anna kingsley (she/her)

Staff Teaching Artist

Anna is a printmaker and book binder. Since 2012 she has partnered with Chapter 510 designing and implementing book making projects to complement the literature birthed by student writers. She has brought portable tabletop presses, Gocco printers, needles and thread, and more to school sites and taught students how to use them for their projects. For public events at the writing center Anna has helped build a bridge between modern day publishing and traditional printmaking by teaching visitors how to print a broadside on an antique printing press.

Anna owns and operates Brick Factory Designs, a small letterpress studio and bindery where she prints custom work and commissioned bindings as well as producing her own line of sketchbooks and other paper goods. Her own work centers on harnessing and highlighting the creative process and encourages all her students to see the beauty of their work in progress. She holds a BA in American History and a dual credential Multiple Subject - Ed. Specialist Mod/Severe Disabilities. She is queer and proudly Assyrian American.

Ashley B (she/her)

Department of Make/Believe Clerk

Ashley is a young aspiring multimedia visual artist from Oakland, California. Drawn to Chapter 510’s creative and youth uplifting cores, she looks forward to connecting a community through exploring creative writing and reading at Chapter 510 as a Department of Make/Believe clerk.

Bean Kaloni Tupou (they/them)

Operations Manager

With over 10 years of leadership experience, Bean is deeply passionate about building, retaining, and empowering diverse, strong teams, while promoting inclusive and inspirational hiring practices. Their work focuses on liberation, justice, and worker autonomy, shaping their approach to people processes and staff relations.

In previous roles, Bean contributed to the creation and leadership of a DEI committee for an 80-person San Francisco-based company, played a key role in rebuilding safety and operational infrastructure, and led multi-operational teams. They were also responsible for restaffing over one-third of the company’s workforce after the initial 2020 lockdown. Bean manages a wide range of infrastructure support and operations for Chapter 510. Their responsibilities encompass HR, people operations, finance, retail, space rental programming, facilities, and more.

A mixed-race Tongan musician born and raised in the Bay Area, Bean has been active in the local punk and indie music scene as both a musician and community organizer since 2007. They have organized numerous community events focused on uplifting BIPOC artists. Their most active project, Try the Pie, released its third full-length album, A Widen Burst of Forever, on Get Better Records in July 2022.

You can reach them at bean_tupou@chapter510.org.

elena botkin-levy (sHE/Her)

Staff Teaching Artist

Elena Botkin-Levy has worked at the intersection of audio production, education and media-making for over 20 years. With a focus on amplifying queer voices as a storyteller, Elena started in community radio and learned that holding space, asking questions and documenting is powerful. Drawn to oral histories as an opportunity to map our own narratives, she started Gems Oral Histories to support individuals and communities in collecting and preserving stories. Working with institutions such as Women's Audio Mission, YR Media (formerly Youth Radio), outLoud Radio, ZUMIX Radio, Elena has led educational programs in the audio sector with a focus on creativity, innovation and change-making. Elena is an alumni of Temple University where she studied in the Geography Urban Studies and Education departments.

You can reach her at elena_botkin-levy@chapter510.org

GABRIEL CORTEZ (he/hIM)

Staff Teaching Artist

Gabriel Cortez is a Black biracial poet, educator, and organizer of Panamanian descent. His work has appeared in The New York Times, National Public Radio, The Rumpus, and The Breakbeat Poets Anthology Volume 4. He is a VONA fellow, #BARS workshop alum, Palette Poetry Emerging Poet winner, and recipient of the Judith Lee Stronach Baccalaureate Prize. Gabriel is a member of the artist collective, Ghostlines, and co-founder of The Root Slam, an award-winning poetry venue dedicated to inclusivity, justice, and artistic growth, as well as Write Home, a project working to challenge public perceptions of houselessness and shift critical resources to houseless Bay Area youth through spoken word poetry. From 2014 to 2023, Gabriel served as Lead Poet Mentor and Director of Programs at Youth Speaks, one of the world’s leading presenters of spoken word performance, education, and youth development programs. Gabriel proudly serves on the board of Performing Arts Workshop, a BIPOC-led Bay Area nonprofit organization established in 1965 dedicated to anti-racist practices, equalizing access to arts and arts education, and helping young people develop critical thinking, creative expression, Socio-Emotional Learning, and essential life skills.

