The Community
Our mission is to foster the full potential of people with criminal records through Pre-entry and showcasing their successes, humanity, and agency through Correcting the Narrative.
Our mission is to foster the full potential of people with criminal records through Pre-entry and showcasing their successes, humanity, and agency through Correcting the Narrative.
Latest Video, Podcast episode, and Newsletter Issue
Our Latest Video
Correcting the Narrative – Haisan Williams
Our Latest Podcast
Marlon Chamberlain, Campaign Manager for the Fully Free Campaign
Our Latest Issue
Issue 39 – September 2023
All In All Out is a podcast partnership between The Community and the Milwaukee School of Engineering University Scholars Honors Program. It explores the nuance of topics and promotes greater collaboration in the reentry/reform/decarceration ecosystem in Wisconsin, as well as showcasing the successes, humanity, and agency of people with criminal records.
How to support this work

Donate with PayPal
Make a one-time donation or sign up for monthly donations here.

Donate with CashApp
Click the icon or use $thecommunitynow on the CashApp app.

Donate with Venmo
Click the icon or use @thecommunitynow on the Venmo app.

Heather Langton Photography
Heather Langton Photography captures the vibrance of unfiltered nature to bring renewed hope and healing to those who need it. They donate 25% of profits from photography purchases to The Community.

Dev Cabin Technologies
Dev Cabin Technologies offers digital solutions for your business or personal needs, whether you need web design and development, apps, digital marketing, and more. Use the name “The Community” and they will donate 20% to us.

Donate with PayPal
Make a one-time donation or sign up for monthly donations here.

Donate with CashApp
Click the icon or use $thecommunitynow on the app.

Donate with Venmo
Click the icon or use @thecommunitynow on the app.

Heather Langton Photography
Heather Langton Photography captures the vibrance of unfiltered nature to bring renewed hope and healing to those who need it. They donate 25% of profits from photography purchases to us.

Dev Cabin Technologies
Dev Cabin Technologies offers digital solutions for your business or personal needs, whether you need web design and development, apps, digital marketing, or more. Use the name “The Community” and they will donate 10% to us.
Our Team

Shannon Ross
Executive Director
Shannon Ross was born to biracial parents and raised on Milwaukee’s north side, where he received a 17 year prison sentence for a violent crime when he was 19. Over the course of his incarceration, he acquired his bachelor’s degree in business administration, created and ran a mental health program in the prison for 2 years that still exits, had several articles published locally and nationally, and founded The Community with invaluable outside support in 2014. Since his release in 2020, Shannon is also a founding partner of Multidimensional Justice Solutions firm called Paradigm Shyft, an Education Trust fellow, a Marquette University EPP fellow, a graduate of the Masters in Sustainable Peacebuilding program at the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee, and a first time father.

Roy Rogers
Preentry Liaison & Information Analyst
Roy is a public speaker, advocate for “juvenile lifers” in the Wisconsin prison system, and an associate of the Wisconsin Alliance For Youth Justice (WAYJ). Roy has over two decades of experience mentoring and counseling youth during his 28 years in prison from the age of 16. He is a graduate of the Madison Area Technical College and certified in Entry Level IT training at the New Horizons Computer Learning Center in Milwaukee and CompTIA ITF. And he also serves as a musician at the Progressive Baptist Church.

Kaleigh Atkinson
Promotions and Communications
As an artist, the mantra we are the walking wounded has tremendously impacted Kaleigh’s vision. The main influence on her work is that of selfless service. She believes documentary film, installation art, and vulnerability through storytelling are powerful tools that advance consciousness + compassion in humanity.

Robert Taliaferro
Robert is a veteran of the US Army, a working journalist, graphic artist, and community activist currently living in Minnesota, after serving over 38 years of confinement. During his confinement, he edited The Prison Mirror newspaper at the Minnesota Correctional Institution at Stillwater from 1985-1989, winning numerous journalism awards in the process. His work has been published in News and Letters Committees, and several other publications, and he is the author of Always Color Outside the Lines: Freedom for the Artist Within (2018). He recently graduated from Metro State University in St Paul, MN, where he was the Outstanding Student Award recipient for the College of Individualized Studies and gave the Commencement address. Robert is beginning his Graduate Degree in the fall where he will be majoring in Urban Developmental Initiatives. He will also be pursuing a Graduate Certificate in Adult Education. He is a member of the National Society of Leadership Success, the Society of Professional Journalists, and other community-based organizations.

Megan Czarnyszka
Megan is a compassionate and driven individual who is deeply passionate about social justice and helping others. With extensive experience in brand marketing, she skillfully combines her professional expertise with empathy and humor in her work. Her journey exemplifies the powerful impact of merging expertise with a genuine desire to make the world a more equitable and compassionate place.
Our Directors

Tracie Sparks - President
Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion and Belonging Manager - North America for Manpower

Ryan Ramnarace - Vice President
Founding member of Formerly Incarcerated College Graduates Network

Iran Amandah - Treasurer
Co-founder of LRL Capital

Catherine Pederson
Founder & Executive Director of Loving Venti

Aldira Aldape - Secretary
Business Office Manager at the Milwaukee Police Association

Keith Stanley
President and CEO at University City Partners, Inc.

Kobena-Marcus J. Collins
Diversity & Inclusion Professional

Peter Borg
Marquette University Professor and Consulting Historian

Daniel Rivera
Deputy Sheriff and 40 Under 40 class of 2023

Nikia Woodard
Behavior Health and Social Program Administrator and Former Probation and Parole Agent with DOC, Division of Community Corrections

Kelli Thompson
Head Wisconsin Public Defender