Amelia Vigil (She/Her, They/Them)

Teaching Artist in Residence

Amelia Vigil is a San Franciscan, Two-Spirit, Urban-Indigenous/Xicano, pun-loving and playful, performance artist, poet, outdoor educator, rock climber, and identical twin. They have been involved with Bay Area American Indian Two-Spirit (B.A.A.I.T-S) since 2013 and joined the Board of Directors in 2015. Her advocacy and support of Indigenous self-determination are a constant in their life. Recently appointed B.A.A.I.T-S Interim Executive Director, Amelia has earned two Associate degrees from Feather River Community College—Liberal Studies and Outdoor Recreational Leadership—as well as a Bachelor's in English from Mills College. Amelia spends her summers as an instructor with Girl Ventures, incorporating writing workshops and poetics along the way. In 2018 she walked 114 miles of the Nuumu Poyo with Indigenous Women Hikes. Amelia is a graduate student at the Institute for American Indian Arts as poet in the Masters of Fine Arts program.

Amelia's performance career includes her identical twin sister Amanda Vigil. They began performing together at the age of 3. Being twins made them stand out. Their first performances included their 5th-grade graduation, and their 8th-grade talent show. They moved into separate mediums, with Amelia pursuing poetics and Amanda pursuing film. Their collaboration spans over a decade, performing locally at SomArts, the DeYoung museum, the Makeout Room, and locations in Los Angeles, Berlin, and the Bay Area. Amelia was recently a featured poet at San Francisco's annual Day of the Dead Celebration and hosts poetry readings via their work with B.A.A.I.T-S.
You can reach them at amelia_vigil@chapter510.org

Giovanna Lomanto (She/Her)

Staff Teaching Artist

Giovanna Lomanto is a recent graduate of the University of California, Berkeley, where she obtained a Bachelor of Arts in English with a minor in Creative Writing. Her academic and extracurricular experiences lie largely in community engagement and the social justice of literacy (specifically through poetry).

Giovanna published her first collection of poetry no body in particular with a Sacramento-based publisher, Scrambler Books. Her second collection jupiter fell out the sky last night was published in July 2021 through Bound to Brew. Additionally, she has been featured in The Elevation Review, KALW, the International Flor y Canto Literary Festival, and other multimedia spheres.

You can reach her at giovanna_lomanto@chapter510.org

Jahan Khalighi (He/Him)

Director of Programs | Teaching Artist

Jahan Khalighi is a poet, educator, and community arts organizer. He has been working with youth in the Bay Area as a teaching artist, enrichment coordinator, program manager, youth mentor, and community event organizer since 2006.

He is an alumnus of June Jordan's Poetry For The People program at UC Berkeley under the mentorship of Aya De Leon, and a former member of the Eugene Poetry Slam Team. He graduated from the University of Oregon with a major in English Literature.

As a teaching artist for California Poets in the Schools, he has facilitated creative writing workshops at public schools and juvenile halls across the greater Bay Area. As Director of Programs for Chapter 510, he works side by side with teachers and youth to develop innovative creative writing and publishing programs that center the voices of Black, brown, and queer youth.

As a spoken-word artist, he has been a featured performer at TEDxSonomaCounty, YBCA, Mission Cultural Center, Bioneers Conference Trails, and Vistas and Esalen Institute. His work has been published in Whoa Nelly Press online journal.

You can reach him at jahan_khalighi@chapter510.org

Janet Heller (She/Her)

Co-Founder | Executive Director | Director of Education | Teaching Artist

Janet Heller is an Oakland poet, teaching artist, community arts leader, and queer Jew.

She founded Chapter 510 in 2013 to provide space for Black, brown, and queer youth to write and share their stories. She was awarded the Jefferson Award for Public Service in 2018. Additionally, she founded the San Francisco WritersCorps and during her tenure built an award-winning, highly respected literary arts program. Janet is also a published poet and essayist.

She graduated from Tulane University (BA in English) and Florida State University (MFA in Creative Writing) and has been teaching creative writing for 30 years. She received a National Endowment for the Arts fellowship in 1994, which brought her to the Bay Area. She is the proud mom of two creative kids who write with confidence and joy.

You can reach her at janet_heller@chapter510.org

Margie Chardiet (She/Her)

Program & Publications Director | Teaching Artist

Margie Chardiet is a poet with a background in social work and a particular interest in the health and creative advancement of youth. In addition to serving a year with AmeriCorps as a family advocate for parenting teens, she has waitressed in various ancient restaurants and worked as a case manager for homeless families. Her poetry has been featured or is forthcoming in the New Haven Review, The Briar Cliff Review, and Meridian.

You can reach her at margie_chardiet@chapter510.org

Perla Yasmeen Mélendez (She/Her)

Creative Director | Teaching Artist

Perla was born and raised in the Silverlake and Echo Park neighborhoods of Los Angeles, California. She comes from a long familial and community line of curious, industrious, and rebellious artists.

Perla's youth was enriched by the multitude of literary experiences that she was so fortunate to take part in, including studying under poet and mentor Steve Abee, working alongside and looking up to many brilliant literary minds at her after-school job at Skylight Books, participating in WriteGirl's phenomenal youth mentoring and publishing program, and a whole summer's worth of writing workshops at CSSSA at CalArts.

Perla holds BAs in Book Art and Creative Writing from UCSB's College of Creative Studies; a degree in Culinary Arts from Escuela Gourmet ARCAM in Heredia, Costa Rica; and an MFA in Book Art and Creative Writing from Mills College.

A proud product of the community arts, Perla is deeply honored to spend every day empowering Oakland youth to write with confidence and joy alongside her wonderful Chapter 510 dream team.

