NORTHSIDE ACHIEVEMENT ZONE - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Member of the Leadership Team
- Communication and Marketing Director
Adrienne Vitt joined the Northside Achievement Zone (NAZ) in 2016 as the Communications and Marketing Director. As chief storyteller for the collaborative, she is responsible for representing NAZ's effort and overseeing a broad range of initiatives designed to engage, inform, and inspire audiences ranging from the national and state media, to North Minneapolis families, and funders.
Adrienne holds her BA in both journalism and cultural studies and comparative literature from the University of Minnesota and her MA in New Media Studies with an emphasis on nonprofit branding and socially responsible design from DePaul University.
She has nearly a decade of experience developing communication and digital marketing strategy for youth-focused nonprofit organizations, in addition to work in journalism. Most recently, Adrienne oversaw web content strategy at DePaul University. She managed strategic communication, editorial, and visual branding for Interfaith Youth Core in Chicago (including work with the White House and the Dalai Lama), was a founding staff member with Breakthrough Saint Paul, and worked as a journalist covering education, technology, and business for more than a decade. Adrienne's web work was nominated for a Webby in 2011.
When she's not working, Adrienne enjoys reading literature on food science and culinary history, creating large-scale art, and just plain perpetuating social good.
Job Titles:
- Director
- Retired, President & COO, Best Buy
Job Titles:
- Family Academy Operations Specialist
Job Titles:
- Executive Director, 21st Century Academy
Job Titles:
- Member of the Leadership Team
- Senior Director of Program Innovation and Strategy
Born in North Minneapolis, Alysha Price oversees NAZ's engagement strategy within educational settings and partner organizations. Upon starting her position at NAZ in 2014, Alysha worked at the University for Minnesota's Urban Research and Outreach-Engagement Center (UROC ) on the "Ready to Succeed" project curriculum for NAZ. She led outreach workers on the University's Project STARS (Start Taking Action to Restrict Smoking) study; performed health coaching on tobacco cessation, stress management, healthy eating, and physical activity at Health Fitness Corporation; and continues to facilitate employment training programs for youth new to the workforce. Alysha holds a Bachelor of Science of Human Services with a Family Studies focus and a master's degree in management.
Job Titles:
- Director
- Chief Inclusion and Diversity Officer, Best Buy
Job Titles:
- Principal, Nellie Stone Johnson School
Job Titles:
- NAZ Leadership Staff Member
- Vice President of Evaluation
Job Titles:
- Member of the Leadership Team
- NAZ Leadership Staff Member
- Senior Director, Collective Impact - Early Childhood
- Vice President, Family and Community Impact
- Vice President, Family and Community Impact ( Biography )
Andre Dukes oversees the Early Childhood strategy, which focuses on ensuring that NAZ scholars are ready for kindergarten through access to quality early learning centers, scholarships, screening, parent support and education, and advocacy. Throughout his career, he has learned a great deal about how experiences shape child behavior, and how strong communities, environments, and supports can promote healthy development and prevent harmful behavior in children. Before joining NAZ, Andre worked for several years as a community Pastor and worked in partnership with Hennepin County and the City of Minneapolis on the issue of youth violence prevention. Andre holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree from the Minnesota Graduate School of Theology and a Certificate in Infant Mental Health and Early Childhood at the University of Minnesota Center for Early Education Development. He serves on the board of Think Small and is a member of the MinneMinds executive committee.
Job Titles:
- NAZ STAFF Member
- Family Achievement Coach
Job Titles:
- Executive Director, Plymouth Christian Youth Center
Job Titles:
- Director
- VP, Communications & Marketing Strategy, Minneapolis College of Art and Design
Job Titles:
- NAZ Leadership Staff Member
- Director of Early Childhood Education
Job Titles:
- Executive Director, ServeMN
Job Titles:
- Director
- Principal, Ascension Catholic School
Job Titles:
- Foundation & Corporate Relations Officer
- Foundations & Corporate Relations Officer
Job Titles:
- Human Resources Director
- Member of the Leadership Team
Bonnie Hatterman is the Human Resources Director for the Northside Achievement Zone (NAZ). She develops, implements, and manages HR policies and programs, including: talent management and staffing, performance management, coaching, performance improvement, and compensation and benefits that align with NAZ's mission and values.
Bonnie was raised in Pierre, South Dakota, but lived in Lincoln, Nebraska for 20 years where she received her BS from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and began her HR career at Experian. She worked for the company for 15 years and eventually, relocated to Sydney, Australia, with her family, to assist in Experian's emerging businesses. In 2013, Bonnie and her family moved to Minnesota.
