Advancing Diversity Gathering

Dr. Sumun L. Pendakur is a seasoned, national expert and sought-after speaker on diversity, equity, and inclusion, who believes that we have infinite capability to imagine and enact a more just, equitable, and compassionate world. She has served as a thought partner, capacity-building trainer, and speaker for over 250 higher education institutions, associations, non-profits, and corporations. Sumi's research and work over the last two decades, both in student affairs and as a chief diversity officer, focus on helping organizations build capacity for social justice and racial equity by empowering individuals at all levels to be transformational agents of change in their spheres of influence.

A graduate of Northwestern University with majors in Women’s Studies and History and a minor in Spanish, Sumi also holds an M.A. in Higher Education Administration from the University of Michigan. She earned her doctorate in Higher Education Leadership from the USC Rossier School of Education where she received the Dissertation of the Year award for her study on institutional change agents.

Sumi recently completed her second term on the Board of Directors for NADOHE, the National Association of Diversity Officers in Higher Education. In 2019, she was named one of the top 35 women in higher education by Diverse: Issues in Higher Education magazine. Sumi is the multilingual daughter of immigrants, was raised in the Midwest, and now calls Los Angeles her home. She is the wife of actor Sunil Malhotra, and proud mommy to Shashi Veer and Shama Shakti.