Our Team
Staff
Dionne Foster
Executive Director
Dionne (she/her) brings a wealth of experience in strategy development, public policy research, social movement funding and advocacy to her work as Executive Director at Progress Alliance. Dionne has worked as a grassroots organizer, Mayoral policy advisor, researcher and funder on issues as diverse as climate justice, youth employment and legal protection for diverse gender identities. The common thread of her career has been organizing people, information and resources to advance progressive policy and racial equity. Before joining Progress Alliance, Dionne was a Senior Program Officer at Seattle Foundation where she aligned resources strategically in support of policy and systems change by and for low income communities and communities of color. Dionne was raised in Virginia and is a graduate of George Mason University and the University of Washington. When she's not working, she loves to rock climb, read and adventure with her kiddo. Dionne joined Progress Alliance in January 2021.
Jessica Jones
Deputy Director
Jessica (she/her) joined Progress Alliance in 2017 as Operations Manager and has since brought both operations and programmatic leadership to the team, including strengthening our fiscal sponsorship infrastructure, overhauling our grantmaking processes, facilitating PA’s first-ever LGBTQ power-building investments, and was a key partner in supporting our 2020 Census work. In Spring 2021 she stepped into the role of Deputy Director, and is excited to deepen her support of our team, board, grantees, and strategic direction. Jessica brings 9+ years of experience in progressive political non-profits. Prior to joining the Progress Alliance team she held roles in our larger grantee network, most recently as Operations Director of The Washington Bus (2014-2017), as well as supporting candidate recruitment as a Fellow with Progressive Majority Washington (2013-2014). Jessica is a native Washingtonian with roots in Lakewood and Tacoma. She holds a Bachelor of Applied Science in Behavioral Science and a Chemical Dependency Specialist certification from Seattle Central College. She has a passion for making systems efficient and information accessible and aligning organizational policies and practices with anti-racist values. In her free time, Jessica loves seeing live music and being anywhere near water.
jessica@washingtonprogress.org
Lisa Pubigee
Operations Manager
As Operations Manager, Lisa (she/her) provides support for the day-to-day logistics and finances at PA. Lisa has held various administrative, HR, and Operations roles which have allowed her to grow and flex her resourcefulness and problem solving skills over the last decade. Lisa attended Western Washington University where she held a work study job in the Financial Aid Services Center, this role taught her the importance of customer service, integrity and accuracy in all things. After moving to Seattle in 2012, Lisa held HR roles in community health before her introduction to the WA progessive landscape in 2019. Born in Tacoma and raised in Bonney Lake, Lisa is inspired by the beauty of the Pacific Northwest and committed to a just and equitable Washington state. A member of the Northwestern Band of Shoshone Nation (Fort Hall, ID), Lisa is particularly interested in the health, wellbeing, and successes of indigenous communities and in honoring the planet and lands we inhabit. In her spare time, Lisa enjoys walking her dog, cooking, and a variety of crafts.
Washington Progress Alliance Board
Susan is co-founder and Executive Director of the Na’ah Illahee Fund, and is a former training and technical assistance specialist for youth tribal programs for the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Juvenile Justice, and Delinquency Prevention's Tribal Youth Programs through Education Development Center, Inc. Susan carries valuable expertise in all levels of nonprofit operations and management, having been an independent consultant working with tribes, artists, and nonprofits, and currently serves on the board of the Potlatch Fund.
Rod practices environmental law at the Cascadia Law Group PLLC. He has done extensive environmental advocacy, including serving as environmental representative on a number of commissions and task forces, including the Growth Strategies Commission, which led to the creation of the Growth Management Act, the Regulatory Reform Task Force, the Blue Ribbon Commission on Transportation, and the Climate Action Team. Most recently, he co-chaired Governor Inslee's Carbon Emissions Reduction Task Force.
Sharon's interest areas for activism include chemical policy reform, growing the electorate, and shared prosperity. She currently serves on the boards of Washington Conservation Voters and Toxic-Free Future. She has a Computer Science Engineering degree from Princeton University and formerly worked at Microsoft for 12 years. Today Sharon lives in Capitol Hill with her husband Peter and three school-aged kids. If it weren't for pushing to make the world a better place, she would spend more time armed with a camera capturing the beauty of this world.
Vu is a writer, speaker, vegan, Pisces, and the former Executive Director of Rainier Valley Corps, a PA grantee and nonprofit in Seattle that promotes social justice by developing leaders of color, strengthening organizations led by communities of color, and fostering collaboration between diverse communities. Vu’s passion to make the world better, combined with a low score on the Law School Admission Test, drove him into the field of nonprofit work, where he learned that we should take the work seriously, but not ourselves.
