ABOUT
482 FORWARD
MEET OUR STAFF
ARLYSSA HEARD
pronouns: she/herDeputy Director / Lead Organizer, 482LAW
arlyssa@482forward.org
JERRICA MICKENS
pronouns: she/herLead Organizer, 482Vote
jerrica@482forward.org
JUANITA ZUNIGA
pronouns: she/herLead Organizer, YOC
KRYSTINA WILSON-KENDRICK
pronouns: she/herLead Organizer, NEAT / Membership Lead
krystina@482forward.org
MOLLY SWEENEY
pronouns: she/herDirector of Organizing / Co-chair, MEJC
molly@482forward.org
STACI LOWRY
pronouns: she/herLead Organizer, AOC
TINU USORO
pronouns: she/herLead Organizer, HEAT
tinu@482forward.org
TRINA TOCCO
pronouns: she/herDirector, MEJC
IMANI HARRIS
pronouns: she/herCommunications Lead
Mohammad Muntakim
DMYC
m.muntakim@482forward.org
Daisy Recinos
ELITE
drecinos@unidetroit.org
Mariam Bazzi
JIRON
mbazzi@accesscommunity.org
Yvonne Navarete
MI Students Dream
yvonnegnavarrete@gmail.com
Cristal Rivas
PODER
crivas@dhdc1.org
Kammy Webb
pronouns: she/her
Kammy@482forward.org
MEET OUR BOARD
482Forward's board includes members skilled in board governance, elected member representatives from each of our Action Teams, and the director from each of our network member organizations (Detroit Hispanic Development Corporation, Detroit Action, Urban Neighborhood Initiatives, Brilliant Detroit, Total Life Christian Ministries, MIStudentsDream, Developing K.I.D.S., Brightmoor Alliance, Congress of Communities, ACCESS, and Detroit Heals Detroit.
ANGELA REYES
pronouns: she/herDirector, Detroit Hispanic Development Corporation
BRANDEN SNYDER
pronouns: he/himDirector, Detroit Action
CHRISTINE BELL
pronouns: she/herDirector, Urban Neighborhood Initiatives
CINDY EGGLETON
pronouns: she/herDirector, Brilliant Detroit
DARYL HARRIS
pronouns: he/himPastor, Total Life Chrstian Ministries
EMILY GONZALEZ
pronouns: she/herMember, 482Youth Organizing Collective
HELENA LAZO
pronouns: she/her482Forward Founder
INES DE JESUS
pronouns: she/her482Forward Founder
JAMILA MARTIN
pronouns: she/herAt-Large Member, 482Forward
JAYESH PATEL
pronouns: she/herAt-Large Member, 482Forward
JESSICA MASON
pronouns: she/herMember, 482Youth Organizing Collective
KELSEY WILEY
pronouns: she/herKIM JOHNSON-NEWBERRY
pronouns: she/herDirector, Developing K.I.D.S.
LARRY SIMMONS
pronouns: he/himDirector, Brightmoor Alliance
MARIA SALINAS
(pronouns: she/her)Director, Congress of Communities
MAURICE BP-WEEKS
pronouns: he/himAt-Large Member, 482Forward
MARILYN BALL
pronouns: she/herMember, Northeast Education Action Team (NEAT)
RIMA MEROUEH
pronouns: she/herDirector National Network for Arab American Communities, ACCESS
SIRRITA DARBY
pronouns: she/herDirector, Detroit Heals Detroit
STEPHANIE JOHNSON-COBB
pronouns: she/herMember, Hope Village Education Action Team (HEAT)
TINU ROLAND
pronouns: she/herMember, Hope Village Education Action Team (HEAT)
YOLANDA ZAYAS
pronouns: she/herMember, Padres Organizando Demandan Educación Real (PODER)
ACTION TEAMS
An Action Team is the basic building block of 482Forward. Action Teams are responsible for training members to lead local campaigns, listening, and spreading the word in the community that they serve. They are usually made up participants from the Organizational Member that is hosting that Action Team.
BRIGHTMOOR EDUCATION ACTION TEAM (BEAT)
The BEAT (Brightmoor Education Action Team) is located in the Brightmoor neighborhood on the west side of Detroit, and is supported by Brightmoor Alliance. They are currently focused on addressing the root causes of trauma in the neighborhood by building a center that will provide trauma-informed care and other mental health services for students and families across Brightmoor.
