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Our Team
Staff
Rita Casaverde - Executive Director​
ed@diversityslo.org
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Rita Casaverde was born and raised in Lima, Peru and moved to California in 2012. In Peru, Rita received the Green Youth award by the United Nations. This award recognized her conservation work with communities in the Andes of Peru where she helped protect an endemic forest and multiple watersheds.
After moving to California, Rita had the opportunity to build a career in the Tech industry as a Product Manager, but after eight years working for local tech companies, she decided to join the office of Congressman Salud Carbajal to streamline her passions. In 2020, Rita and other community leaders helped found SLO County UndocuSupport with the goal of financially supporting immigrant families during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Rita joined the Diversity Coalition as Executive Director in 2022.
Board of Directors
Cornel N. Morton - Board President
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Cornel N. Morton, Ph.D. is Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo Vice President for Student Affairs, Emeritus. He has served as a consultant to public and private organizations in areas including diversity awareness, student success, inclusivity, strategic planning, team building and conflict mediation.
His community service includes membership on the French Hospital Community Board, Board Member of the Martin Luther King Jr. Scholarship Committee and Life Long Learners of the Central Coast Advisory Board. Cornel and his wife Regena live in San Luis Obispo County.
Sharon Dowdell - Board Treasurer
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Sharon works for her family’s office, RGD Partners, paving the next generation path to more mission aligned investing and grantmaking in the areas of racial & gender equity and sustainability. Sharon’s background includes a successful corporate career in marketing and product management, as a consultant with Accenture, and in-house with pharmaceutical and financial services companies.
Since moving to San Luis Obispo in 2020 with her daughter Noa, she has actively engaged in the local nonprofit community, including serving as Treasurer of the Leadership SLO Board. Sharon is a member of various impacting investing networks including Toniic, Gratitude Railroad, Just Economy Institute, and NEXUS. She holds an MBA from ESADE Business School (Barcelona) and a B.A. in Sociology and Mathematics from the University of Notre Dame. To connect with her mother’s roots, she taught English in Korean high schools for 2 years as a Fulbright Grantee.
Joyce Tseng - Board Secretary
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Joyce is the Health Equity Coordinator at County of SLO Public Health, where she collaborates with community and agency partners to advance the health and well-being of SLO County residents. Upon moving from Seattle to San Luis Obispo in 2014, Joyce experienced culture shock and sought out diverse and inclusive spaces for herself and her children. In Seattle, Joyce worked as a union organizer for home and healthcare workers and served on the boards of the Community Coalition for Environmental Justice and the Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance, advocating for environmental, labor, and social justice. In SLO, she has volunteered with her kids elementary school PTA and with RaiseUp SLO and partnered with San Luis Coastal Unified School District’s Parent Participation Program to foster conversations about diversity and fundraise for inclusive classroom materials. As a PTA board member at Sinsheimer Elementary, she championed equitable walk-a-thon prizes and free events to ensure broader accessibility for families.
In her free time, Joyce enjoys spending time with her 2 kids, trail running and hiking with friends, discovering new destinations, and savoring healthy vegetarian meals.
Michael Boyer - Founding Director
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Michael has been a business and community leader in San Luis Obispo County for over 22 years with continued business involvement in Epic Entertainment, Doc Burnstein's, and Pismo Beach Homes.
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Michael is the CEO of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Mid Central Coast, which serves thousands of children who need us most from Orcutt to San Miguel. Serving kids every day in Atascadero, Creston, Guadalupe, Paso Robles, Santa Maria, San Luis Obispo, and Shandon to three priority outcomes: Academic Success, Good Character & Citizenship, and Healthy Lifestyles.
Michael has been committed to the community through many local boards over the years including SLO YMCA, SLO Big Brothers Big Sisters, St. Patrick School Board, South County Chambers, the Exploration Station, Rotary International Zone 26, and the Clark Center Foundation. He currently serves the following organizations: Lumina Alliance as governance committee chair, the Arroyo Grande Community Hospital Foundation as director, the Rotary District 5240 as diversity, equity, and inclusion committee chair, Cuesta College Foundation as director, Leadership SLO as director, Santa Maria Chamber of Commerce as director, SLO Chamber as a committee member on the Economic Development Committee, REACH Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy steering committee member, City Of San Luis Obispo as vice-chair of the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Task Force and the Diversity Coalition San Luis Obispo County as founding director.
