Preconference Events

Maxwell Anderson, President, Souls Grown Deep Foundation & Community Partnership
Max Anderson earned an A.B. with highest distinction in art history at Dartmouth College (1977), and A.M. (1978) and Ph.D. (1981) degrees from the Department of History of Art and Architecture at Harvard University. Former president of the Association of Art Museum Directors, he served for seven years as a curator in the Department of Greek and Roman Art at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (1981-87), followed by almost thirty years as the director of five art museums, including Toronto’s Musée des beaux-arts de l’Ontario, the Whitney Museum of American Art and the Dallas Museum of Art. Max is an expert in Greek and Roman antiquities, and is a Distinguished Consulting Scholar in the Office of the Director of the University Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology. He currently advises the Government of Barbados on a project to digitize tens of millions of pages of records of the Transatlantic trade in enslaved people and is collaborating with architect Sir David Adjaye to build a museum and archive suitable for these irreplaceable materials.

He has published dozens of articles along with Pompeian Frescoes in The Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, 1987); The Quality Instinct (Rowman and Littlefield Publishers, 2012) and Antiquities: What Everyone Needs to Know (Oxford University Press, 2016). He is a Knight Commander in the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic and a Knight in the Order of Arts and Letters of the French Republic. Max has served since 2016 as President of Souls Grown Deep Foundation and Community Partnership, which is dedicated to promoting the work of Black artists from the South, and supporting their communities by fostering economic empowerment, racial and social justice, and educational advancement.

Andrea Armeni, Executive Director, Transform Finance
Andrea Armeni is the Co-Founder and Executive Director of Transform Finance, a research, education, and implementation partner that supports investors and social change actors to challenge legacy investment approaches, seed transformative investment models, and build movement power. A corporate lawyer by training, Andrea has spent the last decade exploring how capital can be made more just and equitable and helping activists and grassroots groups reclaim power over it. He is an adjunct faculty member at New York University, where he teaches in the masters’ program; his course on finance and social justice received the 2021 Award of Excellence from the Financial Times and the Impact Finance Faculty Consortium. He is the author, most recently, of “Grassroots Community Engaged Investment: Redistributing power over investment processes as the key to fostering equitable outcomes” and “Addressing Capital's Effects on Racial Justice: How investments drive injustice and what investors can do about it.”

Andrea has served as a Senior Investment Advisor to the United Nations’ Joint SDG Fund Secretariat, is a steering member of the Racial Equity Economics Finance Sustainability initiative (REEFS) and is a board member of CARE Enterprises, Inc., the impact investing arm of the international NGO CARE. Andrea holds a B.A. in analytic philosophy from Columbia University and a Juris Doctor from the Yale Law School.

Laura Callanan, Founding Partner, Upstart Co-Lab (facilitator)
Laura Callanan is the founding partner of Upstart Co-Lab which is connecting capital with creative people who make a profit and make a difference. Laura was senior deputy chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts, leading all grant-making programs, operations, and research before launching Upstart Co-Lab in 2015. Previously, Laura was a consultant with McKinsey & Company’s Social Sector Office and associate director of the Rockefeller Foundation where, in addition to her responsibilities managing the endowment, she co-led the Foundation’s first impact investing efforts which included two investments in the creative economy with Smithsonian Folkways Records and netomat.

Laura has been a visiting fellow at the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, a scholar in residence at UC-Berkeley/Haas School of Business, a visiting scholar to the American Academy in Rome, and the recipient of a Rockefeller Foundation Bellagio Fellowship. She is a board member and immediate past chair of the GlobalGiving Foundation; a board member of Upriver Studios, a public benefit LLC; and a member of the British Council Policy and Evidence Centre for the Creative Industries - International Council.

Raina Lampkins-Fielder, Curator, Souls Grown Deep Foundation
Raina Lampkins-Fielder has had a distinguished career as an art historian, museum educator, and curator of 20th century and contemporary American Art, with a particular focus on African American creative expression. While serving as the Whitney Museum of American Art’s Associate Director, Helena Rubinstein Chair of Education, she oversaw programming connected with the 2002-2003 exhibition “The Quilts of Gee’s Bend”. The quilts in that landmark exhibition are today in the collection of the Souls Grown Deep Foundation and, through the Foundation’s art transfer program, are now in the permanent collections of museums around the country, including The Metropolitan Museum of Art and Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco. She has long supported the exhibition and scholarly investigation of African American art and the reconsideration of prevailing narratives surrounding Black artistic production. In her role at MBAC, Lampkins-Fielder re-envisioned the exhibition and educational program, established sustainable programmatic partnerships with museums and other cultural institutions nationally and internationally, enhanced the profile of MBAC in the field and in the media, and advanced cross-cultural communication between Europe and the United States through the arts. Lampkins-Fielder previously served as Director, Academic Advising, for the Paris College of Art (formerly Parsons Paris School of Art + Design), overseeing the artistic and academic policies for an art and design undergraduate curriculum.

Other past experience includes serving as Chair of the Museum Program for the New York State Council for the Arts; Manager of Public Programs, Film & Video at the Brooklyn Museum; Public Programming Associate at the New Museum of Contemporary Art in New York City; and Education Programs Coordinator at the Andy Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She has curated, produced, and participated in multiple exhibitions and projects, including an artistic collaboration with the sound project “Voix Publiques” during the Dakar Biennial in Senegal, and has served as Curator for L’AIR in Paris. She has appeared on BBC Radio, France24 Television, and BFM TV (France), has published numerous essays in the field and has served as lecturer and moderator for numerous universities and cultural institutions, the American Embassy in Paris, and conferences in the United States and Asia. Lampkins-Fielder received her B.A. in English Literature at Yale University, and an M.A. in the History of Art at Cambridge University, England, as a Mellon Fellow.

Deborah Frieze, Founder & President, Boston Impact Initiative
Deborah Frieze is a professor, author, entrepreneur, and activist. She teaches impact investing at Tufts University’s Department of Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning. In 2013, she founded the Boston Impact Initiative, an impact investing fund working to close the racial wealth divide in Eastern Massachusetts. The fund takes an integrated capital approach, combining investing, lending, and giving to build a resilient and inclusive local economy. Deborah is co-author (with Margaret Wheatley) of Walk Out Walk On, an award-winning book that profiles pioneering leaders who walked out of organizations failing to contribute to the common good—and walked on to build resilient communities. She is also founder of the Old Oak Dojo, an urban learning center in Boston, MA.

