About Us

Christopher “CJ” Gross

Christopher “CJ” Gross is a TEDx Speaker and founder of Ascension Worldwide, a firm dedicated to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion training and consulting based in the Washington, D.C. area. CJ has 20-years of experience as an international organizational development consultant specializing in leadership development and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. CJ is a certified Social + Emotional Intelligence coach, trainer, Keirsey Temperament professional, and Intercultural Development Inventory (IDI) Administrator, with additional expertise in organizational mediation.

He also serves as a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Master Faculty for the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, Center for Innovation and Business Management, Adjunct Faculty for the Community College of Baltimore County. CJ possesses the unique ability to uncover and resolve social issues that hinder employee performance and efficiency. CJ started his career as a mechanical designer at General Electric (GE) where he learned to layout mechanical designs and run calculations. At GE, he learned how effective companies run and the importance of employee relationships to a company’s success.

After receiving multiple corrective preventive idea awards for employee development, CJ merged his engineering skills with his innate understanding of people, offering professional coaching and staff development to companies in need of improved performance and effectiveness. CJ cultivated his Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion acumen through an intense training and coaching program from Cook Ross, an internationally known Diversity and Inclusion consulting firm. The program included key concepts from Daniel Kahneman’s book, Thinking Fast and Thinking Slow, brain science theory, and life-changing deep-dive identity coaching.

In addition, CJ has worked with domestic and international leaders from Fortune 500 companies, nonprofits, and government agencies on their Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion strategies and initiatives. This training and experience enabled CJ to help clients explore impactful strategies for identity, diversity, inclusion, equity, and access from a unique vantage point.

CJ holds a B.A. degree in Organizational Management from Ashford University through the Forbes Entrepreneurship Scholarship and a M.A. degree in Strategic Leadership from St. Bonaventure University. CJ has consulted with leaders of domestic, and international companies including the United States Postal Service, Toyota, Turner Construction Company, Ford’s Theater, Project Management Institute, Oracle, Arent Fox LLP, the Washington Post, D.C. Child, and Family Services, Morgan Stanley, Loyola University, Howard University: School of Social Work, Maryland Association of Community Service, Primerica, Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., Maryland-National Capital Parks, and Planning Commission, Maryland Department of Juvenile Services, the District of Columbia-Metropolitan Police Department, Penn State and others.

CJ has been featured in the Washington Post, the Washington Informer Newspaper, East of the River Newspaper, Diamonds Xcel Magazine, the Baltimore Examiner, Bloomberg, the Tom Joyner Show, the Audrey Chapman Show, DCTV Cable, WPGC 95.5 FM, WOL 1450 AM, WUSA 9, WBAL-TV, and FOX45.

Chris Morin, MBA

Chris Morin leads the operations division for Ascension Worldwide, LLC. In his role he manages internal operations and proposal development, develops new client opportunities, and serves as senior advisor to growth and direction of the firm. Prior to Ascension Worldwide, Chris served as Director of eLearning for Cook Ross, a diversity and inclusion consulting firm. In his career Chris has facilitated D&I training for organizations from large big box retailers to small-sized engineering, accounting, and law firms and run divisions for consulting firms specializing in Unconscious Bias training.

In addition to his knowledge on Diversity and Inclusion, Chris has served as Director of Learning and Development at Grant Thornton, CareFirst BlueCross/BlueShield, and Thompson Publishing Group.

Chris started his D&I journey with work on access issues for college freshman. While at Thompson he hosted seminars with Dr. Jane Jarrow on providing students with different abilities equal access to dorms and extra curricular activities. Chris is passionate about inclusion and belonging and has written extensively on the topic for several magazines and blogs.

Renee Collins Cobb, M.Ed

Renee Collins Cobb, M.Ed. has more than thirty years’ experience in the fields of diversity, equity and inclusion, professional development and consulting in the government, institutional, educational, corporate and healthcare sectors. She also brings a broad base of experience in the fields of organizational effectiveness, change management, leadership development, change management, succession planning and high potential development.

Renee holds a master’s degree in Executive Human Resources Development from Xavier University, and bachelor’s degrees in music performance and education from the University of Kentucky. Her background includes experience as an Organizational Effectiveness and Performance Improvement Manager in the distribution and integrated supply industry with corporate strategic planning responsibilities. She has facilitated learning and led organizational development functions at the executive management levels and has initiated various human resource development and corporate university start-up programs and processes at many organizations

Renee is the Executive Producer and Host of “Overtones LIVE” – a radio show focused on diversity in the presentation of Kentucky music and “Gray Matters” – a podcast show about unconscious bias” which airs weekly on WLXU, Lexington Community Radio and 20 other radio stations throughout Kentucky and surrounding areas. She is also the co-chair of the University of Kentucky School of Music Alumni. She has also facilitated career development courses for incoming freshmen at the University of Kentucky and served as an unconscious bias consultant and facilitator for The University of Kentucky as well.

