Board of Directors
The Board of Directors is ultimately responsible for the fiscal and long-term operation of Dwight Hall. The Board’s membership consists of Dwight Hall alumni, Yale professors, members of the New Haven community and current Dwight Hall student representatives.
Executive Committee
Bradford Williams ’10, Chair
New York, NY
Partner, Crestview Partners
Originally from Chicago, Bradford Williams is a 2010 graduate of Yale and currently works as a partner at the private equity firm Crestview Partners in New York. He also serves on the board of the Center for Urban Community Services.
What does Dwight Hall mean to you? “Dwight Hall was my biggest college activity and the experience had a formative impact on my world view and professional development. Instilling an ethos of service and justice in Yale students is critically important work and I’m very proud to be involved.”
Sandra Lee ’97, Vice Chair
Alexandria, VA
Deputy Assistant Secretary, the Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC) U.S. Department of Treasury
Sandra Lee serves as Deputy Assistant Secretary at the Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC), the U.S. regulatory body responsible for identifying risks and responding to emerging threats to financial stability. She previously worked in private practice and at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Sandra graduated from Yale College and the New York University School of Law.
What does Dwight Hall mean to you? “I believe Dwight Hall is one of the most special places on the Yale campus. It’s a place where students have an opportunity to engage in public service and also be part of a place that helps facilitate reflection on the work the are doing in the community.”
Laura Huizar ’06, ’12 J.D., Secretary
Laura Huizar ’06, ’12 J.D.
Washington, DC
Senior Counsel, U.S. Department of Labor
Laura Huizar is Senior Counsel at the U.S. Department of Labor. She worked previously at the National Employment Law Project , the ACLU, and LatinoJustice PRLDEF.
At Dwight Hall: Laura was co-coordinator of ExComm and a President’s Public Service Fellow. Working with JUNTA for Progressive Action during the summer of 2005, she reported on job training, migrant farm worker conditions and health care access in Connecticut. She was also involved in Bridges, a member group that provides free English tutoring to New Haven immigrants.
Madeline Kerner ’07, Treasurer
Brooklyn, NY
Entrepreneur-in-Residence, Luminary Fund
Madeline Kerner is currently working on innovations to support parents who are raising young children with ADHD. Previously, she co-founded and led Matriculate, a national college access organization helping talented, low-income students navigate the college application process and go on to attend colleges where they will thrive.
What does Dwight Hall mean to you? “At Dwight Hall, I had my first experience organizing public service and social action work. I learned my first lessons about how to do that work (and how not to) and I found people I connected with, who are friends and mentors to this day.”
Thomas Meyer ’11, Chair of Investments
Boston, MA
Senior Director, Corporate Strategy, Cambridge Associates
Thomas Meyer began his career in philanthropic advising and domestic policy before transitioning to management consulting, where he focuses on go-to-market and growth strategy in software and advanced manufacturing firms. He completed his BA in Sociology at Yale, a Fox Fellowship at the University of Cambridge, and an MBA at MIT’s Sloan School of Management.
What does Dwight Hall mean to you? “Dwight Hall gave me the opportunity to explore career pathways that serve the greater good, helped me to develop a more inclusive leadership style, and, through direct service opportunities, provided a healthy (and humbling) counterweight to Yale’s academic coursework.”
Peter Crumlish ’09 MAR (Ex-Officio)
New Haven, CT
Executive Director & General Secretary, Dwight Hall at Yale
Peter Crumlish lived abroad in Thailand and Japan in his early twenties. From 1996-98 he served in the Peace Corps in the Philippines as a teacher trainer, where he met his wife, Sara, a fellow PCV. Peter later worked as a community organizer in the Bronx and ran a nonprofit public/private partnership with the New York City Parks Department, building community engagement around parks and public spaces in the five boroughs of the city. Next Peter taught Western Philosophy and World Religions at a boarding school in Maine, where he also served as the Director of College Counseling and as the Head of the freshman and sophomore boys’ dorm. He received a Master of Arts in Religion from Yale Divinity School in 2009 and afterward returned to nonprofit work in New Haven, serving as the director of resource development for Neighborhood Housing Services of New Haven. Peter has been at Dwight Hall since 2013.
What does Dwight Hall mean to you? “Dwight Hall embodies the best of Yale. It is a community of people united with a shared passion to imagine a whole, thriving, just world, and the energy, creativity, and drive to realize that vision. Working with young leaders gives me hope in times when I otherwise would despair.”
