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Leadership

Ascend is a community-led initiative rooted in the perspectives and needs of Promise Zone residents. Our Community Leaders are dedicated to active engagement, participating in monthly meetings, attending Ascend events, and playing a key role in gathering and sharing valuable insights from the community.

Connecticut Children’s

Paul Dworkin, MD

Project Director

A Message from Dr. Paul Dworkin

Continuing Leadership in North Hartford Ascend

After concluding my tenure as Executive Vice President for Community Child Health at Connecticut Children’s in May 2025, I’m honored to continue serving as Project Director for North Hartford Ascend, guiding our work through the remaining years of the Promise Neighborhoods grant. 

My commitment to this initiative remains strong. Working alongside our dedicated team and the engaged residents and partners of North Hartford, I look forward to sustaining the momentum of Ascend’s community-centered engagement—from monthly conversations to collaborative outreach—including workshops, canvassing, and other initiatives that drive real change. 

Thank you for your continued trust and partnership. I am excited about the progress we will achieve together. 

Paul Dworkin, MD 
Project Director, North Hartford Ascend 

Jacquelyn M. Rose, MPH

Deputy Director

Namandje Wali, MHA

Program Manager

Chelsey Furusho

Administrative Coordinator

Co-Chairs

Jinelle Hooker

Service Provider Engagement

Courtenay Jackson

Service Provider Engagement

Wes Younts

Data and Evaluation

Michelle Riordan-Nold

Data and Evaluation

Taniqua Huguley

Community and Family Engagement

Toral Sanghavi

Family Navigation System Building

Alejandro Martinez

Family Navigation System Building

Dwight Thompson

Community and Family Engagement

Luz Holmes-Padgett

Resident & Community Advisory

Community Leadership

Our Community Representatives advocate for North End residents, fostering open discussions about Ascend’s goals and bridging the gap between Ascend and the community. They provide essential input on North Hartford residents’ and families’ specific needs, interests, and opportunities. Each fall, Community Representatives apply to join governance workgroups, where they contribute their unique experiences and ideas to ensure strong community representation.

Giselle Jacobs

Rochelle Williams

Yackecha Dickenson

Danielle Middlebrooks

Madria Hamilton Edwards

Tanisha Stewart

Evelyn Hannah

Joanna Iovino

Lady Carrie McCrorey

Past Community Representatives:

Beverly Hines

Latoya Martindale

Latoya Martindale

Sylvester Turner Jr

Tori Hamilton

Stephan Palmer

Tyler Napper

Patricia Dixon

Minervia Newman

Terry Stringer

Gloria Jenkins

Kimberly Harris-Eaton

Tyasha Adams

Tennicha Frater-Chin

McKenzie Hudson

Amanda Feliciano

Aleena Durant

Resident & Community Advisory Group (RCAG)

The Resident & Community Advisory Group is a central component of Ascend’s governance. It consists of members from established organizations within the North Hartford Promise Zone, including Hartford Public Schools, Neighborhood Revitalization Zones, faith-based institutions, youth organizations, and more. RCAG members serve as liaisons between their respective groups and Ascend, ensuring that our work remains aligned with the needs of the community.

Allyson McGinty

Director of Strategic Initiatives 

Charles Teale

Resident, Northeast Masonry Lodge & NENRZ

Delicia Arnold

CANRZ & Resident

Gregory K. Lawrence

Resident & North Hartford Community Activist

Jennifer Wilder

Healthy Hartford Initiative

Helen Nixon

NENRZ

Lai Ping Wong

Hartford PTO & FACES Rep.

Lawrence Williams

UANRZ

Nija Saunders

HPS Parent & Previous North Hartford Resident

Ralph Knighton

North Hartford Activist & Leader

T’Challa Williams

FACES Rep & North Hartford Resident

Tanisha Stewart

Resident & HPS Parent

Samariya Smith

Northeast Resident

Amani Shirley

North End Young Professional Resident

Luz Holmes-Padgett

North Hartford Leader & Activist

Organizations Subcontracted by Connecticut Children's

Artist Collective

City of Hartford

Community First School

Community Health Services

CT Data Collaborative

(Previously InformCT)

FourteenG Marketing

Hartbeat Ensemble

Hartford Health Initiative

Hartford Promise

Hartford Public Schools

InterCommunity

Keney Park

Sustainability Project Urban Ecology Center

San Juan Center

The Children's Museum

The Village

for Families and Children

United Way

of Central and Northeastern Connecticut

United Way

of Connecticut

University of Connecticut

Health Center

University of Hartford

Center for Social Research

Wheeler Clinic

of Connecticut

Paul Dworkin

MD

Paul Dworkin, MD, is Executive Vice President for Community Child Health at Connecticut Children’s Office for Community Child Health and Founding Director of the Help Me Grow National Center. He is professor emeritus of pediatrics at the University of Connecticut School of Medicine. For 15 years, Dr. Dworkin previously served as physician-in-chief at Connecticut Children’s and chair of pediatrics at UCONN.

