NANETTE ALVEY
Co-Chair of the Board
Nanette is the former Director of Leadership and Organizational Effectiveness at EnCompass Consulting. She has over 30 years experience in OD, program management and training in Africa. She has worked with international NGOs in designing effective community development strategies and training approaches, consulted with international and regional organizations in management and leadership development, and founded and managed a successful Africa-based company focusing on developing relevant and practical management and technical skills for professionals and students. Nanette holds an MA from Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies with a focus on social change and development. She is also serves on the board of Impact Silver Spring and is bilingual in English and French.

JAVIER NEGRON
Treasurer
Javier is an accountant with the Department of Housing and Urban Development. He has served in the federal government for over 10 years in different areas of financial management, including accounting and financial reporting and reviewing internal controls. Originally from Puerto Rico, Javier has made Maryland his new home with his wife, Ashley, and their new baby girl, Olive. He holds a B.S.B.A. with a specialty in Accounting and Business Finance from the University of Puerto Rico.

JO RASI

Jo Rasi is the Programs Director at Washington Revels. She has served as an arts consultant and event planner for non-profits and federal and local government agencies for over 20 years. Previous clients include The American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress, The National Council for the Traditional Arts, The Blair Auditorium Renovation Project, The Grateful Dead, the North American Folk Alliance, Class Acts Arts (now Artivate), the International Council of Air Shows, and the Town of Herndon. Jo studied at Georgetown University (Executive Nonprofit Management), The Université Laval (French), American University (MA in Performing Arts Studies), Gettysburg College (BA in English/Art History), Wesleyan University (Ethnomusicology), The George Washington University (Human Sciences), Brown University (Oral History), and The Peddie School. She served on the board of directors for the National Council for the Traditional Arts, and has previously served on boards for Slow Food DC, Emerson Landing Artist Retreat Center, and the Institute of Musical Traditions. Jo has been awarded fellowships from The Library of Congress, Wesleyan University, The Virginia Association of Female Executives, and was selected as a University Fellow at George Washington University.

ALLEN PERPER
Co-Chair of the Board
Allen has lived in the greater DC area nearly all his life.  As a young man, he was greatly influenced by the civil rights movement of the 60’s.  This helped shape his insights about politics, justice, and social action.  In the 70’s he spent six years as a jazz musician and truck driver before realizing that a college education could be of great use. After receiving a B.S. from the University of Maryland, he worked 30+ years as a technology and process consultant for large private and public sector organizations.  Allen and his wife have two sons: one is a musician and college student; the other is a local police officer.
Allen is currently semi-retired and plans to focus his retirement on nurturing his soul and his community.  Allen gardens, travels, reads, brews beer, leads a school scholarship fund, and is busy catching up on all those house projects that he promised to get around to.  Being on the Carpe Diem Arts board fulfills many aspirations for him and he looks forward to using his skills to the impact of Carpe Diem Arts.
 

MEGAN GALLAGHER
Secretary
Megan is a senior research associate at the Urban Institute, where she seeks to inform policymakers and practitioners about the complex relationship between schools and their surrounding neighborhoods. Her research focuses on efforts to improve housing and educational opportunities for children in low-income families. She studies how housing and neighborhood revitalization efforts affect schools and how schools and education policies influence the trajectories of neighborhoods.
 
Megan designs and manages complex research projects and collects and analyzes data from surveys, administrative databases, in-depth interviews, and focus groups. She is currently developing a pilot demonstration in DC to improve low-income parents' access to information about their children’s educational opportunities, providing technical support for local education initiatives, and analyzing the characteristics of students and communities affected by school moves, closures, and openings.
 
She has an MPP in Public Policy Analysis from Georgetown University and a BA in Sociology and Social Welfare from the University of Wisconsin – Madison. She lives in Takoma Park with her husband and two children.