Allison Harrington
Senior Program Manager
Allison Harrington is a Senior Program Manager at BuildUS. She envisions a more compassionate and loving world, and believes in building partnerships that have sufficient power to shape policies, systems, and stories. She manages narrative and communications at BuildUS. Before joining BuildUS, Allison was a Program Manager at Open Society Foundations for five years, supporting and leading pro-democracy initiatives that spanned election integrity, national messaging, organizing, and policy campaigns. She previously led the Religion and Foreign Policy program at the Council on Foreign Relations. Allison holds a Bachelor Degree in American Studies from Tufts University and a Master of Theological Studies from Harvard University. She is a native of Providence, Rhode Island and lives in Washington, DC.
Arohi Pathak
Managing Director
Arohi Pathak is a managing director at BuildUS. She has a passion for racial and economic justice, having deep policy and advocacy expertise in a range of intersectional issues that affect family economic security, through leadership positions at the Center for American Progress and Prosperity Now. Additionally, Arohi brings a robust labor background to her role at BuildUS, having worked at both the SEIU and the AFL-CIO Tech Institute. Arohi holds a master's degree from American University’s School of International Studies, and lives in Silver Spring, MD.
Jill Fuglister
Managing Director
Jill Fuglister is a Managing Director at BuildUS, and is passionate about advancing solutions at the intersection of environmental and social justice. Before joining BuildUS, she led a consultancy focused on advancing environmental and social change through strategic research, program design, and collaboration. Prior to that, Jill spent nearly 13 years at Meyer Memorial Trust, where she oversaw a $8M annual environmental grantmaking portfolio, contributing to dozens of transformative climate and conservation policy wins, as well as meaningful progress in Indigenous landback efforts in Oregon. Jill began her career in policy and advocacy as a Co-Executive Director of the Coalition for a Livable Future, an urban sustainability organization focused on equitable and resilient metropolitan policy change. Jill earned a Master’s of Environmental Studies at the University of Oregon and a Bachelor’s in Government from the University of Notre Dame. She lives in Portland, Oregon with her partner and dog and is the proud parent of two young adult children.
Justin Maxson
Executive Director
Justin Maxson is Executive Director of BuildUS. Before joining BuildUS, Justin Maxson was a senior advisor at the Amalgamated Foundation, helping disadvantaged communities access federal resources. He previously served as Deputy Under Secretary for Rural Development at USDA in the Biden administration, where he helped launch the Rural Partners Network and shaped rural climate and development policy. Earlier, he was CEO of the Mary Reynolds Babcock Foundation, promoting economic opportunity and racial justice in the South, and president of the Mountain Association, a CDFI supporting sustainable economic development in central Appalachia. Maxson holds degrees in anthropology from the University of Kentucky and Boston University. He lives in Winston-Salem, NC, and has two young adult children.
Kokei Otosi
Senior Program Manager
Kokei Otosi is a Senior Program Manager at BuildUS. She brings a decade of experience at the intersection of public policy, climate innovation, and public-private partnerships. Prior to joining BuildUS, she held roles in management consulting, venture capital, and urban design. As a senior consultant at IBM, she advised corporate leaders on strategic growth opportunities. At Van Alen Institute, she led a critical workstream of a $200 million bond-funded program to deliver climate adaptation projects in Miami. Earlier in her career at New York City Economic Development Corporation, she co-led RISE : NYC, a $30 million climate resilience program that piloted innovative technologies to help the city prepare for future climate risks. Kokei earned an MBA from the Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley, and a BS in Public Health from New York University.
Manu Prakasam
Program Manager
Manu Prakasam is a Program Manager at BuildUS, having joined in 2023 prior to its public launch. At BuildUS, he has supported establishing operations and has focused on the fund's worker empowerment and tools portfolios. Before BuildUS, Manu spent several years on the strategy team at Rivian, where he contributed to major projects including the company’s IPO and site selection for a multi-billion dollar second production plant. He holds a B.S. in Electrical Engineering & Computer Science from the University of California, Berkeley, where he also led a student-run consulting organization focused on environmental and social responsibility.
Sarabeth Harrelson
Operations Director
Sarabeth is Operations Director at BuildUS. She brings a passion for creating systems that serve people to operations and administration work. Having spent over a decade in the nonprofit sector, Sarabeth knows that thoughtful administrative systems are an essential part of the work–and that without them, we will replicate the same oppressive systems we seek to dismantle in the world. Sarabeth has held administrative and operations leadership roles at several organizations focused on equity and human rights including Health Global Access Project, Open Society Foundations, and the International Rescue Committee. Sarabeth holds a Masters in International Development from the Josef Korbel School of International Studies at the University of Denver in Colorado.