Maira Rosas-Lee, President

Maira is an evaluator at the Minnesota Department of Education on the Data Analytics, and Youth Development and Health Promotion teams. She provides the 21st Century Community Learning Centers grant program with research, data analysis, and evaluation to meet the federal requirements of the U.S. Department of Education. As a former researcher in public health, she aims to bridge education and health data to address academic success and health equity in Minnesota using community-based and participatory methodologies. Maira has been on the MNEA board since 2016. She holds a Master’s in organizational leadership, policy, and development (evaluation studies) with a minor in public health, and dual bachelor degrees in Chicano studies and Spanish Studies with a concentration in Public Health from the University of Minnesota.

Nicole MartinRogers, Past President

Nicole MartinRogers (White Earth Ojibwe, descendant) has been with Wilder Research since 2001. She provides research and evaluation services to a wide range of programs and organizations. She designs and consults on program evaluations and community-based applied research projects, and facilitates data-based decision-making processes. Nicole has a bachelor’s degree in psychology and sociology from the University of Minnesota, a master’s degree in public policy (M.P.P.) from the Humphrey School at the University of Minnesota, and a doctorate in sociology from the University of Minnesota.

Claire Dunlap, President Elect

Claire Dunlap is Director of Organizational Effectiveness at Youthprise, an intermediary in Minneapolis dedicated to reducing racial disparities with and for Minnesota youth by mobilizing and investing resources, advancing knowledge, and advocating for change. Claire leads and implements strategies to advance overall effectiveness at Youthprise including: setting the evaluation agenda, reporting Youthprise’s impact externally, and improving internal organizational functioning by advancing solutions around structure, power, and culture. Claire graduated with a master’s degree in organizational development and program evaluation from the University of Minnesota. Previously, Claire served as Community Partnerships Coordinator at Saint Paul Public Schools, Department of Family Engagement and Community Partnerships working to build the District’s partnership framework.In her spare time, Claire also teaches therapeutic yoga and is passionate about the mind-body connection. 

Hue Schlieu, Treasurer

Hue is a Training and Programming Specialist at Saint Paul Public Schools. She finds her passion and work at the intersection of youth development and racial/gender equity. She has a Master’s Degree in Nonprofit Management and Public Administration and a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology with a minor in Art and Math. Hue loves how evaluation can provide individuals and organizations a systemic way to reflect and make informed decisions. In her personal time, she enjoys rock climbing, woodworking, and unfolding life with her wife and two kiddos. 

Kate Diamond, Secretary

Kate Diamond is a Ph.D. Candidate in the Organizational Leadership, Policy, and Development department at the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities. Before moving back to Minnesota to start her doctoral studies, Kate was a manager and internal evaluator at Laspau, a nonprofit organization in Boston focused on international higher education. Kate has a B.A. in sociology and international relations from Tufts University and an Ed.M. in international education policy from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. In her free time, Kate enjoys cooking, seeing live music, and exploring the Twin Cities with her husband Jeff and daughter Mia.

Alicia Ranney, Membership Chair

Alicia Ranney is Vice President of Data and Evaluation at Metropolitan Alliance of Connected Communities (MACC). In her role, she leads a wonderful team of consultants who partner with dozens of community-based organizations across the metro who are part of the MACC Data Network. Their work supports organizational incubation, capacity building and collaborative network building in data and evaluation, as well as ongoing work to build and support members’ databases. Her evaluation interests include journey mapping, and utilization and participatory approaches to evaluation. Previously, she worked at Pillsbury United Communities’ Wait House as a Data and Program Coordinator, and worked in advocate policy advocacy as the State Director of the Minnesota Fair Trade Coalition. Alicia holds a Master’s in Social Work with a specialization in research from Washington University in St. Louis, and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from Florida State University. She always works to keep at least one foot in social justice movements in the Twin Cities, and also enjoys going to libraries, playing music, and going on new adventures with her husband Merle and their two kids, Sebastian and Amelia.

