Team | Community Sponsorship Hub

Meet Our Team

Annie Nolte-Henning

Executive Director

Annie Nolte-Henning

Executive Director

Over the past decade, Annie Nolte-Henning has launched and operationalized refugee programs across the globe and currently oversees a team of 40 across the Americas focused on community sponsorship, protection and community building. She joined CSH in March 2023 as Interim Executive Director shaping strategy, programs and partnerships. Over the past decade, Annie has launched and operationalized refugee programs across the globe and led teams across the Americas focused on community sponsorship, protection and community building. She has a rich background in global human resources and private sponsorship implementation, most recently as the Director of the Americas at Alight, a global humanitarian organization co-creating solutions with displaced people. Annie launched Alight’s bi-national program in private sponsorship and job sponsorship alongside the Shapiro Foundation, providing end-to-end support for refugees on the move. She received her Master’s in Public Administration and is based in Minneapolis with her husband, Nolan, and 2-year-old son, Luther.

Basma Alawee

Deputy Executive Director

Basma Alawee

Deputy Executive Director

Basma Alawee is the Director of External Affairs for the Community Sponsorship Hub. Prior to that she was the National Campaign Director for We Are All America at National Partnership for New Americans. Basma led organizing efforts in more than 21 states to push for policy changes and support for the inclusion of refugee and immigrant communities. But her impact doesn’t stop there. In 2019, she founded WeaveTales, an organization that develops storytelling training programs and amplifies the voices of over 300 refugees and immigrants.

Basma’s passion for advocacy is rooted in her own experiences as a former refugee from Iraq. Her tireless work has earned her numerous accolades including the Jacksonville EVE Award in 2020, Athena40’s “40 Under 40” in 2021, and Grant Thornton’s Purple Paladin in 2022. She is also co-designed and serves on the US Refugee Advisory Board, where she previously served as the first refugee advisor on the US Government Delegation to UNHCR’s annual Executive Committee.

Basma Alawee is a true champion for the rights of refugees and immigrants, using her own story to empower others and effect change on a national level. As a partner, leader and advocate, she is committed to centering lived experiences in inclusive policy design and decision-making. In her role, Basma creates space for diaspora communities and new actors to participate in the Welcome Corps and welcome refugee families arriving in America with the promise of freedom and opportunity.

Courtney Cook

Program Associate, Application Screening

Courtney Cook

Program Associate, Application Screening

Courtney Cook is a Program Associate with the Welcome Corps Application Screening Team. Throughout her career, she has been dedicated to the economic integration of refugees and immigrants. She has over 8 years of experience in refugee resettlement with the International Rescue Committee (IRC), where she oversaw employment services for newly arrived refugees in Charlottesville, VA. Prior to joining CSH, Courtney worked in the field of international higher education, working on a high-volume admissions and enrollment team at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB). She holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Virginia and a Master’s in Anthropology of Peace and Human Rights from the University of Alabama at Birmingham with a research focus on refugee access to higher education.

Stephanie Clegg

Director, Communications

Stephanie Clegg

Director, Communications

Stephanie Clegg brings nearly two decades of experience in the nonprofit sector across workforce development, philanthropy, tax policy and independent news organizations. Her work has centered on translating complex research into digestible formats for a variety of audiences, including legislators, funders, partners and advocates. Creative communications is both a professional and personal passion. In 2012, Stephanie coordinated the first U.S. exhibition of Poster for Tomorrow, an international art exhibit centered on human rights issues including the freedom of movement. She is a published artist and serves on the board of Jobsite Theater, a nonprofit professional theater company in Tampa, FL.

Nele Feldmann

Associate Director, Welcome Corps on Campus

Nele Feldmann

Associate Director, Welcome Corps on Campus

Nele Feldmann is the Associate Director, Welcome Corps on Campus at the Community Sponsorship Hub where she is leading the organization’s work to launch private university sponsorship of refugee youth in the United States. She previously served as the Executive Coordinator of the Global Task Force on Third Country Education Pathways and as the Head of Student Emergency Initiatives at the Institute of International Education where she supported the creation of higher education pathways for refugee students globally. Nele has more than eight years of experience in designing, managing, and supporting programs that expand access to higher education for international, refugee, and displaced student populations. Nele graduated from the University of Bonn in Germany with a master’s in Translation for Arabic and French and a bachelor’s in Political Science. She worked and studied in France, Egypt, and Syria.

Beth Frank

Director, Welcome Corps

Beth Frank

Director, Welcome Corps

Elizabeth Frank brings nearly 20 years of experience in global and domestic migration, including refugee resettlement, processing, community development and emergency response. In 2002 while in the Peace Corps in Armenia, she saw first-hand the important role and impacts of migration on communities and families. Since then, she has led program and evaluation efforts for refugees living in Cairo, Egypt, migrant populations in the U.S. affected by natural disaster or public health crises, and Darfuri refugees in Chad. Elizabeth earned her Master of Science in Migration, Mobility and Development from the University of London, School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS).

Aubrey Grant

Program Manager, Practice and Research

Aubrey Grant

Program Manager, Practice and Research

Aubrey Grant, PhD(c), MPP, began working in refugee resettlement in 2009, serving as a case manager for Church World Service in Greensboro, North Carolina. Over the past decade she has held various refugee resettlement roles in research, policy, practice, and advocacy. Aubrey received a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and International Affairs from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington, a Master of Public Policy from American University, and is completing a Doctor of Philosophy in Public Policy from George Mason University’s Schar School of Policy and Government.

