Courageous Conversations: Leaning in for Change

Presenters Biographies 

Sunday, February 5, 2023

"Before European Contact": Changing The Ways We Present Our History

Kabria Baumgartner is a historian of the nineteenth-century United States, specializing in the history of education, African American women’s and gender history, and New England studies. She is currently Dean’s Associate Professor of History and Africana Studies; Associate Director of Public History. She is the author of In Pursuit of Knowledge: Black Women and Educational Activism in Antebellum America, which tells the story of Black girls and women who fought for their educational rights in the nineteenth-century United States. Her book has won four prizes, including the prestigious 2021 American Educational Research Association’s Outstanding Book Award.

Anne Jennison is a traditional Native American storyteller and historian. While Anne's storytelling skills have been polished by more than 30 years of experience sharing Indigenous lesson stories with audiences of all kinds, she also believes that her growth and development as a human being has been deeply influenced by internalizing the content of the Northeastern lesson stories that she tells. With Master Degrees in both Storytelling and History, Anne also brings a wealth of cultural and historical knowledge to enrich her retelling of timeless Northeast Woodlands Native American stories. Anne is listed on the New Hampshire Traditional Artists Roster as a traditional Native American storyteller & craftsperson. Additionally, Anne is the current Chair of the NH Commission on Native American Affairs and is also a member of the Indigenous NH Collaborative Collective, an affiliate faculty member for the University of New Hampshire Native American and Indigenous Studies (NAIS) Minor, and a co-creator of the "People of the Dawnland" interpretive exhibit about the Abenaki/Wabanaki peoples at Strawbery Banke Museum in Portsmouth, NH

Dr. Akeia de Barros Gomes is the Senior Curator of Maritime Social Histories at Mystic Seaport Museum, she is the Director of the Frank C. Munson Institute of American Maritime Studies, and is a Visiting Scholar at Brown University’s Center for the Study of Slavery and Justice. Akeia is responsible for working on curatorial projects of race, Indigenous histories, ethnicity and diversity in New England's Maritime activities. She is lead curator for the 2024 Mystic Seaport exhibition, Entwined: The Sea, Sovereignty and Freedom, a multi-year Mellon Foundation-funded project that reimagines the history of the founding and development of New England through Indigenous, African, and African American maritime narratives. Dr. de Barros Gomes has engaged in archaeological fieldwork on the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Reservation in Mashantucket, CT; in the US Virgin Islands and in Newport, RI. She has engaged in Anthropological fieldwork in the US Virgin Islands, in Benin, and in New Orleans. Akeia was professor of American Studies and Professor of Psychology and Human Development at Wheelock College from 2008 to 2017. She was Curator of Social History at the New Bedford Whaling Museum from 2017 to 2021 before taking her position at Mystic Seaport Museum.

Moderator: Meghan C.L. Howey is a Professor in Anthropology and the Director of the Center for the Humanities at UNH. She leads the Great Bay Archaeological Survey (GBAS), a community-engaged and interdisciplinary archaeology program focused on developing new understandings of the lived experiences as well as dramatic ecological impacts of early colonialism in New England. GBAS is done in close collaboration with regional Native American communities to help ensure long overlooked stories from the colonial era are brought forward. An anthropological archaeologist specializing in landscape archaeology and interdisciplinary approaches to deep-time coupled human natural systems, Howey received her B.A. (2000) from the University of Delaware and her M.A. (2002) and Ph.D. (2006) from the University of Michigan. She has conducted research in North America, Europe, and East Africa and has expertise in geospatial analysis (GIS) and ethnohistoric research.

Sunday, February 12, 2023 

The Paradox of Education for Black & Brown Children

Sarah Robinson is the Education Justice Campaign Director for Granite State Progress. Sarah is an alumna of the 2021 cohort of Leadership NH and a Co-Chair for the NAACP’s Education Committee. A life-long resident of the Granite State, she has been deeply committed to the local advancement of social justice, and founded and co-organized the Concord chapter of Showing Up for Racial Justice in 2015. Previously, Robinson acted as the Senior Project Manager for Reaching Higher NH (2019-2022) where she gained in depth knowledge around education policy and focused on community engagement.

Erin Bakkom is President of the Association of Portsmouth Teachers and has taught 8th-grade American history at Portsmouth Middle School for 22 years. She has a master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction from Chapman University. She earned her undergraduate degree from Northern Arizona State University and focused on social sciences in secondary education. Bakkom has been involved with several projects with the Black Heritage Trail of New Hampshire, including the curriculum to accompany the film Shadows Fall North, and is the author of a play written for classroom use on the first effort to integrate the Wentworth-by-the-Sea Hotel following the passage of the Civil Rights Act.

