Kalisha served in the White House from age twenty-four to age twenty-six (until the end of the administration), most recently as a Policy Advisor to the White House Council on Women and Girls, where she directed the portfolio on advancing equity for women and girls of color. Her work focused on a range of issues, including educational equity, exclusionary school discipline policies, juvenile justice reform, STEM education, and economic security. Kalisha previously served in the White House as Staff Assistant for Intergovernmental Affairs and as an intern in the Office of Public Engagement. Before joining the White House staff, Kalisha was a middle and high school math and science teacher in Philadelphia. Originally from New York, she holds a bachelor’s degree in labor relations from Cornell University and a master’s of science in education from the University of Pennsylvania. Kalisha is currently a PhD student in sociology at Yale University, and the director of the National Philanthropic Collaborative of Young Women’s Initiatives.