PPT’s Spring Training for organizers and activists will build new skills & grow our organizer family. Reserve your spot at the May 4th training by RSVP’ing today!
PPT Spring Training for Members, Organizers and Activists! Saturday May 4th, 9am-3pm (with Happy Hour social time after!), at the Friends Meeting House, 4836 Ellsworth Ave.
Its springtime! And the perfect time to kick our transit just organizing up a notch by honing our existing skills, introducing new ones, and growing the network of leaders doing this work. PPT is hosting a day-long training on May 4th to do just that. AND WE WANT YOU INVOLVED!
Our 2024 PPT Organizer/Activist Spring Training will hold workshops, panels, speakers, discussions and fun social time to grow our network’s skills and build the intersectional movement for justice that we’re involved in.
We will gather at Pittsburgh Friends Meeting House for the day-long training on Saturday, May 4th from 9am-3pm. To wrap up, we will spend some social time together getting to know each other because relationships are the core of movement work and we value our time spent with you.
Spring Training Workshop Schedule, co-facilitated entirely by PPT’s Members!!
9:15-10am
- A Vision for Equitable Transit Service, co-facilitated by Bo Fan and Amy Zaiss
- Sustaining Yourself in Movement Organizing, co-facilitated by Fawn Walker-Montomery and Samey Jay
10:15-11am
- How to Make Our Transit More Accessible, co-facilitated by Brian Hatgalatkas, Laura Perkins, and Margot Nikitas
- Art Making for Movements, co-facilitated by Marcel Walker
11:15am-noon
- Press Training, Amplifying our Voices Through the Media, facilitated by Patrick McGintey
- Worker and Rider Solidarity, co-facilitated by Askai Singh and Marcus McKnight
1:00-1:45pm
- Creating Presentations, facilitated by Dean Mougianis
- Power Mapping, co-facilitated by Alley Shaw and Gabriel McMorland
2:00-2:45pm
- How to Be An Ally to our Disability Constituency, co-facilitated by Alisa Grishman and Monica Still
- Canvassing at Bus Stops & on Buses, co-faciliated by Ms. Teaira Colling and Connor Chapman
Save your spot by RSVP’ing to join us on May 4th, 9-3pm at the Friends Meeting House 4836 Ellsworth Ave, Pittsburgh PA, 15213
Accessibility information
Space’s physical accessibility: Pittsburgh Friends Meeting House is an accessible location with an entrance ramp to the bottom level, and first floor level of the building. There are two accessible bathrooms, one on the ground floor and one on the first floor level. There is a large meeting room on the ground level and several rooms where workshops, panels, and activities will be taking place.
Getting there: Pittsburgh Friends Meeting House is located at 4836 Ellsworth Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, on the 75, 71A, and 71B bus routes. The 75 lets you off at Ellsworth and Clyde, with a one minute walk to our location. The 71A lets you off at Centre Ave. and Millville Ave. with an eight minute walk to our location. The 71B lets you off at Fifth Ave. and Neville St. with a four minute walk to our location. If any of these transportation modes are cost-prohibitive for you, contact PPT to discuss options, at 551-206-3320 or info@pittsburghforpublictransit.org.
Covid procedures: Masks are encouraged indoors. We also encourage everyone to take an at-home COVID rapid test before arriving. Please stay home if you are feeling sick or have come into contact with someone who has COVID-19. There is outdoor patio and large porch out in the front of the building.
About the PPT Members who are co-facilitating our workshops
Akshai Singh
Akshai Singh, or shay (they/he), is staff for Mobility, Opportunities, and Vibrant Economy Ohio (MOVE Ohio), and a union barista and member of Starbucks Workers United. Shay helped found Clevelanders for Public Transit and is on DSA’s Green New Deal Campaign Committee as well as a board member of Transit Members of the US Together (TRUST Riders).
Alisa Grishman
Alisa Grishman is a disability activist and founder of Access Mob Pittsburgh, an advocacy group that utilizes positive approaches to making change, such as education and economic incentives. A self-described shameless agitator, Grishman has also been arrested multiple times fighting for disability rights with ADAPT, a national advocacy group. Her work has been recognized locally and nationally in such outlets as the Rachel Maddow Show, NPR, Huffington Post, Esquire Magazine, KDKA News, and the Pittsburgh Post Gazette. Along with her direct advocacy work, Grishman co-runs Ballots for Patients and Care to Vote, sister efforts that respectively collect emergency absentee ballots from hospitalized peoples on election day and work with nursing and personal care homes to help residents register to vote and fill out ballots. In her free time, Grishman enjoys knitting and collecting antique books. She lives in the Uptown neighborhood of Pittsburgh, PA.
