as well as a master’s degree in public health with an emphasis in health policy. She currently works as a health policy analyst and fiscal manager for grant programs. She is active in her local church, serving on the young adults’ leadership board and volunteering as a greeter. In her spare time, she loves to read, try new restaurants, travel, and spend time with her family and friends.

Destini Harrell | Entrepreneurship & Creative Economy

Destini is a creative strategist, reimaginer, and founder of The Blessed Rogue, an interdisciplinary consultancy that helps people, organizations, and places expand their universe of possibility, purpose, and perspective. She works at the intersection of strategy and soul, translating complexity, untapped potential, and bold ideas into adaptive strategies and resonant futures. With experience across a range of industries, Destini is known for her ability to see patterns others overlook and reframe challenges into new pathways forward. Her work is rooted in the belief that great ideas, people, and places become more of what they’re meant to be by embracing who they already are.

Dorian Hollingsworth Jr. | Mental Health

Dorian is the founder and executive director of Teen Care Network. He has dedicated his life to supporting his community and empowering youth to take their mental health seriously by normalizing those conversations in communities of color. He truly believes in living life as a “Love Revolutionary” as he understands that genuine respect and love for all can heal hearts and minds worldwide.

Teen Care Network has a mission to bridge the gap between care and community by providing free mental health resources to teens and equipping the community with tools to have positive and healthy discussions around mental health. Dorian is an Invested Faith Fellow and a 2022 recipient of Hope Center Harlem’s Hope in Action Award. He is a 2023 McDonald’s Black & Positively Golden Change Leader and sits on the Board of Trustees for The Accountability Initiative.

Gwyneth Hadasa | Health Science

Gwyneth is a registered dietitian who began her career in adult and long-term care settings. She has since transitioned into pediatrics and now serves in a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Her experience working with patients at every stage of life gives her rare perspective on the full human journey, where the image of God is evident across all ages. Beyond clinical work, she is deeply committed to cross-cultural engagement and community building.

Having lived a nomadic life shaped by international and third-culture experiences, she is drawn to creating spaces of belonging. Whether in professional, religious, or community spaces, she views bridge-building as a calling to honor the full humanity of each individual and invites meaningful connections that are filled with curiosity.

Jada S. Ford | Health Care & Community Development

Jada is a certified nurse aide committed to improving health outcomes for residents in Indianapolis, Indiana. She works with the Congregational Care Network, where she provides compassionate, community-centered care focused on supporting individuals and families. Jada also serves as the assistant director of the Jubilee Summer Program / The Learning Tree Roving Youth Corps, where she plays a key role in community engagement, relationship building, and youth outreach. In this position, she works closely with neighbors and youth to foster trust, connection, and leadership development.

Jada is a founder of Sisterhood, an initiative dedicated to building lasting, healthy relationships between mothers and daughters through mindful practices and intentional connections. She also works as a youth advocate, supporting families by connecting them to vital resources and helping them identify goals to successfully navigate system expectations.

Averee Gentry | Entrepreneurship & Higher Ed

Averee is a dedicated creative professional and entrepreneur currently based in Durham, North Carolina, and serving as the program coordinator for four initiatives within the Leadership Education at Duke Divinity School. After earning a degree in social entrepreneurship, Averee and her family opened a donut shop in Knoxville, Tennessee. She worked there while taking classes at night to gain her Master of Divinity from McAfee School of Theology located in Atlanta, Georgia.

Averee’s greatest joy in this work is providing a model of hospitality to the Christian leaders and institutions who gather at initiative events and benefit from her team’s careful planning. Averee enjoys the opportunity to network with organizations committed to social change and is inspired by the good work she sees happening around her.

Crystal Gonzalez | Ministry

Crystal is a faith-driven leader with a heart for serving youth, women, and underserved communities through healthcare, ministry, and entrepreneurship. She is an accelerated nursing student at NYU Meyers School of Nursing, a licensed minister at Fellowship Baptist Church, and the founder of SHVTED Beauty, a faith-rooted beauty brand based in Staten Island, New York. Crystal earned her bachelor’s degree from Delaware State University and is pursuing nursing as both a profession and a calling.

Crystal’s leadership is deeply shaped by her Christian faith. Prayer and devotion confirmed her call to heal the sick and strengthened her commitment to holistic leadership across healthcare, ministry, and entrepreneurship. As a youth leader and weekly youth Bible study teacher, Crystal has helped grow the ministry from an informal gathering to over 17 students weekly. She is passionate about training the next generation to live boldly in their faith.

Kyra Gonzalez | Ministry & Public Health

Kyra is a licensed social worker with experience across nonprofit, clinical, community, and faith-based settings. Originally from the Pocono Mountains region, she has lived and worked in central Pennsylvania for several years, serving children, youth, and families through professional and volunteer leadership roles. Kyra holds a Bachelor of Social Work from Eastern University and a Master of Social Work from Widener University. Her professional background includes supervising foster care and adoption programs and providing emergency social work services in a hospital setting, supporting individuals and families during moments of crisis.

