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Practice Self-Care at Our Next Black Study Session

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Join our North Star Black Cooperative Fellowship for a Black Study Session on April 30! The session will hold space for participants to experience self-care and community care, with guest speakers guiding participants in different practices.

North Star Black Cooperative Fellowship Black Study Session: Self-care and Community Care

Event flyer of a Black woman with her eyes closed and hand over her heart

Join the North Star Black Cooperative Fellowship for a Black Study Session on self-care and community care!


Wednesday, April 30

5:00 - 7:00 pm CDT

Zoom (virtual)


This Black Study Session will hold space for participants to experience self-care and community care with a focus on embodied practices. Guest speakers for the Black Study Session include Priscilla Momah with Coco Womb Wellness and Alanna Morris with I A.M. Arts and Roots and Wings Institute for Embodied Wisdoms. Priscilla Momah will engage participants in a guided meditation and sound bath experience rooted in cultivating care through deep listening, soulful soundscapes, and restorative presence. Alanna Morris will lead participants in somatic, embodied practice (an integration of mindfulness, movement, and mantra) to elevate participants' wellness, facilitated through an equity-driven, liberatory praxis known as Black Light Research: a methodology for ritualized living and performance practice. Please wear clothing you feel comfortable moving in and be in an environment where you are fully present to participate in this session. Join us for an evening to learn together and engage in shared practices in community with one another.


Black Study Sessions are free, virtual, live, and open to all while centering Black people and Black experiences. This is a Black-centered space where we will prioritize uplifting Black voices and safety. 













Contact Information

Meet Our Facilitators

Alanna Morris

Alanna Morris is a dancer-choreographer, educator, and artist organizer. After a 10-year career with TU Dance, she founded an arts & cultural organization, I A.M. Arts, to support critical dance performance, wholistic education, and community life. Alanna is the director of the Roots and Wings Institute for Embodied Wisdoms, which launched in 2024, empowering creatives and nonprofits with project management and integrated health services. Alanna is also an adjunct professor at Hamline University.

Priscilla Momah

Founder of Coco Womb Wellness, Priscilla Momah is a wellness practitioner, certified yoga instructor, Reiki practitioner, and Thai yoga bodyworker who offers a range of healing experiences throughout the Twin Cities. She curates soulful embodiment experiences that fuse music, sound healing, and mindfulness practices into unique workshops designed to cultivate care and connection. Through breathwork, meditation, sound baths, and somatic movement, Priscilla creates immersive journeys that invite participants to tap into deep relaxation and healing. Her offerings include group sound baths, private 1:1 Thai yoga bodywork sessions, and carefully crafted workshops that nourish the body, mind, and spirit.

Our Shared Ownership Center is hosting a free business planning webinar series for cooperatives this April through June! Sessions will take place (almost) every other Thursday, 3-4:30 pm CT, on Zoom. Each webinar builds upon the last and is aligned with the LOCAL Fund application. By the end of the series, if the LOCAL Fund is a good fit for you and your team, you will be ready to apply!

Fill out the form below to register for our first session, Concept to Business Plan.

Christina Nicholson and Mara O’Neill will guide you through the necessary foundations in starting a business. They will go over how to assess the feasibility of a business plan and different types of cooperative businesses. This will be an interactive session with time for a robust Q&A.

Meet the Facilitators

Christina Nicholson, Cooperative Finance Developer – Worker Owner Initiative

In my role at Nexus, I serve as the Cooperative Finance Developer for the Worker Owner Initiative (WOI), which is part of Nexus’ Community Wealth Building Strategy. I help both start-ups and existing businesses understand the role worker ownership can play in successful owner retirement strategies as well as improved workplace cultures for teams. With solid technical assistance and organizational support, worker-owner cooperatives can grow and perpetuate community wealth by expanding opportunities for local business ownership.

I have been working in cooperatives in Minnesota for 25 years in a wide range of roles, from front-of-house retail to construction to cooperative consulting. In all of my endeavors, the thread has been working to connect communities to each other through common cause. This has been framed for me as a shared economy that questions the normative culture of the unequal exploitation of labor. Rather than focus on what is wrong, cooperatives look to inspire a shared sense of success and equity among community members within the cooperative.

When done well, cooperatives celebrate the unique contributions of individuals while challenging assumptions about how we perpetuate destructive myths around gender, race, and class. I am so excited to be a part of Nexus and look forward to learning from my peers who continue to inspire me with their vast knowledge of community wealth building, leadership, and development of strategic partnerships!

