Here at the Growing Democracy Project we believe in the power of co-creating knowledge. So, while the project was launched by Ashley and Casey (with funding from The Centennial Center at APSA), we have sought out ways to collaborate with community partners and get advise from our community.

Our advisory collective is made up of faculty, staff and students at Kent State University, local activists, and community leaders from throughout northeast Ohio. Current advisory collective members are:

• Craig Berger (Assistant Director, KSU Community Engaged Learning)
• Jacquelyn Bleak (KSY faculty, SPCS)
• Lawrence David Caswell (Cleveland Documenters, NeighborUp)
• Laura Mendez Carvajal (KSU PhD candidate, Political Science)
• Angela Cecys (Cleveland-based, social work practitioner)
• Gwen Fischer (local activist and retired Hiram professor)
• Eli Kalil (KSU alum, Ashtabula County Court of Common Pleas)
• Jennifer Lumpkin (Cleveland Votes)
• Jennifer Mapes (KSU faculty, Geography)
• Cassie Pegg-Kirby (Director, KSU Women’s Center)
• Bill Shostrand (KSU student, MPA)
• Chrissy Stonebreaker Martinez (Co-Director, IRTF Cleveland)