The Charles F. Kettering Foundation today announced the appointments of 15 people from the Dayton, Ohio, community who will serve as Kettering Foundation Dayton Democracy Fellows. These appointments are in service to one of the foundation’s five focus areas, Democracy and Community, and part of the foundation’s ongoing steps to implement its new strategic plan, which launched in January 2024. The Dayton Democracy Fellows are drawn from a wide array of backgrounds, including community organizing, higher education, business, and faith-based communities.

The Kettering Foundation Dayton Democracy Fellowship is designed to support innovative leaders, changemakers, and dreamers who are building movements for inclusive democracy in their communities and in our wider world. The fellows are distinguished by their commitment to building accessible ways for everyday people to work together and engage in democratic collaboration.

The new Dayton Democracy Fellows are as follows:

David Bodary, chair and professor, Communication Department, Sinclair College. Bodary has been involved in a wide variety of pro-democracy work as a volunteer and hosts the nonpartisan program “Empowering YOU!” on DATV that covers voting, democracy, and community.

Robbie Brandon, founder and executive director, Sunlight Village. A registered nurse, Brandon founded Sunlight Village, a faith-based nonprofit dedicated to improving the mental health of struggling youth and young adults.

Hannah Brown, assistant director of education, National Conference for Community and Justice (NCCJ) of Greater Dayton; cochair, Montgomery County Prevention Coalition Suicide Prevention Committee. Brown helps young people develop leadership skills and works to address community mental health needs.

Tara Campbell, executive president, Dayton United for Human Rights. In addition to her work in human rights, Campbell has extensive experience in the affordable housing field and works to eradicate homelessness.

Te’Jal Cartwright, owner and lead storytelling coach, Lore Storytelling. She helps individuals and organizations use storytelling to connect, solve problems, and inspire action.

Jamaal Durr, artist and museum artist educator, Dayton Art Institute. Through his art and teaching children for the Black Boy Brilliance Program, Durr helps others explore their voices, connect with their identities, and engage with the world.

Mary Evans, site coordinator and educator, Wilmington College. A journalist and radio producer who elevates the voices and stories of underrepresented communities, Evans is cocreator and producer of ReEntry Stories on WYSO 91.3 FM, as well as cofounder and correspondent of The Journalism Lab.

Erica Fields, senior director, strategic initiatives, Learn to Earn Dayton, an organization that helps students and their families get the resources and opportunities they need to succeed. In her career and many volunteer activities, she has worked to increase access to fair housing and address structural barriers to full participation in democracy and society.

Larry Hayden, board member, Dayton Tenant Union. Hayden is a native Daytonian with a long-standing history of advocacy and community engagement in Dayton.

Nick Hrkman, cofounder, The Journalism Lab and community impact editor, Dayton Daily News. He oversees the opinion section of the Dayton Daily News, Journal News and Springfield News-Sun and is a firm believer in the role of the media in a healthy democracy.

Robert Mackey, lead advocate, Connections for Success Youth Leadership Program, Sunlight Village. A restored citizen who spent years in prison, Mackey is passionate about working with young people to help them make positive choices, ending gun violence, and volunteering with the Montgomery County Office of Reentry.

Lake Miller, director of education, National Conference for Community and Justice (NCCJ) of Greater Dayton and president, Montgomery County Prevention Coalition. As an alumnus of NCCJ programming, he believes in helping leaders find their voices and works to create pathways for everyone to belong and take part in creating healthy, welcoming communities.

Kevin O’Donnell, social studies teacher, Meadowdale Career Technology Center. As a teacher of media, government, and debate, he seeks to equip young people with the democratic skills they need to change the world.

Mike Squire, division manager of Community Engagement, City of Dayton. He leads efforts to strengthen community across the city’s 65 neighborhoods and fosters civic engagement and communication between residents, stakeholders, and the city.

Ashley Wright, director of Educational Engagement Programs, Fitz Center for Leadership in Community, University of Dayton. With a decade of teaching secondary and postsecondary students, she is passionate about preparing students for civic and community engagement and committed to creating educational spaces that foster belonging, engagement, and justice.

“One of my greatest joys and privileges is to be able to connect with and support the Dayton Democracy Fellows,” said Elizabeth Gish, senior program officer for Democracy and Community. “They are doing the hard work of loving their neighbors and creating structures that make a just, fair, and democratic world more possible. Their lives and stories are a reminder that everyday people matter and that things don’t have to be as they have been. They give me hope, but more importantly they provide hope and opportunity to the communities, people, and organizations with which they collaborate. I am so thankful for their efforts and for the chance to work with them and learn from them.”

These Dayton Democracy Fellows join other appointments: distinguished broadcast journalist Judy Woodruff as the foundation’s Katherine W. Fanning Fellow in Journalism and Democracy, former Secretary of HHS and former Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius as the first-ever David Mathews Democracy Fellow, international renowned poet, performer, and writer of the Muscogee Nation Joy Harjo as the Ruth Yellowhawk Fellow, our 5 Global Fellows, and 14 senior fellows, including William J. Barber II, Sarah Longwell, Chris Matthews, and Christine Todd Whitman.