Mara O’Neill, Consultant

Mara O’Neill has over four decades of experience in the field of community economic development providing technical assistance and underwriting loans to new and expanding small businesses. She is also experienced in managing and operating all aspects of a revolving loan fund including loan documentation and closing, perfecting liens on collateral, loan servicing, and tracking loan funds. She currently provides consulting services to small nonprofit organizations in the areas of small business loan program development and management.

From 2011 until 2020, Mara was the Loan Program Director for Metropolitan Consortium of Community Developers (MCCD). Before joining MCCD, Mara was Director of Capital Investments for First Children’s Finance (FCF), a nonprofit organization supporting the business side of childcare, where she oversaw the loan and grant program and developed FCF’s childcare business training program. She was Chief Operating Officer at Neighborhood Development Center, a community–based non-profit organization providing training, financing and ongoing technical assistance to new micro-businesses in Saint Paul and Minneapolis. She also worked for the Saint Paul Department of Planning and Economic Development for 12 years providing financing and technical assistance to small businesses and developers.

Mara has a BS Degree in Economics from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and is certified as an Economic Development Financing Professional by the National Development Council, now known as Grow America. She is a recipient of the Top Women in Finance Award from Finance and Commerce Magazine and in 2019 she received the Champion Award from Credit Builders Alliance.

Business Planning Webinar Series
Session 1: Concept to Business Plan

Thank you for your interest in the Shared Ownership Center's Business Planning Webinar Series. Registration for this session is now closed. 

 

To learn more about the LOCAL Fund, go to: https://nexuscp.org/program/shared-ownership-center-at-nexus/local-fund/

This project is being supported, in whole or in part, by federal award number SLFRP1612 awarded to Nexus Community Partners by the U.S. Department of the Treasury.

Our March Open Road Fund Community Education Session will focus on single-family homeownership. Jeff Wills, Economic Services Manager and Housing Counselor of Model Cities Inc., will offer resources and information to help first-time homebuyers on their journey to buying and maintaining a home. Fill out the form below to register!

Jeff Wills, a native of Queens, NY, came to Model Cities with over a decade of experience as a homeownership advisor, banking manager, and consumer lender. A constant in Jeff’s career is his relentless advocacy for economic equity, with a particular focus on financial empowerment for disenfranchised and disadvantaged communities of color. Jeff graduated from the University of Minnesota Twin Cities as a student athlete and earned his Bachelor of Science in Business and Marketing Education.

Housing and Shelter                                                  Workshop #3 Registration

Open Road Fund Community Education Sessions


Raise the Roof:

Join the Open Road Fund for this workshop that focuses on single-family homeownership. Jeff Wills, Economic Services Manager and Housing Counselor of Model Cities Inc., a redevelopment community non-profit in St. Paul, will offer resources and information to help first-time home buyers on their journey to buying and maintaining a home. We will briefly watch a short video clip about the challenges and gaps in Black homeownership, then have a moderated discussion and open up for Q&A.


There will be a random prize drawing for two $50 Visa gift cards. You must be registered, attend the session in its entirety and be present to win. 


Wednesday, March 26, 2025

6:00 pm - 7:30 pm CST

Zoom


The Open Road Fund Community Education Sessions are free, virtual, live, and open to all while centering Black people and Black experiences. This is a Black-centered space where we will prioritize uplifting Black voices and safety.

The first 500 participants to enter the Zoom webinar will be admitted. If there is full capacity, any guests that registered but are not able to enter the Zoom webinar will receive a recording of the session.












Contact Information

The disconnect between our bodies and their innate power has persisted through generations, fueled by societal disempowerment and a gap in education about female body health. Many people who menstruate have endured prolonged struggles with hormonal imbalances, menstrual discomfort, and emotional ailment. When a person gains a comprehensive understanding of the intricate workings of their body and mind during each menstrual phase and hormonal shifts, they can strive for healthy methods to express their truth, release stagnant emotions, and assert personal boundaries.

ROOT is inviting a cohort of individuals to engage in a guided learning experience on how to use ancestral wisdom for menstrual cycle healing. On March 27, the cohort will meet with holistic hormone specialist Stacey Constante and explore how modern and ancestral medicine can be integrated to honor cyclical hormonal rhythms. On April 28, the cohort will reconvene to share how they’ve applied these teachings to their own menstrual cycles.

