PRESIDENT

Amber Leventry is a queer, nonbinary writer and advocate. They live in Vermont and have three kids. Amber is Editor of Trends & News at Parents.com. Their writing appears in many publications including Romper, Longreads, The Temper, The Washington Post, and Parents.

Amber uses their words to influence and educate people on the importance of supporting the LGBTQIA+ community. They provide LGBTQIA+ inclusivity trainings locally and nationally. They are also available to give keynote speeches at conferences and events. 

TREASURER

Erin is the Director of Equity & Inclusion and Co-Director of Support Services for EWSD. She is also an Essex community member and parent. Erin has been a special education director since 2002 and an equity director since 2019. She holds a Masters's Degree in Special Education from Castleton University and a Certificate in Advanced Educational Leadership from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. She is working on her Doctoral studies at the University of Vermont. She has guided local schools and teams in implementing programming for students with disabilities and their families, as well as supports the school district toward educational equity for her school district. Erin has been the President of her state association for special education directors and is the current Past President of the Council of Administrators of Special Education, the national organization representing special education leaders. She is a dedicated community member supporting the idea that everyone belongs.

SECRETARY

Rey was born in Iran and immigrated to Los Angeles, California, in the mid-1980s to escape the Islamic regime and the Iran-Iraq War. She settled in Vermont in 2005 and has been a public servant for the State of Vermont for 16 years, serving in various leadership roles supporting Vermonters, including the most vulnerable populations. Rey’s public service career has spanned human services, including health care, affordable housing, homelessness, and early childhood education. She currently works at the Child Development Division, working on policies that ensure that the youngest Vermonters have access to high-quality early childhood education. Rey also works across the Department for Children and Families (DCF) to build efforts to advance equity and social justice to remove structural barriers and increase meaningful inclusion and representation across DCF. She has a deeply personal commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion. Rey has been actively engaged in multiple community projects over the past decade to promote racial equity and inclusion in and around Essex. Rey’s educational background includes a bachelor’s degree in business management from Champlain College, complemented by a certificate in trauma-informed practice from the Child Welfare Partnership at UVM and a certificate in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in the Workplace from the University of South Florida Muma College of Business. Rey lives with her husband, daughter, and their dog, Tilly.

BOARD MEMBER

Karen is a life-long Vermonter. As a child, Karen primarily grew up in the Northeast Kingdom where she could see Canada from one window and a cornfield from the other. A few years after graduating from the University of Vermont, Karen and her husband, Jason, decided to move to Essex Junction. They have lived in the Village for the past 14 years, raising two amazing children and their quirky family dog. 

Karen has devoted her entire career to the public service sector by leading initiatives to strengthen opportunities for Vermonters. Her efforts have spanned from food security systems and work readiness programs to criminal justice reform and facilitating community dialogue. In 2020, Karen furthered her capacity to serve the community when she was elected as a State Representative. 

Participating in VIEW for the past few years has been an important opportunity for Karen to expand her learning around diversity and equity, collaborate with community members and increase awareness around inclusion and belonging. Now as a board member, Karen is excited to build on VIEW's formative years to create a stable foundation for the work to continue in the years to come.

BOARD MEMBER

Liz received her B.A. from the University of Vermont and holds a Masters Degree in International Administration from the School for International Training. Liz was the founding director of the Anguilla National Trust where she was responsible for establishing a system of management for cultural and environmental resources on the island. She worked as Development Director for the Wider Caribbean Sea Turtle Conservation Network (WIDECAST) before moving back to Vermont. Liz now lives in Essex, VT with her husband and three kids. She served on the school board in Essex from 2014 to 2020 and continues to do work on racial and social justice issues in her community as a founding board member of Voices for Inclusion in Essex and Westford.

PROJECT MANAGER

Jamaal is a graduate of the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta, GA where he studied IT Management and Social Justice. He is originally from Essex Junction, Vermont, and was a Class of 2019 graduate of Essex High School.

Jamaal is committed to playing his part in what he believes is our collective responsibility to create a more loving, joyful, and harmonious world. Empowered youth are seeds that, when properly nourished today, grow into the beautiful and strong trees of tomorrow. Jamaal hopes to inspire future generations with the courage they need to dream without bounds.