Rhonda Vonshay Sharpe is an economist and mathematician who analyzes large datasets to find the stories hidden in the aggregate. Her research shows that we can identify the nuances in outcomes that can improve economic well-being by disaggregating data. Rhonda is the President and Founder of the Women’s Institute for Science, Equity and Race.
She is the co-editor of the Review of Black Political Economy and has served as President of the National Economic Association (2017). She was named a Black Scholar You Should Know by TheBestSchools.org and BlackEnterprise.com
At WISER, Himaja has studied Asian American populations with the goal of providing a more accurate view of the populations' social and economic status through disaggregating by region of national origin. Additionally, she is interested in matters of data protection and digital privacy that affect women across race, age, and geographic location within the United States.
Himaja also serves as Associate Director of the Inclusive, Peer, Onsite, Distance (IPOD) Mentoring Program, whose mission is to diversify the economics profession by providing mentorship support and resources to graduates of the AEA Summer Training Program. The program is in its second year and now has over 80 participants, including both mentors and mentees.
Jerry Pender Jr. is the Research Director for the Women’s Institute of Science, Equity, and Race (WISER) a nonprofit, nonpartisan research institute that strives to expand women-focused policy research to include the social, economic, cultural, and political well-being of Asian, Black, Hispanic, Indigenous American and Multiracial women.
At WISER, Jerry is a logistics expert who analyzes data to improve processes for programs that impact disenfranchised communities. He uses his expertise in logistics and business intelligence to recommend policy improvements for childcare, prison transition programs, and veteran transition programs. He leads webinars focusing on changing the narrative around the childcare, prison reentry, and veteran transition landscapes and is also a monthly contributor to WISER’s newsletter, WISER Wednesdays.
Meet Our Board
Pedro Nicolaci da Costa is the Economic Policy Institute’s former communications director and host of Economic Policy Institute’s State of Working America podcast. Da Costa has been writing about economics and financial markets since 2001, at Reuters, The Wall Street Journal, and Business Insider, and he was a fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics from 2014 to 2016. His work has focused on issues close to EPI’s mission: labor markets, Federal Reserve policy, inequality, and race.
In 2010, da Costa co-authored “Cozying Up to Big Investors at Club Fed,” an investigative report that prompted the central bank to adopt a more transparent communications policy, including regular post-meeting press conferences with the Fed chair. Another report co-authored by da Costa, on the failure of some academic economists to disclose financial industry ties, led the American Economic Association to adopt a new code of ethics. Both pieces received awards for journalistic excellence.
Education
M.A., International Relations, University of California, San Diego
B.A., Sociology, University of Chicago
Estella Luluquisen Hunt is the Founder and President of Pivot Partner, provides services to organizations seeking to scale their business. She serves on the Board of Science & Technology Advisory Council (STAC)
Estella has worked with Fellows participating in the Young Leaders of the Americas Initiative (YLAI) and she continues to work with the Mandela Washington Fellows participating in the Young Africa Leaders Initiative (YALI). Estella co-organized the inaugural 2017 Amplify Africa Women’s Summit held in Cape Town, South Africa. She holds a M.S. in Operations Research from Stanford University and a B.S. in Business Administration with a minor in Economics from the University of San Francisco.
Erica Johnson J.D. is a native of Virginia and a graduate of University of Richmond. Erica earned a degree in Political Science and minor in English as both a CIGNA Scholar and a Bonner Scholar.
After graduating from Capital University Law School with a Juris Doctorate, Erica founded Consulting & Management Group Inc. (CMG Inc.)—a holding company in the food and beverage industry that controlled the distribution of gourmet desserts and espresso to over three dozen restaurants and hotels in Central Ohio.
Upon the successful sale of CMG Inc., Erica moved to the West Coast where she co-founded Bridgefront Services Inc. — a full service financial & consulting agency that helped small businesses solve their most complex challenges.
WISER In The News
Study finds fewer minority nurses come from Michigan nursing programs
Colleges and university nursing programs in Michigan produce fewer minority graduates than many other states, according to a study by the Women’s Institute for Science, Equity and Race in Virginia.
CAP Announces Formation of the National Advisory Council on Eliminating the Black-White Wealth Gap
The Advisory Council will be charged with generating new ideas for closing the gap and outlining clear actions for an incoming administration to take within its first 100 days.
SUNO gets top ranking for African-American graduates
outhern University at New Orleans earned top rankings in a national study of college graduates conducted by the Women’s Institute for Science, Equity and Race.
