Behind Our Work is a Team of Diverse Co-Creators

Equity Designer for Black Diaspora, Women's Rights, "Survivors" of Gun Violence

Design Ally for Youth, LGBTQIA+ Rights, People with Different Ability Statuses

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Antionette D. Carroll is a serial social entrepreneur having founded Creative Reaction Lab (CRXLAB) and the Institute of Equitable Design and Justice (Institute) and co-founded Design + Diversity LLC and &Design LLC. As the President and CEO of CRXLAB and the Institute, she’s pioneered the groundbreaking and award-winning problem solving framework Equity-Centered Community Design™ (ECCD™)(recognized as a Fast Company World Changing Idea Finalist in Urban Design and General Excellence) and a new leadership model called Redesigner for Justice™. Through this capacity, Antionette has received several recognitions and awards, including being named a PepsiCo and Doritos Solid Black Changemaker, Aspen Institute Civil Society Fellow, Roddenberry Fellow, Echoing Green Global Fellow, TED Fellow, ADCOLOR Innovator, SXSW Community Service Honoree, Camelback Ventures Fellow, Essence Magazine Woke 100 and more.

Through her volunteer leadership, she was a former AIGA National Board Director, St. Louis Chapter President, and Founding Chair of the national Diversity and Inclusion Task Force. During her tenure, she founded and launched several initiatives, including the Design Census Program with Google, Racial Justice by Design Initiative, Diversity and Inclusion Residency, and National Design for Inclusivity Summit with Microsoft. Additionally, She was a founding member of Adobe's Design Circle, providing youth mentorship support and consulting for their international inclusive design scholarship program.

In 2011, Antionette was named the inaugural Katherine Dunham Fellow at the Regional Arts Commission. (The Katherine Dunham Fellowship provides a career pipeline for African American youth interested in working within the arts administration and creative nonprofit fields.) In a full circle moment, a decade later, Antionette was named the director of the Katherine Dunham Fellowship, hosted within Creative Reaction Lab, to continue the legacy of the program.

Lastly, Antionette is a civic design and equity coach for city governments through the Bloomberg Center for Public Innovation at Johns Hopkins University.

Her trailblazing work has been featured on several news outlets, including NPR, Fast Company, Bloomberg, BET, and in several publications including Empathy for Change (2020) by Amy J. Wilson, Fast Company Innovation by Design: Creative Ideas That Transform the Way We Live and Work (2021) by Stephanie Mehta, Beloved Economies: Transforming How We Work (2022) by Jess Rimington and Joanna L. Cea, and the upcoming An Anthology of Blackness: The State of Black Design (2023) by Terresa Moses and Omari Souza. Antionette is also the executive producer, director and host of the Reimagining and Redesigning with Antionette D. Carroll podcast.

SOP Fellow
He/El

Equity Designer for Immigrant and Undocumented citizens, Latinx Community, LGBT+ Rights, Mental Health, Youth

Design Ally for Black Diaspora, Survivors of Domestic and Sexual Abuse, Women's Rights

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Kai Mora Penaloza is currently pursuing a degree in Cultural Anthropology and Latin American Latino Studies at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Kai is dedicated to competency building, focusing on cultural and racial awareness, personal humility, and civic leadership.

Within previous roles in health and education he has excelled in fostering relationships between community members and resource referrals. Kai has effectively managed logistics for special events, enhanced communication strategies, conducted outreach and provided education on healthcare access, demonstrating a commitment to addressing barriers within diverse communities.

Kai is passionate about public service and community empowerment. Driven by a desire to make a meaningful impact, his adaptable and solutions-oriented approach is complemented by pursuing the Seeds of Power fellowship with Creative Reaction Lab. Through the fellowship program, Kai aims to further develop his skills in facilitating and creating content with an emphasis on equity and philanthropy. Outside of work and studies, Kai enjoys spending time with his family at home or recharging in nature with his husky pack.

Finance and Operations Director She/Her/Hers

Equity Designer for Black Women, Mental Health, and Survivors of Sexual Violence

Design Ally for LGBTQIA rights, Survivors of Gun Violence, Immigrant and Undocumented citizens

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Aleece Jones graduated from the University of Missouri-St. Louis with a Bachelors of Arts degree in Psychology, with an emphasis in Behavioral Neuroscience. Her studies in traumatic brain injuries and dementia informed her passion in Mental Health awareness and discussions, especially in the black community.

