Policy Experts
Meet our team of experienced policy analysts.
Olajumoke Obayanju, Esq.
Olajumoke “Jummy” Obayanju is the Director of the National Racial Equity Initiative (NREI) for Social Justice at the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, Inc. (CBCF). Passionate about racial justice, leadership development and educational equity, Ms. Obayanju is a skilled strategist, facilitator, educator, and lawyer. She oversees and manages the NREI to maximize its visibility and sustainability; ensures the implementation of program objectives and initiatives; and focuses on advancing racial equity, human rights, education, and economic development opportunities for the African American community.
Prior to joining CBCF, Ms. Obayanju was the Racial Justice & Juvenile Defense Fellow at the Georgetown Juvenile Justice Clinic & Initiative where she worked to improve the systems D.C. youth encounter through policy reform, developed resources to help juvenile defenders incorporate racial justice arguments into their youth advocacy, and created training materials on strategies to identify and correct racial bias. Ms. Obayanju also served as judicial law clerk to the Honorable Craig Iscoe in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. Ms. Obayanju began her career as a middle school teacher in Charlotte, NC, where she taught 8th grade math and Algebra. In her first year, she led 96% of students to pass their End of Grade test and 93% of students to a 12.5% growth average.
Ms. Obayanju received her B.A. in Communications from Howard University, her J.D. from the George Washington University Law School, and her LL.M in Advocacy from the Georgetown University Law Center. In 2016, she was awarded the GW Law BLSA Herbert Henderson Justice & Advocacy Award for her dedication and pursuit of social justice, community service, and advocacy for black law students; and the Michael Dillon Cooley Memorial Award—voted by her law school classmates—for sharing most generously her time, compassion, and vitality to aid the intellectual and spiritual growth of fellow students.
Ms. Obayanju currently serves as President of the GW Law Association of Black Law Alumni, member of the Alfred Street Baptist Church Governance & Legal Committee, and sits on the Board of Directors for the Educate ME Foundation. She is a current member of the Maryland State Bar.
Desirée Solomon
Desiree Solomon is the Research and Program Analyst at the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, Inc. (CBCF) Center for Policy Analysis and Research (CPAR). Passionate about economic development and social justice, Mrs. Solomon is a skilled legal analyst and advocacy strategist. Mrs. Solomon manages CPAR initiatives in Technology Policy, Economic Policy, Foreign Affairs, and Civic Engagement; ensures the implementation of program objectives and focuses on advancing racial equity through an economic development lens.
Mrs. Solomon joins CBCF with an interdisciplinary background in human security and the legal field. Most recently, she managed various projects for transnational corporations in the technology sector as a Paralegal with Jackson Lewis P.C. In that role, she analyzed legislative and regulatory changes to trade agreements, national security, U.S. labor, and immigration policy and liaised with companies and beneficiaries to relay policy changes while fostering stakeholder relationships.
Mrs. Solomon graduated from George Mason University in 2017 with a BA in Global Affairs, Human Security, and Arabic. During this time, she was selected to be a member of George Mason University’s Global Studies Fellowship program, where she researched human rights and legal ethics with a small team of students from George Mason’s Antonin Scalia Law School in Arlington, Virginia. During the Fellowship program, Mrs. Solomon supplemented her studies with internships in the international trade sector at the National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA) and development organizations such as Peace Corps.
Mrs. Solomon is also the founder and Executive Director of Tea & Policy, a non-partisan policy research group for women that provides a forum to discuss policy issues impacting local communities and identify ways to impact change.