I am a student at Metropolitan State University, majoring in Human Services and Counseling, with a concentration in High Risk Youth.  I’m passionate about change, justice, and dismantling systems to make them more just and inclusive.

Born on July 5, Megan has spent her life making sure to never miss another party. Her brightest fireworks include endless curiosity, the ability to have fun doing absolutely anything, and an apothecary cabinet of knowledge she’s tucked away in her brain. At home, her wife Alyssa says Megan is the family’s MVP of patience, being brave, faking it until we make it, and task completion.

Megan knows at least a little about a lot and has a dynamic skill-set that ranges from baking pies to “almost right” home improvement to organizational change management. She leads the incredible team at Building Bridges, which gives her the chance to inspire, mentor, connect, plan, and – most importantly – be held accountable to continue growing as a social justice leader.  It’s hard work and so very worth it.

A New York City native, Hannah moved out west in 2018 to pursue a Masters in Social Work at the University of Denver. Hannah comes to Building Bridges with a background in gender studies and reproductive health but has found a new home in organizational management and leadership – grounded in a social justice framework.

A fan of engaging friends in long conversations around gender, class, race, and sexuality, Hannah is excited to work at Building Bridges where she hopes to deepen her understanding of meaningful dialogue and conflict mediation. Her goal is to support organizations going through change processes, specifically around equity and inclusion.

In her free time Hannah can be found in her kitchen finding new ways to incorporate tomatoes into pasta.

Jenny stumbled upon Building Bridges during one serendipitous Google search of any and all things related to her passion, “building bridges.”

Born and raised in the great city of Elgin, Illinois, Jenny is a true Chicago-area girl at heart. She has a deep love for the city of Chicago because this is where she met her first love, education. Although she is not a public school teacher like her original college plan, she still cares deeply about impacting the education system from the outside. This is why she has spent the past five years in Denver growing as a youth developer in spaces like Young Life, the Salvation Army and DSST Cole High school.

After some time working with youth, Jenny has grown especially passionate about developing strong leadership pipelines so that youth leaders have a place to flourish as adult leaders. For this reason, Jenny is committed to working with both youth and adults in the work that Building Bridges does of equity and inclusivity work.

Maren is a former art teacher, turned artist, reiki practitioner, consultant, coach and facilitator.  She is passionate, driven and committed to the work of racial and educational equity, as well as critical self-development and healing. She wants to empower humans, to be conscious, reflective, change makers. She desires to work with humans whom have the will to look inward and view the world through a critical and restorative racial lens. For the betterment of self, but also for the greater good of all.

She brings with her, 10 years of teaching experience (BA in Studio Art and MA in Education) and (as a white womxn) desires to be a message of awareness, growth and transparency in order to help uncover and name the oppressive systems at work in our lives.  She looks forward to continue to build her capacity and interest in continuing to influence at different levels of systems, knowing how interpersonal and internal the work truly is. It is personal before it is professional.

As a true Colorado local, Raegan first began her journey with Building Bridges during the 2015-2016 Summer Program Team. Raegan enjoys working with young people, and values youth engagement and empowerment. She fell in love with facilitation and the approach Building Bridges takes to leadership development, and she remained involved. Raegan is actively pursuing her M.A. in Clinical Mental Health Counseling. She believes that social learning is the key to the success of the world.

She is family oriented and enjoys spending her free time with her parents and two younger brothers. Raegan loves board and card games, listening to podcasts, and she looks forward to her monthly dose of Cats the Musical! In another life, Raegan hopes to become a YouTuber who specializes in pre-cruise packing and planning!

Following her work in DPS as a K-8 Mild/Moderate Special Education Paraprofessional, Raegan is dedicated to working with young leaders across the Denver Metro Area. Although education is and will always be important, Raegan’s heart is in the work that Building Bridges does of empathy, communication, and transformational leadership development.