You can reach him at gabriel_cortez@chapter510.org.

Jahan Khalighi (He/Him)

Director of Programs | Teaching Artist

Jahan Khalighi is a poet, educator, and community arts organizer. He has been working with youth in the Bay Area as a teaching artist, enrichment coordinator, program manager, youth mentor, and community event organizer since 2006.

He is an alumnus of June Jordan's Poetry For The People program at UC Berkeley under the mentorship of Aya De Leon, and a former member of the Eugene Poetry Slam Team. He graduated from the University of Oregon with a major in English Literature.

As a teaching artist for California Poets in the Schools, he has facilitated creative writing workshops at public schools and juvenile halls across the greater Bay Area. As Director of Programs for Chapter 510, he works side by side with teachers and youth to develop innovative creative writing and publishing programs that center the voices of Black, brown, and queer youth.

As a spoken-word artist, he has been a featured performer at TEDxSonomaCounty, YBCA, Mission Cultural Center, Bioneers Conference Trails, and Vistas and Esalen Institute. His work has been published in Whoa Nelly Press online journal.

You can reach him at jahan_khalighi@chapter510.org

Janet Heller (She/Her)

Co-Founder | Executive Director | Director of Education | Teaching Artist

Janet Heller is an Oakland poet, teaching artist, community arts leader, and queer Jew.

She founded Chapter 510 in 2013 to provide space for Black, brown, and queer youth to write and share their stories. She was awarded the Jefferson Award for Public Service in 2018. Additionally, she founded the San Francisco WritersCorps and during her tenure built an award-winning, highly respected literary arts program. Janet is also a published poet and essayist.

She graduated from Tulane University (BA in English) and Florida State University (MFA in Creative Writing) and has been teaching creative writing for 30 years. She received a National Endowment for the Arts fellowship in 1994, which brought her to the Bay Area. She is the proud mom of two creative kids who write with confidence and joy.

You can reach her at janet_heller@chapter510.org

naseem alavi (they/Them)

Program Associate

Naseem Alavi is an Iranian poet, translator, and maker born and raised in Oakland. They are a recent graduate of Kenyon College summa cum laude, where they completed an honors thesis on trans theory and translation practice as a decolonial strategy and creative methodology. They enjoy sharing their passion for stories with others through their teaching assistant work. Their poetry has appeared in Sweet Lit, and they are a recipient of the Herb Alpert Emerging Young Artist Award, as well as Kenyon College’s Summer Scholars Grant. When they aren’t writing, they can be found making puppets.

You can reach them at naseem_alavi@chapter510.org

Tavia Stewart (She/Her)

Co-Founder | Teaching Artist | Creative Director

Tavia Stewart is a writer, mom, activist, teacher, and magical thinker living in Oakland. She has nearly 20 years of experience running literary and community nonprofits. Prior to joining Chapter 510 as a co-founder, she co-ran National Novel Writing Month where she spent nine years building the organization’s Young Writers Program.

Previously Tavia interned; volunteered; and worked for 826 Valencia, McSweeney's Publishing, ZYZZYVA, and Watchword Press. She is a co-author of Ready, Set, Novel (Chronicle Books).

She is a proud 2020 YBCA Fellow, and the lucky mom of one highly energetic (and dramatic) nine-year-old humanoid.

You can reach her at tavia_stewart@chapter510.org

Tiffany Golden (She/Her)

Staff Teaching Artist

Tiffany Golden is an award-winning author who finds great joy in working with youth. She is the winner of the 2020 New Visions Award by Lee & Low Books and the inaugural Judith Tannenbaum Teaching Artist Fellowship. She received her MFA in Creative Writing from Spalding University. In addition to her own work, Tiffany has also worked with school-aged youth for nearly 20 years, supporting them in sharing their voices and visions.

You can reach her at tiffany_golden@chapter510.org

Mike Armstrong (He/Him)

Co-Chair

Mike Armstrong is a managing director and the CFO at Stream Data Centers. Prior to Stream, he launched Percheron Real Estate Partners. Based in Oakland, Percheron Real Estate Partners is focused on making smart investments in commercial real estate and providing advisory and consulting services to owners, lenders, and users. He was previously a Director at GI Partners where he was the head of technology real estate acquisitions and a member of the investment committee. Before that, Mike was a Vice President at J.P. Morgan Asset Management in various investment roles focused on real estate and infrastructure. Early in his career, he worked in municipal finance and asset-backed finance roles at a financial guaranty company in New York.

