Our Team

We come from many backgrounds, united in our belief in equity and our vision for a world where difference is celebrated and the richness of diversity is cultivated.

Team Members

Janine Chen, Facilitator & Designer

Leading from her values of empathy, courageous authenticity, and hope, Janine moves others toward people-centered, collaborative leadership in practical ways.

Janine Chen, Facilitator & Designer

Janine Chen is a consultant supporting organizations in the social impact sector. She helps launch new initiatives or reimagine existing organizational practices and systems with diversity, equity, and inclusion at the center. Using equity-focused design thinking, she partners with organizations to take steps toward the ultimate goal of an inclusive culture that leads to healing and liberation.

Prior to starting her consulting practice, Janine joined the edtech start-up Swing Education as their first employee. Swing Education is now a Series C, YC (Imagine K-12) revenue-generating startup tackling the substitute teacher shortage. Under her leadership as VP of Talent, in three years, Swing's substitute teacher pool grew to over 5,000 subs across six states serving 1,500 schools. She then transitioned to the role of VP of People Operations, building scalable HR systems and processes and developing a culture committed to diversity & inclusion as the company headquarters grew to over 65 employees.

Prior to Swing Education, Janine served as Education Pioneers' Western Region Associate Director, leading partnerships and talent development across California and Colorado. Previously, Janine worked at the national charter school network Rocketship Public Schools, Boston Public Schools' Chief Academic Office, and New Leaders in Washington, D.C., a national nonprofit recruiting, selecting, and training aspiring school leaders.

Janine is a Catalyst:ED Network Provider and 2011 Education Pioneers Alumna. She earned a B.A. in Urban Studies from Stanford University and a M.Ed in Education Policy from the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Leonard Medlock, Lead Designer

Analytical, conceptual, contradictory, and provocative, Leonard nudges people and ideas from thought to action.

Leonard Medlock, Lead Designer

Leonard Medlock is an expert at designing culturally responsive technologies and experiences that address the needs of black and brown students. His experiences range from co-leading the design of four NYC public high schools, which in their fifth year have graduated hundreds of students from New York City’s most under-served neighborhoods, to managing the first ever pilot of Google Chromebooks and Khan Academy in the world.

Leonard was a founding team member of EdSurge, the foremost authority on education technology and entrepreneurship, where his thought leadership reached tens of thousands of teachers, administrators, entrepreneurs and investors. During his tenure, he also co-created and managed a service for selecting the right education technology, which was used by hundreds of schools and districts across the U.S. Throughout his career, Leonard has coached or advised dozens of K-12 leaders and social impact entrepreneurs through organizations such as the Stanford d.school, Camelback Ventures, and Cambiar Education, where he currently serves as General Manager. He hustles 5-9 as CEO of Playback Worldwide, a technology firm focused on helping student-athletes build life skills while excelling at sports.

Leonard has a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Duke University and a M.Ed in Learning, Design and Technology from the Stanford Graduate School of Education.

Caitlin McCorkle, Project Architect

With an eye for detail, a curious mind, and a knack for technology, Caitlin manages strategy, projects, and information to further our movement.

Caitlin McCorkle, Project Architect

Caitlin McCorkle is the Project Architect at Onward. After teaching middle school science and social studies with Teach For America in Memphis, Tennessee, Caitlin worked as the Assistant Director, Operations at the Lynch Leadership Academy in Boston, working closely with Onward’s CEO Thaly Germain. She left the Academy to spend a couple of years at the High Meadows Institute as the Communication and Operations Manager before her passion for equity and social justice led her to reunite with Thaly and begin working with Onward, where she manages partnerships, supports strategy work, and creates content and curriculum.

Originally from central New Jersey, Caitlin received a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Policy Studies at Dickinson College. She earned a Masters in Business Administration from Boston College's Carroll School of Management in May 2017. Caitlin lives in coastal Maine with her husband and two young daughters.

Lourdes Fitzgerald

Committed to reshaping traditional workplace norms, Lourdes' approach is community-focused, prioritizing lived experience and connection to drive meaningful change.

Lourdes Fitzgerald

Lourdes Fitzgerald is a Coordinator for the Onward team. In this role, she supports client projects as well as the work of the team to advance Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) efforts and initiatives. Previously, Lourdes worked as a DEI Program Coordinator at a social media agency, where she organized both internal and external DEI events and collaborated closely with Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) to drive positive outcomes. Outside of the office, Lourdes enjoys listening to music, learning new recipes, crafting earrings, and taking endless photos of her dogs. During her final semester of college, Lourdes co-led a full-credit course on the sociology of The Real Housewives Franchise!

