Staff

Marissa Tirona (she/her/hers) joined GCIR in November 2020, bringing more than 15 years of senior leadership experience at social justice and philanthropic institutions. As President, Marissa leads the organization’s efforts to galvanize philanthropy to build a society in which everyone thrives, no matter where they were born. Previously, she was a program officer at the Ford Foundation, where she managed a $225 million portfolio as part of the Building Institutions and Networks (BUILD) initiative, Ford’s flagship program designed to strengthen organizations and networks core to the global social justice infrastructure. Before joining Ford in 2017, Marissa led the Blue Shield of California Foundation’s programmatic, policy, and grantmaking efforts to address, prevent, and ultimately end domestic violence and promote health equity throughout the state. Prior to that, she was senior project director at CompassPoint Nonprofit Services, where she designed and led comprehensive, multiyear leadership initiatives that developed network capacity, facilitated movement-level work, and centered communities of color. Earlier in her career, Marissa served as program director of the National Employment Lawyers Association and, before that, as an employment attorney at two national law firms.

Marissa has deep experience in organizational and movement capacity building. She frequently speaks on and writes about issues related to transformative philanthropic practice, social justice movement leadership development, and organizational and network strengthening in the United States and around the world. As a certified coach, she has a keen understanding of what is needed to lead and manage thriving, adaptive, and impactful teams, organizations, and networks.

Marissa currently serves on the boards of Change Elemental and Sadie Nash Leadership Project and previously served on the boards of numerous other organizations, including Oakland Kids First, Asian Pacific Islander Legal Outreach, Social Policy Research Associates, and the Asian American Bar Association of the Greater Bay Area. She holds a J.D. from Santa Clara University School of Law, is a member of the California State Bar, and has a B.A. in English literature with a concentration in women’s studies from Swarthmore College. Based in Brooklyn with her family since 2017, Marissa is always from the Town (Oakland).

Processes membership applications and renewals, and oversees the digital systems that support our work

Caleb Beaudoin (he/him/his) has been with GCIR since 2014. He is a certified Salesforce Administrator and, in January 2019, joined the United Philanthropy Forum’s Advisory Group, which provides guidance and support for the database-website platform used by GCIR and others in the Forum’s network.

Caleb is also a full-time student at Santa Rosa Junior College and will soon transfer to Sonoma State University to study sociology. Prior to joining GCIR, he worked for an online retailer, performing order fulfillment and data management. A native of Sonoma County, Caleb enjoys cooking, hiking, and attending events in his community.

Supports administrative and communication functions of the Programs Team

Stephanie Cerda-Ocampo (she/her/ella) joined GCIR in 2022. Stephanie recently received her bachelor’s degree from Trinity College in Hispanic Studies and International Studies with a focus on Latin America and the Caribbean, and she was active as a member of La Voz Latina. Stephanie also spent a semester in Barcelona, studying at Pompeu Fabra University, as well as a semester at the School for International Training in Oaxaca, Mexico studying migration, borders, and transnational communities. Stephanie is originally from Chicago, specifically from Little Village. Before joining GCIR, she completed an internship at The Chicago Community Trust with their Community Impact team. She also served as the Office Manager of the Welcome Desk at Trinity College. During her free time, Stephanie enjoys spending quality time with family and traveling with friends. Her love for photography allows her to capture many memorable moments with loved ones. 

Leads our national programs, including overseeing our Delivering on the Dream initiative

Kevin Douglas (he/him/his) joined GCIR in 2019 and has more than 13 years of experience in the nonprofit sector. He most recently worked as the Co-Director of Policy and Advocacy for United Neighborhood Houses of New York, a network of New York City’s settlement houses and community centers. While there, he led advocacy campaigns that resulted in hundreds of millions of dollars in investments in community services by city and state governments. His areas of focus included immigrant opportunity, youth education and skill building, nonprofit contracting, older adult programs, and community services at large. As a consultant, he developed and led what is believed to be the first training in Saudi Arabia for the philanthropic and nonprofit community on effective advocacy techniques.

