Who We Are

Our Board

Head shot of Robin Benton. He is wearing a dark blue shirt and ski cap, facing the camera with his shoulders turned slightly to the right. He is sporting a mustache and goatee with gray hair. In the background is a black and white graphic design with a yellow silhouette of the African continent in the center.
Vice President

Robin Benton is an Anti Racist Activist, Community Organizer, and Human Rights, Educator. He presently works as Chairman of the Racial Equity Committee for his Neighborhood Association. He also sits on the US Human Rights Cities Alliance Steering Committee.

Treasurer

Sandy is a NYC metro area community organizer, and private practitioner with a focus on depression, anxiety and addictions. She has taught social justice at Fordham University, Graduate School of Social Service.

Secretary

Rev. David Billings, a white anti-racist, Organizer, Educator, Minister, and a long-distance runner for social justice, pulls the covers off the intricacies of white supremacy in this nation.

Trustee

Bonnie Berman Cushing is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and an anti-racist organizer and educator. She has worked in the mental health field for over 25 years as a family-systems therapist.

President

Activist, educator, and scholar, Charley Flint is Professor of Sociology at William Paterson University, Wayne, New Jersey. Dr. Flint is also the Coordinator of Internships in Criminal Justice; has served as the Director of the Race and Gender Project; and was the founder of ALANA, a program of and for women of color in higher education in New Jersey.

Trustee

For over 36 years, Margery Freeman has been an organizer and trainer with The People's Institute for Survival and Beyond, a national, multiracial, antiracist organization that provides training and organizing in "Undoing Racism/Community Organizing" with diverse organizations and groups across the country and internationally.

Trustee

Edie Grauer, BSW, MSW, is a seasoned non-profit executive and change agent whose career has focused on promoting empowerment, inclusion and self-determination of oppressed and disenfranchised persons.

Trustee

Orinthia Swindell (Black, she/her/hers) has centered the voices and experiences of youth and families as the focal point of her work as an educator for the past 30 years. She credits her mother for instilling in her the importance and value of education and of being connected to their community.

Our Trainers

Headshot of Robin Alpern. She is facing slightly left and looking at the camera with a large smile. Her hair is shoulder length, cut with bangs. She is wearing a light blue dress and silver earrings.

Robin Mallison Alpern is a white cis-gender woman raised in the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers). She has a lifelong concern for racial justice and equity. She works with anti-racism organizations in her home community and among Quakers, including cross-racial groups and white caucus groups. Her anti-racist vision and practice have been informed and shaped by a multitude of mentors and leaders, both white and of color.

Head and shoulders shot of Liza Minno. She is facing the camera, head tilted left, wearing a black top, silver hoop earrings, and with her light brown hair done up in a bun. In the background is a room with several bookcases.

Liza Minno Bloom is an organizer and educator of Slovak and Anglo descent. She is engaged in various racial justice and popular education efforts in her home of Asbury Park, NJ (occupied Lenni Lenape land), with the Racial Justice Project and the Asbury Park Education Justice Collective.

Bonnie Berman Cushing is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and an anti-racist organizer and educator. She has worked in the mental health field for over 25 years as a family-systems therapist.

headshot of Helen Davis set against a plain interior background. She is wearing a brown and cream print blouse and 1-inch silver hoop earrings, facing the camera directly and smiling.

Helen L. Davis (she/her), MBA, MPH, a seasoned Trainer and Facilitator in Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, has consulted with numerous corporations such as AT&T, Lucent Technologies and Coca-Cola Enterprises. She is passionate about her work as a non-profit executive in Child Welfare and is committed to creating open and constructive conversations about racial justice that impact awareness and create transformational change.

A former 3rd grade teacher in NYC public schools, Courtney (she/they) is now a public school parent and advocate. Currently, Courtney works with public school parents and teachers as Senior Equity Associate at NYU’s Metropolitan Center for Research on Equity and the Transformation of Schools (Metro Center), within the Education Justice Research and Organizing Collaborative (EJ-ROC). Within all of these roles, Courtney prioritizes an understanding of context, both current and historical, and future envisioning in relationship and in community.