Kassira Absar, Program Co-Chair

Kassira Absar is a Consultant with The Improve Group, a research and evaluation firm located in St. Paul. Kassira’s roles include work with culturally/community responsive evaluation approaches, evaluation, participatory approaches, facilitation, and survey research. She has a passion for antiracism and social justice work. She graduated from the University of Minnesota’s Humphrey School of Public Affairs with a Master’s in public policy in 2015. She received her B.A. from University of Maryland, College Park in 2009, and will always be a Terp at heart. Kassira is also a certified yoga instructor and loves hiking, mountains, and reading.

Erica Orton, Program Co-Chair

Erica Orton is the Evaluation and Learning Manager at the Bush Foundation in St. Paul.  Erica's role at the Bush Foundation is to develop and execute organization-wide evaluation strategies and learning plans across all program areas.  Erica joins the Bush Foundation from the Minnesota Historical Society where she was the Evaluation Associate, specializing in public program & K-12 program evaluation and data utilization strategies.  Erica also has a background in education, working as a second grade teacher near Washington DC. She graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2001 with a degree in Music & Art.

Sarah Lindeman, Communications Chair

Sarah Lindeman is the Community Impact Manager at Neighborhood House, where she is the agency's internal evaluator.  In this role, Sarah develops and implements the agency's evaluation capacity building strategies, designs program evaluations, oversees programs' data collection processes and the participant database, as well as reports Neighborhood House's impact.  Previously, Sarah was an Evaluation Consultant, and worked as the Campaign Coordinator at Twin Cities Habitat for Humanity. Before consulting, she was the Associate Program Director at the Juran Center for Leadership in Quality at the Carlson School of Management.  Sarah has a Master’s in Public Affairs from the University of Minnesota.  She has a bachelor’s degree in Peace and Justice Studies and East Asian Studies from the University of St. Thomas. In her spare time, Sarah enjoys gardening and spending time with her husband Andy and their two boys.

James Clinton, Student Representative

James Clinton is a Master of Public Policy Student at the Humphrey School of Public Affairs, concentrating in Non-Profit Management and Leadership. Prior to starting graduate school, he worked for several years at various small non-profits in Red Wing, including a health equity advocacy organization and a county historical society. Through that experience, James saw firsthand the positive impact small, locally focused organizations can have; however, he learned about the real capacity limitations these organizations face and how those challenges perpetuate flawed programming and limit impact. James is committed to learning more about program evaluation and development, in order to help mission-based organizations achieve maximum impact across the state. James graduated with a history degree from Winona State University in 2014, and spent a year teaching English in northern Spain prior to moving to Saint Paul. In his free time, he decompresses by playing drums in a folk-rock band based out of southeastern Minnesota.

Elizabeth Taylor-Schiro, Student Representative

Elizabeth Taylor-Schiro - Biidabanikwe (St. Croix Chippewa/Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwe) is a PhD student in the Organizational Leadership, Policy, and Development department at the University of Minnesota - Twin Cities, focusing on the intersections of evaluation, public health, and policy. She holds a Master’s degree from the University of Minnesota in Educational Policy and Leadership, and a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin in Human Development and Family Studies with a Minor in Gender and Women's Studies. She is passionate about Maternal and Child Health equity, Social Justice advocacy, and Education development. Her current roles allow her to put these passions into practice as a Health Educator for Minnesota Indian Women’s Resource Center, Research Assistant/Evaluator for the University of Minnesota’s Institute for Community Integration’s Check and Connect program, Birth Doula for Division of Indian Work’s Ninde Doula program, and an Independent Evaluation and Research Consultant assisting organizations with culturally-reflexive, equity-focused, and community-driven research and evaluation strategies. Her aim is to lead efforts forward for evaluation within policy and government that is community-centered, self-reflexive, and works across systems to address issues of power and bias. In her spare time, Elizabeth enjoys exploring outdoors and spending time with her husband Travis and two fur babies Thor and Sif.