LaSandra Hutchinson is a
Speaker,
Tri-Sector Leader, and Founder/CEO of Grace & Grief.
LaSandra is a speaker, writer, and innovator of solutions to barriers facing vulnerable and historically marginalized groups. She has dedicated over 20 years to social justice work by serving in a variety of capacities across the public, private, and non-profit sectors. She specializes in individual and systems advocacy, policy formulation, program development, leadership, strategic partnerships, and collaboration across public, private, and non-profit sectors.
After the sudden loss of her husband of 13 years in 2017, LaSandra founded Grace & Grief, LLC, an organization that provides community, advocacy, education, and resources for individuals navigating grief and rebuilding life after loss. Grace & Grief hosts its annual Rebirth Conference in Chicago's West Loop and has been featured on a variety of media outlets and platforms, including Channel ABC7 Chicago News, WYCA Rejoice 102.3 Radio, and WSRB Soul 106.3 Radio, Black Girls & Mental Health Magazine, Today’s Widowed Woman of Color Magazine.
LaSandra is committed to equipping the next generation of diverse public leaders and provides alumni engagement leadership for a network of over 4,000 alumni with as co-chair of the Public Policy and International Affairs Program Alumni Advisory Committee and helps train young women across the country in civic and political engagement as Midwest Regional Program Manager at IGNITE National. She provides leadership in governance and policymaking as a member of the Illinois Matteson District 162 School Board.
LaSandra was born and raised on Chicago’s South Side and is a proud first-generation college graduate. She completed the Public Policy and International Affairs Fellowship (PPIA) Junior Summer Institute at Princeton University and founded the PPIA Chicagoland Alumni Chapter in 2017. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Education and Social Policy from Northwestern University and a Master in Public Administration and Policy from The American University School of Public Affairs.
Our Story
In 1997, Kenneth Hutchinson began to sit behind me in our World History class. I had known Kenneth was smart and articulate, but I had yet to find out how hilarious he was. Oh, but after he began to sit behind me in class! There were jokes for days.
He was sitting behind me whispering the jokes so only I could hear them. Jokes about the teacher, jokes about our classmates, jokes, jokes, and more jokes. I had to work hard to pretend like I was not distracted as he had me laughing so hard I would nearly be falling out of my desk chair onto the floor. And so, a friendship was born.
Occasional phone conversations around school projects eventually turned into late night conversations about how we both wanted to change the world in a BIG way. We were both passionate about social justice and wanted to work to address issues of inequality. I did not know that these conversations would be the beginning of a 20 year friendship and a 13 year marriage.
Kenneth and I went on to attend college together at Northwestern University. We married on campus three weeks before graduation, on June 5, 2004. We pursued our dreams, worked in ministry together, and added to our family four beautiful children by 2011.