ORGANIZATIONAL EQUITY PROGRAM
COHORT 2019-2020
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ADRIANA LOSON-CEBALLOS |
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AMANDA ZIEBELL MAWANDA Amanda has a background in organizational leadership and development, including change management, strategic planning, and board development. She was formerly responsible for providing strategic network development in the areas of education equity and faith-based action at the Minnesota Education Equity Partnership and the Episcopal Church in Minnesota. She has over a decade of experience working in the nonprofit sector and is focused on building a common vision, igniting creativity, and unleashing energy for positive change. Amanda holds a B.A. in Political Science and a M.A. in Organizational Leadership. She is certified in Ethics and Leadership, Conflict Transformation, and is a qualified administrator of several types of assessments including the Intercultural Development Inventory and the Myers Briggs Type Indicator. Amanda is a current doctoral candidate at Hamline University where her research focuses on transformational leadership practices and learning communities. In her free time, Amanda is a Regent at St. Mary’s University and on the board of the MN Women’s Consortium. She is active in educational and neighborhood initiatives in Minneapolis, MN where she lives with her husband and son. She loves to grow and preserve food, cook delicious meals for those she loves, read poetry, and make beautiful things out of origami. |
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ARMANDO ORTIZ Armando Tibursio Ortiz was born and raised in Washington State in the neighborhood of White Center. Survival was constantly on Armando’s mind while growing up because of the lifestyle his family lived and who Armando wanted to “become” as a kid. Throughout his educational journey, Armando always sought to find the reasoning behind what he was being taught—who was being taught theories and why they were taught the way they were—but the two most important aspects for Armando were, who was teaching him and who he was learning about. Constantly going against the status quo is what excites Armando. Learning how to not only check his own biases on a daily basis, but also learning how he can maneuver space, call in his colleagues for teachable moments, how to integrate decolonial practices, embrace cultures, and overall learning new things is what continues Armando's work with his current and former organizations. |
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CESAR DE LA VEGA Cesar De La Vega is a policy analyst at ChangeLab Solutions, a national nonprofit organization based in Oakland, CA that creates healthier communities for all through equitable laws and policies. His ChangeLab portfolio includes health equity, schools and child health, and healthy neighborhoods. He is co-leading work examining the intersections of school discipline and health justice and has co-authored several publications and presented at multiple national conferences on the topic over the past year. Cesar previously advocated for civil rights and environmental justice at The City Project in Los Angeles. While there, he served on the Next 100 Coalition, a national collective that successfully advocated for President Obama to issue a Presidential Memorandum providing guidance to our nation’s public lands agencies on increasing the diversity and inclusion of the histories, cultures, knowledge, and people represented in our public lands systems. Prior to that, Cesar served in the Office of the General Counsel at the Urban Institute in Washington, D.C. Cesar received his B.A. from UCLA and J.D. from Stanford Law School. A native of East L.A., Cesar is passionate about equal justice, long in-person conversations with close friends, and using sports, nature, and art to bridge cultural divides and promote equity. |
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CHASSIDY HANLEY Chassidy Hanley is a Policy Analyst at ChangeLab Solutions, where she works on issues related to community engagement, health equity, and the built environment. Prior to joining ChangeLab Solutions, Chassidy was a research and evaluation fellow at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In this role, she conducted formative research and monitored and evaluated health communication campaigns and projects. Chassidy received her BA from UC Santa Barbara and her MPH from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. |
