Administrative Staff
Akela Franklin
Executive Assistant
Akela is a classical soprano, music educator, theatre director, and arts administrator originally from Oakland, California. She comes from a family of non-profit workers and has been passionate about community engagement and advocacy for equity from a young age. As a teenager, Akela frequently volunteered with Bay Area Parent Leadership Action Network , an organization founded in 2004 by her mother, Melia Franklin. Through observing Melia and her colleagues dedicate themselves to empowering low income, immigrant parents of color to advocate for their children in California's inequitable school system, Akela became inspired to one day use her own strengths and skill set to make a difference in the non-profit sector. Fast forward about ten years... with its emphasis in music, education, inclusion, and social action, YoFES ended up being a natural fit!
Akela has served as Mishella Etienne-Campbell's assistant since September 2019 and has been affiliated with YoFES since 2018. In addition to her work at YoFES, she teaches and performs in a variety of venues across the city. Akela holds a Bachelor of Music from University of Puget Sound (2015) and Master of Music from Longy School of Music of Bard College (2018).
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Marie Caelle Vincent
Administrative Assistant
Caelle Vincent is a senior at City On a Hill Charter Public School and is looking forward to attending college this fall. When she is not at school, she volunteers at 826 Boston and provides homework help to students in grade 1-8. She recently took psychology at Roxbury Community College and an introductory business course at Wentworth Institute of Technology. In the future, Caelle hopes to lead a career in the law sector because she cares deeply about helping people who are suffering and without resources. She isn't sure yet what type of lawyer she wants to be, but she is especially passionate about improving immigration policy, creating change for children in unstable or dangerous home environments, and helping to fix the shortcomings of the U.S. justice system.
Throughout high school., Caelle has participated in a number of extracurricular activities including track and field, Harvard Model Congress, and lending her services to after school programs like YoFES. Caelle has been involved with YoFES since summer 2019 and currently serves as Akela's assistant in the office.
Dr. Guy Apollon
Project SMART Coordinator
Dr. Apollon's medical focus is in tropical dermatology, with a sub-specialty in the study and treatment of leprosy. He has also worked for more than a decade in the sexual health field, during which time he has mastered the development and implementation of effective sexual education programming. Prior to his recent retirement, Dr. Apollon provided medical care to seniors at the North Shore Haitian Adult Day Health Center in Malden, MA for 24 years.
In addition to his medical expertise, Dr. Apollon is also a licensed social worker. For many years, he has been dedicated to providing social services to Haitian Immigrants in the greater Boston area. He was recognized in 2011 by Boston University's School of Social Work as the "Social Worker of the Year."
Dr. Apollon has served the coordinator of YoFES's targeted health initiative, Project SMART, since September of 2019.
MD, MSW, LCSW