Staff

Grow Dat creates pathways for program alumni to stay with the organization in roles with increasing responsibility. This year, we are proud to have one part-time and three full-time staff members who are alumni of our leadership programs.

Julie Gable

Co-Executive Director

E: julie@growdatyouthfarm.org

Considering herself a country girl, originally from a small rural township sixty miles south of Chicago, Julie Gable loves being around people and can be the “class clown” at times.  Her passion to help others, being a team player, and organizing tasks at hand, is the reason she loves working in the non-profit sector. She received her Bachelor’s degree in Communications/Public Relations from Illinois State University and has 30+ work experience years in marketing, public relations and development.  Julie’s passion stretches even further as the wife of a pastor and mother of two sons, using her spare time to share in church activities, serving others in the local community, using creative skills to create printed programs and monitoring the media/sound system at church. She is thrilled to be a part of the Grow Dat team and to let others know of its mission of youth leadership.  

Callie Rubbins-Breen

Co-Executive Director

T. 802-236-5307
E:
callie@growdatyouthfarm.org

Growing up in rural Vermont, Callie's first jobs involved working on farms, experiences she would say were the catalyst for her continual interest in food justice and food education. Callie graduated with an Urban Studies degree from Columbia University and moved to New Orleans soon after that. For almost a decade Callie has centered her work around the power and joy of hands-on culinary training and has worked in various capacities around issues of urban food access, nutrition, hospitality, and culinary education. She believes deeply in youth education taking a vibrant, holistic approach to successful learning and is committed to upholding the Grow Dat VISIONS model.

Leo Gorman

Farm Manager

T. 504-616-1777
E:
leo@growdatyouthfarm.org

Leo Gorman earned his BA in Anthropology and Latin American Studies from Tulane University in 2000. He worked for three years in Mexico and Colombia with Witness for Peace, working with partners to educate U.S. citizens about the impacts of free trade policy on civil society and the environment. He earned his MA in History at the University of New Orleans in 2009 and has co-authored several published articles and book chapters on indigenous rights, popular education and immigration. Leo taught social studies at Warren Easton High School and ran market gardens near Xavier University in New Orleans. He has interned multiple seasons on three organic vegetable farms and is thrilled to be part of a project that merges his passions for experiential education, social justice and sustainable agriculture.

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Kevin Connell

Program Manager


E: kevin@growdatyouthfarm.org

Kevin Connell is an educator from Valparaiso, Florida. He started out in education as a paraprofessional for students with special needs, and has since taught social studies and science in NYC, English in Indonesia and Tanzania, and adult education in New Orleans. At Grow Dat, Kevin mostly teaches others about teaching, sharing his interest in popular education techniques and interdisciplinary, place-based instruction with the Crew Leaders and Assistant Crew Leaders who facilitate our programs. He believes that creating liberatory educational space is a key for building a just future. Kevin co-facilitates the VISIONS model and he holds a masters from Teachers College. Outside of Grow Dat, you'll find him cooking, working in the yard, or plotting his next visit to the beach.

Lily Mejia

Development Manager

E: lily@growdatyouthfarm.org

Having fond childhood memories of tree climbing escapades in City Park, Lily is honored to be part of a vibrant team that intentionally stewards land in a place she’s always called home. It was this desire to become a better land steward that led Lily to join the Grow Dat team. Over the course of her time here, Lily has deepened her belief that many of the chronic afflictions we suffer from individually and collectively might one day be healed through sincere stewardship of the land that hosts us and future generations. It’s with healing in mind and a desire to amplify youth voices that Lily approaches her work. Lily holds a Master’s Degree of Social Welfare and brings to Grow Dat over seven years of experience at nonprofits and youth-serving organizations — locally, out of state, and abroad. When Lily’s not on the farm, you can find her outside under warm, sunny skies; planning her next travel adventure(s); reading too many books at once; and laughing.

Kaya Jones

Project Manager, Grow Dat on the Geaux

E: kaya@growdatyouthfarm.org

Hailing from the sunny landscapes of Florida, Kaya attended college for environmental studies and it was during her college years that she cultivated a profound passion for nurturing the Earth while growing her own food. Kaya’s heart thrives at the intersection of environmental stewardship and food justice, and she is devoted to sharing knowledge and fostering a sustainable future. Currently, she finds boundless excitement in her role with GDotG and the community-driven initiative. In her free time, you'll often find her strolling through nature, immersed in a captivating book, crafting delightful surprises for friends, or whipping up delectable treats in the kitchen.

Alex Sanders

Assistant Farm Manager

T. 504-565-6874
E:
alex@growdatyouthfarm.org

Alexander Sanders was born in Louisiana but moved to Tennessee after the hurricane. After a few years Alex moved back to New Orleans to finish school. As a junior attending G.W. Carver Collegiate high school he found his first job at Grow Dat. As a Crew Member working in the field and learning about sustainable agriculture he fell in love with the life of agriculture. He returned to Grow Dat to complete another year as an Assistant Crew Leader to help teach youth like himself about the importance of agriculture and social justice. In his third year with the organization Alex took on the role of Farm Fellow which has now transitioned to the position of Assistant Farm Manager. In the future Alex hopes to continue the lifestyle of agriculture and start his own recycling company.

