Our Leaders:
Donna Minter, PhD, Licensed Psychologist
Founder & Executive Director Raised in a historic peace and social justice faith tradition, Donna has always had a passion to find practical ways to build peace within her spheres of influence when terrible things have happened. After taking the Strategies for Trauma Awareness and Resilience (STAR Training) at the Center for Justice and Peacebuilding in Harrisonburg, VA in October 2008, she realized that STAR's principles perfectly integrate her professional background and personal commitment to teach how to transform psychological trauma into nonviolent power with positive productive alternatives to revenge. She envisioned teaching STAR and other peacebuilding trainings via grassroots community-based trainings that are accessible to laypersons as well as professionals for continuing education in Minnesota and beyond. This vision is Making Minnesota the Peacebuilding Power State. She has degrees in social work, educational psychology, outdoor recreation, and earned her doctorate in clinical psychology in 1995. She completed her postdoctoral training in neuropsychology at the University of Minnesota Medical School in 1997. She sees the full spectrum of psychological trauma in her work as a neuropsychologist and when conducting court-ordered psychological evaluations in Minnesota and Wisconsin. She has taught university level individual and organizational assessment and evaluation and supervised law students and psychiatric residents and fellows. Donna is the founder and executive director of the 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization the Minnesota Peacebuilding Leadership Institute. She is committed to its mission to instigate, train, and support racially, culturally, ethnically, religiously, and economically diverse individuals and organizations to become trauma-informed, resilience-oriented, and restorative-focused empowering communities in Minnesota, the USA, and around the world. She is a Certified STAR Trainer with national and international experience, a Restorative Justice 101 Trainer, and develops and facilitates custom trainings for organization staff development. 
Crixell Shell, MS
Community Outreach Coordinator Associate Peacebuilding Trainer Crixell is a legal, technology and higher educational professional that holds a Masters in Software Systems from the University of St. Thomas, a Bachelors of Science in Paralegal Studies from Southern Illinois University, and is a Rule 114 Community Mediator. She graduated from the STAR Training in 2010 and has been passionate about sharing STAR with others since then. In 2013 she attended the STAR Level II Training at the Center for Justice and Peacebuilding and the Restorative Justice 101 Training in 2014. She is a charter member of Peacebuilding's Community Advisory Board. In June 2013 she become a Peacebuilding Associate Trainer. In January 2017, she became Peacebuilding's Community Outreach Coordinator, and she is responsible for facilitating the free monthly Minnesota Peacebuilding Film Series. 
Judy Pilz, MSW, LICSW
Associate Peacebuilding Trainer Judy works in public health at Hennepin County and has expertise in social services and child welfare. She has a Bachelors degree in political science and German and Masters of Social Work from the University of Minnesota. She graduated from STAR in June 2012 and found it to be a paradigm shift from traditional social services perspectives. She graduated from the STAR Level II Training at the Center for Justice and Peacebuilding in 2012 and the Restorative Justice 101 in 2014. She became an Associate STAR Trainer in 2014. 
Michele Braley, MSW, LICSW
Restorative Justice 101 Trainer Michele is the Program Manager of the Seward Longfellow Restorative Justice Partnership in Minneapolis. She is a trained facilitator for restorative conferences with youth and victim offender dialogues in crimes of severe violence. She is an Adjunct Professor, School of Social Work, St. Catherine University and University of St. Thomas. 
Susan Murray
Board Chair Susan is involved in numerous leadership groups through Thomson Reuters, her employer. She holds a BS in Psychology from the University of Minnesota/Duluth. Her professional experience includes working with adolescents in residential treatment centers, writing and implementing policy, budgeting, marketing, and strategic business planning. She enjoys helping individuals and organizations maximize their full potential. Susan is a STAR-Lite graduate. She joined the Peacebuilding Board in 2014, and became the Board Chair in 2015. 
Bruce Brunner
Board Treasurer Bruce has worked for thirty years in US and international business with extensive financial, marking, production, and sales experience. He has held executive positions for several Fortune 500 companies, private owned companies and his own companies both in the US and in Hong Kong. He has experience with fair labor, fair trade, international business practices, and has been a board member and chairperson of numerous nonprofit organizations and is currently the Board Chair for Ten Thousand Villages St. Paul which is the originator of Fair Trade in the US. His expertise is in leadership, administration, tax and real estate issues, accounting, and financial reporting. Bruce is currently President of Brunner Properties in Minneapolis and the Vice President of Sales for Best Key Textiles (HK). He holds a Bachelors in Business Administration from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Bruce graduated from the STAR Training in June 2012. Since January 2011 he has served on the Community Advisory Committee and is a charter Board Member of Peacebuilding. 
