iRelaunch and Mocha Moms 2022 Return to Work Employer Showcase

Kuae Kelch is National President of Mocha Moms, Inc. and an Emmy-nominated journalist with more than 20 years of experience in the print, broadcast and online media. She is currently Senior Vice President at Mercury Public Affairs, a national bipartisan government relations and strategic communications firm. Prior to this, she was an editorial producer booking high profile newsmakers for CNN's morning show 'New Day" with Chris Cuomo and Alisyn Camerota. She has written for a wide range of newspapers, magazines and websites and has contributed to The Huffington Post. She was a contributing editor for Plum Magazine and is the former editor in chief of the national magazine Black Family Today. Kuae is a former producer for the award-winning newsmagazine Dateline NBC, as well as Headliners and Legends with Matt Lauer on MSNBC. Since 2010 Kuae has been National President of Mocha Moms, Inc., a non-profit organization with 100 chapters in 29 states and a fast growing online presence of 100,000+ dedicated to supporting mothers of color. Over the past decade, she has increased the visibility of Mocha Moms and highlighted the stories of numerous mothers of color. Mocha Moms has been profiled in The New York Times, The Washington Post and Essence Magazine, and television segments have appeared on NBC Nightly News, The Oprah Winfrey Show, Good Morning America and ABC’s Nightline. Mocha Moms was a stakeholder organization during the Obama administration that partnered with the White House on various initiatives, as well as the EPA, U.S. Department of Education and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. In August 2013, she was on the cover of the New York Times Magazine as part of “The Opt-Out Generation Wants Back In” story by Judith Warner on moms returning to work after taking a career break. Kuae holds a B.A. in Print Journalism from Howard University and an M.S. in Journalism from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism.

Veronica Villegas is Military Veteran having served in the ARMY for 8 years. Currently she is a Sr. Program Manager leading Amazon’s Returnship Programs. Recognizing the increasing need to support those who have left the workforce for a variety of reasons, Amazon’s paid Returnship program offers a clear path to employment, helping professionals who have been away from their careers for at least one year restart their careers at Amazon. This program has committed to hiring 1,000 returners over the next few years.

Jennifer Green Godette is the Director of Diversity & Inclusion Client, Business and Partner Engagement at Cognizant, a multi-billion-dollar technology and professional services company. Jennifer leverages her extensive diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), marketing, and client relationship management experience to promote diversity and inclusion at Cognizant and with Cognizant’s clients and partners. This role includes leading Cognizant’s Returnship Program, a 12-week paid experience comprised of training, mentoring, and coaching for experienced professionals who have taken an extended career break and are eager to return to work. Jennifer is also working closely with procurement leadership to strengthen and expand Cognizant’s recently launched supplier diversity program. Jennifer earned her bachelor’s degree in architectural design from the University of Virginia and completed her MBA at Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business. Jennifer recently moved to Washington, DC where she serves as a basketball mom and chauffeur to her 15-year-old son. Outside of work and watching her son play basketball, much of her time is spent renovating her 100+ year old home and working to make her former hometown Southlake more inclusive.

Cedric Layton is the Global ReEntry Program Co-Ordinator at J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. and is part of the Asset & Wealth Management Talent Institution organization. He works with Senior Leaders, DE&I Partners, SWAT Recruiting Team, Talent & Learning ReEntry Program Team, Communication & Website Teams and external partners to project end to end the ReEntry program, to include creating project plans, timelines, budget plans, data analytics on hiring, retention, promotions, communications, coordinating websites changes and creating presentations materials. As Program Co-Ordinator for the Global ReEntry Program, he also partners with communications, marketing, and media teams to organize, structure and manage the communication strategy for the program including internal communications, external communications, branding, website, testimonials and articles. Cedric joined J.P. Morgan in 2008. Prior to joining the Asset & Wealth Management line of business in March of 2020, he partnered with supervisors, managers, and Executive Level Management in different organizations within the Consumer & Community Banking line of business to monitor workflow movement, confirm established controls, ensure SLA compliance, and report on employee performance. Cedric’s passion for helping people led to his current role with the firm. His ability to work with and mentor young adults was channeled into his role as Year Up Program Sponsor for the Home Lending division of the Consumer & Community Banking line of business. While serving in the role, Cedric was presented with the Urban Empowerment Award by the Year Up Program Team in recognition of his dedication to their mission to close the opportunity divide. He also led a team composed of members from the Dallas/Fort Worth Location Leadership Team at J.P. Morgan Chase & Co to being recognized by Year Up with the Corporate Champion Award. Cedric attributes much of his career success to his professionalism, work ethic, and the support received from leaders and colleagues within the firm. Cedric holds a Bachelor's degree in Applied Arts & Science from Texas A&M University-Commerce. Hobbies & Interests: Cedric enjoys working out, reading fiction novels, biking, spending time with family.