Part 1: Thursday, March 27, 6:30 – 8:30 pm CT
Part 2: Monday, April 28, 6:30 – 8:30 pm CT

Register here

Space is limited to 30 people.

These virtual workshops will bring awareness to the importance of remembering and nurturing our sacred gift as menstruating people. The womb, which defines our uniqueness, serves a profound purpose beyond mere reproduction; it is the vessel of our life force, memory storing, and ultimately releases emotions for healing.

Stacey Constante (RN, BSN, MSCN) is the founder of The Nourished Goddess and Alas Unidas Retreats; a health specialist for Seven Retreats; and a Women’s Holistic Hormone Practitioner. With over a decade of experience in the medical field and a personal journey with endometriosis, she has a deep understanding of the limitations of conventional medicine, especially when it comes to women’s health. Stacey passionately advocates for the merging of modern and ancient healing practices to transcend the confines of conventional nutrition. A self-identifying mestiza with roots in the northern and central Andean highlands of Ecuador, Stacey blends her personal and professional experience with her ancestral heritage to inform her approach to healing.

The Shared Ownership Center @ Nexus is hosting a free business planning webinar series for cooperatives April through June! Sessions will take place (almost) every other Thursday, 3:00 – 4:30 pm CT, on Zoom.

Each webinar builds upon the last and is aligned with the LOCAL Fund application. By the end of the series, if the LOCAL Fund is a good fit for you and your team, you will be ready to apply!

April 10: Concept to Business Plan

Learn types of business plans, their key components, and how to get started on making your cooperative dream a reality.

April 24: Creating Your Cooperative

How will you design your cooperative? We’ll cover how to assemble your dream team, start planning your bylaws, and accessing an attorney and technical assistance.

May 8: Finance 101

Learn the ins and outs of budgeting, balance sheets, and cash flows.

May 22: Conversion Basics

We’ll dive into the feasibility of converting existing businesses into cooperatives and go over the transition process.

June 5: Projections, Sources & Uses

Everything you need to know about startup costs, revenue, expenses and more.

June 18: Access to Capital

Learn the Five C’s of Cooperative Credit, how to shop around for the right loan, and go over a sample loan application. Please note this webinar is now happening on Wednesday, June 18. It was originally scheduled for June 19.

June 26: How to Apply for the LOCAL Fund

Now that you know the business planning basics, it’s time to learn how the LOCAL Fund can help! We’ll review the parts, process, and timeline for the application.

This project is being supported, in whole or in part, by federal award number SLFRP1612 awarded to Nexus Community Partners by the U.S. Department of the Treasury.

Our February Open Road Fund Community Education Session will focus on business ownership and entrepreneurship. Jacob Bell from Family Freedom Center will discuss tips and advice for starting and maintaining a business, possible resources, and a brief history and importance of Black businesses to Black community stability.

Minding My Black Business

Jacob Aaron Bell is a leader in economic development and Black business ownership in Duluth, serving as Executive Director of Family Freedom Center. Raised on the West Coast but deeply connected to Duluth through his family’s legacy of community organizing, Jacob stepped into leadership following the passing of his father, Xavier Bell, who helped build Family Freedom Center into the city’s first autonomous Black nonprofit. Since taking the helm in 2021, he has expanded the organization’s mission beyond advocacy, turning it into a powerhouse for economic mobility, ownership, and wealth-building within the Black community.

ORF Community Education Sessions are free, virtual, live, and open to all while centering Black people and Black experiences. This is a Black-centered space where we will prioritize uplifting Black voices and safety.

As an added bonus, workshop attendees will be entered into a drawing for a $50 gift card! We’ll select two winners live during the session. (Must pre-register and be present to win.)

 

A lot has changed since our founding in 2004. Through it all, our communities have remained strong because of our collective care, ingenuity, and unrelenting drive for transformative change. To celebrate 20 years of working together, we’re hosting five events throughout 2025. At each gathering, we will look back to look ahead, and envision a brighter, more powerful future for us all.

We’re starting off with our longest-running program: The Boards & Commissions Leadership Institute (BCLI)! Mark your calendar for our virtual event, Building Power through Bold Leadership, on March 27, 10 am – 12 pm CT on Zoom.

Fill out the form below or follow this link to register!

