Experience
Senior Housing Justice &
Policy Strategy Consultant
Advising coalitions, government stakeholders and community organizations across New York City and State on housing policy, voucher reform and the narratives that move them — alongside two decades teaching in New York classrooms and a Women’s History degree that informs all of it.
Founder & Principal · also known as Fannie Lou Diane
The Ross Brand Consulting
Housing justice, policy strategy and narrative architecture. Recognized for shaping public narratives, strengthening coalitions, and translating complex housing systems into accessible, actionable strategy — with a cross-sector background spanning executive operations, program development, and government and NGO partnerships.
Consulting
Senior Housing Justice & Policy Strategy Consultant
The Ross Brand Consulting
New York City & New York State
- Leads policy strategy, systems analysis and narrative development for housing justice organizations across NYC and NYS.
- Advises stakeholders connected to senior city leadership on tenant protections, voucher access and systems-change priorities.
- Partners with Housing Justice for All, Neighbors Together, Unlock NYC and Impacted Advocates to strengthen advocacy campaigns.
- Produces legislative memos, policy briefs, testimony and public-facing communications.
- Applies feminist design methodologies to storytelling, public engagement and community-rooted program design.
- Supports federal advocacy on voucher access, landlord accountability and equitable housing policy.
Core competencies
12 areasPrior professional experience
3 postsDramaturge Consultant
Sweethearts of Swing, Lark Theater Company
New York, NY
- Historical accuracy consultant on script and production — the Women’s History training applied directly to the stage.
- Provides research and literary support to writers, directors and artists through pre-rehearsal, rehearsal and production.
- Creates comprehensive research materials for the creative team; provides script support including adaptation assistance and text alterations.
- Attends rehearsals and previews, and takes part in post-preview audience discussions.
Program Manager · Office & Database Administrator
Traffic Audit Bureau
New York, NY · 2005–2016
- Eleven years in out-of-home advertising measurement — the Madison Avenue job she later described from the witness table.
- Supported the President, CEO and SVP of Membership Services; served as central point of contact for high-priority communications company-wide.
- Managed a data system of more than 5,000 contact records, and administered the industry’s “EYES ON” ratings system for all members.
- Planned and ran private conferences, board meetings and national trade shows, including domestic and international speaker and travel logistics.
- Cut office expenditure by 15% through standardised ordering and stock controls.
- Built the processes and internal infrastructure that supported over 400% growth across seven years.
Program Coordinator
IFCO / Pastors for Peace
New York, NY · 2003–2004
- Produced and directed conferences and international medical scholarship programs, including on-site coordination and event advertising.
- Delivered a national conference with more than 200 participants on a $0 budget — securing speakers, venue, sponsorship, participants and media coverage entirely through partnerships.
- Built relationships with foreign diplomats, congressional officials and NGOs.
- Developed media kits and secured coverage from prominent outlets.
- Managed a volunteer team, ran training for support staff and new hires, and provided career counselling to students.
Performance and writing
Before housing advocacy and alongside it, she has worked as a singer, actress and playwright. In 2008 she won a BRIO Award — Bronx Recognizes Its Own — for vocal performance, and the following June headlined the free concert marking the Bronx Council on the Arts’ twentieth anniversary of recognising independent artists.
That work is not separate from the advocacy. The historical theater teaching, the dramaturgy, the Motown thesis and the #HerHousing podcast are all the same instinct: that the way a story gets told determines who is believed.
Teaching
4 postsTwo decades in New York classrooms, running in parallel with the advocacy: elementary instruction, literacy intervention, and history taught through theater.
Substitute Teacher · ELA, 1st and 2nd Grade
Advance Talent Solutions
New York, NY · 2017–present
- Teaches English language arts — grammar, writing for various purposes, vocabulary, close reading strategies, spelling, guided reading and research skills.
- Plans and implements creative lessons in accordance with district, county, state and federal guidelines.
- Diagnoses and prescribes learning programs for individual pupils.
- Repeatedly selected as a long-term substitute for teachers on maternity or extended medical leave.
Historical Theater Educator
East Harlem Repertory Theater Company
New York, NY · 2012–present
- Teaches history through music and theater, using creative lessons and experiential learning.
- Works with public-school children across all five boroughs.
- Trains students to inhabit a character with enough understanding to make the performance real on stage.
- Partners with venues and establishments to create opportunities for drama productions.
Substitute & After-School Teacher
District 7
Bronx, NY · Sept 2001–June 2004
- Taught a varied curriculum across elementary and junior high schools in the South Bronx.
- Specifically requested by faculty, and remembered by students for inventive teaching methods.
- Team teaching and curriculum adaptation for students with special needs.
- Frequently covered ESL/ESOL and special education classes.
Reading Intervention Teacher
P.S. 18 John Peter Zenger Elementary School
Bronx, NY · Jan–June 2001
- Coordinated and facilitated the school’s literacy intervention program.
- Worked with teachers individually to identify literacy needs, set learning targets, and develop best practices for continuous growth.
- Collected and analysed student achievement data, and supported sharing findings across staff.
- Placed students into appropriate reading and writing intervention and support services.
Education
M.A., Women’s History — 2017
Sarah Lawrence College, Bronxville, NY
Earned four years before she told the New York State Legislature that stable housing would let her “continue to pursue my dream of being a Women’s Historian.” Her thesis is publicly hosted on Academia.edu.
B.A., Communications — 2001
Brooklyn College, CUNY · Minor in Theater
A.A., Corporate and Cable Communications
Borough of Manhattan Community College, CUNY
Graduate coursework, Elementary Education
The College of Saint Rose
Six credits toward a Master’s in Elementary Education. Certified in LAST, Child Abuse and Violence Prevention.
Publications
2 worksFeminist Designer: On the Personal and the Political in Design
Queen Esther: The Life of Esther Gordy Edwards and Her Contributions to the Building of Motown Records
Affiliations & memberships
Housing and advocacy
Service and civic organizations
She served on Bronx Community Board 7, and counts more than twenty years of community involvement in the South Bronx — across college life, public housing, religious institutions, her sorority and community centers — often acting as a liaison between parents, clergy, elected officials and students.
Recognition
3 itemsDavid Prize Finalist — 2022
The David Prize · Brooklyn
One of eight Brooklyn finalists for the $200,000 unrestricted award. See the record →
BRIO Award for Vocal Performance — 2008
Bronx Council on the Arts · Bronx Recognizes Its Own
Headlined the Council’s twentieth-anniversary concert the following June.
Awards in communications