Our Twin Cities Team
Dana Curran, Co-Founder & Executive Director
Email: dana@worldsavvy.org
Dana co-founded World Savvy in 2002, and has assumed a role as Director since inception. She is chiefly responsible for management, program development, and fund development. Dana began her career in a large corporate law firm in New York. Since transitioning to the nonprofit realm, she has taught global issues in Bay Area high schools, managed multi-site after school programs and developed a capacity building model for the educators and youth involved in World Savvy programs. She is a May 2002 graduate of Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs, with a concentration in Economic and Political Development, and received her Bachelor’s Degree in International Relations from Connecticut College in May 1997. Dana has had significant academic and practical experience in the field of international relations, economic development, local level development and poverty alleviation, microfinance and governance. Currently, Dana is actively involved in a range of community based initiatives concerning youth development, education, and international education, and volunteers as a Steering Committee member with two local youth development nonprofits.
Charmagne Campbell-Patton, Program Manager
E-mail: Charmagne
Charmagne is committed to building peace and fostering global citizenship through education and dialogue. She believes strongly in the importance of youth participation and civic engagement both locally and globally. Before joining the team at World Savvy, Charmagne was a Program Associate for Innovations in Civic Participation in Washington DC, where she facilitated the generation of innovative youth civic engagement programs and policies internationally through technical assistance and capacity building. She has also worked as an educator with Creative Peace Initiatives in Washington DC and as a Research Assistant with Utilization-Focused Evaluation, based in St. Paul, MN. Charmagne received a BA from Grinnell College in May 2003 and an MA in International Peace and Conflict Resolution from American University's School of International Service in May 2007. She has worked and traveled throughout West Africa and was the recipient of the West African Research Association's Pre-Doctoral Fellowship in 2006. A St. Paul native, Charmagne is thrilled to be back in Minnesota working with World Savvy.
KK Neimann, Program Associate
Email: kk@worldsavvy.org
KK is a former social studies teacher, and has long been interested in using current and world events to help her students make connections with the past. In 1997, she graduated from Connecticut College with a BA in Government and History. After working as a Trial Preparation Assistant at the New York Country District Attorney’s Office and a Teacher’s Assistant at the Hauser Center for Nonprofit Organizations at the Kennedy School of Government, KK began to see education as the most effective way to bring about social justice. In 2001, she graduated from the Harvard Graduate School of Education with a Masters in Teaching and Curriculum, and went on to teach History in Boston and then Minneapolis at both the Middle and High School level. While taking a break to raise her two small boys, KK has been a volunteer and consultant with World Savvy and is excited to be an official part of this Organization.