Hans Hageman

I was raised in Harlem, NY housing projects and in "Exodus House," a ground-breaking residential community for drug addiction treatment. The program was founded and run by my father. Through Exodus House and my parents, I learned early lessons about courage and the possibilities of the human spirit. After college at Princeton and law school at Columbia University, I practiced law as a prosecutor and public defender.

I left the law practice to start independent schools in Harlem for children who hadn’t found success in public school. Running these schools allowed me to directly impact the school-to-prison pipeline and provide a nurturing environment for creative students who were non-traditional learners. I co-founded a girls school in Lucknow, India, for lower-caste girls. For several years, I was a consultant for a groundbreaking program in police training, where I worked with the Baltimore and St. Louis police departments.

I went on to lead other youth nonprofits, both here and in Africa and India. I also created gardening, yoga, and breathwork programs for teen boys in a maximum-security prison, convicted in adult court of violent crimes.

I was the recipient of the Robin Hood Foundation Hero Award and the Essence Magazine Award. I’m also featured in a couple of books, including one by a former FBI profiler in his book on serial killers.

I’m a Breathwork coach, Reiki master, hypnotist, NLP master practitioner, and father of children ranging from 16 to 30 years of age.

My goal is to become an ancestor worth remembering.