Our Team
Community. Connection.
Collaboration.
The Lir Cultural Coaching team consists of consultants and community practitioners immersed in their communities and in their practice. This allows us to ensure our trainings and sessions are led by facilitators across lines of identity that can incorporate tools and techniques applicable in every day life. We pride ourselves on being relational and building impactful relationships with those we work with. Project teams generally consist of at least two facilitators who are selected depending on the scope, sector and needs of the work at hand.
Meet Our Founder
Ryan Virden
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Ryan's written contributions can be found on prominent platforms such as Teaching Tolerance, The Good Men Project, and Twin Cities Daily Planet, among others. His academic journey is underpinned by a bachelor’s degree in Social Studies, along with MLS and M.Ed degrees specializing in critical studies, equity, and inclusion.
Driven by a passion for positive change, Ryan Virden remains dedicated to reshaping perceptions, fostering dialogue, and empowering individuals and organizations to navigate conflicts constructively
Ryan Virden is an accomplished educator, author, and cultural advocate based in Minneapolis. With a keen focus on nurturing inclusive environments, Ryan collaborates with individuals and organizations to cultivate mindsets and skills for effectively building relationships and communities across diverse contexts.
Ryan's extensive experience includes working with organizations nationwide, guiding them towards establishing restorative cultures within their environments. Notably, he held the role of Restorative Justice Coordinator for Minneapolis Public Schools and currently serves as a professor in the peace and justice department at St. Thomas University.
The Coaches
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Beatriz Alcazar Alvarez
Beatriz is a Chicana social worker that prides herself on providing culturally relevant support. She focuses on helping develop equitable and just cultures, systems and programs. Beatriz has over 15 years of human service experience in a variety of sectors and works with leaders to support program development and conflict resolution while bringing a social-emotional learning lens to all her work. Her work has resulted in press coverage and national recognition.
Beatriz has a bachelor’s degree in Sociology and Multicultural Studies from Sonoma State University and a master’s degree in Social Work from the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities. She holds a postgraduate certificate in Collaborative Leadership from Hamline University and is formally trained in ethnic studies, restorative practices, and mediations. She maintains clinical social work and school social work licensure.
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Anika Nailah
A cultural liberationist, fiction/non-fiction author, poet, and former professor at Wheaton, Cambridge, and Smith colleges, Anika Nailah is the founder/former director of Books of Hope,a Boston-area program that helps young people write, publish, and sell their own books. Contributing Writer at Medium, Anika has been featured in USA Today, Nice Racism, and The Facilitator's Guide for White Affinity Groups. Residing in New England, providing antiracism consulting, she continues to hold healing space to interrupt and abolish racism across the USA
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Shanene Herbert
Shanene currently serves as the Healing Justice Program Director of American Friends Service Committee. She has a B.A.degree in African/African American studies from the University of MN and has primarily worked in school settings or youth serving organizations in St. Paul and Minneapolis to disrupt the cradle to prison pipeline. She has been providing support to youth and space for adults to develop their racial analysis and it impacts the trajectory of Black and brown youth for over 20 years. Shanene has most recently authored the “38th and Chicago: White Allies in Black Mourning Spaces,” consulted with Inquilinix Unidxs Por Justicia on Anti-Blackness within IX, and in 2019 was awarded the Virginia Binger McKnight Unsung Hero Award.