Hope Ghazala, LMSW, Art.Coop (facilitator)
Hope Ghazala (no pronouns, name only) is a Licensed Social Worker, facilitator, and community organizer. Hope has grounded Hopeself in fostering leadership development, particularly for youth of color. Experiences working as a popular and political educator in museums, consent campaigns, the youth climate movement, and labor movements have expanded Hope’s passion for making information accessible and spaces value multicultural experiences. As a proud Muslim and self-proclaimed “Egypt-o-Rican,” Hope receives power and guidance from Hope’s spiritual and cultural identities. Hope finds purpose in cross-pollinating, connecting marginalized folks with information as well as people to build the world we need and want. Hope is a native New Yorker who loves exploring NYC, traveling internationally, dancing, and reading cross-cultural fiction.

Nia Grace, Co-CEO and Director of Restaurant Operations, Jazz Urbane Café
Nia Grace is a hospitality industry veteran of 20+ years and the owner and operator of Darryl’s Corner Bar and Kitchen and the recently opened Underground Cafe and Lounge. As Co-CEO and Director of Restaurant Operations, Grace will lead the development of Jazz Urbane Cafe's culinary program and its service strategy. Additionally, Grace will lead hiring and oversee daily operations.

Claude Grunitzky, CEO, The Equity Alliance
Claude Grunitzky is the CEO and Managing Partner of Equity Alliance, a new fund dedicated to providing capital to venture capitalists and entrepreneurs in America who are women or people of color. Claude is also the founder of two media companies, TRACE, funded by Goldman Sachs, and TRUE Africa, funded by Google.

Claude was raised between Lomé, Togo; Paris; London and New York. Growing up, Claude, who speaks six languages and carries three passports, was exposed to many different cultures. These foreign interactions shaped his transcultural philosophy and informed the creative energy of his ventures. A graduate of London University and MIT, where he earned an MBA as a Sloan Fellow, Claude is a trustee at MASS MoCA, one of America’s leading contemporary art museums. He is also a longtime trustee at Humanity in Action, a foundation that works internationally to build global leadership, defend democracy, protect minorities, and improve human rights.

Khadija Haynes, Board Member, Montbello Organizing Committee, Co-Chair, FreshLo Initiative
Khadija Katherine Haynes is an activator, community leader, and strategist. Ms. Haynes was the first African American woman admitted to the exclusive MPA Directors program at the California Institute of the Arts. As a passionate theatre director and arts activist, Ms. Haynes is the Managing Director and co-founder of Colorado Black Arts Movement (CBAM), a 501(c)3 African American arts advocacy organization.

Ms. Haynes is a former gubernatorial appointee to Colorado's Scientific and Cultural Facilities District Board and currently serves as a gubernatorial appointee to the Colorado Creative Industries Board. Pursuing a parallel career, Ms. Haynes is the CEO of K-Solutions, a political and governmental consulting and lobbying firm based in Denver, Colorado. She has carved a national niche as an astute and sought-after political advisor and governmental manager, well-known for her breadth of experience and strong management capabilities. Ms. Haynes is the co-lead of the FreshLo Hub, a community development project working to solve the food, cultural, affordable housing, and employment gaps in Denver's Montbello neighborhood.

Ann Hovland, Chief Financial Officer, Secretary and Treasurer, Bonfils Stanton Foundation
Ann Hovland is the Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer at the Bonfils-Stanton Foundation, a private foundation in Denver Colorado that invests in arts organizations and projects that help enrich Denver’s cultural life and landscape as well as leadership across the nonprofit sector. Bonfils-Stanton partners with arts organizations, arts leaders, and arts collaborations that demonstrate a commitment to equity, innovation, visionary leadership, and connections between art and community.

Ann has been with the Foundation since 2010 and is responsible for all financial management, accounting, investment management, human resources, reporting, compliance, and impact investing at the Foundation. Ann has led the work with the Foundation’s Investment Committee to deepen engagement with the Foundation’s mission through socially responsible and mission-aligned investing using catalytic investments and aligning the core endowment with the Foundation’s mission and values. Previously, Ann served as the Financial Director at Mayo Medical Ventures, the venture arm of the Mayo Clinic, and started her career with Deloitte and Touche. She has served as adjunct faculty for the MBA program at the Daniels College of Business, University of Denver, served on various boards, and is currently Chair of the Board of Colorado Nonprofit Development Center, a fiscal sponsor in Denver. Ann is graduate of the University of Colorado Leeds School of Business, a CPA and received her MBA at the University of St. Thomas.

Cierra Peters, Director of Communications, Culture and Enfranchisement, Boston Ujima
Cierra Peters is an artist and writer currently based in Boston, MA, and Brooklyn, NY. She is currently the Director of Communications, Culture, and Enfranchisement at the Boston Ujima Project, a cooperative business, arts, and investment ecosystem built by and for Boston’s working-class communities of color. She has given talks at deCordova Sculpture Park, The Consortium for Graduate Studies in Gender, Culture, Women, and Sexuality (GCWS), Tufts Art Galleries, Rhode Island School of Design, and the University of California, Berkley.

Anna Raginskaya, Investing with Impact Director, Morgan Stanley, Blue Rider Group
Anna Raginskaya is a financial advisor with the Blue Rider Group at Morgan Stanley, a boutique, women-led practice that supports clients in arts and culture with their investment needs. Anna focused on the Blue Rider Group’s engagement with the art and impact investing communities and strategic planning for non-profit clients. As an Investing with Impact Director, Anna connects clients to the deep resources of Morgan Stanley’s Institute for Sustainable Investing, and helps clients use their investments to advance change in areas of environmental and social justice. In addition to addressing their clients’ financial needs, the Blue Rider Group facilitates introductions between philanthropists and non-profits, raises awareness about organizations and helps support cultural projects.

Anna writes and speaks frequently on the topic of sustainable investing for arts organizations and has moderated and spoken on panels for the American Alliance of Museums, Grantmakers in the Arts, and the Theater Communications Group conferences. Ann earned her BA in History of Art and Architecture from Harvard College and MBA from Harvard Business School. She is a partner of the VIA Art Fund, a board member of PAIAM (Professional Advisors to the International Art Market), and a guest instructor in the Bronx Museum’s Artist in the Marketplace (AIM) program.