Lucas Horgan

Operations Manager

Lucas Horgan

Operations Manager

For 15 years, Lucas Horgan has worked in the nonprofit realm helping programs efficiently run their finance and operations. Lucas began his career in Boston working with programs that support people living with developmental disabilities. His work has expanded to include programs that support a variety of vulnerable populations, from those living with Epilepsy to the pursuit of solutions for far-reaching public health issues. Lucas holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and a Masters of Business Administration degree from Endicott College.

Esmeralda Hoscoy

Associate Director, Support and Oversight

Esmeralda Hoscoy

Associate Director, Support and Oversight

Esmeralda Hoscoy, Associate Director of Support and Oversight at Community Sponsorship Hub, has a strong personal connection to the mission of growing the role of communities in the protection, welcome and integration of refugees and forcibly displaced people. As a first-generation immigrant, Esmeralda understands the complex challenges that accompany the immigrant experience in America. Before assuming her post with Community Sponsorship Hub, Esmeralda spent the past 10 years managing non-profit programs and served economically disadvantaged people, immigrants, refugees, day laborers, and individuals with mental health challenges. She is the previous Regional Director of Westchester County for Catholic Charities of New York, Director of Immigrant and Refugee Services of Catholic Charities of Santa Clara County and has also worked internationally as Director of Volunteers at Sustainable Bolivia in Cochabamba, Bolivia. Esmeralda is bilingual and bicultural and is driven by her passion to empower immigrant communities. She holds an MPA from the State University of New York at Albany and currently serves as a Board Member of the Westchester Women's Agenda where she works to improve the lives of women by advancing racial, economic, and social equity for all.

Lucretia Keenan

Strategist, Sponsorship Expansion and Coordination

Lucretia Keenan

Strategist, Sponsorship Expansion and Coordination

Lucretia is a Strategist for the Community Sponsorship Hub. Prior to this, Lucretia served as a program lead for the International Migration Initiative at the Open Society Foundations from 2016-2021. In that role, she supported a number of global portfolios focused on expanding rights and protections for refugees and other forcibly displaced people and deepening investment in community-centered initiatives that encourage more welcoming societies. She's also held positions with the Rockefeller Brothers Fund, Public Agenda, and the International Action Network on Small Arms. She holds a master's degree in international relations from New York University, and bachelor's degrees in political science and international studies from Loyola University Chicago.

Dawood Mayom

Program Officer, Welcome Corps on Campus

Dawood Mayom

Program Officer, Welcome Corps on Campus

Dawood Mayom is the Program Officer of Welcome Corps on Campus at the Community Sponsorship Hub (CSH), where he manages the day-to-day program aspects. Prior to coming to the U.S., Dawood served for 10 years supporting refugees and immigrants in different roles at Psycho-Social Services and Training Institute in Cairo (PSTIC), Terre des Hommes Program, a UNHCR Implementing Partner. Most recently, Dawood worked with the International Rescue Committee (IRC) as a Matching Grant program intern, Intensive Case Manager and Resettlement Casework Supervisor in New York, Virginia and Iowa, respectively. In May 2022, Dawood received an M.A. in Social Work from the Columbia University School of Social Work, concentrating on Policy Practice in International Social Welfare and Services for Immigrants and Refugees. Dawood earned his first M.A. in Public Policy from the American University in Cairo, School of Global Affairs, Department of Public Policy and Administration, Cairo-Egypt 2017-2019, after receiving a dual B.A. in law and economics from Cairo University in 2014.

Mira Mendick

Program Associate, Application Screening

Mira Mendick

Program Associate, Application Screening

Mira Mendick's experience in refugee resettlement began in 2016, managing volunteers and a community sponsorship program at the local level, leveraging the outpouring of support during the Syrian crisis. Mira has spent the last few years doing similar work, focused on community outreach and supporting community engagement in resettlement, on the national level at USCCB and HIAS. Mira has her MPA with a focus on nonprofit management from Clark University.

Kit O'Connor

Program Officer, Case Management Systems

Kit O'Connor

Program Officer, Case Management Systems

Kit O’Connor began working in refugee advocacy at Amnesty International USA first as the volunteer Legislative Coordinator for Vermont and later as a Campaign Organizer in the Refugee and Migrant Rights Campaign. In these positions, they fostered leaders in local communities to take actions designed to proclaim “Refugees Welcome.” They later served as a Victim’s Advocate for a local resettlement agency in Kentucky. Most recently, Kit served as a Program Associate in Case Processing for the Sponsor Circle Program. Prior to work in refugee advocacy, they were an educator and involved in various social justice organizations. Kit holds a a bachelor’s degree in history from Michigan State University and a master’s degree in education from Harvard.

Joe Williams

Grants and Compliance Manager

Joe Williams

Grants and Compliance Manager

Joe Williams is a highly experienced grants and contracts professional with over a decade of experience in the nonprofit sector. He has a proven track record of success in managing complex grants and contracts, and has a deep understanding of the grantmaking process. Joe is a highly effective communicator and negotiator, and has a strong ability to build relationships with key stakeholders. He is also a highly organized and detail-oriented individual, with a strong ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously.
In previous roles, they managed a multi-million dollar portfolio of grants and contracts from US & foreign governments, multilateral organizations, and private & family foundations; developed departmental policies and procedures; prepared & presented monthly reporting, and ensured compliance with funder policies. When not at work, you’ll find Joe camping with the family, hiking, and reading.

Corey Wilson

Development Manager

Corey Wilson

Development Manager

Corey Wilson is the Development Manager at Community Sponsorship Hub. Specializing in fundraising strategy and creative donor communications, she has dedicated her career to helping non-profits create enduring impact. Corey began her career in higher education fundraising, and has since worked for a diverse range of non-profits, including environmental, advocacy and human services organizations. She earned her Bachelor of Arts in English Literature from Scripps College.