Meet Kat Ling | CEO at Moonshot edVentures

We had the good fortune of connecting with Kat Ling and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Kat, we’d love to hear about how you approach risk and risk-taking
I don’t consider myself a risk-taker, but I do consider myself an entrepreneur and I know that risk-taking and vulnerability is inherent in entrepreneurship. From a young age, I liked doing things differently and carving out a space for myself that didn’t exist yet. Growing up, I loved performing and I loved musical theater. I auditioned for a play at a local kid’s theater program and got the role of a duck in Alice in Wonderland – you don’t remember the integral character of the duck?! I am shocked. So, not the role I envisioned for myself. Like a lot of 90’s girls, I was obsessed with the American Girl Doll franchise and loved the books and plays they put out. I decided to put on one of their plays at my church. I recruited friends, gave myself leading lady and director (of course), had my dad watch rehearsals to give feedback, and put on the show in the church breakroom after service one day. There was plenty of opportunity for failure and embarrassment along the way, but I knew that if I wanted a lead role, I’d have to make it happen myself.

I kept a risk-taking spirit throughout my adulthood and after college, I moved to rural Mississippi to teach 4th grade in a town of 3,000. I had never been to the Deep South, lived in a rural area, or taught before. Fast track eight years later, and I took a Chief of Staff job with Moonshot edVentures in Denver. I had been to Denver once for a conference and had never lived west of Arkansas. Both of these moves, both professionally and geographically, were huge risks for me and ended up being key milestones that determined the rest of my career and life, me being in a CEO role today, the friends and loved ones I met who have supported and influenced me, and the growth I experienced both personally and professionally.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
Moonshot is a nonprofit that cultivates a community of BIPOC and historically marginalized leaders to design and launch schools and programs designed to center and meet the needs of students on the margins. I came to Moonshot at a time when I was burnt out in education, feeling frustrated seeing amazing leaders burn out and leave, or systematically excluded from positions of power in our educational system. Moonshot is so unique in that we’re supporting leaders to actualize their own visions and building a community around each person to lift them up for the long-run. We are six years old and have an alumni network of 100 leaders in Metro Denver, who are primarily BIPOC, women, and LGBTQ+ folks, serving over 5,000 students each year.

I joined Moonshot in 2019 as the Chief of Staff, and worked alongside our founder & CEO, Christine DeLeon, in building out the organization’s infrastructure. I later served as Chief Program Officer and then as CEO since 2021. My journey at Moonshot is a good example of how I like to make an impact: find an organization and mission whose values I deeply align with, learn everything I can about the work and the people, and fully commit with both time and heart.

I see all of my strengths and abilities as an amalgamation of all the amazing people I’ve worked with and gotten to know throughout my life. A mentor told me early in my career to always say yes to a new opportunity, no matter how scary or intimidated I feel. As a teacher, it meant going to an extra training on phonetic awareness. As a nonprofit manager, it meant piloting a new program to help teachers better support LGBTQ+ youth. At Moonshot, it meant that I’ve gotten to know this organization inside and out, the heart work of programs, and the minutiae of reconciling the books. Living that advice meant extra time and work with the benefit of adding new skills and perspectives to my toolbelt with every role or job I’ve been in.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
This is a great question because I actually just got married last September and had to create this exact itinerary! I love food so anytime I plan a trip it always starts with the meals (my brothers would tell you I’m a liiiittle intense how I like to plan all three meals way in advance). For a nice meal, I love the plimoth and Potager. For something more casual, we live nearby Station 26 Brewery and Longtable and frequent them a lot. I will always say yes to dim sum at Star Kitchen, pad see ew at Aloy Modern Thai or meals at Comal Heritage Incubator and Tocabe. Aside from food, my partner and I love hiking (we did Kilimanjaro for our honeymoon!) and enjoy Beaver Brook Trail and Buffalo Overlook which are close by. Lastly, I always recommend the Denver Botanic Gardens, which has something to see anytime of year.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?

My family has always been a steadfast support in my life. They’re all on the East Coast, and while my siblings often send me houses that are for sale next door to them, they’ve been incredibly supportive of my journey to carve out my own success and happiness. My parents, my brothers, my sisters-in-law, my aunts and uncles, my grandparents, my many cousins, and of course, my spouse, each person has played a role in helping me grow, pushing my thinking, listening, and supporting me up close and from afar.

Website: www.moonshotedventures.org

Instagram: https://instagram.com/moonshotev

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kat-ling-34981620/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/moonshotEV

Other: Moonshot Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/moonshot-edventures