Alicia Wargo

Dr. Alicia Wargo is a social justice scholar, educator, and leadership coach whose work examines the relational conditions that make transformative social change possible. Her scholarship focuses on critical whiteness studies, Relational-Cultural Theory (RCT), critical race theory, leadership, and the individual and collective capacities necessary to sustain racial justice work. She earned her Ph.D. in Leadership and Change from Antioch University, where her dissertation, Embracing the Both/And: Learning from the Lived Experiences of White Facilitators of Racial Equity Workshops, explored how White racial equity facilitators cultivate the humility and accountability necessary to engage authentically in multiracial social change work. Her current scholarship explores the possibilities and challenges of building intra- and cross-racial, growth-fostering relationships within social justice spaces.

Dr. Wargo brings more than two decades of experience in education, leadership, and organizational change to her scholarship and teaching. In addition to her work in higher education, she has served as a New York City public school principal, coached school and district leaders, and designed and facilitated learning experiences focused on racial equity, leadership, and organizational transformation. She is a founding member of the Both/And Collective, where she collaborates with educators, organizers, researchers, and facilitators to develop learning experiences that support White people committed to racial justice. Across her scholarship, teaching, and facilitation, Dr. Wargo is particularly interested in how those holding dominant identities can remain in relationship across difference, engage accountability without disconnection, and develop the relational capacities necessary for sustained individual and collective transformation