Patrick Robinson, Founder and CEO, Paskho
Patrick Robinson was born in Memphis, Tennessee and grew up in Southern California where he began designing clothes for fellow surfers at the age of 14. After moving to New York and attending the Parsons School of Design, Patrick became an assistant to American-born couturier Patrick Kelly in Paris in 1986. He left Paris to work briefly for Albert Nipon in New York, then returned to Europe as the Design Director for Giorgio Armani in Milan. Patrick transformed Giorgio Armani’s ailing Le Collezioni line into a profitable international apparel company over his four-year tenure. Patrick, a New Yorker at heart, moved back in 1994, to become Senior Vice President of Design, Merchandising and Marketing for Anne Klein.

By 1996, Patrick was more than ready to go out on his own and started his own collection, winning numerous awards and named one of Vogue's top 100 rising stars in 1996. His eponymous women’s label was picked up by Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue, Bergdorf Goodman, and Barney’s among others. In April 2003, Patrick became the Creative Director of Perry Ellis Women’s Sportswear and then in 2005, was named Artistic Director for Paco Rabanne. Patrick has been a Council of Fashion Designers of America member since 1994. In March 2004, Patrick received a CFDA Fashion Award nomination in the Swarovski Perry Ellis Award for emerging Talent in Ready-to-Wear category - a fitting tribute to his hard work. In May 2007, Patrick designed an affordable collection for Target Corporation's Go International line. Patrick was selected in May 2007 to serve as executive vice president of design for Gap Adult and gapbody. Patrick oversaw all elements of design and marketing for Gap women's and men's apparel, accessories, and intimates’ lines worldwide. In 2010 Oprah, Anna Wintour, and Patrick Robinson co-chaired the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute Gala. In May 2013, Patrick was hired as global creative director of Armani Exchange. 2016 marked the full launch of his Paskho collection for travel.

Nina Robinson, Fund Director, RUNWAY
Nina (She/Her) is a financial activist, capital convener, and creative. She is passionate about building the conditions for an economy rooted in justice and joy by embracing transformative practices that build Community Wealth creation and promote healing for Black, Indiegneous, and People of Color communities and Mother Earth. Nina's journey to this work started in technology and evolved into social entrepreneurship, community finance, and impact investing.

As a portfolio manager, she has served as a Board Member and advised numerous small businesses on growth strategy and raising integrated capital including philanthropic, and non-extractive equity investment, via private placement, crowdfunding, and Title III crowd-investing platforms. Nina served as a Buen Vivir Fund Fellow, a journey that allowed her to draw wisdom from Indigenous, global leaders rooted in the solidarity economy, and an RSF Social Finance Integrated Capital Fellow working in partnership with wealth holders seeking to restore justice in their investments.

Nina received her MBA from the Lorry I. Lokey School of Business at Mills College and holds a bachelor’s degree in High Technology Management from California State University. Nina holds a Certificate for Board Directorship from the Anderson Graduate School of Business at UCLA. Nina sits on the RUNWAY Credit Committee, a Board Member of the Real People's Fund, and Advisory Board member for JustBe, a Black women entrepreneur collective. When she isn't working towards economic justice, you can find her veganizing her favorite dishes, exploring new beaches, and spinning soulful records around the world as Nina Sol.

Inspired by infusing joy into every aspect of the work, Nina resonates with Toni Cade Bambara words that “The role of the artist is to make the revolution irresistible”.

Michelle Saenz, Senior Program Officer, Seed Commons/The Working World
Michelle Saenz hails from the California/Mexico border region and has a background in urban planning and small business support. She has worked extensively with manufacturers in Brooklyn to help create jobs that have few barriers to entry and provide pathways to the middle class. She works with The Working World to close the gap between ownership and the shop floor.

Clymene Aldinger, MA, LMHC (NY, NY) originally from Jacksonville, Florida, graduated with a BFA in Dance and with an Honors Award for Distinction in Choreography from The Ailey School/Fordham University in 2002. During her time at The Ailey School, under the direction of Denise Jefferson and Ana-Marie Forsythe, she performed for numerous acclaimed choreographers and apprenticed with Sean Curran Company. Clymene then spent several years as dance faculty, teaching and choreographing for Douglas Anderson School of the Arts in Jacksonville, Florida, and remains on faculty as a guest artist (DASOTA is also Clymene’s alma mater, where she has been honored with several prestigious awards). Clymene graduated with a MA in Mental Health Counseling from Rollins College in 2006 and worked as a Specialist in Student Counseling at the University of Central Florida Counseling Center until her move back to NY in 2009. At both universities Clymene championed, developed, and facilitated social justice, leadership, and community engagement programs, as well as, psychoeducational workshops and group therapy. She is currently a Licensed Mental Health Counselor in the State of New York in private practice: Artist Within, Psychojtherapy for Artists & Creative Professionals since 2009. Clymene performed with Elisa Monte Dance for eight years. Elisa Monte Dance was a critically acclaimed dance company in New York City that toured domestically and internationally for forty years. Clymene joined the company as a Lead Dancer and performed as Principal Dancer for seven years until her retirement in June 2017. One of her favorite performances was her first professional tour to Italy and Luxembourg in 2010, where she performed for the Duke and Duchess of Luxembourg/Royal Family. Clymene acknowledges Elisa Monte as a lifelong mentor and assists her in teaching and setting choreography all over the world. In her time with the company, she performed 20 of Elisa Monte's choreographic works. Clymene teaches and performs in Bali, Thailand, China, Florida, and NYC. She is the Founder and Artistic Director of CLYMOVE Dance, Inc., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit established in Brooklyn, NY in 2021. The company premiered her first evening-length production Femmenisto in December 2021 and are rehearsing for their 2nd annual fall season. She also holds a MA in Performance Studies from NYU. Lastly, in addition to the birth of a new dream, forming her own dance company and exploring her choreographic vision, Clymene became a proud mother of two.

Randi Berry is an indie theater maker with an arts advocacy and commercial real estate background. She is the co-founder of Wreckio Ensemble Theater Company, The Indie Theater Fund, and IndieSpace. Randi has worked on over $11B in commercial real estate transactions and has created programs resulting in thousands of artists receiving funding, free real estate consulting services, rehearsal space, and opportunities for professional growth. Select awards include: NYIT Indie Theater Champion, The Ellen Stewart Award, Indie Theater Person of the Year, member of the Indie Theater Hall of Fame, and a Citation for Service by the New York City Council.

