Zakiyah Ansari, Advocacy Director & New York City Director, Alliance for Quality 

Zakiyah Ansari is the Advocacy Director of the New York State Alliance for Quality Education (AQE), the leading statewide organization that has been fighting for educational justice in New York State. Zakiyah is the mother of 8 children and grandparent of 4. Zakiyah has dedicated  20 years of her life to the fight for educational justice and ending the oppression of Black and brown people. Zakiyah was named one of City and State magazines "25 Most Influential in Brooklyn". Zakiyah volunteers her time with the NY Justice League and Resistance Revival Chorus. Zakiyah is a 2020 Atlantic Fellow for Racial Equity.

Robert Balfanz (Ph.D), Professor, Center for the Social Organization of Schools, Johns Hopkins University

Robert Balfanz, PhD, is a research professor at the Center for the Social Organization of Schools at Johns Hopkins University School of Education, where he is the director of the Everyone Graduates Center. He co-founded Diplomas Now, an evidence based school transformation model for high needs middle and high schools that combined whole school reform with enhanced student supports guided by an early warning system, and winner of a federal Investing in Innovation (I3) validation grant which was implemented in forty schools across twelve school districts. He has published widely on secondary school reform, high school dropouts, early warning systems, chronic absenteeism, school climate, and instructional interventions in high-poverty schools. He focuses on translating research findings into effective school interventions. He is also a frequent speaker on dropout prevention and early warning indicators and has consulted with numerous state education associations through partnerships with the National Governors Association and Jobs for the Future.

Nuchette Black-Burke, Chief Engagement & Partnerships Officer, Hartford Public Schools

Nuchette Black-Burke is an innovative and collaborative community and family engagement professional with over 10 years of experience in education coordination and non-profit program administration. Ms. Black-Burke has extensive communication and relationship -building experience across diverse populations, ranging from work with teenagers and young adult students, to community, civic, educational and political leaders, via workshop facilitation, board membership, advocacy efforts, and public speaking. Ms. Black-Burke is highly skilled in grant program management, successfully developing structures for sustainability within programs. In her most recent role of Hartford Community Schools Coordinator with the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving’s Hartford Partnership for Student Success, Ms. Black-Burke worked to ensure the implementation and ongoing operation of high-quality community schools in Hartford. Prior to this role, Ms. Black-Burke served as Community School Director for Thirman Milner School with Catholic Charities where she had overall responsibility for the school’s implementation of the community school strategy. She holds certifications in family engagement in education from Harvard University and family development and middle management institute credentials from the City of Hartford.

Diallo Brooks, Senior Vice President for Programs & Advocacy, Schott Foundation

Diallo Brooks is Schott Foundation’s Senior Vice President of Programs and Advocacy. A leader in the fight for social justice and civil rights, he has spent his entire career working to advance progressive policies that create safe, healthy, thriving, and sustainable communities for all. Recently, Brooks served as Senior Director of Field Mobilization at People For the American Way, working as a national spokesperson on issues including civil rights, voting rights, and civic engagement. He also led People For’s Defend the Black Vote, a nationwide fight against voter suppression that successfully engaged millions of Black voters in the 2020 elections. Brooks is a board member of the National Coalition on Black Civic Participation and former board member of the Network for Public Education Action. Brooks has facilitated training for numerous nonprofits, local, state and federal elected officials and other institutions to uplift progressive values through leadership and policy enhancement. Brooks is a graduate of Shepherd University where he earned a B.S. degree in political science.

Jitu Brown, National Director, Journey for Justice Alliance

Jitu Brown is the national director for the Journey for Justice Alliance, a network of grassroots organizations in over 30 cities organizing for community driven school improvement; and was formerly the education organizer for the Kenwood Oakland Community Organization (KOCO). Born and raised in the Rosemoor neighborhood on the far south side of Chicago, Jitu is a product of Chicago Public Schools.  Jitu studied at Eastern Arizona College and Northeastern Illinois University, majoring in communications with a minor in Spanish.

