CarlaDean is a cultural advocate and mentor of Indigenous sciences who follows the gathering and harvesting cycles of the four seasons. She is a steward of the land and waterways. A lifelong educator and learner, she attended the American Indian Language Development Institute at the University of Arizona and the Northwest Indian Language Institute at the University of Oregon.

In 2003, she received her American Indian language teacher license to teach the Northern Paiute language in public schools in Oregon. She shares Northern Paiute cultural legacies through written works, radio, and various multimedia visuals.

Caldera attended the National Breath of Life Archival Institute for Indigenous Languages in 2010 at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian and the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C., to advance her research and growth as a preserver of language and cultural legacies archives.

She was awarded an Oregon Fields Artist Fellowship for 2021-23.

Discipline: Visual Arts

A Polynesian weaver, marine scientist, and artist..born and raised in Amerika Samoa, Casidhe (Cassie) Mahuka graduated from Chaminade University of Honolulu with a Bachelors of Science degree in Environmental Studies. Casidhe currently works full-time as the Marine Invasive Species Coordinator for the Coral Reef Advisory Group (CRAG), house by the Department of Marine and Wildlife Resources (DMWR). Casidhe is also the sole proprietor of Launiu Life, promoting the art and traditional skills of weaving handicrafts from coconut fronds (ig: @launiulife). “Launiu” is the Samoan word for coconut fronds, and I use the term “Life” to mean vital or to survive. Launiu Life seeks to connect people with nature and heritage by adopting traditional Samoan weaving techniques for modern-day wear, uses, and aesthetics. . Through these endeavors, I aspire to grow Launiu Life and contribute meaningfully to our cultural narrative and community resilience.

Discipline: Opera/Musical Theatre

I’m truly honored and grateful for this opportunity. My hope with this to build a better foundation for my own longevity and build connections within the artist community. It’s truly amazing how one can take a picture in a way that’s completely different than anyone else looking at the same thing. I describe my photography as sincere, intimate and artful and to be able to do what I truly enjoy just makes my heart full of gratitude.

Name: Chastity Williams. Title: Founder of Spotlight Our Youth, Drama Director at Franklin Middle School.
Chastity Williams was born and raised in Illinois. She moved to Iowa, where she studied Theatre Arts at the University of Iowa and currently attends the University of Dubuque for Elementary Education, to integrate her arts experience in an educational setting. Chastity served as Miss Northeast Iowa 2023 where she continued to amplify the value of the arts. She is an advocate for arts education through her initiative “Spotlight Our Youth – Educate, Engage, and Emerge in Arts Education”. The arts help children find their voice and develop skills that help them become leaders. Her initiative is about sustaining artistic opportunities for kids so they can create their own stories. She has done work with Englert Theater in Iowa City and Chicago Shakespeare Theater in Illinois. She has also been on stage in productions across Iowa, some for other states. Chastity serves as a teaching associate and drama director in the Cedar Rapids School District and is a fan of anime. She’s excited to be a part of this fellowship and learn how to bring inclusivity into the arts!

Public Programs and Outreach Coordinator, Plains Art Museum

My name is Chelsea Steffes and I work at the Plains Art Museum as the Public Programs and Outreach Coordinator, a Teaching Artist, and a Senior Visitor Services Associate. I am a mixed race Filipino American who dedicates her time primarily towards the community that myself and my institution can serve. I got my Bachelor’s degree in Heritage and Museum Studies & Pre-professional Studio Art from Concordia College, Moorhead in 2019. Rather than specialize in a particular artistic medium, I focused on learning multiple artistic skills/practices and becoming an accessible and engaging informal arts educator. I have worked at my current institution since 2018 and have jumped at every opportunity that I can to improve myself and in turn, how I can serve my community. My goal is to make all arts community spaces an accessible and inclusive experience for anyone who visits. I make efforts to engage with our visitors and the local Fargo/Moorhead community through visitor experience, teaching classes, giving gallery tours, and participating in local community events by providing free art activities.