Aly Shaw
Aly Shaw is a Research Analyst working in the state power mapping program at LittleSis. She works with activists and base building groups around the country to conduct power research on corporations, billionaires, and rightwing groups. Based in Pittsburgh, she previously spent 8 years as an environmental justice organizer at Pittsburgh UNITED and labor organizer at UFCW Local 1776. Over the years she has led campaigns to prevent the privatization of Pittsburgh’s water system, to make drinking water safer and more affordable, and organized grocery store workers to win higher wages and safer working conditions during the COVID 19 pandemic. She received her BA in Political Science from the University of Pittsburgh and her Master’s in Public Administration from Carnegie Mellon University.
Amy Zaiss
Amy Zaiss has been a transit rider and cyclist all of her life, having lived car-free for the past fifteen years in five major cities. Her strong belief that better public transportation improves the quality of life for everyone led her to join Pittsburghers for Public Transit shortly after moving to the area in 2021. She contributed to PPT’s Represent Our Routes Report – a comprehensive analysis of the state of transit in Pittsburgh at the district level. Though it was her first introduction to speaking with elected representatives, it was not her last. She continues to stay involved with PPT and holds a leadership position in Pro-Housing Pittsburgh. When she’s not volunteering, you might spot her around town riding her e-bike.
Bo Fan
Mobility data worker turned advocate. They are a community researcher with Pittsburghers for Public Transit, Abolitionist Law Center, and the coveillance counter-surveillance collective. They are now the Pittsburgh Data Justice Project Coordinator at Urbankind.
Brian Hatgelakas
Brian has been an ACCESS and PRT transit user since his college days. He believes that we can improve on-time transit and strengthen ACCESS services by allowing riders to make same-day trips. Brian has been a PPT member since 2022.
Connor Chapman
Connor Chapman is a PPT member and is an active member of PPT’s organizing committee. Connor is graduate worker pursuing a PhD in sociology at the University of Pittsburgh and is also a volunteer labor organizer on the Pitt Grad Union campaign.
Dean Mougianis
Dean Mougianis has been a media producer for fifty years and an educator for thirty years. As a producer, writer, video editor and motion graphic artist, Dean has worked with a wide range of projects and clients, both commercial and non-profit. In the nineteen seventies was among the group of people who put community radio station WYEP on the air and served as an early station manager As an educator Dean has taught courses and workshops in various aspects of video production from beginner to advanced for Pittsburgh Filmmakers, as well as local colleges and unviersities. An early convert to digital media, Dean now specializes in teaching motion graphics and animation.
Fawn Walker-Montgomery
Fawn Walker Montgomery is a community leader, healer, activist, and consultant who is deeply committed to supporting her community, advocating for social justice, promoting Black Liberation, and advancing racial equality. She’s the principal consultant at Fawn Walker Montgomery Consulting and CEO/Co- Founder at Take Action Advocacy Group (TAAG). Fawn has extensive experience in public service and human services. She served two terms as a councilwoman in McKeesport and made history as the first Black woman to run for a State seat in the Mon Valley without a major party endorsement. Fawn’s mental and physical health suffered significantly as a result of years of hard work. After bravely facing a life-threatening battle with endometriosis in the public eye, she decided to start a blog. The purpose of her blog was to raise awareness about holistic natural remedies, such as herbalism, and the healing power of ancestral connections. Additionally, she shed light on the injustices faced by Black women in the medical field. She has a strong belief in using community organizing to push for change.
Gabriel McMorland
As Casa San Jose’s Human Rights Organizer, Laura Perkins is on-call 24/7 to respond to immigration and police detentions in southwest Pennsylvania. With the goal of a Pittsburgh region that is safe for all immigrants, Laura runs monthly new arrival orientations, Know Your Rights sessions, a jail visitation program, and legal clinics. She coordinates the Fondo Solidario, which pays immigration bonds and loans money to victims of workplace violations. Before working at Casa San Jose, Laura did human rights work in Honduras and Nicaragua, throughout two political crises. In her free time, you can find Laura legally observing protests, playing ultimate frisbee, and looking for window cats.