Wokie Freeman
Board Member Wokie is the Assistant City Manager for the City of Brooklyn Park. She holds a Masters of Business Administration (MBA) degree and is a 2013 STAR graduate and 2014 RJ 101 graduate. Wokie is passionate about spreading STAR and other peacebuilding trainings within her Liberian community and North Minneapolis where she works. She joined the Peacebuilding Board in 2014. 
Donna Arriaga
Board Member Donna is the Senior Inbound Strategist at Denamico, a full-service inbound marketing agency. She brings over eight years of experience developing and launching integrated, omni-channel marketing strategies involving social media, website, email, mobile, and SEO/SEM. Donna has developed and launched digital marketing strategies for national nonprofits, SMBs, and local organizations. She specializes in strategy, marketing technology and analytics. 
Kechi Duffy
Board Member Kechi has an extensive background in corporate retail. She has worked at Target Corporation, Supervalu, and Kellogg. Currently she is a Category Manager supporting Target Corporation. She holds B.A. in Political Science from Tuskegee University. Kechi loves volunteering and was a volunteer track coach for a number of years for Pearl Park. Kechi has two children and in her free time likes to perform amateur comedy. She is passionate about building peace and leading by example for her kids and being part of an organization that embodies that very principle. 
Maryam Beltran Shapland, MD
Board Member Maryam is a board-certified Emergency Physician who is passionate about global health and who believes that health care is a human right. She received her B.A. in American Racial and Multicultural Studies from St. Olaf College and her medical degree at the University of MN-Twin Cities. She trained in Emergency Medicine at the Johns Hopkins Hospital. She has a Postgraduate Certificate in Global Health from the Humanitarian and Conflict Response Institute at the University of Manchester, England. She has volunteered for multiple medical and humanitarian missions in South and Central America and in Asia. After serving on the Community Advisory Board, she decided to join Peacebuilding's Board of Directors in 2015. 
Therese Genis, MPH
Board Member Therese coordinates a diabetes and obesity prevention program for Latinos and Native American youth and their families at the YWCA Minneapolis. She is passionate about the YWCA’s mission to ‘Eliminate racism and empower women.’ Therese has her master’s degree in Environmental Public Health and a graduate certificate in Complementary and Alternative Healing Practices. Before working at the YWCA she worked at the Minnesota Department of Health in the Health Risk Assessment unit and for the University of Minnesota School of Nursing on Latino and adolescent health research. She loves to travel in her free time and as part of her studies or work. She is a certified racial justice facilitator, certified yoga teacher, and big advocate of holistic health both personally and professionally. Therese joined the Peacebuilding board in January 2017. 
Earnest Belton
Board Member Earnest works as a mediator and team builder for the State of Minnesota. He mediates disputes between labor and management, as well as conducts hearings. He has worked with parties to repair damaged relationships. Earnest joined the Peacebuilding Board in January 2017. 
Emily Myers
Board Member Emily is currently working at Ramsey County and is also a graduate student in Nonprofit Leadership through Minnesota State University, Mankato. She has a Master’s degree in English with an emphasis on technical communication practices in nonprofit and academic fields. She has extensive advocacy experience in the areas of disability rights, voting rights, women’s rights, and civil rights—along with many of the issues surrounding these areas—and strongly believes in the empowerment of education, especially as education relates to human rights. She hopes to work in nonprofit education to provide free, academic-quality one-on-one training, tutoring, education, professional development, and legal help to underrepresented communities. Emily joined the Peacebuilding board in January 2017. 
Genevieve Genis
Board Member Since 2003, Genevieve has worked at Minneapolis Public Schools & Connect, working with students identified as homeless or highly mobile in 6 different K-8 Elementary schools in South Minneapolis to ensure that the McKinney Vento act is being followed. She provide one on one mentoring and social work services to students of diverse backgrounds in poverty while collaborating with school and shelter staff. She received her B.A. from St. Olaf College in Northfield, MN. When not at work, she enjoys acrylic and watercolor painting, and running. Gevenieve joined the Peacebuilding board in January 2017. 