Dr. Toya Jones is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker for the state of Pennsylvania. She is an Assistant Professor and director of the Bachelor of Arts Social Work program at the University of Pittsburgh. She is the founder and president of Freedom Indeed LLC, an organization that focuses on serving and empowering ex-offenders, returning citizens, and victims of crime, and she is the host of her Facebook and YouTube show, Healing Overflow with Dr. Toy. She has earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Indiana University of PA, a master’s degree in social work, and a doctorate in education from the University of Pittsburgh. Her current research focuses on trauma reactions in social work students, increasing the awareness of PTSD and self-care techniques amongst social work students, assessing burnout amongst BIPOC students, and integrating CBT and faith in the black church community. Dr. Jones is an expert trauma witness and consultant for the United States Federal Courts. She has extensive experience working with the incarcerated population and returning citizens who have been affected by crime. She has counselor-legal advocacy, crisis management, conflict resolution, and mediation experience, working with both victims of juvenile crime and the adult criminal justice system. Dr. Jones provides trauma-focused therapy, and community education programs for those exposed to violence. In addition, she facilitates trainings for practitioners, professors, artist, and students in Asia, East Africa, and the USA. She lectures for universities, school districts, religious organizations, and private corporations on topics such as The Impact of Trauma on Children and Adults, Signs and Symptoms of PTSD, Vicarious Trauma, Trauma Aware Pedagogy Practices, Trauma, and the Incarcerated Population, Mental Health Wellness for Creative Artist, and treatment modalities such as Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT), expressive, art, and play therapies for those impacted by trauma. She is a board member of the Woman’s Center and Shelter, Hammonds Initiative, and Melanin Mommies. She is married to Rev. Cornell Jones and the proud mother of two children, Cornell “CJ” Jones age 15, and Naomi Jones age 11.

Rick Luftglass is Executive Director of the Laurie M. Tisch Illumination Fund, which strives to increase access and opportunity for all New Yorkers and build healthy, vibrant communities. The foundation’s programs address disparities in several areas, including access to the arts, health, economic opportunity, and public service. In 2018, the Illumination Fund launched its Arts in Health initiative to support organizations utilizing the arts to address health issues that impact New York communities. Its programs in the Arts in Health initiative have focused on mental health stigma, psychological trauma, and aging-related diseases. Before joining the Illumination Fund in 2011, Rick spent 16 years at Pfizer, including as Executive Director of Pfizer’s foundation and Senior Director of U.S. Philanthropy and Community Engagement for the company, and led Pfizer’s health access initiatives for low-income uninsured patients, which donated medicines for more than 2,000,000 patients annually. At the time, Pfizer was the world’s largest corporate giver. He has served on the board of Philanthropy New York (PNY) and as co-chair of PNY’s Foundation CEO Roundtable and Community Food Funders. He also has served in committee leadership roles at the Council on Foundations, the Conference Board, and the Contributions Advisory Group. Rick started his career in nonprofit arts organizations, producing jazz concerts and immigrant cultural heritage programs. He continues this engagement role as current President of the board of the Center for Traditional Music and Dance, which collaborates with immigrant community organizations to sustain cultural heritage in New York City’s communities. He received an MBA at Stanford University's Graduate School of Business and a BA in History at Haverford College.

Caridad ‘La Bruja’ De La Luz is a multifaceted performer known as LA BRUJA who is nominated for an Emmy (Script Writer of “Legacy of Puerto Rican Poetry” - Cultural Short Segment that aired on ABC). As of January 2022, she became the newly appointed Executive Director of the NUYORICAN POETS CAFE where she began her career in 1996. Winner of the Jerome Hill Artist Fellowship 2019-2020 and a 2021 David Prize finalist, Caridad balances a career of activism, education, and art with performances in successful Off-Broadway musicals such as I LIKE IT LIKE THAT and BETSY as the title role. She raps, acts, sings, hosts, recites, dances, does stand-up comedy, writes plays/poems/songs/scripts, and teaches others how to do the same. She has been one of America's leading spoken word poets for over 20 years and has received the Puerto Rican Women Legacy Award, The Edgar Allan Poe Award from The Bronx Historical Society and was honored as A Bronx Living Legend by The Bronx Music Heritage Center. She was presented with a Citation of Merit from The Bronx Borough President and named “Top 20 Puerto Rican Women Everyone Should Know”. NY Times called her a “Juggernaut" after the first off-Broadway run of her original musical BOOGIE RICAN BLVD. where she played 7 different characters. Her acting career has taken her from stage to film: appearing in numerous movies such as BAMBOOZLED, DOWN TO THE BONE, EL VACILON and GUN HILL ROAD. Internationally introduced to the world in Russell Simmons’ DEF POETRY JAM on HBO, her career has spanned musically, and her Hip Hop albums can be found on Spotify, iTunes and YouTube under the titles: BRUJALICIOUS and FOR WITCH IT STANDS. Since 2015, she has been cultivating her own art space in the Soundview section of The Bronx called EL GARAJE on the ancestral lands of the Siwanoy Nation once called Snakapins. Along with Pepatian.org where she has been a co-director and consultant since 2019, they have just celebrated their 5th annual Bronx Indigenous Futurisms gathering at Clason Point and have co-produced La Bruja’s new one-woman show FROM POOR TO RICO which includes original music and visuals of Puerto Rico in the 1970s.

Lillian Osei-Boateng serves as the program manager for the arts at the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation (DDCF). In that capacity, she manages the Doris Duke Artist Awards Program, including the award selection process for the artists, artist support and grantee reporting and payments, among other responsibilities. Prior to working at DDCF, she was the program assistant at Fractured Atlas, an arts organization that provides services, resources and support to independent artists and arts organizations to help them better focus on their creative responsibilities. She has also worked in advertising, writing, and editing for dance and theater magazines. Osei-Boateng holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from New York University, Tisch School of the Arts, Drama Department, with a minor in journalism, and completed a Master of Public Administration at Baruch College. For more than five years she served on the New York Advisory Board for The Possibility Project, a nonprofit organization dedicated to using the arts to teach young people conflict resolution and leadership skills. She has served as a panelist for The Lewis Prize, Dance/NYC, San Francisco Arts Commission, and the Jerome Foundation. She currently sits on the board for Clubbed Thumb, a theater company based in New York City.