Estevan is Director of Program Strategy with the Marguerite Casey Foundation. He also serves as chair of the Funders' Committee for Civic Participation's Money in Politics Working Group and board president of Rainier Valley Corps. He is a tireless advocate for fair representation and racial equity in our democracy and passionate about youth engagement, community organizing, and the diffusion of power.
Ankita is dedicated to elevating the social, political and economic status of BIPOC communities by engaging in public policy and advocacy, supporting grassroots organizing, and redistributing power and money to build a more just, equitable and reflective democracy. With 15 years of experience in the philanthropic and nonprofit sectors, she has leveraged over $25 million in private and public funding to launch community organizing programs, to build community-led civic infrastructures, and to bring community services to rural migrant farmworker communities. At the foundation of her professional and educational experiences, she is deeply rooted in her identity and positioning in the United States as an Indian-Zambian immigrant woman in the conversation for our collective liberation with a deep sense of honor, joy, humor and belonging. Ankita was a former Commissioner of the City of Seattle Immigrant and Refugee Commission, is a current board member at Budget and Policy Center. Prior to her current role as the Senior Manager of Public Policy & Advocacy at Philanthropy Northwest she spent a decade working at the Washington State Coalition Against Domestic Violence.
Rich brings 20 years of experience in community organizing, policy analysis and national campaigns working to build coherent and powerful progressive strategy with innovative private and public sector partners as well as working with grassroots community members to significantly improve the material conditions of low-income people and people of color in the United States. Rich brings experience in: Campaign strategy, electoral strategy, immigration policy, social and public policy analysis, community organizing, development, grant writing, organizational development strategy, on-line/off-line organizing strategy, transportation policy related to low-income and minority communities and environmental justice. Rich was the Executive Director of One America from 2012 to 2021. He is currently working as a consultant and strategist with partner organizations across Washington State.
Washington Progress Fund Board
Rod practices environmental law at the Cascadia Law Group PLLC. He has done extensive environmental advocacy, including serving as environmental representative on a number of commissions and task forces, including the Growth Strategies Commission, which led to the creation of the Growth Management Act, the Regulatory Reform Task Force, the Blue Ribbon Commission on Transportation, and the Climate Action Team. Most recently, he co-chaired Governor Inslee's Carbon Emissions Reduction Task Force.
Vu is a writer, speaker, vegan, Pisces, and the former Executive Director of Rainier Valley Corps, a PA grantee and nonprofit in Seattle that promotes social justice by developing leaders of color, strengthening organizations led by communities of color, and fostering collaboration between diverse communities. Vu’s passion to make the world better, combined with a low score on the Law School Admission Test, drove him into the field of nonprofit work, where he learned that we should take the work seriously, but not ourselves.
Holly worked in hotel management and then spent 10 years at Microsoft managing varied groups, with expertise in organizational and managerial development and leadership. Since retiring from Microsoft, she has done leadership consulting and mentoring, and has served in several volunteer leadership roles with Boards of Directors at Giddens School, Billings School, and Mad P, a neighborhood p-patch her family helped to establish. Holly is inspired by the nuances of people and organizational dynamics and her passion lies in helping people and organizations develop to their full potential. Holly and her husband Bill have been PA members since 2013.
Ankita is dedicated to elevating the social, political and economic status of BIPOC communities by engaging in public policy and advocacy, supporting grassroots organizing, and redistributing power and money to build a more just, equitable and reflective democracy. With 15 years of experience in the philanthropic and nonprofit sectors, she has leveraged over $25 million in private and public funding to launch community organizing programs, to build community-led civic infrastructures, and to bring community services to rural migrant farmworker communities. At the foundation of her professional and educational experiences, she is deeply rooted in her identity and positioning in the United States as an Indian-Zambian immigrant woman in the conversation for our collective liberation with a deep sense of honor, joy, humor and belonging. Ankita was a former Commissioner of the City of Seattle Immigrant and Refugee Commission, is a current board member at Budget and Policy Center. Prior to her current role as the Senior Manager of Public Policy & Advocacy at Philanthropy Northwest she spent a decade working at the Washington State Coalition Against Domestic Violence.
Rich brings 20 years of experience in community organizing, policy analysis and national campaigns working to build coherent and powerful progressive strategy with innovative private and public sector partners as well as working with grassroots community members to significantly improve the material conditions of low-income people and people of color in the United States. Rich brings experience in: Campaign strategy, electoral strategy, immigration policy, social and public policy analysis, community organizing, development, grant writing, organizational development strategy, on-line/off-line organizing strategy, transportation policy related to low-income and minority communities and environmental justice. Rich was the Executive Director of One America from 2012 to 2021. He is currently working as a consultant and strategist with partner organizations across Washington State.
Bio in progress!