ADL board member Kristin McCandless talks about justice, teaching, and tennis.

How did you first become involved in ADL?  Friends of mine who are long time ADL supporters started inviting me to ADL programs like the Governor’s Holocaust Remembrance Program and the annual Civil Rights Award Luncheon.  I was always so moved by these events and wanted to learn more about the organization.  They also encouraged me to participate in the Sturm Fellows / Glass Leadership Institute Partners program.   

What do you do in your professional life?   I’m working on a Master’s in Urban Education at the University of Denver.  This is a fellowship program through the University of Denver and Denver Public Schools called the Denver Teacher Residency.  I’m in school full time at DU and also working as a “Teacher in Residence” at Sabin Elementary School, a Title 1 school in Southwest Denver.   Teaching is a passion and a second career for me after working for almost 10 years as an attorney. 

When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?  I wanted to be a teacher. 

What’s a special place you have visited?  Arthur Ashe Stadium, Flushing Meadows, Site of the US Open

If you had to teach something, what would you teach?   How to hit a one-handed backhand slice

What are you passionate about personally? Equality, equity and social justice.

Tell me a story that immediately pops into your mind that was a defining or significant moment for you.  Completing my first marathon.  I learned it was possible to push beyond my self-perceived limits.

If you had to write a six-word biography, what would it say?  Life-long learner and lover of life.

Complete this sentence: For me, the ADL is …the organization I’m most proud to be a part of.