Leadership
Jaali is shaped by people who have served in roles across every level of higher education, at institutions that span a range of sizes, selectivity, and types. Members of the team leading Jaali have served as faculty members, deans of students, advisors, provosts, and CIOs at HBCUs, HSIs, community colleges, private liberal arts colleges, and regional and flagship public universities. We believe that technology must work in service to the institution’s mission and are committed to designing solutions that reflect each institution’s unique set of values, culture, history, and approach to excellence.
Dr. Garikai Campbell
Before becoming CEO of Jaali, Dr. Garikai Campbell served in a number of leadership roles across higher education. As Deputy Director for Strategy, Planning and Management for the Postsecondary Success team at the Gates Foundation, he supported the team’s efforts to strengthen higher education’s return on investment and to do so more equitably.
After beginning his career as a mathematics faculty member at Swarthmore College, Dr. Campbell earned the Mathematical Association of America’s highest teaching award for early-career teachers, the Henry L. Alder Award, before developing new systems for advising and supporting students as Associate Dean for Academic Affairs. As Acting Dean of Students, he led the student affairs office through the Great Recession, and as Associate Vice President for Strategic Planning, worked with faculty, staff, students, alumni, and board leaders to develop a comprehensive strategic plan for Swarthmore. He went on to serve as Provost at Morehouse College, Knox College, and UNC Asheville, where he led efforts to diversify faculty, spearheaded development/fundraising activities and the implementation of scholarship, academic, and student success programs, and helped guide UNCA through the many challenges of COVID-19.
Dr. Campbell has also played a leadership role in a number of programs designed to engage and retain students underrepresented in STEM disciplines, including the Professional Development Program at the University of California, Berkeley, the Enhancing Diversity in Graduate Education (EDGE) Program, and the Caltech Freshman Institute.
Incubated at AQL Labs
Jaali was incubated out of AQL Labs’ Studio, the solution development arm of AQL Labs. This innovation builds on AQL Labs’ Foundry practice, which works alongside Presidents, Chancellors, and cabinet-level leadership to modernize digital infrastructure, solve recurring campus challenges, and elevate operational performance, all with the goal of achieving greater and more equitable student success.
Rahim S. Rajan
Before founding AQL Labs, Rahim was Deputy Director of Innovation and Technology Enabled Solutions in the Postsecondary Success strategy at the Gates Foundation. Over 12 years there he directed strategy and investments in digital learning, HBCU digital infrastructure, developmental education reform, and student advising and support systems. Earlier, he helped scale JSTOR, Aluka, and ITHAKA globally. He is Vice-Chair of the Seattle Colleges Foundation board and an independent director of Lumen Learning.
Amin Qazi
Before co-founding AQL Labs, Amin was a Senior Program Officer in the Postsecondary Success strategy at the Gates Foundation, where he advanced the foundation’s investment in machine learning, AI, and cloud infrastructure to help colleges improve student persistence, supports, and advising. He was the founding CEO of Unizin, the inaugural Chief Digital Officer at the University of Maryland Global Campus, and led the design of a next-generation data warehouse at UC San Diego.