Led by Molly Sweeney (Molly@482forward.org) and Jerrica Mickens (Jerrica@482forward.org)
DETROIT MUSLIM YOUTH COUNCIL (DMYC)
The Detroit Muslim Youth Council is a citywide Action Team that officially launched in February 2022. The team came out of a successful campaign advocating for Eid to be added as a holiday to the DPSCD calendar. This year, the adult chairs and student members will be building out their first campaign.
Led by Mohammad Muntakim (m.muntakim@482forward.org)
ENGAGED LEADERS INITIATING TOMORROW'S EDUCATION (ELITE)
The ELITE team is located in southwest Detroit and is supported by Urban Neighborhood Initiatives. They are currently focused on advocating for expanded mental health services and supports across DPSCD.
Led by Daisy Recinos (drecinos@unidetroit.org)
JOIN IN TO REVITALIZE OUR NEIGHBORHOOD (JIRON)
JIRON (Join In to Revitalize Our Neighborhood) is supported by ACCESS, which has centers located in Dearborn, Sterling Heights, Ferndale, and Detroit. They are currently focused on advocating for expanded mental health services across DPSCD.
Led by Mariam Bazzi (mbazzi@accesscommunity.org)
MI STUDENTS DREAM ACTION TEAM
MI Students Dream supports an action team in southwest Detroit that is currently advocating for an ethnic studies curriculum that would be used in all Detroit schools.
Led by Yvonne Navarete (yvonnegnavarrete@gmail.com) and Matt Homrich-Knieling (matthewknieling@gmail.com)
NORTHEAST EDUCATION ACTION TEAM (NEAT)
The NEAT (Northeast Education Action Team) is located on the east side of Detroit, and is supported by True Life Christian Ministries. They are currently focused on continuing their multi-year work on defining what safety looks like in schools, and advocating for an end to current practices and policies that make schools unsafe for students.
Led by Krystina Wilson-Kendrick (Krystina@482forward.org)
PADRES ORGANIZANDO DEMANDAN EDUCACIÓN REAL (PODER)
PODER (Padres Organizando Demandan Educación Real) is located in southwest Detroit, and is supported by Detroit Hispanic Development Corporation. They are currently focused on advocating for language accessibility for the hundreds of families across the district who need it for report cards, letters home, robocalls, events, board meetings, and much more.
Led by Cristal Rivas (crivas@dhdc1.org)
TAKING ACTION FOR NUESTROS NIÑOS (TANN)
TANN (Taking Action for Nuestros Niños) is located in southwest Detroit, and is supported by Congress of Communities.They are currently focused on advocating for culturally competent mental health services for students across DPSCD.
Led by Cristian Aranda (cristian@cocswdetroit.com)
NETWORK COMMITTEES
If we do not have an Action Team in your neighbor-hood, you may want to participate instead by joining a Network Committee. Network Committees support our campaigns by training our members to be experts in the committee's area of focus.
482FACT
The FACT team focuses on research that seeds and supports our organizing campaigns.
Led by Imani Harris (Imani@482forward.org)
482LAW
The LAW team tracks and analyzes legislation relevant to education justice, as well as engages with current electeds around our campaigns.
Led by Arlyssa Heard (Arlyssa@482forward.org)
482TALKS
The Talks team generates media to spread the word about our campaigns and educate the public about key issues.
Led by Imani Harris (Imani@482forward.org)
482TRAIN
The Train team develops skill- and knowledge-building trainings most relevant to our work. The Adult Organizing Collective Fellowship (details below) is a 482Train project.
482VOTE
The Vote team engages our members and our communities to turn out informed voters in local, statewide, and federal elections.
Led by Jerrica Mickens (Jerrica@482forward.org)
ADULT ORGANIZING COLLECTIVE (AOC)
AOC is an application-based opportunity wherein AOC Fellows deepen their skills around organizing through hands-on work within our organization and monthly trainings.
Led by Staci Lowry (Staci@482forward.org)
MICHIGAN EDUCATION JUSTICE COALITION (MEJC)
MEJC is a statewide coalition led by 482Forward that is working to ensure ALL students in MI have equitable access to their educational needs.
Led by Trina Tocco (Trina@miedjustice.org)
YOUTH ORGANIZING COLLECTIVE (YOC)
The Youth Organizing Committee is made up of representatives from each youth action team, as well as direct members of 482Forward. They are currently focused on advocating for $100million that has been allocated to School Resource Officers and increased policing instead go toward more mental health counselors and supports in DPSCD schools.
Led by Juanita Zuniga (Juanita@482forward.org)