NACEDA Staff

Dawne Troupe, People & Places Collaborative Advocacy Director

Dawne Troupe is a dedicated advocate committed to driving innovation and fostering positive change within community development, financial education, sustainability, and technologies that empower communities while addressing wealth disparities.

With a diverse career spanning the federal government, nonprofits, higher education, and the private sector, Dawne has successfully led and implemented large-scale initiatives that have made a significant impact on the public sector and the realm of social impact. She brings a wealth of experience and expertise to her work.

Previously, she provided consulting services on political campaigns, political action committees, nonprofits and oversaw promoting the accounting profession and financial literacy education efforts for high school and college students throughout the State of New York for the New York State Society of CPAs. 

As the Advocacy Director of the People and Places Collaborative, Dawne channels her passion and expertise into creating prosperous and equitable environments for people residing in underserved communities. Dawne is a graduate of George Washington University.

Contact Dawne

[email protected]
(202) 518-2660

 
 

 Kadasha Hershey, System Change Americorps VISTA

Kadasha joined NACEDA in July 2023. In her role as the System Change VISTA, she will support the development of communication systems and practices. Her focus is to help build meaningful relationships with local community developers and connect them with capacity-building opportunities and resources. Kadasha graduated with a master's degree in social work from Howard University in 2023, with a concentration in community, administration, and policy practice. She is enthusiastic about engaging in macro social work practice and is looking forward to applying the field's core principles, like social justice and the importance of human relationships, to systems-level work.


Kadasha previously worked with the Northwest Xcelerator, a start-up climate tech business accelerator for Black and underserved entrepreneurs in the Pacific Northwest, where she focused on organizational and grant management. She is passionate about cultivating the shared prosperity of people and places and is thrilled about gaining experience and expanding her knowledge of this mission within the community economic development field while working with NACEDA.

Contact Kadasha

[email protected]
(202) 518-2660, ext. 103

 

Shayna Orensztein
Americorps Grounding Values Research VISTA

Shayna joined NACEDA as an Americorps Grounding Values Research VISTA. In this role, Shayna will work to disseminate research findings about the financial health and policy areas central to the long-term capabilities of community economic development organizations. In addition, she will assist NACEDA with the creation of a new research program to create more knowledge about these organizations. 

Shayna earned her M.A. in Global Health from the University of California, San Diego where she conducted research on adolescent mental health and barriers to healthcare among various marginalized populations. She hopes to use her knowledge and experience to promote health equity and economic justice in the U.S. and abroad. 

Contact Shayna

[email protected] 
(202) 518-2660, ext. 105

 

 

Carly Collins, Stevenson Center Fellow

Carly joined the NACEDA team as a Stevenson Fellow in the summer of 2023. The Chicago native is in the process of receiving a graduate degree in Anthropology and Applied Community and Economic Development from Illinois State University. As a part of her degree program, the Stevenson fellow has been partnered with NACEDA to gain professional knowledge and help the team with the Technical Assistance program.

Carly received her undergraduate degree in English Literature from the University of Illinois in 2019. From 2021 to 2022, she served as a City Year Corps member in New Orleans, LA. While in New Orleans, she served as a student success coach for middle schoolers. Carly was shaped by her City Year experience and found a passion for capacity building within community development. She is excited to continue this work with NACEDA and hopes to gain more experience navigating the process of aiding developers.

Contact Carly

[email protected]
(202) 518-2660, ext. 106

 

 

 

Chanse Sonsalla, Research Associate

Chanse SonsallaChanse joined NACEDA in June 2022, becoming a research associate in 2023. Her primary responsibilities include supporting the Grounding Values Study of Community Based Development Organizations and coordinating NACEDA's research initiatives. Chanse is passionate about data equity, applied research, and continuing education. She is excited to bring new perspectives on information and data accessibility, as well as a passion for service and community growth, to NACEDA.

Chanse has a diversity of experience in many different education and development settings. As a certified English as a Second Language (ESL) teacher, she volunteered with her university’s ESL mission, and has continued to help develop academic community events to support accessible learning for all ages and educational environments. She previously served as a Peace Corps Education Volunteer, teaching English and Economics to secondary students in Bunumbu, Sierra Leone. More recently, she helped to revise and implement digital literacy curricula with Baker Ripley in Houston, Texas. She is currently working on completing her thesis and final academic year in the Masters of Sociology program at Illinois State University.

Contact Chanse
(202) 518-2660 x107
[email protected]

 

 
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