Richard Cancio (He/Him/El) began his career in international development and global health as a Peace Corps volunteer in Namibia. Following his 3-year Peace Corps service, Richard completed his Master’s in Public Health from Mount Sinai’s Icahn School of Medicine in New York City. Richard then worked as the LGBT Health Services Program Manager for the Mount Sinai Health System – where he educated hospital staff and medical students on LGBTQ competent care, Race and Ethnicity Cultural Competency, and mitigating implicit bias in the workplace. Since then, he has developed a strong skill set for addressing health equity with regards to diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging. Richard has created and held workshops focusing on gender identity, sexual orientation, race and ethnicity, and HIV stigmatization for community partners. While in New York City, Richard also spent time as an Adjunct Professor at both York College and the Icahn School of Medicine – teaching courses such as Best Practices in LGBT Health Research; Culture, Community and Illness; and Introduction to Gender Studies.

Most recently, Richard worked as the Curriculum Manager at The Fenway Institute of Fenway Health in Boston for three years, where he managed the development of culturally sensitive educational materials for a diverse patient population as part of a $21 million HRSA funded grant. Richard's passion for hosting diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging workshops led to the creation of PinkSlash Partners, an independent consulting firm to aid organizations in system-wide cultural transformations and coaching organizational leaders in engaging in difficult, yet vital discussions with their staff and clients. Richard is beyond excited to apply his expertise and experience towards the cultural growth goals within Brown University’s School of Public Health as the Diversity Education and Training Manager.