For 12 years, BCLI has been helping community leaders build the skills and networks they need to create big policy change, from city-wide paid sick time to fighting housing discrimination. With fascism on the rise, this work is more important than ever. We must continue to work together to identify, train, and support leaders who are reflective of and responsive to our communities. Together, we are powerful!

Hear from guest speakers on the scope and impact of BCLI. You’ll learn how this program will continue to shape how decisions are made throughout Minnesota—and walk away with the tools and relationships we need to navigate these times.

Featuring:

  • Hodan Hassan, former State Representative for MN Senate District 62B, and BCLI alumna
  • Peggy Flanagan, Lieutenant Governor of Minnesota
  • Victoria McWane-Creek, Consultant/founder of Organization 4 Full Participation, BCLI alumna, and current North Star fellow

All are welcome! This isn’t just for Twin Cities folks; BCLI is building bridges across Minnesota. Mark your calendar and join us—we can’t wait to see you there!

Nexus Community Partners Event Registration

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Join us for our first Open Road Fund Community Education Session of 2025! Katherine Lankford of Finance and Affirmations will explore money shame, helping us understand our personal money story and how it impacts our financial decisions.

Financial Journey to Healing & Wholeness

As an added bonus, workshop attendees will be entered into a drawing for a $50 gift card! We’ll select two winners live during the session. (Must pre-register and be present to win.)

Open Road Fund Community Education Sessions are free, virtual, live, and open to all while centering Black people and Black experiences. This is a Black-centered space where we will prioritize uplifting Black voices and safety.

Learn about the LOCAL Fund at an upcoming City of Saint Paul District Council meeting! The Shared Ownership Center @ Nexus is excited to connect about our new grant program. The LOCAL Fund supports worker-owner cooperatives and real estate investment cooperatives.

All district council meetings are open to the public, and you don’t need to RSVP if planning to attend in person. To join virtually, some of the district councils ask that you RSVP by contacting them via email. Read on to learn how to plug in!

Tuesday, Jan. 14, 6 pm

Summit-University Planning Council (Ward 1)
Neighborhood Development Committee Meeting
Hybrid

Monday, Jan. 27, 6 pm

Southeast Community Organization (Ward 7)
Board of Directors Meeting
Hybrid

  • Conway Recreation Center, 2080 Conway Street, St. Paul, MN 55119
  • To join by Zoom, email ed@southeastside.org for the meeting invitation.

Tuesday, Jan. 28, 6 pm

Frogtown Neighborhood Association (Ward 1)
Community Forum
In person

  • Frogtown Community Center, 230 Como Ave, St. Paul, MN 55103

Monday, Feb. 3, 6:30 pm

North End Neighborhood Organization (Ward 5)
Board of Directors Meeting
Virtual

Thursday, Feb. 6, 7 pm

Highland District Council (Ward 3)
Board of Directors Meeting
Hybrid

  • Highland Park Community Center Community Room, 1978 Ford Parkway, St. Paul, MN 55116
  • The Zoom meeting link will be posted one hour before the meeting.

Monday, Feb. 10, 6:30 pm

Dayton’s Bluff Community Council (Ward 7)
Board of Directors Meeting
Hybrid

  • East Side Enterprise Center, 804 Margaret Street, St. Paul, MN 55106
  • Access the Zoom meeting link on their events calendar.

Thursday, Mar. 6, 7:00 pm

St. Anthony Park Community Council (Ward 4)
Land Use Committee Meeting
Hybrid

  • St. Anthony Park Community Council, 2171 University Avenue West, St. Paul, MN 55114
  • Access the Zoom meeting link on their Land Use Committee webpage.

Join our North Star Black Cooperative Fellowship for a Black Study Session on the solidarity economy and Kwanzaa!

Wednesday, Dec. 4
5-7 p.m. CST
Zoom (virtual)

This Black Study Session will introduce the solidarity economy, explore connections between the solidarity economy and Kwanzaa, and engage in an observance of Kwanzaa through different practices. New Economy Coalition defines the solidarity economy as “a global movement to build a just and sustainable economy where we prioritize people and the planet over endless profit and growth.” Kwanzaa comes from the phrase matunda ya kwanza, which means “first fruits” in Swahili. It is a Pan-African holiday celebrating Black culture.

Guest speakers will include Kenna Cottman and Jayanthi Rajasa, Voice of Culture, and Ebony Gustave, Art.coop. We invite you to bring a picture of an ancestor and an item that is meaningful to you. In addition, please consider reviewing the Nguzo Saba, which means “seven principles” in Swahili, to reflect on the seven principles of Kwanzaa. Join us for an evening to learn together and engage in shared practices in community with one another!