You can reach her at perla_meléndez@chapter510.org

Tavia Stewart (She/Her)

Co-Founder | Teaching Artist | Creative Director

Tavia Stewart is a writer, mom, activist, teacher, and magical thinker living in Oakland. She has nearly 20 years of experience running literary and community nonprofits. Prior to joining Chapter 510 as a co-founder, she co-ran National Novel Writing Month where she spent nine years building the organization’s Young Writers Program.

Previously Tavia interned; volunteered; and worked for 826 Valencia, McSweeney's Publishing, ZYZZYVA, and Watchword Press. She is a co-author of Ready, Set, Novel (Chronicle Books).

She is a proud 2020 YBCA Fellow, and the lucky mom of one highly energetic (and dramatic) nine-year-old humanoid.

You can reach her at tavia_stewart@chapter510.org

Tiffany Golden (She/Her)

Staff Teaching Artist

Tiffany Golden is an award-winning author who finds great joy in working with youth. She is the winner of the 2020 New Visions Award by Lee & Low Books and the inaugural Judith Tannenbaum Teaching Artist Fellowship. She received her MFA in Creative Writing from Spalding University. In addition to her own work, Tiffany has also worked with school-aged youth for nearly 20 years, supporting them in sharing their voices and visions.

You can reach her at tiffany_golden@chapter510.org

MARABET MORALES (SHE/HER)

Program & Community Manager

Marabet Morales Sikahall is a Guatemalan-American writer from Oakland. She is an alumna of the English program at Berkeley City College and the Creative Writing program at San Francisco State University. She is also an aluma of the Literary Arts program at Oakland School for the Arts. Currently, she is the editor and founder of an online literary journal, Diaspora Baby Blues. She has had her writing featured in The Acentos Review, Acción Latina's Tribute Chapook for Salvadoran writer Roque Dalton, Oakland Voices, and The Oaklandside, and Harvard University’s Palabritas. Additionally, she collaborated with KALW on a radio piece that aired in July 2019 for #MinorityMentalHealthAwarenessMonth.

You can reach her at marabet_morales@chapter510.org

vicky cassiS (tHEy/tHEm)

Bookkeeper

Vicky comes to Chapter 510 with lengthy experience of organizing within grassroots collectives, cooperative businesses, and nonprofits. They have learned to wear many hats through the desire to help groups grow, stay organized, and stay rooted in values. Vicky believes that the first part of building a world we want to live in is speaking reality into existence—hence their excitement to support youth who are fostering their confidence in writing.

When Vicky isn’t bookkeeping with Chapter 510, you can find them working at North Oakland Mutual Aid’s Free Store, working at the Prisoner Advocacy Network, at home being a full-time undergraduate student, or hanging with their dog and chickens in the garden.

You can reach them at vicky_cassis@chapter510.org

trey VErnon Keeve III (tHEy/tHEm)

Teaching Artist

Vernon Keeve III is a Virginia born writer that California molded into an educator. He lives and teaches in Oakland, CA. His purpose is to teach the next generation the importance of relaying their personal narratives, sharing their experiences, and taking control of their destinies. He holds a MFA from California College of the Arts, and a Masters in Teaching Literature from Bard College. Southern Migrant Mixtape (Nomadic Press, 2018) is his first book.

tania yadel quintana (tHEy/tHEm)

Programs & Communications Associate

Tania is a writer, organizer, and music lover born and raised in East Oakland. They are a UC Davis alumna with degrees in Gender, Women & Sexuality Studies, American Studies, and Psychology. Previously they served as a reader for Poetry Foundation's POETRY Magazine and as Programming Director for KDVS, a freeform radio station. They currently do civic engagement and advocacy work with El Tímpano. They are excited to grow and evolve with the many communities at Chapter 510!

You can reach them at tania_quintana@chapter510.org

DUANE HORTON (HE/HIM)

Staff Teaching Artist

Duane Horton is an Oakland based black queer fantasy and science fiction writer and educator. You can see his work appear in an anthology by Green Mountains Review, Sapphire Hues Press and he has a forthcoming story that will appear in Free Spirit literature magazine. He is currently working on a novel that explores his own identity as black and queer through the lens of fantasy. His work has been called wonderfully imaginative and captivating by literary agents and editors a like. He spends his time working on his craft, and when he isn’t he is probably playing his flute.

You can reach him at duane_horton@chapter510.org

elena botkin-levy (sHE/Her)

Staff Teaching Artist

Elena Botkin-Levy has worked at the intersection of audio production, education and media-making for over 20 years. With a focus on amplifying queer voices as a storyteller, Elena started in community radio and learned that holding space, asking questions and documenting is powerful. Drawn to oral histories as an opportunity to map our own narratives, she started Gems Oral Histories to support individuals and communities in collecting and preserving stories. Working with institutions such as Women's Audio Mission, YR Media (formerly Youth Radio), outLoud Radio, ZUMIX Radio, Elena has led educational programs in the audio sector with a focus on creativity, innovation and change-making. Elena is an alumni of Temple University where she studied in the Geography Urban Studies and Education departments.

You can reach her at elena_botkin-levy@chapter510.org

ashanté ford (She/Her)

Dept. of Make / Believe Steward

International journalist, singer, author and poet- Angel Ash is a walking scripture. She believes that the complexity of words woven through storytelling has the ability to heal and empower others.They laugh at the world’s distraught problems and abide by the four agreements. Angel Ash, also known as Ashanté Javona Ford, is a Black & Queer womanist who lives for love and understands that the route to divinity lies between the spirit and the soul. Their work can be found in these online literary magazines: Sad Girl Review, Sutro Review, The Voices Project, Pensive Journal, Petrichor Magazine and Every Woman Collection

You can reach her at ashante_ford@chapter510.org

ALEXANDRA CÉSPEDES KENT (She/Her)

Development Director

Alexandra first gained a love of writing in the eighth grade when she had a dynamic, engaging English teacher at her East San Jose public school.

