EBONY BLAKE is a native of Dayton, OH and a graduate of Wright State University.  Most recently, she opened the San Francisco production of Harry Potter and The Cursed Child at the Curran Theatre.  Her regional theatre appearances include Little Shop of Horrors (Portland Center Stage), Black Nativity (Classical Theatre of Harlem), and Nefertiti: A Concert of Music and Dance (alongside the Deeply Rooted Dance Theater).  Ebony’s favorite job was traveling across the U.S. in the first national tour of the musical, The Book of Mormon, written by the creators of South Park. She’s an avid reader, loves to make her husband snort-laugh, and she thinks she could be on Jeopardy, but is probably more suited for Family Feud. 

Deniece Maston has 14+ years of HR experience.  Her areas of expertise in employee relations, performance management, talent acquisition, benefits and compensation is a great addition to the Knowledge Center team.  Prior to working at SHRM, Deniece spent a majority of her career in human resource positions in the government contracting industry.  Along with having her SHRM-CP, Deniece has a Bachelor of Science from Cornell University. She also holds the SHRM California Law HR and the Workplace Investigations Credentials, and the People Manager Qualification.

Hi there! My name is Hope Carr, and I am the Education Manager at Austin Zoo! My role is to educate the public on just how amazing the animals here are, and to teach people what we can do to protect and conserve their wild counterparts. I have a Bachelor's degree in Wildlife Conservation from BYU, and have worked at two other zoos in my career thus far. I have a passion for all things animal-related and the great outdoors! 

Kim has been practicing yoga for over 12 years and teaching since 2014. After dealing with chronic pain and mental health issues, she knew that it was the power of breath, movement, and presence that would lead to her healing. She completed her 300-hour advanced training in 2017 in South Florida and currently teaches at Wild Heart Yoga in Austin, TX. Other trainings include Core-Strength Vinyasa, Thai Yoga, Yin Yoga, and Transcendental Meditation. Students can expect Kim to teach from a place of intuition and authenticity, infusing her classes with breath-work, mindfulness, and an opportunity to show up exactly where you are on your path towards better health and your Highest Self.

Katie Hunter was a veteran Hill staffer with over 10 years of policy experience serving multiple members of Congress before joining SHRM. Katie most recently served as Legislative Director for Congressman Rick W. Allen (GA-12), Ranking Member of the HELP Subcommittee of the House Education and Labor Committee. Katie’s primary focus during her time on the Hill has been labor, health, education, and tax issues. Katie started her career with Congressman H. Morgan Griffith (VA-09), member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee.

Yvette Lee, SHRM-SCP, is an HR Knowledge Advisor at SHRM, the world’s largest HR professional society, representing 300,000+ members in more than 165 countries. Yvette possesses over 25 years of human resources experience. Her expertise includes talent management, benefits, compensation, diversity and inclusion, employee relations, ethics and compliance, and employee development. A published author of several articles in SHRM's HR Magazine on various topics, Yvette holds a bachelor's degree in communications from the University of Virginia. She also holds the SHRM California Law HR, Talent Acquisition, Inclusive Workplace Culture, People Manager Qualification and HR Dept. of One Specialty Credentials. Yvette enjoys spending time with her family and doing community service.

Amber Clayton is the Senior Director of Knowledge Center Operations at SHRM.  Amber leads a team of HR experts who field an average of 60,000 HR-related inquiries from members a year.  She is frequently sought after as a speaker and expert for webinars, conferences, and media interviews.  Amber co-hosts a podcast called Honest HR.  She is SHRM-certified with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the University of Baltimore.  She also holds specialty credentials in California law, inclusive workplace culture, and workplace investigations.  Prior to joining SHRM in 2011, she had years of HR experience in healthcare and retail.

Lorne Epstein, SHRM-SCP, MSOD, is a social scientist, keynote, and Vistage speaker who consults with senior leaders on improving decision-making outcomes by reducing biases. Over 50,000 professionals have taken his workshops worldwide. He has been quoted in Forbes, Cosmopolitan, Christian Science Monitor, and other publications. His research focuses on improving decision-making and reducing the impacts of unconscious bias in the workplace. Lorne has been leading experiential workshops since 1993. His book, You're Hired! Interview Skills to Get the Job has been downloaded over a half-million times worldwide. Lorne is currently studying cognitive neuroscience at the master’s level at George Mason University. He was admitted to the Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society and Psi Chi, The National Honor Society of Psychology.

I was a talent acquisition leader for 23 years supporting teams in the United States, Brazil and India. Many of my teams won awards for their performance. I wrote the National Talent Acquisition and Diversity Hiring plan for the United States Forest Service.