Black Study Sessions are free, virtual, live, and open to all while centering Black people and Black experiences. This is a Black-centered space where we will prioritize uplifting Black voices and safety.

North Star Black Cooperative Fellowship Black Study Session: Solidarity Economy and Kwanzaa

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“We want to reclaim our own time in large systems. How do you get to rest in an anti-rest system?”

You are invited to an insightful panel discussion featuring doctors and medical professionals who will address the critical issue of post-COVID burnout. This event will explore the unique challenges health care providers face in today’s demanding medical environments and the urgent need for effective solutions.

As the health care landscape continues to evolve, many professionals are grappling with the lasting effects of the pandemic, including emotional fatigue and overwhelming workloads. Our expert panel will delve into these challenges, sharing personal experiences and professional insights. Key topics will include the importance of implementing structural changes to promote provider well-being, such as flexible scheduling, enhanced mental health resources, and supportive workplace cultures. Attendees will gain valuable perspectives on creating sustainable practices that can mitigate burnout and improve the overall health of health care systems.

Who is this for?

This workshop is for anyone working in managed care, such as a hospital, clinic, or bureaucracy. These are heavily regulated spaces with rules protecting the system from liability, where risk mitigation drives decision-making. This is not just for those who serve in a medical capacity but includes all layers of the system: doctors, nurses, and health care assistants, as well as people who have to navigate these spaces, such as administrators, transcribers, registration clerks, billing/coding, etc. BIPOC healers in these spaces see their intuitive nurturing care at odds with the volume of people systems require them to care for in a day.

Join us for this important conversation and be part of the movement toward a healthier future for our health care providers. Your voice matters in this critical dialogue. Don’t miss this opportunity to engage with experts and contribute to solutions that can make a difference! We’ll include time for somatic grounding, stress release, and networking in our practice.

Reclaiming Our Own Time in an Anti-Rest System: Addressing Burnout for Medical Providers
Wednesday, Dec. 4, 6-8:30 p.m. on Zoom

Register here

Please RSVP by Nov. 27. We look forward to seeing you there!

Our speakers

Reclaiming Our Own Time (ROOT) is part of an ever-growing movement to provide resources, support, and spaces for rest and restoration for Black, Indigenous, and Persons of Color movement leaders. ROOT calls for us to reclaim our humanity and return to our ancestral roots through the practice of rest and restoration. In this space, we lift up our elders, healers, guides, mentors, artists, and community culture bearers who have been holding our communities through joy, grief, and passing ancestral practices intergenerationally. We believe we must honor our healers by curating spaces where we can center rest and shared practices can emerge.

As part of our commitment to learn from and engage with our community healers, we are offering a series of engagements, including a listening session, two virtual workshops, and a three-day, in-person convening. This series will craft distinct spaces tailored to our healers in different ways.

  • Sept. 26: A community listening session to help shape and inform this series.
  • Oct. 19: “Bearing Witness to the Wounded Healer: Pathways to Well-being and Rest,” a virtual workshop for those who are tending to others in the community.
  • Dec. 4: “Reclaiming Our Own Time in an Anti-Rest System: Addressing Burnout for Medical Providers.” A virtual workshop for healers working in any capacity within large systems.
  • Feb. 27 – March 1, 2025: A three-day, in-person convening designed for all healers, wherever they find themselves on the healer’s journey.

Join us for a Reimagine Rest Writing Workshop on Thursday, Dec. 5 from 6:30 – 8:30 pm! Full-time writer and award-winning teaching artist Taiwana Shambley will lead a rest writing workshop for BIPOC trans and queer folx at Modus Locus Expansion. Participants will have the opportunity to learn from Taiwana while snacking on tea and light treats in a creative and cozy setting. Pajamas encouraged!

Space is limited to 16 people. Registration closes Nov. 25, or when spots are filled. If registration is full and you’d like to be added to our waitlist, please email root@nexuscp.org.

Reimagine Rest Series: Writing Workshop

Thank you for your interest in the Reimagine Rest Series: Writing Workshop. Unfortunately, we have met our capacity. However, if you'd like to be added to the waitlist, please email ROOT@NexusCP.org. It's possible we get a last minute cancelations so don't hestitate to email us!