Administrative Staff
Suma Karaman Rosen
Executive Director
Dynamic classroom teacher turned nonprofit leader, Suma’s experience in corporate, nonprofit and educational settings has brought depth to her leadership of InsideOut since 2017. Suma is inspired by the resilient and empowered InsideOut students, and brings this passion to all corners of our work, from managing finances and fundraising, to amplifying students’ voices far and wide.
Lia Greenwell
Operations Coordinator
Lia brings masterful organization to her work as Operations Coordinator, where she focuses on capacity building, marketing, and office-wide systems. Serving as the hub where program and administration meet, Lia is equally skilled in supporting the InsideOut team and providing high quality customer service to external stakeholders. A poet and essayist, her writing has appeared in the Kenyon Review, the Missouri Review, and elsewhere.
Maureen Okasinski
Grants & Evaluation Coordinator
Maureen combines her love of numbers and a passion for arts into key processes such as program evaluation, grant coordination and reporting. A social worker by training, Maureen’s an empathic team player who helps us know that our programs work and enjoys telling the story of their impact.
John Randolph
Development Associate
With a deep commitment for finding the perfect intersection between donor passion and organizational need, John coordinates InsideOut’s individual and corporate giving, as well as fundraising campaigns. John previously served as a Campaign Manager at the Indianapolis Museum of Art at Newfields and a Vista Volunteer with Hunger Solutions Minnesota. He experienced the transformational power of writing as a teen and is thrilled to support InsideOut in sharing that power with students throughout Metro Detroit.
Program Staff
Alise Alousi
Director of School & Community Partnerships
Alise has grown with InsideOut from the ground up. As a former Writer-in-Residence at Cody and Cass Tech High Schools, Alise learned first-hand how to cultivate and empower student voice. She brings this on-the-ground knowledge and many years of non-profit youth program experience to her work as Program Director, which she held from 2009-2019, and in her new role as Director of School & Community Partnerships. Alise is a talented poet whose work has appeared in numerous journals and anthologies, and is a recipient of a Knight Arts Challenge Detroit award.
Shawntai Brown
Schools Coordinator
With a passion for literacy and pedagogy, Shawntai works with Writers-in-Residence and classroom teachers to cultivate impactful and meaningful learning. In addition to attending InsideOut programs as a student and working in the classroom as a Writer-in-Residence, Shawntai has a Master of Arts in Literacy Learning and has worked as an educator with students of all ages as well as adults. Shawntai is a playwright with the Extra Mile Playwrights and poet whose work has appeared in Kaleidoscope, Cactus Heart, and Synaesthesia Magazine.
Rose Gorman
Louder Than a Bomb Coordinator
Rose Gorman brings her deep roots in community arts and event planning prowess to InsideOut, where she coordinates Detroit’s Louder Than a Bomb Youth Poetry Festival for teens. A talented teacher, Rose has facilitated writing groups for youth and adults, including formerly homeless veterans, recent immigrants, incarcerated men, and LGBTQ+ homeless youth and elders. Her writing has appeared in Six Little Things, The Bridge, Paste Magazine, and elsewhere. Rose is the Resident Fellow for the Tuxedo Project, a community-based literary center in Detroit, and a member of the the 808 Writers Collective, a residency for queer writers of color.
Peter Markus
Senior Writer
Pete found his calling as a Writer-in-Residence with InsideOut and has been with the organization since it was founded 1995. In addition to inspiring students in the classroom, Pete partners with schools to create programs that fit their needs. Pete has published widely about the transformative power of writing, co-editing To Light a Fire: 20 Years with the InsideOut Literary Arts Project, and most recently a memoir, Inside My Pencil: Teaching Poetry in the Detroit Public Schools. A Kresge Arts in Detroit Fellow, Pete is the author of the novel Bob, or Man on Boat as well as five other books of short fiction.
Justin Rogers
Citywide Poets Coordinator
Justin’s journey with InsideOut began first as a student at Cody High School where a Writer-in-Residence encouraged his writing and recruited him to join Citywide Poets. Since then, Justin has performed for international audiences and published his writing widely. Justin now coordinates our Citywide Poets program, elevating youth voice through weekly sessions around the city, guest writer workshops, performances, and open mic opportunities for youth.
Khila Williams
Events and Engagement Assistant
As a recent alumni of Citywide Poets, Khila is proud to integrate her teaching and professional skills as the Events and Engagement Assistant. Khila supports programs and events in the community in celebration of InsideOut’s 25th anniversary, as well as assisting at Citywide Poets sites. She is currently a student at Henry Ford Community College. Khila’s goal has always been to write about what provokes an emotional response and to help others do the same. Khila’s work is generously supported by the Youth Speaks Future Corps Fellow program.