Laura Perkins
As Casa San Jose’s Human Rights Organizer, Laura Perkins is on-call 24/7 to respond to immigration and police detentions in southwest Pennsylvania. With the goal of a Pittsburgh region that is safe for all immigrants, Laura runs monthly new arrival orientations, Know Your Rights sessions, a jail visitation program, and legal clinics. She coordinates the Fondo Solidario, which pays immigration bonds and loans money to victims of workplace violations. Before working at Casa San Jose, Laura did human rights work in Honduras and Nicaragua, throughout two political crises. In her free time, you can find Laura legally observing protests, playing ultimate frisbee, and looking for window cats.
Marcel Walker
As Casa San Jose’s Human Rights Organizer, Laura Perkins is on-call 24/7 to respond to immigration and police detentions in southwest Pennsylvania. With the goal of a Pittsburgh region that is safe for all immigrants, Laura runs monthly new arrival orientations, Know Your Rights sessions, a jail visitation program, and legal clinics. She coordinates the Fondo Solidario, which pays immigration bonds and loans money to victims of workplace violations. Before working at Casa San Jose, Laura did human rights work in Honduras and Nicaragua, throughout two political crises. In her free time, you can find Laura legally observing protests, playing ultimate frisbee, and looking for window cats.
Marcus McKnight
Marcus McKnight is a lifelong resident of the Logan neighborhood of Philadelphia with over 15 years of experience both working in the transit industry and advocating for better public transit. He has past experience working at SEPTA in the planning and customer service sectors. He has served as the chairperson of SEPTA’s Youth Advisory Council and was a part of a team that was instrumental in restoring all night subway service in Philadelphia. He is currently a schoolteacher, transit operator and cofounder of the Philly Transit Riders Union which is an advocacy organization that highlights the viewpoints of transit riders and transit employees.
Margot Nikitas
Margot Nikitas is an activist and labor union attorney based in Pittsburgh.
Monica Still
Monica Albert Still, RN, BSN is an adult with Spina Bifida who is proud to be among the first generation of kids with SB on the threshold of Senior Citizenship. Monica spent most of her life in Connecticut. She has spent her nursing career keeping people in the community. Working her way from client care in the home to starting two Home Health Care Agencies as the administrator, she decided to take on a new challenge. After 30 years in nursing, she has now turned her focus to the advocacy part of nursing and serving her community on a broader level. She is involved in advocacy at the local, state and national levels. Monica currently serves as a board member of Access Mob Pittsburgh. She is honored to serve as the secretary of the board for Disability Rights PA, chair fior the Mental Health Advisory Council and member of the CT Health Law Project board. She is on the planning committee for Disability Pride Pittsburgh. She is also a founding member of the SBA Adult Advisory Council and continues to serve to this day as well as serving on various other committees. She combines care with advocacy.
Patrick McGinty
Patrick McGinty is an English professor at Slippery Rock University and serves on the statewide executive committee of his faculty union (APSCUF). His debut novel Test Drive depicts life for workers in Pittsburgh’s driverless car sector.
Samey Jay
Samey Jay is a passionate organizer invigorated by her early experiences during the Occupy movement and her working-class background, she believes that our activism must be accessible, impactful to, and most importantly, grassroots-led. She was a founding member of Fight Back Pittsburgh, a community-labor affiliate organization of the United Steelworkers local 3657. Samey has developed digital organizing strategies and communications for local campaigns around Affordable Housing, Environmental, Racial, and Economic Justice, and has coordinated marshalls and volunteers for marches and public demonstrations around Pittsburgh for over 6 years. Samey’s activism is informed by intersectional ideals that prioritize wellness above all else. Samey now works for Thomas Merton Center as a community organizer.
Teaira Collins
Teaira Collins is a lifelong transit rider, a Hazelwood community leader, a mother and foster mother, and now a grandmother to six grandchildren. he is very active in the community, volunteering with The Mission Continues to help veterans and with the Hazelwood Family Support Center to uplift young mothers. Ms. Teaira also runs her own non-profit to advocate for those like her son Judah and other famlies with children who have Down Syndrome, and fundraises for the National Kidney Foundation to help research related to her daughter’s health.