Sawubona Civic Literacy Program, Hartford, CT | current
Program Director & Curriculum Designer
• Founded a civic literacy initiative empowering disconnected youth (ages 16–20) in Hartford to understand city, state, and federal systems through place-based and culturally responsive learning.
• Designed an 8-week curriculum integrating digital media literacy, equity analysis, and youth-led action, aligning with Connecticut Social Studies Standards.
• Building partnerships with Sheldon Oaks, Impact Academy, Hartford Next and other community-based organizations to expand access to civic education for disconnected youth.
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COMMUNITY-CAMPUS PARTNERSHIPS FOR HEALTH (CCPH), Raleigh, NC (remote) | ~2 yrs, current
Engagement Program Lead
Led three national engagement initiatives connecting HBCUs, researchers, healthcare systems, families and community partners to improve health outcomes.

Program: HBCU Road Tour – NIH-Funded National Initiative
• Designed and led a national community-engaged research ecosystem connecting MSIs, community organizations and healthcare partners to increase resource access — increasing engagement by 29%.
• Built culturally grounded best-practice frameworks that advanced shared policy and practice among 11 HBCUs, strengthening field alignment around social determinants of health and research reciprocity.
• Facilitated collaboration among HBCUs, providers, researchers and CBOs — strengthening trust and increasing All of Us dataset utilization by 23%.
• Conducted surveys and implementation assessments to refine programming, resulting in 33% improvement in impact perception among researchers and community leaders.
• Applied implementation learning models leading to 20% increase in program participation.
• Produced strategic reports informing national dissemination practices and compliance with NIH requirements.
• Managed a $100,000 program budget, demonstrating fiscal leadership and operational oversight aligned with HOYC backbone functions.

Program: New Directions in Health Research & Equity
National Webinar Series Advancing Health Equity, Precision Medicine & Translational Science
• Designed learning frameworks reflecting research innovation and equity trends across SDOH, implementation science, community-engaged scholarship and AI in health.
• Curated expert panels to model equitable research partnerships among institutions, clinicians and community partners — increasing engagement by 27%.
• Developed training modules on the All of Us Researcher Workbench strengthening capacity and increasing dataset use by 37% for inquiry and curricular development.
• Synthesized discussions into actionable insights shaping research, advocacy and policy decision-making.
• Led iterative feedback systems to enhance knowledge transfer — driving 83% increase in knowledge gain among researchers, faculty and public health practitioners.

Program: NIH Community Engaged Alliance (CEAL) / CEACR
• Conduct national community needs assessments that informed culturally responsive implementation strategies.
• Design engagement toolkits for community-based organizations and researchers improving participation and retention in clinical research.
• Created a faith-based engagement toolkit mobilizing Latina community participation in health interventions through San Diego State University — strengthening belonging and trust.
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Connecticut Department of Public Health (DPH), Office of Health Equity - Hartford, CT | 1 year
Regional Health Equity Coordinator
Directed a 41-municipality, cross-sector vaccination access strategy focused on equitable systems design.
• Conducted equity assessments informing culturally responsive health access strategies—improving regional outcomes.
• Designed a school-based vaccination model deployed in 35 schools over 5 days, raising vaccination rates 27% across Hartford and becoming the statewide model.
• Built cross-sector partnerships with agencies, institutions, and trusted influencers increasing vaccination rates within housing authority sites by 7%.
• Developed educational outreach for officials and residents increasing access through warehouse and transit authority sites by 13%.
• Built community advisory partnerships raising access by 9% through institutions including HRA and Hispanic Health Council.
• Used geo-spatial mapping, transportation and anchor institution data to guide clinic placement — raising regional vaccination rates by 39%.
• Produced daily performance reports and monthly trend analyses supporting state-level decision-making.
• Mitigated vaccine hesitancy rates in Hartford and New Britain, cities with the highest vaccine hesitancy rates in the state.
• Created the first coordinated model for vaccine/wellness clinics in all New Britain Housing Authority properties increasing New Britain’s vaccination rate by 7%.
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Connecticut Department of Public Health (DPH) / AMN Healthcare – Hartford, CT | 1 year
Community Outreach Specialist Lead
Led a specialized, equity-focused contact tracing strategy across 11 socially-vulnerable cities during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, improving health equity outcomes.
• Designed a human-centered contact tracing system improving health outcomes by 53% among vulnerable residents.
• Led engagement and coaching practices that resulted in 100% workforce retention during volatile conditions — demonstrating people leadership.
• Strengthened cross-sector coordination increasing access to wrap-around services by 7%.
• Built operational accountability systems ensuring 100% compliance across program life cycle.
• Created equity-based data needs assessment tools — improving resident satisfaction by 73% and workforce retention by 97%.
• Developed storytelling-based case studies to eliminate barriers and connect residents to mental health and social services supports.

+++Other Relevant Roles+++

Council for World Mission – Pulau Ujong, Singapore | 2 years
Program Facilitator
Worldwide partnership of 32 orgs dedicated to protecting human dignity, poverty eradication, dismantling ideologies of supremacy and abating climate change.
• Developed and executed program with Equal Justice Initiative and local BIPOC communities to create global initiatives to dismantle white supremacy in member nations.
• Created global campaigns designed to eliminate white supremacy and create unbiased structures in the 32 countries of the CWM.
• Assessed the Legacies of Slavery Hearings, synthesizing firsthand historical experiences of descendants of U.S. enslavement, creating linkages to the larger global context of colonial, white supremacist economic, social, cultural, and political structures.
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Birmingham Civil Rights Institute (BCRI) – Birmingham, AL | 1 year, 10 months
Project Manager
A cultural and educational research center, affiliated with the Smithsonian Institution, that promotes the comprehensive understanding for the significance of civil rights developments in Birmingham.
Executed the 50th Anniversary of the Children’s Crusade Event, “Youth, Activism, and the Struggle for Human Rights” through partnerships with community leaders, youth leaders, and teachers with the largest most diverse participation in the history of the institution.
• Accelerated the number of student participants by 25%.
• Capitalized on media strategies/campaigns for the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute program resulting in a 30% increase in community participation.
• Achieved an increase in online participation by 50% through a multi-level media strategy.
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The Birmingham News – Birmingham, AL | 6 years
Education Manager
The principal newspaper in Central Alabama with a circulation of 100,000 in 15 counties.
Generated student-centered academic content leading to increased numbers of participating schools by 30% through effective relationship building and communication with teachers, city council members, businesses, and administrators.
• Created Advisory Board consisting of first adapters in teaching, administration, media and local businesses to identify and track emerging trends in education.
• Bolstered teacher involvement by 70% through the implementation of teacher and administrator training via workshops and presentations on socially and culturally relevant content.
• Amplified the number of Birmingham City School student’s participation by 47%.
• Planned and executed outreach increasing the number of Birmingham City School student’s participation by 47% through outreach strategies.
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Miss Porter’s School, Farmington, CT
History Instructor