Sophia Chang’s Unlock Her Potential (UP) program, which provides free mentoring services for women of color, will soon open applications for its second year. And for the 2022 edition, participants can expect several returning mentors, as well as a number of new faces.
This time, in fact, the roster of mentors has expanded from 107 to 126, with 74 percent of 2020 mentors returning for the follow-up. Names like Kwame Onuwachi, Ming Tsai, Travis Left, and Bill Addison have been added to the program’s Culinary category this year. Meanwhile, the newly created Strategy & Innovation category will feature Anne Chow and Diana Rhoten.
Other new mentors include Ebro Darden, Alyssa Castiglia, Tiffany Liao, Anne Chow, Alex Kim, Kelvin Yu, Michael Mann, Samantha Militante, and W. Kamau Bell.
Meanwhile, returning mentors include GZA, Danielle Belton, Marcelle Karp, 9th Wonder, Ileana Diez, Joey Badass, Chloe Hung, and Alex Tse.
“Being a mentor in Unlock Her Potential has been a gift to me,” GZA tells Complex of contributing to this project from Sophia Chang, who’s previously managed him and Ol’ Dirty Bastard, among many others. “When Sophia called to ask me to participate, I didn’t hesitate to say yes. I grew up around powerful Black women so I never underestimated women of color. This program has only reinforced my belief in their power and brilliance.”
Applications for the second year of UP open at 9 a.m. ET on Aug. 1. The program itself will launch in January of next year.
Unlock Her Potential is a project at The Giving Back Fund, a national 501c3 organization with Tax-ID # 04-3367888. First launched during the earlier days of the pandemic, the inaugural UP inspired thousands of applications, ultimately landing positive feedback from mentors and mentees alike.
Below, peep the full list of mentors, then hit the site for additional info. You can follow Unlock Her Potential on Instagram and Twitter, as well as creator Sophia Chang here and here.
- Bill Addison Culinary
- Kwame Onwuachi
- Ming Tsai Culinary
- Travis Lett Culinary
- Stan Douglas
- Kate Klonick
- Ebro Darden
- Henry Finder
- Katie Benner
- Mara Gay
- Margaret Talbot
- Vanessa K. Deluca
- Alyssa Castiglia
- Carletta Higginson
- Kwame Anthony Appiah
- Preeti Chhibber
- Tiffany Liao
- Tochi Onyebuchi
- David Sun Kong
- Doug Frisbie
- Anne Chow
- Diana Rhoten
- Alex Kim
- Ashley Chang
- Cameron Ross
- David Levine
- Greg Silverman
- Hari Kondabolu
- Jacque Cofer
- Jennifer Kaytin
- Karen Chau
- Kate Lambert
- Keith Antone
- Kelly Goode
- Kelvin Yu
- Latoya Morgan
- Linda Goldstein Knowlton
- Liz Jenkins
- Lynne Greene
- Michael Mann
- Mike Colter
- Patricia Resnick
- Samantha Militante
- Steph Meurer
- Terel Gibson
- W. Kamau Bell
- Yul Vazquez
- Carrie Goldberg
- Gregg Bishop
- Kevin Bruyneel
- Rachel Noerdlinger
- Natasha Phan
- Yangchen Lama
- Cey Adams
- Danielle Belton
- Marcelle Karp
- 9th Wonder
- Antoinette Trotman
- Carl Beatty
- Carla Miller
- Chris Chambers
- GZA
- Ileana Diez
- Jeremy Holgerson
- Joey Badass
- Lynn Gonzalez
- Marcie Cleary
- Marilee Holmes
- Marvet Britto
- Michael Ostin
- Shweta Desai
- Suzy Ryoo
- Dawn Davis
- Elizabeth Mendez-Berry
- Heesok Chang
- Jessica Almon Galland
- Joan Morgan
- Jonathan Lee
- Karen Good-Marable
- Kierna Mayo
- Mark Anthony Neal
- Marya Spence
- Pagan Kennedy
- David Kaiser
- Ethan Zuckerman
- Penny Chisholm
- Adam Neuhaus
- Alex Tse
- Amber Rasberry
- Andre Royo
- Anne Woodward
- Bao Nguyen
- Becky Clements
- Brian Yorkey
- Bruce Cohen
- Byron Wong
- Charlotte Koh
- Chelsey Lora
- Cheo Coker
- Chloe Hung
- Chris Emerson
- Demane Davis
- Eric Oberland
- Francie Calfo
- Jac Benson
- Jake Choi
- Jennie Frisbie
- Jim Jarmusch
- Jon Rubinstein
- Julia Zak
- Kimberly Carver
- Lori Tilkin
- Michelle Raimo Kouyate
- Michelle Sy
- Mitch Solomon
- Mustafa Shakir
- Nicole Tossou
- Paul Broucek
- Rana Zand
- Sara Rastogi
- Sarah Harden
- Sophia Chang
- Stefon Bristol
- Tracey Bing
- Zina Camblin
