About

Symphora Institute was born out of a deep realization: the systems we rely on including technological, educational, economic, are not built to care for the human spirit. Each of us came to that understanding through different roads.

Rachel Ankerholz had spent decades designing technological infrastructure in the nonprofit world, building systems that were efficient, secure, and scalable. But behind the dashboards and deployments, she saw a void, one where emotional intelligence, healing, and wholeness had no place in the architecture. She began asking a bold question: What if technology could hold space for the full spectrum of human experience?

Leabeth Campbell had spent her career in the mental health and nonprofit sectors, rising to the role of Chief Operating Officer. She knew how to lead teams, manage compliance, and grow organizations, but the pace, pressure, and disconnection of traditional leadership took a toll. In 2023, she stepped away from agency life to seek something more values-aligned. She didn’t just want to lead; she wanted to build systems that evolve with people, that breathe with integrity, and that hold well-being as a metric of success.

Priscilla Mudd an award winning educator, brought her brilliance from the classroom. A veteran Spanish teacher and curriculum designer, she had watched firsthand as rigid, outdated educational models failed to nurture the inner lives of students. Her creative, student-centered approaches had grown her school’s language program exponentially, but she longed for something more holistic. She wanted to design learning experiences that supported the nervous system, honored emotional development, and reconnected learners with the natural world.

When we came together, it was clear: our visions weren’t just compatible, they were converging. We didn’t want to patch holes in broken systems. We wanted to reimagine them with emotional intelligence, healing, and ecological awareness at the core.

Thus, Symphora Institute was formed. A multidisciplinary institute dedicated to building technology that evolves with us, not over us. A place where AI can be emotionally attuned and trauma healing can be aided by sound and story. Where economic systems are measured in dignity, not just dollars and education meets curiosity, creativity, and care.

Symphora is more than a project. It’s a philosophy. A living blueprint for a more human future, one where no part of you has to be left behind.