WORDPLAY BOARD & STAFF
BOARD OF TRUSTEES
Click each photo below for a short bio.
Tim'm West,
Board Chair
Senior Managing Director, LGBTQ Community Initiative,
Teach for America
Michele Kiner,
Treasurer
Accounting Vice President, Corporate Controller,
Messer Construction
Steve Yandell,
Vice Chair
Associate Professor of English,
Xavier University
Eve Bolton,
Trustee
Board Member,
Cincinnati Public Schools
Govinda Davis,
Trustee
Senior Associate,
Dinsmore & Shohl, LLP
Jess DeLisio,
Secretary
UX/UI Designer,
Procter & Gamble
Indi Ekanayake,
Trustee
School Design Partner,
Transcend Education
Manuel Iris,
Trustee
DePaul Christo Rey High School and
Poet Laureate of the City of Cincinnati
Kelly Leon,
Trustee
Vice President of Community Engagement,
Union Savings Bank & Guardian Savings Bank
Tina Macon,
Trustee
President & Senior Consultant,
AllMac & Associates, LLC
Ewaniki Moore-Hawkins,
Trustee
Co-Owner & Chief Detail Officer,
Soul Palette, LLC
Joe Moorman,
Past Chair
Director of Learning & Development,
Impact ED
Aaron Parker,
Trustee
Lead ESL Teacher, Aiken HS &
Adjunct Faculty, TOESL, Xavier University
LEGACY TRUSTEES
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OUR TEAM
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Tom Monaco
Chair Emeritus
Elissa Yancey
Co-Founder & Trustee for Life
Lauren Elyse Jones,
Interim Development Director
Brand Architect + Engagement Strategist of Architect Brand + Design Cincinnati
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Lauren Elyse Jones,
Interim Development Director
Brand Architect + Engagement Strategist of Architect Brand + Design Cincinnati
TEACHING ARTISTS
Many of WordPlay's programs are led by teaching artists—trained professionals in the visual, performing or literary arts who use creativity as a vehicle for personal storytelling, critical literacy and a range of youth development skills.
Click each photo below for a short bio.
Anjali Alm-Basu
Comic Art, Bookbinding
Geoff Barnes
Dance, Theater
Terrence Burke
Puppeteer
Laurent Che
Poetry, Spoken Word
Freda Epum
Poetry
Samuel Foulkes
Creative Writing
Hillary Hahn
Dance, Theater,
Creative Writing
Laila Hameen
Theater, Creative Writing
Pauletta Hansel
Creative Writing, Poetry
Brandon Hawkins
Visual Art
Kelsey Hawkins-Johnson
Creative Writing
Brandon Isaac
Spoken Word, Stand Up Comedy
Jeni Jenkins
Design Activist, Educator, Artist
Yalie Kamara
Poetry
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Theresa Kulbaga
Creative Writing
Carlos García León
Poetry, Spoken Word, LTAB Coach
Kay E. Moore
Poetry, Creative Writing
Teisha "Murray"
Movement, Arts Integration
Elaine Olund
Creative Writing, Visual Art, Yoga
Kate Reidel
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion; Social Justice, Teen Enrichment
Annie Ruth
Multi-discipline Artist,
Visual Art, Creative Writing
Natalie Villacorta
Creative Writing
Dai Williams
Multi-discipline Artist,
Visual Art
Ashley-Devon Williamston
Poetry, Creative Writing
Liz Wu
Music, Creative Writing
Simone Yael
Theater, Community Arts