Janine Carreiro-Young, Co-Director, MA Communities Action Network

Janine Carreiro-Young is the Director of Massachusetts Communities Action Network (MCAN). Janine has over 10 years of experience fighting for racial and economic justice. Her work has placed her at the center and forefront of some of the most crucial fights of our day. She began her work with a local Massachusetts Communities Action Network (MCAN) affiliate in 2008. She quickly took over leading that effort as they tackled issues on local, state, and federal levels. She is currently working on campaigns to support Immigrants and local funding for education, She sees it as a moral imperative to elevate the dignity of each person and to build the world that makes that possible. Carreiro-Young received a B.A. from the University of Connecticut, and a Masters in Social Work from BostonCollege. She was the 2010 recipient of the Cardinal Joseph Bernardin new leadership award from the US Conference of Catholic Bishops.

Addys Castillo, Executive Director, Citywide Youth Coalition

Addys is a bilingual/bicultural human services leader with decades of experience working across systems and sectors that provide services to disenfranchised communities. Their experience as a direct service provider informs my work as an institution builder and anti-racist organizer. Addys believes that the work of building self-sufficient communities will always be rooted in shifting power with their work rooted in dismantling root causes rather than treating symptoms/manifestations of racism and oppression.

Dennis Chin, Vice President for Narrative Arts & Culture, Race Forward

Dennis Chin serves as Director of Strategic Initiatives at the new Race Forward. The new Race Forward is the union of two leading racial justice non-profit organizations: Race Forward and Center for Social Inclusion (CSI). In addition, Dennis serves as an organizational trainer/presenter, specializing in 1) the basics of structural racial inequity and 2) communicating effectively about structural racial inequity. Some of the organizations that he has trained/worked with include Emerging Practitioners in Philanthropy (EPIP), Arcus Foundation, Kresge Foundation, The California Endowment, the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, Detroit Equity Action Lab (DEAL), National College Access Network, Council of Michigan Foundations, Grantmakers in the Arts, and the United States Breastfeeding Committee.

Tara Conley, Ed.D, Assistant Professor of Media & Journalism, Kent State University

Tara is an interdisciplinary scholar and mediamaker. Her research and multimedia production engage scholarship and methods across media studies, feminist studies, Black studies, digital humanities, and science and technology studies. Tara is currently an incoming Assistant Professor in the School of Media and Journalism at Kent State University. In 2021-2022, she was awarded the Race and Technology Practitioner Fellowship at Stanford University. In 2013, Tara founded Hashtag Feminism to locate and archive feminist discourse by way of tracking Twitter hashtags on the web. In 2015, Tara produced the documentary Brackish about life in New Orleans after hurricane Katrina. Currently, she is working on a full length documentary film, DRY BONES about Ike Maxwell, a legendary Black high school football player from Elyria, Ohio. Tara is also the founder of MEDIA MAKE CHANGE, a media production and consulting company established in 2009.

Christina Cummings, Vice President of Operations, Partnership for Southern Equity

Christina has been an advocate of PSE since its inception and the work of equity throughout the metropolitan Atlanta region. She’s a solutions-driven leader and entrepreneur with more than 20 years of experience across multiple professional sectors including the City of Atlanta, the City of South Fulton, her own restaurant, and as a United States Marine. Christina’s wealth of knowledge in federal programs, fiscal policy, economic development, strategic planning, community organizing, and coalition building has found a home at PSE.

