D’Andre Fisher 

Associate Vice Chancellor, Seattle Colleges  

Prior to his appointment as the first Associate Vice Chancellor of the Division for Access, Community, and Opportunity at Seattle Colleges in June of 2022, D’Andre Fisher served as Associate Vice President for Equity, Diversity and Inclusion for North Seattle College from 2018 to 2022. 

Fisher has experience as a Diversity and Inclusion consultant, and prior to establishing his consultant firm, he served as the Special Assistant to the Vice President and Director of Operations in the Office of University Community at the University of Oklahoma (OU), working alongside Vice President Jabar Shumate to promote campus diversity and inclusion. In these positions, Fisher served as a liaison to faculty and staff departments with Diversity and Inclusion Programs, including Admissions and Recruitment, Student Sffairs, and the Center for Student Life. He assisted with the cultivation of faculty, staff, and alumni advisory boards for the Office of University Community and helped implement their recommendations. 

Fisher has a passion for working with college students and earned his Master’s in Adult and Higher Education from OU. Before his work in the Office of University Community, he served as Assistant Director of Diversity Enrichment Programs in OU Admissions and Recruitment. He met with thousands of high school students each year, primarily reaching out to under-represented minorities and students with low socioeconomic backgrounds. While there, Fisher co-founded the George McLaurin Male Leadership initiative, which is now supplemented by the Sylvia A. Lewis Women’s Leadership Initiative. These programs are now under the Office of University Community and annually bring approximately 150 prospective students to OU’s Norman campus for a conference that builds relationships with first-generation college students. Fisher has also served as an adjunct instructor in Human Relations. 

Becky Corriell 

Assistant Dean of Students & Learning Innovation, Evans School of Public Policy & Governance, University of Washington  

Karin Martin

Associate Professor, Evans School of Public Policy & Governance  

Karin D. Martin is a crime policy specialist whose areas of expertise are monetary sanctions, racial disparities in the criminal justice system, and decision-making in the criminal justice context. These issues come together in her current projects, which examine the use of money in punishment (e.g., fines, fees, restitution, etc.).
She is currently co-PI in a five-year research project examining the use of monetary sanctions in eight states and she has given testimony on the issue of criminal justice debt to the New York State Assembly and to the United States Commission on Civil Rights. 

Karin studied Psychology at Stanford University and worked in the non-profit sector in the San Francisco Bay Area before attending University of California, Berkeley where she earned an MPP, an MA in Political Science, and a PhD in Public Policy. She was a post-doctoral scholar in the Psychology Department at UCLA where she was also a Fellow with the Center for Policing Equity. She was Assistant Professor of Public Management at John Jay College of Criminal Justice and The Graduate Center of the City University of New York (2013-2017) and was a Visiting Professor at the Goldman School of Public Policy at the University of California, Berkeley, in 2016. 

Arielle Weaver

Ph.D. Student, Evans School  

Arielle Weaver joined the Evans School Ph.D. Program in Public Policy & Management in 2021. Broadly, Arielle’s research interests are aligned with addressing issues of social equity, access, and opportunity for marginalized populations with an emphasis on women of color. Arielle seeks to bring a critical lens to her research, drawing attention to racial disparities resulting from policy and the policy process.

Prior to beginning her Ph.D. studies, Arielle had a career in Student Affairs and has experience in the areas of residence life, student conduct, leadership development, and mentorship for women of color. Through that work, Arielle had the opportunity to develop, advocate for, and mentor women of color student leaders, which informs her current research interests. 

David Suárez

Associate Dean & Professor, Evans School  

David Suárez, Ph.D., is a professor at the Evans School of Public Policy & Governance, University of Washington. His current research focuses on social sector organizations (nonprofits and foundations) and explores: how management strategy shapes organizational performance; the relationship between service-provision and social change activity; and the consequences of professionalization. He is particularly interested in cross-sector collaboration, advocacy, and civic engagement—issues that link social sector organizations to public agencies and the policy process. Ongoing projects include research on: the emergence and development of participatory grantmaking in foundations; the Civic Life of Cities – a multi-team project exploring how nonprofits contribute to the communities they serve; public-nonprofit partnerships in national parks and schools; monitoring and evaluation (M&E) practices in development NGOs; and the role of foundations in generating social change. 