In addition to clinical work, Kyra is deeply engaged in church-based leadership, serving children, youth, and families in urban Harrisburg through programming, mentorship, and community partnerships. She brings a strengths-based, trauma-informed approach grounded in compassion, advocacy, and collaboration. Kyra is passionate about child well-being, family stability, and equitable access to resources, and she is committed to creating spaces where individuals feel seen, supported, and empowered to thrive.

Zoe Moser | Immigration

Zoe is an immigration assistant for Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP, and the co-founder of OpenLetter. As an immigration assistant she guides people across the globe through the United States immigration process. As co-founder of OpenLetter, Zoe works to practice advocacy through gratitude, developing content that shows appreciation towards individuals who are working to support democracy, liberty, and justice while inspiring others to do the same. Keeping God at the center of her leadership, Zoe strives to translate her faith into professional spaces and leverage her career and talents to effectively help others.

Malik Kirkwood | Creative Arts

Malik began his career as a young actor in film, TV, and theatre. In addition to the theatre arts, he excelled in advanced mathematics and physics while enjoying hobbies in skateboarding, sketch art, and screenwriting. He graduated high school as a National Merit Scholar and received a full ride to Howard University. During his time at Howard, Malik started four businesses and graduated Magna Cum Laude with a bachelor’s in business and finance. He studied business at the Universiteit van Amsterdam during his junior year and tutored English at a “Black School” (used regionally to describe the ethnic composition of primary schools) in the Netherlands.

After a short stint in a corporate finance and banking firm in New York City, Malik found himself immersed in the raw art scene where he has transitioned his career seamlessly into the arts; creating and collaborating across borders and disciplines. Malik continues to pursue excellence as a pure artist, unbound by construct or category.

Samantha Hardin | Science

Samantha (Sam) is a doctoral student in physics at Georgia Tech, with a research focus on computational cosmology, creating mock observations to compare our simulations of the early universe with recent observations of early galaxies seen by the James Webb Space Telescope. Sam is originally from Belton, South Carolina, and received a bachelor’s degree from Clemson University in physics and a minor in digital production arts.

Sam enjoys painting, reading, and participating in activities at First Presbyterian Church (FPC) of Atlanta. Sam is active in FPC’s 20’s and 30’s group and is happy to have a community of warm and welcoming people as she grows closer to God.

Lauren Tucker | Ministry

Lauren serves as a pastor for youth and young adults at First Presbyterian Church of Atlanta, creating spaces where young people can ask honest questions, build meaningful relationships, and grow in their faith. Lauren is passionate about encouraging young people to lead with love and helping people notice the ways God is already at work in their daily lives. Lauren moved to Atlanta after graduating from Princeton Theological Seminary in 2024 and lives with a husband and very fluffy orange cat. Outside of ministry, Lauren loves being outdoors or on the yoga mat and is enjoying a new season of life as a newlywed.

Lauren Elizabeth Kim | Environmental Activism

Lauren serves as the national organizer and spokesperson for the Evangelical Environmental Network’s (EEN) youth arm, Young Evangelicals for Climate Action (YECA). YECA is a nonprofit organization that equips, mobilizes, and empowers Christians across the United States to faithfully act on climate issues. As national organizer, Lauren works with young adults belonging to different identities and geographies on bridge-building, effective advocacy, and project implementation on both federal and local levels.

Lauren helps young adults act through hope-filled programming based on Christian values of responsible stewardship, loving one’s neighbor, and standing for human life. Lauren is a graduate of the University of Virginia with a degree in global security and justice. Outside of work, she is an avid outdoors enthusiast who enjoys hiking, swimming, and gardening. Before YECA, Lauren worked in the public and financial sectors in Boston, MA, and Dallas, TX.

Hanna Elisabeth Watson | Creative Arts

Hanna, who holds a Master of Divinity, is a poet, theologian, and preacher raised in Wichita, Kansas, with deep roots in the Church of God in Christ. She is the founder and executive director of Poiema Ministries, a nonprofit that creates opportunities for people to encounter God’s beauty and truth through creative writing and spoken word.

Hanna currently serves as the Gen Z ministry leader at Greater Community Church of God in Christ, where she partners with pastors and volunteers to disciple middle schoolers, high schoolers, and young adults through creative teaching and relationship building. She is passionate about multimedia worship and loves collaborating with artists across disciplines to display God’s beauty and invite people into deeper relationship with Jesus. Hanna holds a Master of Divinity from Princeton Theological Seminary and a bachelor’s degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Outside of ministry, she enjoys biking, hiking, running, and playing pickleball.