Colin Angevine, Designer & Facilitator

Colin's work toward equity begins and ends with relationships, and focuses on design, learning, and collaboration in between.

Colin Angevine, Designer & Facilitator

Colin Angevine is an educator, researcher, and facilitator. His work focuses on themes of equity, design, and collaboration. Colin's perspective draws from previous work experiences as an educator (in middle and high schools), a technologist (in edtech and legal tech startups), and as a researcher (in researcher-practitioner partnerships). Most recently, Colin was the project director for Challenge Collaboratives at Digital Promise, where he developed and facilitated new models for equity-driven R&D in education. Colin holds a B.A. from Dickinson College in Classics and an M.S.Ed. from the University of Pennsylvania in Learning Sciences and Technologies. He lives in the Pacific Northwest.

Thaly Germain, CEO

An entrepreneur, change agent, and activist, Thaly has worked to build the capacity of leaders and organizations internationally.

Thaly Germain, CEO

Thaly Germain founded Onward in November 2016. As chief executive officer, she oversees program strategy, development, and implementation. Most recently, Thaly served as executive director of the Lynch Leadership Academy. Prior to that she was the executive director of aligned staff at New Leaders, a national leadership development organization. In this capacity, she co-led New Leaders’ program redesign. Thaly also served as New Leaders’ national director of charter school strategy, where she developed a strategic plan for improving leadership and achieving dramatic student academic gains across the Washington, DC charter sector.

Thaly gained much of the firsthand experience and knowledge which has informed her career in leadership development while serving as a principal and assistant principal in Washington, DC, and in teaching in New York and Washington, DC. While a DC charter school leader, Thaly’s school received the Effective Practice Incentive Community (EPIC) “Silver Gain” award. In New York City, Thaly worked as an educator at Harry S. Truman High School, where she helped to establish the Peace and Diversity Academy.

Thaly received a master’s degree in education from Trinity University and a master’s degree in administration from Fordham University. She earned her bachelor of arts in cultural anthropology at Bryn Mawr College.

Tamar Lawrence-Samuel, Lead Program Designer

An activist and strategist, Tamar has organized large-scale change for social justice across continents, from climate justice at the United Nations to integrated DEI and strategic planning with organizations in the US.

Tamar Lawrence-Samuel, Lead Program Designer

Tamar Lawrence-Samuel consults for organizations, providing expertise in strategic planning, DEI, change management, social justice and other issues.

Tamar has led strategic development of integrated advocacy, communications, and policy campaigns in the areas of food security, climate change, tobacco control and access to water. She has also led organizational strategic planning, including integrated DEI and strategy for the long- and short-term.

Previously, as International Policy Director at Corporate Accountability, Tamar lead the policy analysis and strategic campaign development that guided Corporate Accountability's climate, food, tobacco, and water campaigns to challenge the life-threatening abuses of transnational corporations. In that capacity, Tamar represented the organization around the world: in the media, with civil society, and with governments. Tamar also represented the organization at United Nations bodies, including at the World Health Organization, the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, and the United Nations Economic and Social Council. Tamar is an international human rights lawyer who previously advocated for the rights of deported people as a visiting scholar at Boston College, and promoted legislative reform and access to justice as a Judicial Affairs Officer at the United Nations mission in Haiti.

Tamar is licensed to practice law in the state of New York, holds a Juris Doctor from The George Washington University Law School, and received her bachelor's degree in political science from California State University, Chico.

Board

Our Board

Todd Asher

An expert in communications and media, Todd acts as a resource and advocate for cities to help them improve their engagement and delivery of service to residents.

Todd Asher

Todd Asher works in the Media & Technology Department of Bloomberg Philanthropies, the organization that encompasses all of Michael Bloomberg’s charitable activities. Before joining Bloomberg, Todd spent three and a half years as the First Deputy Commissioner of the Mayor’s Office of Media & Entertainment – City of New York. In his role there, Todd helped with the office’s mission to streamline government communications by making information more accessible, leveraging technology to aid in the transparency of government and supporting the media industry in New York City. Additionally, Todd has spent ten years working in broadcast operations at Bloomberg, out of both its New York and London offices. Todd graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Film and Television from the University of Kansas.

Elise Darwish

As a leader and teacher, Elise’s work focuses on providing all students a school with rigorous caring and caring rigor.