Renee is also a documentary film maker, and owner of Listen Locally, LLC and a non-profit organization – Room 17 Productions, that designs, develops and delivers oral history projects for the Louie B Nunn Center for Oral History at The University of Kentucky that focuses on telling stories centered around diversity, equity and inclusion.

Brandon Colbert

Brandon Colbert is a communications expert trained in facilitation, diversity and interpersonal dialogue and is certified in Talent Development from the Association of Talent Development. Brandon has over 15 years of experience in diversity and inclusion training, leading and designing educational programs in the areas of interpersonal relations, diversity, communication and professional development across the country.

He was awarded the Patricia Gurinn Award for his work in Intergroup Dialogue at The University of Michigan. Brandon also served as a Program Manager with The Youth Dialogues Program on Race and Ethnicity in Metro Detroit with the University of Michigan.

Brandon currently teaches classes on diversity, conflict and confrontation, and professionalism and tact in the workplace.
Brandon is also the creator and host of the Say Thispodcast. The podcast provides listeners with communication tools that effectively deal with challenging human behaviors. He was born and raised in Grand Rapids, MI where he currently resides. Brandon has a sociology degree from the University of Michigan.

Dr. Lynn Scott

Dr. Lynn Scott is a dynamic leadership development consultant who is a highly sought innovator in the government, private, and education sectors to improve leadership development systems; inter-agency teams; workforce education and training programs; and diversity management practices.  He has led and been a team member for a wide variety of executive leadership development initiatives; diversity management workshops; and group facilitation roles for a wide range of federal government agencies, including the congressionally mandated Military Leadership Diversity Commission, while at the RAND Corporation.  Lynn is also a national recognized consultant and facilitator in the education sector working for the Wallace Foundation, the NYC Leadership Academy, the National Association of Elementary School Principals, the National Association of Secondary School Principals, and school districts across the country, including Prince Georges County Public School, Baltimore City Public School districts, and the Florida Department of Education.  As an Air Force officer, he served as behavioral scientist throughout his 21-year career, which included faculty positions in leadership departments at the Air Force Academy and the National Defense University; and human resource management research positions at the Armstrong Laboratory and the Air Force Personnel Center.  Lynn has also held positions of Chief Knowledge Officer and Director of Business Architecture in the private sector.  Lynn is a graduate of the United States Air Force Academy, majoring in organizational behavior and has an MA in Industrial Psychology from St. Mary’s University of San Antonio.  He received his Ph.D. in Management from the Graduate School of Business at the University of Texas at Austin.
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(Lynn’s Full Resume can be found on Linked-In:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/lynn-scott-77b60a4/ )

Natasha McKibbin

Natasha McKibbin is an HR professional and coach with experience in training and development, instructional design, workplace culture and employee engagement. She has lived in several different countries working in the finance, hospitality, and education industries. Having worked in a leadership capacity where the workforce was made up of over 80 different nationalities, Natasha understands the importance of having a clear and inclusive workplace culture and the policies supporting a healthy work environment for all.

As a consultant, Natasha has partnered with several international organizations to create educational programs for their workforce and clientele. Her projects have included writing accredited online coaching programs, creating and delivering train-the-trainer courses, compliance training packages for online use and learning management system administration.

Natasha is an accomplished trainer and facilitator and has led several training programs that cover such topics as discrimination and harassment, performance management, ethics, cultural intelligence, mental health and wellbeing in the workplace, customer service skills, diversity, inclusion and unconscious bias.
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Natasha speaks several languages and holds a bachelor’s degree in Education Studies from the University of Exeter in the UK. She has achieved many professional qualifications throughout her career such as the UK HR Management certification, an international coaching accreditation and event planning management certification.

Ashley T Brundage

Ashley started her second career as a means of survival. Fighting discrimination, harassment, and homelessness she found employment as a part time associate then rose to national Vice President of Diversity & Inclusion in less than 5 years at a major financial services organization.

​She captured this process of career development in her new award-winning book and online course called Empowering Differences. Personally, she enjoys time with her two teenage boys who serve as the main source of inspiration and empowerment for her. She volunteers for numerous organizations most notably as the Vice Chair for the GLAAD National Board of Directors, which works to accelerate acceptance for the LGBTQ+ Community.

Diana File

Diana File has spent 15 years driving results for Fortune 500 corporations, start-ups, non-profits, academic institutions, and small businesses around the world. Diana uses neuroscience to empower companies to build highly diverse, inclusive teams that break records in productivity, collaboration, and profit.

