Category: Staff

Wendy

Wendy she/her/hers Professional Auntie [Cultural Organizing Director] wendy@alternateroots.org The Programs Director executes the overall management, design, implementation, administration and evaluation of ROOTS Week and ROOT S Weekends, and our regranting program, Artistic Assistance. ROOTS Week is Alternate ROOTS’ signature event

Paige Heurtin

paige-heurtin

Paige Heurtin she/her/hers Caretaker, Peacemaker & Implementer [Operations Director] paige@alternateroots.org Paige is the leader of the Operations team, and sees her role with ROOTS as providing a firm and sturdy foundation for ROOTS’ programs work. Paige’s main responsibilities are managing

Nicole Gurgel-Seefeldt

Nicole Gurgel-Seefelt she/her/hers Communications Orchestrator & Story Strategist [Communications Director] nicole@alternateroots.org As the Communications Director, Nicole implements the strategy for all internal and external communications. Working closely with Programs and

Mel Cardona

MEL CARDONA they/them/theirs & she/her/hers Platforms Whisperer & Visual Story Alchemist [Communications Specialist] melisa@alternateroots.org Mel is a first generation queer Latinx self-taught artivist who grew up between Atlanta, GA and her parents native land of Colombia. They cut their teeth

Aimee McCoy

Aimee McCoy she/her/hers Oracle of Synthesis [Director of Membership Services] aimee@alternateroots.org Aimee McCoy is Co-founder of The Artizen Company (TAC), a theater and film company based in Georgia. Since 2013, she has served as managing director and co-artistic director, regularly

Clarissa Crawford

Clarissa Crawford she/her/hers Partnerships & Process Road Opener [Director of Strategic Partnerships]  clarissa@alternateroots.org Clarissa is a producer who facilitates creative processes by curating content, opportunities, and access to resources for artists. She is also a seasoned project manager who has

Nathalie Nia

NATHALIE NIA they/them/theirs & she/her/hers Mistress of Cultural Exuberance and Pleasantries [Cultural Organizing Programs Coordinator] nathalie@alternateroots.org Nathalie Nia (they/them she/her) born in Louisiana and living in for the last eight years, is a self described Ebony Southern Belle! Their work

Marina Dias Lujan

Marina Dias Lujan she/her/hers [Operations Manager] marina@alternateroots.org Marina is the Operations Manager, she is a bridge-builder, pathfinder, and puzzle solver, pathfinder, and puzzle solver. With a background working for international non-profits in the humanitarian field, Marina’s journey has taken her

Zaid Hameed

Zaid Hameed he/him/his [Membership Services Associate] zaid@alternateroots.org Zaid Hameed (He/Him) is the new Membership Services Associate. A spoken-word poet born and raised in East St. Louis, Illinois relocating to Atlanta, Georgia; Zaid graduated from East St. Louis Senior High in

jack Fischer

jack Fischer they/them/he/his[Grantwriter] jack@alternateroots.org With a deep appreciation for Alternate ROOTS, and as a member since 2017, jack brings an enlivening approach to the grant writing process and helps find ways of sharing information among staff in easeful ways. As

BeeJay Lindsey

BeeJay Lindsey she/he/darling [Development Associate] bj@alternateroots.org BeeJay Lindsey is an educator, farmer, social worker- resource broker, equitable education advocate, creative entrepreneur, and art director. Hurricane Katrina and a full scholarship to play basketball at Tulane University drew her to New

Marquetta Dupree

Marquetta Dupree she/her/hers [Programs Associate] marquetta@weareili.org Marquetta Dupree is the Owner and operator of MD Wellness in Atlanta, GA which offers holistic health services for the body, mind and spirit.  Marquetta is deeply rooted in a spiritual background of ministering

Deisha Oliver

Deisha Oliver she/her/hers [Communications Manager] Deisha@alternateroots.org Deisha Oliver comes to Alternate ROOTS as a veteran Communications Generalist with a penchant for organization, data gathering, and archival preservation. She has spent the last 20 years specifically in the Atlanta Arts community

Kiera Ashlee

Kiera Ashlee (aka Ashlee Haze) she/her/hers [Membership Services Assistant] kiera@alternateroots.org Kiera Ashlee (aka Ashlee Haze) is a  poet and spoken word artist from Atlanta by way of Chicago. She is the winner of a 2023 Silver Telly Award for original

Tiffany Dawson

TIFFANY DAWSON she/her/hers [Finance Manager] tiffany@alternateroots.org Tiffany comes to Alternate Roots with 20+ years of finance and accounting experience in the corporate sector as well as a small business owner.  During her career, she has served as an external auditor

Constance Collier-Mercado

Constance Colllier-Mercado e/her/hers [Cultural Organizing Manager] constance@alternateroots.org Constance Collier-Mercado (e/she/her) is an experimental writer, artist, and womanist culture worker committed to Black language and collective memory. Born in Chicago and raised in the Bronx, her political home resides in the

Alternate ROOTS supports the creation and presentation of original art that is rooted in communities of place, tradition or spirit. We are a group of artists and cultural organizers based in the South creating a better world together. As Alternate ROOTS, we call for social and economic justice and are working to dismantle all forms of oppression—everywhere.