Mikael Owunna is a queer Nigerian American multi-media artist, filmmaker, and engineer from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Exploring the intersections of visual media with engineering, optics, Blackness, and African cosmologies, his work seeks to elucidate an emancipatory vision of possibility that pushes people beyond all boundaries, restrictions, and frontiers. Owunna’s work has been exhibited across Africa, Asia, Europe, and North America and been collected by institutions such as the Nasher Museum of Art; Museum of Fine Arts, Houston; Equal Justice Initiative; Duke University Pratt School of Engineering; and National Taiwan Museum. His work has also been featured in media ranging from the New York Times to CNN, NPR, VICE, and The Guardian. He has lectured at venues including Harvard Law School, World Press Photo (Netherlands), Tate Modern (UK), and TEDx. Owunna has published two monographs: Limitless Africans (FotoEvidence, 2019) and Cosmologies (ClampArt, 2021). Owunna’s multi-media practice includes film, and in 2021 he directed the dance film Obi Mbu (The Primordial House) with Marques Redd. Owunna's work has been commissioned for major public art installations by organizations including the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Cleveland Foundation, Contemporary Art Museum Raleigh, Pittsburgh International Airport, and Orange Barrel Media.

JoVonna Parks (NY, NY) is a Philadelphia native where she began her intense formal training in Ballet, Horton and Graham techniques. She attended Ailey/Fordham under the direction of Ana Marie Forsythe and graduated with her BFA in dance in 2012. Upon graduation she was invited to perform with John Mark Owen in John Mark Owen Presents…. In Requiem. She has had the pleasure of working with and performing works by Camille A. Brown, Ronald K. Brown, Donald McKayle, Hofesh Shector, Robert Battle, Jill Echo and many others. JoVonna has also had the opportunity and pleasure to work with Ty Jones and The Classical Theatre of Harlem in their productions of MacBeth(soldier/ensemble), The Three Musketeers(Kitty/ensemble), Antigone(ensemble) and she served as dance captain for the production of A Christmas Carol in Harlem. JoVonna performed with Elisa Monte Dance under the direction of both Elisa Monte and Tiffany Rea-Fisher from 2014-2019. Whether performing or creating, she also teaches ballet, modern and contemporary techniques in the greater NYC and New Jersey area. Presently, she teaches at Essential Elements Dance Studio in Hazlet, NJ. She is currently a freelance dance artist in NYC with Alpha Omega Theatrical Dance Company, Clymove, and Konverjdans. Her own creations have been performed at Alpha Omega Theatrical Dance Company: Solo Suites as well as the all-female collaborative choreography festival CounterPointe in both 2019 and 2022. JoVonna is a recipient of the NYFA City Corps Grant as well as a recipient of the 2021/2022 UMEZ grant from the Schomberg Center for Research in Black Culture as choreographer in collaboration with Nite Bjuti. She is an original member of Clymove since 2019 and a Clymove board member since 2021.

Detroit Native Ce Scott-Fitts is an Artist, Poet, Chef, Curator, and Arts Administrator. In 2019, she joined the South Carolina Arts Commission as Artist Development Director. She is currently Deputy Director, where she oversees the Artists Development, Arts Industry, Creative Placemaking, and Folk and Traditional Arts programs and grants. Ce was formerly Creative Director and founding staff of McColl Center for Art + Innovation in Charlotte, NC. During her tenure, she established an International Residency Program for North Carolina Artists (South Africa and Ireland), curated Exhibitions, and developed the Artist-in-Residence Program. Ce built the Education/Outreach and Artist Services programs which fostered support for local artists as well as connect artists with the local community. In addition, Ce partnered with North and South Carolina Colleges and Universities, Charlotte Mecklenburg Schools, Atrium Health, and Charlotte Area Transit Authority (CATS) to develop and fund Residencies and Public Art Commissions. She was program manager for “Chairs on Parade” Charlotte’s largest Public Art project. Over the years, Ce has taught at Central Piedmont Community College, served on selection panels for the NEA, the North Carolina Arts Council, and the San Francisco Arts Commission. She was also Co-Chair for the Artist Service Committee of Alliance of Artist Communities, Providence, RI and Chair of Regional Project Grant Committee for the Arts and Science Council, Charlotte NC. Ce served as co-chair of the Individual Artist Support committee for Grant Makers in the Arts, Chair of SCAC’s DEIA committee, is founder of SCAiA (South Carolina Artists in Action) a statewide initiative that focuses on sustainability and support for South Carolina’s Black artists, and is on the executive and leadership teams of SCAC. Ce has exhibited at Museums, Public spaces, and Galleries throughout the Southeast. Her work is held in Public and Private Collections including the US Bank, Issey Mikake Studios, Tokyo, Japan, Commes des Garcons, Tokyo, Japan and in the UK. Ce holds her Master of Fine Arts Degree in Painting from Maryland Institute, College of Art in Baltimore, MD.

yvette shipman comes from a proud line of educators, pullman porters, pentecostal preachers, domestic workers, sharecroppers, tailors, entrepreneurs, and innovative folks who endured harm, need healing, and deserve rest. yvette builds relationships and generative spaces for healing and transformation to happen. Her work in transformative change began in Ghana, West Africa, as a liaison for people navigating cultural differences manufactured by colonization. A certified and practicing yoga and mindfulness instructor, mediator, and facilitator, yvette has a BA in Communications and MA in Social and Public Policy, Conflict Mediation and Peace Studies. As Program Officer at Opportunity Fund in Pittsburgh, PA, she leads the Respite for Black Women initiative in fulfillment of her commitment to repair/ahimsa – do no harm. On the immediate horizon, yvette will travel to Switzerland to offer mindfulness facilitation for the United Nations Foundation, Peace on Purpose program. She now studies with One Spirit Interspiritual Seminary to deepen her spiritual practice and leadership in interfaith ministry. Gushing mother of Freesoul, her proclaimed spiritual teacher, yvette restores balance creating tisane blends and sees life lessons there: contemplative practice, real talk, and creativity make space for genuine engagement. yvette aims to move through the world with integrity, dignity, and ease, allowing us to be where we are.

