François, Krystina

Krystina François

Krystina François (she/her) is the Co-Director of Communities United for Status and Protection. An organizer, immigration expert, political educator and policy strategist, she is a first generation Haitian-American and currently completing her PhD in Political Science at the CUNY Graduate Center. Prior to CUSP, Krystina most recently  served as the founding Director of the Office of New Americans for Miami-Dade County and Co-Founder of the Black Collective. She is also the founder of Diasporic Minds and prior was the Florida New Americans Program Director at the Florida Immigrant Coalition, where she cultivated partnerships with community stakeholders to help eligible immigrants navigate the naturalization process through free legal services, education and financial resources. In her position as Co-Director of Law for Black Lives, she coordinated a network of more than 3,000 legal professionals to provide legal support to Black organizers and to democratize knowledge of the law. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Political Science and History from CUNY-Hunter College, is a board member of the Junior League of Miami, The Nyah Project, and the Executive Committee for Leadership Miami. Krystina has been widely featured in media outlets including the New York Times, Miami Herald, NBC6, Bustle, WLRN, NPR, El Sentinel and The Miami New Times; and was named to the 2020 Haitian American Chamber of Commerce “Top 20 under 40.”

Saidi, Fatima

Fatima Saidi

Fatima Saidi (she/her) is the Development and Relations Manager at the Maine Immigrants’ Rights Coalition. Born in a small village in Ghazni, Afghanistan, in 1996 at the age of two, she became a refugee in Quetta, Pakistan, when her family took refuge from the Taliban. Fatima came to Lewiston, Maine as an international student at Bates College in 2013. While in college, she held internships with the International Institute of St. Louis in Missouri, United Nations and the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission in Kabul, Afghanistan, and the World Hazara Council in Vienna, Austria. She is a graduate of Bates College with a double major in political science and religious studies and has also worked as the Development Coordinator and the Grant Writer at the Mayor’s Office of Financial Empowerment in the City of Boston.

Ben-Arieh, Galya

Galya Ben-Arieh

Galya Ben-Arieh, J.D., Ph.D. (she/her), is a professor in the Political Science Department at Northwestern University and founder of Community Partnerships for Settlement Strategies (COMPASS), a public charity registered in Illinois that works to design effective approaches in support of the long-term wellbeing of refugees and asylees in our communities. For over 20 years, Galya has brought her expertise as an academic and lawyer to broaden understandings of the rights and processes of refugee protection and the role of law in settlement and inclusion in host societies. Her current work examines the long-term patterns and outcomes of U.S. refugee resettlement policy with a focus on suitability in refugee housing placement. She is the co-editor of Adjudicating Refugee and Asylum Status: The Role of Witness, Expertise, and Testimony (co-edited with Benjamin Lawrance; Cambridge University Press, 2015). At Northwestern, she founded and directed the Center for Forced Migration Studies (2011-2018) and now directs the Research Collaborative on Refugees, Migrants and Statelessness in the WCAS Center for International and Area Studies. 

Krumroy, Jordyne

Jordyne Krumroy

Jordyne Krumroy (she/her) is the Senior Regional Manager at Welcoming America where she helps members in the South foster more equitable policies and programs. She is passionate about regional collaboration and notably led the One Region pilot in metro Atlanta. Prior to joining Welcoming America, she managed communications and outreach strategies for the Atlanta Bicycle Coalition and advocated for transportation equity in the city. She also worked at Nicholas House, connecting resources to families experiencing homelessness, and Big Brothers Big Sisters, where she led mentorship matching with a focus on Latinx enrollment. Jordyne holds a B.A. in sociology and Spanish from Appalachian State University and a M.S.W. from Georgia State University. She now lives in Raleigh, NC where she serves on the Hispanic & Immigrant Affairs Board for the City of Raleigh.

Sherman Luna, Lisa

Lisa Sherman Luna

Lisa Sherman Luna (she/her/ella) is the Executive Director of the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition, where she prior served as Policy Director. Lisa is also a proud member of the NPNA Executive Committee. She and her family moved to Nashville from Guatemala in 2001. It was this experience that shaped her commitment to fighting for an immigration system where all people can access safety, opportunity, and belonging. Lisa has a track record of success in winning policy victories in TN, including successful passage of TIRRC’s first ever pro-immigrant bill in the state legislature, securing over 1.8 million in ARP funds to expand immigration legal services, defeating dozens of pieces of anti-immigrant legislation, convincing Governor Lee to consent to welcome refugees, and pressuring the Davidson County Sheriff to terminate a rent-a-bed agreement with immigration and customs enforcement. Prior to joining the TIRRC team, Lisa worked in the international human rights field in New York, London, and Senegal. She holds a Master’s degree in Conflict, Security, and Development from the Department of War Studies at King’s College London and is fluent in Spanish and English.

