Staff of The Hear Foundation
Kamal Nigam
Executive Director
Kamal brings his leadership experience in building collaboration to his work alongside The Hear Foundation’s board of directors. The grandson of a police officer, he is active in Pittsburgh’s nonprofit community, currently serving as Chairman of Riverlife, Secretary of The Pittsburgh Foundation, and a member of the Board of Visitors for the University of Pittsburgh School of Computing and Information.
Continue reading Kamal’s bio
Previously, Kamal was the co-founder and site lead for Google’s 750-person Pittsburgh office. As a Senior Engineering Director at Google, he led the teams that built Google’s shopping experience and created the underlying metadata with machine learning and large-scale human operations. He was previously adjunct faculty in the Machine Learning Department at Carnegie Mellon University. Kamal holds a Ph.D. in Computer Science from Carnegie Mellon University and a Bachelor’s degree from Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
He has been recognized locally as one of Pittsburgh Magazine’s “40 under 40” and is a proud alumnus of Leadership Pittsburgh class XXXVII.
Kahlil G. Darden Jr.
Manager of Operations
After his family was devastated by gun violence, Kahlil Darden became the change he wanted to see in the world. As a pre-teen, he began working to change his community. Kahlil created a safe space for youth to come to and trust if dealing with fear and trauma. Knowing he needed help to execute his vision, he founded Young Black Motivated Kings & Queens to reach African Americans who believed in being active in Pittsburgh communities.
Continue reading Kahlil’s bio
A current senior at Clark Atlanta University, Kahlil is a Business Administration major with a dual concentration in Marketing and Management and a minor in Political Science. He was the founder of the Black Student Union at Penn Hills Senior High School. Kahlil has also participated in projects including YngBlkPgh, Coalition Against Violence, mentoring at Propel Schools, and the World Affairs Council. Kahlil is the co-author of the book “Younger Black Pittsburgh,” which highlights many young people in the city of Pittsburgh doing amazing work. He has also penned another book entitled, “Do It for You.” A proud member of Kappa Alpha Psi, Kahlil strives to make an impact on his community and the world, not only by himself, but with his fraternity brothers as well.