Rena Liu ’26, Student Co-Coordinator (Ex-Officio)
New Haven, CT
Student, Yale University, Junior Co-Coordinator of Dwight Hall Student Executive Committee
Rena Liu is a sophomore from East Tennessee. She has worked with Dwight Hall students to push for endowment justice, connected hundreds of Yalies with community service opportunities, and founded the Spring Break Externship program.
What does Dwight Hall mean to you? “Dwight Hall is a chance to organize Yale’s resources to make student service initiatives more efficient and effective. Ultimately, I hope this is a way to give back to New Haven.”
Emily Zhang ’25, Student Co-Coordinator (Ex-Officio)
New Haven, CT
Student, Yale University, Senior Co-Coordinator of Dwight Hall Student Executive Committee
Emily Zhang is a junior from Massachusetts majoring in Ethics, Politics, and Economics with a certificate in Statistics. She is Timothy Dwight College’s biggest fan and a public transportation enthusiast.
What does Dwight Hall mean to you? “I feel so lucky that Dwight Hall is one of the places I have gotten to call home here on campus! It’s taught me to dream big while keeping my feet firmly planted on the ground, teaching me the importance of working boldly and responsibly.”
Directors
Mohsin Ansari ’24
Glendale, IL
Portfolio Strategist, TLP Investments
Mohsin Ansari is a Portfolio Strategist at TLP Investments. He has more than 30 years of experience in hedge fund management across diverse asset classes, incorporates both fundamental analysis and quantitative risk strategies. Recognized as one of the few IBM Qiskit Advocates in the US, he is deeply involved with emerging tech like AI and Quantum Computing. He is an alumnus of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Omer Bajwa
New Haven, CT
Director of Muslim Life, Yale University Chaplain’s Office
Imam Omer Bajwa serves as Director of Muslim Life in the Chaplain’s Office at Yale and is a Lecturer at Yale Divinity School. He has been engaged in religious service, inter-religious engagement and educational outreach since 2000. His interests include the intersections of culture, media, politics and spirituality, and he regularly mentors contemporary Muslims on exploring their intellectual and spiritual lives in today’s world.
What does Dwight Hall mean to you? “To me, Dwight Hall, above all, means extraordinary opportunities for student leadership and wise mentorship. I am regularly amazed at the caliber of Yale students who work with Dwight Hall, and I am even more amazed at their willingness to listen and learn from experienced leadership.”
Sarah Baron ’04
New York, NY
Director of Inpatient Quality Improvement for the Department of Medicine and Division of Hospital Medicine, Montefiore Medical Center/Albert Einstein College of Medicine
Sarah Baron, MD, MS, grew up in Branford, CT coming to New Haven for concerts on the green, trips to the Chapel Square Mall, and eventually high school. At Yale (Timothy Dwight) she majored in Cognitive Science while tutoring, walking patients to abortion clinics, teaching high schoolers about sexual health, and facilitating resource management for undomiciled New Haven residents through Dwight Hall. She works at Montefiore Medical Center/Albert Einstein College of Medicine in The Bronx, NY as a hospitalist and expert in systems change and patient safety, working to meaningfully improve the lives of her patients and their health care providers.
What does Dwight Hall mean to you? “During my time as an undergraduate at Yale, Dwight Hall was a really important place of belonging for me. I appreciated the energy of the students working around me, the ability to give back to my community both the students and New Haven, and the support that Dwight Hall gave me as a Summer Fellow working on issues around homelessness.”
Abie Benitez
New Haven, CT
Retired and Independent Consultant
Dr. Abie Benitez has a PH. D. in Curriculum and Instruction and 40+ years serving learning humans from Pre-K to the graduate school level. She serves New Haven students for 35 years and continues to support leadership development locally, nationally and internationally. Her passion is breaking barriers to exceptional experiences and academics that allow students to improve their learning and in the long run their socioeconomic life.
What does Dwight Hall mean to you? “Dwight hall is one of the jewels in our town, providing an opportunity for young adults to contribute and learn with young kids. My passion for creating service and social justice mentoring opportunities makes DH a place dear to my heart. One that can impact children’s life positively.”