Dr. Dworkin’s interests are at the interface among child development, child health services, and child health policy. His honors include teaching awards from both universities he has served, visiting professorships, and named lectureships. He was the editor of the Journal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics from 1997-2002 and was a member of the first entering class of the Academy of Distinguished Educators at the UCONN School of Medicine. In 2003, Dr. Dworkin received the prestigious C. Anderson Aldrich Award from the American Academy of Pediatrics in recognition of achievement in the field of child development. His vision led to the creation of Help Me Grow, a Connecticut statewide initiative to promote the early detection of children at risk for developmental and behavioral problems and their linkage to programs and services that is being replicated in more than 30 states. He currently serves as the project director for North Hartford Ascend, a U.S. Department of Education Promise Neighborhoods grantee.

Dr. Dworkin received his bachelor’s degree from Rutgers University and his medical degree from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. He completed his pediatric residency and fellowship training at Boston Children’s Hospital. He earned a certificate in policy analysis from the University of North Dakota. Dr. Dworkin has served on the boards of numerous community-based organizations, recently completed his tenure as chair of the board of the Urban League of Greater Hartford, and currently serves on the board of the Institute for Child Success in Greenville, South Carolina.

Jacquelyn M. Rose

MPH

Jacquelyn M. Rose, MPH, is a manager in the Office for Community Child Health at Connecticut Children’s, where she leads the North Hartford Ascend initiative and the Childhood Prosperity Lab. Her primary focus is on North Hartford Ascend, a place-based initiative designed to integrate achievement-oriented schools with essential, evidence-based community services and programs. This initiative aims to enhance the health, development, well-being, and academic success of children living in the North Hartford Promise Zone. In addition to her leadership role in North Hartford Ascend, Jacquelyn also supports the Childhood Prosperity Lab by building relationships with individuals and organizations that are developing innovative strategies to promote healthy child development and strengthen families. Before joining Connecticut Children’s, Jacquelyn served as director of outreach and community programs for the Cambridge, Massachusetts, police department, where she was responsible for planning, implementing, and evaluating community-oriented initiatives. She holds a master’s degree in public health from Boston University and a bachelor’s degree in public health from Southern Connecticut State University.

Courtenay Jackson

North Hartford Promise Zone & My Brother’s Keeper Administrator

Courtenay Jackson, a Hartford native, is the City of Hartford appointed Promise Zone Director. Courtenay played an integral role in the developing the North Hartford Ascend Pipeline, a $30 million U.S. Department of Education cradle-to-career effort designed to ensure children living in the North Hartford Promise Zone have the support they need to reach their full potential. 
 
As an expert in place-based initiatives aimed at significantly improving academic and developmental outcomes of children he understands the importance of keeping residents engaged in all efforts. It takes the entire community to help children successfully progress through every stage of life. In partnership with Connecticut Children’s Medical Center, Courtenay co-led the mandated the inclusion of community members at all levels of the Ascend Pipeline governance structure. He works diligently with residents; local, state, and federal officials; faith-based and non-profit organizations; and private businesses to build systems that support sustainable collaborative efforts and break down silos.

C. Wesley Younts

Director, Center for Social Research  Associate Professor, Sociology and Criminal Justice, University of Hartford  

Wes earned his PhD in Sociology from the University of Iowa in 2003 and his BA in Sociology from the University of South Carolina in 1994. Since 2014, he has served as the Director of the Center for Social Research (CSR) and as a faculty member at the University of Hartford. Prior to joining UHart, Wes held faculty positions at the University of New Haven and the University of Connecticut. 

He has published research in leading Sociology and Criminology journals, covering topics such as power and influence, perceptions of justice, and the relationship between race and crime. His current research focuses on using both quantitative and qualitative methodologies to inform the development, continuous improvement, coordination, and evaluation of community-based programs and initiatives. These efforts primarily serve disadvantaged and vulnerable populations and address areas such as early childhood, family support services (including home visiting), addiction recovery, adult incarceration, and education. 