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Cheryl Derricotte is a visual artist whose favorite medium is glass. She also creates work on paper and textiles. Her art has been featured in publications including The New York Times, The Guardian, and The San Francisco Chronicle.

Derricotte is currently working on public art projects in the Midwest and the West. She was recently named a 2024 Emerging Public Artist at the international CODAworx Summit. In 2021, she was awarded a commission to develop a monument to Harriet Tubman at the transit-oriented Gateway at Millbrae Station. The piece is the first sculptural tribute to the abolitionist made in glass.

In 2024 and 2025, she served as a visiting artist at the Museum of Glass in Tacoma, Washington, alongside her participation in the groundbreaking exhibition “A Two Way Mirror: Double Consciousness in Contemporary Glass by Black Artists.” Prior to her work at the Museum of Glass, Cheryl was the Spring 2024 Marva and John Warnock Artist-in-Residence at the University of Utah’s Department of Art and Art History.

Event Coordinator, Arts Council of Big Sky

A self-described introvert with a very public profession, Dasan Ahanu is a North Carolina-based cultural organizer, artist, and scholar. As an accomplished cultural leader and poet, Dasan has appeared on NPR, TV One’s Verses and Flow, and the documentary Poet Son, among other features. He is a resident artist with the St. Joseph’s Historic Foundation/Hayti Heritage Center, co-founder and managing director of Black Poetry Theatre, and a visiting professor at UNC-Chapel Hill, teaching Hip-Hop and Black culture courses. A respected recording artist, Dasan has collaborated with many Jazz, Soul, and Hip-Hop artists in North Carolina. He is an alumnus of the Nasir Jones Fellowship with the Hip Hop Archive at Harvard University’s Hutchins Center for African & African American Research. In 2023, he was named the 15th Piedmont Laureate for poetry. He has published extensively and is the author of five poetry collections. Dasan also works with organizations as a strategist and builder who uses art & culture as a foundation and framework for creative solutions to internal and external needs. An imagination worker, he develops programs, collaborates on projects, helps map out initiatives, coordinates resources, and fosters ideation with groups looking to increase impact and embrace possibilities.

claire barrera is an artist based in Portland, Oregon. Their dance career extends 34 years, and they are extensively trained in ballet, modern and postmodern technique. They have created and produced their work since 2010, and have received multiple grants and residencies, most recently via Regional Arts and Cultural Council, Caldera Arts and Chapel Theater. They have performed in the work of many artists, including Allie Hankins, Linda Austin and Sam Hamilton. 

barrera’s work is multi-disciplinary and includes voice and writing. They’ve been involved in DIY punk art and social justice since they were an angry 12 year old in D.C. They co-edit the zine When Language Runs Dry: A Zine for People with Chronic Pain and Their Allies, which was anthologized by Mend My Dress Press (2020). Other writings include their zine el lenguaje nos gusta y nos confunde and an essay in Cindy Milstein’s anthology Constellations of Care  (Pluto Press, 2024).

Dance Director, Michigan Dance Council

Clara Martinez is the Dance Director at Everett High School in the Lansing School District. A lifelong dancer with a passion for community organizing, she views her role at Everett as arts educator and community leader. She is a proud union representative and advocates for students and educators in the Lansing Schools Education Association. Clara won Best Dance Instructor in Lansing’s City Pulse Top of the Town 2020 Contest. She is Chair of Michigan Dance Council and Board Member for All Of The Above Hip Hop Academy and Cultural Advocacy Network of Michigan. Clara was recognized as a Rising Leader in the Arts and selected for the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs’ Rising Leaders 2021-2022 Cohort. Clara is pursuing her Masters of Social Work (MSW) in Organization & Community Leadership at Michigan State University. Clara received her Bachelors of Fine Arts (BFA) in Dance from The Ohio State University.