Mike was born and (mostly) raised in San Diego and has family roots in Oakland. He has served on various nonprofit boards and is the past board chair of an Oakland-based youth/education organization. He received his MBA from Stanford Graduate School of Business and is also a graduate of Harvard College, where he played football and studied economics.

APUR PATEL (He/Him)

Apur Patel is Vice President & Associate General Counsel at The Clorox Company. He has a long track record of advising businesses in complex technology transactions, strategic initiatives, branding and advertising, mergers and acquisitions, international operations, and more.

Apur recently returned to the East Bay after 35 years. He spent nearly 25 years in Minneapolis, where he served as a volunteer board member at several civil rights organizations, schools, and youth athletic associations. Apur is thrilled to put his legal expertise and passion for educational equity to work at Chapter 510 while getting reacquainted with local communities.

He is a graduate of Washington and Lee University School of Law and Colgate University.

Lauren Kerr (She/Her)

Secretary

Lauren Kerr is a creative director at Apple, and an Apple University Associate. Her career in advertising includes time at Publicis, McCann, Target Corporation, Gap, Inc., Banana Republic, Walmart, and many more. Lauren earned a BA History at UC Berkeley, and an MFA in Creative Writing at San Francisco State. She mentors diverse young advertising talent through the Marcus Gordon Project, and also serves as a Park Day School board trustee.Lauren lives in Oakland and has one amazing daughter. When she’s not reading, writing, or puttering around the garden; she’s probably dancing salsa, samba, or Afro-Cuban folkloric.

Dorothy Lazard (she/her)

Dorothy Lazard is the former head librarian of the Oakland History Center (OHC), a research unit of the Oakland Public Library which serves (unofficially) as the city’s archives. During her twelve years at the OHC, Dorothy provided the community with quality reference service, interesting exhibits and public lectures, and blogs highlighting the history of Oakland and the East Bay. In this position she worked with students of all levels, college professors, novelists, real estate developers, filmmakers, artists, and genealogists. Before working at the Oakland Public Library, she managed two small campus libraries at UC Berkeley where she received her Master’s degree in Library and Information Studies in 1983. She also holds a Master of Fine Arts degree in Creative Nonfiction from Goucher College (Baltimore, MD).

Now retired, she has turned her attention to writing full-time. She writes regularly for the Oakland Heritage Alliance News. Her upcoming memoir, “What You Don’t Know Will Make a Whole New World,” about growing up in San Francisco and Oakland in the 1960s and 1970s, will be published by Heyday Books in May 2023.

James "Jamie" Sampson (He/Him)

Jamie is Vice President, Digital Distribution & Platform Partnerships at iHeartMedia. Chapter 510’s mission resonates for him because he knows youth can gain “immense confidence and pride from being a published writer or podcaster.”

Jamie has long had a career at the intersection of arts and business, having gotten his early start as co-manager for musical acts Flight Of The Conchords & My Morning Jacket. He has also worked at Pandora and Facebook.

Jamie holds an MBA from Baruch College and a BA in Music from New York University.

Marnie Webb (She/Her)

Marnie Webb has spent her career working with communities around the world to develop technology solutions that help them achieve their desired impact, influenced by human centered design principles and methodologies from social work and international development. For more than 30 years, Marnie has been putting teams and solutions together that can create big impacts. Marnie is the Chief Community Impact Officer for TechSoup and serves as the CEO of Caravan Studios, a division of TechSoup. In addition to Chapter 510, she serves on the board of Safe Place International, a non-profit dedicated to the needs of LGBTQI refugees worldwide.

Sean Mcclung (he/him)

Sean McClung is Head of School Success at XQ Institute, an organization dedicated to rethinking the high school experience. Early in his career he fell in love with the Oakland community of students and families he met while operating an after-school tutoring program and went on to become a substitute teacher in Oakland Unified. Many years later, after founding an international preschool in Beijing and teaching in New York and Denver, Sean returned to Oakland Unified as a New Leaders resident and served as principal of MetWest, a long-standing school partner of Chapter 510.