Saucier, Madeleine

Madeleine Saucier

Madeleine Saucier (she/her) is the Manager of Programs and Community Engagement at the Maine Immigrants’ Rights Coalition, where she is MIRC’s lead on the state COVID and vaccine social service referral response team. She also works directly with MIRC members, community-based organizations, private businesses, and state and municipal bodies to meet the emerging needs of New Mainers. Prior, Madeleine served as a Legal Analyst at the immigration law firm FordMurray, a Development Specialist at Catholic Charities of Maine and a Reporting Officer with the Beirut-based refugee relief organization Basmeh & Zeytooneh. Her current and past volunteer work includes providing mentorship, French- language interpretation, and career coaching to new Americans. She holds an M.S. in Migration, Mobility and Development from SOAS, University of London and a B.A. in Asian and Middle Eastern Cultures from Barnard College of Columbia University. Raised in France and Belgium, she is fluent in French and has studied Spanish and Arabic for many years. 

Chitam, Mufalo

Mufalo Chitam

Mufalo Chitam (she/her) is the Executive Director of the Maine Immigrants’ Rights Coalition. Mufalo immigrated to the U.S. from Zambia in 2000, and prior to MIRC has worked for the University of Southern Maine, United Way of Greater Portland, National Multiple Sclerosis Society, National Kidney Foundation, Easter Seals Maine, American Red Cross and Granite Bay Care. She holds a B.A. from the University of Zambia and is the former Vice Board Chair of Prosperity Maine,  founder of the annual Empower the Immigrant Woman Conference, Empower Maine Women Network Group and former owner of Etukis LLC. She has served as board member of the Maine Women’s Policy Center and founded and organized the Beauty in Colors Hair Show to benefit WISE Zambia; worked with Black History Month Maine’s Hidden Figures and currently she serves on the Board of Creative Portland. Mufalo has been widely recognized for her leadership in Maine, including by Maine Women’s Magazine (“Women Who Inspire”), a Community Award recipient of the Maine Women’s Fund, Leadership Excellence Award recipient of the Mwape Peers and by Maine Magazine as one of their annual 50 Mainers “Creating a brighter future for the state.” She is also currently featured in the Maine Public Bicentennial’s “This is My Maine.”  

Yossinger, Nili Sarit

Nili Sarit Yossinger

Nili Sarit Yossinger (she/her) is the inaugural Executive Director for Refugee Congress, where she works to fulfill the organization’s mission of ensuring that there are always refugees at the table as equal partners. Prior, Nili was a Research Project Manager at the Institute for the Study of International Migration and the Senior Vice President for Research at Georgetown University, where her projects focused on complex humanitarian emergencies and the intersections of forced migration, food security and environmental degradation in the Horn of Africa and Persian Gulf regions. She previously worked with the Capital Area Food Bank, the UN Refugee Agency Regional Office in Washington, D.C., and Human Rights First. Nili holds a B.A. in International Studies from Loyola University Chicago and a M.A. in German and European Studies from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service, along with a Certificate in Refugees and Humanitarian Emergencies from ISIM. She currently serves as an Advisor for Concordia, an organization that builds and sustains cross-sector partnerships for social impact, and in her free time is a longtime volunteer on the senior staff of American Model United Nations.

Phay, Sokthea

Sokthea Phay

Sokthea Phay (he/him) is the Community Operations Director at the Community Development YMCA of Greater Long Beach. He is an equity and inclusion practitioner with over 14 years of international experience in program management, social inclusion and equity, and youth development. Sokthea has worked for the YMCA for 14 years, including in Cambodia and Zambia, and 9 years in his current post. At the YMCA, Sokthea leads the New American Welcome Center Program and supports all programs at this YMCA to create local frameworks on welcoming, belonging, equity, and inclusion. He is the founder of the YMCA’s Week of Equity and has worked with many receiving communities and established many local immigrant/newcomer integration efforts to serve undocumented immigrant youth and refugee communities. Sokthea immigrated to the U.S from Cambodia in 2013. In 2019, he was appointed as the U.S Representative of the World Alliance of YMCAs United Nations Advocacy Group. He holds a B.A. in Teaching English from Norton University, and in Spring 2023, will start a master's degree program, majoring in Non-profit Management.

Williamson, Tobin C.

Tobin C. Williamson

Tobin C. Williamson (he/him) is the Advocacy Manager for the Maine Immigrants’ Rights Coalition, advancing MIRC’s policy priorities in DC and throughout the state, including promoting MIRC through traditional and social media. Previously, he served in two U.S. Congressional Offices and two Consulates General (Japan’s in Seattle and the Czech Republic’s in Chicago). His Congressional experience prioritized constituent services and community outreach, including on immigration, foreign policy, and veterans/defense issues. He was a Congressional intern on Capitol Hill and an intern with the World Affairs Council of Seattle, and also worked as a Starbucks barista. He holds a Master’s Degree in Political Science from the University of North Carolina, where he spent semesters abroad at Charles University (Prague, CZ) and the University of Bath (Bath, UK), and a B.S. and B.A. from the University of Central Arkansas. A native Arkansan, he recently concluded a year in the Aspen Institute Strategy Group’s Rising Leaders Program and is an active volunteer with the World Affairs Council of Maine and Uplift L.A. 

