Our Team

DEANDRA CADET
Co-Founder & Executive Director

“I truly believe that in order to build peace we must start by questioning the narratives we tell and who gets to be seen as human. Through InterAction, we are creating new opportunities that not only challenge oppression in its many forms but also dream up new ways of being and existing where justice, belonging, love and equity are central.”

Deandra is a social entrepreneur and diversity educator. She serves as the Cofounder and Executive Director of InterAction Initiative Inc., working alongside young people of color to develop sustainable strategies for inclusion. As a Haitian-American Midwest transplant from Newark, NJ, she’s still in the process of understanding the complexities of her own identity and story. In 2018, she was named a Dalai Lama Fellow in recognition for her social change leadership. She graduated cum laude from the University of Notre Dame in 2015 in Political Science and Peace Studies. While at Notre Dame she was a Kellogg Institute International Scholar, Franklyn E. Doan Scholar, and Frazier Thompson Scholar. Deandra is a diversity educator, social entrepreneur, and an activist in social justice work within her local South Bend Community.

ILIANA FIGUEROA
Program Director

liana (she/they) has recently joined the InterAction team as their Program Director. She is a Queer Puerto Rican Femme, born and raised in the Northwest side of Chicago. Before InterAction, she had spent the past 8 years organizing within Black and Brown Queer and Trans community, as well and working with survivors of gender-based violence. She believes in a world without police and prisons, and loves to dream with others about what this possibility can look like.

KELLY YU
Education & Outreach Coordinator

Kelly Yu was born and raised in Arcadia, CA. Recently, she graduated from the University of Michigan with two bachelor’s degrees in Sociology and Women’s Studies. College was a transformative experience, where she learned about dialogue, self-reflection, and social justice. Kelly learned how her social identities shape her lived reality, how to articulate her experiences and work with people of diverse backgrounds.

As the new Outreach Coordinator for InterAction Initiative, Kelly is excited to utilize her social justice knowledge and dialogue facilitation skills. The organization’s focus on critical race and pedagogical theory aligns with her ideology. Through the work, Kelly hopes to make social justice more accessible and empower young activists to thoughtful action.
Outside of work, Kelly enjoy spending time with my two chinchillas, cooking new dishes, and watching Lifetime movies.

DEANDRA CADET
Co-Founder & Executive Director

“I truly believe that in order to build peace we must start by questioning the narratives we tell and who gets to be seen as human. Through InterAction, we are creating new opportunities that not only challenge oppression in its many forms but also dream up new ways of being and existing where justice, belonging, love and equity are central.”

Deandra is a social entrepreneur and diversity educator. She serves as the Cofounder and Executive Director of InterAction Initiative Inc., working alongside young people of color to develop sustainable strategies for inclusion. As a Haitian-American Midwest transplant from Newark, NJ, she’s still in the process of understanding the complexities of her own identity and story. In 2018, she was named a Dalai Lama Fellow in recognition for her social change leadership. She graduated cum laude from the University of Notre Dame in 2015 in Political Science and Peace Studies. While at Notre Dame she was a Kellogg Institute International Scholar, Franklyn E. Doan Scholar, and Frazier Thompson Scholar. Deandra is a diversity educator, social entrepreneur, and an activist in social justice work within her local South Bend Community.

TAEYIN CHOGLUECK
Co-Founder & Creative Director

Taeyin ChoGlueck is a co-founder of InterAction and has served the organization as the Creative Director from its founding days to 2020. Taeyin’s experiences range from immigrant to second generation, from Korean to Korean-American and Minnesotan/Midwestern identities. Taeyin has worked in London, Minneapolis, and Seoul in multicultural organizations. As the co-founder of InterAction, Taeyin envisions InterAction to be the cultivating grounds for Young Black, Indigenous, People of Color to be the next critical thinkers, writers, and leaders in intersectional racial justice.

Udochi Esomonu
Writer, Activist & Student

LUCAS GARCIA
President

“We are made of stories. When someone else uses power or violence to take control of our stories, they can sometimes unmake us, or make us into something we aren’t. InterAction empowers all kinds of people, especially young people of color, to excavate their own voices. They offer tools to activate that voice AND to build a platform to affirm them. I believe in InterAction’s mission because I believe in the power of telling your story from your own perspective.”

Lucas Garcia is a Chicago based writer and dramaturge from Albuquerque, NM. They are also Co-Director of Marketing and Communications for the Alliance of Latinx Theatre Artists, a volunteer member service organization dedicated to the advancement of the Latinx Theatre movement in Chicago. Lucas is also a member of El Semillero, ALTA’s Latinx playwriting circle. Lucas has worked as a dramaturg with Sideshow Theatre Company’s Freshness Initiative (Mechanisms of Fidelity), The Yard (columbinus), TimeLine Theatre Company (In the Next Room), Steppenwolf (La Ruta, Pass Over), The Hypocrites (W;t), and Chicago Dramatists (Lorca in New York, Felons and Familias). Lucas also writes as a theatre critic for Rescripted: an artist-led platform for critique, discussion and writing.

