Staff and Volunteers 2020

Executive Director

Katie Koestner (she/her)

Katie Koestner is the first woman in the United States to speak out nationally and publicly as the victim of campus “date” rape at age 18. Katie has been featured on the cover of TIME Magazine, The Oprah Winfrey Show, NBC Nightly News, CNBC Talk Live, CNN, Larry King Live, Good Morning America, Later Today, MSNBC, Entertainment Tonight and other national television programs. Katie is the subject of an HBO movie and has lectured for over 5000 schools and organizations in North America and around the world.

Legal Coordinator

Amanda Blaugher (she/her)

Amanda Blaugher serves as the Program Director for the Take Back The Night Foundation and is the Assistant Director of Residence Life at Penn State Harrisburg. Amanda oversees national campaigns such as 10 Points of Light and Respect My Red for the Take Back The Night Foundation. She works with school, colleges, and communities to help them organize their walks, runs, vigils and other programming components. She is the Conference Program Coordinator for Respect My Red: The International Summit to End Sexual Violence. Amanda works tirelessly to assist event holders around the globe with planning and organizing their walks, runs, vigils and educational programs. Holding a Master’s Degree in Counseling from Shippensburg University, Amanda has been committed to raising awareness about all forms of sexual violence since she was a college student, at which time she created a Women’s Empowerment Program that oversaw all programming efforts on campus around sexual violence and healthy relationships. She has presented to over 200,000 students and professionals at more than 100 colleges, universities, military bases, corporations, non-profits and high schools across the country on sexual
violence and healthy relationships.

Program Director

Sarah Stuparits (she/her)

Sarah began her work for Take Back the Night Foundation by managing the Shine Your Light Yoga Festival, a nationwide event with the goal to make the healing powers of trauma-informed yoga accessible to survivors everywhere. She holds a Bachelor’s degree from Loyola University Chicago in International Studies and English. Sarah is currently attending University of Northern Colorado Graduate School, working towards becoming a Board Certified Behavior Analyst and working as a Registered Behavior Technician currently. Sarah has spent her life searching for positions that allow her to help others and make the world a better place and has finally found that! She aspires to spend her life allowing the voiceless to have a voice and teaching others to advocate for themselves and heal from trauma. She plans to learn the science behind behavior and apply it to make changes both in individuals’ lives, and the world of social justice as a whole.

Director of Products and Services

Amy Tilton (she/her)

Amy Tilton serves as the Director of Products and Services for Take Back the Night Foundation. Amy coordinates the biannual TBTN Global Virtual Event and manages the TBTN Gear Shop. She provides technical direction to participants and volunteers for national TBTN projects and events, such as the Shine Your Light Yoga Festival. Amy believes deeply in working to end sexual violence and support survivors, and she is honored to partner with Take Back the Night in this work. With a Bachelor’s Degree in Health Sciences and professional experience in the e-commerce and medical fields, Amy brings business acumen and a passion for health and wellness to Take Back the Night Foundation. She owns and operates Shop For Good, an online retailer which donates a portion of all sales to charitable causes. She and her husband James serve as foster parents in Lancaster, California.

Project Coordinator

Lahari Ramagiri (she/her)

Lahari Ramagiri is an Honors student at the Virginia Commonwealth University, pursuing a Bachelor of Science degree in biology. She is dedicated to supporting victims of sexual violence through her work on the Shine Your Light Yoga team. She is pursuing a career in the medical field, where she hopes to continue to help trauma victims heal.

Sponsorship Coordinator

Ayda Zeynep Oktem (she/her)

Ayda is a junior attending Washington University in St. Louis, double majoring in Global Health and Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies and minoring in Biology. She is an intern with NARAL Pro-Choice Missouri, studying the accessibility of judicial bypasses in each Missouri county. Ayda is also a clinic escort with Planned Parenthood, and tutors Syrian high schoolers in Turkish so that they can attend college in Turkey.

Outreach Coordinator

Jacquelyn Perrotti (she/her)

Jackie Perrotti is the Outreach Coordinator at Take Back the Night where she identifies and engages companies with like-minded values and missions for participation in TBTN events and also assists with TBTN website updates. Jackie is a Project Manager in New York City and former graduate of Nichols College where she majored in International Business and minored in Business Communication. Jackie joined the TBTN Foundation because she is passionate about ending sexual and domestic violence as well as creating a safe space where survivors are provided support and resources.

Social Media Coordinator

Hope Delaney (she/her)

Hope is a junior currently attending Radnor High School and has achieved distinguished honor roll for the past two years. In college, she plans to compete in division 1 field hockey attending an Ivy League University. Hope feels passionate about contributing to the team with her designing abilities and creative writing skills. Outside of academics, she enjoys baking and photography.

Research Coordinator

Kira Schaefer (she/her)

Kira Schaefer is a senior at The Ursuline School in New York. She is extremely passionate about women’s rights and is the Secretary of the Women for Women International Club at her school. She does musical theater and has performed at institutions such as Alvin Ailey and Lincoln Center. She hopes to pursue a degree in law and continue her interest in civil rights.

