Board of Directors

(From our federal 501c3 nonprofit status application)

Listing of Trustees and Directors

Title: President

Name: Ian Forber-Pratt

Work: 3 hours/week

Duties: Preside at all meetings, and other duties as on occasion shall be assigned by People Who Give a Damn, Inc.

Qualifications:

Mr. Forber-Pratt was born in Calcutta, India and raised in Natick, Massachusetts. He returned to Calcutta for several weeks this summer to assist a private project to house and aid disabled children up for adoption. Formerly, he was director of business and marketing overseeing 12 store in Metrowest and North Shore Boston for Cingular Wireless. He also launched a pilot program to cross-brand Dish Network and Cingular Wireless to increase market presence and stimulate increased revenue. He attended Principia college in Elsah, Illinois for four years. He currently lives in Natick, Massachusetts where he works for Lawrence Associates as a compensation consultant and attends continuing education classes at Framingham State College.

Title: Vice-President

Name: Andrea Wilkins y Martínez

Work: 2 hours/week

Duties: Preside at meetings of the People Who Give a Damn, Inc. in the absence of or at the request of the President, and other duties as occasionally may be assigned by the Organization or as requested and assigned by the President, subject to the control of the Organization.

Qualifications:

Ms. Wilkins y Martínez lives in Riverside, California where she is completing a bachelor's degree in science with studies in biology and chemistry, in preparation for education and a public service career in medicine. She has studied journalism in Bolivia and worked volunteer and paid jobs that give back to the community in child education and environmental restoration.

Title: Treasurer

Name: Stacey Kendall

Work: 1 hours/week

Duties: Keep records and report to the board of directors at each regular meeting on the status of the organization’s finances, and other duties as on occasion shall be assigned by People Who Give a Damn, Inc.

Qualifications:

Ms. Kendall is a graduate of University of Massachusetts-Amherst, Bachelor of Business Administration (summa cum laude), 2002. She has experience in tracking and maintaining budgets, as well as minor experience in payroll. Her work with nonprofits includes a marketing project for the March of Dimes as well as organization of a charity golf tournament.

Title: Clerk

Name: Benjamin Melançon

Work: 5 hours/week

Duties: Keep the minutes of all meetings in the books proper for that purpose, and other duties as on occasion shall be assigned by People Who Give a Damn, Inc.

Qualifications:

Mr. Melançon is on the elected board of directors of the Amazing Things Arts Center, a 501(c)3 organization in Framingham, Massachusetts which seeks to build community through the arts. He was Secretary (Clerk) during the founding year of board service, is active on the fundraising committee, and designed and maintains the arts center's annual fundraising auction web site. He attended the University of Massachusetts – Amherst on a Commonwealth Scholarship and studied journalism, economics, political science and information technology. He designs, makes, and maintains a number of web sites for companies, organizations, and individuals, using open source software solutions. He has also been active in the promotion and support of several nonprofit organizations, especially public interest news sources.

Additional Directors:

Name: Jessica Azulay Chasnoff

Qualifications:

Ms. Azulay is a co-founder of The NewStandard and one of the architects behind PeoplesNetWorks’ unique organizational structure. She is also an alternative journalism instructor at the Z Media Institute. Before helping launch The NewStandard, her reporting on the Israel-Palestine conflict and writings on social change strategy were published in multiple languages and international publications. Jessica is originally from West Virginia and currently lives in Syracuse, New York.

Name: (Carla) Eliana Godoy

Qualifications:

Ms. Godoy was born in La Paz, Bolivia, and received her BS in Broadcasting and Film from Boston University. After graduation, she volunteered at DSNI, the Dudley Street Neighborhood Initiative in Boston, where she mentored children from diverse backgrounds and developed a program to improve the job seeking skills of community youth and adults, including workshops on interviewing, resume writing, and skills advancement. She organized the first community job fair which has been made a yearly event. Artistically, Ms. Godoy, a former Bolivian TV personality, is a filmmaker, actress, and performer of traditional Bolivian poetry and story telling. She is the founder and President of the non-profit organization "Art for Change" in New York City. The organization presents rich and varied cultural and educational performances and programs that strive to serve the local community of El Barrio and the greater New York community. Additional Art for Change educational programs include its innovative "English as a Second Language Through Theater" program and a Photoshop workshop series offered to local children called "Art and Technology." She also serves on the board of the East Harlem Children’s Aid Society.

Name: Andrew Grice

Qualifications:

Born and raised in Detroit, Michigan, Mr. Grice spent much of the late eighties and early nineties as a professional fundraiser working for non-profits. Since then a wide variety of sales and marketing positions have further strengthened his skills and abilities at making certain the resources of many are leveraged to support the good works of visionary projects in charitable fields. A natural communicator who is unashamed to ask for the support to make great things happen, he is dedicated to the principles of altruism and has sworn to never again accept even one dime as compensation for charitable work. He was a professor of the multinational School of Authentic Journalism in South America. He presently resides in New York City and works as a tour guide and freelance writer. As a visual and musical artist his work has been featured at venues throughout the midwest and east coast of the United States.

Name: Dan Hakimzadeh

Mr. Hakimzadeh was born in Tehran, and since has lived in Melbourne Autralia, Istanbul Turkey, and various places in the US, visiting many others on the way. His aim is to use the skills and knowledge he has accumulated until now to help create a healthier, happier, more enlightened society. He lives in Natick, Massachusetts and is co-founder of Agaric Design.

Name: Dimitrius Richardson

Qualifications:

Mr. Richardson attends the City College of New York concentrating in Legal Studies in preparation for a career in entertainment law, and is already an active promoter of local artists. He serves in the United States Army National Guard. Mr. Richardson was born and lives in Harlem, New York City, New York.

Name: Diane Rotz

Qualifications:

Ms. Rotz spent a semester working with Wells Elementary in East Moline, IL as their Read America Tutor. Before that she spent several months supervising an after school program at South Park Church in Rock Island, Illinois and also spent two years working with the Cathouse Cat Shelter and Adoption Center in Rock Island, Illinois. Ms. Rotz presently lives in Eunice, Missouri.

Name: Heather Turner

Qualifications:

Ms. Turner has studied at Carleton College and Marlboro College, and spent a year in India. She worked in development at a major Boston-area charity. She is completing her undergraduate degree at the University of Massachusetts – Boston where she studies Philosophy and Women's Studies. Ms. Turner is from Mora, Minnesota and currently lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Minimum Qualifications: All officers must be trustees of People Who Give a Damn, Inc. and all trustees must be at least 18 years of age. No officer or trustee is allowed to receive compensation for duties as an officer or trustee.

All trustees have the following duties (per section 2.01 and 2.02 of the Bylaws of People Who Give a Damn, Inc.):

Trustees form the policy-making body of the Organization and may exercise all the powers and authority granted to the Organization by law. The Board is responsible for overall policy and direction of the Organization and for the oversight and management of the Organization’s business and legal affairs. Each Trustee shall perform his or her duties in good faith. Each Trustee shall execute all duties through the use of the standard as to what in the Trustee’s opinion is in the best interests of the Organization. In making all decisions a Trustee shall utilize such reasonable care and inquiry as a reasonably prudent person in a like situation would employ.

Trustees should make every effort to attend board meetings and meetings of committees on which they serve, and acquire detailed information beforehand about matters which are going to be voted on at a meeting. Trustees should be aware of and informed about every major action the Organization takes.