Blandine Ineza, Board Member

My name is Blandine Ineza. I’m 20 years old and Rwandese by Nationality. I’m pursuing anesthesia in my undergraduate studies at the University of Rwanda on a MasterCard scholarship since 2016.

I’m proud to have lead my fellow students as their Head girl at GSOB Indatwa n’Inkesha high school; to have been a president of Peace and Love Proclaimers club; and to have co-founded conquerors group whose purpose is to eradicate drug abuse problem in Rwandan youth. I’m also very proud to have participated in Pan African Youth Leadership Program (PAYLP) that took place in USA leading a delegation from my country in 2017. In 2019, I was admitted to attain college application skills in Education in US program(ESP) at the American embassy and I’ve used the skills I acquired in the program to mentor students who were looking for colleges in US universities. I’m passionate about public speaking and being a virtuous leader who is a force for good in my community. I aspire to become the best anesthesiologist in the near future and a catalyst for positive change in all my life endeavors.

In my free time I enjoy reading, jogging, dancing and socializing with friends. A constant and never ending desire for improvement in whatever I do is what fuels me!

Cloe Liparini, Board Member

Cloe Liparini (she/her) is the Director of Education, Community Engagement and Belonging in the University Office for Diversity and Inclusion at UNC-Chapel Hill. Cloe is a trainer, consultant, strategist, and curriculum designer with over 20 years of experience leading and managing international and multicultural teams through organizational change that leverages diversity, inclusion and cultural humility.

Cloe’s experience designing and delivering culturally inclusive programs to increase leadership effectiveness and collaboration across boundaries focuses on self-awareness, policy advocacy and systems change. Her professional experience spans higher education, not-for-profit and global health sectors. As the Senior Advisor for Leadership Development Programs and a lecturer at the University of Global Health Equity, an initiative of Partners in Health in Rwanda, Cloe trained diverse graduate and executive education learners on inclusive leadership. In this role, she collaborated with senior administrators, community partners, and SME’s to provide guidance and coaching on interventions and capacity building efforts through an equity lens. It is during this time that she first became involved with Generation Rise in order to amplify and advocate for the important work of leadership development, voice and personal agency of young women. Cloe has been the proud Board Chair of Generation Rise since 2019.

Jina Moore, Board Member

Jina Moore was the East Africa bureau chief for The New York Times from 2017 to 2018. Before joining The Times, Ms. Moore was a senior foreign correspondent and the global women’s rights reporter at BuzzFeed News. She has been based in East Africa since 2008, and she's reported from nearly 30 countries around the world. She was among the first foreign correspondents to cover Ebola in Liberia in 2014, and her 2015 work on the refugee crisis in Europe pushed UNHCR to improve its gender-based violence prevention work. She's won many awards, including the Elizabeth Neuffer Gold Medal Prize at the United Nations, a Fulbright Fellowship, and an Ochberg Fellowship with the Dart Center on Journalism and Trauma. To learn more about Jina, click here.

Thaddée Muhinze, Board Member

Thaddée was born in Rwanda. He has been teaching languages in a public secondary school since 2012. He won the Award for the Best Performing Teacher at school and sector level in 2017. 

In addition to teaching, he currently carries out mentorship responsibilities. Qualified and selected to be a school based mentor (SBM), he trains and supports in-service teachers to improve their English skills and their teaching methodology so that they can effectively and professionally implement Rwanda's new Competence Based Curriculum intended to improve quality education. 

In addition, with a bilateral partnership between University of Rwanda-College of Education (UR-CE) and the school, Thaddée serves as a School Attachment Mentor (SAM) assigned with the responsibility to provide support and professional guidance to UR-CE student-teachers (interns) and to direct their day to day activities while they are undertaking school attachment (internships) in secondary schools in order to complete their academic requirements. 

He has been working with Generation Rise Rwanda since 2017  as one of the volunteer teachers who provide mentorship support to the students enrolled in Generation Rise's Her Voice Matters Program, which aims at enhancing empowerment of the Rwandan youth, with a focus on female students.

Jackson Mvugayabagabo, Board Member

Born and raised in Rwanda, Jackson is an in-country co-founder of Kepler, a nonprofit university program, whose vision and mission is to build a global model of accessible and excellent higher education. He also worked for the same institution as the Lead Course Facilitator and Employer Relations Coordinator, which resulted to career and employment opportunities of nearly 90% of the first cohort before its graduation. 

Jackson’s career has spanned 9 years with various top leadership positions at Miracle Corners of the World and Kepler-Generation Rwanda, Mothering Across Continents and now with Imbuto Foundation. Many of his assignments involved managing innovative education projects ranging from secondary school education, short-term skills capacity building for youth and university. At several occasions, he served as a speaker to different youth groups on the role of education to bring sustainable peace around the world; as well as career guidance. 

Jackson is currently the Head of Knowledge Development and Dissemination Department at Imbuto Foundation. Founded in 2001 by H.E the First Lady of the Republic of Rwanda, Mrs Jeannette Kagame, Imbuto Foundation is a National Non-Profit Organization (NGO) that aims at supporting the development of a healthy, educated and prosperous society. 

Michelle Wiley, MA LPC, Board Member

Michelle Wiley, MA LPC (she/her/hers) is a strategy and design consultant for social impact and healthcare organizations. With 15+ years leadership in behavioral healthcare, social impact organizations, and entrepreneurship, as well as degrees in psychology and human resources, she employs broad knowledge and experience to effect systemic change. Michelle builds strong partnerships based in trust and inclusion to collaboratively promote access to education and resources and build equitable systems for communities most in need. Michelle lives in Colorado, USA with her family of humans, dogs, cats, and plants.