AyeNay Abye, MPA

CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER
AyeNay Abye, MPA is the Chief Executive Officer and founding staff member of the Tubman Center for Health and Freedom. AyeNay has led community organizing efforts for over two decades. In their previous role as Deputy Director for Seattle University’s Center for Community Engagement, AyeNay led external partnerships and strategy. This includes the Seattle University Youth Initiative (SUYI), a place-based community engagement model in partnership with the surrounding neighborhoods. Prior to that, AyeNay was the National Field Director for The Praxis Project, a movement building intermediary that supports organizing and change work by people of color at local, regional, and national levels. In this role, AyeNay worked to advance Communities Creating Healthy Environments (CCHE), a national capacity building initiative to support diverse, community-based organizations and Indigenous groups in developing effective, cutting-edge, and culturally competent policy initiatives in over 22 cities in the United States.
  • Superpower: I’m a visual learner who loves people. Being out and about—connecting, observing, and enjoying life’s daily gifts—keeps me happy and busy. Making connections is my jam, whether it’s ideas, patterns, people, or processes.
  • Kryptonite: Fishing! I might leave work early to hit the water. 
  • Known on the streets for:  A killer jumpshot, cooking, and being my parents’ child. Both of my parents are/were community-centered, dedicated to the people, and always seeking higher ground for all of us.
  • When not at work: I’m hanging out with my spouse and kids, and visiting family in California and Washington, D.C.
  • I identify as: Black, African American and Ethiopian, non-binary, queer, artist, baller, strategist and family member.
  • I dedicate my work at the Tubman Center for Health & Freedom to…: The health and freedom of myself, my family, my community, my neighbors, my neighborhood, the city, Washingtonians, my colleagues, my grandkids, your grandkids, and to building healthy systems—organizations, policies, and procedures—that enable health justice for generations to come. Today, we are designing tomorrow.