Our Team
Full-time Team
Charli Cooksey
Founder & CEO
Charlene Mack
Vice President of Movement Building
Joey Saunders
Director of Policy & Systems Change
Gloria Nolan
Lead Community Organizer
Allison Gibbs
Director of Leadership Development & Special Projects
Yoni Blumberg
Director of Entrepreneurship & Strategic Initiatives
Edgar Payano
Entrepreneur Development and Outreach Lead
Vanessa Pimblott
Operations and Team Development Lead
Auriel Kirkland
Public Policy Fellow
Cara Pugh
Organizer & Strategic Initiatives Lead
Camille Greer
Director of Organizational Sustainability
SUPPORT TEAM
We are fortunate to work with a talented group of extended team members, who help drive our work.
Rebecca Kazdoy
Program & Evaluation Assistant
Jessica Wernli
Power-Building Academy Facilitator &
Curriculum Designer
Nidhi Krishnan
Research Fellow
Emily Brennan
Program Operations Associate
Keisha Mabry Haymore
Entrepreneur In Residence
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Roo Yawitz
Claudia Mendoza
Crystal Martin
Michael Butler
Abdul-Kaba Abdulla
April Fulstone
Ryan Strode
PARTNERS
Leadership for Educational Equity
Deaconess Center for Child Well-Being
National Conference for Community and Justice of Metropolitan St. Louis
Urban Strategies
Catholic Campaign for Human Development
East St. Louis Center
Missouri Foundation for Health
Black Futures Lab
St. Louis Promise Zone
Incarnate Word Foundation
MEMBERSHIP
St. Louis Equity in
Entrepreneurship Collective
MOVE
Metropolitan Congregations United