He received both the "Top 40 Under 40" award from the Pacific Coast Business Times and the "Top 20 Under 40" award from the Tribune for his professional excellence and profound commitment to the community.
As a self-described “jack of all trades,” Michael loves getting his hands dirty in many different things, from home remodeling projects to jogging a “half” with his wife. He also enjoys Saturday morning business discussions with friends and adventurous hikes in Alaska’s Talkeetna Mountains. Michael lives in Arroyo Grande, CA with his wife, Ashlea, and son, Jack.
Kathleen Minck - Director
Chair of Education Committee
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Kathleen taught at the Lucia Mar school district for 32 years. Promoting an acceptance of diversity and teaching about our different cultural experiences were always passions of hers. She sat on her district’s Wellness Committee and was her school’s Bully Prevention Coordinator. CTA (Cal. Teachers Association) awarded her their Peace and Justice Human Rights award for the work she did at her school and throughout her district, partnering with the Canadian organization, Free the Children, and Heifer International, among others. She continued her passion in her travels as well, helping to build a school in Kenya, studying health and education concerns with Witness for Peace and SOA Watch in Venezuela, Cuba and the Philippines, and doing a Habitat for Humanity build in Thailand. As an advocate for unions, she was her school’s LMUTA union rep and sat on their board, and was the Human Rights contact person for CTA’s local service center. She was also elected to CTA’s State Council, sitting on the Civil Rights in Education committee, and to the NEA National Assembly. She truly believes that public education, both here and around the world, is the key to a peaceful future for our children and grandchildren.
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Kathleen retired from teaching in 2015 and currently volunteers for Wilshire Hospice, Human Rights Watch, and SLO4Home (resettling Afghan, Syrian, and Ukranian refugees in our county). She has 3 grown children, 3 beautiful granddaughters, and a great-grandson, and resides in Arroyo Grande.
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Joy Pedersen - Director
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Joy M. Pedersen, Ph.D. grew up on the Central Coast, and her experience with social justice is both personal and professional. She serves as the Dean of Students at Cal Poly, teaches multicultural counseling at UMass, and owns a coaching and consulting company. She is also a founding member of the Asian Pacific-Islander Faculty and Staff Association at Cal Poly.
In all aspects of her work, she has been deeply committed to diversity, equity and inclusion.
In addition to her professional experience, she has a B.A. in Psychology from Claremont McKenna, an M.A. in Counseling and Guidance from Cal Poly, and a Ph.D. in Educational Leadership & Organization from University of California, Santa Barbara.
Jacqui Clark-Charlesworth - Director
Jacqui Clark-Charlesworth is the Tourism & Community Promotions Manager for the City of San Luis Obispo. Prior to joining the City team in March 2023, Jacqui was the Director of Communications at the San Luis Obispo Chamber of Commerce. During her nearly five-year tenure at the SLO Chamber, she oversaw all internal and external communications, programming for events like Good Morning SLO and the Annual Dinner, and supported the successful launch of impactful programs including Family-Friendly Workplaces.
Before coming to the Central Coast, Jacqui worked in sales management leading teams up to 100 people, both during and after graduating from California State University San Marcos with a degree in Mass Media Communications. As part of the Office of Economic Development & Tourism, Jacqui’s role is to facilitate the Community Promotions program to enhance the quality of the San Luis Obispo experience for both visitors and residents alike. Jacqui serves as the staff liaison to the San Luis Obispo Tourism Business Improvement District (TBID) and Promotional Coordinating Committee (PCC), managing the daily operations for both highly visible and significant programs for the City of SLO.
Outside of work, Jacqui loves reading, creating, exploring new places, and spending time with her husband, toddler son, dog and their friends - preferably outside. You can usually find her in the garden, climbing a local peak, or enjoying local libations in the sunshine.