Investing in Non-Profit Leaders of Color Who are The Power Fund Leaders and where they are creating impact
Investing in Non-Profit Leaders of Color
24 THE POWER FUND
THE POWER FUND 25
AMAHA KASSA FOUNDER AND EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR AFRICAN COMMUNITIES TOGETHER
MARISSA MARTIN EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR THE ADVOCACY INSTITUTE
Amaha Kassa is the Founder and Executive Director of African Communities Together, a national membership organization of African immigrants and their families connecting African immigrants to services and fighting for their civil rights. The organization was founded in 2012. Mr. Kassa has worked as a labor and community organizer for 25 years. Mr. Kassa is a licensed attorney who earned his law degree from UC Berkeley and his master’s in public policy from Harvard Kennedy School. He is an immigrant from Ethiopia.
Marissa Martin is the Executive Director of the Advocacy Institute, an organization committed to supporting the legislative advocacy of social justice and movement-building organizations in New York State. Ms. Martin has over a decade of experience working in nonprofits and government where she has managed operations, policy, and data teams, as well as led advocacy campaigns centered on the Asian-
American community, young people, and immigrant communities. Currently, Ms. Martin serves as a board member of All Together Now, a support organization for adoptive families and an Advisory Board Member of Also-Known-As, Inc., a volunteer non-profit organization dedicated to creating innovative educational programs and community-building activities for those on their adoption life journey. Ms. Martin is a Licensed Social Worker (LMSW) and holds a master’s in social work from Silberman School of Social Work at Hunter College, with concentrations in Community Organizing, Planning and Development.
LINA LEE
MORGAN MONACO FORMER EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR THE RED HOOK INITIATIVE (RHI)
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR AND CO-FOUNDER COMMUNITIES RESIST
Lina Lee is the Executive Director and Co-Founder of Communities Resist. Ms. Lee has extensive experience representing low-income immigrant tenants facing eviction, harassment, and housing discrimination in some of the most gentrified neighborhoods in NYC. Ms. Lee was previously a deputy director at Brooklyn Legal Services Corporation A and a staff attorney at the MinKwon Center, where she represented Asian immigrant tenants across NYC in dire need of culturally and linguistically accessible legal services. Ms. Lee received her B.S. from Cornell University and J.D. from Boston University School of Law.
Morgan Monaco was the Executive Director of the Red Hook Initiative (RHI) at the time she was named a Power Fund Leader. Ms. Monaco has over 13 years of government experience at the intersection of environmental sustainability and social justice. Prior to joining RHI, she served as the Deputy Director at the Mayor’s Office of Operations and helped to create OneNYC, which combines sustainability, equity, and resiliency policy into one plan for NYC’s future. During her tenure at
NYC Parks, she oversaw environmental sustainability initiatives and directed the MillionTreesNYC campaign. Ms. Monaco began her career on the Development team at StoryCorps, a national oral history project. Ms. Monaco has a master’s in public administration and Non- Profit Management from NYU Wagner, as well as a B.A. in International Studies from Vassar College. Ms. Monaco transitioned to a new leadership opportunity as the president of the Prospect Park Alliance and Park Administrator.
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