THE ADVISORY COUNCIL
ADVISORY COUNCIL
The Dare to Run Advisory Council members lend their diverse skills and expertise to our work, to ensure high-quality, sustainable programming that addresses all aspects of the issues facing women pursuing in political leadership.
DEBORAH WEEKS
Deborah Weeks has been involved in the management of political campaigns for 40 years. The first campaign Deborah worked on was for Congressman Bill chapel in 1970. She was very involved in grass roots politics working to gain majority rights for 18-year-olds, the right to choose for women, and the Equal Rights Amendment. The first presidential campaign she worked on was in 1971 for Senator Ed Muskie in the primaries and senator George McGovern in the general. Deborah has remained politically active throughout her entire adult life. She passionately supports the mission of Dare to Run and helping women get elected to politics.
HAILI COPAS-STARKE
Haili Copas-Starke is a Brooklyn-based Latina activist who co-founded Women of Color for Progress, a non-profit organization empowering women of color to excel, lead, and be heard. Born and raised in Nebraska, Haili became passionate about politics and advocacy efforts while attending the University of Nebraska at Omaha (UNO) where she served as the Director of the Women’s Resource Center and the Office Assistant for the Women’s and Gender Studies Program. After working for Senator Ben Nelson and several state and local Nebraska campaigns, she moved to NYC to apply her highly issue advocacy efforts towards state and local campaigns, philanthropy, and social justice.
STEVE FOX
Steve Fox is a New York State native and has called BedStuy home for 7 years. He has a long history of political organizing, engagement, and general rabble rousing across the USA, having organized various campaigns in 10 states. He holds a Bachelors in applied policy and a Masters of Public Administration, both from the University of Delaware. In his professional life, he consults growing businesses on issues of green energy and engagement. In his free time, Steve enjoys going to concerts, riding his bike to Brighton Beach, and searching for the best slice of pizza in NYC.
FEDERICO GARCIA
Federico Garcia received his Bachelor's and Master's degrees in Electrical Engineering from Columbia University. He has worked in the telecommunications industry as an RF Engineer for 7 years. Currently he works in the SmartGrid industry as a Systems Engineer. In his spare time, he enjoys hiking and playing board games. Fred is a proponent of gender equality and passionately supports the mission of Dare to Run. He believes in the power of free market economy and fiscal conservatism as a tool for sustainability.
ALEX HON
Alex Hon is a New York University graduate with a bachelor degree in Mathematics and minor in Computer Science. He has 8 years of programming experience in digital marketing as well as e-commerce for multiple sectors including telecom, pharmaceutical, and non-profits. In Summer 2015, he began working as a consultant for the Customer Relationship Management team at Ann Inc., an international women’s premium fashion company known for their brands Ann Taylor, LOFT, and Lou & Grey. Alex is the proud father of two daughters and supports initiatives that promote gender equality for women, especially in the political and economic sector. Alex is an ardent proponent of gender equality, Alex is conservative with regard to economic and government issues.
LUISA LOPEZ
Luisa Lopez serves as Director of Digital Media to Manhattan Borough President Gale A. Brewer.
As a trained social worker, she began her career in public service as a direct practice family support worker at a home visiting parenting program in Washington Heights, focused on helping young mothers and pregnant teens to navigate resources available to them, as well as preventing child abuse and neglect. In this role Luisa was able to serve as an advocate for children and families on issues surrounding equitable access to social services, childhood learning and development, poverty and income support, mental health parity, and immigration reform.
In May 2018, Luisa began her journey in government as a Policy Fellow in Congressman Jose Serrano's office in Washington, D.C., where she focused on the impact of intergenerational poverty on at risk youth in the Bronx. After that, she served as Community Liaison to Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer in Community Boards 8 and 11 (Upper East Side and East Harlem). She went on to serve as Chief of Staff at the New York City Council for her home district of East Harlem and the South Bronx.
Luisa holds a Master of Social Work from the New York University Silver School of Social Work. She currently serves on the Board of the Latino Social Work Coalition, where she continues to advocate for increased civic and electoral engagement among social workers as means to empower citizens to address social, economic, and political conditions.
BONNIE MCEWAN
Bonnie McEwan is a writer and independent consultant to nonprofit organizations. She also teaches marketing, leadership, and management courses at The New School, a progressive university in New York City. Earlier in her career she led the national communications divisions of Girl Scouts of the USA and the Planned Parenthood Federation of America, and served on the board of the Empire State Pride Agenda, the largest statewide gay rights group in the US. Bonnie is the author of a chapter on nonprofit earned income in the textbook, Social Entrepreneurship, edited by Thomas Lyons, published by ABC-Clio, and is profiled in the leadership book, Thriving in 24/7, by Sally Helgesen, published by The Free Press.
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Tajuana Hamm
Tajuana Hamm is a political strategist and lifelong public servant, who often volunteers her personal time to just causes. She has served in government for more than 10 years, facilitating capacity building training, government contracts, and serving as senior advisor over her tenure. While working in the government sector, Ms. Hamm, a Bronx native, concerned about environmental factors affecting asthma rates, authored a Capstone policy paper that examined smoking cessation affects on youth. Ms. Hamm often works with the non profit sector to organize communities around critical social issues such as the census and voting rights. She is also the producer and host of teestabletalk, a podcast she created to highlight women doing amazing work in politics and business. She is a member of the Manhattan County Committee and holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Criminal Justice and a
Masters degree in Public Administration. Tajuana Hamm is also a classically trained pianist, having performed several recitals on the stage at Carnegie Hall in the borough of Manhattan, NY.