Bonnie began her career with NAZ as a temporary consultant and, overtime, fell in love with the people and the mission. She is passionate about improving lives in North Minneapolis and giving the same opportunities she had growing up to others.
Bonnie's family is her passion. Her free time is spent shuttling her three children around town and spoiling them shamelessly.
Job Titles:
- Director
- Founding Partner & CEO, Pine River Capital Management
Job Titles:
- Executive Director, Reading Partners
Job Titles:
- Member of the Leadership Team
- NAZ 's Vice President of Human ( Heart ) Resources
- Vice President of Human Resources and Operations
Candra Bennett, NAZ's Vice President of Human (Heart) Resources and Operations is a third-generation born and raised Northsider and an honored graduate of North Community High School's Summa-Tech program. Candra comes to NAZ after fifteen years with Minneapolis Public Schools (MPS) where she was a known fierce advocate for underrepresented and historically underserved students and employees in a variety of Human Resource/Labor Relations, Equity and Compliance Leadership positions. Candra's tireless work for the community she grew up in, began professionally with her work for the Minneapolis City Council's 5th Ward. Candra has also worked for the Metropolitan Council and Summit Academy OIC.
In her spare time, you can find her coaching sports, mentoring and teaching youth and adults job readiness skills, serving on community boards, volunteering for just about anything and working out. Candra is the busy and proud mother of three; a college, high school and NAZ elementary student.
Candra holds a bachelor's degree in Human Service and plans to complete a double master's degree in 2020.
Job Titles:
- Community Wellness Program Manager
Job Titles:
- Member of the Parent Advisory Board
Job Titles:
- Member of the Leadership Team
- Senior Program Director
- Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker
Christina Gonzalez is the Senior Program Director at the Northside Achievement Zone (NAZ). Christina supports the NAZ Engagement Team who partner with families through engagement and achievement planning, ensuring that families are connected to opportunities that support stability and accelerate learning for all scholars to be college ready.
Christina is a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker (LICSW). She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Minnesota in Child Psychology and Spanish/Portuguese-and obtained her master's degree from the University of Minnesota in Social Work.
Most recently, Christina worked at Washburn Center for Children managing the school-based mental health program for Minneapolis and Bloomington Public Schools. In addition, she served with The Family Partnership for 10 years, first as an in home and play therapist for six years and was then appointed Director of In-Home Services. Christina is also a Community Faculty at the University of Minnesota in the School of Social Work and serves on their Advisory Council.
Job Titles:
- Director of Government & Community Relations, New Horizon Academy
Job Titles:
- Director
- Director, Masonic Institute for the Developing Brain, University of Minnesota
Job Titles:
- Early Childhood Systems Coordinator
Job Titles:
- Member of the Leadership Team
- Senior Finance Director
David Devine oversees all activities related to finance at NAZ. He has over 15 years of professional experience in financial leadership roles. Before joining NAZ, David was an accountant supervisor for the Finance Department at Minneapolis Public Schools. He has also served as Senior Financial Analyst, Manager of Budget Operations, and Capital Budget Manager in the Office of Management and Budget in Chicago Public Schools; Senior Financial Futures Traders at Marquette Partners in Chicago; and as a math and history teacher, Director of Intramural Program and Basketball Coach at Cathedral College Preparatory High School in Los Angeles as an AmeriCorps Volunteer. David has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Finance and Economics from the University of St. Thomas and an MBA in Real Estate Finance and Investment with distinction from DePaul University.
Job Titles:
- Director
- County Administrator, Hennepin County
Job Titles:
- Team Manager Family Support & Early Childhood
Job Titles:
- Director
- Senior Government Relations Consultant, Intact Insurance Specialty Solutions
Job Titles:
- Chairman of the Board
- VP of Family Engagement, Think Small
Job Titles:
- Director
- Member of the Parent Advisory Board
- Parent Representative
Job Titles:
- Member of the Leadership Team
Dr. Montia D. Gardner oversees the direction of the NAZ educational strategy by implementing and developing research-based, gap-closing best practices in partnership with NAZ anchor schools and academic support partners. Throughout her career as an educator, Dr. Gardner has developed research on how organizational and social capital mitigates the barriers to academic achievement for low socioeconomic background scholars. Before joining NAZ Dr. Gardner served as the founder and CEO of the Math and Reading Summer Enrichment Program and Building our Brilliance: Workshop Series for Educators. Dr. Gardner holds a Doctorate of Philosophy Degree from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County in Language, Literacy, and Culture and is a board-certified K-12 teacher and school administrator.
