Nicole L. Yeldell Butts is Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) at WestEd. In this role, she leads initiatives that champion the importance of diverse, inclusive, safe, and representative environments across all agency levels and beyond.
An accomplished executive, strategist, coach, facilitator, and public speaker, she is experienced in leading innovative and successful efforts that strengthen DEI commitments and progress.
Previously, Butts served as Chief Diversity Officer at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona; Director of Equal Employment and Affirmative Action at the University of California, Riverside; and Manager of Equal Employment and Affirmative Action at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. As a consultant, she has also worked with Berkshire Associates to launch the firm’s training and development functions related to salary equity, talent acquisition, retention, and performance management. And she founded and led Ororo Enterprises, which designed and implemented full-scale diversity and inclusion programs for numerous government agencies. She began her professional career as an elementary school teacher.
Butts holds a bachelor’s degree from Howard University and a master’s degree from Bowie State University and is currently a doctoral candidate at University of Southern California.