Meet our staff

Ivan Canada
Executive Director

“I work with NCCJ because I deeply believe in our mission,” Ivan says. “It came to life for me the first time I visited ANYTOWN as an advisor in 2009. Every year I come back even more excited and committed to making sure this flagship program continues and expands, so that more young people get the chance to participate in it.”

A leader in the Triad community, Ivan is the recipient of the Triad Business Journal’s “Forty Leaders Under 40 Award” and the Greensboro Chamber of Commerce’s “Change Agent Award.” He’s also been recognized by Southerners On New Ground (SONG) and Emerging Practitioners in Philanthropy (EPIP). Ivan has served on numerous boards and committees that carry out important work in our community.

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Gloria Hoover
Development Manager

Gloria knew in college that she wanted to work in the nonprofit sector. After that, it was just a matter of finding the perfect fit. Following a brief stint in Charlotte, she returned to her hometown of Winston-Salem and began working on her Master’s in Public Affairs at UNC Greensboro.

Gloria came to NCCJ as a graduate intern in the spring of 2018 before joining the staff as Development Coordinator in August 2018. “NCCJ’s mission and the delegates from ANYTOWN give me hope for our future,” she says. “I wouldn’t want to be working anywhere else.”

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Alison Whitman Jones
Director of Administration

From a young age, Alison knew she wanted to work to advance civil rights. Her plan to practice constitutional law changed after she spent some time volunteering in her community. “As passionate as I was about changing the laws and regulations around these issues,” she says, “I realized I enjoyed being in the community, working with people where I could see the impact of what I was doing.”

Alison grew up in Connecticut and moved south to attend Guilford College, earning a Bachelor’s in Political Science and Justice and Policy Studies. Inclusion, respect, and equality are among her core values, which she sees reflected in NCCJ’s mission, staff, and volunteers. After 10 years with NCCJ, Alison says: “I see the results of the work we do with ANYTOWNers and other young people, and it gives me hope for our future.”

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María Perdomo
Program Manager

María has always believed in the power of words. “Growing up as an introverted child, I had to find ways to express myself that didn’t involve a lot of talking and so, I found writing. As time went on, I dove into understanding the impact of written and spoken narrative which I believe led me to this work,” she says. “As a Latina in the US, I had to work hard to regain my identity as a Colombian woman after years of mimicking my surroundings to find ways to fit in. In high school, I was able to do that and find my voice when I attended ANYTOWN.”

María holds a dual masters degree in Peace and Conflict Studies and Conflict Management and Public Administration from UNC Greensboro and the University of Konstanz in Germany. Her passion project is a personal blog where she shares stories about her international travels and her life in the United States as a Latina working to dismantle stereotypes and “pass the mic” to the people in the back – including the introverts.

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Michael Robinson
Program Director

Sharing perspectives and experiences has always been important to Michael. “Most of my life I was an outlier, the Black kid in the mostly white spaces,” he says. “I carried with me a lot of pressure to ‘prove’ myself amongst my white counterparts, while being constantly reminded that there were some experiences that I was having because I was Black that some of them simply couldn’t relate to.”

In college, Michael attended a diversity and inclusion conference and was struck by the ability of one presenter to “help people grow their awareness and give them strategies to deepen their understanding of the world, themselves, and others.” Michael received a Master’s in Peace and Conflict studies from UNC Greensboro. In 2016, he founded Shifting Lenses, a workshop series that brings people from all walks of life together to discuss divisive issues in public spaces. Michael also serves on the board of the Piedmont Interfaith Council and as a part-time volunteer coordinator for the Servant Farm.

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Erika Rain Wilhite
Development and Communications Director

One of Erika’s earliest memories is watching Star Trek with her dad. “It gave me this inclusive, optimistic model of a future where diverse groups of people were collaborating to make a better society for everyone.” She’s still a big fan.

Always fascinated by history, Erika earned a Master’s in Public History from the University of West Florida. She pivoted into fund development after working on a campaign to restore the Pensacola Lighthouse and “seeing how I could use my skills to help create positive change in the world around me.”

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