Derron Borders (they/he pronouns) is an access, diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice strategist and educator with over 12 years professional experience working to dismantling oppressive systems with the ultimate goal to drive positive change and promote social justice for individuals and communities who have been systematically denied access to life-sustaining resources and basic human dignity.

Derron grew up in a conservative Pentecostal family in a small town in rural Ohio. He attended a predominantly white high school of about 800 students. Due to his love of languages, he found a mentor and and role model in his high school French teacher, who would inspire him to step out of his comfort zone and leave Ohio to explore the world.

Derron participated in Rotary International’s Youth Exchange Program, living with three host families over the span of a year in southern Belgium while attending a private Catholic high school as a rhéto (senior). During this transformational experience, Derron was exposed to not only the cultures of the various regions of Belgium and other European countries, but also to the cultures of many of the 300+ exchange students in Belgium from all over the world. In fact, his year abroad was the catalyst for his quest in understanding inequity around the world and his role in perpetuating and dismantling it.

Derron was a first-generation college student who attended Columbus State Community College before transferring to The Ohio State University where he double majored in linguistics and French. Earning a dual degree, he spent the next two years as an English Assistant in France and Spain, honing his skills in French and learning to speak Spanish and Mallorquín (Catalan).

Derron pursued a master’s of linguistics at the University of Utah, having earned an assistantship as both a Teaching Assistant in the Department of Linguistics and as the Project Manager of the Shoshoni Language Project. Derron’s linguistics research focused on gendered socialization of speech.

The relationships and friendships that Derron built during his time at the Shoshoni Language Project completely turned his world upside down and began his life-long journey of deconstructing his whiteness towards decolonization and racial justice. He is forever indebted to the many Shoshone elders and community members who shared their knowledge, helping him to see our connection to the natural world and our role within it.

Wanting to deepen his understanding of social justice, Derron decided to pursue a second master’s at Bowling Green State University (BGSU) in the field of College Student Personnel, a field that strives to support student development at institutions of higher education. During Derron’s time at BGSU, he served as the Graduate Coordinator for the Ethnic Student Center in the Office of Multicultural Affairs. Derron’s research focused on the barriers to access to resources in higher education for those who have been historically excluded from these spaces.

After graduating from BGSU, Derron worked in progressively responsible roles at Cornell University, culminating in his leadership of the Office of Diversity and Inclusion as the Director at the Samuel Curtis Johnson Graduate School of Management, Cornell’s premier MBA program, within the SC Johnson College of Business.

As a white male-presenting person, Derron is intentional in his approach to social justice education. Given the overlapping systems of oppression and interlocking discrimination faced by LGBTQ and gender-nonconforming women of color, Derron looks to their knowledge, wisdom, and leadership to guide his approach to this work, rooted in Kimberlé Crenshaw’s theory of intersectionality. Derron holds the fundamental belief that the construction of equity requires essential collaboration across different races and genders. Derron is convinced that he bears a distinctive responsibility to educate others about systemic oppression. Being someone who benefits from unearned advantages and privileges, Derron is dedicated to utilizing his talents and resources to foster a healthy, equitable, sustainable, and prosperous global community