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DAN PECK Dan Peck is a Director in Third Sector’s San Francisco office. Dan leads collaborative, community-centric engagements with government social-services agencies, service providers, and local community stakeholders looking to better align public resources with services that measurably improve the vulnerable communities that they serve. Dan's work focuses specifically on addressing mental health and housing issues, primarily in Southern California. Dan has lived experience in the behavioral health space, and is passionate about de-stigmatizing behavioral health challenges and helping others access the individualized care and support that he had. Beyond Dan's community work, Dan is Head of Recruitment at Third Sector. This work has Dan designing and implementing initiatives designed to reduce bias and increase diversity and equity in their hiring. Prior to Third Sector, Dan worked in London as a consultant at A.T. Kearney, advising European clients on a range of strategic and operational issues. Prior to A.T. Kearney, Dan was an investment banker with Lazard in New York. Outside of work, Dan is an avid gardener (loves roses) and hiker. Dan particularly enjoys long, rambling walks around San Francisco. Summer and Christmas holidays often see his husband and him travelling to visit family and friends in Europe and the UK. |
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DENEÉ REAVES She is passionate about developing her team to the best of their individual and organizational potential, and ensuring that they feel welcomed and supported in that journey. Denee is also passionate about helping people along their personal journey to financial fitness. |
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DYNASTI HUNT Dynasti leads Talent and Equity for ThirdSector, where she leads all initiatives related to people with an intentional focus on equity and inclusion. Dynasti’s commitment to Talent Development and Equity spans over 15 years of leading Human Resources teams and coaching CEOs, Leaders, and Executive Leadership Teams across the country in both the for-profit and non-profit sectors. Prior to joining the ThirdSector team, Dynasti most recently led Talent and Human Resources teams at EducationSuperHighway and Rocketship Public Schools, primarily focused on developing each organization’s internal strategic talent work. Dynasti grew up witnessing her parents’ fight for her and her siblings to have access to equal quality opportunities from education to housing and beyond. She has since remained committed to ensuring she can help provide the same opportunities for all individuals, with a particular lens on race, equity, and inclusivity. Dynasti is a certified MBTI, Strengths Finder, and 360 Coach, as well as a Group Fitness Instructor and is able to teach leaders how to also incorporate a healthy balance across all aspects of their lives. Her ability to coach, in multiple areas, allow for her to bring a unique lens to how individuals can overall grow professionally and personally. Dynasti believes that all leaders are defined by pivotal moments and experiences that allow for them to make significant changes that lead to greater outcomes, stronger results, and most importantly, the larger impact for the greater community in which they work and live in. A proud Nashville native and equally proud Bay Area resident, Dynasti has a B.B.A. from Mercer University, an MBA from the University of Missouri, Kansas City, and a M.E.L. from The Board Center. Dynasti is also a Broad Residency Alum, Pahara Institute Next-Gen Alum, and a member of the national Forbes HR Council. |
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ELLIOT BENT Elliott Bent serves as Institute for Sustainable Communities' Communications Director. In this role, he oversees the organization’s brand and global implementation of communications strategy. He also manages the communications team which provides support to programs in the United States, India, China, and Bangladesh. Elliott was previously ISC’s U.S. Communications Officer where he supported projects’ day-to-day communications needs. Prior to ISC, Elliott was Manager of Community and Media Affairs at KSE Partners, a government relations and strategic communications practice in Vermont. There he managed issue-based, and traditional PR/ marketing campaigns for a variety of clients on a state, regional, and national level–many focused on clean energy deployment. Elliott is passionate about working collaboratively to find the right message and approach to move a conversation. A few favorite projects and campaigns include the Better Plans for Better Places report microsite, the Bioenergy Now! film series meant to educate farmers on how to turn crops into fuel, and the Freedom to Marry Campaign, which led to the first legislatively-passed civil marriage law in the country. Elliott is board president of a local art museum. Other hobbies/activities include: Making/watching movies, listening to music, hiking, hunting, cross country skiing, home renovation, and CrossFit. |
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JASENIA QUINTANA A San Francisco Native, Jasenia holds a Bachelor Degree in Philosophy from the University of California, Riverside. As a recipient of several competitive Bay Area scholarships, as well as being a participant in many community-based organizations, Jasenia naturally developed a deep gratitude for programs that strive to support youth experiencing barriers to success. As a result of being heavily impacted by such programs, Jasenia knew exactly which direction she wanted her life to go after college, she wanted to pay it forward by giving back to the community. Soon after graduating, Jasenia gained several years of experience working in direct service as a case manager and workshop facilitator around college access for first-generation low-income high school students. Currently, she manages the Alumni and Savings programs at Juma Ventures, while also supporting the Bay Area Program team on program events and implementation. |
