Story Starters Team

Staff

  • Ellie Axe has spent the past nine years leading Story Starters, helping families and educators build the confidence and skills to talk with young children about race, identity, and difference with care and curiosity. She joined the organization as co-director in 2018 and became Director in 2020, guiding Story Starters’ growth into a trusted community partner for families, schools, and educators.

    Ellie brings more than 15 years of experience in community organizing and nonprofit leadership, along with an MBA from the Simmons School of Management. She lives in Newton, MA with her husband and two daughters, where the work of raising curious, compassionate kids is part of everyday family life.

  • Kari Denitzio joined Story Starters as Family Conversations Program Coordinator in 2023. She has over 12 years of experience working in public education in K-8 and middle schools, first as a classroom teacher and later as a school counselor. Kari holds her B.A. from Boston College and her M.A. and M.Ed. from UMass Boston. She lives in Walpole, MA with her husband and three children. In her spare time, Kari contributes to several community organizations focused on upholding just and equitable communities. She is a member of the Walpole School Committee and of the MASCA Governing Board, and in 2025 published her first children’s book.

Board of Directors

Ann Bevan Hollos, M.Ed.

Ann Bevan Hollos fell in love with the Story Starters program in the winter of 2023. As a middle school educator for over 26 years, she felt equipped to talk about race and racism with teenagers, but wasn’t as comfortable talking about race and racism with her then 4-year-old. Ann Bevan credits Story Starters with reminding and empowering her to talk in simple and direct ways with her child. Ann Bevan is the Associate Middle School Director at Beaver Country Day School. When she’s not working, she’s biking around Newton on her handcycle, cooking dinner, and playing with her child.

Rev. Ann Bonner-Stewart, M. Div.

The Reverend Ann Bonner-Stewart is the first woman rector of Saint Mary's Episcopal Church in Newton Lower Falls, a multigenerational community dedicated to living the Christian vision of a just, caring, inclusive, and loving world within our neighborhood and beyond. She has served in many capacities, including school chaplain, guest theology instructor, hospital chaplain, and community organizer. In her longer term roles, Ann is known for connecting whatever institution she is serving with the wider community. Ann and her husband live in Newton and have two children in the Newton Public Schools.

Lynette Glover-Griffin,
M. Ed.

Lynette Glover-Griffin began her career with 7 years in college admissions followed by 7 years in high school administration. For the past 30 years+ she has been in real estate sales in our local area. She holds an undergraduate degree in education from Northeastern and a master’s degree in administrative education from Harvard. She has served on many not-for-profit boards including the Boston Children’s Museum. Lynette grew up in Bermuda, enjoys cooking, is an avid reader, and loves traveling the world. She has an adult daughter and lives with her husband in Chestnut Hill.

Cynthia Greene,
MBA, MA

Cindy Greene is passionate about helping organizations grow and thrive.  She has done this in various sectors and capacities, including growing existing operations at the social investment fund Root Capital and launching a new channel of business at Electric Insurance.  While the majority of her career has been spent in the for-profit sector, most of her time now is spent helping non-profits with strategic and growth questions.  She sits on Advisory Committees at Cradles to Crayons and Tulaa, a Kenyan company using a mobile platform to help farmers.  Equipped with experience in international banking and management consulting, she likes working with organizations that can fundamentally change our communities.

Kerryn Hinds,
M. Ed

Kerryn Hinds was born and raised on the small Caribbean island of Trinidad & Tobago. She has been a Montessori and Progressive early childhood educator for 20 years. Kerryn currently serves as the Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at The Chestnut Hill School, in Chestnut Hill MA. When she is not working, Kerryn is spending time with her two daughters and her goldendoodle. Kerryn is passionate about ensuring children have equitable learning opportunities and that they are engaged learners, who are seen, heard and valued.

Kalise Wornum,
Ed.D.

Dr. Kalise Wornum is a nationally sought-after keynote speaker, educational leader, workshop facilitator, and author in the area of anti-racist education and cultural proficiency. Her dynamic insight and study of best practices for having difficult conversations around race and diversity have pushed Kalise to the forefront of preparing classrooms and schools for equity in education. “It is my mission as an educator to help teachers recognize where race and learning intersect and eradicate all forms of racism from the classroom. It is my life's work to relentlessly pursue this goal and in doing so the beauty of teaching and learning will be experienced by both student and teacher.”

Trainers

Lauren Lipcon Dale,
M.Ed

Lauren Lipcon Dale is an educator, consultant, and school coach specializing in arts-integration, identity-affirming education, and joyful pedagogy. She has over two decades of experience in project-based learning, educational equity, and teacher professional development. Lauren's work with Story Starters focuses on preparing teachers to use children's books to jumpstart conversations with their students about identity, race, racism and allyship. She also works at Acera Education Innovation, where she catalyzes whole-school change by delivering professional development focused on student voice and choice, STEAM, culturally-responsive education and Universal Design for Learning, and by coaching educators to enhance student belonging, engagement and performance. Her prior roles include School Designer for EL Education, Literacy Interventionist, and Founding Teacher and Program Manager at Southwest Baltimore Charter School. Lauren believes deeply in the power of children's literature to teach critical values, validate human experiences and expand horizons.

Audrey Grace,
J.D.

Audrey Grace is director of Learning for the Association of Research Libraries (ARL). Audrey is responsible for actively contributing to the design, delivery, and assessment of all of ARL’s Learning programs.

Previously Audrey served as the vice president of inclusive excellence and chief diversity officer and adjunct faculty in communication and sociology at Regis College. She is an experienced facilitator, connector, and project manager. For the past 10 years, Audrey’s focus has been on building individual and organizational capacity in higher education and nonprofit settings. She is an expert in leadership development and has extensive experience leading executive and senior professional development. 

Audrey holds a JD from Northeastern University School of Law, a master of education in higher education administration from Northeastern University, and a bachelor of arts in political science and Spanish, with a minor in African and African American Studies, from the Fordham University at Lincoln Center Honors Program.

Kerryn Hinds,
M. Ed

Kerryn Hinds was born and raised on the small Caribbean island of Trinidad & Tobago. She has been a Montessori and Progressive early childhood educator for 20 years. Kerryn currently serves as the Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at The Chestnut Hill School, in Chestnut Hill MA. When she is not working, Kerryn is spending time with her two daughters and her goldendoodle. Kerryn is passionate about ensuring children have equitable learning opportunities and that they are engaged learners, who are seen, heard and valued.