Melissa Daar Carvajal, Director of Communications, Schott Foundation

Melissa Daar Carvajal joined the Schott team on January 11, 2020 as the Director of Communications. In this role Melissa designs the foundation’s communications strategies and oversees communications across all platforms as well as supports its grassroots network of Black-and brown-led organizations working for racial and education justice. Melissa’s education justice advocacy is grounded in her local experience. As a proud Mission High School mom and teacher’s wife, Melissa has collaborated with her school communities to promote racial and education justice, helping to secure new state and local legislation to safeguard resources for public education students. In her leadership role, she advocates for cross-racial cooperation, bringing multi-lingual and multi-racial school communities together to support students and families. As founder of the MDC Network, Melissa and her creative collaborators have assisted many organizations, such as The Early Learning Lab, Oakland Literacy Coalition, SF Bay Area Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights and the Packard and Thrive Foundations. Her work for the Center for Youth Wellness includes one of the first campaigns to flip the frame about “bad behavior” and bring awareness and treatment for children with toxic stress and trauma—which brought thousands of moms, caregivers and pediatricians into the Center for Youth Wellness’s networks. In her recent work with Silicon Valley Community Foundation, Melissa led the communications strategy for the foundation’s most successful census campaign. She also spearheaded a multi-foundation-supported training, “Asset-Framing in A Time of Crisis,” exploring the power of narrative frames to support racial justice. Earlier in her career, Melissa held senior positions at the Stuart Foundation, Fenton Communications and Full Court Press. She founded PlazaCuba, a company for musicians and dancers to study in Cuba. Melissa has a Bachelor of Arts from Clark University.

Evelyn DeJesus, Executive Vice President, American Federation of Teachers

Since 2019, Evelyn DeJesus has been the executive vice president of the 1.7 million-member American Federation of Teachers, AFL-CIO, the first Latino/a officer in the union’s 105-year history. She began her education career as a state-certified parent educator and then as an assistant director for the Even Start Program for pregnant teens, all while pursuing a bachelor’s degree. As an early childhood teacher and reading specialist, she taught for two decades in New York’s Chinatown and has made literacy and support for multilingual learners her signature curricular issues. DeJesus’ spirituality extends into every aspect of her life, and she credits her faith for her achievements. DeJesus is also a chaplain under the New York State Chaplain Task Force. She is the proud wife of Louie and the mother of two beautiful daughters, Tiffany and Kristina. She has been blessed with five grandchildren.

Rosa De Leon, Senior Strategy Director, Californians for Justice

Rosa oversees the CFJ San Jose region organizing team, leads the organization’s base building and leadership development across the four regions, and contributes to the statewide strategy. Her commitment to Social and Racial Justice is rooted on her experience as an english learner, first generation immigrant, and being a CFJ leader when she was a student at Overfelt High School in East San Jose. Throughout her time at CFJ, Rosa has been part of different campaign victories in the East Side Union High School District including Bilingual Certification, the adoption of A-G as default curriculum for graduation, and Student Voice on the district’s budgeting process. She has also led efforts that engaged youth leaders of color to win local and state measures. Rosa played a key role in statewide campaigns to stop the California High School Exit Exam, win equitable funding for schools and student voice which has given students across California decision making power over their school funding. In addition to Education Justice Rosa has experience organizing immigrant communities, and contributed to the development of the Immigration Rapid Response Network in Santa Clara County. She believes that in order to achieve meaningful change, those impacted need to be at the forefront of organizing efforts. Rosa is a first generation college student and received her B.A. in Sociology from the University of California, Berkeley. She enjoys live music, going for hikes and participating in direct action!

Damala Denny, Girls for Gender Equity

Damala Denny (she/her), GGE’s Organizing Manager, works with brilliant young people every single day. Her goal at Girls for Gender Equity is to center youth in everything they do. Damala has been a part of this work in so many different ways: she has worked with public school students in Urban Leaders Academy, with organizers across the country on A National Agenda for Black Girls, and with GGE program alumni in Youth Speaker’s Bureau. Online and in-person, in each and every way, Damala has helped to cultivate empowering and supportive spaces where young people take the lead.

Ronsha Dickerson, National Organizer, Journey for Justice Alliance

Ronsha A. Dickerson, National Organizer for Journey for Justice Alliance, a National Alliance of grassroots community, youth and parent-led organizations in over 30 cities across the country who understands that education is a human right and organizes for community driven alternatives to stop the privatization movement and devaluing of public education. Dickerson is the co-founder of UCC’s Camden Parents Union, a community group of Camden, NJ parents, caregivers, alumnus, business and community leaders that advocate for equitable education, equal funding and resources and the retention and recruitment of black and brown teachers in Camden, NJ public schools. She is also the lead organizing parent of Camden Students Union, a community group of Camden public school students and alumni that that are working diligently to Save Public Education in Camden, NJ. Ronsha has dedicated her life to serving the community through developing cultural centered art, education and youth programs. Her goal for any urban city is to empower its residents and strengthen its community. Ronsha has been married to her high school sweetheart Jamal P. Dickerson for 20 years and through their union is blessed to be the mother of six magical children.