Before starting at Chapter 510 in 2022, Alexandra was Development Director for one of the nation’s longest-running immigrant organizations. There, she helped double the operating budget and completed a capital campaign to build an affordable 48-student preschool in San Francisco. She also served at Encore.org as Director of The Purpose Prize, a $17 million campaign to identify, invest in, and bring together innovators over the age of 60 who are solving major social problems.

A graduate of Amherst College (BA in English Literature), Alexandra is on the board of the Catalino Tapia Scholarship Foundation and a past board member at CompassPoint. She and her husband, both of whom were born in Colombia, live in the East Bay with their teenage daughter and family dog.

You can reach her at alexandra_cespedes-kent@chapter510.org or 415-710-4277.

Azusa James (they/them)

Creative Associate

Azusa is a recent graduate of El Cerrito High School, and ardent lover of all things creative. They first learned of Chapter 510 through the nonprofit Girls Garage, hired to build a stage in the space, and started as a retail clerk in February 2022. Azusa is thrilled to be a part of Chapter 510 and their mission, and, most of all, strives to be thoughtful and compassionate. You can find them by following a trail of paper cranes.

(and also at:)

azusa_james@chapter510.org.

Julia LaChica (she/Them)

Dept. of Make/Believe Clerk

Julia is a queer, second generation Japanese/Filipino American, Oakland based Visual Artists, Designer and Activist. During her time illustrating for Chapter 510’s free writing workshop, Julia quickly fell in love with the mission, vision and core beliefs. As an ambassador and clerk, she continues to support Chapter 510 at the Department of Make Believe.

You can reach them at julia_lachica@chapter510.org.

naseem alavi (they/Them)

Program Associate

Naseem Alavi is an Iranian poet, translator, and maker born and raised in Oakland. They are a recent graduate of Kenyon College summa cum laude, where they completed an honors thesis on trans theory and translation practice as a decolonial strategy and creative methodology. They enjoy sharing their passion for stories with others through their teaching assistant work. Their poetry has appeared in Sweet Lit, and they are a recipient of the Herb Alpert Emerging Young Artist Award, as well as Kenyon College’s Summer Scholars Grant. When they aren’t writing, they can be found making puppets.

You can reach them at naseem_alavi@chapter510.org

Andrea (she/her)

Chapter 510 intern

Andrea is from Oakland, CA and is currently in her junior year at MetWest High School. She loves everything artistic from music and movies, to books and paintings. Through Chapter 510, she hopes to learn more about writing and non-profits.

Ashley B (she/her)

Department of Make/Believe Clerk

Ashley is a young aspiring multimedia visual artist from Oakland, California. Drawn to Chapter 510’s creative and youth uplifting cores, she looks forward to connecting a community through exploring creative writing and reading at Chapter 510 as a Department of Make/Believe clerk.

Hillary Brooks (she/they)

People and Administrative Director

Hillary Brooks is a nonprofit management stalwart, an only parent, a retired musician, an activist, a Berkeleyan, and the product of two Great Migrations (African American in the early 1900's and European Jewish in the 1800's). Hillary brings three decades of experience in powering POC-focused NPO infrastructure for sustainability and impact. Currently Board Treasurer for Essie Justice Group, Hillary previously worked as Associate Director at Power California, Finance and Operations Director at Forward Together, and nonprofit consultant. Despite diplomas from California Institute of the Arts and Boston University, she learned most of what she uses at Chapter 510 on the job at nonprofits. Hillary can often be found researching her family tree, listening to lefty podcasts, doom scrolling, volunteering for her radical synagogue Kehilla, doing yarn crafts, and binging smart TV shows with her teen.

You can find them at hillary_brooks@chapter510.org.

Jenny Ramos (She/her)

Associate And Intern

Jenny is a current High School Student at Latitude High, and a creative thinker who asks random questions. She learned about Chapter510 through some classmates Leila, who had worked together with Chapter510 for a writing project and wrote a book. Jenny is really excited to intern and to associate with Chapter510, and hopes to learn more about writing and being creative.

You can find her at jenny_ramos@chapter510.org.

GABRIEL CORTEZ (he/hIM)

Staff Teaching Artist

Gabriel Cortez is a Black biracial poet, educator, and organizer of Panamanian descent. His work has appeared in The New York Times, National Public Radio, The Rumpus, and The Breakbeat Poets Anthology Volume 4. He is a VONA fellow, #BARS workshop alum, Palette Poetry Emerging Poet winner, and recipient of the Judith Lee Stronach Baccalaureate Prize. Gabriel is a member of the artist collective, Ghostlines, and co-founder of The Root Slam, an award-winning poetry venue dedicated to inclusivity, justice, and artistic growth, as well as Write Home, a project working to challenge public perceptions of houselessness and shift critical resources to houseless Bay Area youth through spoken word poetry. From 2014 to 2023, Gabriel served as Lead Poet Mentor and Director of Programs at Youth Speaks, one of the world’s leading presenters of spoken word performance, education, and youth development programs. Gabriel proudly serves on the board of Performing Arts Workshop, a BIPOC-led Bay Area nonprofit organization established in 1965 dedicated to anti-racist practices, equalizing access to arts and arts education, and helping young people develop critical thinking, creative expression, Socio-Emotional Learning, and essential life skills.

