The Collaborative is led by a small team of staff, seasonal volunteers and interns, and a volunteer Steering Committee. The Steering Committee provides financial and strategic oversight and support to ABHC staff, and represents the Network in setting strategic direction for the Collaborative.
As ABHC representatives, we make the following commitments during our tenure:
- We work with joy and generosity.
- We support a safe and welcoming environment for people of all races, ethnicities, cultures, religions, genders, languages, abilities, and identities. This includes:
- Demonstrate interest and willingness to listen to and learn from others.
- Communicate respectfully and with dignity with people we interact with.
- Not make assumptions about a person’s identity, including their gender or pronouns, orientation, language or heritage.
- Communicate, when needed, that hateful/harmful/discriminatory language or actions are not accepted in any ABHC-hosted activity or event.
- We respond to direct communications within a respectful timeframe and/or as specified.
- We accept that we are solely responsible for our actions and our personal property in any ABHC-hosted activity or event.
Staff
Anna Leslie, MPH (she/her)
Director | anna.leslie@abhealthcollab.orgAnna has developed expertise in community organizing and coalition building, membership development and retention, fundraising, and program implementation. She joined the ABHC its first staff member in 2014. She grew the role to part-time Director in 2018 and transitioned to full-time in 2019. As Director, Anna supports and partners with ABHC team members and neighborhood residents to identify and improve Allston-Brighton’s public health priorities; leads ABHC’s communication, operations and finances, and strategic growth aspects; and cultivates and grows a cross-sector collaborative membership that reflects the neighborhood’s strengths and opportunities.
From 2014-2019, Anna was also the part-time Director of Development and Evaluation for Union Capital Boston, a non-profit community network of rewards, recognition, resources, and relationships. She chaired the steering committee of Boston’s CHNA, Boston Alliance for Community Health, from 2017-2019.
Born and raised across the river in Cambridge, Anna earned her BA at the University of Montana, Missoula in 2007. She worked in education in New Orleans before earning her Masters of Public Health from the Colorado School of Public Health in 2012, before returning to Boston in 2013. Anna has received numerous awards during her time leading the Collaborative, including a Community Hero award from Action for Boston Community Development, the Unity and Community Award from The Women’s Table, and the Community Partner Recognition Award from the Allston-Brighton Adult Education Coalition.
She lives in Somerville with her husband, and together they spend time in central Vermont cross-country skiing and repairing their civil war era farm house.
Jess Rubin (she/her)
Food Access Coordinator, Farmers Market Manager | jessi.rubin@abhealthcollab.orgJessi has a passion in food access and sustainable agriculture and believes the two go hand in hand to create an equitable food system. Since 2018, Jessi has grown the Brighton Farmers Market to one of the largest in the city. She also manages ABHC’s farm share program and supports member organizations and community residents to develop and sustain affordable and accessible food access options in the neighborhood. She previously worked with Mass Farmers Market, a non-profit that supports markets across the state with a focus on equity and food justice. Other work Jessi has been involved with is Red Tomato Inc; a food intermediary for farmers, often known as a food hub.
Jessi received a bachelor’s degree in liberal arts from the University of Massachusetts-Amherst in 2010. She also received a Certification in Sustainable Agriculture and Food Policy from the Friedman School of Nutrition and Science and Policy at Tufts University.
Jessi lives in Newton with her partner and their pooch, Cooper. Many moons ago she played competitive ice hockey and really enjoys keeping the skating passion alive by searching for beautiful ponds to skate on during the winter.
Jonathan Y. Lee, MPH, MUP (he/him)
Transportation and Mobility Coordinator | jonathan.lee@abhealthcollab.orgTrained in both urban planning and public health, Jonathan is passionate about designing healthy neighborhoods. He first joined ABHC as a Transportation and Mobility Committee (TMC) member, then as a Mobility Advocate. Now, as a Coordinator for the committee, he helps support fellow advocates in all things transportation and mobility in Allston-Brighton. He is a proud resident of Allston and shares the vision of the TMC in creating an equitable, sustainable, and healthy transportation and mobility system for all residents of the neighborhood.