His research has been supported by the Ford Foundation, the Spencer Foundation, the Aspen Institute, the Nonprofit Academic Centers Council, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. His work has been published in the Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, the American Review of Public Administration, Administration & Society, Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, Voluntas, Sociology of Education, and many additional outlets. He teaches courses on public management, organizational theory, philanthropy, and leadership in the nonprofit sector. Prior to pursuing a career in academia, David worked briefly as an elementary school teacher for dual language learners in California (Spanish-English) and served as a Peace Corps volunteer in the Dominican Republic. 

Izzy Sederbaum

Postdoctoral Fellow, Evans School  

Isaac “Izzy” Sederbaum started the Evans School Ph.D. program in Public Policy & Management in 2019. His interests span a wide array of topics, including how policies often work to punish and criminalize queerness, particularly in young people; participatory action research (PAR); and the continued prevalence of wage theft in vulnerable communities.

Prior to joining the program, Izzy was a Research Associate in the Vera Institute of Justice’s Center on Youth Justice (CYJ), where he primarily focused on working with jurisdictions across the country to rethink their approaches to arresting and incarcerating youth for status offenses. Before Vera, he was a field researcher at the Center for Court Innovation and a research consultant for the Restaurant Opportunities Centers (ROC) United. He earned his master’s degree in Public Administration from the Evans School of Public Policy & Governance in 2014 and his BA in Community Development from Portland State University in 2011. 

Jill Lane

Faculty, Seattle Colleges; Planning Committee Member  

Jill Lane is a longtime faculty member within Seattle Colleges and a dedicated advocate for student‑centered learning and institutional collaboration. She served as interim president of North Seattle college from July 2023-July 2024, and has been with the college since 2005. She holds a Master of Arts degree in Political Science from North Carolina State University and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science with a minor in Sociology from the University of North Carolina-Greensboro. At North, Lane has served in various roles, including co-accreditation liaison officer and chair of the North Seattle College Council. She previously served as faculty chair for North’s Assessment Committee and program coordinator for North’s Political Science program. She has been a full-time faculty member at North since 2018 and tenured since 2021. 

Larry Cushnie

Faculty, Seattle Colleges; Planning Committee Member 

Larry holds a doctorate in political science from the University of Washington and a masters in Sociology of Law from the International Institute for the Sociology of Law in the Basque Country. His teaching and research interests are interdisciplinary and span many aspects of American politics, political theory, law, social movements, and political resistance.

Since being hired in 2017, Larry has been building more courses within the political science department to offer students a wide-reaching experience as they prepare to transfer to a four-year institution. His teaching approach strives to be inclusive with an emphasis on social justice and political participation. 

Olivia Atkinson

Faculty, Seattle Colleges; Planning Committee Member 

Olivia Atkinson is a political science faculty member at Seattle Central College whose work centers on public policy, social movements, and civic participation. She is committed to creating inclusive, discussion‑driven classrooms where students explore the connections between policy decisions and lived experience. Atkinson’s teaching and research reflect a deep interest in how communities organize for change and how institutions can better respond to public needs. Her contributions to the planning committee draw on her experience designing collaborative learning experiences that bridge academic study and community engagement. 

Scott Allard

Professor, Evans School of Public Policy & Governance  

Scott W. Allard is the Daniel J. Evans Endowed Professor of Social Policy at the University of Washington’s Evans School of Public Policy & Governance, and served as Associate Dean for Research and Engagement from 2021 to 2025. At UW, Allard is an affiliate of the Center for Studies in Demography and Ecology (CSDE) and of the West Coast Poverty Center. Allard is a research affiliate of the Institute for Research on Poverty at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where he served on the National Advisory Board from 2018-2020. He also served as a nonresident senior fellow at the Brookings Institution’s Metropolitan Policy Program from 2010 to 2020. He previously held faculty positions at the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University (2000–03), the Department of Political Science at Brown University (2003–08), and in the School of Social Service Administration at the University of Chicago (2008–14). 

