Greyt Big Talk w/ Danielle Drake

Danielle Drake spent years helping refugee families build new lives in Cleveland. A native of Buffalo, New York, she earned a BA in Communication and a certificate in Linguistics from the State University of New York at Buffalo, then spent almost a decade in marketing, sales and corporate training in financial services and commercial and residential real estate.

After moving to Cleveland in late 2008 she began volunteering as an ESL teacher for adult refugees and was hired by the resettlement agency a few months later. She earned an adult education teaching permit and an advanced TESOL certificate from Cambridge University while teaching ESL full time and coordinating the agency's volunteer and intern program.

In January 2013 she joined US Together as Resettlement and Housing Specialist and was later promoted to Community Relations Manager, overseeing pre-arrival planning and housing for new refugee families, tutoring and mentorship programs, and community outreach and education. She also served as Public Affairs Chair for the Refugee Services Collaborative of Cleveland and sat on its housing committee and refugee advisory council.