Her proprietary analytics methodologies uncover the deep neuroscientific factors that dictate success or failure. From there, she translates assessment into strategy and drives cross-functional implementation across the matrix. This integrated approach helps companies stay competitive in the face of dynamic generational and cultural shifts for employees and customers.

A former Israel Defense Forces organizational psychologist, Diana has transformed decision trees in complex hierarchies and spearheaded global research on why intractable conflicts persist and how to inspire their resolution. Diana’s expertise spans the areas of workforce analytics, team building, project management, organizational effectiveness and development, conflict resolution, and best practice research.
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In addition to her consulting work, Diana regularly delivers trainings, workshops, and keynotes for the Cornell University School of Industrial and Labor Relations, the Association for Healthcare Human Resource Administrators of Greater New York, the National Libraries of Medicine, and the Yale Alumni Association. Diana holds a BA in Psychology from Yale University and an MA in Psychology from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. She is fluent in English, Hebrew, and Russian.

Dr. Kerry Tan

Dr. Kerry Tan is a tenured faculty member in the Economics department at Loyola University Maryland.  He received his BA from the University of California, San Diego and his PhD from The Ohio State University.  Kerry enjoys fueling his students’ curiosity for economics by connecting the course material to their everyday lives.  He is a two-time recipient of the Chair’s Award for Distinguished Teaching in Economics, as well as the Sellinger School’s STAR Award for Teaching.

Kerry is an accomplished empirical researcher in the broad categories of industrial organization and applied microeconomics. He is fascinated by anything dealing with airplanes and conducts research on pricing strategies in the U.S. airline industry.  He has presented his research at numerous conferences and seminars, including the Federal Trade Commission and the U.S. Department of Justice (Antitrust Division).  His works have appeared in high-quality academic journals, including Contemporary Economic Policy, Southern Economic Journal, Review of Industrial Organization, and Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice. Kerry has appeared in several media outlets, including The Washington Post, The Baltimore Sun, PBS NewsHour, and NPR. In his spare time, Kerry enjoys golfing and flying a Cessna 172.

Dr. Leilanie Martin

Dr. Leilanie Martin holds a Doctorate in Nursing Practice in HealthCare Leadership from Chamberlin University. Her certifications include Family Nurse Practitioner, a   Certification in Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Coil Stimulation (RTMS) from Harvard University, and she is also a certified trainer for Cook Ross’ Exploring Everyday Bias for the Healthcare Professionals Course. Dr. Martin completed a Critical Care Fellowship at Northwell Health and has over 15 years of experience working in various Critical Care Units across New York City. She currently navigates patients in the Follow Your Heart Program and is an adjunct faculty member for City University of New York in the MSN program.

Wilson Cox

Wilson Cox is a results-oriented, top performing sales executive with 21 years of leadership experience working in the pharmaceutical and government sectors in the US. Prior to joining Ascension Worldwide, he spent the last 18 years working in the fast-paced pharmaceutical industry specializing in management, coaching, mentoring, change management to start-up to mid-sized companies.

His 21 years of management experience includes strategic roles as a Project Manager, Regional and National Field Sales Trainer, District Manager, Regional Manager, Eastern Division Director and Government Accounts Manager. Wilson utilizes his business background to measure the impact of Diversity and Inclusion and analyze the results on an organization’s performance.

Wilson is passionate about education and holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Towson University in Kinesiology and a Masters of Business Administration from the University of Maryland University College. He received his certification in Diversity and Inclusion from Cornell University.

John Sparico

Prior to joining Ascension Worldwide as a VP of Business Development, his most recent role as the VP, Strategic Alliances is where he built C-suite relationships with those Learning and Development organizations with a proven commitment to lifelong learning. John also assisted organizations such as Oracle, DC based start-ups Social Tables and ShowScore undergo a dramatic and positive transformation by generating new revenue growth as a result of product initiatives, improved client relationship strategies and the acquisition of early adopted partners.

John is a strategic communications professional with proven leadership experience in Business Development along with a diverse background in sales and marketing with extensive experience in client communications and event management. He obtained his CMP designation in 2001. John holds a Bachelor’s degree in Speech Communications from Penn State University.

Danielle Guadeloupe-Rojas

As a VP of Client Relations, Danielle Guadeloupe-Rojas listens to clients’ needs and provides customized approaches to advancing their organizational development and strategies.

Danielle has over seven years of experience in business development with  companies in financial services, IT, retail, interior design, real estate, staffing, and hospitality. She has held the roles of Business Development Coordinator, Sales Lead, Strategic Account Manager, and Interim Director.

