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The People of Baldwin

Credit: Norman E. Jones

Christine Platt

Interim Executive Director

Christine Platt is an author, advocate, and thought leader who has carved a unique path in the world of literature and social change. She holds a B.A. in Africana Studies from the University of South Florida, M.A. in African and African-American Studies from The Ohio State University, and a Juris Doctorate from Stetson University College of Law. The author of more than 30 books, Christine's literary journey is rooted in amplifying marginalized voices and exploring the nuances of race, identity, and social justice.

Jacqueline Woodson

Founder, President

Jacqueline Woodson is a writer whose accolades include a MacArthur “Genius” Award, the National Book Award, The Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award, The Hans Christian Andersen Medal and NAACP Award among many others. She was inspired to create Baldwin For The Arts after spending time at Macdowell, Hedgebrook, and The Fine Arts Workcenter and witnessing the impact of these residencies.

Credit Abigail Dudley

Moné Dixon-Sabio

Program Coordinator

Monè Dixon-Sabio is a traveler, enjoys reading, and loves animals. She's a U.S. Navy veteran and has a M.A. in women, gender and sexuality studies. She lives in Queens, N.Y.

Perri Easley

Executive Assistant

Perri Easley (she/her) is a writer and filmmaker based in New Jersey. She has worked with Emmy and Peabody Award winners on their film projects, most recently the PBS American Experience Documentary titled Zora Neale Hurston: Claiming a Space. Perri is also a published author, having been featured in the New York Times Best-Selling book Channel Kindness: Stories of Kindness and Community co-written by Lady Gaga. She is a graduate of Wesleyan University where she majored in American Studies and French Studies and minored in Film Studies.

Kirby Harris 

Treasurer

Kirby Harris is the Managing Partner and co-founder of Base Ventures, an early-stage venture capital firm based in Berkeley, CA. which has invested in many companies including the Blavity, Pigeonly, college financial aid platform Mos, and adventure tourism company, Space Perspective. In his spare time, he enjoys cooking with his two daughters, coaching their basketball team and traveling. Kirby resides in Oakland, CA

Linda Villarosa

Secretary

Linda Villarosa is a contributing writer at the New York Times Magazine where she covers race, inequality and public health. Her article "Why America's Black Mothers and Babies Are in a Life-or-Death Crisis" was a finalist for a National Magazine Award. Linda is also a professor at the Newmark Graduate School of Journalism @ CUNY with a joint appointment at the City College of New York where she teaches journalism, Black Studies and pre-med students. Linda's book "Under the Skin: The Hidden Toll of Racism on American Lives and on the Health of a Nation," was named one of the 10 Best Books of 2022 by the New York Times.

Merele Williams Adkins

Merele Williams Adkins is a lapsed lawyer who now represents the Estate of Terry R. Adkins, an artist and musician. She has been instrumental in preserving his legacy in the canon of art history, with numerous books published and exhibitions staged, including a recent one at the Putlizer Arts Foundation. Merele could be described as an “arts activist” and currently serves on two boards, the Laundromat Project and the Hood Museum of Art.
Credit: Cameron Esposito

Katy Nishimoto

Katy Nishimoton (she/her) is a Senior Editor at The Dial Press, an imprint of Random House, which she joined as their first-ever editor to focus specifically on lgbtq+ writers. She plays taiko with Makoto Taiko, volunteers with the Go For Broke National Education Center in Little Tokyo, and sits on the board of Together Rising, a nonprofit founded by Glennon Doyle that has raised over $45 million for people in crisis. She is based in Los Angeles.

Lydia Polgreen

Lydia Polgreen is an award winning journalist and media executive who is currently Managing Director of Gimlet, a podcast studio at Spotify. Prior to that, Polgreen served as editor in chief of HuffPost following a 15 year career at the New York Times that included roles as an editor, South Africa bureau chief, a correspondent for the New Delhi bureau and chief of the West Africa bureau. Polgreen was a 2006 recipient of the George Polk Award for foreign reporting and the 2008 Livingston Award for international reporting.

Toshi Reagon

Toshi Reagon is a talented, versatile singer, composer, musician, curator and producer. While her expansive career has landed her comfortably in residence at Carnegie Hall, the Paris Opera House & Madison Square Garden, you can just as easily find Toshi turning out a music festival, intimate venue or local club. Toshi knows the power of song to focus, unite and mobilize people. Her latest theatrical work is the opera Octavia E. Butler’s Parable of the Sower. She is a 2015 Ford Foundation Art of Change Fellow, a 2018 United States Artist Fellow.

Jason Reynolds

Jason Reynolds is a #1 New York Times bestselling author of more than a dozen books for young people, including Look Both Ways: A Tale Told in Ten Blocks, All American Boys, Long Way Down, and Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You, and the upcoming Stuntboy, in the Meantime. The recipient of a Newbery Honor, a Printz Honor, an NAACP Image Award, and multiple Coretta Scott King honors, Reynolds is also the current National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature. He lives in Washington, DC.

Credit Ira Fox

Maryann Jacob Macias

Maryann Jacob Macias's (she/her) debut picture book, TÉO'S TUTU, was named an Amazon Best Book of 2021 for 3-5 year olds; a 2022 Notable Social Studies Trade Book by the National Council for the Social Studies and Children’s Book Council; and a 2023 Rainbow List book by the American Library Association. TÉO'S TUTU was positively reviewed by School Library Journal, Horn Book, Kirkus Reviews, and is part of the Drag Story Hour and Pride and Less Prejudice collections. A second picture book will soon follow. Find her on Instagram: @mjm_writes.

Carla Bruce

Carla Bruce (she/her) is the Director of Publicity at One World and Roc Lit 101, and is based in Los Angeles. Her work has appeared in the New York Times, New York Magazine, Guernica, Real Simple, and elsewhere. You can find her online @carlawaslike.

Phil Bildner

Phil Bildner (he/him) is the New York Times bestselling author of numerous books for young people including the NCTE Charlotte Huck Award Honor-winning middle grade novel, A High Five for Glenn Burke. Phil is a former attorney, a former New York City Public School teacher, and the founder and President of The Author Village, an author booking business. He lives in Newburgh, New York with his husband in a two hundred-year-old farmhouse.

Raaga Rajagopala

Raaga Rajagopala (any pronouns) is an associate publishing manager at One World and The Dial Press, imprints of Random House. Raaga studied French Language & Linguistics at Binghamton University and currently lives on Long Island, New York.

Caroline Washington

Caroline Washington (she/her) runs an independent design and strategy practice. Her practice is devoted to expanding cultural production by centering collaborations with Black artists, thinkers, and organizations.

Emeritus Board Members

  • Reuben Walker
  • Glory Edim
  • Catherine Gund
  • Kaija Langley

Baldwin's Honorary Board Members

  • Kwame Alexander
  • Carrie Mae Weems
  • Julie Lythcott-Haims
  • Marlon James
  • Ocean Vuong
Baldwin

Baldwin for the Arts is a public charity recognized under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Your contribution is deductible for federal income tax purposes as permitted by law.

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