Michelle Riordan-Nold

Executive Director

Michelle Riordan-Nold is the Executive Director of the Connecticut Data Collaborative. In her role, she executes the vision and strategy of the organization which seeks to democratize access to public data and connect people and data to promote informed decision making and to advance equity in Connecticut. In her tenure at CTData, she has grown the organization from 1 full time staff person to 14. Ms. Riordan-Nold has created and developed new data service offerings including the CTData Academy, building an integrated data system initiative called the Hartford Data Collaborative, and in 2022 launching a social enterprise, CTData Strategic Planning that coaches nonprofits on how to make data an organizational strategic asset. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics from Boston College and a Masters in Public Policy from the University of Chicago.

Taniqua Huguley-Chaplin

Community and Family Engagement

Taniqua Huguley-Chaplin is a proud native of Queens, NY. She has been a resident of Hartford, CT for over thirteen years, a place she loves to call home.  

Taniqua holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology and a Master of Arts degree in Public Policy, both from Trinity College. During both her undergraduate and graduate years she conducted research that focused on the socialization and labeling of Black and Latinx girls, the social and economic mobility of Black families, and the correlation between juvenile and educational policies. Taniqua is a U.S. Fulbright Scholar; in 2017 she conducted research at St. Jude’s School for Girls, the only all-girls juvenile facility in Trinidad and Tobago. Today, she continues to work with the girls and staff at the facility.  

In 2022 Taniqua became the Director of Economic Mobility Initiatives at the United Way of Central and Northeastern CT. In this role, she is responsible for overseeing and creating initiatives that provide individuals and families with opportunities that help them establish and maintain financial security. She is a core partner in the North Hartford Ascend Pipeline initiative, where she serves as the Chair of the Community and Family Engagement workgroup.  

Taniqua is also the founder and owner of Black Girls Achieve (BGA), an enrichment program designed to provide Black girls in middle and high school with the necessary tools and skills needed to thrive.  

Taniqua is a board member of the Hartford Renaissance District and Foundation for Educational Opportunities Inc. She is also a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. and the Housing & Community Development Leadership Institute and the Local Advisory Committee for LISC.  

Taniqua is a recipient of the Hartford Business Journal’s Top 25 Women in Business and Forty Under 40 awards. She is also a recipient of 50 for the Next 50, 2020 Hartford’s Finest, 100 Women of Color awards. 

Toral Sanghavi, PhD

Senior Vice President of Programs

 Toral has a strong sense of giving back to the community. “I want to make a difference in my life, my children’s lives and my community,” she says. “In some ways we are all connected and if one person is struggling, we all have to put hands together to make it work.” 

At The Village, Toral combines her passion with her wide-ranging expertise in leading, developing and overseeing a variety of programs as well as strategy, systems, analytics and quality improvement. 

In addition to her role at The Village, she is also an executive board member of Hartford Data Collaborative and serves on numerous committees across the state and nation, including Great by Eight, CT State Home Visiting Consortium, a COVID advisory council established by Hartford Foundation of Public Giving, and others. 

She has also served on the West Hartford Community Funds Committee, the Bloomberg Philanthropies Mayors Challenge to End Gun Violence, the National Alliance for Racial Equity, as chair for the statewide DCF Data Committee and as a board member for Our Children’s Center in West Hartford. 

Before joining The Village, Toral worked in various academic institutions where she taught, conducted research and ran a clinical private practice. Over the years, she has received numerous teaching, research and performance awards. Toral earned her PhD in child and family studies from Syracuse University and is a certified family life educator and family wellness trainer. She also has an advanced certificate in counseling. 

Allyson McGinty

Director of Strategic Initiatives 

Ally McGinty is the Director of Strategic Initiatives at United Way of Central and Northeastern Connecticut, a role she has held since 2023. She initially joined United Way in November 2020 as Project Manager for Health Initiatives. Her previous roles include Senior Development Manager at Boston Children’s Museum and Program Coordinator at the Harvard Hip-Hop Archive and Research Institute. 

As a philanthropic initiative leader, Ally is passionate about fostering meaningful partnerships between businesses and communities. She excels in relationship building, strategic social impact investments, and volunteer management, with extensive experience collaborating across multi-sector business areas. 

Originally from Washington, D.C., Ally has called New England home since earning her B.A. in African and African American Studies and Sociology from Harvard University in 2013.