Anna Blanding ’03, ’09 MBA
Hamden, CT
Chief Investment Officer, ConnCORP
Anna Blanding is passionate about transformative capital and uses her background in private capital markets, impact investments, endowment management, state and federal policy, and philanthropy to create equitable communities as well as access for diverse fund managers. Currently, Anna is Chief Investment Officer at ConnCORP, a Connecticut based impact enterprise. Anna leads ConnCORP’s signature development “ConnCAT Place on Dixwell” is a sustainable $225MM mixed use real estate development located in the heart of an historic African-American community and that is quickly becoming a national model. Anna is also a Trustee and Finance/Investment committee member of the William Caspar Graustein Memorial Fund, a large family foundation in CT whose vision is to achieve equity in education by working with those affected and inspiring all to end racism and poverty. She is an advisor of New Majority Capital, a fund closing the racial and gender wealth gap via small business ownership. In addition, Anna serves on the boards of Capital for Change, the largest CT based Community Development Financial Institution as well as the national Angelman Syndrome Foundation, a rare disease close to her family’s heart.
What does Dwight Hall mean to you? “Dwight Hall was a home to me while at Yale. I was a President’s Public Service Fellow while in undergrad and also secured my first summer job, as a camp counselor at The Hole in the Wall Gang Camp, when they presented at Dwight Hall. Dwight Hall continues to be a place that helps Yale students see our place in the world and connect to community.”
David Dodson ’77, ’81 MPPM, ’81 MDiv
Durham, NC
Independent Advisor to Philanthropy and Nonprofits
Since graduating from Yale, David Dodson’s work has been concentrated in the American South, where he has focused on strengthening the conditions that allow people and communities to thrive by improving educational attainment, catalyzing social mobility, and building bridges across the divides of race and ethnicity. Today David is helping philanthropic foundations to be courageous and catalytic in the deployment of their funds and influence to address enduring inequities.
What does Dwight Hall mean to you? “Dwight Hall embodies the best of Yale – a place that enables talented people to put mind and spirit into action to make the world a fairer place. I love how the Hall continues to inspire and support pragmatic, impatient, curious, and caring student activists to do good – and to make “good trouble” in a world that sorely needs that.”
Paola Flores Sanchez ’25 (Student Member)
New Haven, CT
Student, Yale University
Originally from Clarksburg, Maryland, Paola Flores Sanchez is a junior majoring in Economics & Political Science. She is the New Haven Engagement Chair of the Yale College Council.
At Dwight Hall: At Dwight Hall, Paola was the Student Executive Committee’s Institutional Service Coordinator in 2023. She has been actively involved in several member groups including the Yale Interpretation Network, the Yale Undergraduate Legal Aid Association. She was an in intern with New Haven Legal Aid Association
Hiroko Kawase ’26 (Student Member)
Tokyo, Japan
Student, Yale University
Hiroko Kawase is a sophomore at Yale studying cognitive science and education studies. She is originally from Kyoto but grew up across Tokyo, New York, Hong Kong and London. Regardless of which city she finds herself in, she is always looking for ways to get involved in education, the food scene and nearby hiking trails!
What does Dwight Hall mean to you? “To me, Dwight Hall is a place of both comfort and change. Comfort in that there are so many Yalies and alums who have and are dedicating their time and energy towards public service and uplifting various communities. It is also a place of change in that there are both tangible and intangible support systems and resources that empowers many to take initiative.”
Dara Kovel ’91, ’06 MBA
Boston, MA
Chief Executive Officer, Beacon Communities LLC
A New Haven native, Dara Kovel is currently the C.E.O. for Beacon Communities, a nationally-recognized multifamily developer based in Boston. Dara has over 25 years of experience in real estate policy, development, operations and finance in the public, for-profit and non-profit sectors. Previously Dara was Chief Housing Officer/Vice President of Multifamily Programs at the Connecticut Housing Finance Authority. During her undergraduate years at Yale, Dara was involved with YHHAP and various other volunteer activities on campus.
Ferentz Lafargue ’05 Ph.D.
New Haven, CT
Associate Dean of Residential Life, Yale College Dean’s Office
Ferentz Lafargue, Ph.D. is a first-generation college graduate who has dedicated his professional life to education and non-profit initiatives. Trained as a scholar of African American Studies, Ferentz has served in roles ranging from a high school history teacher to the Director of a District Marketing organization, and now a Dean in Yale College.
What does Dwight Hall mean to you? “Having arrived at Yale as a graduate student, Dwight Hall immediately became one of the main conduits for connecting me with Yale College and the greater New Haven area. By participating in Dwight Hall programs such as Umoja, I was able to connect with people far outside the network of my classes and thereby cement a firm footing in the city that I have lovingly called home for over a decade.”