Writers-In-Residence
Joumana Altallal
Writer-In-Residence
Joumana Altallal was born in Baghdad to Iraqi and Lebanese parents and is a recent graduate of the University of Virginia.
Joumana Altallal was born in Baghdad to Iraqi and Lebanese parents. She is a recent graduate of the University of Virginia and is currently a first year MFA candidate in poetry at the Helen Zell Writers’ Program. Her work has appeared in the Virginia Literary Review, Inkstone, and Jaffat al-Aqlam, among others. Her writing has primarily focused on the Iraqi experience of loss (of land, family, and memory). She is most passionate about the creation of educational spaces that allow for healing, growth, and preservation.
Cat Batsios
Writer-In-Residence
Catharine Batsios is from Flint, and currently stays in Detroit. She writes poems about the cities that build her.
Christiana Castillo
Writer-In-Residence
Christiana Castillo is an educator, activist, urban gardener and writer.
Rachel Cawkwell
Writer-In-Residence
Originally from New York, Rachel Cawkwell is currently a graduate student in English at the University of Michigan.
Originally from New York, Rachel Cawkwell is currently a graduate student in English at the University of Michigan. She earned a B.A. in English at Emory University and an MLitt in Women, Writing, and Gender at the University of St Andrews. She loves everything about poetry and storytelling, especially getting to create and share in community, as she has had the pleasure of doing with Michigan’s Prison Creative Arts Project and 826michigan over the past three years. When not entranced by words, she spends a lot of time playing ultimate frisbee.
Ellen Chamberlain
Writer-In-Residence
Ellen Chamberlain is a journalist and fiction writer. The Southfield native discovered her love of words while working in radio for over a decade in Detroit, Tallahassee and Memphis.
Tony DeGenaro
Writer-In-Residence
Tony DeGenaro has an MFA in poetry from the University of San Francisco, and is currently a Ph.D. student in rhetoric & composition at Wayne State University.
Kelly Fordon
Writer-In-Residence
Kelly Fordon’s work has appeared in The Florida Review, The Kenyon Review (KRO), Rattle and various other journals.
Bayan Founas
Writer-In-Residence
Bayan Founas is an educator and artist currently studying at the University of Michigan to receive a Master’s degree in Educational Leadership and Policy.
Bayan Founas is an educator and artist currently studying at the University of Michigan to receive a Master’s degree in Educational Leadership and Policy. She founded and directs a high-school poetry club at Jalen Rose Leadership Academy, where she taught for two years, to give Detroit youth a safe space to creatively heal and be themselves fully without conforming to institutional norms. In August 2018, she published her first book, Diary of a Daughter in Diaspora – a collection of her poems giving readers the narrative of a first-generation Algerian and Muslim woman growing up in a post 9/11-Trump America.
Cal Freeman is the author of the book Fight Songs. His writing has appeared in many journals including Southword, The Moth, Passages North, The Journal, Hippocampus, Drunken Boat, and The Poetry Review. He currently serves as music editor of The Museum of Americana and teaches at Oakland University.
Alana Gracey
Writer-In-Residence
Alana Gracey has worked with vulnerable populations since 2004, dealing with issues of homelessness, intimate partner violence, and human sex trafficking.
Justin Groppuso-Cook
Writer-In-Residence
Justin Groppuso-Cook is a poet, musician, and Metro Detroit native.
Reynaldo George Hinojosa Jr.
Writer-In-Residence
Reynaldo George Hinojosa Jr. is a Tejano born writer and musician.
Suzanne Honda
Writer-In-Residence
Suzanne Honda is a Michigan-born poet, fiction writer, and educator.
Kyle Hunt
Writer-In-Residence
Kyle Hunt is a poet, painter and photographer from West Texas and Middle Tennessee.
Nathan Kweku John
Writer-In-Residence
Nathan Kweku John is a Gambian-“American” poet whose work seeks to interrogate and uncover linkages across the African diaspora.
Audra Kubat
Writer-In-Residence
Detroit Music Award winning singer/songwriter Audra Kubat has released 6 albums to critical acclaim in a career that spans over 20 years.
Robert Laidler
Writer-In-Residence
Robert Laidler is an African American poet who was born in Detroit. He is a graduate of Oakland University and is furthering his education through Wayne State Universities MA program.
Amy Loji
Writer-In-Residence
Amy Loji first discovered her love of poetry in the seventh grade, when she penned a poem inspired by her favorite grandmother. Today, she writes poetry and short stories, and loves to read and analyze just about anything that takes written form.
Nadine Marshall
Writer-In-Residence
Nadine Marshall is a poet, avid reader, collaborator, and curator with an MSW and B.S. in Psychology/African American Studies, and currently lives in Detroit.
Julia McDaniel
Writer-In-Residence
Julia McDaniel is a poet, cat mom, and Midwesterner who received her B.A. in Creative Writing from Denison University.
