Brenda is originally from Northern California but has lived in Sun Prairie for 21+ years. She is a first generation Hmong immigrant and even though she was born in Laos she has lived in the states since she was a young girl. She is a graduate student at UW-Madison in the School of Education studying cultural identity and its significance in public schools. She works full time advocating for High School students that are low-income and first generation college bound to help them gain access into higher education. She also spends her time working with community leaders on issues affecting the Hmong Community in regards to education in public schools through her work serving on SHRAC (MMSD’s Superintendent’s Human Relations Advisory Council). She serves on the board for the YWCA in helping to promote equity, access, and empowerment for communities and families in Dane County. On the side she works as a consultant for the City of Madison in language access and cultural awareness to help Southeast Asian Families gain access to translation services and culturally relevant support. She is also passionate about: social justice, economic justice, educational justice, policy-reform, and finding sustainable solutions. In her spare time, she enjoys eating delicious food and meeting new people, going to social events, singing, playing the piano and guitar, writing, finding new hiking spots, and running to keep active.