In this episode of Candid Conversations on Leadership, Chris and Candice welcome Sparkle Sanders, a certified leadership consultant, speaker, and coach with Maxwell Leadership. With over 20 years of experience in business and marketing, Sparkle now leads AddSpark Consulting and partners with organizations ranging from Parkland College to the Girl Scouts of Central Illinois and the University of Illinois. She's also the founder of Full Truth LLC, a global ministry centered on encouragement and spiritual growth, and the author of 180 Days of Beautiful Truth.

Sparkle shares the deeply personal journey behind her unique name and how embracing its meaning—"to shine brightly with flashes of light"—mirrored her path toward authentic leadership. Initially trained in marketing, her career pivoted after years of burnout and disillusionment sparked a desire to understand what makes great leaders thrive. Sparkle candidly discusses how she moved from internalizing frustration to discovering her true calling through leadership development. A pivotal moment came during a John Maxwell mastermind course, where she recognized the difference between professional and leadership development and committed to cultivating leaders from the inside out.

Throughout the episode, Sparkle outlines the core leadership challenges she encounters in her work—confidence issues, imposter syndrome, and communication breakdowns—and how she leverages DISC assessments and individualized coaching to help clients rediscover their strengths and lead with clarity. Her approach is deeply reflective and holistic, incorporating her Christian faith, regular journaling, exercise, and even cooking as outlets for balance and rejuvenation. Sparkle’s methodology includes interactive, innovative coaching strategies like the Leadership Game, fostering connection and growth even in remote and newly formed teams.

In a particularly touching segment, Sparkle opens up about hard feedback she’s received and how moments of embarrassment became catalysts for self-awareness and growth. From confronting emotional reactions in the workplace to finding clarity through stillness and faith, Sparkle exemplifies the power of self-leadership. She leaves listeners with a reminder that leadership transformation starts within—and that being seen, understood, and empowered is possible for everyone. Her name may have come from a movie, but Sparkle Sanders lives up to it every day by lighting the way for others.

You can learn more about Sparkle Sanders at https://sparklesanders.com/about-sparkle

In this episode of Candid Conversations on Leadership, Candice and Chris welcome Josh Henry, the newly appointed Assistant Director of Research Collaborative Services in the Office of the CIO at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. With a rich career that began in 1999 and spanned over two decades within the College of ACES, Josh shares an inspiring journey marked by personal growth, meaningful mentorship, and a deep commitment to supporting research through IT. Josh recounts how early experiences—from fixing printers in faculty offices to listening in on groundbreaking research conversations—fostered a profound connection to the university’s mission and ignited a passion for collaborative support in research.

Josh offers an insightful reflection on how leadership opportunities emerged from acts of curiosity and service rather than ambition. He discusses how mentors like Paul Hixson modeled a people-first approach that continues to shape his own leadership style—one grounded in empathy, trust, and a belief in empowering others. He emphasizes the importance of helping IT professionals see the broader impact of their work and encourages them to engage with the research community through events and lectures to foster this understanding. Josh also speaks candidly about moments when he felt overlooked, using those experiences to shape a leadership value centered on generously sharing credit.

Delving into his current role, Josh describes the exciting challenge of uniting a decentralized research IT community. He’s especially proud of emerging cross-campus collaborations that bring together technologists, librarians, and data experts to collectively elevate research support. Despite the current uncertainty in federal research funding, Josh sees a growing culture of empathy and mutual support among campus researchers and staff. His vision for the future includes more inclusive governance and sustained conversations that allow diverse voices to influence strategy and direction.

Beyond the professional, listeners get a glimpse into Josh’s personal routines and passions, including daily coffee with his wife, an insatiable love for books—particularly science fiction—and his surprising side gig as a certified National Weather Service storm spotter. As the conversation wraps, Josh encourages listeners to either seek or offer kindness in their professional communities, reinforcing the idea that leadership is as much about creating space for others as it is about taking initiative. This candid, heartfelt conversation is a testament to the quiet power of collaboration, curiosity, and care in shaping a meaningful career in IT leadership.

In this episode of Candid Conversations, Chris and Candice sit down with Tekita Bankhead, a global DEI strategist, writer, speaker, and educational consultant who currently serves as the Director of Access and Community at the Gies College of Business, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Tekita brings a multidimensional background in nursing, student affairs, mental health advocacy, and educational leadership to the conversation, sharing insights from her decade-long journey at Illinois and beyond. Her path into higher education was unplanned but deeply meaningful, revealing how moments of failure can lead to unexpected transformation and purpose.

Tekita recounts her pivot from nursing to higher education, sparked by a semester setback and the guidance of a mentor. This moment catalyzed a lifelong passion for helping others recognize and develop their leadership potential—especially those who may not traditionally see themselves as leaders. She discusses pivotal roles, such as her tenure at the Bruce D. Nesbitt African American Cultural Center and the Counseling Center’s ACE IT program, that honed her skills in community building, large-scale programming, and crisis management during the pandemic. These experiences, coupled with her lived identity, have deeply shaped her people-centered, grace-first leadership philosophy.

Throughout the conversation, Tekita reflects on how her background in nursing and advocacy has fostered a trauma-informed, human-centered approach to leadership. She challenges conventional workplace norms, advocating for authenticity, trust-giving, and a redefinition of belonging as a default rather than something to be earned. Her metaphorical insights—like comparing DEI to elevators in a penthouse—help illuminate the universal benefits of inclusive design and the importance of access for all. She also dives into the complex dual role of education as both an oppressive and liberating force, calling for greater transparency, diverse narratives, and early exposure to multiple perspectives.

In more personal moments, Tekita opens up about her deep commitment to therapy, her spiritual grounding, and her creative passion for writing. She shares the origin of her initiative, The Pedestal Project, which uplifts Black women through writing and communal healing, born from a powerful counseling session that inspired her to reimagine self-worth. Her reflections on feedback, particularly learning to "speak less and listen more," serve as practical wisdom for emerging leaders. The episode closes with a resonant message inspired by Toni Morrison—that true freedom and power are best used to help liberate and empower others.