Arabshahi, Neda

Neda Arabshahi

Neda Arabshahi (she/her) is VP, Center for Resiliency and Clean Energy at Inclusiv, where she’s building a network of credit unions, CDFI loan funds, and community banks to scale affordable climate finance for LMI and BIPOC communities. She’s spent 19 years at the intersection of sustainability, equity, and environmental justice. Neda was COO at clean energy startups Radiator Labs and BlocPower; led the energy program at the Clinton Global Initiative; was in the leadership development program at Vestas Wind Systems; and on the development team at Rainforest Alliance. Neda holds dual MBA and Master of Environmental Science degrees from Yale University.

Singh, Jairaj

Jairaj Singh

Jairaj Singh (he/him), MURP, CNU-A is the Climate Resilience and Environmental Justice Director at Unite Oregon. He is a community-based facilitator for climate resilience planning and an environmental justice movement builder who has been organizing and building collective power with communities of color over the past several years. Jairaj has a B.A. from Emory University and a Masters in Urban and Regional Planning (MURP) from Portland State University.

Sanz, Fatima

Fatima Sanz

Fatima Sanz (she/her) is the Policy Manager at WES Global Talent Bridge. In her role, she focuses on advocating for administrative and legislative changes that lead to equitable opportunities for immigrants and refugees to reach their educational and career goals. Fatima works on federal and state legislation. She is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education and the Fels Institute of Government, and received her B.S. from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service.

Ortiz, Andrea

Andrea Ortiz

Andrea Ortiz (she/they/ella) is a Senior Manager of Education Policy at the New York Immigration Coalition. She engages education stakeholders to improve opportunities and outcomes for immigrants in public schools in NY. Andrea is a committed racial justice advocate with 15 years of experience organizing impacted communities and allies. Previously, she was a consultant on a state-led desegregation project and a development campaign to improve access to enrichment programs for youth of color. Before moving to NY, she led a high-school-based program in Texas that offered students a constructive alternative to punitive disciplinary actions with trauma-informed and restorative practices.

Ober, Kayly

Kayly Ober

Kayly Ober (she/her) is the senior advocate and program manager of the Climate Displacement Program at Refugees International. She's a member of the UN Task Force on Displacement and a steering group member of the Climate, Migration, and Displacement Platform, a platform that brings together civil society to improve understanding and align advocacy across policy spaces. She has more than a decade of experience on climate, migration, and displacement issues, including working with communities in Thailand to understand how policies may support migration as adaptation.

Moore, Theodore

Theodore Moore

Theodore Moore (he/him) is the Vice President of Policy at the New York Immigration Coalition. He brings over 15 years of non-profit and political advocacy experience, having previously worked as a Senior Policy Analyst for NYC Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito in the Policy & Innovation Division, as the National Lead Organizer with the Restaurant Opportunities Center United; with ALIGN: The Alliance for a Greater New York, and with the Working Families Party. Theo is a founding member of New Kings Democrats and serves as a board member of the Riders Alliance. He is a lifelong resident of Brooklyn, born and raised in East Flatbush, and a long-suffering Mets fan. #LGM

Huang, Vivian Yi

Vivian Yi Huang

Vivian Yi Huang (she/her) has been honored to work for more than a decade and now as Co-Director of the Asian Pacific Environmental Network. Being from a Chinese immigrant family, she was raised in a culture of loving your people, living in the world of possibility, and the importance of making ideas tangible. She has played a leadership role in strengthening APEN’s organizing and leadership development, advancing collective strategy for just transition and systemic change, catalyzing innovative models, and deepening embodiment of feminisms and shared power. Prior, she spent a decade working on policy, legislative, and budget campaigns, including model policies to improve health care interpretation. She has also been a facilitator, trainer, and teacher with the Women’s Policy Institute, School of Unity and Liberation, and San Francisco State University’s Department of Public Health.

Catá, Nicole

Nicole Catá

Nicole Catá (she/her) is the Director of Immigrant Rights Policy at the New York Immigration Coalition. In her role, she manages a portfolio to end state support for detention, deportation, and mass incarceration. Nicole previously worked as a senior staff attorney on the Immigration Intervention Project at Sanctuary for Families, where she represented noncitizen clients who had experienced patriarchal violence. She has her B.A. from Columbia University, her J.D. from the George Washington University Law School, and her M.A. from the Elliott School of International Affairs. Nicole is a member of the New York State Bar.

Carrasco, Vlad

Vlad Carrasco

Vlad Carrasco (he/him) is the Deputy Director of External Affairs at CHIRLA. Working alongside state and national partners, Vlad helps run advocacy campaigns empowering BIPOC communities. He is also an organizer with Sunrise Movement Los Angeles. Vlad has worked at the intersection of racial and immigration justice through nonprofits, unions and electoral campaigns.