Working in the corporate sector, she has seen first hand how systems were designed to keep those in power the status quo, while other marginalized groups are left unheard.She plans to use this position to help support the mission of the organization in whatever way possible to further disrupt and dismantle the current power structure.

She has worked in the Operations field for over ten years and brings that expertise to CRXLab with an excitement to help shape the foundation of systems within the company for efficiency and expedience.

Equity Designer for Mental Health, Youth

Design Ally for LGBTQIA+ Rights, Black, and Latino/a/x/e Communities

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Angela graduated with a Bachelors of Fine Arts in Graphic Design from Towson University, Maryland, where she gained design knowledge including but not limited to, branding, package design, web design, typography, and illustration. She is passionate about designing for a cause to inform and reframe ideas across digital and printed media. She believes in utilizing social media for good, in the pursuit of racial and gender equity.

Her personal experience with mental health has motivated her to be an advocate for the normalization of open conversations, and providing accessible resources for those in need.

Since 2021 she has run her own small business, Angmadeart, where she illustrates and conceptualizes designs to promote and sell through social media engagement and content creation. In addition to her business, Angela also enjoys being outdoors, traveling, and spending time with her cat.

Director of Learning Innovation and Design
He/Him

Equity Designer for Black Men, LGBTQIA+ Issues, Human Rights, Mental Health

Design Ally for Youth, Black Women, Neurodivergent Learners

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Since 2011, Thomas Savage has been a leader in designing innovative approaches that make space for youth to step into their power, equipping them with the tools to dream, create, excel, and thrive. As a licensed educator and nonprofit leader, Thomas is on a mission to reimagine learning as a transformative force. He sees today’s learners as visionaries—capable of shaping a more equitable, impactful world—and aims to shift the narrative of leadership to one centered in fostering growth, collaboration and bold thinking, regardless of age or job title.

At the intersection of education and liberation, Thomas champions change that dismantles barriers, honors personal identity, and emboldens the collective consciousness. His extensive career in nonprofits and across public, charter and independent school settings—including the roles of classroom teacher, intervention specialist, school health liaison, and community outreach director—has been fueled by a belief that education is more than a system—it’s a catalyst for social and global transformation.

Equipped with a Bachelor of Science in Middle Grades Education from the College of Charleston and a Master of Arts in Organizational Leadership from Charleston Southern University, Thomas' approach to the unique intersection of education, youth leadership and organizational development is beyond conventional, pushing boundaries to design learning environments and opportunities that nurture growth and healing.

SOP Fellow
She/Her/Hers

Equity Designer for the Black Diaspora, Women’s Rights, Mental Health, People with Disabilities

Design Ally for LGBTQIA+ Rights, Survivors of Relationship and Sexual Violence, Latino/a/x/e Rights, Youth

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Cameron Thompson is a UX designer, researcher, and community engagement advocate passionate about using thoughtful design and communication to address complex social issues. A 2024 graduate of Washington University in St. Louis, Cameron's academic background in Design, Global Studies, and Chinese Studies provides a critical, global perspective that informs her work. After graduation, Cameron worked full-time at Washington University as a Marketing and Communications Specialist, where she led a comprehensive UX research and design project to redesign the Gephardt Institute’s website. In this role, Cameron developed research-driven guidelines to enhance outreach and marketing efforts for students, campus partners, and community stakeholders. Additionally, she applied her GIS expertise and graphic design skills to support various projects that connected the Institute to a broader community.

In her community engagement projects, Cameron has explored the environmental and social impacts of hazardous waste using GIS, led a team to secure over $4,000 in funding for communication materials for Black Power Blueprint’s women’s health center, and optimized the digital presence of St. Louis ArtWorks. Her photography also plays a key role in visually telling the stories of people and organizations, capturing the unique energy of events, portraiture, and community initiatives.

Cameron has been recognized as a Taylor Scholar at Washington University, and both a Civic Scholar and an Arts as Civic Engagement (ACE) Fellow with the Gephardt Institute. As a QuestBridge Scholar and a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., she is committed to using her skills in design, research, and visual storytelling to support community engagement and contribute to the betterment of young people. Her goal is to create meaningful change through user-centered solutions that empower organizations and amplify their impact.