Erin is a writer, editor and volunteer with a passion for widening opportunities to underserved communities through education and the arts. During her fifteen-year newspaper career, she was an award-winning staff writer at the Associated Press, Newsday, the Baltimore Sun, and the Los Angeles Times. Her coverage focused on on race/ethnicity, demographics and social justice movements. Erin is Chair of the board of directors for Brooklyn Children’s Theatre. She is also a Trustee for the Brooklyn Public Library and Secretary of the board of the literacy nonprofit, Read 718. Erin received a B.A. in Mass Communications from the University of California at Berkeley and an M.S. from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism. Born and raised in southern California, Erin has family roots in Louisiana and Massachusetts. Since 2001, she has lived in Brooklyn, NY, with her husband and two children. 

When I first heard about the mission of BCT, I immediately thought, “What if I had a BCT when I was a kid?” I grew up in the 1980s as a “free lunch kid” in a town with a sizable majority of wealthy people. I had access to local community theater but never made it out of the chorus, while the children of local and influential businessmen snagged the leads every year. I connected being poor to being unworthy. It’s very difficult to forget how those adults made me feel–so early in my childhood. New York City is the nexus of the performing arts universe. But that universe is accessible to few and only applicable to some. BCT’s commitment to making the arts accessible and inclusive is an important step towards breaking the systemic “othering” that dominates the theater industry. BCT is a place where neither class, color, nor income are measurements of character or worth. I was honored to be nominated for the Board of BCT. The opportunity to give my time to an organization that strives to make children feel seen and safe is one that I hold dear. I’m proud to serve this community.

Jill is a Community Engagement Specialist for NYC Emergency Management in the Community Engagement Bureau. Her focus is community emergency planning and supporting community emergency networks throughout NYC. Jill is a life long theatre practitioner and supporter, previously serving on the Board of Directors for Theater Garden. She grew up in California and lives in Brooklyn. 

“Move with intention, live in authenticity” This is how Lakota Summer Leijon lives her life. Currently living in Brooklyn with her son Ricky and daughter Lulu (Tai) she is the Dean of Student Support Services at Coney Island Prep Charter School and has a private mental health coaching and mindfulness movement practice that is in its 4th year of operation. A dancer for well over 40 years, Lakota is a proud member of the National Dance Educator’s Organization, and National Honor Society for Dance Arts. She has leveraged both her love and expertise in mental health and education as a Ph.D. candidate in North Central University’s Social Emotional Learning program. Her other life passions include creator and founder of Lakota Moon Naturals, an all-natural body care company and writer, executive producer and development specialist for Iron Metropolis films, an independent film company based in New York City.