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A Processing Space for Open Road Fund Applicants

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If you applied to the Open Road Fund this year, we invite you to join our virtual Community Care Call on Tuesday, Sept. 15, from 6-7:30 pm CT. We understand that many emotions can be stirred by the Open Road Fund application questions, especially those concerning our shared ancestry. And we also know that not being chosen for a gift from the Fund can trigger feelings of grief or despair.

In collaboration with Reviving Roots mental health professionals Marlee James and Dion Lok, we’ll hold a space where our people can process and explore these emotions. Please join us!

Register here

Join our Boards & Commissions Leadership Institute (BCLI) on Thursday, Sept. 10 at 6 pm CT for an Issue Series session on free and fair elections for the upcoming midterms.

Minnesota has one of the most active participation rates of voter engagement in the country. This August, we proved that again by breaking a new record: For the first time in history, more than 1 million Minnesotans voted in a primary. This is 25% of the eligible voter population!

Across the nation, there is a lot of uncertainty around voter intimidation, restricting methods of voting (such as mail-in ballots), and federal attempts to access state voter rolls, among other efforts to sow distrust in our electoral systems. How do we ensure all Minnesotans who are eligible to vote and wish to exercise their rights can do so in free and fair elections?

Sign up to learn ways we can continue to partake in our most sacred civic duties in a democracy. Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon and his staff will join BCLI to discuss how to get out to vote safely this November.

Register here

Guest Speakers

Melanie Hazelip

Melanie Hazelip is the Voter Outreach Director for the Office of the Minnesota Secretary of State. She has done voter and civic engagement work since 2016 in a variety of capacities. She believes democracy is not a spectator sport; we all must participate. In her work, she tries to make voting accessible to all eligible Minnesotans. She spends her days talking to advocates around the state who share the same goals. She lives in Saint Paul with her husband, three kids, and two black cats.

Steve Simon

Steve Simon is Minnesota’s 22nd Secretary of State, sworn into office on Jan. 5, 2015. As Minnesota’s chief elections administrator, he pledged in his inaugural address to “work with anyone, of any political affiliation, from any part of our state” to protect, defend, and strengthen the right to vote in Minnesota.

As Secretary of State, he partners with township, city, and county officials to organize elections on behalf of Minnesota’s nearly four million eligible voters, and to ensure that the election system is fair. Simon also oversees a wide range of services for Minnesota businesses and administers the “Safe at Home” address confidentiality program for people whose personal safety is at risk, often due to physical abuse or threats.

His goals as Minnesota’s Secretary of State are straightforward: expand access to voting, remove barriers to voting, make business services as streamlined as possible, strengthen protections for victims of domestic violence and, most importantly, be a Secretary of State for all Minnesotans.

Before being elected, Simon served in the Minnesota House of Representatives for 10 years representing the communities of St. Louis Park and Hopkins. Simon and his wife Leia live in Hopkins with their two children, Hannah and Noah.

This virtual event is free and open to the public. You do not need to be in our BCLI cohort to attend. As part of the Boards & Commissions Leadership Institute, Nexus hosts two Thursday Night Issue Series sessions that include local speakers and facilitated discussions related to service on public boards and our issue areas: economic development, health, housing, transit, and workforce development.

Applications for our 10th North Star Black Cooperative Fellowship cohort open on Aug. 3!

North Star is a space for political education, strategy, and collective learning rooted in Black cooperative economics and Black feminist practice. We ground people in the history of how Black communities have always built together, even in the face of systemic harm, extraction, and exclusion. At the same time, North Star creates space for people to reclaim that history and put it into practice. Through the seven-month fellowship, participants deepen their understanding of cooperation, strengthen governance and decision-making practices, and develop models that reflect their values and the realities of their communities.

North Star is also about shifting how people move from isolation into relationship and collective power. It connects people to one another and to a broader ecosystem of support, creating the conditions for cooperative ideas to take root and grow.

Interested in applying? Sign up for our information session below!

2026-2027 North Star Black Cooperative Fellowship Information Session: Cohort 10

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Join the Boards & Commissions Leadership Institute (BCLI) on Thursday, Aug. 6 at 6 pm CT to learn how Twin Cities leaders of color are building power, agency, and change in governance and policy by serving on public boards.

As our country and the world continue through uncertain political times, economic instability, and racial reckoning, Black, Indigenous, and people of color need to work even harder to carve out a presence at governing institutions and ensure communities of color are not left behind. Decision-makers of publicly appointed boards, committees, and commissions hold immense power often overlooked. From public transit to affordable housing, public health to education, there is a board influencing the issues you care about deeply. We must fight for a seat at the table, because the stakes are too high.

Hear from local leaders of color as they share stories and wisdom from their service on boards, committees, and commissions. Together, we’ll build community and learn about strategies that can uplift all our voices, create better representation, and make impactful service on a public body.

Register here

Panel Speakers

Elvis Rivera

Elvis is a first-generation immigrant, finance services professional, and community advocate with governance experience spanning the private, public, and nonprofit sectors.

