Khailah Griffin, the 2022 Wendy Breen Kline Award nominee in the D’Amore-McKim School of Business, grew up in a military family and lived in 10 different countries. This incredible experience gave her a global perspective and strong cultural competencies. It also taught her the importance of embracing diversity, which has influenced the way she lives her life.
A born leader, advocate for social justice, and a creative entrepreneur, Khailah is someone you want on your court. She is a candidate for a B.S. in business administration, pre-medical track. She was one of the original members of the business school’s Building Belonging Fellowship program and participated in “Amplifying Black Voices: The Black Student Experience in D’Amore-McKim,” focused on cultivating a more inclusive community. As a fellow, she also worked with an external DEI consultant who led a five-part “Building Inclusive Communities Series” for more than 30 students.
Khailah participates in D’Amore-McKim’s Liberty Mutual partnership, where she develops programming, mentorship, and community-building activities for students with underrepresented and marginalized identities. She also is a peer mentor. Moreover, she co-founded NU’s Black Athlete Caucus—a hub for social, racial, and political awareness resources.
In addition to her numerous contributions to the D’Amore-McKim and Northeastern communities, Khailah is the founder of the nonprofit UnorthoDOCx, a virtual network of non-traditional pre-medical students that provides free resources for its members and cultivates a well-prepared community of future healthcare professionals. Her work with UnorthoDOCx earned her an innovator award from NU’s Women Who Empower inclusion and entrepreneurship initiative.
“Khailah is an accomplished student athlete and a selfless, compassionate, inclusive leader who has a passion for making the world a better place,” says Mary Kane, Assistant Dean for Employer and External Engagement, Senior Co-op Coordinator. Khailah balances working as a patient care technician/unit coordinator in the Medical Surgical Unit at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center with being a Division 1 varsity track and field athlete. However, she says her greatest achievement is “being able to connect with so many students, faculty and staff in a variety of different areas to create positive and long-lasting change at Northeastern and beyond. Whether it was through volunteerism, athletics, academics, etc., I can leave fully knowing that I made a difference.”
An avid world traveler, Khailah plans to take a gap year and explore the world while conducting clinical research with a team of physicians. Her subsequent journey will be down the path of medical school applications.
Wendy Breen Kline Award AWARD RECIPIENT
View all 2022 awards
Khailah is an accomplished student athlete and a selfless, compassionate, inclusive leader who has a passion for making the world a better place,”
Mary Kane, Assistant Dean for Employer and External Engagement, Senior Co-op Coordinator.