Three new members have been elected the Board of Trustees of the New Jersey Council for the Humanities (NJCH). The new members, Tracey Nguyễn Mang, Sierra Van Ryck DeGroot, and Mary Marino, will serve three-year terms beginning in 2024.
Tracey Nguyễn Mang was born in Vietnam and came to the United States as part of the Vietnamese refugee exodus, also known as the “Boat People” migration, following the end of the Vietnam War. In 2018, inspired by her family’s refugee story, she started Vietnamese Boat People (VBP), a podcast and nonprofit organization, to preserve stories from the community and empower others in exploring their family histories and personal narratives. Her focus at VBP is to transform traditional oral histories into accessible storytelling formats aiming to amplify marginalized voices. Tracey is a frequent speaker on topics such as Asian American Narratives, Multimedia Storytelling, Employee Engagement through Social Impact, and User Experiences. Beyond her philanthropic work, Tracey is also a real estate consultant with West of Hudson. She is a mother of two and resides in Montclair.
Sierra Van Ryck deGroot is the Assistant Educator, College and University Programs, at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. A proud alumna of the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Leadership Program at Seton Hall University, Sierra holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Seton Hall University in Fine Arts, Art History, and Art and Interactive Media, as well as a Master of Science in Education from Bank Street College of Education, specializing in Museum Education and Childhood Education. During her tenure in the arts and cultural heritage sector, Sierra has become known for her advocacy for arts and cultural workers around salary transparency, actionable equity in hiring and recruitment practices, the abolition of unpaid internships, and the practice of rest.
Mary Marino is the owner of Mary Marino Designs, a fashion house that creates limited edition, one-of-a-kind, and bespoke fashion pieces with a foremost commitment to sustainability. Mary uses recycled denim, vintage discards, and fabrics from the “aftermarket,” goods that are of no further use to the original manufacturer, for her collections. Mary built her company after a long career in the fashion industry. She is also a supporter of civic causes and has served on the boards of Family Service League and SAVE of ESSEX County.
Meet them and their fellow board members at https://njhumanities.org/about/board/.
