Our Team
Paula Lee Poy (she/hers)
Chief Excellence Director of Evaluation & Impact
Paula Lee Poy has been working at the intersection of equity, social policy, and evaluation for most of her career. She is a proud generalist and lifelong learner who relishes pulling together different strands of work, frameworks, and pieces of data to help organizations realize their mission – whether it’s through collaborations with DEI teams, HR, research and evaluation, or communications and development. An astute observer and strategic thinker, with a keen eye for operationalizing big ideas, Paula is instrumental in not only executing project elements but also in envisioning recommendations and roadmaps for moving forward. Paula has worked in various nonprofit sectors including, education, housing, food advocacy, and health and social policy research. She has a BA in Geography and Statistics from Mount Holyoke College and an MPA from Baruch College. She lives in Brooklyn, New York with her family.
Jazné Bembry (she/hers)
Project Manager
Jazné is an experienced project manager and operations professional with a background in executive support and business development. Known for her strong organizational skills and ability to manage complex initiatives, she drives projects forward with clarity and efficiency. As a Virtual Consultant, she supports organizations through project coordination, administrative strategy, and operational support that keeps teams aligned and productive.
Jazné has dedicated her career to helping small organizations strengthen their operations and business development. Her background as an executive assistant strengthened her expertise in time management, task execution, and leadership support, which she now applies to managing projects and advancing organizational goals. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and a Master’s in Public Administration from Bowie State University..
Jody Drezner Alperin (she, her, hers)
Facilitator & Coach
Jody Drezner Alperin is the co-founder and Artistic Director of Off The Page, an arts education and theatre company. Off The Page works with young people in and outside of school, exploring issues they are most passionate about and creating new works of theatre with them and for them, including their adaptation of Jason Reynolds and Brenda Kiely’s ALL AMERICAN BOYS. Jody also works as a facilitator in group settings learning and advocating for racial equity and as a leader of white affinity groups.
Beata Moon (she/hers)
Facilitator & Coach
Through her various roles as a teaching artist, performer, composer, and activist, Beata Moon is able to fulfill her wish to work with people of all ages and backgrounds. A graduate of the Juilliard School, Moon's extensive experience as a teaching artist for Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center Education, and the New York Philharmonic includes facilitating workshops about social-emotional learning for teachers and administrators and designing curriculum tailored for students of diverse backgrounds and abilities. She has facilitated conversations about race and restorative justice and believes in the power of music and the arts to heal and work towards social change.
Hope Lesane (she/hers)
Facilitator & Coach
Hope has served as a senior policy advisor on prenatal through early childhood strategies and priorities with a focus on grass roots and grass tops advocacy, research and statewide coalition building. Hope’s passion for policy and advocacy stems from her years as a classroom teacher, beginning with community based Head Start. Through research and advocacy, Hope is committed to improving policies that impact young children and their families, especially black and indigenous children. Hope serves as a public speaker, advocate, educator and coach for early childhood thought leaders across the country. Hope is an active member of several statewide and citywide early childhood advisory councils.
Nikolai Pizarro de Jesus (she/her/hers)
Facilitator & Coach
For over 10 years, Nikolai Pizarro has worked to empower predominantly Black and Brown parents and caregivers, particularly segments further marginalized by socioeconomic factors, with science-based frameworks of early brain development, literacy instruction, non-violent discipline, and self-directed education. She has facilitated workshops at hundreds of preschools and private early childhood centers, including over 300 Early Start and Head Start Centers.