Nakeyshia Kendall Williams

Nakeyshia Kendall Williams is the Founder and CEO of MindCatcher, a non-profit that disrupts the cycle of hopelessness in learning spaces by fostering the social-emotional growth and decision-making power of educators and youth of color. MindCatcher envisions a world where all young people are designers of their own future and all educators are equipped to support youth in their journey. Nakeyshia is passionate about cultivating the capacity within educators to build and transform learning environments into affirming spaces that our youth deserve. Prior to founding MindCatcher, she led product marketing for a tablet-based, K-12 curriculum at Pearson and co-led an education partnership formed to increase innovative learning practices in public education. Before her work in education, Nakeyshia spent over a decade in investment banking and private equity at companies including Citigroup and Lehman Brothers.

Along with being a 2022 Boulder Fund recipient, MindCatcher is a part of the inaugural cohort of Advanced Education Research Development Fund’s Assessment for Good and NewSchools Venture Fund’s Racial Equity portfolio. Nakeyshia has been a speaker at conferences such as SXSW EDU, EdLoC National Convening, and Digital Promise’s Inclusive Convening. Additionally, she is a member of Education Leaders of Color (EdLoC) and Freedom Dreams Lab, served on the Advisory Council for Digital Promise’s Center for Inclusive Innovation, and is an alum of National Equity Project’s Leading for Equity Fellowship, 4.0, and the Toigo Foundation Fellowship.

She holds a BA from Columbia College, Columbia University and MBA from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. Outside of work, Nakeyshia enjoys road trips and barbecues with her husband.