Ivy Penn | Creative Arts

Ivy is an award-winning filmmaker and designer who loves crafting playful, high-style worlds across film, commercial, and digital spaces. From live-action short films to brand content and character design, she fuses bold visuals with storytelling rooted in identity, nostalgia, and joy. Through her time with the Nickelodeon Artist and Writing Programs and the creative programs at NBC Universal, she’s helped shape the brand identity of these initiatives while supporting the launch of dozens of careers for artists, writers, and directors from underrepresented communities.

Isabella Claire Qualls | Social Work

Isabella is a compassionate leader striving to make a difference in her community with individuals who are often overlooked. Raised in Galesburg, Illinois, she graduated from Olivet Nazarene University with a Bachelor of Science in Ministerial Missions. She is working on her Master of Social Work at Aurora University. Isabella is an intern at the Veteran’s Affairs Outpatient Clinic where she works with interdisciplinary healthcare teams to assist veterans experiencing biopsychosocial concerns. Isabella also works at Argrow’s House, a nonprofit supporting female survivors of violence where she walks alongside clients, empowering them as they journey towards healing and stability.

Isabella leads a young adult ministry at her church and various community initiatives, has completed mission trips to Uganda and Honduras, and continues to volunteer with Fields of Dreams Uganda. She aspires to serve internationally, integrating healthcare, social work, and faith-based service. In her spare time, she enjoys quilting, crocheting, traveling, and hanging with family and friends.

Emanuel Milton | Community Engagement

Emanuel “Boo” is a dynamic strategist and social impact innovator who transforms communities through creative engagements. As CEO of Cure with Love Strategies, he leverages moments of joy and connection to create lasting social change and develop future leaders. Rising to prominence as a #1 Nielsen-ranked radio host, Emanuel has channeled his media expertise into community advocacy. His innovative Spark Box initiative, featured on the television show “Live with Kelly and Ryan,” supported thousands of children’s social-emotional development during the Covid-19 pandemic. He further extended his impact through the CHILL Program, a successful conflict resolution curriculum implemented in schools and a juvenile detention center.

As an advisory board member for Cities United and fellow for the National League of Cities, Emanuel shapes national conversations around youth engagement and violence reduction. Most recently, he provided strategic support to the National League of Cities and Casey Family Programs for youth engagement and young adult justice initiatives. His work has been recognized by The Obama Foundation, PBS, Facebook Education, and other global platforms, establishing him as a leading voice in community impact and youth leadership development.

Elisabeth Joy Mistur | Clinical Psychology

Elisabeth, who holds a doctorate, is a newly licensed clinical psychologist whose work is grounded in a calling to integrate spiritual and religious concerns into ethically grounded, clinically rigorous mental health care. She understands spirituality as a vital dimension of human flourishing and seeks to bridge secular psychology and Christian faith in service of healing, dignity, and justice. Elisabeth currently specializes in evidence-based treatment for obsessive-compulsive disorder and anxiety disorders at New York Anxiety Treatment, where she provides individual and group therapy and contributes to evaluation and research. Elisabeth has facilitated spiritually integrative groups for college students with a focus on LGBTQ+ populations navigating religious harm. She also provided trauma-informed psychotherapy to youth in foster care through her internship at JCCA Bronx Foster Home Services. Her work is inspired by Jesus’ commitment to the dignity and healing of the most vulnerable people.

Alex Winn | Journalism & Media

Alex has a background in media, writing ,and music. He creates informative, illustrative, and moving content highlighting communities and creative work. Alex studied journalism at the University of Florida, working as a multimedia journalist for various news and entertainment outlets. Alex now lives in Brooklyn, New York, and works for Thrive Collective, a nonprofit that creates hope and opportunity through arts, sports, and mentoring in and around public schools. Alex’s goal is to produce transformative media content that showcases community efforts while he continues to pursue personal creative endeavors.

Destini Smith | Ministry & Government

Destini is a community strategist, ministry leader, and communicator committed to living a faith that is embodied, courageous, and justice-oriented. Her work is rooted in a deep conviction that the gospel of Jesus Christ calls us to love our neighbors and labor for the flourishing of those most impacted by injustice. In her recent work, she led leadership development programs and partnered with faith-based and justice-oriented organizations to advance housing, climate, and economic justice issues while helping Christians faithfully navigate politics and culture. Much of her work centers Black and historically marginalized communities.

Destini’s deepest passions are spiritual formation, discipleship, and helping Christians understand that justice not as a trend, but a lived expression of faith rooted in prayer, guided by Scripture, and committed to communities marked by dignity, restoration, and collective flourishing.

Alejandra Salemi | Public Health

Alejandra is a doctoral candidate in the Population Health Sciences Department at Duke University, focusing on the intersection of public health and religion. She is a graduate of Harvard University, with a Master of Theological Studies and a concentration on religion, ethics, and politics. She also earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in public health from the University of Florida. Alejandra is the creator of Healing Theology, a platform devoted to bridging the gaps between the worlds of religion and health. She is a candidate for ordination in the Florida Conference of the United Methodist Church and is a proud immigrant from Bogotá, Colombia.