Specializing in the client experience and consultative approach, Danielle uses her innovative sales techniques to connect with clients in a way that creates long lasting partnerships. Danielle began her career managing business development for her family’s business in Maryland then gradually became an expert with B2B, commercial, as well as government clients. Diversity and Inclusion (D&I) has always been a passion to Danielle, but became a staple in her life after working for a local Diversity and Inclusion Consulting Management firm. During her time there, she cultivated solutions for clients based on unconscious bias training and other D&I offerings. Danielle holds a Property and Casualty license in the financial services industry and is a Certified Sales Professional. Danielle has done extensive studies in Business Administration and Communications.

In her free time, Danielle enjoys travelling, event coordination, and fundraising for local nonprofits.

Rose Lyn Vizcarra-Novino

Rose serves as Ascension Worldwide’s Executive Assistant . She brings almost a decade of administrative experience to the organization, with expertise in scheduling and data management. Rose works closely with management and  executives in the firm, providing general administrative duties, managing and organizing schedules, and corresponding with clients. She is committed to contributing exceptional support for the company’s growth and success.

Randy Benn

Randy comes to the field of executive and leadership coaching after a 30-year career as an attorney, lobbyist and strategic consultant in Washington D.C. Randy has been a Partner in three of the world’s largest law firms, served in a senior role at the U.S. EPA and as a Senior Fellow at his alma mater, among other positions.

Randy has worked at all levels of the U.S. Executive and Legislative branches, led several strategic planning processes, worked in the international development community and helped found businesses in Costa Rica, Switzerland, the U.K. and D.C. He has decades of Board and Advisory Board experience promoting water quality, protecting endangered species, addressing the Muslim/West divide, increasing interfaith peace and justice and reducing gun violence.

Leadership Credentials
Randy was certified by Georgetown University’s Institute for Transformational Leadership as an Executive and Leadership Coach and is recognized by the International Coaching Federation as a Professional Certified Coach. He also served as a member of the Board of Directors of the ICF’s Metro D.C. Chapter.

Areas of Expertise
Using backbone, heart and humor, his coaching experience includes work in the areas of law and public policy, energy, medicine, education, government, tech and international development. With these engagements and his own diverse work and personal background, he looks forward to partnering with individuals from a wide variety of professions and nationalities.

Randy is a magna cum laude graduate of Duke University and Duke Law School. He is married with three grown children, lives in DC and performs with his rock and roll band, Soulfire.

Shelley Jack

Shelley Jack is a marketing executive and educator with over 20 years of experience in branding, marketing and communications. During Jack’s career, she’s envisioned and constructed integrated and inclusive marketing systems, identified marketing priorities, led successful brand, marketing and communication campaigns, empowered work groups during times of change and led remote, diverse and global teams.

Jack has held varying leadership roles in advertising, public relations, corporate communications, branding, integrated marketing strategy & planning, digital marketing, social media marketing, and content marketing. She’s worked with clients like Northern Virginia Community College, North Carolina State, Vanderbilt University Law School, Fontbonne University, Zippo Manufacturing, Cutco Cutlery, Steaz Organic Iced Tea Brand, Bruster’s Real Ice Cream and BlueCross BlueShield.

Jack’s marketing consultancy, Shebe Marketing, specializes in serving organizations during times of growth, change and transition. Since its inception in 2014, the consultancy has offered marketing, branding and communication strategy, coaching and training for a range of clients in higher education, manufacturing, healthcare, retail and tourism. From large organizations to individual thought leaders, the consultancy is sensitive to facilitating change efforts that go past vanity tactics and metrics, and toward inclusive and systemic initiatives.

As an educator, Jack has over 15 years of experience as a faculty member and in corporate training. She’s taught and developed curriculum at the undergraduate, graduate and corporate levels, and was an early adopter of online learning. She’s developed and taught classes in marketing strategy management, branding, consumer behavior, international marketing, digital leadership and organizational communications.

Jack has lived abroad in Costa Rica teaching English as a second language and cross-cultural business communications, serving global corporations such as Intel, Hewlett Packard and Equifax. She’s also worked as an associate director and marketing instructor for U.S.-based graduate students studying abroad at Oxford University in England (summer programs).

Jack has an M.S. in Integrated Marketing Communications and a B.S. in Communications. She’s certified in Teaching English as a Foreign Language and is currently taking coursework in preparation for the International Service of Evaluation of the Spanish Language (SIELE) exam.

Jack lives in Pennsylvania with her sons, Nigel and Mateo. When she isn’t chasing around two high-energy little ones, she enjoys functional fitness, yoga, and sleeping.