Judy DeRosier is currently a PhD student in the Teaching of Social Studies program at Teachers College Columbia University. Her research centers on Afro-Caribbean immigrant youth and their experiences with “blackness” and othering in American schools. Currently, she is the Equity & Inclusion Project Manager for Manchester School District. She is a Fellow for the Center on History and Education at Teachers College Columbia University. More recently, she works with Black Heritage Trail of New Hampshire on school programs and curricula.

Moderator: Senator David Watters has worked as a professor of English, teaching American literature, New England studies, and New Hampshire literature and culture at the University of New Hampshire since 1978. Watters is frequently heard on New Hampshire Public Radio as a consultant for Granite State Stories and the Immigration Project. Deeply concerned about preserving our history, culture, arts, and environment, David served eight years as a trustee of the New Hampshire Historical Society, and on the board of directors for the New Hampshire Humanities, the Portsmouth Black Heritage Trail, Pontine Movement Theatre, Strawberry Banke Museum’s Center for the Study of Community, and the Robert Frost Farm.

Sunday, February 19, 2023 

Beyond 40 Acres: Land Ownership and Black Wealth

Christle Rawlins-Jackson is an artist, photographer, and poet who uses a variety of mediums as conduits for creative expression. She is an avid lover of history and genealogy, and is currently in the process of writing about her maternal ancestors, the Black Loyalist of Nova Scotia as well as the Nipmuc of Natick, Massachusetts. She is the current president of The Beacon Hill Scholars; an organization dedicated to the preservation of the history of nineteenth-century African American abolitionists who lived and owned businesses on Beacon Hill. She is also a founding member and Vice President of Sisters and Stitches Joined by The Cloth Quilt Guild whose mission is to uphold the tradition of African American quilting as well as provide education about the rich history of people of color and cloth.

Keith Stokes has a long and distinguished career in business, historic preservation, and community development, holding degrees from Cornell University and the University of Chicago. He has also been an Advisor for Rhode Island with the National Trust for Historic Preservation and served on numerous local, regional, and national business and public boards, including the Preservation Society for Newport County, Touro Synagogue Foundation, Rhode Island Historical Preservation & Heritage Commission Historical Review Board, Rhode Island Economic Development Corporation, Quonset Development Corporation, Rhode Island Foundation, and the Governor’s Workforce Board. Stokes frequently appears on national historical programs, including C-SPAN, Fox News Legends & Lies, and Ted Talk. Recently, he was the lead researcher and author of “A Matter of Truth” report for the examination and documentation of the role of the City of Providence and State of Rhode Island in supporting a “Separate and Unequal” existence for African Heritage, Indigenous, and People of Color.

Moderator: Karen Spiller is principal of KAS Consulting and provides mission-based consulting with a focus on resource matching, board development, and strategic planning for health and equity-focused initiatives. She has extensive experience in working with youth, young adults, and community members in a variety of educational and training programs. She serves on national and regional committees and leads teams committed to creating an equitable public health and sustainable food systems with a number of organizations such as the Society for Public Health Education (SOPHE). As national SOPHE Chair of Chapter Development, she managed the coordination and collaboration of SOPHE’s 21 chapters across the United States for more than three years. As the Thomas W. Haas Professor in Sustainable Food Systems at University of New Hampshire, she works to connect the community-engaged, transdisciplinary work of Food Solutions New England (FSNE) with its racial equity work, to students, faculty, and staff at UNH through lectures, workshops, and collaborative scholarship. The Haas Professorship was established to deepen the ties between UNH and the New England food system, and by serving as a “Professor of Practice”, Spiller brings her unique community and practitioner perspectives into the UNH sustainable learning community.

Sunday, February 26, 2023 

Shades of Black: Connected by Color, Culture & Community

Shantel Palacio is the Principal Advisor at Urbane Advisory and a consulting partner at the Perception Institute. She consults on education policy and on implementing diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives. Her contributions have been featured across several mediums including NPR, GQ Japan Magazine, West’s Education Law Reporter, The Gotham Film and Media Institute, along with citations in Harvard’s IOP. She is currently a doctoral candidate in Leadership and Policy Studies at the University of New Hampshire.

Dottie Morris is Associate Vice-President for Institutional Diversity and Equity at Keene State College. She serves on the president’s cabinet, providing support and direction to the executive, academic, student affairs, advancement, and finance and planning divisions of the college.