Richard Gray, Deputy Executive Director, Center for Community Organizing & Engagement, NYU Metro Center

Richard Gray serves as Metro Centers’ Deputy Executive Director of School Change and Community Engagement Programs and Director of the Community Organizing & Engagement team. His work includes providing support and strategic assistance to community and youth organizing public education campaigns and programs helping to build alliances between CBOs, unions and research/policy institutes. Before joining the Metro Center, Richard directed the Community Organizing and Engagement at the Annenberg Institute for School Reform at Brown University and Annenberg’s Center for Education Organizing at the Annenberg Institute for School Reform (AISR). Prior to Annenberg, Richard was the Director of National Technical Assistance at New York University’s Institute for Education and Social Policy (IESP), where he assisted community groups in New York City and across the country in developing strategies to improve local schools and shape more effective and equitable education policies. He was also the Co-Executive Director of the National Coalition of Advocates for Students (NCAS), a nationwide network of child advocacy organizations that work to improve the access of quality public education to student populations who have traditionally been underserved by public schools. Richard is also a Lecturer of Law at Columbia Law School, helping students apply their legal training to advance authentic collaboration between educational institutions and communities.Richard received a BA in History from Brown University and a JD from Boalt Hall School of Law at the University of California at Berkeley.

Jasmine Gripper, Executive Director, Alliance for Quality Education

Jasmine Gripper is currently the Legislative Director at the Alliance for Quality Education.  After spending over 5 years working as a teacher, she quickly realized that education policies impacting the classroom are often decided by those who have little to no classroom experience. In order to effect genuine change and address the growing opportunity gap it was time for a career shift. Jasmine first moved to Cleveland, OH to work as a Field Organizer for Obama’s 2012 re-election campaign. She then moved to Albany, NY to join the Alliance for Quality Education. In recognition of her growing influence in Albany, in 2016 she was named as one of City and State’s 40 under 40 rising stars. Jasmine is dedicated to educating parents, students, legislators and community members on their power to influence and advance policies that ensure that all of our children have access to a quality education.

Lauren Hadi, Senior Vice President for Advancement, Schott Foundation

Lauren is the Senior Vice President of Advancement. In this role Lauren is working to cultivate and grow philanthropic support for the Foundation in order to channel more resources to our grantee partners and amplify their critical work. Lauren has dedicated her career to improving educational opportunities for underserved students. With more than 20 years of experience in the education non-profit sector she has significant expertise in fundraising and building partnerships. Prior to joining the Foundation, Lauren spent more than 10 years at Room to Read where she served as the Senior Director of Strategic Partnerships. In this role, Lauren was charged with identifying and securing transformational opportunities to increase the impact and scale of primary school literacy and girls’ education programs. She oversaw the development of the organization’s technical assistance practice and secured revenue for this new line of work. She led the expansion of a pipeline of funding sources that included the organization’s first bi-lateral and multilateral funding, collaborated with the program and operation teams to design projects, and oversaw the project management of the first technical assistance projects. During that time, Room to Read expanded its work from nine countries in Asia and Africa to 18 including expansion to the Middle East, Caribbean, and Latin America. Lauren joined Room to Read in Hong Kong in 2010 and as the Development Director for Asia Pacific leading business development in Hong Kong, Singapore and Japan for four years before returning to New York. Lauren has a bachelor of arts from the University of Rochester and a master of public administration with a concentration in education policy from Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs.

Maria Harmon, Executive Director, Step Up Louisiana

Maria Harmon is from Lake Charles, LA. She is the Co-Founder and Co-Director of Step Up Louisiana, a grassroots membership based organization that advocates for economic and education justice across the state of Louisiana. Maria has been organizing since the age of 16 with the Junior Daughters of the Knights of Peter Claver. She has a Masters Degree in Public Administration and a Bachelors Degree in Political Science from Southern University A&M College of Baton Rouge, LA. During her time at Southern, Maria built a network of over 2,000 students to become civically engaged while working with the Louisiana Democratic Party. She helped start Democracy Prep Public School of Baton Rouge by enrolling 192 students for their first school year in 2015-2016. She has also worked for the Micah Project, a federation of the PICO National Network/Faith In Action, in 2016 as a community organizer working in education and civic engagement.