Founder, The Mae Fellowship & Quitman Studios

Courtney Young is a writer of fiction, screenplays, popular culture criticism and creative nonfiction. She is a recipient of residencies from Willapa Bay Air, Vermont Studio Center, Faber, Hambidge, Bainbridge and Chateau D’Orquevaux. She is also the founder of the Mae Fellowship, a virtual, annual program that provides financial and professional support to women and non binary writers seeking to publish her/their first book and a co-founder of This Season. Her current projects include completing both her first narrative feature entitled This Savage Life Makes Us Hard to Kill and her first collection of short stories entitled Scar Tissue of the Extraordinary. A graduate of Spelman College and New York University, she received her B.A. in English with a minor in Management and her M.A. from the Gallatin School of Individualized Study, completing an interdisciplinary program that combined Entertainment Business, Performance, & Africana studies. She was born and raised in Lafayette, Louisiana.

Social Media & Contact Info:
* Twitter: @cocacy @maefellowship
* Instagram: @ccarlissyoung @themaefellowship
* Website: www.themaefellowship.com
* Newsletter: themood.substack.com

Courtney Ozaki-Durgin is the founder of the Japanese Arts Network, a national resource dedicated to uplifting and advancing the work of Japanese artists and culture in America while amplifying marginalized voices and narratives. She is also the creative producer for Off-Center, the immersive theater arm of the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, and works as an independent creative producer.

Ozaki-Durgin holds an MFA in performing arts management from Brooklyn College and has produced new and touring works with The Joyce Theater in New York City. She is a board member of the Western Arts Alliance, where she co-founded Hyphen+Asian, a collective and community space for the AAPINH artists and administrators in the field.

Currently serving on the advisory board for the Creative Independent Producers Alliance, Ozaki-Durgin was also the recipient of the 2024 JEDI Denver Mayor’s Award for Excellence in Arts and Culture. She is passionate about integrating ideas and fostering interdependence across arts sectors.

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Dakota Camacho creates multidisciplinary expressions of Matao/CHamoru worldview. Weaving movement, chant, film, prayer, altar-making, music, and community organizing, guiya (they) generates moments of connection with self, others, spirit, and the natural world. Exploring the intersections of integrity, ancestral and Indigenous life ways, true love, and accountability, guiya (they) strives to walk the path of inafa’maolek, or balance and harmony with all of life.

Yo’ña (their) work establishes spaces where multiple worlds and ways of knowing, being, and doing engage with one another to uncover embodied pathways toward collective liberation.

Damilola Afolabi is a passionate educator, licensed minister, and dynamic entertainer. With a deep love for fostering connections, he has a unique ability to bring people together through inspirational teaching, officiating heartfelt ceremonies, and curating joyful celebrations.

A cultural enthusiast inspired by African rhythms and dance, Afolabi is currently developing a family-oriented African dance class in Redding, California. The program aims to strengthen bonds between parents and children while celebrating rich cultural traditions.

Known for his creativity, warmth, and dedication to building meaningful relationships, Afolabi brings energy and purpose to every endeavor. He focuses on bridging cultural divides through vibrant performances, family-centered programs, and community events. Events he hosts include AfroLatino Night at The Park on the first Friday of each month, along with occasional cultural festivals.

Instagram: @afolabi_damilola, @afrolatinonights

Associate Director, Alumni Affairs, Berklee

Dana James has built a career on bringing together technology solutions and emotional intelligence. A strong believer in community organizing, Dana previously served as the Information and Systems Specialist for Community Clinic Association of Los Angeles County (CCALAC), serving over 60 member health centers. Over 6 years, Dana led the design of several grant-based programs from workforce to emergency management initiatives. Leaning on her strong belief in grassroots outreach and engagement, Dana has a strong track record for programmatic success. During her tenure in community health, Dana was invited to speak at multiple national conferences presenting her engagement strategies to peer organizations. Though driven to support organizational success, throughout Dana’s career she has been drawn to supporting the experience of the workforce. Throughout her professional tenure, Dana has led numerous staff development programs which contributed to significant improvement of worker satisfaction. A strong believer in community organizing, Dana currently serves as the Associate Director of Alumni Affairs for her alma mater, Berklee College of Music, leading alumni engagement strategy for the west coast. Whether bringing large scale community events to fruition or designing continued learning workshops in partnership with community members, Dana’s belief in community and investment in worker success shows up in the outcomes of her programming and projects.

