who we are

The Prismatic team is full of builders, creatives and leaders on a mission to think differently about how we invest in tomorrow’s change-makers.

Meet Our Staff

  • Debra Giunta is the founder and executive director of Prismatic. With 15+ years of experience and leadership across multiple educational ventures, she works to create inclusive learning environments that support students' mental and emotional well-being. Through Prismatic, Debra aims to transform education by empowering students to thrive both academically and emotionally.

  • GiGi Hernández (she/her/ella) is an artist and educator who brings her background in youth development and arts-based programming to her role as Program Coordinator at Prismatic. Drawing on her experience in creating safe, empowering spaces for young people, GiGi develops and delivers culturally responsive programming that nurtures both creative expression and social-emotional growth. Through her work, she continues to foster inclusive learning environments while bringing fresh perspectives to youth development across Chicago.

Meet Our Board

  • Miraj Chokshi found his passion in building startups and has become an experienced product and strategy professional in the healthcare technology industry. From creating a telemedicine company that cares for hundreds of thousands of people annually to companies that use technology to promote wellness, Miraj enjoys creating solutions to people's daily problems. 

    Now serving as Chief Product Officer at Carallel, dedicated to empowering families to help a loved one due to aging, illness, or disability so they confidently manage caregiving challenges. His commitment to creating innovative solutions that address real-world healthcare problems ensures that caregivers and their loved ones receive effective care and support.

  • Bailey met Debra in 2015 while working in Chicago and he has had a front row seat to see the great work Prismatic has accomplished over the years. He is thrilled to formally join the organization!

    Bailey was drawn to Prismatic because he is passionate about building community and making a positive impact on kids. He loves to coach youth sports, from youth soccer to high school lacrosse, and he founded an organization in 2017 called the C7 Foundation to boost civic engagement and volunteerism amongst young professionals.

    Professionally, he has held a variety of roles in strategy and operations at hypergrowth companies, from early-stage startups to rapidly scaling unicorn enterprises. Primarily, Bailey has helped these companies with growth strategy, launching new products, and streamlining and scaling operations.

  • Bridget has spent the last few years focused on volunteer work and getting to know the nonprofit sector in Chicago. This includes several engagements with Booth Alumni Nonprofit Consultants (BANC), Impact Grants Chicago, Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) of Cook County, and meaningful Board service. Prior to this, Bridget spent more than 20 years in corporate finance, including investment banking, equity research, investor relations, and treasury management. In her last role, she spent 5 years as VP, Finance and Investor Relations for marketing services company InnerWorkings, Inc., which was acquired by HH Global. 

    Bridget holds a Bachelor’s degree in finance and economics from Marquette University and an MBA from The University of Chicago Booth School of Business. She is a CFA Charterholder.

  • Michelle Humes recently started her own business to provide consulting services for organizations who need to strengthen their leadership pipeline. Michelle retired as the Director of Strategic Initiatives at Lake Forest Graduate School’s Center for Leadership.  Michelle also worked at Harvard Business School Publishing as an Associate Director of the Global Learning Solutions team managing clients in North and South America.  In that role, Michelle provided best practices in management and leadership develop with a wide range of Fortune 500 and Global 1,000 clients.  Her goal is to architect leadership development solutions which align to the organization’s objectives and outcomes.

    Michelle started her career as a Consultant at Andersen Consulting and Alaris Consulting (now part of PwC).   She found her passion on projects as a Change Management expert and made the transition into corporate Learning and Development.  Michelle led Learning and Development efforts at TransUnion for five years prior to joining Harvard Business Publishing. 

    Michelle received her Bachelors of Science in Business with an emphasis in Accounting from Miami University of Ohio.  Michelle also holds a Masters in Business Administration with an emphasis in Management and Finance from Loyola University of Chicago.  She speaks English, German and Spanish.

  • Jarell is the Founding School Leader of KIPP Academy Primary in Chicago, a school built on the values of love, joy, and community. Prior to moving to Chicago, Jarell served as the School Leader of KIPP NJ Life Academy and as an Assistant School Leader at KIPP NJ Seek Academy.

    Prior to joining the KIPP team, Jarell taught second grade at Uncommon Schools: Excellence Boys Elementary Academy as a Teach For America Corps Member. He also led the third-grade team, developed a character education system, and led school-wide joy initiatives to invest students in school culture systems. Jarell also served as the Founding Dean of School Culture at Achievement First Aspire Elementary School, where he created systems and rituals to invest students and to support struggling students. Additionally, Jarell coached teachers as the First Grade Academic Dean. 

    Jarell received a B.A. in Sociology & African-American Studies from Harvard University, a M.S. in Elementary Education from Teacher U at Hunter College, and a Master’s in Supervision and Administration from the University of Houston. Outside of school, Jarell loves to play with his son and puppy, go to the gym, watch NBA games, and wear fanny packs.