Natalie McKinney
Writer-In-Residence
Natalie McKinney is a Detroit native, poet, and storyteller.
Natalie McKinney is a Detroit native, poet, and storyteller. Natalie shares poems and short stories centered around the black community and its resilience. Emerging in Detroit’s writing community, she has facilitated creative writing workshops for middle school and high school students surrounding student led topics. She is a former participant in InsideOut’s Citywide poets and while working toward her BSW at Wayne State.
Wafaa Mustafa
Writer-In-Residence
Wafaa Mustafa is a recent Graduate of WSU, where she majored in English and minored in philosophy.
Jassmine Parks
Writer-In-Residence
Jassmine Parks is a Detroit slam poetry champion that has performed internationally.
Madelyn Porter
Writer-In-Residence
Madelyn Porter, has worked as a professional storyteller/actor for the past forty years, and is a member of Actor’s Equity Association.
Madelyn Porter, has worked as a professional storyteller/actor for the past forty years, and is a member of Actor’s Equity Association.
Jennifer Quartararo
Writer-In-Residence
Jennifer Quartararo is a Detroit-based writer with Maine roots.
Kelsey Ronan
Writer-In-Residence
Former Writer in Residence of the Hub City Writing Project, her work has appeared in Michigan Quarterly Review, Kenyon Review, New Ohio Review, and elsewhere.
John Rybicki
Writer-In-Residence
John Rybicki was born and raised in Detroit. He is the author of three previous poetry collections, We Bed Down Into Water, When All the World is Old, and Traveling at High Speeds.
Lauren Ryder Williams
Writer-In-Residence
Born in the middle of the Detroit riots, Lauren Ryder Williams is a Detroit-girl, through and through.
Devin Samuels
Writer-In-Residence
A masterful facilitator, Devin is to uplifting and empowering youth voice, Devin has coached slam teams and performed his own poetry on stages around the country.
Anita Schmaltz
Writer-In-Residence
Anita Schmaltz is a painter, photographer, writer and singer-songwriter.
Nia Shumake
Writer-In-Residence
Nia Shumake is a storyteller and educator from Detroit who graduated from the University of Michigan in 2016.
Daniella Toosie-Watson
Writer-In-Residence
Daniella Toosie-Watson is a poet, visual artist and educator from New York.
K. David Wade
Writer-In-Residence
K. David Wade is a writer from Washington, PA interested in rustbelt literature, hip hop, speculative fiction, and religious studies.
Naidra Walls
Writer-In-Residence
Naidra Walls is an artist, educator, and real estate agent.
H.R. Webster
Writer-In-Residence
H.R. Webster is a poet and educator from New Hampshire, currently living in Ypsilanti, MI.
Ber-Henda Williams
Writer-In-Residence
Ber-Henda Williams, a Wayne State University graduate with a Bachelor of Arts in Spanish and minor in International Marketing, has a passion for culture, community and connections.
Crystal J. Zanders
Writer-In-Residence
Crystal J. Zanders is a poet-educator from Tennessee. She received her MFA from University of New Mexico in 2018 and is currently a doctoral student enrolled in the Joint Program in English and Education at the University of Michigan.
Crystal J. Zanders is a poet-educator from Tennessee. She received her MFA from University of New Mexico in 2018 and is currently a doctoral student enrolled in the Joint Program in English and Education at the University of Michigan. As a Rackham Merit Fellow, she is studying literacy and the expression of educational inequity in k-12 classrooms. Her creative work has been featured in Mud Season Review, Rigorous, |tap|lit, and elsewhere and explores the themes of personal and generational trauma.Board of Directors
Annmarie Erickson, President
Executive Vice President
Van Dyke Horn Public Relations
Teresa McAlpine, Vice-President
Director of Marketing Operations
Plante Moran
Laura Stevens, Treasurer
Director of Budgeting and Forecasting
Handelman Corporation (former)
Kevin Rashid, Secretary
Honors College Academic Service Officer
Wayne State University
Maureen Clinesmith
Mercedes-Benz Financial Services USA (retired)
Sasha Griffin
Assistant Corporation Counsel
City of Detroit
Hon. Noah Hood
Circuit Court Judge
Wayne County Third Circuit
Cory Joyrich
Senior Director of Advancement
Ann Arbor Hands-On Museum (former)
Michelle Krebs
Director of Automotive Relations
Cox Automotive
Dwight Levens
Executive Director
Children Matter Forever (retired)
Cindy Myers
Executive Vice President
Chief Human Resources Officer
Flagstar Bank
Linda Spight
Principal
Detroit Public Schools (retired)
Hiring
Program Director – Applications accepted until March 15, 2020
Writer-in-Residence – Applications now closed for 2019/20 school year.
Citywide Poets Writer-in-Residence – Applications now closed for 2019/20 school year.