Staff

Anna Lifson, MSW, LICSW, (she/they) currently serves as Women's Center Assistant Director and adjunct/community faculty in the School of Social Work.  Originally hailing from Madison, WI, Anna is a graduate of Macalester College, UMN-Twin Cities, and many incredible community-based training programs. Anna's career has spanned a breadth of roles in education, health care, non-profit organizations and small businesses. Anna values the pursuit of intersectional gender justice, trauma healing, relational accountability and systemic transformation toward collective liberation. Anna's cup is filled by laughing, reading, singing, swimming, strolling, stretching, snacking, and snuggling cute canines.

Sonyna Castillo (She/Her/Ella), who identifies as a L/Dakota, Chicana woman, is the Program Coordinator for the Women's Center here at the University of Minnesota, where she supports programs that empower women and foster equity across campus. With a strong commitment to advocacy and education, she works closely with the American Indian community and students to create inclusive spaces and culturally responsive initiatives. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Family Social Sciences and is currently pursuing her master’s degree in Social Work with a focus on Families & Children. Passionate about community-building and student support, Sonyna brings warmth, insight, and dedication to her work every day.

A native of Raymond, Mississippi, Dr. Roby is a research-practitioner and higher education administrator. For more than a decade, Dr. Roby has worked at the intersections of race, gender, and science, which can be reflected in her professional experiences at the Office of Equity and Diversity at Washington State University as well as her administrative and postdoctoral teaching and community-engaged research experiences at Michigan State University, the Fisk-Vanderbilt Regional Center of Excellence, and most recently at the Margaret Cuninggim Women’s Center at Vanderbilt University.