Anthony Poore is President and CEO of the New Hampshire Center for Justice & Equity, and an adjunct faculty member at Southern New Hampshire University.  He serves on the Board of Directors of the New Hampshire Finance Authority, New Hampshire Endowment for Health, and the Currier Museum of Art.  He has 30 years of experience in the community economic development sector and has worked as a community organizer, economic development practitioner, academic, workforce housing and public health advocate, policy analyst, researcher, and executive addressing the needs of New Hampshire’s urban and rural communities through participatory cross-sector collaborative processes in support of sustainable, inclusive, and equitable communities. Poore is the former Executive Director of New Hampshire Humanities, a National Endowment for the Humanities funded state affiliate.  His leadership allowed New Hampshire Humanities to be recognized as a center of humanities excellence, and leader in New Hampshire’s nonprofit sector known for its accessible, innovative, and inclusive programming, effective and efficient allocation of resources, cross-sector collaborative partnerships, and strong financial performance.

Moderator: Shari Robinson is the Assistant Vice Provost for Student Life at the University of New Hampshire. Robinson earned her Ph.D. at West Virginia University. Her professional interests include counseling issues related to First-Generation college students, Student Veterans and mentoring people of color. Shari considers herself a social justice change agent working toward equity, inclusion and diversity in all of her professional and personal settings.

Sunday, March 5, 2023 

Exploring the Heart of Cross-Racial Conversation

Sam Hyun was named one of The Boston Globe’s 2021 Bostonians of the Year. He's been featured in various publications including Forbes, Good Morning America, and on the front page of the Boston Globe. He received his Master’s in Public Policy and Business Administration from Brandeis University’s Heller School. Hyun was also named among the Top 50 Unsung Heroes by the Asian Hustle Network and 40 Under 40 by the National Association of Asian Pacifics in Politics and Public Affairs. He was Co-Founder of the 1587 Sneakers, and Director of Federal Relations for Michelle Wu, Hyun believes that anti-racism must include eradicating anti-Asian hate in order to truly create an equitable and loving community. By amplifying the voices and perspectives of the AAPI Community he strives to create understanding, social impact, and change.

Andres Mejia received his graduate and undergraduate degrees from UNH in Community Development and Social Work and was recently named the first Director of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice (DEIJ) for a New Hampshire K-12 public school district. A current fellow of the Carsey School of Public Policy’s, New Hampshire Listens, where he served as program manager, he continues to provide guidance to the civic engagement group on its school and youth-based programs. Mejia has spent the last five years working at UNH implementing diversity initiatives and leading underrepresented students support helping leaders across campus including student organizers, faculty and administrators. He is currently a member of the President’s Commissions on the Status of People of Color, and the University Commission on Community, Equity & Diversity.

Sunday, March 12, 2023 

Youth to Power: Young Female Activists

Saniyah Bolton is an ongoing junior attending Exeter High School and the Co-Director of the BLM Seacoast youth division. Her passion for equality and racial justice continues to impact her progressive initiatives within her community by helping educate everyone on the importance of advocating for marginalized groups and those who are facing the impacts of racial oppression. While participating in various panels, events, initiatives, and more, she aspires to create more equity, justice, and inclusion.

Rekha Mahadevan is a rising senior at Berwick Academy. She enjoys a wide range of subjects at school including math, science, and the arts. She has received many accolades at her school including achieving Cum Laude status in her junior year and receiving the Johns Hopkins Book award which is given to a student who uses their intellect for the betterment of society. Rekha is passionate about social and environmental justice. She is a club leader in the community service and sustainability clubs at her school. She most recently worked on a project to bring recognition to five neglected tombstones of a 19^th century African American family in her hometown of Madbury. She continues to demonstrate her leadership as the Vice President of the Seacoast NAACP Youth Council and guides informative tours for the Black Heritage Trail of NH.

Ronelle Tshiela is a second-year law student at UNH advocating for police reform and racial justice in NH. She is a co-founder of the Black Lives Matter Manchester and a member of the Commission on Law Enforcement Accountability, Community and Transparency. She continues to challenge the prominent lawmakers who dismiss the idea of racism being an issue in New Hampshire and the legislators who scale back the recommendations she and her colleagues make.

Moderator: Funmi Oyekunle is the current Coordinator of the CONNECT Program at the University of New Hampshire. Her professional interests center around mentoring and advocating for underrepresented students in higher education. She has previously worked at Whitman College, University of Massachusetts Lowell, and Middlesex Community College. She received dual B.A. degrees in English and Women Studies from the University of New Hampshire in 2012. She received her M.Ed in Higher Education in Student Affairs from Salem State University in 2016.