John Jackson, President & CEO, Schott Foundation for Public Education

Dr. John H. Jackson is President and CEO of the Schott Foundation for Public Education.  In this role, Dr. Jackson leads the Foundation’s efforts to ensure a fair and substantive opportunity to learn for all students regardless of race or gender. Dr. Jackson joined the Schott Foundation after serving in several senior level positions. Among them, National Director of Education and Chief Policy Officer of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) from 2000-2007.  In 1999, President William Jefferson Clinton appointed Dr. Jackson to serve as Senior Policy Advisor in the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) at the U.S. Department of Education. Dr. Jackson has also served as an Adjunct Professor of Race, Gender, and Public Policy at the Georgetown Public Policy Institute.  Earlier in his career, Dr. Jackson conducted extensive research at the Harvard Civil Rights Project on civil rights and opportunity gap issues. Dr. Jackson has been elected or appointed to serve on many boards and commissions. Among them the Xavier University of Louisiana Board of Directors, Nellie Mae Education Foundation Board of Directors, Harvard University Board of Alumni, Association of Black Foundation Executives, American Bar Association At-Risk Commission. Dr. Jackson also served on the Obama-Biden transition team as a member of the President’s 13-member Education Policy Transition Work Group. A native of the Southside of Chicago and product of the public school system, Dr. Jackson holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Xavier University of Louisiana; A Master of Education in Education Policy from the University of Illinois’ College of Education; and a Juris Doctorate from the University of Illinois’ College of Law. In addition, Dr. Jackson received a Master of Education and Doctorate of Education in Administration, Planning, and Social Policy from the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Robb King, Organizing & Data Strategist

Robb has a passion for cultivating data for human-centered stories. Using data and creativity, he seeks to highlight unheard stories that tell compelling narratives and reshape our understanding of the world. Throughout his career, Robb has cultivated stories for several organizations. Whether  telling the story of female clergy in the Methodist Church or the identifying information of Black boys in a school, he has combined his love of storytelling and data to present narratives with the capacity to make substantive change.

Herumakhi Mutefnout, Director of Data and Continuous Improvement, Network for College Success | Crown Family School of Social Work, Policy, and Practice | The University of Chicago

Herumakhi Mutefnout is the Director of Data Strategy and Innovation with the Network for College Success (NCS) at the University of Chicago, Crown Family School of Social Work, Policy, and Herumakhi leads the development and monitoring of organizations measurement plan. As a coach and facilitator, Herumakhi supports education leaders in building the capacity to understand, collect, transform, and socialize data within their context. He encourages leaders to initiate hard conversations, prioritize efforts and develop shared meaning for the people closest to the work to check their assumptions, disrupt their biases and adjust their practice. Herumakhi has an unique ability to humanize data stories and cultures, understanding that we live in a society where students and educators do not look alike/share values or ideals. He believes that we all must go through the process of learning about each other, admitting that we don’t know and we should not judge. Allowing us to take data as information to constantly make adjustments and readjustments. Herumakhi, a native of North Carolina, received his Master’s Degree from North Carolina Central University and Bachelors of Science from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University.

Karen “KG” Marshall, Executive Director, Rethink

karen is an educator, organizer, and coach (of the basketball variety) who currently serves as the Executive Director of Kids Rethink New Orleans Schools (Rethink).