Prior to moving to Boston, Jonathan worked in the affordable housing and community development space in Los Angeles and has experience in case management and providing social services for vulnerable populations. He grew up moving back and forth between Seoul, Korea and San Francisco, California as a child, which sparked his love for cities and curiosity for the built environment.
Steering Committee
Jo-Ann Barbour (she/her)
Chair, Steering CommitteeExecutive Director, Charlesview, Inc. | joannbarbour@charlesviewcommunity.org
Ms. Barbour is a Licensed, Independent, Clinical, Social Worker (LICSW) with over 30 years of casework, supervisory, administrative, and program development experience in the field of human services. She has worked in a number of community-based nonprofit and public sector organizations specializing in community-based services for diverse populations.
For the last 25 years, Ms. Barbour has worked in the field of affordable/mixed income housing, as both a staff member of national nonprofits and a consultant/trainer to regional and national real estate management firms and service providers interested in developing and implementing resident service programs. Her experience includes multifamily, senior, special needs, affordable, HOPE VI, and mixed income housing. She has extensive experience as a senior level resident service director overseeing the development, financing and implementation of integrated resident service, self-sufficiency and supported housing programs.
Ms. Barbour earned a Masters degree in Social work at Boston University School of Social Work and has a B.S. degree from Utica College of Syracuse University, Utica, New York.
Jen Cruz, MPH (she/her)
Member, Steering CommitteeAllston resident. Population Health Sciences PhD student – Department of Social and Behavioral Science, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health | jencruz@g.harvard.edu
Jen is a Population Health Sciences PhD student in the Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. She is passionate about the intersection of community, public health, and equity. She is a predoctoral fellow at the Harvard/Dana-Farber Cancer Institute Educational Program in Cancer Prevention and member of the FXB Center for Health & Human Rights doctoral cohort. She also supports community-based participatory research focused on capacity building in community-based organizations. Outside of her graduate studies, she is an active resident member of the Allston-Brighton community.
Jen was born and raised in Wapato, WA – a small, rural community located on the Yakama Reservation that continues to inspire her academic work and organizing efforts. She earned her Bachelors of Science in Psychology from Seattle University and her Masters of Public Health in Global Health Epidemiology from the University of Michigan School of Public Health. She was also a Fulbright-Nehru Student Research grant recipient.
Walae Hayek (she/they)
Member, Steering CommitteeManager – Healthcare Policy at Massachusetts Health & Hospital Association | walae.hayek@gmail.com
Walae Hayek is a first generation Arab American and Boston native who is passionate about building and bridging community and creating welcoming spaces. Currently working in health policy, Walae serves as the Manager for Healthcare Policy at Massachusetts Health and Hospital Association where she focuses on statewide equitable access to behavioral health.
Walae has many years of experience in healthcare delivery, research, and grassroots advocacy. Walae’s previous experience includes Emergency Medical Services (EMS) direct care and education, psychiatric clinical research exploring disparities in care delivery in acute settings, emergency management during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as various consulting services in higher education institutions.
In 2020, Walae founded ROYA, a nonprofit organization, dedicated to building creative community for social advocacy through bridging the arts with public health to Educate, Advocate, and Empower. She is a Board Member of the West End House Boys and Girls Club and serves in an advisory capacity for other local organizations and collaboratives focusing on resources for BIPOC and historically marginalized peoples.
Walae has a BSc in Behavioral Neuroscience from Tufts University and MPH in Community Assessment, Program Development and Evaluation with a focus in Health Policy from Boston University School of Public Health. Walae finds joy in the arts, reading, writing, and bringing people together.