Sean grew up in San Jose. He earned a B.A. in English and Religion from Boston University, and his Ed.M from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. He lives in Oakland with his wife and son. On weekends you might find him running in Redwood Regional Park or visiting OMCA.

TOVA RICARDO (She/Her)

Tova Ricardo is an award-winning writer, spoken word poet, social media content creator, and Jewish community advocate and professional. Tova is the only member of the Chapter 510 board who is also an alumna. She is thrilled to bring her expertise to Chapter 510, which she says is: “an intentionally loving environment where Oakland youth flourish.”

Tova’s extensive background in writing, journalism, digital media, and community engagement has elevated her voice into public platforms, including her term as the 2015 Oakland Youth Poet Laureate, an award recipient by the American Jewish Press Association, and with bylines and features in New York Jewish Week, Jewish Journal, the San Francisco Chronicle, and Jewish News of Northern California.

Ricardo’s investment in storytelling, uplifting Jewish communities of color, Jewish empowerment, and speaking about the intersections of being Black and Jewish has garnered her lay leadership roles in major American Jewish organizations, including Hillel International, UJA-Federation of New York, and Jewish Federations of North America. Ricardo regularly elevates the themes above on her social media platform, @tovathepoet and as a digital producer with the Tel Aviv Institute, a laboratory focused on uplifting Jewish voices with social media driven strategies.

Tova is a graduate of Columbia University.

Tyrone Ross, Jr (he/him)

Tyrone Ross works on Cisco’s Corporate Strategy team and brings prior professional experiences across business strategy, operations, and program management. He also served on the review committee for Cisco’s Community Impact Grant program. Tyrone joined Chapter 510 because he is passionate about the power of storytelling to improve society and bring people together.

Growing up in Maryland, Tyrone developed a lifelong commitment to community service as an Eagle Scout. Since then, he has held leadership roles in nonprofits dedicated to advancing STEM education and diversifying tech. Tyrone is a Marine Corps veteran and has an MBA from The University of Chicago Booth School of Business. He also has an MS in Industrial & Systems Engineering from San Jose State University, and a BS in Human Factors Psychology from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.

paul frankle (he/him)

Paul is a passionate communications leader and believes that strong writing is paramount to closing the academic achievement gap and creating a path to future career success. He currently serves as Vice President, Corporate Affairs at Link Logistics, a leading operator of last-mile logistics real estate. Previously, Paul was Director, Corporate Communications at Prologis. Before that, he was a Vice President at Sard Verbinnen & Co (now FGS Global), a strategic communications advisory firm.

Paul’s previous volunteering experience has focused on education nonprofits in the Bay Area, including supporting Facing History and Ourselves and ALearn (now Silicon Valley Education Foundation).

Paul received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Johns Hopkins University with a major in International Studies and a minor in French Cultural Studies. He studied abroad at Sciences Po, Paris and is proficient in French. Paul lives in Oakland with his husband, Derrick, and two cats. In his free time, he enjoys playing tennis and exploring the Bay Area food scene.

CHAPTER 510 STAFF

Anna Kingsley

Ashley B

Bean Tupou

Elena Botkin-Levy

Gabriel Cortez

Jahan Khalighi

Janet Heller

Naseem Alavi

Tavia Stewart

Tiffany Golden

board of directors

Mike Armstrong

Apur Patel

Lauren Kerr

Dorothy Lazard

James "Jamie" Sampson

Marnie Webb

Sean McClung

Tova Ricardo

Tyrone Ross, Jr

Paul Frankle

join our staff

JOIN OUR BOARD

anna kingsley (she/her)

Ashley B (she/her)

Bean Kaloni Tupou (they/them)

elena botkin-levy (sHE/Her)

GABRIEL CORTEZ (he/hIM)

Jahan Khalighi (He/Him)

Janet Heller (She/Her)

naseem alavi (they/Them)

Tavia Stewart (She/Her)

Tiffany Golden (She/Her)

Mike Armstrong (He/Him)

APUR PATEL (He/Him)

Lauren Kerr (She/Her)

Dorothy Lazard (she/her)

James "Jamie" Sampson (He/Him)

Marnie Webb (She/Her)

Sean Mcclung (he/him)

TOVA RICARDO (She/Her)

Tyrone Ross, Jr (he/him)

paul frankle (he/him)