Plenary Session

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Chief Innovation Officer, The Just Trust

Ken Oliver is the Chief Innovation Officer at The Just Trust. The Just Trust stands as one of the nation’s leading justice reform philanthropies, dedicated to building a fair and humane justice system while simultaneously addressing public safety. Before joining The Just Trust, Ken served as Vice President of Corporate Social Responsibility and Executive Director of Checkr, Inc. and Checkr.org, respectively. His work centers on narrative change, learning and development, program design, corporate training, and public policy. Yet, Ken’s leadership is more than just professional—his personal journey is truly remarkable. After serving nearly 24 years in prison, including nine years in solitary confinement for reading a book written by a former member of the Black Panther Party, Ken collaborated with Stanford University and corporate law firm Mayer Brown,to litigate and win a historic civil rights lawsuit against the State of California, leading to a settlement and his release in 2019. Upon his release, Ken embraced change with unwavering determination. He became a paralegal at a public interest law firm, quickly transitioning to a state policy director role. His drive and philosophy are encapsulated in his powerful quotes: “We are not asking anyone to lower the bar, we are asking them to lower the barrier” and “Don’t let your circumstances define you, define your circumstances.” These mantras guided him as he co-founded and served as Executive Director of a nonprofit organization in 2020, dedicated to providing justice-impacted individuals with reskilling education and livable-wage career pathways into tech and the knowledge-based economy. Under his visionary leadership, the organization secured a historic $28.5 million investment from the State of California to establish the nation’s first residential tech training campus for people impacted by the justice system. In addition to these achievements, Ken is spearheading JUMP (Justice & Upward Mobility Project). As Managing Director of JUMP, he leads an initiative that aims to harness the power and voices in sports, business, entertainment, and culture to catalyze access to education, employment, and economic mobility for youth and adults impacted by the justice system. Ken’s thought leadership and inspiring story have been featured in Newsweek, Reuters, the World Economic Forum, Bloomberg, Fast Company,