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JAYNE LARA Jayne Lara is a published Yaqui/Poet. She has been involved in racial and social justice causes and equity and inclusion from the time she was fourteen years old. She teaches traditional Native American songs and has been the keeper of a traditional Native American drum for over ten years. She served on several Native American board of directors, including the Intertribal Friendship Board as part of the “Save the legacy campaign” to keep the oldest Native American center doors from closing, Native American Aids Project, and Bay Area American Indian Two Spirits. She is a digital storyteller and is certified in permaculture design. Jayne brings extensive experience in leading efforts and collaborating on senior management teams in nonprofit organizations. She brings skills in overseeing all aspects of human resources and being a strategic partner. She is bicultural and bilingual (a Spanish-speaking member of the Yaqui Nation) and understands the importance of forming relationships that build trust within a diverse workforce. |
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KALLIE ROLLENHAGEN As marketing manager at Propel Nonprofits— a Minnesota-based nonprofit that serves as a resource to other nonprofits for all things finance, strategy, and governance—Kallie gets to lift up the work and missions of amazing nonprofits in Minnesota and beyond. She’s spent the last eight years working in various community development financial institutions (CDFIs). Most recently, Kallie was the communications director at the Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation, a rural economic development foundation. She's also worked at community and economic development-focused nonprofits in Chicago and Baltimore. Kallie grew up on a farm in south central Minnesota and is always looking for opportunities to cross-pollinate the best of both urban and rural communities. She is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee where she studied architecture and psychology—both help her as a communicator, in-house creative, and question-asker. Kallie is a champion of less-explored places; in her free time you’ll find her in small towns, regional parks, or new cities taking photos and hunting for good coffee. She’s also a founding board member of Mainspring, an arts and culture nonprofit in the driftless region of Minnesota. |
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KEVEN AMBRUS Keven has spent his career helping organizations develop financial plans, understand costs, and implement change. He enjoys the inquisitive nature of learning something new and solving problems. Although most of Keven’s professional career has been in the for-profit community, he’s appreciated the opportunity to contribute to and learn from the nonprofit community over the past few years. Before Propel, he was the director of finance and information technology with the Minnesota’s Children Museum. Keven holds an MBA from Embry-Riddle University and is on the boards of COMPAS, Inc. a nonprofit putting creativity into the hands of Minnesotans, and First Universalist Church of Minneapolis. |
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MARK BREIMHORST Mark Breimhorst has a 20+ year background in social entrepreneurship, both as a consultant and manager. He held positions as CEO of the World Institute on Disability and as a Director of Business Development at Underwriters Laboratories, the safety certification company. He also served as the first board member for the Mosaic Project. The child of immigrants, Mark has always been passionate about education, social justice, and opportunity. For many people, opportunity begins with a job, just as it did for his parents. Mark manages operations, finance, HR, and programs at Juma. Mark is an alum of Stanford University, where he earned his BA in Literature, MA in Education, and MBA. He lives in San Francisco with his wife, her mother, and his daughter. His hobbies include film, soccer, and football. |
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MICHAEL QUAN Michael Quan serves as EPIP's Finance & Operations Consultant with over fifteen years of financial and accounting experience. He has improved financial management practices at many nonprofits through evaluations, assessments, recommendations, and hands-on implementation. Prior to EPIP, he served as the Director of Finance & Administration for the International Treatment Preparedness Coalition (a project of Tides Center). At ITPC, he revamped the organization’s financial reporting structures, improved budget controls, and was involved in a wide range of strategic planning and internal initiatives. In addition, he provided capacity building on finance and administration to several of ITPC’s regional network offices in Asia, Latin America, and sub-Saharan Africa. Because of his work at ITPC, he was eagerly brought on board at Tides Center as a project controller, supervising a caseload of over 30 fiscally sponsored projects. After Tides, Michael started a consulting practice serving nonprofits in need of financial management and accounting services. In addition to EPIP, he provides services to three fiscally sponsored projects at Tides Center: Inner Resilience Program, Open Health, Philanthropic Initiative for Racial Equity. He has also served on the board of directors for APICHA Community Health Center. Michael received a Bachelors in Accounting from Baruch University. When Michael isn’t balancing debits and credits, he loves to spend time teaching karate to children, surfing, meditating, and playing with his Miniature Pinscher, Tiny. |