Letha Muhammad, Executive Director, Education Justice Alliance

Letha Muhammad is the Executive Director of Education Justice Alliance (EJA), based in Raleigh, North Carolina.  Letha is working to advance the organization's mission to dismantle the School to Prison and School to Deportation Pipeline in her local school district, Wake County Public Schools and to advance equity in public education across North Carolina. She believes that working with parents, students and families that are directly impacted by these issues is one of the most effective ways for her to contribute. As such, her work includes engagement and leadership training with parents, students, and community members to ensure they know their rights and how to advocate for themselves and students. Working with other community stakeholders and organizations to bring awareness to the issue of school pushout and the criminalization of Black and Brown students is another one of her key roles as executive director. Letha serves as co-chair of the coordinating committee for Every Child NC, a statewide coalition working to ensure equitable funding for North Carolina public schools.  Letha also serves as co-chair of HEAL Together NC, a multi racial statewide coalition working to ensure honest education in our public schools is protected at the local and state level. She is a wife and the mother of one school age child and two young adults.

Sarana Nia Carter, Executive Director, CT Black & Brown Student Union

Sarana Nia Carter is currently the Executive Director of the Connecticut Black & Brown Student Union. The Student Union is working to connect the dots between the intersections of our struggles. Sarana Nia is the Vision & Strategy Director of CTBBSU. Sarana is a mother, wellness practitioner, and youth worker with over 15 years of experience engaging young people in embodied healing, justice work and organizing.

DeMar Pitman, Founder & Chief Discriminologist, Discriminology

DeMar Pitman is the founder and executive director of Discriminology, a nonprofit at the intersection of technology and racial justice. Having identified the need to develop a web-based data visualization platform and standardized scoring model that evaluates schools and districts on key equity measures, DeMar believes strongly in the power of technology to shrink long-standing equity and achievement gaps that currently exist in education. A direct product of non-traditional technology-based learning, he has earned verified credentials from a number of top institutions including University of Michigan, University of Pennsylvania, and Cornell University. As a Pi Gamma Mu graduate of the University of South Florida, a restorative justice coordinator and educator of at-risk elementary and middle school-aged boys, and a staunch advocate for culturally responsive educational practices, DeMar works tirelessly to reduce the harmful effects of a broken education system on invalidating the lives of African-American youth.

Erika Prasad, Senior Director, Partnership Strategies, Californians for Justice

Erika is currently the Senior Director of Partnership Strategies at Californians for Justice, a statewide youth-powered organization fighting for racial justice. Erika is a relationship-builder, storyteller, and community-centric fundraiser with an assets-based approach to social change work. Their business and nonprofit experience spans over ten years, working with organizations from all sizes and diverse fields including anti-violence coalitions, higher education, and human services. Erika has built fundraising programs from the ground up and fortified long standing organizations with innovative tools to raise critical resources for social justice organizations in California.

Jamilah Prince-Stewart, Executive Director, FaithActs for Education

Jamilah is a native of New Haven, Connecticut and graduate of Yale University. After graduation, Jamilah worked at Hartford Youth Scholars Foundation as the Placement Manager, where she placed inner-city middle school students into independent secondary schools around the country. Recognizing larger systemic issues facing Connecticut's education system, Jamilah embarked on a journey to increase the participation of community leaders, parents, and people of color in Connecticut’s education reform movement as the Director of Community Engagement at ConnCAN, a state-level advocacy organization. During her time at ConnCAN, Jamilah began a robust Clergy organizing initiative that garnered major wins for Connecticut's education reform movement and an important bond with Pastor William McCullough that would lead to the creation of FaithActs for Education.

Rebecca Pringle, President, National Education Association

Becky Pringle is president of the National Education Association, the nation’s largest labor union. Becky is a middle school science teacher with 31 years of classroom experience and has distinguished herself as a fierce social justice warrior and defender of educator rights. NEA president Becky Pringle is a fierce social justice warrior, defender of educator rights, an unrelenting advocate for all students and communities of color, and a valued and respected voice in the education arena. A middle school science teacher with 31 years of classroom experience, Becky is singularly focused on using her intellect, passion, and purpose to unite the members of the largest labor union with the entire nation, and using that collective power to fulfill the promise of public education

