Meet the Board of Directors
Cierra Hinton
Chair
Cierra Hinton is the Director of Development at Blue Engine Collaborative. She is the former Executive Director-Publisher at Scalawag, a Southern movement journalism organization.
Gunita Singh
Treasurer, Immediate Past Chair
Gunita Singh is a staff attorney at the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press. As a LION board member, she brings both a legal background and a passion for news and community. She is based in Washington, D.C. More on Gunita.
Neil Chase
Vice Chair
Neil Chase is the chief executive officer at CalMatters, the nonprofit newsroom explaining California policy and politics. He was previously executive editor of The Mercury News and the East Bay Times in the San Francisco Bay Area. More on Neil.
Rebekah Monson
Governance Committee Chair
Rebekah Monson (she/they) is co-founder and COO of Letterhead. She previously co-founded WhereBy.Us, and works at the intersection of tech, communities, and media on global projects from her home in Miami. More on Rebekah.
Dan Hu
Secretary
Dan Hu lives in Princeton, NJ, and helped found the nonprofit news organization The Yappie. He also serves on the board of advisors at the Glen Nelson Center at American Public Media Group, and was a fellow at The Texas Tribune. More on Dan.
Vania André
Membership Committee Chair
Vania André is the publisher and editor-in-chief of The Haitian Times, which chronicles the vibrant Haitian community. She is also an assistant professor of journalism, media studies, and public relations at Hofstra University and the principal and founder of MUSER. She has worked for the nonprofit newsroom The City in New York and has served as communications director for the New York City Council, ABC News, and NBC Universal.
Jamaal Glenn
Board member
Jamaal Glenn is an entrepreneur, investor, university professor, writer, and speaker. He is the founder and CEO of JG Holdings, an investment holding company and advisory firm, and an adjunct professor at New York University and the City University of New York.
Eden Fineday
Board member
Eden Fineday is an award-winning nêhiyaw (Cree) journalist from Sweetgrass First Nation in Treaty 6 territory and the publisher of IndigiNews. She is the founder and CEO of tâpwêwin media, the Indigenous-led nonprofit that acquired IndigiNews in 2025, and a co-founder of the Indigenous Media Association of Canada.
Anita Li
Board member
Anita Li (she/her) is a Toronto-based journalist, consultant, and educator. She's also the founder and CEO of The Green Line. Anita specializes in community-driven journalism, audience engagement, and media ethics and innovation. More on Anita.
Mazin Sidahmed
Board member
Mazin Sidahmed is co-executive director of Documented, a nonprofit news site that covers immigration in the New York area. He was previously a reporter at the Guardian US in New York on the national desk as well as with the award-winning Guardian Mobile Innovation Lab. More on Mazin.
Richard Young
Board member
Richard Young is the founder and executive director of CivicLex, a nonprofit organization that builds civic knowledge and capacity for residents, stitches together new relationships, and builds more responsive civic institutions in Lexington, KY. He is also a founding Steering Committee member of the Kentucky Rural-Urban Exchange and an Ashoka Fellow.
Ariel Zirulnick
Board member
Ariel Zirulnick is an audience and product consultant with a focus on local news and community-centric journalism. She is an instructor and coach with the News Product Alliance and has previously worked at LAist, Membership Puzzle Project, and WhereBy.Us. More on Ariel.
Board Committees
Executive: Cierra Hinton, Chair; Neil Chase, Vice Chair; Gunita Singh; Dan Hu
Board Development: Anita Li, Chair; Dawn Marie Paley, Ojala Editorial; Chris Krewson (LION Publishers)
Finance: Gunita Singh, Chair; Tyree Worthy; Neil Chase (Cal Matters); Tom Davidson (Davidson & Associates, Philip Merrill College of Journalism); Veselina Dinova, (Haas School of Business, U.C. Berkeley); Richard Young (CivicLex); Lisa Hunter (LION Publishers)
Governance: Rebekah Monson, Chair; Dylan Smith (Tucson Sentinel); Jimmy Boegle (Palm Springs Independent); Kate Maxwell (The Mendocino Voice); Shawn Musgrove, attorney; Lisa Hunter (LION Publishers)
Membership: Vania André, Chair; Ariel Zirulnick (Independent), Gunita Singh; Jay Allred; Sartaz Singh, staff attorney, Winston & Strawn; Mariann Martin, Canopy Atlanta