You can reach him at gabriel_cortez@chapter510.org.

Bean Kaloni Tupou (they/them)

Operations Manager

With over 10 years of leadership experience, Bean is deeply passionate about building, retaining, and empowering diverse, strong teams, while promoting inclusive and inspirational hiring practices. Their work focuses on liberation, justice, and worker autonomy, shaping their approach to people processes and staff relations.

In previous roles, Bean contributed to the creation and leadership of a DEI committee for an 80-person San Francisco-based company, played a key role in rebuilding safety and operational infrastructure, and led multi-operational teams. They were also responsible for restaffing over one-third of the company’s workforce after the initial 2020 lockdown. Bean manages a wide range of infrastructure support and operations for Chapter 510. Their responsibilities encompass HR, people operations, finance, retail, space rental programming, facilities, and more.

A mixed-race Tongan musician born and raised in the Bay Area, Bean has been active in the local punk and indie music scene as both a musician and community organizer since 2007. They have organized numerous community events focused on uplifting BIPOC artists. Their most active project, Try the Pie, released its third full-length album, A Widen Burst of Forever, on Get Better Records in July 2022.

You can reach them at bean_tupou@chapter510.org.

Mae C (She/Her)

YAB Member

Mae Cham is 17 years old and a senior at Skyline High School. Her favorite artist is Mitski and her favorite part of being in YAB is writing and editing for the 510 Journal.

Citlali S (she/her)

YAB Member

Joaquin (They/Them)

YAB Member

Joaquin is a mixed race nonbinary person born and raised in Oakland. They are a 16 year old sophomore at the Valley View Charter homeschool program. Their favorite artist is their mom, and their favorite part of being in Chapter 510’s Youth Advisory Board is the entertaining dynamic that is present in the meetings.

Haiti S (she/her)

YAB Member

Haiti Savannah is 16 years old. She is in 10th grade and goes to Alameda High School. One of Haiti’s favorite artists is Nicola Yoon, as well as Vashati Harrison. Haiti’s favorite part of being in YAB is the overwhelming acceptance of creativity, and collaboration.

Mio G (he/him)

YAB Member

Mio is 15 years old. Mio goes to Berkeley High School and is in 9th grade. Mio likes Mitski. Mio’s favorite part of YAB is having a good community and many resources.

alex j (he/him)

YAB Member

Alex Jani is 14 years old. He is a 9th grader at Oakland Tech. His favorite band is Maneskin. Alex’s favorite part of YAB is the open mic.

raashid D (he/him)

YAB Member

Maya R (she/her)

YAB Member

Maya is a student at the Oakland School for the Arts. Her favorite kind of writing is poetry when she’s writing it herself, and she especially loves reading old old poems from years ago. Maya loves street wear/90’s street wear and baggy clothes, so her favorite items of clothing are cargo pants.

Gia (she/her)

YAB Member

Chapter 510 Board of Directors

Patti Birbiglia (She/Her)

Co-Chair

Patti is head of Growth Markets and Insights at LabCorp. Her experience includes executive positions with Sapient, frog design, and SYP, as well as consulting engagements with clients including IBM, Starbucks, Franklin Templeton, Cisco, and William Morris Endeavor Entertainment. In 2015 Patti spent a year as a FUSE Corps fellow, working with the San Francisco Department of Public Health to help patients better understand how to access and navigate healthcare. Patti is passionate about improving lives through increasing access to education and health care. She has an undergraduate degree from Colgate University and dual MBA degrees from UC Berkeley and Columbia University. She has been an Oaklander for more than 15 years and lives near Lakeshore with her husband Juan and son Vin.

Mike Armstrong (He/Him)

Co-Chair

Mike Armstrong is a managing director at GI Partners where he leads the tech & science real estate investment team. Before GI, he was the Chief Strategy Officer at Stream Data Centers. He was previously a Director at GI Partners where he led the acquisition of technology real estate and was a member of the investment committee. Before that, Mike was a Vice President at J.P. Morgan Asset Management in various investment roles focused on real estate and infrastructure. Early in his career, he worked in municipal finance and asset-backed finance roles at a financial guaranty company in New York.

Mike was born and [mostly] raised in San Diego and has family roots in Oakland. He has served on various nonprofit boards and is currently a trustee of the Oakland Museum of California. He is a CAIA charterholder and received his MBA from Stanford Graduate School of Business and is also a graduate of Harvard College, where he played football, track & field, and studied economics.

stephen switzer (He/Him)

Treasurer

Stephen is Finance Manager at NewSchools Venture Fund, a nonprofit venture philanthropy working to reimagine public education so that all children have the opportunity to succeed. Stephen also maintains an accounting consulting company, Rye Financial, and has for the last 13 years. With more than a decade of experience in helping non-profits stay successful, Stephen’s career has taken him from architectural foundations in NYC to NGOs in Tanzania to transgender rights in Oakland. He is excited to join the Chapter 510 board and contribute to their financial systems and planning. Stephen received his BA in geography from Middlebury College and is pursuing an MS in accounting at Saint Mary’s College. A native Arizonan, Stephen now resides in Oakland with his husband, daughter, and dog Chaga.

Joe Wetzel (He/Him)

Joe Wetzel is a partner at an international law firm. His practice focuses on litigating cutting-edge copyright and content-licensing issues for clients ranging from emerging companies to some of the biggest household names in media and technology.

Joe is a regular speaker on copyright and licensing issues in the U.S. and abroad. He has taught Music Law at the University of California Berkeley School of Law and has guest lectured at UC Hastings College of the Law and Santa Clara University School of Law.

