Staff

Lesha Farias began her career as VISTA Supervisor with Ohio Campus Compact in January 2003 when the VISTA Program consisted of 18 VISTAs working in literacy, community outreach, and service learning. Now in her eighth year, the OCC VISTA Program is the second oldest and one of the largest Campus Compact VISTA programs in the country, transforming campus and community through service and social action. Under her direction, the OCC VISTA Program now consists of 32 VISTAs working in their campus communities on specific poverty alleviation focus areas, like college access, Ohio Benefit Bank and Volunteer Income Tax Assistance, food security, veteran student services, nonprofit capacity building, housing and homelessness, Bridges Out of Poverty and public health. As the VISTA Program has grown so has Lesha’s interest and involvement in local community empowerment and social change. Through the Sixth Street & Growing Community Gardens initiative, she is working to bring community gardens to the forgotten neighborhoods of Newark as a means for revitalization and renewal. Her other current community organizing work includes the St. Vincent de Paul Society of St. Francis de Sales Catholic Church, the Bridges Out of Poverty Guiding Coalition, and the Newark Freedom School. She fully belongs to her community, and has learned to think globally and act locally as an embedded citizen of her birthplace.

Susan serves as Ohio Campus Compact’s Program Director for Outreach & Engagement.  In this capacity, she is responsible for coordinating professional development training for college community service directors as well as organizing regional meetings for member campuses and AmeriCorps VISTA alumni.  Susan also manages organizational communications, marketing and resource development programs. Prior to joining the Ohio Campus Compact team, Susan served as the Denison University Environmental Studies Program Manager and also worked for over eight years at the Ohio Environmental Council.  Susan is a returned Peace Corps Volunteer and board member of the nonprofit Amazon Partnerships Foundation.  When not conducting outreach to Ohio Campus Compact member institutions, Susan can be found at her family’s farm where she helps her mother grow organic flowers for Buckeye Blooms.

Brenna Limbrick directly supports the OCC VISTA team, as well as the Program Director, Lesha Farias. She started at OCC in May 2011 and thoroughly enjoys supporting the poverty alleviation efforts of the VISTA program. Each day at OCC is different: she might be in the office one day working on a presentation, and the next day travelling to a corner of the state for a campus site visit. Brenna has a degree in Computer Information Systems that she utilizes to assist at OCC with technology upgrades, design presentation and technical training. She is dedicated to her young son, who was born in 2009, and is pursuing her interests in photography and her growing interest in sustainable agriculture.