Lauren Ree Slone is an internationally recognized leader in grant making systems design, cultural equity strategy, and programmatic innovation. To date at the MAP Fund, she has overseen the distribution of $10M+ dollars to 502 extraordinary, multidisciplinary performance projects. Most recently, she was proud to serve on teams that operationalized Artist Relief, was appointed to Grantmakers in the Arts Support for Individual Artists Committee (Co-chair beginning October 2022), was invited to join a global funder forum on philanthropic practice innovation and research and was named a 2021 Maggie Allesee National Center for Choreography (MANCC) Writer-in-Residence in collaboration with choreographer, Joanna Kotze. She is also a Live in America Festival Support Team member, a Mosaic Network and Fund learning cohort member, serves as a nominator and panelist for major award programs, and regularly collaborates with artists and arts organizations on effective decision-making processes. As a lifelong student of dance, she has created arts education curricula, youth mentorship programs, presentation platforms, and performance projects that democratize access to arts and culture throughout the United States. She holds a B.A. in Religious Studies with a minor in Philosophy from West Virginia University, and an M.F.A. in Dance Performance and Choreography from Florida State University School of Dance where she was MANCC’s first Mellon Arts Administration Fellow, a Ballet Pedagogy Fellow, and pursued choreographic research in Israel, Spain, and France. Lauren cherishes the many ancestors, teachers, and mentors who have shown her how to care for dreams in the creative process.

Celeste C. Smith is a cultural leader with a finger on the pulse of race and social discourse. She works to advance racial justice, center the voices of people and communities most impacted by racism, and respond to critical community issues. She is a national 2018 SXSW Community Service Award honoree bringing to her role deep experience as a celebrated non-profit and community leader, arts administrator, artist, and co-founder of 1Hood Media, whose mission is to build liberated communities through art, education, and social justice. She is also the senior program manager for arts and culture at The Pittsburgh Foundation and manager of Pittsburgh-based hip hop artist Jasiri X. Celeste has quickly emerged as a thought-leader in philanthropy as indicated by her appointment as co-chair of the national Grantmakers in the Arts (GIA) Support for Individual Artists Committee, Americans for the Arts Arts Education Network Advisory Council, and participation as an invited panelist and presenter at dozens of events and conferences. Lastly, Celeste continues to produce her own artistic works, most recently appearing in the published literary anthology, Tender, edited by Vanessa German, award-winning visual and performance artist and Deesha Philyaw, finalists for the National Book Award.

Dr. Felicia Snead is a board-certified radiation oncologist with 19 years of medical practice experience. She was co-director and founder of Atypical Arts, LLC, an art events and special project production company previously operating in Jacksonville, FL and Pittsburgh, PA with 10 years of experience programing events which support culturally diverse creative arts in recreational and educational settings. After completing a graduate certification in Arts in Healthcare at the University of Florida School of Arts in 2019, Dr. Snead founded Feel Well Arts. A network-based program which promotes and support the integration of art in healthcare settings to promote enhanced healing and wellbeing for both providers and patients. I remain a devoted patron of the creative and performing arts locally in Pittsburgh as well as my hometown of New York City. I continue to add my support and advocacy to arts organizations nationally. Dr. Snead is the proud mother of a college student son, Marley and departed artist, Miles Saal, loss to suicide in 2017. My personal experience of witnessing the challenges of my son’s mental illness, has ignited advocacy for improved mental health management.

Alecia Dawn Young is an arts worker, community educator and the founder of creative wellness yoga studio, YOGAMOTIF. She believes the creative process is an invitation to heal and invests her time in people, projects, and communities that explore these practices. She is a former K-12 art teacher who went on to manage and consult for art and wellness start-ups and established businesses in Pittsburgh and around the country. As a ceramics artist, her creative works honor the humanity of Black motherhood - using pattern, color, and line to document and explore her lived experiences. Her life reflects a commitment to collective healing, reproductive justice, and arts education. Through her studio practices and social justice-centered projects, she believes that creativity (including birth) is a path to wellness and collaboration is our way forward. Alecia holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Alfred University, Master of Arts Management from Carnegie Mellon University, and is a PhD student at the University of Pittsburgh.

Lu Zhang is Initiatives Director at United States Artists (USA), a national arts funding organization. Experienced in providing unrestricted funds and care resources to artists across disciplines and geographies, USA Initiatives works closely with partners to conduct research, design programs, and administer funds in response to the needs of artists. Previously, she served as Deputy Director of The Contemporary, a nomadic non-collecting museum in Baltimore. As a multi-disciplinary artist and researcher, Lu explores a variety of media in her practice—including books, drawings, installations, and the Institute for Expanded Research, which activates sites and leverages resources to produce and present artist projects. Lu received her MFA in Painting at the Frank Mohr Institute in the Netherlands and her BFA at the Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore, Maryland.

Maura Cuffie-Peterson (she/her) is a facilitator, strategist, and designer. Currently, she serves as the Director of Strategic Initiatives for the Guaranteed Income program at Creatives Rebuild New York. Previously she was the Senior Program Officer for ArtPlace America from 2018 to 2021. During that time she conceived and executed the Local Control, Local Field(s) initiative, a novel approach to participatory and trust-based philanthropy. This initiative placed over $12.5M directly under the control of practitioners across the country. She has held a variety of positions in arts, culture, and organizational change. As a co-founder of the collective, the Free Breakfast Program, she participated as a Create Change Fellow with the Laundromat Project in 2015 and in the inaugural cohort for leaders of color in EmcArts’ Arts Leaders as Cultural Innovators Fellowship in 2016.

Rafael Espinal is the Executive Director of Freelancers Union. Born and raised in Brooklyn, Rafael became New York’s youngest elected official when he joined the State Assembly at age 26. The son of Dominican immigrants who were union members as well as freelancers, Rafael quickly became a leader fighting on behalf of workers, small businesses, artists, and underrepresented low-income communities. In 2013, he was elected to the New York City Council, representing Brooklyn’s diverse 37th District. Rafael has been a steadfast advocate for freelancer rights throughout his career. On the City Council, he was an early supporter and co-sponsor of the first-of-its-kind Freelance Isn’t Free legislation that passed in New York City in 2016, giving freelancers unprecedented protection from nonpayment and late payment. He co-sponsored a bill passed in 2019 to extend protections against harassment and discrimination to independent workers under the City’s Human Rights Law.

As only the third leader of Freelancers Union since its founding in 1995, Rafael is committed to engaging with freelancers across the country, listening to their concerns, amplifying their voices in important policy debates, and continuing to strengthen and expand a movement that serves a broad spectrum of independent workers and helps them thrive in a fast-changing economy. In his short tenure, he has successfully advocated for pandemic unemployment assistance (PUA) for independent workers, the expansion of the Freelance Isn’t Free Act in the City of LA, Seattle, the State of New York, and pushing for a broader social safety net for freelancers nationwide.