Kevin was named one of New York Nonprofit Media’s 40 under 40 and a Next Generation Leader by the Human Services Council. He co-founded the giving circle 100 New Yorkers Who Care, and has served on several boards, including the New York Immigration Coalition. Kevin earned an MSW from the University of Pennsylvania and a BSW from Eastern Connecticut State University. He enjoys spending time with his wife and two cats, and can often be found in the outdoors running or cycling. 

Manages the learning and evaluation of our programming

Anduriña (Andy) Espinoza-Wasil (she/her/hers) joined GCIR in December 2022, bringing seven years’ experience in human rights and social justice. Previously, Andy worked for five years at UN Women, managing publication processes and conducting research on gender equality and women’s empowerment issues within the Research Section. There, she also led the UN Women Youth Council, which advocates for young people within the organization. Andy first studied international migration in Morocco during her undergraduate studies and went on to complete a master’s degree in Migration Studies at the University of Oxford. She has been active in migrant spaces in her hometown of Syracuse, NY as well as Washington, DC. Andy is Costa Rican-American and currently resides in Los Angeles, CA. Outside of work, she likes to hike, bike, teach yoga, and catch up on reading. 

Leads our institutional messaging and development operations

Sara Feldman (she/her/hers) joined GCIR in 2020 after spending over 15 years advancing human rights in the non-profit sector, and has advocated on behalf of immigrants and refugees as a communicator, project manager, policy advocate, and researcher. Prior to joining GCIR, Sara served as the Ready California Project Director at the Immigrant Legal Resource Center, where she led a collaborative campaign to expand the reach of legal services to immigrants in California. Previously, Sara led communications efforts at Legal Aid at Work, an organization dedicated to protecting the rights of low-wage workers. At the Human Rights Center at U.C. Berkeley, Sara conducted research in Colombia to assess the public sector and civil society response to gender-based violence in the context of displacement. As a Policy Advisor in Washington, D.C., Sara analyzed issues affecting migrating populations and developed policy recommendations to influence decision-making by Congress, administrative agencies, and international institutions. Sara holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Oregon, and a master’s degree from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University. In her spare time, Sara enjoys traveling, hiking, and curling up with a good book.

Leads our internal operations, financial systems, and human resources

Harmony Hayes (she/her/hers) has been with GCIR since 2014 and has over 17 years of experience in the nonprofit and philanthropic sector. As Vice President of Operations she oversees all internal infrastructure, financial systems, knowledge management, membership and human resources. Prior to joining GCIR, she worked at The San Francisco Foundation for the Koshland Program, a place-based grantmaking program for resident led development in under-resourced neighborhoods throughout the Bay Area. She currently holds two leadership positions with the United Philanthropy Forum, co-leading the Finance and Administration Peer Group, and serving on the Knowledge Management Committee.

Harmony earned an M.A. in International Economic Development from The University of San Francisco. During that time, she managed a research project with support from USAID to examine the impact of social networks on access to micro-credit in Guatemala. The resulting research analysis was published in World Development Journal. Outside of work, she enjoys traveling, antique shopping, and spending time with her family.

Supports our executive and governance functions

Angelica Laguna (she/her/hers) joined GCIR in August 2021, bringing more than 15 years of administrative experience. For the past 12 years, she worked in higher education. Angelica earned an M.A. in Business Administration from Argosy University. She is a Northern California native and a proud daughter of Mexican immigrants. Professionally, she enjoys document formatting and employing technology to improve processes and procedures. When not working, Angelica enjoys spending time with her husband, two children, and cooking.

Leads our programming and funder engagement in key geographic regions

Cairo Mendes (he/him) joined GCIR in October 2021. He is an organizer, facilitator, and community builder, currently serving as Director of State and Local Programs at Grantmakers Concerned with Immigrants Refugees (GCIR).

Bringing over 10+ years of organizing, advocacy and funder expertise to this role, Cairo is responsible for GCIR’s programming and funder engagement in key geographic areas. Prior to GCIR, Cairo was Co-Director at Access Strategies Fund where he led programming on Solidarity Economy and Civic Engagement. Before then he was a Senior Associate at The Boston Foundation, where he facilitated grantmaking to support emerging, grassroots and BIPOC-led organizations and authored a framework to guide investments toward local social justice movements. Prior to philanthropy, Cairo was an immigrant rights leader with the Student Immigrant Movement (SIM), where he oversaw membership engagement, and led deportation defense and education equity campaigns. Cairo was also an active national leader through United We Dream and Young People For. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics and Political Science from The University of Massachusetts Boston.

