September 2021 Newsletter

In This Issue:

• From the Director
• September Classes
• Andrea’s Column in the Daily Hampshire Gazette

From the Director

My desk at home provides a snapshot of why we needed to hire Amihan (Jennifer) Matias as the new Truth School Operations Manager. It is not that I am messy, it is just that there are too many neatly piled stacks of papers and manila file folders, also in little stacks, on the surfaces in my study. Too many piles, reflecting too many Truth School projects, memos, letters that need to be answered, scraps of paper with fundraising ideas, staff meeting notes, board updates, and budgets. I am a person devoted to paper (that is part of the problem). But even beyond my love affair with paper and hard copy everything, the Truth School (which has grown and is thriving!!!!) administrative load has become too demanding for me and our small Leadership Team (Shelley Zimbalist, Julie Kurose and Renee Moss). Hence our advertisement for a Truth School administrator to help us, and Amihan Matias’ application! We are delighted to announce that Amihan will begin her new position as Operations Manager on September 1, 2021. Help is on the way.

Amihan (who uses the pronouns she, her, hers) started community organizing as a toddler in the Philippines, coordinating and leading older kids in play, which she took very seriously and was very good at according to her mother! Ever since then, Amihan has been using her leadership and organizing skills to mobilize and inspire individuals, groups, and organizations to invest their energy in transforming our society into a more just, compassionate, and equitable one. Amihan is most proud of her work as a social justice activist and community-builder. Her passion is transforming cultures into truly inclusive and equitable ones in which the full humanity and wholeness of every individual is valued, respected, and embraced. Her experience as a 1.5 generation Filipinx American with immigrant parents has influenced and inspired her social justice work.

Amihan is a racial equity and leadership development coach, trainer, and consultant. She has over 30 years of experience working with social justice and social change organizations, and over 25 years of nonprofit management experience. She has overseen the creation and implementation of several cutting edge and nationally recognized executive leadership development programs. These have included a nonprofit executive coaching program for leaders of community-based organizations serving communities of color, a nonprofit management training institute, and a six-month leadership forum for womxn of color leaders called “And Still We Rise.” She is a founding member of the Massachusetts Asian and Pacific Islanders (MAP) for Health and the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Alliance of Western Massachusetts.

Amihan is a trainer for the Truth School and served as a founding board member when the School was launched in 2017. She believes strongly in our mission to educate and mobilize social change leaders and is excited to support the Truth School in the role of Operations Manager. She is married to musician, singer, songwriter, and music educator Marcia Gomes.

All of us at the Truth School could not be more thrilled to welcome her to the staff!

Ever thankful and ever onward,
Andrea