Job Titles:
- Data & Reporting Specialist
Job Titles:
- NAZ Leadership Staff Member
- Individual Giving Officer
Job Titles:
- Collective Impact Associate
Job Titles:
- Director
- Chairman & CEO, Medtronic
Job Titles:
- Member of the Parent Advisory Board
Job Titles:
- Director
- Mayor, City of Minneapolis
Job Titles:
- Member of the Leadership Team
- Education Director for NAZ
As Education Director for NAZ, Jaimee provides leadership, supervision, and training to a team of Academic Navigators to implement a comprehensive achievement planning system for NAZ families and scholars. Jaimee came to NAZ having worked with the Northside community before through her leadership positions with the Minneapolis Public Schools and LearningWorks at Blake: A Breakthrough Program.
Job Titles:
- President, Cristo Rey Jesuit High School
Job Titles:
- Team Manager, Nellie Stone Johnson & KIPP
Job Titles:
- Director of Communications and Marketing
- NAZ Leadership Staff Member
Job Titles:
- Chief Development Officer
- Member of the Leadership Team
- NAZ Leadership Staff Member
- Chief Development Officer ( Biography )
Karen Casanova has enjoyed a 30-year career in fundraising and philanthropy in the Twin Cities and beyond. Most recently she served with Reading Partners, a national organization focused on closing the literacy achievement gap. Karen launched the Minneapolis/St. Paul chapter of Reading Partners in 2015, and then went on to serve in a national role as Chief Advancement Officer which she has held for the past two years. Prior to that, Karen spent nearly a decade at Target in a variety of positions on their corporate social responsibility team, including managing arts and design partnerships, providing strategic direction for employee volunteer programs, and overseeing a portfolio of K-12 education investments. Earlier roles included leading marketing, public affairs, fundraising, and events efforts for several non-profit arts organizations in the Twin Cities such as the Jungle Theater and the Weisman Art Museum. Karen has a degree in political science and communications from Augsburg University. A lifelong resident of Minneapolis and mom to two Minneapolis Public School graduates now attending college, she is deeply committed to supporting the success of all of our community's children.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board Officers Team
- Vice - Chair
Job Titles:
- Chief Operating Officer
- Chief Operations Officer
- Member of the Leadership Team
- NAZ Leadership Staff Member
- Chief Operating Officer ( Biography )
Karen Kelley-Ariwoola, long-time resident of the Northside, is a distinguished senior executive who has spent her career working at the intersection of community needs and assets, philanthropic resources, and programmatic and policy solutions. In her work, Karen champions racial equity and inclusion to remove structural and institutional barriers-especially in education. Karen is joining NAZ this summer and comes to NAZ after serving as Vice President of Advancement at Cristo Rey Jesuit High School and as Chief of External Relations for the Harvest Network of Schools. Karen spent nearly twenty years in senior leadership at The Minneapolis Foundation (including serving as Interim President and CEO 2006/2007). Her early career experience includes management roles in organizations focused on teen parenting, early childhood education and family support. Karen is a former member and chair of the Northside Achievement Zone (NAZ) board, former chair of the Minnesota Council of Foundations, and also served on the national board of the Association of Black Foundation Executives (ABFE). She holds an M.A. in Family Support Studies from DePaul University, Chicago, Illinois and a B.S. in Early Childhood Education from Western Illinois University. Karen has received numerous professional awards including the Arthur Weinberg Memorial Prize for her Master's thesis, the ABFE 21st Annual James Joseph Lecturer and Leadership Award, and the "Nancy" Award for Leadership in Early Childhood.
Job Titles:
- Director
- General Counsel and Secretary, General Mills
Job Titles:
- Parent and Community Mobilization Coordinator
Job Titles:
- Family Recruitment Manager
Job Titles:
- Director
- Retired, SVP, External Relations, General Mills
Job Titles:
- Director
- Chief Communications Officer, UnitedHealthcare
Job Titles:
- EVP / Chief Operating Officer, Northside Child Development Center
Job Titles:
- Member of the Leadership Team
- VP Advancement
M. Taylor Edgerton began her role as Vice President of Advancement with the Northside Achievement Zone (NAZ) in 2017. As VP of Advancement, she provides guidance and leadership, expanding NAZ's community presence and building the organization's investing partnerships. She is a part of the NAZ senior management team, providing strategic direction and leadership to the NAZ Development and Communications teams and works side-by-side with NAZ's current investment campaign leadership.