Darrell Mckinney is a Washington-based interdisciplinary artist whose work explores the intersections of design, art, and architecture. His practice examines how design can address the complexities of politics, race, and social infrastructure by highlighting the interconnectedness of history, people, and places.

He earned a Master of Design from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. His work has been featured in exhibitions at EXPO Chicago and internationally at Salone Del Mobile in Milan, Spazio Rossana Orlandi, and the Venice Architecture Biennale.

Mckinney was the inaugural recipient of The Current, an Artist Award at the Tacoma Art Museum (2022). He has also received several honors, including the Greg Kucera & Larry Yocom Fellowship Award (2022), the A Tale of Today Emerging Artist Fellowship for the Richard H. Driehaus Museum (2019), and the Hilltop Lasting Legacy Fellowship (2020).

Mississippi, Speaking Down Barriers

Davelyn Hill is the Executive Director for Speaking Down Barriers. SDB is an organization whose mission is Equity for all. SDB seeks to build community across all that seeks to divide us by ending oppression and valuing everyone. She has a Masters in Marriage and Family Therapy from Converse College. Alongside providing counseling services, she has led support groups, presented research, and conducted university presentations around racial trauma and oppression. She enjoys facilitating groups and retreats around grief and wholeness. Davelyn Hill, also known as Davelyn Athena is an author, poet, and intuitive painter. She has her MFA in creative writing with an emphasis in poetry from Converse College. Davelyn Athena’s poetry and art have been featured in print and digital media. She is a curator for Spark and Echo which is a collective of artists giving artistic interpretation to every verse of the Bible.

Co-Founder, Artist Magnet Justice Alliance

Over the past decade, David Mack (he/him) has managed some of California’s most innovative performing arts organizations, including: Joe Goode Performance Group, Invertigo Dance Theatre, The Industry and Watts Village Theater Company. As a Strategic Consultant, Mack’s clients have included the cities of West Hollywood, Santa Monica and Culver City, as well as Center Theatre Group and LA Dance Project. Mack’s inaugural project as a Producer and Co-Founder was Chocolate City, an industry showcase connecting BIPOC writers and performers from institutions across Southern California to Hollywood agents, managers and casting directors. Since then, he has served on the Boards and committee leadership of several arts organizations, including the San Francisco Arts Alliance and Western Arts Alliance. Mack is currently the Managing Director of the African American Arts & Culture Complex, a member of the Greater Bay Area Arts & Cultural Advocacy Coalition and Co-Founder of Artist Magnet and Artist Magnet Justice Alliance, Oakland-based arts service organizations.

Discipline: Dance

David Heska Wanbli Weiden, an enrolled citizen of the Sicangu Lakota Nation, is the author of the novel WINTER COUNTS (Ecco/HarperCollins), nominated for an Edgar Award, and winner of the Anthony, Thriller, Lefty, Barry, Macavity, Spur, High Plains, Electa Quinney, Tillie Olsen, and other awards. The book was also a finalist for the VCU Cabell First Novelist Award, the Hammett Prize, the Colorado Book Award, and the Reading the West Award for Debut Fiction. The novel was a New York Times Editors’ Choice, an Indie Next pick, main selection of the Book of the Month Club, and named a Best Book of the year by NPR, Amazon, Publishers Weekly, Library Journal, The Guardian, Financial Times, Air Mail, and other magazines. He has short stories appearing in the anthologies The Best American Mystery and Suspense Stories 2022, Denver Noir, and others. He is a Professor of Native American Studies at Metropolitan State University of Denver, and lives in Denver, Colorado, with his family.