Joe earned his A.B. in Political Science from Brown University in 2000 and his J.D. from the Fordham University School of Law in 2004, where he was the Senior Articles Editor for the Fordham Law Review. He lives in Orinda with his wife, two daughters, and the family dog.

Lauren Kerr (She/Her)

Secretary

Lauren Kerr is a creative director at Apple, and an Apple University Associate. Her career in advertising includes time at Publicis, McCann, Target Corporation, Gap, Inc., Banana Republic, Walmart, and many more. Lauren earned a B.A. History at UC Berkeley, and an M.A. Creative Writing at San Francisco State. She mentors diverse young advertising talent through the Marcus Gordon Project, and also serves as a Park Day School board trustee. Lauren lives in Oakland, has one amazing daughter, and when she’s not reading, writing, or puttering around the garden, she’s probably dancing salsa, samba, or Afro-Cuban folkloric.

Alexis Madrigal (He/Him)

Alexis Madrigal is a journalist in Oakland. He's a staff writer at The Atlantic. Previously, he was the editor-in-chief of Fusion and a staff writer at Wired. He's a visiting scholar at the Information School at UC Berkeley. He's working on a book about Oakland and racial capitalism in urban America. He's been a visiting scholar at UC Berkeley's Center for the Study of Technology, Science, and Medicine and an affiliate with Harvard's Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society.

Madrigal authored the book Powering the Dream: The History and Promise of Green Technology. He curates the 5it newsletter, which covers emerging technologies and social dynamics through history and a general appreciation that the future will be as weird as the present.

He was born in Mexico City, grew up in rural Washington state, and went to Harvard. Madrigal works out of the Murray Street Media Lab in Berkeley with novelist (and olive oil magnate) Robin Sloan.

Adrienne Timmons (She/Her)

Adrienne Timmons is an experienced conductor, music educator, and diversity, and inclusion leader of 19-plus years. She has a deep commitment to racial equity in education, tech, and music fields. Adrienne serves on executive and diversity leadership boards for local and major education organizations, including People of Color in Independent Schools of Northern California and Chapter 510. She was also the Director of Diversity for a K-12 private school in the Bay Area.

Adrienne has an extensive background in Jewish community organizing and education. As a Hebrew school teacher and a lay leader, she advocated for racial equity and inclusion in the Jewish world.. She is also a conductor of chamber ensembles and children’s choirs, and a private music teacher with an emphasis on wind instruments and vocals. She is passionate about music education and access to musical literacy for underrepresented minority students.

Adrienne holds a Bachelor’s of Music from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, and she lives in Oakland with her husband and four children.

Toni Dawkins (She/Her)

Toni Dawkins is a brand strategist at Apple. There, she has worked on several product and service launches and co-leads an internal organization dedicated to inclusion. Before calling Oakland home, Toni spent several years in New York City at advertising agencies with global clients like P&G and Visa. She is a proud alumna of ADCOLOR FUTURES and 4A’s MAIP, serving both organizations as a coach and mentor over the years.

Toni is a graduate of the University of Georgia, where she studied Advertising, Women's Studies and New Media. Born in Jamaica and raised in Georgia, Toni is passionate about the liberation, self-expression and well-being of Black and POC communities across the diaspora. She loves reading, creating and exploring the world, all while sharing her insights with anyone who will listen. She is a firm believer in magic.

Edward Hannemann (he/him)

Edward discovered the joy of after-school when his sixth grade teacher invited him to listen to music after class. Forty years later, while listening to the Oakland Youth Chorus, he was inspired and got involved. He served as OYC’s Board Secretary, and a year later, joined the East Bay Agency for Children's Board. Edward authored a successful Oakland Fund for Children and Youth grant proposal to bring music education back into Oakland Schools.

His OFCY involvement had a profound impact, which led Edward to seven years as a member of its Planning and Oversight Committee, in which he was active in all aspects of the commission's grant making. His advocacy for a school-based after-school initiative eventually resulted in its implementation.

Edward was a founding member of the Oakland Community After-Schools Alliance, serving as Chair for eight years. OCASA and its member organizations worked with the City to reauthorize OFCY, and mounted a successful electoral campaign to double OFCY funding. Edward served as the campaign treasurer.

A native New Yorker, Edward moved to California fifty years ago, and worked in the informations systems sector, designing, implementing, and managing complex computer-based business systems. He and his wife Anne have lived in Oakland since 1985. They swim four days a week and yearly attend about fifty music, opera, and dance performances.

Sean Mcclung (he/him)

Co-Chair

Sean McClung consults with organizations to advance innovative education models that empower students to lead a life of their own design. He served as Principal of MetWest High School in Oakland Unified, a long-standing partner of Chapter 510. After leading equity-focused, learner-centered public schools and networks around the Bay Area, Sean went on to XQ Institute where he facilitated a national network of leaders, organizations, students, and educators implementing community-driven designs to rethink high school.

Sean grew up in San Jose and early in his career fell in love with the Oakland community of students and families he met while operating an after-school tutoring program. After founding an international preschool in Beijing and teaching in New York and Denver, Sean returned to earn his administrative credential as a New Leaders resident in Oakland Unified. He lives in Oakland with his wife and son. On weekends you might find him running the trails in Redwood Regional Park.

Marnie Webb (She/Her)

Marnie Webb has spent her career working with communities around the world to develop technology solutions that help them achieve their desired impact, influenced by human centered design principles and methodologies from social work and international development. For more than 30 years, Marnie has been putting teams and solutions together that can create big impacts. Marnie is the Chief Community Impact Officer for TechSoup and serves as the CEO of Caravan Studios, a division of TechSoup. In addition to Chapter 510, she serves on the board of Safe Place International, a non-profit dedicated to the needs of LGBTQI refugees worldwide.