His primary areas of research expertise are urban poverty, employment among low-skill workers, food security, safety net utilization, and the spatial accessibility of governmental and nongovernmental safety net programs. 

Tracy Furutani | Deputy Mayor, City of Lake Forest Park; Faculty, North Seattle College  

Tracy Furutani serves as the Deputy Mayor of Lake Forest Park and as a full-time faculty member at North Seattle College, where he teaches earth sciences, environmental sciences, chemistry, physics, anthropology and biochemistry.. His dual roles reflect a career dedicated to public service, environmental stewardship, and community‑based education. In local government, Furutani works on issues ranging from climate resilience to transportation planning, bringing a scientific lens to policy decisions. In the classroom, he emphasizes hands‑on learning and the importance of civic responsibility. His ability to connect policy, science, and community engagement makes him a valued facilitator and mentor.

Yvette Gutierrez‑Morfin

Academic Operations & Strategy Manager, Evans School 

Yvette Gutierrez‑Morfin serves as the Academic Operations and Strategy Manager at the Evans School, where she oversees academic planning, program development, and strategic initiatives that support faculty, students, and staff. With a background in higher education administration and organizational leadership, she plays a central role in strengthening academic processes and advancing equity‑centered practices across the school. Gutierrez‑Morfin is known for her collaborative leadership style, her commitment to student success, and her ability to build systems that support inclusive and effective learning environments. 

Mara Rafferty

Executive Director, Washington Labor Education & Research Center  

Mara Rafferty (she/her) is the Director of the Washington Labor Education and Research Center at South Seattle College, where she helps run programs across the state that help people know how to exercise their rights at work and advocate to win new rights. Before coming to the LERC, Mara served as Lead External Organizer for the United Autoworkers union, Local 4121, where she helped lead thousands of workers in creating new unions and winning better working conditions. Before joining the UAW, Mara worked for multiple nonprofit and community organizations in the US and in the Middle East where she worked on civic and community education, as well as economic policy research. Mara has a Bachelor’s degree in International Relations and a Masters degree in Economics, and is a huge nerd who loves spreadsheets and data analysis. She’s proud to be the first transgender woman to serve in her position, and looks forward to continuing to make organized labor and higher education place where queer and trans people can thrive and be their best selves.

Jesse Johnson

Former Washington State Representative  

Jesse Johnson is the oldest of 4 siblings and a lifelong resident of Federal Way, a suburban city just south of Seattle. He is a double graduate from the University of Washington with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and a Masters of Education. At the UW, Jesse interned for Congressman Adam Smith and volunteered for the Obama campaign. Johnson was the youngest City Council member in his hometown Federal Way history when he first took office at the age of 27 after winning the election over a 2-term incumbent. He then ran and served as the youngest member in the Washington State Legislature, where he worked on community safety issues sponsoring police accountability legislation in addition to juvenile justice reform, addressing workforce development in the trades for young people and families struggling with housing insecurity across the state. Johnson’s values are rooted in equity and social justice. His focus comes from his close partnership with community in the South King County region, where he has also worked as a High School Career and College Counselor and in Workforce Planning and Development for the Seattle School District. He now serves as the Director of Outreach and Community Engagement for the Office of the State Treasurer working to address wealth inequity and close generational wealth gaps for historically and currently marginalized communities. Jesse is a proud husband to his wife Epiphany, a Family Medicine doctor, and father to two boys 3 year old Elijah and 1 year old Ezra.

Joseph Seia

Executive Director, Oceania Northwest  

Joseph Seia, MPA, has ancestral roots in Samoa, Tonga and Aotearoa. He has 20 years of experience in direct service and providing leadership oversight over nonprofits that serve most impacted populations. He is currently the Executive Director of Oceania NW. Joseph is an anti-racist community organizer that labors to build intergenerational spaces rooted in cultural belonging, healing justice and in the commitment to abolishing the cruelties of poverty.

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The NASPAA Global Conference is the premier annual gathering for public policy and public administration programs.

Evans School of Public Policy & Governance

• Master of Public Administration
• Public Service & Policy Major

Seattle University

• Seattle University Master of Public Administration Program

KC Green Jobs Initiative

National Forum for Black Public Administrators (NFBPA)