Sharon Shajan Chacko | Ministry & Health Care

Sharon is a physician assistant graduate student whose life is rooted in compassionate care, servant leadership, and community outreach. Sharon’s fundamental belief in Christian service shapes an approach to medicine and commitment to serve others with humility and love. Sharon believes that many who have not encountered Christ don’t come to know God through reading scripture but through witnessing God’s love reflected in others. Sharon is passionate about supporting initiatives that provide meals to individuals experiencing homelessness and serving vulnerable communities whenever possible.

Sharon also serves in sunday school, taking to heart the responsibility of nurturing children’s spiritual growth. As the founding leader of the Pan-Oriental Orthodox Fellowship of Chicago, Sharon created the organization from a conviction that the church is one faith and one body, not meant to remain divided. Sharon remains committed to fostering fellowship, unity, and connection among congregations, reminding communities that we are brothers and sisters in Christ and stronger together.

Erin Baker | Creative Arts

Erin Baker is a Los Angeles–based creative entrepreneur, producer, recording and mix engineer, and wellness advocate driven by one core mission: healing. Passionate about growth on a mental, physical, and spiritual level, she believes that when individuals heal, communities transform. Through yoga, holistic practices, and intentional community building, Erin is committed to making personal development tools more accessible and impactful.

At the intersection of artistry and alignment, Erin works within the music industry as a producer and recording/mix engineer, empowering creatives to build sustainable careers while staying true to their voice and purpose. She serves as a governor on the Board of the Recording Academy’s Chicago Chapter of the Recording Academy and is co-chair of the midwest chapter of the Producer & Engineer Wing for the Recording Academy, advocating for creators and elevating industry standards.

Eric Barreto | New Testament Professor

Eric D. Barreto, MDiv ’04, is the Frederick and Margaret L. Weyerhaeuser Associate Professor of New Testament. He earned a BA in religion from Oklahoma Baptist University, an MDiv from Princeton Seminary, and a PhD in New Testament from Emory University. Prior to coming to Princeton Seminary, he served as associate professor of New Testament at Luther Seminary, and also taught as an adjunct professor at the Candler School of Theology and McAfee School of Theology.

As a Baptist minister, Barreto has pursued scholarship for the sake of the church, and he regularly writes for and teaches in faith communities around the country. He has also been a leader in the Hispanic Theological Initiative, a consortium comprised of some of the top seminaries, theological schools, and religion departments in the country. He is a member of the Society of Biblical Literature and the Society for New Testament Studies.

Mark Yaconelli | Event Leader, Storycatcher, & Emcee

Kenda Creasy Dean | Professor of Youth, Church, & Culture

An ordained United Methodist minister, Kenda teaches practical theology, youth ministry, education and formation, and social innovation at Princeton Theological Seminary, where she serves as the Mary D. Synnott Professor of Youth, Church, and Culture. She has extensive experience in new ministry development, grant writing, and nonprofit ministry, especially with young people. Kenda is the author of a dozen books including Delighted: What Teenagers are Teaching the Church About Joy (with Wes Ellis, Abigail Rusert, and Justin Forbes); Almost Christian: What the Faith of Our Teenagers Is Telling the American Church; and The Godbearing Life (with Ron Foster). She is a frequent speaker and consultant on young people and church innovation and has worked with dozens of seminaries, judicatories, congregations, and other faith-based entities.

A graduate of Miami University in Ohio, Wesley Theological Seminary, and Princeton Theological Seminary, Kenda served as a pastor in suburban Washington, DC, and as a campus minister at the University of Maryland before coming to Princeton. She and her husband Kevin live on campus and love hanging out at the beach with their grown children.

Abigail Visco Rusert | Assoc. Dean of Continuing Education

Abigail experienced a call to ordained ministry as a young adult, pursuing ordination in the Presbyterian Church (USA). She has served in a variety of ministry roles, including associate pastor, youth director, chaplain, camp counselor, and as Director of Princeton Seminary’s Institute for Youth Ministry. She is passionate about researching and designing programs that serve congregational leaders and transform Christian communities, and she has facilitated more than $8 million in grant funding to foster changemaking in the church.

A graduate of Valparaiso University, Princeton Theological Seminary, and a current PhD student at the University of Notre Dame Maryland, she is the co-author of the book Delighted: What Teenagers are Teaching the Church About Joy. Abigail and her husband, Thomas, have three kids—Dorothy, Solveig, and Frank—and live in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, where Abigail serves as a small group leader at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church.

hannah lee rose | Story Share Emcee

Trevor Beauford | Pastor-in-Residence