Staff
Suzanne St. John-Crane
Chief Executive Officer
Suzanne St. John-Crane joined American Leadership Forum in March of 2016, having been through both Classic Class XXV and the inaugural Urbanism Class XXXIV. St. John-Crane has worked in community media for the last twenty-four years, having served as the founding executive director for two community television stations in the Bay Area including CreaTV San Jose. St. John-Crane was named one of Silicon Valley’s 100 Women of Influence in 2012 by the Business Journal and currently serves as Board Chair of ALF National. She has served on the boards of Rotary San Jose, the Silicon Valley Organization, National Alliance for Community Media and is the Chair Emeritus for HomeFirst. Suzanne oversees ALF's vision, strategy, fundraising and foundational Fellows program.
Akemi Flynn
Chief Impact Officer
Akemi has over 25 years experience working for multicultural community building and equity in Silicon Valley. Prior to ALF, she served as Executive Director of PACT: People Acting in Community Together, a multi-faith, multi-racial organization leading grassroots community organizing for racial and economic justice. Akemi brings her experiences and relationships working with leaders from the non-profit, philanthropic, public policy, corporate, business, faith, and cultural communities to serve as ALF’s Chief Impact Officer. She is a member of Class XXVII, wife of ALF Urbanist Senior Fellow, and mother of two young adults.
Jenny Niklaus, MA, LMFT
Chief Facilitation Officer
Jenny has a 25+ year record of impact based work in a variety of service based nonprofits in Santa Clara County. She has worked with women and children who were victims of violence, those living in poverty and seniors. Prior to coming to ALF as its Chief Impact Officer, Jenny was the CEO of HomeFirst Services. Jenny is a certified yoga teacher and mindfulness practitioner and serves on the leadership team for the Silicon Valley Council of Nonprofits.
Sumaiya Moosa
Development Manager
Sumaiya has been a passionate professional in the non-profit sector. She earned a degree in Communications from Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo, Ontario. Sumaiya previously worked for the Arthritis Society, a Canadian health non-profit, as a Planned Giving Specialist. She also worked in University Advancement and served as a board member for the undergraduate journal at her alma mater.
Sumaiya loves to travel and has a broad range of international experiences, having lived in the US, Canada, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and India. She recently moved to the Bay Area and is enjoying the great weather with her husband and their newly adopted kitten, Zuko.
Allyson Paul
Executive Assistant
Allyson began her career in administration at UCSC where she worked as an administrative assistant for the Dean of the Arts office. There, she experienced the benefits and challenges of accomplishing complex tasks with a great team. Allyson has transferred her enthusiasm for problem-solving to the nonprofit industry and is eager to assist ALF in its endeavors to create a more supportive, connected, and diverse community. She enjoys yoga, hiking, and reading epic fantasy or historical fiction novels.
Mark Tolley
Vice President of Operations
Mark manages all of the organization’s operations including Finance, HR, and IT, and supports board committees on audit, finance, governance, and network development. Previously Mark served as Director of IT & Operations for United Way Silicon Valley where he led the technology implementation for 2-1-1 Santa Clara County and a back-office IT collaborative of California United Ways. Mark grew up in southwestern Ohio and received a History degree from Swarthmore College. Mark received an Accounting Certificate from UC Berkeley Extension in 2019, completing all coursework required for a CPA credential. Mark loves to travel and to play (especially volleyball) and follow (especially the NBA and the Warriors) sports.
Richard Ángel Vega
Director of Marketing and Communications
Richard is an Emmy-award-winning storyteller and designer who has spent the better part of his 20-year career advancing the messaging, brand, and voice of purpose-driven, philanthropic endeavors. Prior to leading ALF Silicon Valley's communication efforts, Richard managed the digital marketing and multimedia strategies at United Way Bay Area.
At ALF, Richard works strategically and collaboratively across the organization to bring our important work to life across our channels, engage our network, and activate messaging to key stakeholders. This work includes serving as ALF's creative director and producer of The Dialogue Podcast.
Richard is a native of East San Jose and studied Graphic Design at San Jose State University.