Supports our internal operations, including finance, development, and general administration

Melisa Montoya (she/her/hers) joined GCIR in 2020, bringing over 15 years of experience in supply chain/project management. Before joining GCIR she worked for Clif Bar where she managed the relationships with their East Coast distribution teams. Prior to that, her experiences ranged between non-profit program management (Bay Area Bike to Work Day) and organic produce distribution.

Melisa is a Southern California native who loves being outside. When she’s not knee-deep in home improvement projects or cooking yummy meals, you can find her spending quality time with her wife and two scruffy mutts.

Manages internal operations, financial systems, and accounting processes

Paul Phan (he/him/his) joined GCIR in 2023 and is a licensed Certified Public Accountant (CPA) in California. He has more than ten years of experience in corporate finance and accounting and has worked in the nonprofit sector for the past five years. Before joining GCIR, Paul worked as a senior manager in a boutique CPA firm and then as a freelance consultant catering to nonprofit organizations. During this time, he not only managed multiple nonprofit organizations’ standard financial operations and reporting, but he also helped these organizations navigate uncertain times during the pandemic.

Paul was born and raised in Southern California. When not staring at spreadsheets, he can be spotted on tennis courts and hiking trails.

Manages our development operations and supports organizational communications

Francine Rios (she/her) joined GCIR in 2022. Prior to GCIR, Francine built a wealth of media experience as a news producer for local TV and public radio stations in Los Angeles. Her career trajectory changed after completing her Master’s Degree in American Studies at California State University, Fullerton. For the first time, she found a space to deeply examine American history and culture through the lens of race, class, and gender. Because of her studies, Francine wanted to become actionable toward contributing to systemic change. This led Francine to the nonprofit world, where she has honed her skills in creating connections and moving resources for various purposes, including providing critical services for youth experiencing houselessness in Hollywood, and building civic power and multiracial solidarity through grassroots community organizing in South Central LA.

A proud Latina whose own family roots were impacted by immigration, GCIR’s mission is one that resonates greatly with Francine. While her family hails from Mexico and Puerto Rico, Francine was born and raised in the San Gabriel Valley region of LA County, and she will always consider the SGV to be her home. Francine enjoys going to the beach, kickboxing, cooking, reading, and listening to podcasts.

Leads program and policy strategy and development, funder education and engagement, and funder mobilizing and organizing

Ivy O. Suriyopas (she/her/hers) joined GCIR in May 2021, bringing more than 15 years of experience working to advance immigrant justice. Previously, she was a program officer at the Open Society Foundations (OSF), where she focused on immigrant and refugee rights and managed a multimillion-dollar portfolio. At OSF, Ivy developed a grantmaking strategy focused on challenging the systems rooted in the racialized treatment of immigrants throughout U.S. history. Along with her colleagues, she convened leaders from across the racial justice, immigrant rights, and Muslim Arab South Asian movements to cultivate solidarity in a transformative and co-liberating way. Before joining OSF in 2015, Ivy was an attorney and the director of the Anti-Trafficking Initiative at the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund, working at the intersection of migrants’, workers’, and women’s rights, providing legal representation, and advocating for policy changes informed by the lived experiences of her clients. Previously, she was co-chair of the Freedom Network, a national alliance of almost 40 NGOs and individuals that serve and advocate for the rights of trafficking survivors.

Ivy has written and presented extensively on immigration, workers’ rights, and racial justice, and her op-eds have appeared in publications such as The Guardian and The Hill. The National Asian Pacific American Bar Association recognized Ivy as one of the Best Lawyers Under 40 in 2014, and she received the New York City Bar Association's Legal Services Award in 2012. Ivy holds a J.D. from the University of California, Hastings College of the Law, is a member of the New York State Bar, and has a B.S. in Policy Analysis and Management from Cornell University.