M. Taylor is a results-driven leader with nearly 15 years of nonprofit executive leadership and fund development. She served as Chief Advancement Officer at The Family Partnership, worked as Director of Development at Twin Cities R!SE, was a Development Officer in major/planned giving at Courage Center, and currently, serves as a Vice President on the board of directors for the Association of Fundraising Professionals Minnesota Chapter (AFPMN). She is also a member of the Community Advisory Board for the Junior League of Minneapolis (JLM).
Originally from North Carolina, she holds BA in religion (cum laude) from Wake University and an MA in Leadership from Augsburg College.
Job Titles:
- Director
- Executive Director, Urban Research and Outreach - Engagement Center
Job Titles:
- Member of the Parent Advisory Board
Job Titles:
- Director
- Managing Director, Deloitte
Job Titles:
- Executive Director of Early Childhood Education, Minneapolis Public Schools
Job Titles:
- Director
- Founding Partner, Ciresi Conlin L.L.P
Job Titles:
- Member of the Leadership Team
- Data Innovation Director
Michele Pletcher uses a combination of technical and adaptive skills to help identify and specify technical solutions to improve the NAZ collaborative database and the pathways for NAZ and partner staff to collect and use data in real time. Prior to starting her position at NAZ in 2017, she held a number of positions where she was the bridge between strategy, processes, and technology. Michele has served on several nonprofit boards and has a broad background ranging from strategy development, business analysis, and project management to change management and finance. Originally from Glenwood, Minnesota, Michele received both her BSB and MBA in Finance from the University of Minnesota, Carlson School of Management.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Leadership Team
- VP of Collaboration and Innovation
Michelle Martin began work in North Minneapolis as a co-founder of the PEACE Foundation, the predecessor organization to the Northside Achievement Zone (NAZ). As a white woman, she began her path in 2003 as an ally in the work across race for the purpose of ending disparities in North Minneapolis. What began as a call to action to find solutions to disparities of violence in North Minneapolis grew into an upstream, comprehensive strategy through the development of NAZ….a results-driven collaborative designed to break through systemic barriers to success. Starting in 2008, Michelle co-chaired the formative steering committee for NAZ, co-lead development of the model, secured the Promise Neighborhood designation and served in the COO role through 2018.
Michelle is committed to helping to repair broken systems in ways that shift power back to the community - enabling neighbors themselves to drive the positive change on the Northside. In 2019, Michelle shifted from COO to Vice President of Collaboration & Innovation. A new parallel role of Vice President of Program & Impact is now held by Alysha Price, an African American woman from North Minneapolis. Celebrating the elevation and contribution of talented leaders of color is an indication of the success of the NAZ model and signals the intentionality to cultivate the power shift necessary to have true activation of the NAZ purpose. In her VP role, Michelle focuses on data-driven, collaborative innovation and tackling issues at the root of the problem, such as understanding and mitigating the impacts of racial trauma, to truly reach our goal of the Northside succeeding at the same rate as the rest of the region. Michelle holds a social work degree from Valparaiso University and has a yoga instructor certification.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Leadership Team
- NAZ Leadership Staff Member
- Collaboration Director - Family Support
- Senior Director, Collaborative Learning
- Senior Director, Collaborative Learning ( Biography )
Michelle Palo develops and continuously improves strategies for effective partnership across the NAZ collaborative and supervises NAZ staff that are co-located at anchor partner sites. Prior to her work with NAZ, Michelle worked at Target Corporation, spent time in Bosnia and Herzegovina working on two education-related initiatives, and was a consultant with a firm specializing in public outreach and project coordination. Michelle holds a Master Degree in Comparative and International Development Education from the University of Minnesota.
