Meet the Crescent Collaborative Team
Andrea Caupain Sanderson
Board President and
Central Area Representative
For more than 25 years, Andrea has worked to advance racial and social justice for people across Washington state. As an immigrant to this country at the age of 12 and a single mother at 19, Andrea knows how it feels to be marginalized and struggling to make ends meet. Throughout her career, Andrea has translated her lived experience, coupled with her determination, to forge solutions to systemic barriers to opportunity.
Most recently, she served as CEO of Byrd Barr Place, a historically Black organization that empowers people to live healthy, prosperous lives through essential services and advocacy. During her 20-year tenure at Byrd Barr Place, Andrea was instrumental in turning the organization around from nearly closing its doors to thriving. Andrea is also one of four architects of the Black Future Co-op Fund, Washington’s first cooperative philanthropy created by and for Black people to ignite Black generational wealth, health, and well-being.
In addition, Andrea serves as the Co-Founder and Co-Executive Director of the BIPOC ED Coalition; as a commissioner on the Washington State Commission on African American Affairs; on the boards of Craft3 and Lorna Jordan Foundation; and a steering committee member of Equitable Recovery and Reconciliation Alliance, (ERRA), and the Washington Black Lives Matter Alliance. Andrea earned an MPA and a BA from The Evergreen State College.
Jamie Lee
Board Vice President and At-Large Member
Jamie Lee is the Co-Executive Director at the Seattle Chinatown International District Preservation and Development Authority (SCIDpda). She has nearly 20 years of experience in the non-profit and public sector, and has held leadership roles at SCIDpda for eight of those years. She most recently served as SCIDpda’s Director of Community Initiatives, overseeing external partnerships, fundraising, small business assistance, public space design, and neighborhood safety. In addition to her role on the Crescent Collaborative, Jamie is currently the Board Chair at International District Emergency Center, and has served on a number of other boards and committees, including Chinatown International District Business Improvement Area, Historic South Downtown, and the Sanctuary Art Center. Previous to her work at SCIDpda, Jamie worked with youth experiencing homelessness in the University District in Seattle as well as at community engaged learning center at the University of Washington. Jamie has a Master of Public Administration and a Master of Social Work from the University of Washington.
Quynh Pham
Board Secretary-Treasurer and Chinatown-International District Representative
Quynh Pham is the Executive Director of the Friends of Little Sài Gòn (FLS), a community development organization with a mission to preserve and enhance Little Saigon’s cultural, economic, and historic vitality. In this role, she has grown FLS from its advocacy roots to an organization that continues to push the boundaries, and offers cultural programs and services to the Vietnamese American community in Seattle and King County. This includes the opening of the Little Saigon Creative, a community gathering space launched in 2021. She has dedicated 10+ years to supporting small immigrant/refugee owned businesses and community-driven solutions to health and well-being. Prior to FLS, Quynh was a fund development manager and a community organizer in the API and Vietnamese community focused on youth and education, community development, and public safety. She has her bachelor’s in American Ethnic Studies from the University of Washington and a master’s in Public Administration from Seattle University. Quynh currently sits on the City of Seattle’s Equitable Development Initiative Advisory Board, Co-Chairs the Chinatown-ID Public Safety Council, and on the board of Historic South Downtown.
Ariyah Jané Albert
Capitol Hill Representative
Ariyah Jané Albert (She/Her) is a Black trans woman from Montgomery, Alabama who works with Lavender Rights Project. She has spent the majority of her professional life working in DEI education, public, and community relations. Ariyah has a deep love for equity and supporting local non-profits that are bringing resources and programming to communities that otherwise could not. She was led to Seattle, Washington to pastor a trans saint ministry with the Liberation United Church of Christ; from there, Ariyah began providing direct supportive housing services to marginalized community members. Ariyah is extremely passionate about whole person care and acknowledging the connection between an individual’s experiences and their health.
