Kai is a proud native of Philadelphia, PA. From a young age, he loved creating things, whether it was building a Lego spaceship or working with his friends to make short action movies. Though they didn’t have much, his parents were dedicated to loving him and his three siblings, as well as caring for the people around them wherever they lived. Their dedication to selflessly loving and dignifying all people left a deep impression on him. Thus, he eventually came to decide that he wanted to follow in his parents’ footsteps and use whatever gifts he had to love the people in his community well.

He currently studies Operations Research at Columbia University and plans on using what he’s learned through education to give back to his community. Long term, he hopes to move back to Philly and engage in economic development by investing in black-owned businesses and supporting sustainable community-building. In the meantime, he is actively involved on and off campus. He recently served as the president of Columbia’s chapter of the National Society of Black Engineers (and currently sits as an advisor on the executive board), where he helped connect black students on campus with academic, social and professional resources. He has also worked as a mentor at Columbia’s Double Discovery Center, a bible study leader through InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, a member of the Diversity Committee for the Pennsylvania Governors’ School of the Sciences, and a volunteer in his church’s homeless outreach program.

During the past few summers, Kai has interned at the School District of Philadelphia, where he learned a lot about business strategy from an education and public policy perspective, and PepsiCo, where he worked in strategic finance. He’s excited about the journey ahead and continuing to explore how he can play his part to make an impact.