Historian

Petra Jiraskova (she/her)

Petra immigrated to the United States at the age of 13 from the Czech Republic. In 2014, Petra received her B.A. from Arcadia University with a major in International Studies and a minor in History. In 2017, Petra returned to Arcadia University, where she completed her M.A. in International Peace and Conflict Resolution with concentrations in Social Justice, Advocacy and Activism and NGO management and Social Entrepreneurship with distinguished honors in December 2018. In 2019, Petra became a member of the Phi Beta Delta Honor Society for International Scholars. Petra completed her graduate internship with Amnesty International in Prague that inspired her capstone project, “The Education of Romani Children in the Czech Republic, a Stakeholder Analysis of Issues and Solutions.”  She has previously co-facilitated at the annual MLK Conference and assisted with Peace and Justice Studies Association PJSA Conference hosted by Arcadia University. Currently, Petra is a volunteer at TBTN as a Historian. Petra also does work for the Peace Center as a facilitator in hopes of bringing peace, kindness, support, and empathy to our communities.

Newsletter Coordinator

Emily Wang (she/her)

Emily is currently a senior at the University of Michigan studying Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology, with a minor in Gender and Health. She joined TBTN in 2020 because of her passion for sexual violence prevention work, and she hopes to bring a trauma-informed perspective to her future career as a medical professional.

Technology Coordinator

Grace Brandon (she/her)

Being in the events world brought Take Back the Night Foundation to Grace’s attention; however, it is the foundation’s mission and goals that drove her desire to volunteer and start advocating for this community. As a woman, Grace feels it is crucial to actively speak out against all forms of sexual violence and help create a safe, loving and respectful world of for all people to flourish. One of her favorite quotes is: “Great leadership isn’t about control. It’s about empowering people” (Brigette Hyacinth), and Grace believes it is applicable to every aspect of TBTN foundation. The empowerment TBTN gives to others is unmatched and something Grace wanted to be a part of.

Web Coordinator

Rebecca Freeman (she/her)

Rebecca Freeman recently graduated with distinction from Western Washington University where she studied history and communications. A lifelong advocate for human rights and social justice, she is passionate about Take Back the Night’s mission to educate and raise awareness for domestic abuse and sexual violence. Being a freelance social media marketing specialist and content writer, she is excited to contribute to TBTN as a volunteer SEO specialist.

Volunteer

Tierra Barber (she/her)

Tierra Barber strives to help others become the best version of themselves through education and health and wellness. Professionally she serves as an Assistant Director of Admissions for Central Michigan University. Through this role she enjoys connecting with students globally and guiding them along their educational path. She believes that everyone deserves the opportunity to pursue higher education and that learning is a life long process.

Barber graduated from Baylor University with both her undergraduate and graduate degrees, majoring in Health Science Studies and Exercise Physiology, respectively.

She previously worked for Baylor University as the Assistant Athletics Director for Student-Athlete Development. She oversaw the personal development of student-athletes in the areas of college and professional transition, leadership, career development, and community engagement. The program offered growth and enhancement opportunities for all 550 Baylor student-athletes. She also served as the Study Hall and Tutor Coordinator and as an Academic Advisor before transitioning into Student-Athlete Development.

Other professional experiences include serving as a floating member of the NCAA Task Force Teams; former Chair of the N4A Life Skills Committee and Board of Directors; facilitator for the NCAA Career in Sports and Leadership Forums; presenter at N4A national convention, NCAA Life Skills Symposium and NFL Prep 100; trained facilitator for Habitudes leadership curriculum;  a graduate of the 2011 NCAA Leadership Institute and also completed the Athlete Development Professional Certification Program with The Wharton School.

Tierra’s has always had a passion for health and wellness. She also currently serves on the management team of a yoga studio where she also teaches and mentors the teachers in training. You can find Tierra teaching regular yoga, meditation, and fitness classes in the studio and throughout the local community. Through her teachings, she guides others along their path towards a healthier holistic lifestyle through the integration of the mind-body-spirit and yoga.

Volunteer

Renata Gloeden (she/her)

Renata has a degree in Data Processing but likes to work with people. She has experience in auditing and security information. She works in a large bank in Brazil to educate employees and society about fraud prevention, social media risks, and private information exposure. She devotes her time and experience to helping people in this great cause to end sexual violence. She is Brazilian, lives in NY, is married and has two wonderful kids.

Volunteer

Taylor Hendrickson (she/her)

Taylor Hendrickson graduated from Breck School in Golden Valley, Minnesota in 2016. Passionate about human rights and women’s issues, Taylor became involved in the Summit to End Sexual Violence when she approached Katie Koestner after Ms. Koestner spoke at her school. Taylor plans to study International Relations at university and hopes to work abroad after completing her education.

Volunteer

Erica Zenn (she/her)

Erica Zenn is recent graduate of Cornell University where she earned a degree in American Studies. While she is currently volunteering with the Respect My Red campaign, promoting respectful and consented physical contact for all people, in the past she has volunteered at the Association to Benefit Children (ABC) and Reading is Fundamental (RIF). Erica has traveled to places like South Africa, China, Sri Lanka, and Japan to volunteer with children using jumping rope as a vehicle for social change. Through her experiences and her studies, she has become a staunch human rights supporter. Erica is thrilled about the opportunity to be a part of the International Summit to End Sexual Violence because of the surplus of positive, strong, and committed individuals she has met thus far, and she truly believes in the power of knowledge and education in the realm of ending sexual violence.

Volunteer

Kellianne Hickey (she/her)

Kellianne Hickey is a 2016 graduate of Loyola University Maryland and a New Canaan, CT native. She double-majored in Global Studies and Political Science with a minor in Spanish and studied abroad in Alcalá de Henares, Spain her junior year. For her senior seminar project, she worked with administrators to spread awareness of Title IX rights on campus, through programming events, a new website, and a short video. An active member of Take Back the Night at Loyola, Kellianne hopes to pursue a career in law advocating for survivors of sexual violence. She currently works as a Project Manager with Campus Outreach Services.