Rhonda Alaina Sykes was born in Kankakee in August 1982. She earned a B.A. degree from Eastern Illinois University in 2004. In 2003 she became a member in Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc., Omicron Delta Chapter, and served in its youth auxiliary. In 2008 she was an Honored Soror at the 5th Annual Finer Womanhood Awards Breakfast, Urbana, where she spoke on her passion, youth. She moved to the Champaign‐Urbana area in September of 2005 to start her career with Green Meadows Girl Scouts, now Girl Scouts of Central Illinois. She has also been a mentor through the C‐U 1 to 1 mentoring program for three years. She has also given time and money to The United Way in Champaign and Danville. She graduated from the Emerging Community Leader’s Program, United Way of Champaign County, in 2008. The mission of this program is to foster community involvement through volunteer service and education. She continues to be active with United Way by being a Site Chair for the Basic Needs Site Review Panel which includes reviewing grants and visiting sites of various non‐profit organizations.

Rhonda was featured in Difference Makers 2010: An eBlack Champaign-Urbana Publication.