Activist, educator, and scholar, Charley Flint is Professor of Sociology at William Paterson University, Wayne, New Jersey. Dr. Flint is also the Coordinator of Internships in Criminal Justice; has served as the Director of the Race and Gender Project; and was the founder of ALANA, a program of and for women of color in higher education in New Jersey.

Edie Grauer, BSW, MSW, is a seasoned non-profit executive and change agent whose career has focused on promoting empowerment, inclusion and self-determination of oppressed and disenfranchised persons.

Head and shoulders shot of Alvin Gray. He is wearing a lavender checkered dress shirt and standing with an interior sunlit window in the background. He is facing the camera at a slight angle and smiling.

Alvin Gray is a native of Benton Harbor Michigan, and has resided in Ashville NC, Macon, GA, southern California, and currently resides in Grand Rapids, MI. Mr. Gray’s journey in life has gifted him with the opportunity to work in management in the food service industry for 7 years; in non-profit organizational leadership for seventeen years, while sharpening his organizational development skills in the consulting business (Aza Time Wise Associates, LLC) for the past fourteen years.

Head and shoulders shot of Maya Grosz. She is wearing a black halter dress and glasses. In the background is a lawn, with tall trees further back. She is facing the camera directly and smiling.

Maya Grosz is a social justice lawyer, educator and activist. She facilitates conversations, consults with organizations, and writes about antiracism, equity, and inclusion.

Jeff Hitchcock

Jeff Hitchcock is co-founder of the Center for the Study of White American Culture, Inc. He has authored several articles and a book, titled Lifting the White Veil: A Look at White American Culture.

headshot of Jordan Margolis, wearing allight blue dress shirt, siting inside a car next to a window with head tilted.

Jordan Margolis (pronouns: he/him) is a cis-hetero white male father and husband who grew up on ancestral lands of the Pomo and is currently living on ancestral lands of the Weckqueesgeek. He received his foundational antiracist community organizing education from The People’s Institute for Survival & Beyond.

Orinthia Swindell (Black, she/her/hers) has centered the voices and experiences of youth and families as the focal point of her work as an educator for the past 30 years. She credits her mother for instilling in her the importance and value of education and of being connected to their community.

Upper body shot of Pearl Thompson. She is wearing a white chef's outfit. In the background is a commercial kitchen with stove and microwave. She is wearing glasses, facing the camera directly and smiling.

Chef Pearl Thompson is a true Jersey Girl, having been born, raised, and lived most of her life in New Jersey. Coming from a family of activists that engaged in everything from the civil rights movement to the black liberation movement, Pearl’s life’s work has been dedicated to ensuring the empowerment of underserved communities.

Our Staff

Headshot of Robin Alpern. She is facing slightly left and looking at the camera with a large smile. Her hair is shoulder length, cut with bangs. She is wearing a light blue dress and silver earrings.
Director of Training

Robin Mallison Alpern is a white cis-gender woman raised in the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers). She has a lifelong concern for racial justice and equity. She works with anti-racism organizations in her home community and among Quakers, including cross-racial groups and white caucus groups. Her anti-racist vision and practice have been informed and shaped by a multitude of mentors and leaders, both white and of color.

A woman standing outside in a garden setting. She is wearing a dark blue dress. Her hair is brown and falling a couple inchces past her shoulders. She is smiling.
Social Media Manager

Ina Elcott (she, her) is a proud double citizen of the Philippines and the United States. Originally born overseas and being exposed to the hardships of those living in third-world countries, Ina is passionate for volunteer work on both a local and organizational level. She is currently a Marketing Specialist at a healthcare tech start-up where she supports a team dedicated to providing everyone access to better benefits.

Associate Director

Edie Grauer, BSW, MSW, is a seasoned non-profit executive and change agent whose career has focused on promoting empowerment, inclusion and self-determination of oppressed and disenfranchised persons.

Jeff Hitchcock
Executive Director

Jeff Hitchcock is co-founder of the Center for the Study of White American Culture, Inc. He has authored several articles and a book, titled Lifting the White Veil: A Look at White American Culture.

Online Technical Support

Catherine Klebl is a teacher and community organizer inspired by the vision of a world that works for everyone.