Meet Our Board of Directors
We are excited to have such a diverse and experienced group leading our organization. Each board member brings a unique perspective and set of skills that will help us achieve our mission of supporting families during childbirth and postpartum. Welcome to our new and existing board members!
Rachel Williams
Board Chair
Rachel Williams is a dedicated community organizer with a personal passion for reproductive health and birth work. Born with a disability due to medical malpractice, Rachel's experiences shape her approach to maternal health, emphasizing the importance of addressing high rates of infant and maternal mortality. With a decade of experience in various forms of birth work and advocacy, Rachel is committed to supporting medically complex individuals and those within the foster care system.
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Dominique Ward
Board Treasurer
I am a Westside of Chicago native with an educational background in social services and project management. I attended and graduated from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign with a B.A. in Sociology and a minor in African-American Studies. Later, I attended and graduated from Lewis University with a M.S. in Project Management. Professionally, I have worked as an event manager in corporate America for C-suite executives and as a social servant, mainly working with children and families.
After experiencing firsthand some of the inequalities surrounding black and brown women in maternal health, I became passionate about doing what I could to make an impact in this sector. I am a single mother of identical twins and owner of Trappin’ Mommy, a mommy blog, home bakery, and event consultation brand! I am a mother of identical twin girls, so every day is a wild ride!
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Dr. Thelma Sardin
Board Member
Dr. Thelma Sardin is a non-profit leader with nearly 15 years of experience in marketing communications, community relations, education, and health care. She is passionate about making a meaningful impact on community health outcomes through effective program development and management. In addition to earning her Doctor of Education in Ethical Leadership from Olivet Nazarene University, Sardin has a Master of Arts in Journalism from DePaul University and a Bachelor of Arts in Communication, Media, and Theater from Northeastern Illinois University. She is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. and Order of the Eastern Star, State of Illinois, Prince Hall Affiliation. Her volunteer experience includes serving on the board of directors for the former South Suburban Family Shelter and as a former vice president.
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Devri Smith
Board Member
11-year entrepreneur of Precious Little Bites Catering Company, where we provide finger foods for events across Chicago. As a community builder, I’ve worn many hats over the years because I have a passion for people and culture.
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Dr. Ashley Stone
Board Member
(she/her/hers) is the 2023-2024 Ida B. Wells-Barnett Postdoctoral Teaching Fellow in the Department of African and Black Diaspora Studies at DePaul University. Her research and teaching areas include social inequalities, race, gender, and intersectionality. In this role, she designed two original courses for the department – one focused on the life and activism of Ida B. Wells-Barnett, and another focused on the theory of intersectionality as it relates to people of the African diaspora. Dr. Stone’s scholarship has been published in anthologies and peer-reviewed journals, including the Sociology of Race and Ethnicity; Women, Gender, and Families of Color; Humanity and Society; and Sociological Inquiry.
Her current research project examines epistemic exclusion, analyzing the factors that contribute to the inclusion and exclusion of the scholarship of classical Black women social theorists in graduate-level sociology curricula. In addition to her empirical and theoretical scholarship, Dr. Stone is the author of “Sociological Impact”, which is featured in The Southern Sociologist, the official newsletter of the Southern Sociological Society. “Sociological Impact” focuses on faculty efforts in public sociology, theory, and professional mentorship.
Dr. Stone has been invited to speak on various platforms about race, education, and non-violence. She has received numerous awards for her teaching, research, and social justice efforts. Additionally, she actively engages in service in the academy as well as the community. She has maintained her commitment to students of color in the arts as a Board Member for the William Merritt Scholarship Fund and recently served as the Managing Editor for The Journal of the Center for Policy Analysis and Research in association with the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation.
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