Vatsady Sivongxay, Executive Director, MA Education Justice Alliance

Vatsady brings her experiences as a refugee immigrant, public school student and now parent to her work as a community advocate, attorney, and entrepreneur, bringing people together to deliver concrete results for our communities. Vatsady Sivongxay most recently served as the Director of Organizing and Census Manager for the Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition (MIRA), where she directed statewide organizing, coalition building, and training for civic engagement and immigrant rights, including managing and implementing the Statewide Complete Count Committee outreach strategies for the 2020 Census. Her background as an attorney, advocate, public policy director, and entrepreneur as well as her experience as a refugee immigrant collectively inform her strong commitment to democratic engagement and advancing equity, diversity, inclusion and racial equity. Prior to joining MIRA, Vatsady managed, collaborated on, and led community outreach and public policy initiatives, and even ran for elected office. As Director of Public Policy for Boston’s District 7 with Boston City Councilor Tito Jackson, she developed and directed public policy and strategic initiatives aimed at supporting and amplifying the voices of those living in the shadows and struggling everyday.

Patrick St. John, Digital & Creative Director, Schott Foundation for Public Education

Patrick St. John works at the intersection of education justice and creative communications, bringing 15 years of expertise in design, messaging, and digital strategy to the Schott Foundation and its grantee partners. Since 2011, Patrick has developed and expanded Schott’s digital presence across traditional and social platforms. A multidisciplinary communicator, he uses graphic design, video, and the written word to weave otherwise dry data points and isolated stories into accessible narratives that educate and advocate. Patrick believes that communication tools should highlight the voices and experiences of the most oppressed and marginalized to help build public and political will to make fundamental social change. Patrick frequently works with Schott’s grassroots grantees to provide expertise and technical assistance that would otherwise be out of reach for them, including building websites, laying out professional printed materials, designing infographics, and training staff in social media strategy. Prior to Schott, Patrick was creative director of the activist digital agency Echo & Co., building out and leading its first design team, which crafted everything from websites to smartphone apps. He has also worked extensively with civil rights organizations like the National Black Justice Coalition and People For the American Way. An organizer in his spare time, Patrick brings a fierce commitment to justice to all his work. Patrick is a graduate of Moravian College, double majoring in political science and graphic design. He regularly presents workshops on education and graphic design when he’s not busy tending his flock of backyard chickens.

Krasimir Staykov, Program Coordinator, Student Voice

Krasimir Staykov (he/him) is a senior advisor of the Kentucky Student Voice Team and the former Legislative Coordinator. As the Legislative Coordinator, he led lobbying for equity-oriented state education policies and supported local, student-led policy advocacy. He also acted as a Quantitative Lead on the Coping with COVID study. Outside of his work with the Kentucky Student Voice Team, Krasimir is the Storytelling Programs Coordinator at Student Voice and a member of the Partnership for the Future of Learning’s Strategy Council. He is an undergraduate at the University of Louisville and a 2021 graduate of Paul Laurence Dunbar High School in Lexington.

Jonathan Stith, Director, Alliance for Educational Justice

Jonathan Stith is a founding member and National Director for the Alliance for Educational Justice, a national network of intergenerational and youth-led organizations working to end the school-to-prison pipeline. He has over 20 years of experience organizing with youth and community organizations to address injustice in education. Alliance for Educational Justice played a critical role in shaping federal policy on school discipline, ending the access of school police departments to military grade weapons from the DFA 1033 program and the defense of Niya Kenny and Shakara in the #AssaultAtSpringValley. Jonathan is a trainer with BOLD/ Black Organizing for Leadership and Dignity. Last and most importantly, he is a father of three young adults who taught him everything he knows.

Liz Sullivan-Yuknis, Co-Executive Director, Dignity in Schools Campaign

Liz recently transitioned from Education Campaigns Director to Co-Executive Director at Partners for Dignity & Rights. She shares her time continuing to support our education work with the Dignity in Schools Campaign, while also supporting organizational development, operations and management at Partners for Dignity & Rights. With the Dignity in Schools Campaign, she works with youth, families, organizers and advocates to promote policy change in public education to guarantee students’ rights to dignity and a quality education. She has carried out research projects to document human rights violations in U.S. public schools, and has provided trainings to parents, youth and organizers about how to incorporate human rights standards and strategies into their advocacy. She has previously worked as a consultant with Human Rights Education Associates and as Project Coordinator at the Center for Economic and Social Rights. She holds a B.A. from Brown University and a Masters degree in Public Policy from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.

