Assistant to the County Manager in Durham, North Carolina for eight years, Dionne manages special projects in the County Manager’s office and is currently leading an organization-wide initiative to develop a communication and engagement strategy for Durham County Government. Throughout her career her goal has been to improve the quality of life for traditionally marginalized communities by developing institutional structures of racial and social equity that provide comprehensive access to resources and opportunities.

While earning a bachelor’s degree in Architecture, a master’s degree in Historic Preservation, and a second master’s degree in City and Regional Planning, Dionne began to shape her perspective of the social and physical determinants of health. Her interest in this area is focused on: (1) the historical, social, cultural, political, and economic contexts in which communities exist; (2) the use of physical spaces and places; and (3) how racially equitable collaboration in the aforementioned contexts between community and local government have the potential to improve a community’s quality of life.

At Durham County Government, Dionne is working methodically to develop consistent engagement structures and mechanisms across the organization that are based in racial equity, to ensure that Durham residents are afforded opportunities to collaborate with local government in the full cycle of decision-making processes that impact identification and delivery of public resources that address community needs.