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NICHOLAS STEVENS Nick is currently Chief Operating Officer at the Institute for Sustainable Communities (ISC). In this role, he oversees ISC’s finance, operations, and business development across all of its programs worldwide. Nick brings to ISC more than 20 years of experience in corporate finance, operations management, corporate strategy, and business development, working in a variety of sectors and regions globally. He has worked extensively in the information and communications technology (ICT) sector and is an expert in cross-border project finance, public-private partnership design and implementation, for-social-profit management, business and strategic planning, and global operations. Nick is most passionate professionally when working on projects that promote greater sustainable, equitable, economic development in their communities. Prior to joining ISC, Nick managed his own advisory firm, Bridgespan Ventures, which specialized in corporate finance and business development services for the telecom, media, and technology industries in emerging and frontier markets. Before Bridgespan, he served in increasingly senior management roles at General Electric, Toronto Dominion, and the Hearst Corporation. Nick holds an M.B.A. from Harvard University, and earned his B.S. in International Affairs from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service. When not working, Nick enjoys exploring the outdoors and deep snows of Vermont with his family, backyard bbq grilling in all weather, and jamming out to funky, soulful music. |
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SARITA TURNER Sarita Turner is ISC’s Director of Inclusive Communities, where she oversees ISC’s Community Led Resilience portfolio, and serves as a key advisor to ISC on advancing equity and inclusion through all of ISC’s programs, policies and practices. Passionate about racial justice, Sarita has deep experience working with multi-sector collaborations to advance equitable solutions to the structural barriers facing communities and People of Color. Prior to coming to ISC, Sarita spent over seven years at Oakland-based PolicyLink, where she worked nationally to advance equitable development practices. Sarita also managed the PolicyLink work with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s $200 million Sustainable Communities Initiative. Immediately prior to PolicyLink, Sarita served as executive director of the Minneapolis-based West Broadway Business and Area Coalition, which fosters equitable development in a divested historic African-American neighborhood of North Minneapolis and provides local small businesses with technical assistance, business support, and capital improvement resources. A nationally-recognized trainer and speaker. Sarita sits on the board of Grounded Solutions Network, which advances permanently affordable housing solutions. Sarita loves the outdoors. Since moving to Oakland, CA she has added golf and white-water rafting to her list of fun things to do. |
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STORME GRAY Storme Gray is a passionate change agent and servant leader, with a deep commitment to justice and the liberation of Black and Brown people. Her professional career includes nearly 15 years of experience in the philanthropic sector, with a focus on youth development and gender equity. Storme is the Interim Executive Director for Emerging Practitioners in Philanthropy, a national network of early and mid-career professionals who seek to advance social justice through inclusive philanthropic practice. Prior to joining EPIP, Storme was a Program Officer for the Washington Area Women’s Foundation where she developed their Young Women’s Initiative, a city-wide effort to improve educational, economic, and life outcomes for cis and trans young women, girls, and gender-expansive youth of color. Storme credits her upbringing in Camden, NJ with providing her with the tenacity and authenticity that fuel her approach to the work. She is a proud member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc, a graduate of American University, an appointee on the Fairfax County Advisory Social Services Board, and board member of Women of the Dream, a non-profit organization that strengthens the leadership, power, and voices of girls from marginalized and underserved communities in Camden, NJ.
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