Pacific Pride Foundation is Excited to Announce Three New Board Members
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SANTA BARBARA, CA – Pacific Pride Foundation (PPF) today announced its three newest board members who will support PPF’s work to ensure a vibrant and visible LGBTQ+ community here in Santa Barbara County.
“We’re beyond excited to introduce three new board members who will bring a diverse set of insight and experience to our Board of Directors,” said PPF Executive Director Kristin Flickinger. “These members embody a period of growth for the PPF board, bringing in new and different voices from the LGBTQ+ community, as well as specific skill sets in education, corporate partnership, human relations, and more.”
Beginning their three-year terms in 2023, the new board members are:
- Hangping Xu (he/him), Professor of Chinese and Comparative Literature at UCSB
- Kristy Thomsen (she/her), Associate Director of Mission Assurance at Raytheon Vision Systems in Goleta, CA
- Dean Carter (he/him), Chief People and Purpose Officer at Guild
“I am pleased to welcome this strong group of new board members to PPF and look forward to working with them as we take our organization to the next level and continue to serve the community in new ways,” said Lynn Cunningham Brown, Board Chair. “I’d also like to take this opportunity to thank the rest of our board members for their hard work and dedication to the mission creating a thriving and visible LGBTQ+ community in Santa Barbara County.”
About Hangping Xu
Hangping teaches Chinese and Comparative Literature at UCSB. He graduated from Stanford University with a doctoral degree in Modern Chinese Literature as well as a PhD minor in Gender and Sexuality Studies. His teaching and research interests include transnational modernism, disability studies, queer literature and film, aesthetics, and literary theory. In his spare time, Hangping enjoys hiking, gardening, cooking, and lots of beach walks with his dog Sugar.
Hangping was first drawn to PPF because of its visionary and strategic rethinking under the leadership of Kistin Flickinger. As a community builder, PPF has made a concerted effort to reach out to those who had been previously underserved.
“I admire the level of service and integrity that this institution has demonstrated. After being invited to observe the board meetings, I was inspired by this vital culture of shared governance and active participation. Throughout the process, our staff members have been super helpful and hospitable. I am very proud of becoming a member of this incredible community.”
As a professor, Hangping is most excited about playing a role in expanding PPF’s reach to UCSB and SBCC students. Hangping also wishes to help advance PPF’s diversity work by reaching out to queer folks of color as well as to those constituents who come from disadvantaged socioeconomic backgrounds.
About Kristy Thomsen
Kristy Thomsen is the Associate Director of Mission Assurance at Raytheon Vision Systems located in Goleta, CA. Kristy has lived, and worked, in Goleta for over 22 years with her wife Karen Prechtel after receiving a B.S. of Electrical Engineering from Cal Poly SLO.
In her 20+ year career with Raytheon, she has worked multiple functions and products within the RVS portfolio and served as the site Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Council lead. Kristy developed a strong sense of passion for DE&I over the years seeing firsthand how these programs can both support and grow diversity within a community.
About Dean Carter
As an innovative and industry-recognized leader of People and Culture for over 2 decades Dean has made his mark across Fortune 50, rapid growth, and culture-driven organizations. Dean was recently named Chief People and Purpose Officer at Guild – a B Corp, hot growth, tech company whose sole purpose is to unlock opportunity for America’s workforce. The 7 years prior to Guild, Dean led global People & Culture, Legal, and Finance teams for Patagonia. He has served on the Board of Directors for Cornerstone OnDemand (NASDAQ: CSOD) and currently on the Board of Directors for Griffith Foods, a high-growth Chicago-based privately held sustainable food company.
During his career, Dean’s perspectives on the innovative opportunities within HR, purpose-driven companies, and a regenerative approach to employee experiences have been featured in The Economist, NBC Nightly News, HRBrew, Harvard Business Review, Fast Company, Inc. Magazine, NPR Morning Edition, NPR Marketplace, The Wall Street Journal, LinkedIn as well a range of books and other national publications. Forbes published 2 interviews of Dean’s perspective on the Future of Work and the evolving role of the CHRO. The work of his HR teams has led to Brandon Hall’s Gold Award for Innovation in HR as well as SHRM’s prestigious HRM Impact Award. Dean is also a guest lecturer at renowned universities such as the USC Marshall School of Business, UCLA Anderson School of Business, and The University of Texas McCombs School of Business.
Dean has always been passionate about serving his home communities, with his most recent community work focused as a board member for Pacific Pride Foundation, supporting the LGBTQ+ community in the CA central coast, and the world-renowned classical music innovation institute, the Music Academy, based in Montecito, CA. He is an avid hiker, beach dweller, competitive swimmer, Dad, husband, regenerative gardener, and occasionally picks up a fiddle for a squeaky tune.
Dean earned his undergraduate degree from The University of Texas at Austin and currently serves as a Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law Workforce Science Fellow.
Pacific Pride Foundation (PPF) is a leading LGBTQ+ center between Los Angeles and San Francisco, serving more than 6,000 people each year throughout all of Santa Barbara County. With offices in Santa Maria and Santa Barbara, PPF partners with 35 educational and nonprofit agencies to provide a dynamic range of health, prevention, and social service programs, including programs for LGBTQ+ youth and older adults, counseling services, opioid response services, sensitivity and competency trainings, community events and advocacy on LGBTQ+ issues. For more information or to make a donation please visit pacificpridefoundation.org.