LEADERSHIP
JESS PEÑA MANALO | EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Bio to come.
FRANCESCA (CESSA) BETANCOURT | DIRECTOR OF PROGRAMS
Cessa is an arts educator, actor, intimacy director + coordinator, and creative producer. She has worked as an artist & facilitator in Ireland, India, the Philippines, New York, Washington, Wisconsin, Maryland, Washington D.C., Florida, and internationally in the virtual world. Cessa has been working as a teaching artist and professional development facilitator for over a decade and is dedicated to providing opportunities for young people to practice creativity, explore their interests and strengths, and learn how to apply those strengths to community social action. She holds two BAs from Western Washington University in Theatre Arts and Sociology, and has trained in Applied Theatre at City University of New York. Her work is based in trauma conscious social/emotional arts practice, culturally sustaining pedagogy, compassion, access, agency, and physical storytelling.
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AVIONA RODRIGUEZ BROWN | DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS
Aviona Rodriguez Brown is a multidisciplinary artist, activist, and community leader known for her focus on inclusivity, accessibility, and healing through art. As a second generation american born- first generation Afro-Mexican creative, she draws on her diverse cultural background and life experiences to explore themes of identity, mental health, queerness, and the impact of systemic challenges such as homelessness and addiction. Aviona has cultivated a wide range of artistic practices, from acting, directing, playwriting, and stage management to community engagement consulting and racial equity advocacy. She is deeply committed to fostering spaces where marginalized voices can thrive, whether through her leadership at South End Stories or her organization A.R.B. Consulting Arts, which offers community-building services grounded in racial equity and restorative justice. Learn more and connect: linktr.ee/avionacreatrix_official
MARIBEL GONZALEZ | DIRECTOR OF CURRICULUM AND ASSESSMENT
Maribel (Mari) Valdez Gonzalez is Native/Xicana of Wixárika and of Spanish descent. Her grandma’s are from the Mother Mountains of Sierra de Morones in Zacatecas, Mexico. She is an educator, keynote speaker, published author, and 2022 Adding Voices Express: Speak Your Truth award winner. Mari has been honored to work with youth and adults to decolonize and humanize pedagogical practices, social structures, and belief systems in classrooms and beyond as an instructional coach and as an educational consultant. Mari has collaborated with and offered curricular guidance to organizations such as the Women's March, March for our Lives, Earth Guardians, Families Belong Together, IllumiNative, She Can STEM, Protect the Sacred, Free Migration Project, the Washington Bus, Newsela, City University of Seattle, and many more.