DR. CHELDA SMITH KONDO

My name is Chelda Smith Kondo. Currently, I am an Associate Professor of Elementary Education at Georgia Southern University, where I teach graduate courses in cultural issues, critical pedagogy, and elementary curriculum. I am also the co-founder and director of a fully online Elementary Education Master of Arts in Teaching program focused on culture and communities. My research interests lie primarily in the area of pedagogical development, ranging from preservice teachers to university faculty.

I serve on the board of InterAction Initiative Inc. because its mission of a world in which all students have the opportunity to reach their full potential in their inclusive college campuses is central to my research and teaching. I believe my commitment to instruction and research rooted in cultural relevance, inclusion, and equity helps me serve and advance the mission of InterAction.

CHRISTIAN MURPHY
Co-founder & CEO of Catharsis Productions

“Other programs strive to shape a young person’s personal experience into a form of expressive art. The coolest element of this non-profit is the next step in their process– transforming that art into action. As these stories are compassionately crafted and then shared in a theatrical program, we as an audience all get to see what an inclusive world might look like. As their stories are heard, our own perspectives are broadened and we are activated to be our better selves. In the meantime, the creators of these pieces discover a greater appreciation of their own agency and are inspired to build a better future within their own communities and beyond.”

Catharsis Productions aims to change the world by creating and delivering innovative and interactive educational programs that challenge oppressive attitudes and transform behavior. Our programs use strategies like humor, interactive dialogue, and theater to tackle social justice issues, like sexual violence, sexual orientation and gender identity, and race in a non-conventional way.  Two of our presentations, Say What? (for college audiences) and NSFW (for corporate audiences) bid participants to recognize any unexamined privilege they may possess and how microaggressions unchallenged can further marginalize individuals from minority populations.  Our work is not to shame, but rather inspire positive, inclusive communities.

Pamela Young
Director for Academic Diversity and Inclusion University of Notre Dame

“I support the work of InterAction because I believe in its’ core values of inclusion and equity. As educator, attorney and consultant I know that there are multiple ways to deliver a message, in my opinion none more powerful that the use of theater. Hearing the personal narratives showcased by InterAction allows the community to learn about inequities and grow more inclusive.”

Pamela Young was appointed Notre Dame’s first director for academic diversity and inclusion in 2016. In this role, Young directs efforts within the academy focused on diversity and inclusion, working with partners across all academic levels to ensure the University fosters an environment in which everyone may flourish. Her key responsibilities center on coordination, training and development, recruitment, retention, and communications, and she acts as the point person for colleges and departments as they implement the diversity and inclusion plans developed in response to the Faculty Experience Survey.

Young came to Notre Dame from PNY Consulting in Holyoke, Mass., where she advised colleges, businesses, and individuals on issues related to Title VII, Title IX, ADA, and FERPA. Prior to that, she was director of institutional diversity and equity at Smith College, administering the college’s affirmative action plan, exercising oversight of diversity and equity policies, and conducting discrimination and grievance investigations. Her experience in higher education also includes approximately five years as human resources director at North Shore Community College in Danvers, Mass.

As an attorney, Young has consulted for the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination and, from 1997–2000, served as an assistant district attorney in Hampden County, Mass. She has been an assistant city solicitor and a member of the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office, as well.

After graduating with a B.A. in government from Dartmouth College, Young received her J.D. from the Notre Dame Law School. In addition, she holds an M.Ed. in educational leadership from Salem State College, and she completed the Institute for Management and Leadership in Education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Alia Azmat

Ginger Cacnio

LaShawnda Crowe-Storm

DR. CHELDA SMITH KONDO

My name is Chelda Smith Kondo. Currently, I am an Associate Professor of Elementary Education at Georgia Southern University, where I teach graduate courses in cultural issues, critical pedagogy, and elementary curriculum. I am also the co-founder and director of a fully online Elementary Education Master of Arts in Teaching program focused on culture and communities. My research interests lie primarily in the area of pedagogical development, ranging from preservice teachers to university faculty.

I serve on the board of InterAction Initiative Inc. because its mission of a world in which all students have the opportunity to reach their full potential in their inclusive college campuses is central to my research and teaching. I believe my commitment to instruction and research rooted in cultural relevance, inclusion, and equity helps me serve and advance the mission of InterAction.

Nancy Wong

Nneka Soyinka
Privacy and Data Protection Advocate