Alicia is a well-seasoned business strategy and planning professional with prior experience supporting multinationals and organizations such as the United States Departments of State and Defense over the last two decades. She is passionate about business sustainability, quality jobs and financial security. At Project Equity, Alicia helps business owners and employees derive value from the ownership transition process. She also conducts employee ownership research through partnerships with other institutions.

She holds a BSc in Applied Mathematics from the State University of New York at Stonybrook, an MBA in Finance from the New York Institute of Technology and is currently working on a doctorate in Business Administration. Alicia also has a post graduate certificate in Data Science and Business Analytics from the University of Texas at Austin. When not working, she enjoys reading, crafting, exploring new destinations and sampling cuisine.

With a background that spans both commercial and nonprofit organizations, Dallas has worked as a journalist, a filmmaker, a writer, an entrepreneur, a teacher, consultant and marketing strategist. Before coming to Project Equity, he served as a Director at National Arts Strategies, a nonprofit that provides leadership training and coaching for nonprofit leaders in the arts and culture sector. He also consulted with purpose-driven organizations on strategy, planning, leadership development, branding and communications.

He is an active volunteer in his hometown of Carmel, Indiana, where he is involved in state and local politics as a communications consultant, Democratic Precinct Chair and Indiana State Convention delegate. He also serves as the President of the Board of Trustees of the Carmel Education Foundation, which provides scholarships to students and innovation grants to teachers.

Franzi has been an independent business owner in Asheville, North Carolina for nineteen years. She is the founder of the Go Local Asheville and organized over 550 small business members to advocate for a strong and healthy local economy. She was also a downtown business owner from 2006 – 2023. A first generation American, she grew up in a textile family in the South and experienced the devastation of mill towns with the loss of a core heritage industry. Franzi joined the team part-time at Project Equity because she is passionate about employee ownership and documenting its impact. Her expertise is in building data visualizations and storytelling through photography and videography. She has a Bachelor of Science in Ecology as well as a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Georgia. She is an avid gardener and loves jogging and hiking in the mountains.

Amanda brings over a decade of multi-sectoral leadership expertise in forging meaningful relationships and bringing diverse stakeholders together for collective impact. Most recently as the Director of Corporate Philanthropy and Membership at the San Francisco Bay Area Planning and Urban Research Association (SPUR), she developed relationships with corporations, foundations, individuals, governments and community partners to advance a more equitable, sustainable and prosperous region. Previously, she worked in the private sector consulting with small businesses on human resources solutions and in business development. Amanda holds a B.A. from Gettysburg College and a dual MBA / MPA from Presidio Graduate School. She has been named by the Silicon Valley Business Journal as a “40 Under 40” honoree and as a “Changemaker” by Gentry Magazine.

Kiara Williams passionately supports and advocates on behalf of people of color marginalized by negative statistics and cyclic struggles. Based in Orange County, CA, her work is largely driven by her desire to be of service to at-risk communities, and to eradicate barriers faced by socio-economically disadvantaged groups of people.

Kiara has over ten years experience as a community advocate in Southern California working on various initiatives and partnering with organizations to lift up low-income communities through high quality, accessible resources. For the past 5 years, she has built a solid background in the nonprofit sector working at social services organizations, serving homeless veterans and families affected by neurodiverse disabilities.

As the Development Associate with Project Equity, Kiara supports a range of efforts related to fundraising, grants and donor stewardship. She is eager to expand employee ownership by cultivating funder relationships that align with the mission of improving racial equity and minimizing unjust wage gaps nationwide. In her free time, she enjoys exploring the outdoors, writing creatively and nurturing her family.

Shermany holds a bachelor’s degree in English from Michigan State University. She also gives back to her local community as an advocate for mental health research. In her free time, she enjoys learning new languages, starting DIY projects, and wrangling cats.

Sarah has spent her career committed to building shared prosperity and well-being.  She began her career in state-level economic development and most recently was an equity officer at a private, regional foundation in Arkansas.  She is driven by a commitment to economic and racial equity and passion for developing partnerships, collective strategy, and infrastructure to advance systemic change.  At Project Equity, Sarah focuses on building regional partnerships with government, non-profit, private sector, and philanthropic organizations to support, scale, and sustain a local employee ownership ecosystem.  Sarah has a joint Master of Public Service and MBA from the University of Arkansas Clinton School of Public Service and Walton College of Business and BA from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.  Outside of work, she loves canoeing, camping, and hiking with her family.