Board of Directors
Join our Board!
The Black Heritage Trail of New Hampshire (BHTNH) is seeking passionate, committed, and visionary individuals to join our Board of Directors. As a board member, you will play a critical role in guiding the mission of BHTNH to honor, celebrate, and share New Hampshire's rich African American history. This is an exciting opportunity to contribute to meaningful initiatives that educate, inspire, and bring communities together.
We are looking for individuals who:
*Have a passion for preserving and promoting African American history and culture.
* Bring diverse perspectives and experiences that reflect the communities we serve.
* Are willing to engage in strategic planning, fundraising, and outreach efforts.
* Can commit to attending regular board meetings and participating in events and activities.
* Nominees should have experience in one or more of the following areas: community engagement, nonprofit leadership, marketing, education, fundraising, finance, or legal expertise. Prior board experience is welcomed but not required.
How to Nominate: To submit a nomination (self-nominations are encouraged), please complete the online interest form by November 14, 2024. We look forward to welcoming new members ready to help us build a stronger, more inclusive future.
Officers
Shari Robinson (President)
Assistant Vice Provost, Student Life
University of New Hampshire
Dover, New Hampshire
Tanisha Johnson (Vice-President)
Director, Child and Family Services, Community Action Partnership of Strafford County
Exeter, New Hampshire
Katie Merrow, (Treasurer)
Former Vice President for Community Impact, New Hampshire Charitable Foundation Concord, New Hampshire
Anthony Delyani (Secretary)
Director, Corporate Dept.
McLane Middleton Law FirmNorth Hampton, New Hampshire
Directors
Selina Choate
Associate Director, McNair Scholars Program, University of New Hampshire
Manchester, New Hampshire
Stanford Cross
Loan Officer, Bangor Bank, Portsmouth, NH
Exeter, New Hampshire
John Deziel
Immigration Law and Regulatory Content Expert, US Student & Exchange Visitor Program
Dennis Britton
Associate Professor, Medieval and Early Modern Literatures, University of British Columbia
Vancouver, BC, Canada
Dwight Davis
Owner, Senior Helpers New Hampshire
National Basketball Retired Players Association
Stratham, New Hampshire
Thaddeus Guldbrandson
Dean of the School of Sciences & Humanities, Professor of Anthropology, Wentworth Institute of Technology. Boston, Massachusetts
Andres Mejia
Director, Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice, Exeter Cooperative School District
Exeter, New Hampshire
Bonita Betters-Reed
Professor Emerita, Simmons University Business School
Wilmont, New Hampshire
Arul Mahadevan
Medical Director, Radiation Oncology Dept., Wentworth Douglass Hospital
Madbury, New Hampshire
L. Chris Matthews
Associate Professor of Business Administration and Management, Director of University Honors Program Southern New Hampshire University
Hooksett, New Hampshire
David Watters
New Hampshire State Senate
Dover, New Hampshire
Valerie Cunningham (Emerita)
Author and Founder of Portsmouth Black Heritage Trail
Portsmouth, New Hampshire
Angela Matthews (Emerita)
Retired, Organizational Consulting
Rollinsford, New Hampshire
Freddye Ross (Emerita)
Vice President, Seacoast NAACP
Dover, New Hampshire
Robert Thompson (Emerita)
Founding President. Founder and Pastor of Sovereign Souls Fellowship Church. Exeter, New Hampshire
Staff
JerriAnne Boggis
Executive Director
Dariya Steele
Tour and Speaker Outreach Coordinator
Gina Bowker
Operations Manager
Nora Lewis
Development Associate
Barbara Ward
Senior Grant Writer/Education Coordinator
Terry Robinson
Marketing Specialist
Advisory Committee
The Black Heritage Trail of New Hampshire created a scholarly advisory committee to help shape its intellectual agenda, exhibition content and programming.
Dr. Lezli Baskerville
President National Association for Equal Opportunity in Higher Ed.
Maryellen Burke
Dr. Daryl Cumber Dance
Author; retired professor University of Richmond
Joanne Dowdell
Dr. John Franklin, Jr.
National Museum of African American History and Culture
Warrington Hudlin
Director, Producer, Actor
Volunteers
The Black Heritage Trail of New Hampshire is managed by a full time paid executive director with assistance from a group of fifty dedicated volunteers.
Their contributions of time and talent enable the Black Heritage Trail of New Hampshire to be an invaluable resource for providing information and celebrating Black history, life, and culture in New Hampshire.
Tour Guides
Sankofa Scholars are educated about the history and culture of Africans in America and they pursue a deeper understanding of racism. A BHTNH Sankofa Scholar is:
• aware of current language and controversies related to race and anti-racism;
• familiar with the historical presence of Black people in New England since the colonial era;
• knowledgeable about the participation of New Hampshire and Maine in the Atlantic Slave Trade;
• conversant on topics related to the lives of specific Black people and communities in New Hampshire;
• engaged in related educational activities as a learner and as a teacher.
Nur Shoop: Lead Tour Guide
Thirst for Freedom: From NH's Slave Trade to its Civil Rights Movement; Portsmouth Greenbook Tour
Valerie Fagin
Ain't She a Woman: Let Me Tell You Her Story
Dariya Steele
Lives Bound Together: The Washingtons & Ona Marie Judge in NH
Angela Matthews
A Quest to Thrive: Economics of Slavery & Portsmouth's Early Black Community; Black Soldiers and the American Revolution
Todd Warfield
Exploring Dover's Black History
Saniyah Bolton
Port of Entry: Boys and Girls for Sale
Dan Comly
On Saturday Night We Were Husband and Wife: The Black Family
Stanford Cross
Prince Whipple and the 1779 Petition