Michelle Y. Merriweather
Ex Officio Member representing Urban League of Metropolitan Seattle
Michelle Y. Merriweather joined the Urban League of Metropolitan Seattle team in August of 2015 as the Vice President. Her passion is combining her extensive sales, fund development, event planning and marketing background to better the communities in which she serves.
As a Los Angeles native, her dedication for the Los Angeles community and for being a voice for the voiceless, led her to volunteer for the Los Angeles Urban League. Her role grew from volunteer to the first woman President of the Los Angeles Urban League Young Professionals and an active member of their board of directors and a part of the National Urban League Movement.
Prior to changing her career to follow her passion in advocating for African Americans and underserved communities she had a successful career in sales and marketing with major organizations such as Starbucks, Heinz, and Coca Cola.
Ms. Merriweather is taking an active role in impacting her community. She serves on the board of directors for the Alliance for Education, KUOW, United Way of King County, MultiCare Behavioral Health Foundation, the Downtown Seattle Association, and an inaugural appointee of the first Washington State Women’s Commission dedicated to shaping policy that directly impacts the women that call Washington home. Michelle is a proud active member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated and serves as the advisor for the collegiate chapter at University of Washington. She a proud graduate of the Xavier University of Louisiana, the nation’s only historically Black-Catholic University, with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with a concentration in Marketing. In 2020 she was awarded 2 awards from the Puget Sound Business Journal: A Woman of Influence and a Puget Sound Power 100. In 2022, she received the Edwin T. Pratt Community Service Award from the MLKCC.
Ken Takahashi
Ex Officio Member representing Seattle Foundation
Ken is the Director of Social Impact Investing for the Seattle Foundation. In this position, he leads Seattle Foundation’s impact investing efforts to support equitable, community-driven development, and business growth. Ken has 20+ years of experience in equitable development with an emphasis on supporting communities of color in accessing low-cost capital and technical assistance. He has created and managed several financing programs using tax credits, low-interest loans, and grants. Ken has also paired financing with technical assistance tailored to the specific needs of small businesses, organizations, and residents in local communities.
Prior to joining the Seattle Foundation, Ken served as the Pacific Northwest Regional Director of Community Engagement/Corporate Responsibility for JPMorgan Chase, and he also served as the Director of Commercial Affordability and in other leadership roles for the City of Seattle – Office of Economic Development. Ken received his Juris Doctor from Washington University School of Law in St. Louis and his Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the University of Rochester in Rochester, NY.
Kent Koth
Ex Officio Member representing Seattle University
Kent Koth is the founding executive director of the Seattle University Sundborg Center for Community Engagement. In this role Kent has overseen a rapid expansion of campus-community partnerships including the Seattle University Youth Initiative, a long-term commitment by Seattle University to partner with local residents, organizations and leaders to provide a pathway of support for the children of central Seattle to succeed in school and life. A frequent consultant and speaker, Kent and his colleague, Erica Yamamura co-authored the book Place-Based Community Engagement in Higher Education (Stylus 2018). When not at work, Kent can be found coaching middle school ultimate frisbee or trying to grow the best tomato in Seattle’s temperate climate.
Sarah Tran
Consultant Team
Sarah Tran provides leadership coaching, facilitation, training, and consultation to community organizations, philanthropic foundations, businesses, and government entities committed to advancing racial equity and social justice.
Drawing on her roots as a daughter of Vietnamese refugees, a survivor, a former Executive Director, and many years of organizing for a world free of white supremacy and gender based violence - she is committed to supporting leaders of color as they mobilize their communities and transform systems to support collective liberation.
Caroline Burney
Consultant Team
Caroline Burney is an experienced project manager, facilitator, and organizer supporting projects to advance equitable community-driven development, economic recovery, and climate resilience. She supports clients, including public agencies and community-based organizations, to develop and implement strategic and actionable plans to advance racial and economic equity. Caroline received her B.A. from Washington University in St. Louis. She received her M.A. Education from Antioch University Seattle as part of the inaugural cohort of the Masters of Urban Environmental Education program.