Mohamed Abdi

Mohamed Abdi is a Summer Search Alumni and proud Muslim, Somali, African American Leader who was born in a Kenyan refugee camp and raised in Tukwila. He is has been  an advocate for racial and social justice issues since high school, where he served as a board representative for the Tukwila School District. He runs a podcast called “The Refund Podcast” and has served as an organizer with the City of Seattle’s Immigrant Family Institute Advisory Board. A recent graduate from the Community Leadership Institute and an active member in the citiesRISE Seattle Youth Leaders Network and The King County Children and Youth Advisory Board (CYAB).

Dr. Yoshiko Harden

Dr. Yoshiko Harden (she, her) currently serves as the interim president of Seattle Central College. In this role she provides leadership and oversight for all aspects of the college. Prior to this role, Dr. Harden served as the Vice President for Student Services at Central. In this position she led the Student Services division and units such as, Student Development, Student Success, Enrollment and Registration, Guided Pathways and Counseling.  Formerly she served as the Vice President for Diversity/Chief Diversity Officer at Bellevue College. There she led college-wide initiatives to address inequity in recruitment, hiring, professional development for faculty and staff, Title IX/VAWA, and the college’s bias response team. Dr. Harden was formerly the Director of Multicultural Services and Student Development at Highline College. She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree from University of California, San Diego in Communications and Women’s Studies, a M.Ed from Seattle University in Student Development Administration and a doctorate in Education from Northeastern University in Higher Education Policy.  Her research interests and expertise center on Black Males in Community and Technical Colleges, Racial Microaggressions, and Critical Race Theory.