Elvis currently serves as a member of the Minnesota Council on Latino Affairs, a gubernatorial-appointed state advisory council that advises the governor and legislature on issues affecting Minnesota’s Latino community. He also serves on the board of directors for Southern Minnesota Regional Legal Services (SMRLS), where he supports governance, strategic planning, and financial oversight for one of Minnesota’s largest providers of civil legal aid. He is a BCLI alumnus.

His nonprofit governance experience includes serving as treasurer and finance committee chair for LatinoLEAD, helping guide the organization’s financial strategy during a period of significant growth. He has also served on the boards of Green Card Voices and the Prospanica Twin Cities Chapter.

Lue Vang

Lue is an experienced nonprofit professional with over 15 years of service. He has worked for many local Twin Cities nonprofits across various issues and causes. His wide range of nonprofit and public boards service is impressive and diverse. Lue’s service on boards has included, but is not limited to: board audit chair of the Southeast Asia Resource Action (SEARAC), board treasurer of Friends of St. Paul College, board treasurer of the Me Center (SEARAC), and board treasurer of the Metropolitan Regional Arts Council (MRAC).

Victor Obisakin

Victor is a Nigerian born in Bern, Switzerland. As the son of a Nigerian diplomat, he had a unique upbringing that allowed him to attend elementary school in Brazil, middle school in Nigeria, and high school in Israel. Surrounded by international students, Victor developed a strong sense of empathy and gained the ability to view things through a cultural lens.

He went through the Community Equity Program (CEP) at the Amherst Wilder Foundation and the Nexus BCLI with the goal of becoming more involved in advocacy, state legislative policy, and community change. He has joined the New American Leaders Program and is also a member of the Council for Minnesotans of African Heritage and the Governor’s Community Council on Inclusion and Equity. Victory proudly serves on the Metropolitan Council.

This virtual event is free and open to the public. You do not need to be in our BCLI cohort to attend. As part of the Boards & Commissions Leadership Institute, Nexus hosts two Thursday Night Issue Series sessions that include local speakers and facilitated discussions that are important and related to service on public boards and our issue areas: economic development, health, housing, transit, and workforce development.

As folks descended from African people who were enslaved, we understand that the questions about ancestry in our Open Road Fund application, though necessary, can bring up a variety of feelings.

Our virtual Community Care Call on Tuesday, June 23, 6-7:30 pm CT, offers an opportunity to help process and explore these emotions. In collaboration with Marlee James, a licensed mental health professional from Reviving Roots, we’ll hold a space where our people can heal from the sense of personal shame, sadness, and anger about our origins.

Register here

Space is limited to 100 people on a first-come, first-served basis. If you already feel knowledgeable about your ancestry, please make room for folks seeking to learn.

Get ready… Open Road Fund 2026 launches on Juneteenth! Watch the recording of our June 11 info session below to learn all about the application and get your questions answered.

Prefer to attend a live info session? Sign up for our next one on Tuesday, July 7, 12-1:30 pm CT!

Register here

Congratulations to North Star Cohort 9! From St. Paul to Belize, Detroit to Atlanta, our newest North Stars are living the legacy of Black cooperative economics across the map. Come wish them well at our virtual graduation on Wednesday, May 6!

North Star Black Cooperative Fellowship Cohort 9 Graduation

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Self-care and community care are interconnected. Join our North Star Black Cooperative Fellowship for a Black Study Session on April 29! Our guest facilitators will guide you through a sound bath and embodied practices to help you reconnect with yourself and soothe your nervous system.

North Star Black Cooperative Fellowship Black Study Session: Caring for Ourselves and Our Communities

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Meet Our Facilitators

Ayo Clemons

Ayo’s work is centered in healing justice, relational transformation, and somatic coaching. As one of the co-owners of the People’s Movement Center, Ayo’s work provided a context for an emerging healing justice framework that infuses theory in practice. As a Global Somatics Practitioner, Ayo’s personal somatic practice began in 2012 and later transformed into supporting others with healing trauma, connecting with their bodies, and recognizing their individual and collective power. With over 18 years of experience as a community organizer, racial justice advocate, and facilitator, Ayo has utilized her skills to connect with hundreds of people to articulate their vision and advocate for change in their communities.

Priscilla Momah

Priscilla Momah is a multidisciplinary wellness practitioner, artist, and space holder devoted to cultivating care practices rooted in rest, restoration, and the nourishment of the mind, body, and heart. Through her work, she creates intentional spaces that invite individuals and communities to slow down, reconnect, and return to themselves. With over a decade of experience as a musician and facilitator, Priscilla weaves together sound healing, yoga, breathwork, mindfulness, and somatic practices to support nervous system regulation and holistic well-being. She is a Reiki practitioner, Thai Yoga Bodyworker, craniosacral therapist, doula, and health and wellness coach, offering integrative experiences that honor the body’s innate wisdom and capacity to heal.

As the founder of Coco Womb Wellness, Priscilla’s offerings are rooted in accessibility, compassion, and deep listening. Her sound bath experiences are immersive and restorative, designed to guide participants into states of deep rest where healing, reflection, and renewal can naturally unfold. Through every offering, Priscilla holds a gentle yet powerful intention: to create spaces where people feel supported, seen, and nourished individually and in community.