Kathryn Lofton
New Haven, CT
Dean of Humanities, Yale Faculty of Arts & Sciences
A scholar of religion in American history, Kathryn Lofton has written extensively about capitalism, popular culture, and the secular. Her earliest scholarly writing examines the history of Protestant modernism and fundamentalism in the United States and the historiography of African American religion. Katie earned an A.B. in History and Religion and the Humanities from the University of Chicago in 2000, and her PhD in Religious Studies from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2005. Since her tenure in 2013, Lofton has worked to increase academic excellence through strengthened faculty governance, diversity, and community ethics. She is currently the FAS Dean of Humanities.
Kristen Meola ’26 (Student Member)
New Haven, CT
ExComm Alumni Engagement Coordinator, Dwight Hall at Yale
Kristen Meola is a sophomore from New York City majoring in Econometrics and Quantitative Economics with a certificate in advanced study of Spanish.
At Dwight Hall, Kristen previously served as Membership Coordinator and Financial Coordinator of the Student Executive Committee. She is currently Alumni Engagement Coordinator. She has been an active member of Hear Your Song, Y2Y New Haven and the Yale Hunger and Homelessness Action Project.
Nilakshi Parndigamage ’06
New Haven, CT
Vice Provost for Strategic Initiatives and Chief of Staff, Office of the Provost at Yale University
Nilakshi Parndigamage designs and executes strategic initiatives that support Yale’s academic priorities, assists with the development and drafting of university policy, and closely collaborates with the Development Office on major fundraising initiatives. Prior to her tenure at the Office of the Provost, Nilakshi served as a lecturer of Political Science and the dean of Ezra Stiles College at Yale. Before returning to Yale, Nilakshi practiced law at a major global law firm and also did international human rights work in the U.S. and abroad.
What does Dwight Hall mean to you? “I came to Yale as an international student from Sri Lanka. I had not visited the U.S. prior to arriving at Yale nor had I studied in English. I had four wonderful years at Yale with challenging adventures. At Dwight Hall, I found one of my homes at Yale. The community embraced me, provided a space for me to be myself, and gave me the opportunity to serve New Haven. That sense of belonging and purpose is something I carry with me even today.”
Randi Roth ’79, Audit Committee Chair
Saint Paul, MN
C.E.O., Complex Settlements, P.C.
Randi Roth is C.E.O. of Complex Settlements, P.C. Strategic, passionate, collaborative leader and lawyer who has built and led organizations that have delivered exceptional results. Motivated by complex, important issues that affect large or small communities. Among other things, she was previously Executive Director of Interfaith Action of Greater Saint Paul and Farmers’ Legal Action Group
Kiran Tahir
Hamden, CT
Director Prospect Management & Research, Yale Law School
Kiran Tahir is a nonprofit development professional with over 15 years of experience in all areas of development including fundraising, grant writing, grantmaking, research and prospect management. She is currently serving as the Director of Prospect Management & Research at the Yale Law School. She is a 2022 recipient of the Linda K Lorimer Award for Distinguished Service at Yale University. She is an Associate Fellow of Trumbull College at Yale and serves on the board of the New England Development Research Association. Kiran is a graduate of Indiana University, and received her Master of Science in Library and Information Science from Long Island University.
What does Dwight Hall mean to you? “As a member of the New Haven community, I am deeply appreciative of Dwight Hall’s social-justice roots as an initiative founded by students. To me, Dwight Hall is a place for community to thrive, a safe space for introspection, an opportunity for growth, and a place to be of service to the broader New Haven community.”
Tim Tompkins ’86, Development Committee Chair
New York, NY
Principal, SharedCitySharedSpace & Professor of Urban Planning, New York University
Tim Tompkins “studies, teaches and preaches cities.” He has worked for over three decades to understand and improve cities, with an emphasis on neighborhood-driven economic development, place management, public art, and public-private partnerships. In 2022 he created SharedCitySharedSpace, which nurtures the interaction of ideas, institutions, individuals and cultures. He is currently an NYU Marron Institute Fellow and an Adjunct Professor of Urban Planning at the Wagner School of Public Service at New York University,
At Dwight Hall: In 2010 Tim was honored by Dwight Hall’s inaugural “Spotlight On” campaign for championing the revitalization of Times Square and the New York City parks.
Investment Committee
The Investment Committee is responsible for managing Dwight Hall’s endowment.
Thomas C. Meyer ‘11, Chair, Mohsin Ansari P ‘24, Anna Blanding ‘03, ‘09 MBA, Carl Eifler ’70, Charlotte Kaiser ’07 MBA/MES, Aaron Podolny ’12, Daniel Shen ’14, Edward Swenson ’67, ’80 MBA