Desirae Simmons, Director
Desirae (Desirae@icpj.org) lives in Ypsilanti with her husband Zander and daughter Indigo. She is originally from Chicago and Cleveland and moved to Michigan from Boston. Her previous professional experience is in experiential and community-based learning where she designed curriculum, created and facilitated workshops around systemic discrimination and reflective practice, and built relationships across difference. Since being in Ypsilanti, she co-hosted a resistance march focused on the love, resilience, and history of activism in the community; organized for affordable and accessible housing, keeping a school within the Ypsilanti Community School district, and a Community Benefits Ordinance; served as a Sustainability Commissioner; was elected for City Council; and she has held leadership positions with What’s Left Ypsi, Citizens for Racial Equity in Washtenaw (CREW), and Washtenaw Justice Project.
In her spare time, Dez enjoys gardening, writing poetry, and dancing.
Amber Fellows, Resiliency Hub Network Organizer
Amber (amber@icpj.org) is thrilled to join ICPJ as the new Resilience Hub Network Organizer! For years, their organizing work in Ypsilanti has been rooted in the same principles that define ICPJ: a deep commitment to justice, community care, and building resilient local systems from the ground up. They have long admired ICPJ’s vital work, and is truly honored to now be a part of it.
In this role, their focus will be on supporting and expanding our network of Resilience Hubs. This means working to strengthen communication, facilitate resource and skill-sharing, and provide direct organizing support to our hub leaders. They are particularly excited to help develop neighborhood-level preparedness plans and deepen connections between our partners to ensure our network is a powerful source of mutual aid and solidarity for everyone.
Emily Zick, Administrative and Communications Support
Emily (emily@icpj.org) comes to ICPJ with a background in marketing and communications. As ICPJ’s administrative and communications support, she’ll focus on the organizational tasks and processes that help our community’s impact grow. She sees collective liberation as the only path toward a better world and is eager to use her skills in support of racial, economic, and environmental justice.
In her free time, Emily enjoys walking her dog, listening to podcasts, being in nature, learning new skills, and practicing mutual aid. She calls Ypsilanti home.