MEET OUR NEW BOARD MEMBER - TSIHAI HANSON
We were lucky enough to sit and chat with one of our newer Board Members, Tsihai Hanson (she/her) about her Jersey roots and vision for Sadie Nash. We’re so excited to have Tsihai’s perspective and guidance on the board, and we want you to learn more about the people who make the Sadie Nash magic happen.
Tsihai Hanson (she/her) is a values-driven advocate and strategist working to advance access and equity as tools for social change. With more than 20 years of experience driving innovative program and communications strategy and operations for leading organizations and institutions, her work cultivates spaces and collaborations that inspire and activate organizational leaders and diverse learners—particularly those who are often marginalized—and illuminates pathways for them to thrive.
Tell us a bit about yourself.
My name is Tsihai Hanson (she/her). Though I’m originally from NYC, I’m a proud Jersey girl and have spent my career advocating for education access and equity for young people and diverse learners.
I’m a self-proclaimed ambivert, and as an Enneagram type 9w1, I’m most often seeking balance (check these out if you’re curious and/or unfamiliar). I’m also a proud wife, mother, daughter, sister, auntie, friend and lover of plants, music and travel.
What experiences and intentions called you to become an SNLP board member?
I have cheered for and supported Sadie Nash since first being invited to speak to a class of Nashers during Summer Institute many years ago. I joined the board to deepen my commitment to supporting the work of cultivating spaces and opportunities for girls and gender expansive youth of color to define and create for themselves, the conditions in which they thrive.
What impact do you hope to have on the Sadie Nash Leadership Project and its community?
I hope that sharing my identities, experiences and talents with love, transparency and intention, and leaning into my personal and professional communities in support of Sadie Nash will resonate in a way that allows Nashers to see themselves in me and will open doors and inspire the continued community and worldbuilding that makes Sadie Nash, our Nashers and alumni so incredible and essential.
What excites you about Sadie Nash’s presence in Newark?
Seeing Sadie Nash continue to grow in New York City and especially in Newark, where I’ve supported many young people and had some of the most transformative experiences of my career, brings me deep joy and a sense of optimism. Newark is a place rich with pride, possibility and a spirit of activism and action that does not wait for others to do what it must do for itself. That is the self-determined spirit of our Newark Nashers. I’m excited to see the change they will continue to inspire in Newark and beyond.
Do you have a message for Nashers?
To our Nashers, thank you for showing up so powerfully for yourselves, for each other, for our broader communities and our collective future. We are rooting for you, learning from you and lifting you up at every juncture of your journey.