Albert Sykes, Executive Director, IDEA

Albert has a powerful personal story, one that is rooted in the struggles and search for quality education through community organizing and youth advocacy. The proud father of four sons, Albert grew up in the Shady Oaks community around the corner from where NAACP member and civil rights activist Medgar Evers lived and died. Evers has been one of Albert’s guiding lights in doing the work needed to move Mississippi and our nation forward. Becoming a student of the Algebra Project and a mentee of Bob Moses brought Evers into Albert’s life, and made his sacrifices tangible to the then teenager. Through this experience, Albert gained much firsthand knowledge and understanding of Black Mississippi’s struggle for justice, equity, and full citizenship. Albert was formerly the policy and advocacy director of the Young People’s Project, which trains, employs and supports high school students in becoming math literacy workers to elementary students. Albert is also an organizer at heart. He has advocated with the NAACP for a quality education as a constitutional right and served as a national trainer for the Children’s Defense Fund’s Youth Advocate Leadership Training.

Mark Warren, Professor of Public Policy and Public Affairs, UMASS-Boston, Co-founder, People’s Think Tank

Mark Warren is a sociologist concerned with the revitalization of American democratic and community life. A professor in the Department of Public Policy and Public Affairs in the McCormack Graduate School at the University of Massachusetts Boston, Mark studies and works with community and youth organizing groups seeking to promote racial equity and social justice in education, community development and American democratic life.  Mark teaches classes on community organizing for education reform, public policy and social justice, and on collaborative research methods.

Ashley White (Ph.D), NAACP Educational Fellow for Equity, Access, and Opportunity, Assistant Professor, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Education

Ashley L. White, Ph.D. is an assistant professor at UW-Madison. Before her appointment at UW, Ashley served as the 2019-2020 Joseph P. Kennedy Public Policy Fellow, working for the Committee on Education and Labor under Chairman Robert Bobby C. Scott. Before earning her Ph.D. from the University of South Florida, Ashley taught for the School District of Hillsborough County for over a decade, teaching in general education, inclusion, and special education settings. During her time with Hillsborough County, Ashley also served as a Reading Resource teacher and conducted professional development for teachers across the district. As a doctoral student, Ashley conducted interdisciplinary research with the University of South Florida’s Department of Psychology and the Department of Behavioral Sciences. While working as a graduate assistant, Ashley also developed and used her own professional development series focused on culturally responsive practices. Ashley has merged her teaching experiences with her scholarship and policy advocacy towards the ever present goal of ensuring equitable outcomes for individuals with disabilities and beyond. Her most current research includes the investigation of race and disability related to African American student athletes in Division One programs at predominantly white institutions of higher education.

Anika Whitfield, Co-Chair, Grassroots Arkansas

Rev. Dr. Anika Whitfield has been committed to serving her community by volunteering, mentoring, tutoring, and supporting students, parents, and schools within the Little Rock School District and public schools in Arkansas.  Along with being a licensed podiatrist, she is also a community organizer and activist, gardener, and an ordained Baptist minister.  She serves as co-chair of Grassroots Arkansas and the Arkansas Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival, part-time Mid-Atlantic Regional organizer for Journey for Justice Alliance, and is grateful to be a part of Schott's National Opportunity to Learn Network.

Joey Williams, Director of Organizing, California Native Vote Project

Joey is the director of organizing at California Native Vote Project, which works to build Native American political power through voter engagement. The Vote Project advocates for districts to work with local tribes around building Native American civic education.

Gina Womack, Executive Director, Families and Friends of Louisiana's Incarcerated Children

Gina Womack is the Director and Co-Founder of Families and Friends of Louisiana's Incarcerated Children (FFLIC), a statewide membership-based organization dedicated to creating a better life for Louisiana's youth who are involved, or at risk of becoming involved, in the juvenile justice system. Working with allies in Louisiana, FLIC closed the notorious Tallulah Youth Prison and reduced the number of children locked in cages from over 2,000 to less than 400 today. FFLIC continues to ensure juvenile reform is implemented while working on a state campaign to interrupt the school-to- prison pipeline in Louisiana.