BAckground

a community builder at heart...

Anna grew up in a city where everyone knew her. Or rather, they knew her family. Her father was a pastor, her mother was a teacher, and her grandparents lived across the river in the same house where they raised her mother.  Every member of her family either served the community professionally (clergy, teachers, nurses, social workers, etc ) or volunteered regularly. 

Anna was the second-born of four children. Everywhere she went, people would say things like "Hey, aren't you my daughter's friend's sister?" or "Say hi to your mom. She taught my cousin's ex-husbands friend's kid how to read." It was a little hard to keep track of, but it taught Anna a valuable lesson: community matters. Thanks to her community, Anna was able to start teaching at the age of eleven. Since then, she has never stopped.

Education carried Anna  around the world and back again. Anna studied in Connecticut, Haiti and the Dominican Republic. She visited Scotland, Italy and Spain. She taught English, Dance, Art, Music, Writing, and Teaching. She was a touring trainer for the Connecticut Afterschool Network and wrote curriculum for New York University. She earned a degree in Music Composition from Connecticut College, where she graduated Magna Cum Laude and received awards such as admission to the Phi Beta Kappa honors society, the Connor Donahue award for Community Development, and the Niblack Memorial Scholarship. She published two books, and produced one musical.

Anna now lives in Austin, Texas. Far away from her original community and her family's reputation, she is implementing the strategies she watched her parents live by in order to build a new community and earn her own reputation. She is grateful for everyone she has met so far, and (if she hasn't yet), she would love to meet YOU.