Estrella Esquilín is a multi-disciplinary artist, arts administrator, and cultural strategist with experience working at large and small universities, local government, and nonprofit organizations. Esquilín’s applied creative practices have been intuitively rooted in spatial justice with a curiosity for how people interact with, relate to, and impact each other in built and natural environments. As a cultural strategist, she embraces a guiding question, “how could it feel to be welcomed into a space designed for you?” She embeds her values of social justice, racial equity, and inclusion into her studio practice, administrative processes, program design, and creative professional development to narrow gaps of inequity within arts and culture. She holds a Master of Fine Art degree in Interdisciplinary Studio Art from Arizona State University and a Bachelor of Fine Art in Printmaking from Kansas City Art Institute.

Nadine Goellner, a strategic and collaborative arts leader, brings over fifteen years of experience realizing complex programs and initiatives across the public, private and nonprofit sectors. Nadine currently serves as the Managing Director of Artists At Work (AAW), a workforce resilience program in the spirit of the WPA that is designed to support the health of local communities through artistic civic engagement. Prior, Nadine served as Executive Director of Rooftop Films, where she successfully led the nonprofit through the pandemic and helped them re-imagine their programming and operations to continue to bring impactful cultural events to NYC. Nadine was also part of the inaugural senior leadership team at The Shed, where she played an integral role in building organizational infrastructure and resources necessary for the successful launch of the new cultural institution. A seasoned producer, she has specialized in commissioning and developing new work by luminary artists including Carrie Mae Weems, Björk, Quincy Jones, Steve McQueen, William Kentridge, Claudia Rankine, William Forsythe, and many others. She holds a Master of Public Affairs from the University of Missouri and a Graduate Certificate in Organizational Leadership from UMass Dartmouth.

Sister Beatrice X Johnson, aka Auntie Bee, is co-founder of the Love Not Blood Campaign, a social justice organization founded to work with families that have suffered the traumatic experience of police violence, whether by police officers, security officers, or community violence. She is the wife of Uncle Bobby X Johnson and the cousin of Gail Keaton-Smiley, who was killed by the Detroit police in 1972 and the aunt of Oscar Grant killed by the Bay Area BART police in 2009 in Oakland, California. She is a recipient of the Mawina Kuyyate Award and the Momz That Rock Award, the Dick Gregory Community Award, as well as, many others. She is a member of the Nation of Islam and served as the Protocol Director for 7 years at Muhammad Mosque 26, Oakland California. She has been involved with activism since the early age of 10 years old. Auntie Bee first police activism case was at the age 21 years old.

Auntie Bee was part of the activism and protesting behind Sagon Penn, twice acquitted in the shooting of two San Diego police officers in a racially charged case that sharply exposed the divide between the police and the Black community. Auntie Bee is a community organizer, activist, and an extremely caring mother, grandmother and Great grandmother that bring love and emotional support to mothers and family members impacted by police violence. Auntie Bee embodies completely and dynamically each day, a beautiful spirit, and a clear understanding, to her vision of the revolutionary path of Love by the spirit of African culture. If we all walk in her spirit, we are sure to reach our objective. Auntie Bee works to bring about an atmosphere of social justice and family relationship throughout the United States.

She currently fighting for Justice and Accountability for her sister Dorothy Jean Dale-Chambers who was killed in Phoenix April 26, 2022.

Olympia Kazi is an architecture critic and an urban activist with twenty years of experience in advocacy, research, curating, and administration of cultural and urban design organizations in Europe and the United States. Olympia most recently led successful advocacy City, State, and Federal campaigns with two organizations she co-founded, NYC Artist Coalition and Music Workers Alliance. She has previously served as executive director of Van Alen Institute (New York), director of the Institute for Urban Design (New York), and as assistant curator at the Milan Triennale. In recognition for her work, she served as vice chair on the first ever NYC Nightlife Advisory Board. She also serves on Manhattan’s Community Board 3 on Land Use and Zoning and Arts & Cultural Affairs.

Trained as an architect at the University of Florence, Italy, Olympia was awarded an urban studies fellowship at the Independent Study Program of the Whitney Museum of American Art. Her work has been recognized with awards and distinctions including the Rockefeller Foundation’s Cultural Innovation Fund. She has written on contemporary design and urban issues in a variety of international journals and was the editor of "The New York 2030 Notebook" (2008), a critical analysis of Mayor Bloomberg’s PlaNYC.

Naia Kete is a Southern California-based singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and social justice advocate with a powerful voice to match her dedication to positive change-making. Born and raised in Western Massachusetts to a family of musicians, she is now leader of the urban-reggae band SayReal, which aims to empower people to change the world by changing themselves. In 2012, she was a contestant on the second season of the NBC television show The Voice as a member of Team Blake, making it into the Top 24. She is also the founder of Song Healing Trauma, which engages the healing power of music to reframe the embodied experience of trauma in a context of safety and courage.

Stephanie LaFroscia is the Director of Grants and Community Engagement at the San Antonio Area Foundation, a community foundation serving San Antonio’s urban center and rural areas in seven surrounding counties. In her role at the Area Foundation, she advocates for the centrality of the cultural organizations, artists and culture bearers in equitable community development. Stephanie was instrumental in developing the 2021 Recovery Fund for the Arts and launched an Artist Fellowship program, supporting artists working to advance youth leadership and mental health. She has worked with cultural organizations in program development and participant engagement for over a decade, most recently at Artpace (San Antonio, TX), Luminaria Contemporary Arts Festival (San Antonio, TX) and the Curatorial Program for Research (New York, NY). Stephanie previously served as a program officer at the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs. She came to DCLA in 2015 after eight years at El Museo del Barrio, NY, where she developed a performing arts residency and interdisciplinary programming in the visual, performing, and literary arts, including Action Actual: Performance Art at El Museo and El Barrio’s Freshest, an annual b-boy/b-girl competition. Stephanie received a MA in Visual Arts Administration from New York University and a BA in Art History from Trinity University in San Antonio, TX. She lives in San Antonio, TX with her wife and children.

