Board Members

Lilly was an independent producer of documentaries in Chicago during the 70s and 80s and also worked with youth teaching videography skills and media literacy. As an educator, she has taught in a variety of settings including university, high school and community organizations. She is a registered psychologist specializing in educational psychology. Her interests include the effects of technology on child development, the digital divide in education, and democratization of media. Lilly joined Voqal in 1983 and lives in Tatamagouche, Nova Scotia.

Maria Hadden is a Chicago politician serving as alderwoman for the city’s 49th ward and a community activist. She was a founding board member of the Participatory Budgeting Project, a nonprofit organization that seeks to help the public take a direct role in governmental budgeting. Maria first became involved in PB as a budget delegate during the very first PB cycle in the U.S. in 2009 and is currently the Senior Project Manager for the Midwest and South. Maria’s expertise in public participation is grounded in grassroots organizing efforts for social change. In both her professional and civic life, she creates space for effective public engagement and the implementation of transformative processes. Maria has years of facilitation and training experience previously working as a mediator and mediation trainer with the Interfaith Center for Peace in Columbus, Ohio.

She earned her B.A. in International Peace and Conflict Studies from The Ohio State University before moving to Illinois to serve as an AmeriCorps*VISTA. Maria’s interests in community voice and the role of civil society were the focus of her graduate studies at DePaul University where she earned an M.S. in International Public Service Management. Maria joined Voqal is 2017. She lives with her partner in Chicago, IL.

Currently residing in the Twin Cities, Ron Harris is the Senior Adviser to Minneapolis City Councilmember Lisa Bender. He previously served as policy director for a local nonprofit, and in that role, successfully lobbied and negotiated the first municipal Paid Sick Time law in the Midwest. In this role, he also advocated for criminal justice reform, Federal Reserve policy and a $15 minimum wage increase among other progressive initiatives.

Ron is a founding board member of New Leaders Council – Twin Cities, and has participated in numerous leadership development fellowships. In addition to his full-time work, he is a consultant for political campaigns, business development, public relations, strategic planning and diversity and inclusion. Ron joined Voqal in 2017.

Barbara,Columbia College Chicago journalism professor emeritus, continues to study journalism and how digital media are transforming civil society. Her interests include net neutrality, media impact on politics and society, digital divide issues and the FCC and the public airwaves. Her interest in education continues through her work with Voqal’s Education Opportunity Project. Barbara is a lifelong Chicagoan with an interest in equity and the quality of civic life in Chicago, Illinois, and the USA. When not logged in somewhere, Barbara can be found riding her bike. Barbara joined Voqal in 2009 and lives in Chicago, IL.

Denise Mayotte serves as the Executive Director of the Sheltering Arms Foundation, which is based in Minneapolis and makes grants statewide to non-profits that help to close the opportunity gap for low-income children in Minnesota. The foundation has a strong interest in supporting early childhood education and after-school advocacy efforts. Prior to her work with Sheltering Arms, Denise served as a program officer with the McKnight Foundation, as General Manager of KFAI, Fresh Air Radio and as Executive Director of the Neighborhood Resource Center. She is a board member of In Progress, a youth media organization, co-chair of the Youth Funders Network, and co-chair of Start Early Funders Coalition. Denise holds a BA from the University of Minnesota and was a policy fellow with the Hubert H. Humphrey School of Public Affairs. She lives in south Minneapolis with her husband and daughter. Denise joined Voqal in 2013.

Through his work with Voqal, David has helped strengthen and amplify alternative media outlets, promote training for youth in new technologies and influence public awareness for progressive social change. He has overseen both programming and grant-making efforts, while building relationships within various partnerships and affiliates. With a strong background in nonprofit administration, David’s expertise includes commercial and public radio, organized labor, Native American education, digital divide issues and progressive media. He was instrumental in founding two community radio stations, in Minneapolis/St. Paul and northwestern Wisconsin. David enjoys travel, camping, baseball, motorcycling and spending time with his family. David joined Voqal in 1999 and lives in Minneapolis, MN.

Daniel X. O’Neil is the CEO of Civic Elevator, a maker of enterprise software for the vertical transportation industry.

O’Neil has been a leading writer, convener, and practitioner in the American open data, open government, and civic tech fields. He’s written widely on community-based user testing and commissioned and edited books on civic tech and community technology design modes. He’s been named to Crain’s Chicago Business’ Tech 50, served as a member of the Chicago Police Accountability Task Force, and was a White House Champion of Change for Technology and Innovation.

O’Neil joined Voqal in 2010 and lives in Chicago, IL.

Cecilia (Cec) Sanchez de Ortiz’s life’s work has been dedicated to working with Latino communities fighting against and addressing structural and institutionalized inequities. Cec currently is a Senior Fellow of Community Democracy Workshop, comprised of a team of national experts working to improve the practices of democracy in addressing community issues in direct partnership with people from the community.

In 2016, Cec was elected to serve on the C-3 Board of Directors of the Center for Community Change in Washington, D.C. She was also the Executive Director of Mi Casa Women’s Resource Center, a workforce development organization for women and girls of color in Denver. Cec joined Voqal in 2017.