Office of Racial Equity Team

Dr. Amber A. Hewitt, is the Chief Equity Officer for the Government of the District of Columbia. In this role, she works in collaboration with District leadership and agencies to apply a racial equity lens across government operations. In 2018, she was appointed by Mayor Bowser to the Commission on Fathers, Men, and Boys. Amber was the Director of Health Equity at Families USA, a national, nonpartisan consumer health advocacy organization. She also previously worked as a health care lobbyist for an integrated, children’s health system. Amber’s background also includes serving as an American Psychological Association/ American Association for the Advancement of Science health policy fellow in the Office of U.S. Senator Cory Booker. She began her career as a tenure-track professor teaching undergraduate and doctorate-level courses in psychology, social justice, multicultural counseling and diversity issues at the University of Akron and Loyola University Chicago. Her research on adolescent identity development and well-being, with a special focus on Black boys and young men, has been published in several top-tier academic journals. A counseling psychologist by training, Amber has provided psychotherapy and psychoeducational testing for children and families. She received her B.S. in biological sciences from the University of Southern California, M.A. in psychology from Boston University, and a Ph.D. in counseling psychology from Loyola University Chicago. She holds an adjunct faculty appointment at Simmons University.

Dr. Chikarlo Leak has extensive experience working within local government and academic settings. In his government and academic work, Dr. Leak has implemented policies, programs, and services that seek to improve health outcomes, reduce health disparities, and employ a community-based approach to behavioral change. As the Deputy Director with the Mayor’s Office of Racial Equity (ORE) he reviews and develops policies and programs to address systemic inequities by ensuring racial equity is embedded into the delivery of services the District provides to its residents.

Prior to joining the ORE, Dr. Leak served as the Policy Director for the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Health and Human Services where he advised the Chief of Staff on issues related to policy and legislative review, policy development and implementation. His tenure with DC government also includes serving as the Supervisory Epidemiologist for the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (OCME). At OCME, he was responsible for conducting epidemiological research in hope of reducing the incidence and prevalence of preventable fatalities. Dr. Leak is passionate about utilizing data to drive decision making and using data to evaluate the larger inequalities in the social determinants of health for the overall improvement of policies and services offered to individuals and communities.

Dr. Leak earned his Doctorate of Public Health from the Jonathan and Karin Fielding School of Public Health at the UCLA, a Master of Public Health from San Diego State University, and a Bachelor’s Degree in Health Science from Slippery Rock University.

Carmen Berry has extensive experience and a proven commitment to program development and implementation for local government and private sector operations. As a Special Assistant to the Director of the Mayor’s Office of Racial Equity, Ms. Berry is responsible for supporting the office’s day-to-day operations and establishing and cultivating relationships with residents, community stakeholders, and community-based organizations. Before joining the Mayor’s Office of Racial Equity, Carmen served as Program Manager of the District’s Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement. In this role, she wore many hats, including manager of the Family and Survivor Support team, tasked with providing direct support to families of homicide victims and survivors of shootings and stabbings. Carmen also served as a Community Outreach Coordinator under the Deputy Mayor for Health and Human Services’ Safer, Stronger DC Community Partnerships Office. In that role, Ms. Berry provided direct support to communities impacted by high rates of gun violence.

Before joining the Deputy Mayor for Health and Human Services’ office, Ms. Berry’s passion led her to the field of Public and Community Health. She managed a hypertension and diabetes screening and education program for MedStar Health by operating directly from African American barbershops across the District. She also served as a Senior Research Supervisor in the Department of Epidemiology at Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health, examining how environmental exposure during pregnancy and early life might play a part in the development of Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Carmen is a native Washingtonian and resides in her childhood home located in Ward 5. She holds a Master’s of Science in Health Education from Howard University and a Bachelor’s of Science in Community Health from Morgan State University.

Dr. Marcelo A. Bohrt is a Policy and Data Analyst at the Mayor’s Office of Racial Equity (ORE). In this role, he supports government agencies with policy, program, and data analysis and development through a racial equity lens. Dr. Bohrt brings extensive experience designing and implementing multi-method research projects on racial inequity and racial equity policies nationally and internationally. He has led and collaborated on research projects on patterns and drivers of racial socioeconomic inequity and on the politics and impact of racial equity policies in Bolivia, South Africa, and the United States. His research has been funded by the National Science Foundation and the Social Science Research Council and published in academic journals. Before joining ORE, he was an Assistant Professor at the School of International Service at American University, where he taught undergraduate and doctoral courses in racial politics and research methods.

Dr. Bohrt holds a Ph.D. in Sociology from Brown University, an M.A. in Sociology from Brown University, and a B.A. in Sociology from the University of Texas at Austin

Allyson Criner Brown (she/her) is a seasoned equity and community engagement practitioner, trainer, and scholar. Allyson brings more than 15 years of teaching, training, and facilitation experience to ORE, where she develops and implements racial equity training programs for District government employees as the Training Specialist. She has led workshops and professional learning experiences for the National Museum of African American History and Culture; National Association for Family, School, and Community Engagement; National Academy of Public Administration; US Department of Education; DC Public Schools; Alexandria City Public Schools; Black Women Bike DC; and more. Allyson’s recent accomplishments include producing the equity framework and narrative, related trainings, and the first agency-wide racial equity impact assessment (REIA) tools for the District of Columbia Department of Energy and Environment (DOEE). She co-authored Engagement for Equitable Outcomes: A Practitioner’s Playbook (Rowman & Littlefield) in 2022, and her previous publications include the essay “Engaging and Embracing Black Parents” in Teaching When the World is on Fire (The New Press, 2019), edited by MacArthur “genius” fellow Lisa Delpit. Allyson produced the Freedom Reads: Anti-Bias Book Talk mini-series (2020) and is the editor of three Teaching for Change publications: Parent-Principal Chats Manual (2019), Parent Organization Equity & Inclusion Tool (2017), and the second edition of Between Families and Schools: Creating Meaningful Relationships (2016).

Allyson holds a Master of Public Administration from GWU’s Trachtenberg School of Public Policy and Public Administration, and a Bachelor’s in US History from the University of North Carolina.

Taylor Battle has joined the Mayor’s Office of Racial Equity, as a Public Affairs Specialist from the Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement (ONSE). During her time at ONSE, Taylor served as a Program Analyst for the Pathways Program, a program that aims to decrease gun violence in the District and reduce participants’ chances of reentering the criminal justice system. In this role, Taylor assisted with program management, development, and implementation. She started her extensive government experience as a Capital City Fellow. Throughout her DC Government career, she has worked to address policy issues ranging from affordable housing and homelessness to criminal justice reform. Taylor loves all things social justice and is committed to working with people who are socially excluded and experience inequities in the distribution of power, resources, and opportunities.

Taylor holds a Bachelor’s degree in Public Policy from Syracuse University and Master’s degree in Strategic Communications from American University.