Renson Anjere, Community Equity Advocate
Renson Anjere works as a Senior Territory Manager for Minnesota and South Dakota for a national Insurance Company. Renson is an active member of his community. Presently, he serves as a vice chair of the board of Seven Hills Preparatory Academy, a public charter school with campuses in Bloomington and Richfield Minnesota. He is an active member of the Association of Kenyans in America, MN (AKIA, MN Inc.). Along with other members of the association, he championed efforts leading to the formation of a self-funded benevolent fund program that caters for its members in their times of bereavement and distress, besides fostering community engagement and cultural relations among the members. Renson is also the vice chair of the board of Good in the ‘Hood, a nonprofit organization that serves the community through a variety of programs and provides hot meals, groceries, and more to those in need.
In his equity work, Renson is passionate about improving awareness and increasing utilization of various insurance products as a risk management tool in his community. Minority communities have a disadvantage when health, property and casualty, life, business, or disability insurance are concerned. Many lack insurance and those that do, tend to have inadequate coverage due lack of knowledge and guidance which exposes them to unlimited financial risks and diminishes their financial mobility.
Renson holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in both Management and Economics from Hamline University. He is currently pursuing a Master of Business Administration degree.
Kirk Crow Shoe, MN Tribal Nations Liaison, DEED
Kirk Crow Shoe, MN Tribal Nations Liaison, DEED
Kirk Crow Shoe is from the Piikuni band of the Blackfoot Nation located in Southern Alberta, Canada. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Community Studies and has served the Indian community in both the States and Canada most of his career. He has been a tireless advocate with a proven track record serving the needs of Native communities.
Kirk has held multiple roles at DEED in the Commissioner’s office, Employment & Training and Business Community Development Divisions. Most recently, serving as a liaison between the eleven MN Tribal Nations and DEED’s Leadership.
Anisa H. Siegel, Principal, AHM LLC
Anisa H. Siegel has over 15 years of experience in leadership, organizational and policy development. She is the founder of AHM LLC, a consulting firm that specializes in policy, leadership, and organizational support for individuals, businesses, and community organizations. With her extensive knowledge and experience, she has assisted over 3,000 clients in grant writing and developing leadership and organizational skills. As a result, there has been significant improvement and strengthening of these organizations’ effectiveness, leading to increased revenue. Her contributions have played a crucial role in transforming and growing numerous organizations.
Siegel’s career highlights include Assistant Commissioner for Immigrants and Refugee Affairs at the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development, where she catered to over 490,000 immigrants and refugees and their 19,000 small businesses with language access, economic and workforce development, assistance with business startup and technical assistance.
Ekta Prakash, Office of Public Engagement Director, DEED
Ekta previously served with CAPI for 5 years including as the Human Services, Program Director and 10 years as the agency's CEO. Ekta has two Master's Degrees in Sociology (Delhi School of Economics) and Public Administration (Metro State University). She is fluent in Hindi and English languages.
Ekta currently serves on the National CAPACD Board of Directors, serves on the Governors- Workforce Development Board, and has been involved with many organizations during her 15-year tenure with CAPI. She is a LAAMP and Gender Equity AAPIP Fellow, and a recipient of Rosa Park Diversity Award, and Hometown Hero Award by MLS Soccer League.
Her experiences includes leadership, cross cultural expertise, program administration, strategic planning, and working with culturally based grass roots organizations.
Rev. Dr. Francis O.S. Tabla, Senior Pastor, Ebenezer Community Church
Rev. Dr. Francis Tabla is a native of Liberia, West Africa. In 2000, Dr. Tabla and his wife, Christine, started Ebenezer Community Church (ECC), one of the largest immigrant churches in Minnesota. Over the past 22 years ECC has grown into a vibrant congregation with over 700 members. A place of hope, the church supports the community in various ways. During the pandemic, ECC hosted multiple health education events, provided Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), held food drives, served as a vaccination site for the community, etc.
Dr. Tabla holds a Doctor of Ministry degree from Luther Seminary in St. Paul, Master of Divinity degree from the Samuel DeWitt Proctor School of Theology at Virginia Union University, a Bachelor of Theology degree from the Liberia Baptist Theological Seminary, and a Diploma in Electronics from the Booker Washington Institute in Kakata, Liberia.
Dr. Tabla is currently the African Outreach Coordinator of Christians United for Israel and formerly served as Pastor of the Grace Baptist Church in Barnesville, Liberia and previously taught at the Monrovia Bible Training Center and the Liberia Baptist Theological Seminary. Dr. Tabla has been featured in numerous articles and newspapers and is the author of My Golden Rule (How Men Should Treat Women) and SCRAP Racism (The Church’s Response to Racism). Dr. Tabla loves to empower people to fulfill their destiny. He loves to teach, sing, play the guitar, write, and travel.
Sean McMoore, Diversity Recruitment and Retention Supervisor, Minnesota Department of Human Services
Sean grew up in south Minneapolis and attended Minneapolis Washburn High School. He continued his education at the University of Northern Iowa where he was a Psychology major, and minored in Coaching. Sean was also a standout student-athlete for the UNI Football program. After graduating, he competed as a professional athlete and had stops in the National Football League (NFL) and Arena Football League (AFL). After football, Sean began coaching at Ellsworth Community College in Iowa Falls, IA. He later moved back to the Twin Cities and started working in the education system and coaching football at Macalaster College. Sean was the Director of Operations and DEI for Ellie Mental Health for two years before moving into his current role as Diversity Recruitment and Retention Supervisor for the Department of Human Services (DHS). He also works for the NFL and University of St. Thomas (UST) Athletics in their television/multimedia departments and coaches football at DeLaSalle High School in Minneapolis.
If you are interested in additional information regarding the Community Advisory Board, to become a member, or to learn more about the RETAIN program, please contact us at info@mnretain.com.
Past Community Advisory Board Members:
James Cooper
Lauren Hunter