Dorothy Lazard (she/her)

Dorothy Lazard is the former head librarian of the Oakland History Center (OHC), a research unit of the Oakland Public Library which serves (unofficially) as the city’s archives. During her twelve years at the OHC, Dorothy provided the community with quality reference service, interesting exhibits and public lectures, and blogs highlighting the history of Oakland and the East Bay. In this position she worked with students of all levels, college professors, novelists, real estate developers, filmmakers, artists, and genealogists. Before working at the Oakland Public Library, she managed two small campus libraries at UC Berkeley where she received her Master’s degree in Library and Information Studies in 1983. She also holds a Master of Fine Arts degree in Creative Nonfiction from Goucher College (Baltimore, MD).

Now retired, she has turned her attention to writing full-time. She writes regularly for the Oakland Heritage Alliance News. Her upcoming memoir, “What You Don’t Know Will Make a Whole New World,” about growing up in San Francisco and Oakland in the 1960s and 1970s, was published by Heyday Books in May 2023.

GABREIL CORTEZ (HE/HIM)

Staff Teaching Artist

APUR PATEL (He/Him)

Treasurer

Apur Patel is Vice President & Associate General Counsel at Clorox where he leads a legal team responsible for supporting Clorox’s strategic partnerships and alliances, intellectual property, technology transformation, commercial contracts and legal operations. Prior to joining Clorox, he held positions in the legal departments at Cisco, Cargill, and UnitedHealth Group focusing on technology, intellectual property, international and legal operations. He graduated from Colgate University and received his law degree from Washington & Lee University School of Law.

Apur has a long history of community service: he has served as the Co-Chair and the Interim Executive Director of Twin Cities Diversity in Practice, a non-profit dedicated to attracting, recruiting, retaining and advancing attorneys of colour in the Minneapolis/St. Paul community. Apur was also appointed to serve on the Minneapolis Commission for Civil Rights advocating for and enforcing the city’s civil rights ordinance. In addition, he has been a member of the board at St. Andrew's Episcopal School in Saratoga, CA and a board member and girls hockey coach with the Minneapolis Hockey Association.

Apur went to high school in Oakland, and has recently returned to the Bay Area after more than 35 years. He lives in Orinda with his wife Liz, his two children Ruhi and Juan Carlos, and their (somewhat unruly) dog, Hobbes.

James "Jamie" Sampson (He/Him)

Jamie Sampson is Vice President at iHeartMedia where he leads partnerships in the innovation sector, bringing to life the concerts and podcasts distributed by iHeart in the metaverse, VR, and AR. He has spent 20+ years at the intersection of content and technology, leading Independent Record Label partnerships at Meta prior to joining iHeartMedia, and leading the Label Partnerships team at Pandora before that. He began his career as an artist manager, working for several years with indie rock band My Morning Jacket, and comedy duo Flight Of The Conchords. He graduated from NYU and received an MBA from Baruch College.

Jamie moved to the East Bay from New York in 2011 with his wife Cia. They live in Kensington with their two boys, Nicholas (10), and Max (6), and his very good dog Ziggy. You can often find him at a concert or at one of the many excellent restaurants in Oakland and Berkeley.

TOVA RICARDO (She/Her)

Tova Ricardo is an award-winning writer, spoken word poet, social media content creator, and Jewish community advocate and professional.

Ricardo’s extensive background in writing, journalism, digital media, and community engagement has elevated her voice into public platforms, including her term as the 2015 Oakland Youth Poet Laureate, an award recipient by the American Jewish Press Association, and with bylines and features in New York Jewish Week, Jewish Journal, the San Francisco Chronicle, and Jewish News of Northern California.

Ricardo’s investment in storytelling, uplifting Jewish communities of color, Jewish empowerment, speaking about the intersections of being Black and Jewish has garnered her lay leadership roles in major American Jewish organizations, including Hillel International, UJA-Federation of New York, and Jewish Federations of North America. Ricardo regularly elevates the above-mentioned themes on her social media platform, @tovathepoet and as a digital producer with the Tel Aviv Institute, a laboratory focused on uplifting Jewish voices with social media driven strategies.

Ricardo graduated from Columbia University in 2021, where she studied English and Sociology and was a team finalist in the international collegiate poetry slam competition, CUPSI. Currently, she is the West Coast Community Manager at JDC Entwine, the young adult branch of the world’s largest Jewish humanitarian aid organization, the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee.

Amelia Vigil (She/Her, They/Them)

Teaching Artist in Residence

Giovanna Lomanto (She/Her)

Staff Teaching Artist

You can reach her at giovanna_lomanto@chapter510.org

Jahan Khalighi (He/Him)

Director of Programs | Teaching Artist

You can reach him at jahan_khalighi@chapter510.org

Janet Heller (She/Her)

Co-Founder | Executive Director | Director of Education | Teaching Artist

Janet Heller is an Oakland poet, teaching artist, community arts leader, and queer Jew.

You can reach her at janet_heller@chapter510.org

Margie Chardiet (She/Her)

Program & Publications Director | Teaching Artist

You can reach her at margie_chardiet@chapter510.org

Perla Yasmeen Mélendez (She/Her)

Creative Director | Teaching Artist

Perla was born and raised in the Silverlake and Echo Park neighborhoods of Los Angeles, California. She comes from a long familial and community line of curious, industrious, and rebellious artists.

A proud product of the community arts, Perla is deeply honored to spend every day empowering Oakland youth to write with confidence and joy alongside her wonderful Chapter 510 dream team.

