Lakiba Pittman

Lakiba Pittman serves as a Lecturer in the School of Arts and Sciences at Menlo College, teaching courses including Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging in the Workplace, Cultural Expressions in Media, Race & Racism, and Transition to College. With over twenty years of corporate experience in leadership development and diversity strategy at Hewlett Packard/Agilent Technologies, she now consults on organizational leadership and healing-informed culture change for companies, nonprofits, and educational institutions.

Her educational background includes:

• Ph.D. (in progress) in Transformative Studies from the California Institute of Integral Studies (CIIS)
• M.A. in Organizational Development from the University of San Francisco (Vizuri Kabisa Recognition Award for Excellence in Academic Achievement)
• B.A. in Creative Arts from San Jose State University
• African American Leadership Institute completion at UCLA's Anderson School of Graduate Management

Dr. Pittman's research centers on creative and spiritual practices for healing generational and systemic trauma in Black and BIPOC communities, integrating mindfulness, storytelling, and somatic approaches to develop trauma-informed pedagogy and compassionate leadership frameworks. Her work bridges academic scholarship with community-based healing initiatives through curriculum development and facilitation.

Her notable honors include:

• Best Faculty Award at Menlo College (2023)
• Racial Equity Action Institute Fellowship (2023-2024)
• CORO Lead Bay Area Fellowship (2022-2023)
• Honorary Doctor of Ministry from Bell Grove Theology Seminary (2004)

Through fellowships and collaborative grants with Northern California Grantmakers and CORO, Pittman advances community healing initiatives via Healing Together and partners with Stanford's CCARE on compassion cultivation programs. She holds advanced certifications in trauma healing from Stanford University and UCSD Center for Mindfulness.

She maintains active affiliations with the American Psychological Association, Association of Black Psychologists, Global Compassion Coalition, and Compassion Institute, facilitating programs focused on racialized trauma, resilience, and collective care across institutional and community settings.