Elise Darwish

Elise Darwish has worked to improve schools for underserved students for over thirty years. She has served as a teacher, principal, and chief academic officer in public schools both charter and district. She currently serves as Ensemble Learning’s CEO and leads the strategy to create equitable experiences and achievement for English learners in charter and district schools. Previously, Elise was the founding chief academic officer at Aspire Public Schools where she grew the organization to 38 high performing schools. She was also the first instructional coordinator at the San Carlos Charter Learning Center, the first charter school in California. Her expertise includes a deep knowledge of teaching and learning, especially for English learners, school leadership, system implementation and change management. Elise is an Aspen Pahara Fellow and serves on the board of Oakland School for the Arts and Learning Ally’s.

Lyn Freundlich

A specialist in human resources and organizational development, Lyn partners with social justice organizations to design and operationalize values-based systems and practices that support leadership development at all levels.

Lyn Freundlich

Lyn Freundlich is a Senior Consultant for TSNE MissionWorks specializing in human resources and organizational development, consulting, and training. Lyn has worked with TSNE MissionWorks (formerly Third Sector New England) since 2003, primarily as the Director of Human Resources and Administration. In 2005, Lyn also launched the human resources training and consulting practice which she now runs full time. In this capacity, Lyn partners with local and national nonprofits to build human resources systems and organizational culture that are reflective of each organization’s vision and values. She considers employees an organization’s greatest asset and believes that people choose to work in nonprofits not simply to make a living but to make a difference. To support their success, Lyn works with organizations to more closely walk their talk by treating staff in ways that promote equity and are consistent with their mission and vision. Lyn has over 30 years of experience in the nonprofit sector and has a B.A. from Oberlin College and a Master’s Degree in Organization and Management from Antioch University of New England. Lyn is a Certified Professional Coach, a seasoned trainer and consultant working with dozens of clients each year.

Roshi Givechi

A designer, storyteller, optimist, and empath, Roshi crystallizes narratives and experiences to enhance mindsets, ideas and outcomes.

Roshi Givechi

Roshi Givechi provides design consulting services to large businesses, individual startup entrepreneurs, and non-profit organizations looking to make a difference while also developing her own doc film shorts. She hopes to inspire people to translate ideas into action, even if that means a shift in perspective. After 19 years at global design firm IDEO, lastly as Partner and Executive Design Director, she coined her “creative sabbatical” in 2018 before opting to consult. She loves helping founders articulate their offer, designing better systems and services, and programming workshops with seasoned facilitators to unlock individual and collective impact (as she does with non-profit HATCH). Roshi is Advisor to Clever Girl Finance, a startup up aimed at helping women get out of debt and become financially resilient, and is an Executive Board Member for A Better Life Foundation, working to secure upward mobility for individuals living in the margins. She holds a B.S. in Design from the University of California, Davis and an M.F.A. in Graphic Design / New Media from Art Center College of Design, Pasadena. Additionally, she taught design and design thinking methodologies at the California College of Arts in San Francisco and at the Stanford in New York program. Roshi has loved contributing her creative direction to Onward’s brand development so something this important wouldn’t get lost in the cyber weeds.

Bryant Weinberg-Jones

A dreamer and a doer, Bryant helps make big ideas real and sustainable.

Bryant Weinberg-Jones

Bryant Weinberg-Jones is currently an independent consultant working with nonprofit and governmental organizations on strategic, financial and operational issues. He specializes in working with organizations improving outcomes for low-income and students of color. Bryant was the Chief Investment Officer at the Boston Schools Fund from 2015-2019 overseeing grantee diligence and support. Bryant holds an M.P.A. from the Kennedy School at Harvard, an M.A. in Urban Education Policy from Brown University, and a B.A. in English from Harvard College. Bryant brings a deep background in non-profit finance and diligence and experience with strategic planning in organizations taking their work to scale.

Jasmine-Simone Morgan

Through her work as an attorney, Jasmine is committed to challenging economic inequality and empowering marginalized communities.

Jasmine-Simone Morgan

Jasmine-Simone Morgan is currently the Director of Strategic Growth & Public Affairs at The SEED Foundation, a national education non-profit that opens and supports public, college-preparatory boarding schools designed specifically for children from the nation’s most economically challenged neighborhoods. Prior to joining SEED, Jasmine practiced law for Klein Hornig LLP, a boutique law firm concentrating exclusively on affordable housing and community development, where she represented non-profit organizations, housing authorities and for-profit developers in the development and preservation of multifamily affordable rental housing.

Jasmine received her Bachelor of Science in Journalism, magna cum laude, from Boston University and received her Juris Doctor from The George Washington University Law School While at GW, Jasmine received the Richard C. Lewis, Jr. Award, awarded to a member of the graduating Juris Doctor class for extraordinary dedication to their work in the GW Law Jacob Burns Community Legal Clinic.

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Our team works remotely from New York to California and everywhere in between. We combine our vastly different skills and perspectives to build a united movement. Tell us about yourself.

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