You can reach her at perla_meléndez@chapter510.org

Tavia Stewart (She/Her)

Co-Founder | Teaching Artist | Creative Director

Previously Tavia interned; volunteered; and worked for 826 Valencia, McSweeney's Publishing, ZYZZYVA, and Watchword Press. She is a co-author of Ready, Set, Novel (Chronicle Books).

She is a proud 2020 YBCA Fellow, and the lucky mom of one highly energetic (and dramatic) nine-year-old humanoid.

You can reach her at tavia_stewart@chapter510.org

Tiffany Golden (She/Her)

Staff Teaching Artist

MARABET MORALES (SHE/HER)

Program & Community Manager

vicky cassiS (tHEy/tHEm)

Bookkeeper

You can reach them at vicky_cassis@chapter510.org

trey VErnon Keeve III (tHEy/tHEm)

Teaching Artist

tania yadel quintana (tHEy/tHEm)

Programs & Communications Associate

You can reach them at tania_quintana@chapter510.org

DUANE HORTON (HE/HIM)

Staff Teaching Artist

You can reach him at duane_horton@chapter510.org

elena botkin-levy (sHE/Her)

Staff Teaching Artist

You can reach her at elena_botkin-levy@chapter510.org

ashanté ford (She/Her)

Dept. of Make / Believe Steward

You can reach her at ashante_ford@chapter510.org

ALEXANDRA CÉSPEDES KENT (She/Her)

Development Director

You can reach her at alexandra_cespedes-kent@chapter510.org or 415-710-4277.

Azusa James (they/them)

Creative Associate

(and also at:)

azusa_james@chapter510.org.

Julia LaChica (she/Them)

Dept. of Make/Believe Clerk

You can reach them at julia_lachica@chapter510.org.

naseem alavi (they/Them)

Program Associate

You can reach them at naseem_alavi@chapter510.org

Andrea (she/her)

Chapter 510 intern

Ashley B (she/her)

Department of Make/Believe Clerk

Hillary Brooks (she/they)

People and Administrative Director

You can find them at hillary_brooks@chapter510.org.

Jenny Ramos (She/her)

Associate And Intern

You can find her at jenny_ramos@chapter510.org.

GABRIEL CORTEZ (he/hIM)

Staff Teaching Artist

You can reach him at gabriel_cortez@chapter510.org.

Bean Kaloni Tupou (they/them)

Operations Manager

Bean Kaloni Tupou is a mixed-race Tongan musician born and raised in the Bay Area. They have been active in the local punk and indie music scene as a musician and community organizer since 2007. They're most active project right now, Try the Pie, released their third full length album on Get Better Records titled, 'A Widen Burst of Forever' in July of 2022.

You can reach them at bean_tupou@chapter510.org.

Ya’ceen (She/Her)

YAB Member

Ya’ceen is 15 and homeschooled. She takes classes at Laney Community College where she will be receiving her associate’s degree by the time she graduates high school. Her favorite artist is Immanuel Kant (one will debate that philosophers aren’t artists…) Her favorite part of YAB is when we get to have fun conversations with one another that make the whole room light up.

Citlali S (she/her)

YAB Member

Joaquin (They/Them)

YAB Member

Haiti S (she/her)

YAB Member

Mio G (he/him)

YAB Member

Mio is 15 years old. Mio goes to Berkeley High School and is in 9th grade. Mio likes Mitski. Mio’s favorite part of YAB is having a good community and many resources.

alex j (he/him)

YAB Member

Alex Jani is 14 years old. He is a 9th grader at Oakland Tech. His favorite band is Maneskin. Alex’s favorite part of YAB is the open mic.

raashid D (he/him)

YAB Member

You can contact him at rdilshad@chapter510.org.

Maya R (she/her)

YAB Member

Gia (she/her)

YAB Member

Chapter 510 Board of Directors

Patti Birbiglia (She/Her)

Co-Chair

Mike Armstrong (He/Him)

Co-Chair

Mike Armstrong is a managing director and the CFO at Stream Data Centers. Prior to Stream, he launched Percheron Real Estate Partners. Based in Oakland, Percheron Real Estate Partners is focused on making smart investments in commercial real estate and providing advisory and consulting services to owners, lenders, and users. He was previously a Director at GI Partners where he was the head of technology real estate acquisitions and a member of the investment committee. Before that, Mike was a Vice President at J.P. Morgan Asset Management in various investment roles focused on real estate and infrastructure. Early in his career, he worked in municipal finance and asset-backed finance roles at a financial guaranty company in New York.

Mike was born and (mostly) raised in San Diego and has family roots in Oakland. He has served on various nonprofit boards and is the past board chair of an Oakland-based youth/education organization. He received his MBA from Stanford Graduate School of Business and is also a graduate of Harvard College, where he played football and studied economics.

stephen switzer (He/Him)

Treasurer

Joe Wetzel (He/Him)

Lauren Kerr (She/Her)

Secretary

Lauren Kerr is a creative director at Apple, and an Apple University Associate. Her career in advertising includes time at Publicis, McCann, Target Corporation, Gap, Inc., Banana Republic, Walmart, and many more. Lauren earned a BA History at UC Berkeley, and an MFA in Creative Writing at San Francisco State. She mentors diverse young advertising talent through the Marcus Gordon Project, and also serves as a Park Day School board trustee.Lauren lives in Oakland and has one amazing daughter. When she’s not reading, writing, or puttering around the garden; she’s probably dancing salsa, samba, or Afro-Cuban folkloric.