Ashley Mireles is a public and studio artist, educator, and arts administrator in San Antonio, Texas. Employing social critique and often humor, she explores her environment, cultural issues, and the human condition. Ashley continues to focus her practice on community access by developing and organizing creative programming for regional arts institutions and community spaces in Central Texas. Ashley has served as an Artist Mentor for the New York Foundation for the Arts’ Immigrant Artist Mentorship program and is a 2022 National Association of Latino Arts and Cultures Leadership Institute Fellow, San Antonio Area Foundation Artist Fellow, and Education and Community Programs Manager at Artpace San Antonio. Her work has been collected by Artpace, City of San Antonio, Mexic-Arte Museum, National Museum of Mexican Art, Texas Christian University Print Collection, University of Texas Libraries Special Collections, Walt Disney Company, and Zuckerman Museum of Art, and published in the American Statesman, Huffington Post, Mitú, and Remezcla.

Jessica Mele is a Program Officer in Performing Arts at the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. She manages a diverse portfolio of grants, with a focus on arts education policy and advocacy. Jessica began her career living a double life as a faculty assistant to Marshall Ganz at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government, and an organizer for the Harvard Union of Clerical and Technical Workers. She was a founding advisory council member of Teaching Artists Guild. Jessica is also a writer, performer, and exhausted mother based in San Francisco.

Katrina Mitchell is an experienced and respected leader with more than 20 years of experience working on a national and regional level. She has worked in the non-profit, philanthropic, and public sector. She currently serves as the Chief Community Impact Officer at United Way of Greater Atlanta and is responsible for leading United Way’s Child Well Being Impact Fund, co-leading the Greater Atlanta COVID Response and Recovery Fund and launching the United for Racial Equity and Healing Fund. Katrina is also the recipient of Rockwood Leadership Institute’s Equity in Philanthropy Fellowship, Association for Black Foundation Executives Connecting Leaders Fellowship, Annie E. Casey Foundation’s Atlanta Results Based Leadership Program and Leadership America Class of 2018. After receiving a B.A. in English from Wellesley College, Katrina earned a M.Ed. from the Harvard University Graduate School of Education.

Sadia Nawab, driven by her passion for justice, solidarity, and understanding people, currently serves as the Director of Arts & Culture for the Inner-City Muslim Action Network (IMAN). She has cultivated talented teams from Chicago to Atlanta to produce live performance shows, host artist residencies, install co-created visual arts murals, and establish a neighborhood ceramic studio on Chicago’s South Side. Skilled as a curator and program director, Sadia has institutionalized collaborative program development with community members, artists, medical professionals, and organizers; intentional and experiential curation and production; and exceptional administrative practices. Recognized for demonstrating a natural aptitude toward restorative practices, creative thinking, and thriving spaces, Sadia contributes to panels, grantmaking, boards, and committees across fields. She has formally studied culture and is pursuing advanced studies in business. Sadia’s commitment to a creative life permeates many elements like her artistry in music, style, cooking, playing with her three sons, and aspiring to a holistic and intentional lifestyle seeped in community.

Daniel Parkis a queer, bi-racial, theatre and performance artist, movement facilitator, and organizer for racial and labor justice in the cultural sector. Through all of the above, his work brings people together to understand and experiment with their individual and mutual roles in bringing about the liberation of all people. Since moving to Philadelphia in 2014 Daniel has become a leader for radical thought in the local creative ecosystem and a trusted national source for guidance on the intersection between cooperatives and the arts. He is a co-founder and worker owner of Obvious Agency, one of the country’s only theatrical worker-owned cooperatives. As a trainer, facilitator, and consultant Daniel specializes in participatory group processes and supporting organizations and individuals to radically transform their work to be in better alignment with their values.

Celeste C. Smith is a cultural leader with a finger on the pulse of race and social discourse. She works to advance racial justice, center the voices of people and communities most impacted by racism, and respond to critical community issues. She is a national 2018 SXSW Community Service Award honoree bringing to her role deep experience as a celebrated non-profit and community leader, arts administrator, artist, and co-founder of 1Hood Media, whose mission is to build liberated communities through art, education, and social justice. She is also the senior program manager for arts and culture at The Pittsburgh Foundation and manager of Pittsburgh-based hip hop artist Jasiri X. Smith has quickly emerged as a thought-leader in philanthropy as indicated by her appointment as co-chair of the national Grantmakers in the Arts (GIA) Support for Individual Artists Committee, Americans for the Arts Arts Education Network Advisory Council, and participation as an invited panelist and presenter at dozens of events and conferences. Lastly, Celeste continues to produce her own artistic works, most recently appearing in the published literary anthology, Tender, edited by Vanessa German, award-winning visual and performance artist, and Deesha Philyaw, national book award finalist.

Rebecca Wright is part of Applied Mechanics, a collective that is feminist, anti-racist, anti-capitalist, anti-colonial, anti-normative, and pro-Black: “For us these values mean the dismantling of all hierarchies and inequitable power relations. We make stories that aim to expand the possibility of liberation for all beings – beginning with ourselves. Our work together and the art that we make should uphold these values.”

Jasiri X is the first independent Hip-Hop artist to be awarded an Honorary Doctorate, which he received from Chicago Theological Seminary in 2016. This recognition grew out of the spiritual/political urgency and artistic vision he shared on songs like “Justice For Trayvon” and “Strange Fruit”, which documented the unjust police killings of young Blacks in the Millennial Generation. Likewise, he has been deeply involved with the national Movement for Black Lives, working with organizations like The Gathering for Justice, Blackout for Human Rights, Justice or Else, BYP100 and Sankofa. Still, he remains rooted in the Pittsburgh-based organization he co-founded, 1Hood Media, whose mission is to build liberated communities through art, education, and social justice. His critically acclaimed album Black Liberation Theology (2015) has been recognized as a soundtrack for today’s civil rights movement. He has performed his music from the Smithsonian to the Apollo Theater and has discussed his views on Hip-Hop, race, and politics at leading institutions across the nation, including Harvard University, University of Chicago, NYU, Yale, and Stanford, among others. Beyond his work nationally, Jasiri’s focus on social change has also touched the global arena. In 2016, he was commissioned by The Open Society Foundation to travel to Columbia to create a film (War on Us with Grammy Award-winning hip-hop artist Rhymefest) that highlights the international effects of US drug policy in South America. One of the most important political voices of his generation, in 2017 he received the Nathan Cummings Foundation Fellowship to start the 1Hood Artivist Academy. Jasiri is also a recipient of the USA Cummings Fellowship in Music, the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation Artist as Activist Fellowship and the President's Volunteer Service Award.