  • Carlos was born in Venezuela. His father is from Spain and his mother is of Ukrainian descent. He moved to the US when he was 16 to try his luck at professional tennis. He played pro for a couple of years and then decided to go to college with a tennis scholarship. He graduated with a double degree in finance and economics from Florida Atlantic University. He also has an MBA from the University of Wisconsin - Whitewater. He currently works for a startup based out of the San Francisco as a Director of Finance. He is married and they have a cat. He and his spouse both love to travel, so they try to do it as often as we can. He is super excited to join us as a board member for Prismatic.

  • Ben Sanders is currently the Head of U.S. Talent Acquisition for a global consulting firm and he has worked in the recruiting industry for 15+ years. He is a long-time golfer, volleyball player, and has recently gotten way too into cooking on the grill.

  • Taylor Elyse Morrison turned being bad at self-care—and being firmly convinced of every human’s potential—into a career. She’s the founder of Inner Workout, and the author of a book by the same name. Recently named one of Fortune’s 10 Innovators Shaping the Future of Health, Taylor is tired of aspirational 'wellness as usual.' Instead, she builds businesses, content, and experiences that make well-being and personal development more accessible. You're just as likely to see Taylor facilitating a workshop at a Fortune 100 as you are to see her talking about TikTok and body image with a high school class. Wherever she goes, Taylor's sure to use her coaching, mindfulness, and movement training to meet people where they're at and offer actionable steps towards creating a world without burnout.

  • Dr. Kate Wolin is a behavioral epidemiologist who left academic medicine to launch and lead a digital health start-up, which she bootstrapped to profitability before selling to Anthem. She has since been a C-suite leader and advisor to digital health start-ups and enterprise organizations on bridging clinical and behavioral science with product strategy and execution. She teaches entrepreneurship at Kellogg.

  • Debbie received her Bachelor of Arts in Bacteriology and Doctor of Philosophy in Microbiology from University of California, Davis.  Debbie joined Nature’s Fynd in September 2021. Prior to her current role she was with Novo Nordisk Biotech /Novozymes for 28 years.   She has expertise in engineering microorganisms for protein and chemical production as well as whole microbe products using synthetic biology and classic approaches like mutagenesis and screening.   Debbie has knowledge of scaling microbes from lab to production and the use of beneficial microbes in applications. She was Managing Director of Novozymes’ site in California as well as Director of Production Strain Technology.    In this role she scouted for both new technology and business opportunities as well as participated in strategic planning and business portfolio management. Debbie has negotiated and managed external collaborations with both companies as well as university laboratories.  She is an inventor on > 40 issued patents and author on > 20 peer reviewed publications. She also serves on a few advisory boards.  Debbie taught for over 15 years a graduate level seminar on industrial biotechnology at University of California, Davis.  She is an active member of the Society for Industrial Microbiology and Biotechnology (SIMB) serving on the Board of Directors and most recently as President and Past President.  She is also on several advisory boards including the Vestaron Scientific Advisory Board. In 2014, she received the first Rosalind Franklin Award for Leadership in Industrial Biotechnology from Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO).  In 2018, she was recognized regionally with the Sacramento Business Journal with a Women Who Mean Business Honor.

  • During her tenure with Harvard Business Publishing, Ellen Bailey has occupied various roles and currently holds the position of Vice President of Business and Culture Transformation. Ellen spearheaded the development and implementation of the inaugural Diversity & Inclusion strategy, setting the vision and goals for the organization, leads the organizations strategic planning and continues to propel employee engagement and drive business outcomes by acting as a catalyst for cultivating, and delivering optimal practices and resources to foster performance improvement and an inclusive culture.

    In addition to her responsibilities at HBP, Ellen is the founder of The Bailey Difference, where she assists leaders beyond HBP in advancing sustainable results through the adoption of best practices.

    Ellen's commitment to leadership extends to her roles as the Executive Facilitator for Management Leadership for Tomorrow, Faculty for the McKinsey Black Executive Leadership Program, and as an Expert for the Kaplan Financial Education Program, among others. She frequently shares her expertise through expert briefs and blog posts on subjects such as D&I, managing a multigenerational workforce, and preparing for the future of work. Ellen is also a sought-after contributor and speaker in podcasts and webinars.

  • Chelsea's professional career began in HR Consulting, where she provided realistic, compliant HR advice to her clients for over 5 years. More recently, she's helped shape and enhance competitive benefit programs, developing trusted, professional relationships along the way, always keeping the best interests of team members in mind. 

    Chelsea graduated from Loyola University Chicago with a Master's Degree in Human Resource Management and University of Minnesota Twin Cities with a Bachelor's Degree in Business & Marketing Education. She holds the Professional in Human Resources (PHR) Certification from the HR Certification Institute. She's originally from Green Bay, WI, and enjoys traveling, volunteering, taking pilates & spin classes, tasting ethnic cuisines, and watching sports with family & friends - Go Pack! Another fun fact - Chelsea taught English in Thailand. 

