Our Team

Shawon Jackson (he/him)

Founder and Executive Director

shawon@vocaljustice.org

  • In the Office

    • Envisions spaces where young people proximate to injustice are inspired to use their voices to advocate for positive change

    • Hires dope people to advance Vocal Justice’s mission

    • Grows our community of supporters to expand our impact

    Out of the Office

    • Dances hip-hop and bachata whenever he has a chance

    • Eats Thai food

    • Finds the perfect lighting to take pictures of his friends

      View Shawon’s LinkedIn

Naomi S. Daugherty (she/they)

Director of Programming and Critical Consciousness

naomi@vocaljustice.org

  • In the Office

    • Architects curriculum rooted in self-exploration and compassion and centering the ancient art of storytelling as a tool for social change

    • Develops soft and liberatory spaces for educators to commune, explore, and deepen their practice

    • Leverages intergenerational wisdom and researches abolitionist education practices to cultivate revolutionary programing for both educators and young people

    Out the Office

    • Creates massage-oil candles and runs her wellness business, 4ColouredGurlz

    • Writes under a mighty Magnolia tree and shares her poetry across the world

    • Dances barefoot in her garden

    Reach out to Naomi to discuss district and school partnerships, teacher fellowship, and our curriculum.

Bess Cohen (she/her)

Director of Organizational Culture and Strategy

bess@vocaljustice.org

  • In the Office

    • Builds an organizational culture where youth who are proximate to injustice and their adult collaborators feel safe, nurtured, and powerful

    • Collaborates with young people to bring their voices to bear on organization-wide decisions

    • Oversees our communications and strategic planning work

    Out of the Office

    • Watches J-Lo movies

    • Belts Broadway ballads while stuck in Chicago traffic

    • Loses sleep to execute elaborate baked goods

    View Bess’ LinkedIn

Raja’Nee Redmond (she/her)

Community Engagement Manager and Digital Archivist

rajanee@vocaljustice.org

  • In the Office

    • Compiles and amplifies work and stories from Vocal Justice youth participants and alumni

    • Curates mission-aligned content for our social media platforms

    • Collaborates to plan special events that convene youth and adult allies

    Out of the Office

    • Gathers and archives family members’ life stories

    • Plans trips out of the country

    • Watches reality TV

    View Raja’Nee’s LinkedIn

    Reach out to Raja’Nee about the Youth Advisory Council and our social media platforms.


Former Interns & Volunteers

Inara Jain
Program Intern (2021-2022)

Eduarda Machado de Souza Special Projects Intern (2021-2022)

Jaileen Pierre-Louis
Research Specialist (January 2021)

Caleb Ren
Research Specialist (January 2021)

Lauren Hogan Education Specialist (Spring 2020)

Joshua Jordan Education Specialist (Spring 2020)

Alex Kuehn
Research Specialist (Spring 2020)

Clare McLaughlin Research Specialist (Spring 2020)

Meg Pantell
Data & Evaluation Specialist (Spring 2020)

Aisha Balogun Research Specialist (Summer 2020)

Aura Barrera
Research Specialist (Summer 2020)

Irene Gómez
Education Specialist (Summer 2020)

Kahlil Greene
Education Specialist (Summer 2020)

Venus Ayalani
Curriculum Design Intern (2022-2023)

Kassie Colon Special Projects Intern (2021-2023)

Samantha Anderson
Program Evaluation Intern (Summer 2022)

Karem Katary
Growth Strategy Intern (Summer 2022)

Mickey Mickle
Special Projects Intern (Summer 2022)

Elijah Thomas
Special Projects Intern (Summer 2022)

Nour Abdelwahab
Program Intern (2021-2022)

Liana Fu
Communications Intern (2021-2022)

LaHannah Giles
Communications Intern (2021-2022)

Haylee Huynh
Communications Intern (2021-2022)


The Cost of Conformity

Public speaking is a powerful skill that every student should learn. It can help young people advocate for a better tomorrow, today - but only if we're careful about how we teach it.

Watch our founder, Shawon Jackson, explain the importance of communication skills and critical consciousness.

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