Albert has a powerful personal story, one that is rooted in the struggles and search for quality education through community organizing and youth advocacy. The proud father of four sons, Albert grew up in the Shady Oaks community around the corner from where NAACP member and civil rights activist Medgar Evers lived and died. Evers has been one of Albert’s guiding lights in doing the work needed to move Mississippi and our nation forward. Becoming a student of the Algebra Project and a mentee of Bob Moses brought Evers into Albert’s life, and made his sacrifices tangible to the then teenager. Through this experience, Albert gained much firsthand knowledge and understanding of Black Mississippi’s struggle for justice, equity, and full citizenship. Albert was formerly the policy and advocacy director of the Young People’s Project, which trains, employs and supports high school students in becoming math literacy workers to elementary students. Albert is also an organizer at heart. He has advocated with the NAACP for a quality education as a constitutional right and served as a national trainer for the Children’s Defense Fund’s Youth Advocate Leadership Training.

Dana has been deeply involved in education justice work since 2001, focused on advocating for a world grounded in social and racial justice, community and youth engagement, and connection to nature and place. He has taught in democratic, progressive, and conventional school settings, earned a Masters Degree in Education from Vermont College of Union Institute and University, and published essays in various education journals. Dana co-designed and currently stewards IDEA’s national programs including the Antiracism Course for White Educators, Racial Justice Institute, and Decolonize Puerto Rico program. Dana collaborates with others locally, nationally, and internationally to end white supremacy and colonization and to raise up and support education that is anti-racist, that meaningfully involves young people and communities, and that is directed towards freedom, liberation, and sovereignty. Dana lives in Minneapolis with his partner and fellow educator, Julie Hill, and their son.

Maisie Brown is an 19 year old Mississippi native, activist, and organizer. Throughout the years, she’s published several pieces about the need for the change of the state flag, state universities, and the need for a call for change to Mississippi. She’s been heavily involved in advocacy throughout the years which even took her to the nation’s capitol to advocate for the need to change the state flag while also presenting a TEDxJackson talk on the importance of the social media generation in the fight for equality. She’s volunteered on numerous campaigns including the Mike Espy for US Senate campaign. She is currently the Youth Program Director at the Institute for Democratic Education in America where she works to create and facilitate programs with students around Jackson on the concept of democratic education and learning to advocate for themselves and their communities. Upon graduation from Murrah High School, she co-organized Jackson’s Black Lives Matter protest in the summer of 2020 that was the largest protest since the 1960’s civil rights era in the state of Mississippi. Concurrently, she is the Jackson branch leader of 601 for Period Equity, a Mississippi based group that provides supplies and resources for black menstruators across the state. She currently studies History and Political Science at North Carolina A&T State University. 

Rooted in West Jackson’s Washington Addition Neighborhood and replanted in the Virden Addition community, Jackson, Mississippi is the hub of Rosaline’s life experiences and PreK-12 education.

As a product and parent of Mississippi’s second-largest school district, Rosaline’s personal interest and investments in quality and equitable education, and social justice began over 15 years ago.

As an advocate for parents and children of public schools, Rosaline has served as a democratic education leader and consultant for several community organizing efforts in Jackson to include a statewide ballot initiative that would have required lawmakers to provide an increase of financial support for an adequate and more efficient system of free and public education. Rosaline was also once identified as one of the partners of a government appointed commission responsible for creating a pathway of support to transform Mississippi’s largest urban school district with the goal of ensuring that every student in it receives a high quality education.

Rosaline’s passion for advocacy work runs deep through her community, and she gives credit to several people and organizations across Jackson for planting seeds and providing her a platform to contribute to the quality of life for all children.

Shawn began collaborating with IDEA over ten years ago at the organization’s founding retreat in Estes Park, Colorado. His earliest role was as an intern, and since he has done research, development work, communications, and more with IDEA. Most recently, Shawn returns to work with IDEA after spending years away as a professional touring musician, songwriter, and communications lead for a successful alternative-rock band. He has a Bachelor’s degree in philosophy from Arizona State University, is passionate about human wellness, potential, and connection, maintains a professional life coaching practice, is dedicated to spending his life in commitment to social justice, and lives happily in love with his partner, Natalia Rosado Cofresí, in New York City.