People
Dr. Teresa Neighbors
CEO/Founder
Dr. Teresa Neighbors is a native of Southern California. As a youth, she was a well-awarded music performer (piano, the cello, and singing) and began her teaching career as a music teacher at the age of twelve. She earned concurrent bachelor degrees in both music performance as well as Criminology, Law & Society at UC Irvine. After beginning an MFA at UCI, she transferred to Indiana University’s Master of Music program in Piano Performance. While at Indiana University, Teresa appeared as a soloist and ensemble musician, regularly performing with the African American Arts Choral Ensemble and African American Art Song Series. During this time, she also served as the Community Outreach Coordinator for the Indiana Arts Museum, as well as the Marketing Coordinator for the African American Arts Institute.
Upon returning to California, Teresa spent several years in retail management while serving as the Chairperson of the Board of Directors for an international non-profit organization, overseeing education, service, fundraising, and publication branches. In 2007, she returned to UCI to work as a student services director overseeing diversity programs and concurrently earned a doctorate in education from UCLA. Her dissertation focused on racialized experiences among college students, with a focus on the campus climate, the policies and culture that impacted the experiences of Black students. While completing her doctoral program, Teresa created several programs focused on race and inclusion, improving cross-racial dialogue, and social justice. In her current role at UC Irvine, Dr. Neighbors teaches undergraduate courses on race, equity, and social justice, and she directs university and community programs such as the Deconstructing Diversity Initiative and the Diversity, Inclusion, and Racial Healing Ambassador Program for Orange County High Schools.Outside of her work at UCI, Teresa enjoys SCUBA as a DiveMaster, practicing and teaching hot yoga, and playing with her dog, Apollo, and her 4 grandchildren, Kylah, King, Kaden, and Kai.
Chris Neighbors
Director of Business Relations
Dr. Robert Hill
Director of Business Relations
Dr. Robert Hill has over 20+ years of experience in Higher Education as an administrator, faculty member and coach. A majority of that experience has been at various colleges within the California Community College System, Long Beach City College, Mt. San Jacinto College, Southwestern College and Glendale Community College. Additionally, he has served at Gateway College in the Maricopa Community College District in Phoenix Arizona and Chapman University in Orange California. Currently, he is serving as the Dean of Student Services at Glendale Community College. Additionally, he is currently teaching within the Educational Counseling program at He has taught Political Science at Long Beach City College, Undergraduate and Graduate Level online courses in higher education at Argosy University, Ottawa University and the University of Phoenix. He also teaches a counseling course for Veterans at California State University of Los Angeles. He is also a proud Veteran of the United States Air Force. Dr. Hill has a Bachelors and Masters Degree in Public Administration from the University of La Verne. He graduated from the University of Southern California with his Doctorate of Education Administration in 2008.
His Research interests include but are not limited to equity in education for formerly incarcerated and students impacted by the criminal injustice system, comprehensive criminal justice reform, closing the achievement gaps between majority and minority student populations. and seeks to continue those efforts through practical and theoretical means. With a passion for the success of students from a wide variety of non-traditional backgrounds, Dr. Hill comes with over 15 years of experience in both teaching and educational leadership roles across urban and rural districts. He pulls from a wide depth of knowledge in building and designing a multidisciplinary approach to revitalizing and actively strengthening community relations in educational environments.
Kris Lee
Director of Operations
Neetu (Julie) Singh
Facilitator
Julie earned concurrent Bachelor of Arts degrees in Political Science and International Studies from the University of California, Irvine before earning a Master of Public Policy degree from the University of Michigan. She has served in various roles in higher education and in the non-profit sector including: Program Coordinator for the Student Activities Office at UC Irvine; Facilitator for the Diversity and Empowerment Program at UC Irvine; Intern at the US Department of Education; Peer Advisor at the University of Michigan; and Community Engagement Manager for a nonprofit organization serving the Southern California South Asian community. Julie’s facilitation style is grounded in her own experience as a first-generation student and her passion for educational equity. Her personal interests include cooking and hiking.
Nora Beik
Facilitator
Nora earned bachelor’s degrees in both Political Science as well as Global & International Studies, with a minor in Urban Studies from the University of California Irvine. As a Syrian-American and the daughter of immigrants, she has a spirit for persistence and is dedicated to educating herself and others regarding issues of social justice and human rights. She strives to help protect and build environments of trust, empathy, security and advocacy.
Communication and empathy are core values of her work, and are necessary in the facilitation of vulnerable conversations. Nora consciously works toward clear communication to educate and build empathy for meaningful relationships across difference. She enjoys building bonds and sharing her own vulnerabilities to create a safe space and encourage others to be vulnerable, as well.
Nora enjoys spending her free time baking new creations and exploring her new-found coffee addiction. Most of her weekends are spent at family barbeques or exploring the hidden gems of California.