Applications for our next Boards & Commissions Leadership Institute cohort are open through Jan. 23, 2026. Register for our info session on Thursday, Jan. 8, to learn all about the program!

2026 Boards and Commissions Leadership Institute Information Session: Cohort 13

Join the Boards and Commissions Leadership Institute team for an information session as we welcome applications for cohort 13! 


Thursday, January 8

5:30 - 6:30 pm CDT

In person at Nexus Community Partners

2314 University Ave W Suite 18, St Paul, MN 55114


The Boards and Commissions Leadership Institute team will share a brief history of BCLI, discuss cohort requirements, provide a curriculum overview, and answer questions or concerns with a Q&A.













Contact Information

As our alum Victor shared, “If you truly care about your community, if you understand that racism exists in current governing structures, and if you care about advancing equity for BIPOC and other communities who’ve been told, ‘NO, you can’t,’ then BCLI is for you.”

Applications for our next Boards & Commissions Leadership Institute cohort will open this winter. Sign up for our info session on Tuesday, Dec. 9, 6-7 pm CT, to learn all about the program!

2026 Boards and Commissions Leadership Institute Information Session: Cohort 13

Join the Boards and Commissions Leadership Institute team for an information session as we welcome applications for cohort 13! 


Tuesday, December 9

6:00 - 7:00 pm CDT

Zoom (virtual)


The Boards and Commissions Leadership Institute team will share a brief history of BCLI, discuss cohort requirements, provide a curriculum overview, and answer questions or concerns with a Q&A.


Register now to receive the Zoom invitation!













Contact Information

A new cohort year, a new Black Study Session! Join our North Star Black Cooperative Fellowship on Wednesday, Dec. 3, 5-7 pm CT, to learn how we can create a solidarity economy and rise together through mutual aid.

Fill out the form below to register!

North Star Black Cooperative Fellowship Black Study Session: Ujima, Ujamaa, and Mutual Aid

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Meet Our Guest Speaker

Julia Parker

Julia has worked across the public and private sectors in community development and impact investing, with a passion for financing and supporting BIPOC enterprises through non-extractive debt capital and equity financing. Her focus on justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion (JEDI) investing has guided her work with mission-aligned institutions.

A trained community-based lender, Julia began her career in city government in the mayor’s office before transitioning to a nonprofit addressing the impact of poverty on Black youth. She fell in love with the nonprofit sector and eventually moved into consulting with her firm Park4029 Consulting. Julia holds fractional consulting roles at several nonprofits, including Boston Ujima Project and Transform Finance.

With almost two decades in lending, Julia thrives on collaborating with clients and organizations that prioritize Black and Brown wealth creation and support nontraditional entrepreneurs. She holds a BA from Creighton University, an MS in Urban Studies from the University of Nebraska at Omaha, and an MBA in Finance and Entrepreneurship from Boston College.

From Building Power through Bold Leadership and Rooted in Legacy, Owning Our Future to Deep Rest for Resistance, our 20th anniversary event series has shown that we’re not waiting for broken systems to change—we’re creating new ones, together.  

Whether you attended our past events live or watched the recordings, we hope you’ll join us for our final 20th celebration, highlighting the transformational power of our Open Road Fund. Save the date for Walking the Path to Liberation on Thursday, Nov. 13, 10 am – 12 pm CT on Zoom. 

With relentless attacks on Black life and well-being, initiatives run by and for Black folks to achieve Black liberation are essential. Since its launch in 2023, the Open Road Fund has distributed $50,000 gifts to 199 Black people in our region, with 101 more gifts being disbursed this winter. That’s $15 million and counting to help repair the harms of slavery, redlining, economic exploitation, and anti-Black violence in Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota. 

Through the Open Road Fund, we seek restoration. We seek freedom. We seek access to land and resources to build new institutions. We seek to enrich the next generations to come through us. We seek the peace of mind to determine what quality of life we deserve, what tools we will use, and how to attain them all. 

Join us to celebrate how this work is creating tangible pathways to liberation, prosperity, and healing—on our own terms. Fill out the form below to register!

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Meet Our Speakers

Tish Jones

Tish Jones is a poet, emcee, hip hop theater artist, and founder of TruArtSpeaks, an arts and culture organization in St. Paul. She has exhibited her work throughout the United States, and abroad, as a public performance artist for over two decades. Her writing can be found in We Are Meant to Rise (University of Minnesota Press), A Moment of Silence (Tru Ruts and The Playwrights Center), the Minnesota Humanities Center’s anthology Blues Vision: African American Writing from Minnesota (Minnesota Historical Society Press), and more.

MeMe Simpson

Born in Mankato, MN, as the second oldest of seven children, MeMe works as a product ambassador, with a passion for charity and community work. MeMe is the newest vice president of the St. Peter Good Neighbor Diversity Council, which allowed her to put on the first Juneteenth celebration in her city. She shares, “I wouldn’t be part of that organization if it wasn’t for me receiving the Open Road gift, helping me elevate myself and what I believe in.”