Job Titles:
- President & CEO, the Family Partnership
Job Titles:
- Member of the Parent Advisory Board
Job Titles:
- Member of the Parent Advisory Board
Job Titles:
- Director
- EVP, Chief Legal Officer & General Counsel, Thrivent
Job Titles:
- Executive Director, La Creche Early Childhood Center
Job Titles:
- NAZ Leadership Staff Member
- Director of Family Achievement
- Family Achievement Program Director
Job Titles:
- Assistant
- Executive Assistant
Job Titles:
- Beacons Center Director, YMCA Beacons
Job Titles:
- NAZ Leadership Staff Member
- Senior Director of Individual Giving
Job Titles:
- VP of Talent & Culture / Co - Interim Executive Director, KIPP North Star - Minnesota
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board Officers Team
- Treasurer
Job Titles:
- Senior Manager, Development Operations
Job Titles:
- CEO
- Member of the Leadership Team
- NAZ Leadership Staff Member
- President
- Founding Leader
- President and Chief Executive Officer ( Founding Leader ) ( Biography )
Sondra Samuels is the President & CEO of the Northside Achievement Zone (NAZ), a collaborative of over 30 partner nonprofits and schools. Along with parents, students, partners, and staff, Sondra is leading a revolutionary culture shift in North Minneapolis focused on ending multigenerational poverty through education and family stability. The NAZ Collaborative is working toward a single goal-to prepare low-income North Minneapolis children to graduate from high school college- and career-ready. NAZ has scaled up in support of over 1,000 parents and 2,300 students as they turn the social service model on its head and lead the creation of a college-bound culture throughout the community.
Ms. Samuels has been a resident of North Minneapolis for over two decades and is a national leader committed to results-based leadership and accountability. She, her staff, and their partners work tirelessly to ensure the integration of effective cradle-to-career solutions across the NAZ collaborative - to scale and sustain results across the community and to achieve the systems and policy changes needed for low-income families and children of color to truly share in the prosperity of the Twin Cities Region. Under her leadership, NAZ was named a federal Promise Neighborhood and has become a nationally recognized model for community and systems change.
Sondra serves on the Leadership team of Generation Next, Community Advisory Board of the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank's Opportunity and Inclusive Growth Institute, as well as the boards of Health Partners and Great MN Schools. She received her Bachelor's degree from Morgan State University in Baltimore, MD, and an MBA from Clark-Atlanta University in Atlanta, GA.
Job Titles:
- Executive Director, Phyllis Wheatley Community Center
Job Titles:
- School Leader, Mastery School
Job Titles:
- Member of the Parent Advisory Board
Job Titles:
- Development Associate
- NAZ STAFF Member
Job Titles:
- Member of the Leadership Team
- NAZ Leadership Staff Member
- Vice President of Human Resources
- Vice President of Heart Resources ( Biography )
Tanisha Bradford has over 15 years experience as a Human Resources Business Partner in a management capacity experience in both nonprofit and for-profit industries. Throughout her career she has been recruited into organizations to assess the capabilities and needs of the HR function, including policy and procedure development and administration, talent management, and employee relations and engagement. Tanisha holds a Master's Degree in Human Resource Management from the University of St. Thomas.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Parent Advisory Board
Job Titles:
- Member of the Leadership Team
Job Titles:
- Family Achievement Program Director
Tiffany Wilson-Worsley supports the work of NAZ's education pipeline and the coaches and specialists from early childhood to college levels. Her work is centered on identifying efficient ways to track and replicate educational achievement for scholars using the NAZ two-prong approach to eliminating generational poverty. Tiffany has a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Grambling State University, and a Masters in Family Youth and Community from the University of Minnesota College of Education and Human Development.
Tiffany is deeply connected to the community and to NAZ's mission: she grew up in Miami and defied the odds as an African American woman raised in poverty. Her interests lie in furthering her education around the integration of social policy, issues of poverty, and faith. She is committed to being of service to groups and individuals who are often overlooked by society. Her discipline, analytical skills, and personal investment are key assets to NAZ's implementation team and to the future of the Northside.
Tiffany Wilson-Worsley supports the work of NAZ's education pipeline and the coaches and specialists from early childhood to college levels. Her work is centered on identifying efficient ways to track and replicate educational achievement for scholars using the NAZ two-prong approach to eliminating generational poverty. Tiffany has a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Grambling State University, and a Masters in Family Youth and Community from the University of Minnesota College of Education and Human Development.
Tiffany is deeply connected to the community and to NAZ's mission: she grew up in Miami and defied the odds as an African American woman raised in poverty. Her interests lie in furthering her education around the integration of social policy, issues of poverty, and faith. She is committed to being of service to groups and individuals who are often overlooked by society. Her discipline, analytical skills, and personal investment are key assets to NAZ's implementation team and to the future of the Northside.
Job Titles:
- Director
- Senior Associate General Counsel, Scoular
Job Titles:
- Director
- of Counsel, Maslon L.L.P
Job Titles:
- Family Academy Program Director
Job Titles:
- Principal, Patrick Henry High School
Job Titles:
- Director
- SVP & Chief Administrative Officer, U.S. Bancorp Community Development Corporation