Alexis Madrigal (He/Him)

He was born in Mexico City, grew up in rural Washington state, and went to Harvard. Madrigal works out of the Murray Street Media Lab in Berkeley with novelist (and olive oil magnate) Robin Sloan.

Adrienne Timmons (She/Her)

Adrienne holds a Bachelor’s of Music from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, and she lives in Oakland with her husband and four children.

Toni Dawkins (She/Her)

Edward Hannemann (he/him)

Sean Mcclung (he/him)

Co-Chair

Marnie Webb (She/Her)

Dorothy Lazard (she/her)

anna kingsley (she/her)

Staff Teaching Artist

Anna is a printmaker and book binder. Since 2012 she has partnered with Chapter 510 designing and implementing book making projects to complement the literature birthed by student writers. She has brought portable tabletop presses, Gocco printers, needles and thread, and more to school sites and taught students how to use them for their projects. For public events at the writing center Anna has helped build a bridge between modern day publishing and traditional printmaking by teaching visitors how to print a broadside on an antique printing press.

Anna owns and operates Brick Factory Designs, a small letterpress studio and bindery where she prints custom work and commissioned bindings as well as producing her own line of sketchbooks and other paper goods. Her own work centers on harnessing and highlighting the creative process and encourages all her students to see the beauty of their work in progress. She holds a BA in American History and a dual credential Multiple Subject - Ed. Specialist Mod/Severe Disabilities. She is queer and proudly Assyrian American.

James "Jamie" Sampson (He/Him)

Jamie is Vice President, Digital Distribution & Platform Partnerships at iHeartMedia. Chapter 510’s mission resonates for him because he knows youth can gain “immense confidence and pride from being a published writer or podcaster.”

Jamie has long had a career at the intersection of arts and business, having gotten his early start as co-manager for musical acts Flight Of The Conchords & My Morning Jacket. He has also worked at Pandora and Facebook.

Jamie holds an MBA from Baruch College and a BA in Music from New York University.

TOVA RICARDO (She/Her)

Tova Ricardo is an award-winning writer, spoken word poet, social media content creator, and Jewish community advocate and professional. Tova is the only member of the Chapter 510 board who is also an alumna. She is thrilled to bring her expertise to Chapter 510, which she says is: “an intentionally loving environment where Oakland youth flourish.”

Tova’s extensive background in writing, journalism, digital media, and community engagement has elevated her voice into public platforms, including her term as the 2015 Oakland Youth Poet Laureate, an award recipient by the American Jewish Press Association, and with bylines and features in New York Jewish Week, Jewish Journal, the San Francisco Chronicle, and Jewish News of Northern California.

Ricardo’s investment in storytelling, uplifting Jewish communities of color, Jewish empowerment, and speaking about the intersections of being Black and Jewish has garnered her lay leadership roles in major American Jewish organizations, including Hillel International, UJA-Federation of New York, and Jewish Federations of North America. Ricardo regularly elevates the themes above on her social media platform, @tovathepoet and as a digital producer with the Tel Aviv Institute, a laboratory focused on uplifting Jewish voices with social media driven strategies.

Tova is a graduate of Columbia University.

paul frankle (he/him)

Paul is a passionate communications leader and believes that strong writing is paramount to closing the academic achievement gap and creating a path to future career success. He currently serves as Vice President, Corporate Affairs at Link Logistics, a leading operator of last-mile logistics real estate. Previously, Paul was Director, Corporate Communications at Prologis. Before that, he was a Vice President at Sard Verbinnen & Co (now FGS Global), a strategic communications advisory firm.

Paul’s previous volunteering experience has focused on education nonprofits in the Bay Area, including supporting Facing History and Ourselves and ALearn (now Silicon Valley Education Foundation).

Paul received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Johns Hopkins University with a major in International Studies and a minor in French Cultural Studies. He studied abroad at Sciences Po, Paris and is proficient in French. Paul lives in Oakland with his husband, Derrick, and two cats. In his free time, he enjoys playing tennis and exploring the Bay Area food scene.

Tyrone Ross (he/him)

Tyrone Ross works on Cisco’s Corporate Strategy team and brings prior professional experiences across business strategy, operations, and program management. He also served on the review committee for Cisco’s Community Impact Grant program. Tyrone joined Chapter 510 because he is passionate about the power of storytelling to improve society and bring people together.

Growing up in Maryland, Tyrone developed a lifelong commitment to community service as an Eagle Scout. Since then, he has held leadership roles in nonprofits dedicated to advancing STEM education and diversifying tech. Tyrone is a Marine Corps veteran and has an MBA from The University of Chicago Booth School of Business. He also has an MS in Industrial & Systems Engineering from San Jose State University, and a BS in Human Factors Psychology from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.

Nicole Walter (she/her)

Nicole Walter is a research and evaluation specialist with over a decade of experience helping mission-driven organizations use data and storytelling to deepen impact and drive change. She has managed evaluation, communication and strategy work for global initiatives at USAID, the World Bank and Meta - tackling complex issues from public health to climate resilience and housing justice. Nicole excels at reframing and restructuring information to align with desired outcomes, a strength she’s excited to bring to Chapter 510 to clearly demonstrate the organization’s value to the community and help it achieve its goals.

Nicole is deeply passionate about the transformative power of writing as a tool for connection, growth, and emotional development. She knows how powerful it is when young people have space to express themselves authentically and is committed to helping them recognize that vulnerability is a strength—not a weakness. As a creative and persistent thinker, she thrives in dynamic environments and is eager to support Chapter 510 in building a world where every young person feels seen, heard, and empowered. She is based in Oakland and holds degrees from UCLA and UC Berkeley.