Meet Our Associate Board

  • Mackenzie is a Manager of CBRE's Real Estate Strategy team, where she strives to help her clients optimize their workplaces to align with company objectives and improve employee flexibility, wellbeing, and happiness. She is active in her local communities, serving as an Associate Board member of Prismatic, a member of the Junior League of Chicago, and a member of the Alumni Board of Governors of University Liggett School. She loves to read, and you may even catch her volunteering at Chicago Public Library branches wearing silly hats and reading and singing to children. In her free time, she loves to explore restaurants around the world, watch movies, and go rock climbing.

  • I am a builder and a researcher. I believe that change happens through creating a shared vision yet manifesting it through 'the little things'. I've come to learn that my superpower is my ability to ask great questions--sometimes they make people feel seen and known and sometimes they allow for clarity on reaching a 'yes' or 'no' in the endless spiral of a drawn-out sales conversation.

    Growing up in a rural community on a farm gave me an innate curiosity about people and systems along with a gritty work ethic that enjoys tinkering and finishing the job.

    From going to a university 13x the size of my hometown to starting my career in tech sales in San Francisco, I have found myself in places where I felt like I didn't belong yet found ways to meaningfully contribute through my strengths--executing and asking good questions. This mentality, along with my passion for helping girls become dreamers and builders, enabled me to start a national nonprofit that has educated thousands of girls in STEM across the United States.

    I had always cared most about concrete results until I attended IIT's Institute of Design, where I realized what's unseen (culture, experience, values & motivations) is just as important, if not more important than, what's tangible when it comes to "success" for an individual, team, company, or community.

    As a human-centered research and service designer, I uncover motivations and behaviors that inform future concepts as well as orchestrate the people, processes, and technology to implement these experiences.

    When I'm not working, I enjoy exploring new Chicago neighborhoods & fitness classes, cooking & baking, reading, and crafting.

  • Jay Towns is a Chicago-based creative professional whose work spans the media and entertainment industries. In the media world, he has developed creative advertising work for big brands such as McDonald's and Skittles and works as a brand engineer for small businesses. He creates his own video content and hosts the Build Your Own Brand Podcast on the Breaking & Entering channel. In entertainment land, he is represented by Stewart Talent and has acting and music work featured on NBC, Amazon Prime Video, and NPR. When he's not busy working on a project, you can find him enjoying good food, good TV, and a good attempt at freestyle rapping.

  • Emma received her Bachelor of Arts in Spanish as well as Secondary Education from The University of Iowa and she has a Master’s in Urban Education from National Louis University. Emma taught English for two years in a small village in Northern Spain called Logroño, and returned to Chicago's southwest side to teach Spanish to heritage speakers of the language for eight years. She recently pivoted to the world of Marketing Operations where she works on the offers team for the McDonald’s app. Emma is excited to see where those two extremes unite in the future, but in the meantime she enjoys walking to the park with her rescue dog Winnie, watching objectively bad television, and reading as much as possible. 

  • Jaclyn is an Early Careers Recruiter for Publicis Media. In her role, she interviews candidates for internships and full-time roles at the organization. She also enjoys giving back to the community, and volunteering. In her free time, Jaclyn likes to hang out with her friends, go on walks, create are, and watch reality TV!

  • Derek is a water resources engineer from El Paso, TX who has had the privilege to travel the country to pursue a wide variety of professional, academic, and personal opportunities. Given the fact that he come from a very low-income background, he has had to teach himself what it means to navigate through the business world, to communicate effectively with people from a wide variety of backgrounds, and what it means to truly develop goals, educate oneself, and develop into the type of leader he wishes to be. Throughout this journey Derek has been able to use the different subjects that he has studied to help people around the world. Without a doubt, it's been his acts of service, and the growth of his passion for service that's been the most important part of his journey. This same passion for service drives Prismatic, and as such, he is truly honored to be here!

  • Halie received her Bachelor of Science in Health and Public Affairs from The University of Central Florida and has dedicated most of her professional time working hand and hand with hospitals, putting effort toward improving patient outcomes and achieving greater efficiencies. 

    Before relocating to Chicago, she spent time volunteering as a youth soccer coach, interning at NextStep Paralysis Recovery Center, and worked with underprivileged communities through Junior Achievement. 

    While visiting Chicago for the first time at 16, she decided that somehow, some way, she would make it here. Through remaining dedicated, goal oriented, and stern on reaching greater heights despite obstacles, she was finally able to reach her goal in December of 2020. 

    At Prismatic, she hopes to have a hand in opening meaningful doors for others, empower others to see their true capabilities, and encourage others to stand firm in their dreams.