Travis Cleaver

Site Coordinator

E: travis@growdatyouthfarm.org

Travis Cleaver is a landscape architect and former business owner. Travis moved to New Orleans in 2002 from his family farm in West Virginia, and is happy to again take part in the farm life at Grow Dat. He studied architecture and permaculture design through Tulane University, and in 2007 started the landscape architecture firm EcoUrban Landscaping. Travis's work at EcoUrban focused on sustainable design and installation, native and edible plants, and forward-thinking water management, all of which Travis draws from in his work maintaining and expanding Grow Dat Youth Farm. Travis also enjoys carpentry, welding, drawing, hiking, live music and all manner of outdoor activities.

Jonshell Whitten-Johnson

Education Coordinator

T. 504-762-0681
E:
jonshell@growdatyouthfarm.org

Jonshell has been working to transform her hometown of New Orleans since she was 15 years old and working passionately for education equity after Hurricane Katrina. Now, 5 years later, she finds herself demanding change through the scope of ensuring that her neighbors have access to affordable and culturally appropriate food. She serves as Crew Leader for the second time and finds that her experience at Grow Dat has further ignited her passion for its mission. Jonshell is a mother and identifies as an adult ally who inspires program participants to create positive change in their communities.

Learn more about education opportunities on the farm by visiting our Field Trip page!

Sara Smith

Program Operations Coordinator

E: saras@growdatyouthfarm.org

Sara Smith was born and raised in New Orleans. She attended Benjamin Franklin High School where as a sophomore, she was introduced to Grow Dat. Sara was hired as a crew member for the 2015 Leadership Program and has continued to work with Grow Dat holding various roles since. She graduated from Loyola University New Orleans with a Bachelors in Food Studies and Environmental Studies with a concentration in Sociology. Through working on the farm, Sara developed a deep love for growing food and working towards a future New Orleans where food sovereignty is achievable and is extremely excited to be back on the farm working with the youth program.

Kate Thorpe

Development Coordinator

E: kate@growdatyouthfarm.org

Kate was born in New Hampshire and spent much of her time growing up camping, hiking, swimming and exploring the diverse natural sceneries throughout New England. Seeking warmer weather, Kate moved to New Orleans in 2014 after graduating with a degree in history from University of New Hampshire and then attended University of New Orleans for graduate school in Public Administration. For the last near decade, she has been working in the service industry, as a sommelier and event planner, while also volunteering on local campaigns and community organizing. Though farming and growing vegetables is new to her, her work in wine sparked a significant interest in natural and sustainable agriculture and equitable labor practices and she can be found off work sipping and reading in her apartment full of leafy plants.

Crew Leaders

Aspien Beaco

E: aspien@growdatyouthfarm.org

Born and raised in New Orleans, Aspien loved the outdoors and everything about it, but somewhere along the way she lost touch with it. After years of loss through lack of time, she discovered Grow Dat Youth Farm. Not only did the Grow Dat program get her back in touch with nature, but also with herself. Now Aspien shows up in a positive way in every endeavor, and demonstrates kindness and grace while working towards her goals. She also is now a full time student at UNO pursuing a degree in pre-veterinary science and hopes to one day become a veterinary dermatologist, making music on the side. 

Brie Bryant

E: brie@growdatyouthfarm.org

Brie Bryant was born in Tampa, FL, before at a young age permanently settling down in New Orleans prior to Hurricane Katrina. It wasn’t until returning to the city for middle school post-storm that Brie’s passion for social justice and equitable transformation within our systems ignited. During high school Brie began organizing as a youth and has not stopped since, broadening her lens of focus well beyond school systematic changes, into her love of birth work as a Doula serving the City of New Orleans and its outlying parishes. While working as a Crew Leader with Grow Dat, Brie hopes to strengthen her knowledge of sustainable agriculture through the scope of growing food and her skills in facilitation while working with the Assistant Crew Leaders.

Harley Holiday

E: harley@growdatyouthfarm.org

Harley Holiday grew up in California, where their love for wild landscapes was seeded at an early age. They began gardening within school programs at age six, a formative experience that showed them the importance of developing a relationship to place and sustainable food systems. They subsequently went on to work and volunteer on farms and ranches throughout the United States and Central America, after studying agroecology and organic farming in college. Harley feels strongly that everyone should have the opportunity to develop a relationship with the land on which they live, and believes that agricultural knowledge is a critical tool for exercising one’s agency. They are excited to have the opportunity to participate in work at Grow Dat that sits at the intersections of social justice, youth empowerment, and land stewardship – spheres of paramount importance particularly within times of climate uncertainty. Alongside their love of nature and working with youth, Harley is a ceramic artist and is pursuing a degree in social work.

Jewell Prim

E: jewell@growdatyouthfarm.org

Jewell Prim was born and raised in Los Angeles, California where the mountains and the sea cradled their deep loving respect for our siblings in the natural world. With immense gratitude, their childhood is outlined with camping trips, nature experiences, and outdoor skill development fostered through youth environmental activism, Girl Scouts, and a love for the mud! They have a deep and curious passion for the many ways humans and all creatures are in relationship with water. Upon moving to Louisiana, they were most excited to be surrounded by the mighty Mississippi River, Lake Pontchartrain, and Gulf of Mexico on three sides! They have studied Political Science, Africana Studies and Environmental Studies throughout college and via engagement with their community. They also went to school for Welding and have apprenticed in Carpentry, Architectural Sculpture and Sustainable Agricultural Practices. Jewell believes that it is a gift to learn and work alongside the young people at Grow Dat Youth Farm, as they hold the keys to expanding the dreams of our world's future. When not stewarding land with their loved ones, you can find them taking a deep dive at the library, cooking a delicious meal for friends, or frolicking somewhere outside!