Peter LeRoy (he/him)
Member, Steering CommitteeDirector – Culture, Climate and Student Advancement at Brighton High School | pleroy@bostonpublicschools.org
Peter was born and raised in Brighton and has worked in a variety of roles for the last twenty years in the Boston Public School system. Currently, Peter is working at Brighton High School as the Director of Culture, Climate, and Student Advancement.
Claudia M. Maltos (she/her; ella)
Member, Steering CommitteeAllston resident. Project & Systems Manager, Community Relations – Greater Boston Planned Parenthood League of Massachusetts | cmaltos@protonmail.com
Claudia currently works in community outreach in the field of sexual and reproductive health. Drawing on experience in women’s health, stigma-free sexual health education, and partnership management, Claudia passionately serves the community to promote public health, education, and equity.
Born and raised along the Texas-Mexico Border, Claudia attended the University of Texas at Austin where she earned a Bachelor of Science in Communication Studies with a focus in Political Communication and a minor in History. After university, she moved to Boston and fell in love with the harbor seagulls and the snowy winters.
Claudia lives in Allston with her partner and their plants and books. In her free time, Claudia enjoys coffee, candles, and cooking.
Samilla Quiroa (she/her)
Member, Steering CommitteeFounder – VA Consulting & Languages Solutions LLC | vaconsulting101@gmail.com
Samilla has a passion for empowering immigrant communities and making sure all children have access to systems of support. As a result of her efforts, in 2014 she was recognized as the Parent Partner of the year by the Boston Family Engagement Network, in 2020 received the Allston-Brighton Community Leader Award by the Allston-Brighton Community Development Corporation and most recently, has been the recipient of the 2021 Changemaker Awards by the Institute for Nonprofit Practices.
Her experience sits around non-profit agencies/organizations whose focus are families and children. Samilla is the founder of VA Consulting & Languages Solutions LLC where she applies her knowledge and expertise across different sectors through an open-minded vision and problem-solving approach to create better program flows and systems to better support their clients and data collection.
Samilla holds a certificate in community, medical and legal interpreting and translation from Boston University and a certificate in Advocacy and Leadership for child-centered communities from Urban College. In her free time, Samilla loves catching up with her friends, traveling with her family and trying new culinaries.
Siobhian Sprott, DDS, MPA, MPH (she/her)
Member, Steering CommitteeDirector – Dental Services, Franciscan Children’s | ssprott@franciscanchildrens.org
Siobhian is a Board Certified Pediatric Dentist who presently serves at the Director of Dental Services at Franciscan Children’s which is the only pediatric post-acute hospital in New England. Additionally she is a clinical lecturer of Pediatric Dentistry at the Boston University Henry M. Goldman School of Dental Medicine. Prior to her appointment at Franciscan Children’s, she was the Chief Resident in Pediatric Dentistry at Tufts University School of Dental Medicine where she earned the Dr. Leonard Carapezza Pediatric Dental Scholarship in 2020, which is awarded to the resident who has exceeded in achievements during their Pediatric Dental Residency Program. Before moving to Massachusetts, she worked as a Regional Dental Director for a national Dental Support Organization in the Washington, DC metropolitan area and has over 10 years of clinical experience. Dr. Sprott strivesto make public health an integral part of her clinical practice; she has a strong motivation for understanding oral health care delivery from an organizational management perspective that engages the community. She currently serves on the Oral Health Advisory Committee for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and sits on the executive boards of the Bay State Chapter of the National Dental Association and the Allston-Brighton Health Collaborative.
Dr. Sprott was a 2020-2021 Joseph L. Henry Oral Health Fellow in Minority Health Policy at Harvard Medical School and obtained her Master of Public Health Degree from Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health with a concentration in Public Health Leadership in May 2021. She received her dental degree from Howard University College of Dentistry in 2008 and completed a General Practice residency at Howard University Hospital in 2009. She also earned both her Bachelor of Science and Master of Public Administration degrees from Southern University and A&M College, Baton Rouge, LA, in 2002 and 2004 respectively.