Rhonna-RoseAkama-Makia

Born and raised in Little Rock, Arkansas, to West African immigrant parents, she learned early that people's most fundamental drive is to provide for themselves and their families. That understanding has shaped nearly two decades of work in human resource management, employment compliance, and immigration advocacy.

Her career has focused on the systems that shape how people work. She has led multistate employment compliance, workplace investigations, and organizational development across the nonprofit, civic, and political sectors. Along the way she has built people infrastructure grounded in safety, transparency, and collaborative decision making, because she believes people do their best work when they feel safe and seen.

Her commitment extends into her community, where she gives her time to research and policy on economic opportunity for the African and Caribbean diaspora, to building trade connections between Michigan and West Africa, and to supporting families as they build new lives in the United States.

She is a JD candidate at Thomas M. Cooley Law School and holds a Bachelor of Business Administration from the University of Michigan, along with undergraduate certificates in International Business Development and Business Analytics. Her credentials include the PHRi (Professional in Human Resources, International) through HRCI, a certificate in Paralegal Studies through the Center for Legal Studies in partnership with Washtenaw Community College, and OSHA 30 Hour Outreach Training in General Industry.

Through it all, she brings a trauma informed approach to her work, grounded in the belief that organizations and businesses can succeed while strengthening the people and communities they touch, and that safety, trust, and shared power are what make that possible.