Julia Davis
Board Member Julia currently works for the Minnesota Super Bowl Host Committee to manage their 52-week Legacy Fund campaign. The campaign consists of building a platform of awareness and investing in solutions for a healthier generation of Minnesota kids. She’s spent the last 2 years supported Minnesota nonprofits and foundations as a program evaluator, grant writer, and community grant maker. Prior to her roles in non-profit, she worked extensively in the biotechnology industry in regulatory, research and development, and quality control. Julia holds a Master of Science and has completed doctorate coursework in the medical sciences. Minnesota is her second home. When she’s not practicing and teaching yoga, she enjoys running and biking the Twin Cities lakes and plotting her next hiking trip on the North Shore. 
Claire Moran
Communications Coordinator With a background in creative writing and non-profit work, Claire comes to Peacebuilding with an excitement to tell its story. She holds a Master’s of Fine Arts in creative writing from Minnesota State University, Mankato, and a bachelor’s degree in English from McGill University. Her previous non-profit work focused on education, children and families, and HIV/AIDS prevention and support. Originally from Boston, Claire is honored to join the mission of Peacebuilding in Minnesota. 
Martha Anderson, MA
Community Advisory Board Martha is the Health & Wellness Coordinator for Normandale Center for Healing & Wholeness, serving older adults in Edina and surrounding communities. Her professional background includes advising positions in international education and exchanges, student affairs and program planning at higher educational institutions. She served on the Strategic Planning Committee, the Community Education Advisory Council, and the Peace Site Committee of the Minnetonka School District. She holds a Masters in International Development Education from the University of Minnesota and a Certificate in Nonprofit Management from the University of St. Thomas. She is the mother of three adolescent boys. Martha is a 2013 STAR graduate, 2014 RJ 101 graduate, and has served on the Community Advisory Board and Scholarship Committee since 2011. She is a past board member and chair. 
Mohamud Hashi
Community Advisory Board Mohamud is the Director of the Comfort Autism Center in St. Paul. He holds a Bachelors in Economics from Somali National University in Mogadishu, Somalia and a Master in Economics from Concordia University in Montreal, Canada. As a entrepreneur, he is passionate about making STAR's peacebuilding principles accessible to the Somali community in Minnesota and abroad. He is a 2013 STAR Training graduate, joined the Peacebuilding Board in 2014, and now serves on the Community Advisory Board. Maya Sheikh-Salah
Community Advisory Board Maya is an attorney in the Twin Cities and volunteers with various community organizations including the Volunteer Lawyers Network. As a former refugee, Maya has always been passionate about justice, conflict resolution, mediation and peacebuilding. She is a 2010 STAR graduate, a past Peacebuilding board member, and since 2011 has served on the Community Advisory Committee. 
Anna Schwartz
Community Advisory Board Anna is known as an outstanding dedicated innovator with the capacity to provide decisive and yet sensitive leadership. She has held positions as Director of Business Development and Marketing, Account Executive, Counselor, Trainer, Speaker and Program Development Manager. An excellent communicator, an expert at finding connections between seemingly disparate phenomena, she can make things happen by turning thoughts into action and has an enthusiasm that is contagious. She graduated from STAR in 2013 and served on the Peacebuilding Board from 2013-14. She remains committed to Peacebuilding's mission on the Community Advisory Board. 
Sarah Motevalli
Community Advisory Board Sarah comes to Peacebuilding with a background in human rights work and community-outreach. She received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from Hamline University in St. Paul, Minnesota and is currently undertaking a Master of Science degree program at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland where she is studying International Relations and Security. She is a 2017 STAR-Lite graduate who is passionate about what she describes as being the "intrinsically important and necessary work" that Peacebuilding does, and feels honored for the opportunity to play her part in building peace within her home-state of Minnesota and abroad. |
Community PartnersWe are grateful for community-wide support to extend Peacebuilding's mission. Oswald Family Foundation Bremer Bank Shinnding Productions Thrivent Financial-West End Group Yoder Henley Development Resources Seward Longfellow Restorative Justice Partnership Center for Restorative Justice and Peacemaking, School of Social Work, University of Minnesota Center for Victims of Torture Oslo Center for Peace and Human Rights-US Foundation Restorative Justice Community Action Iraqi American Reconciliation Project The Barbara Schneider Foundation Faith Mennonite Church Plymouth Congregational Church |
