Jessica Daugherty, MPP                                      

Founder and Principal

Jessica is a policy analyst, program strategist, and community organizer whose career is fixated on driving social change in increasingly impactful ways. The first ten years of her career were spent as a direct issue area community organizer during which she developed programs at a Liberian refugee camp in Ghana, helped unionize female laborers in Guatemala, organized a 100,000 person march for immigration reform in San Diego, developed civic engagement campaigns with justice involved youth, helped monolingual Spanish speaking parents challenge the educational status quo in Los Angeles, and develop state-level policies around youth development and youth incarceration. Jessica understands social change and believes that anything done to study, improve, or create something in a community MUST include those the program, policy, or initiative seeks to impact.

Jessica has an extensive background developing cross-sector collaborations that include non-profit, public, and private sector entities to forge collective action. Her diverse background working in direct service non-profits paired with her experience working with elected officials and government agencies provides her with a global lens through which she forges partnerships and develops implementable programs that work for all parties while building their internal capacity to do more.   

Jessica believes that the recipe for sustained social change must include a combination of passionate grassroots social movements, cross-sector collaboration, and data-driven policy analysis.  Her experience in the non-profit, public, private, and academic sectors, made her keenly aware of the disconnect that exists between groups that often desire the same things, yet too often do not have the time or know-how to create such change. Given this, Jessica founded Cause IMPACTS to break down the silos that exist between sectors, to motivate social innovation, and to cause impacts on the social and environmental issues that she is passionate about! Jessica earned a Master of Public Policy from the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs and Bachelors in Global Studies from UC Santa Barbara.  She lives with her husband and two sons in Inglewood, California and spends her free time chasing her two sons outdoors.

David Hanson, Ph.D.

Director of Evaluation and Social Equity

David is a passionate advocate for utilizing evaluation and social science as tools for liberation and social justice. In particular, he believes that evaluation, when done right, can dismantle systemic oppression and promote equitable futures, particularly for marginalized and underrepresented communities. He is committed to centering community voices, challenging dominant narratives, and using data and insights for advocacy and liberation.

Prior to Cause IMPACTS, he worked at various consulting firms such as Social Contract and Equal Measure where he led impactful projects in environmental justice, health equity, DEI strategic planning, and service delivery innovation. He has also honed his skills in collaborative leadership, data analysis, program evaluation, and community engagement through his work with the UF/IFAS Family Nutrition Program and the UF School of Forest, Fisheries, and Geomatics Sciences.

David is a lifelong learner and holds a Ph.D. in Forest Resources and Conservation (Environmental Social Science) from the University of Florida, as well as graduate degrees in Human Geography and Agribusiness. He is also a Leader in Equitable Evaluation and Diversity (LEEAD) Scholar and an Environmental Leadership Program Senior Fellow. His commitment to social impact is evident in his volunteer work and professional memberships with organizations such as the Eastern Evaluation Research Society, the American Evaluation Association, the Third Sector Capital Partners Advisory Board, and the Delaware Nature Society DEIJ Sub-Committee.

In his spare time, David enjoys reading speculative fiction, community gardening, pickleball, and hiking/biking/walking in nature. He lives with his family in southeastern Pennsylvania.

Anum Ali Mohammed, MSc

Director of Research and Data Analytics

Anum is a social impact-driven data leader based in Atlanta, Georgia. She is passionate about leveraging research and data analytics to advance equity and economic mobility for women, people of color, and other historically underserved communities.

Prior to joining Cause IMPACTS, Anum served as the Assistant Director of Data Operations at Invest Atlanta, the City’s economic development authority, where she established the organization’s first in-house data team. Anum has also served as a lead analyst in the education and nonprofit space, working at organizations such as Summit Public Schools and Mending Kids International.

Anum holds a bachelor's degree in Anthropology from Emory University, a Master’s of Science in Global Medicine from USC, and a certificate in Data Analytics from Georgia Tech. In her free time, she enjoys exploring Atlanta’s diverse food and arts scene and spending time in the kitchen connecting with her Pakistani roots.

Sophia Jimenez, BA

Senior Consultant

Sophia is a native Angeleno with over a decade of non-profit experience. She finds great pride in working with local communities and equipping them with tools they need to bridge educational gaps, develop leaders, and attain the resources needed to thrive.

Sophia began her career by offering college access programs to families, students, and teachers in her local community of South Los Angeles. Prior to joining Cause IMPACTS, Sophia served on the national leadership team for CollegeSpring as their Head of Partner Success where she oversaw program operations, implementation, and partnerships across 3 regions. She also served as the Executive Director of Spark Los Angeles, a middle school career exploration program. Sophia combines her passion for running programs, managing teams, and building cross-sector partnerships to effectively lead organizations, particularly during times of transition.

Sophia obtained her Bachelor's degree in Psychology and minored in Education and Chicana/o Studies at UCLA.  During her free time, Sophia enjoys spending time with her husband and daughter and large extended family.

Josh Shapiro, PhD

Data Scientist (Wizard)

Josh is a researcher, educator, and data scientist who specializes in helping people understand and use data to develop clear actionable insights. His current evaluation projects cover a wide range of topics from healthcare, advanced manufacturing, STEM education, to the role of philanthropy in economic development. He has worked on a number of labor market and innovation reports including a grant from the National Science Foundation on the role social and cultural dynamics play in regional economic development. Dr. Shapiro was one of the core evaluators on the effectiveness of the Department of Labor’s $500 million WIRED initiative, which involved 15 regions across the United States. Additionally, he has conducted a number of community-based research projects building indicators and dashboards to measure collective impact as well as working with non-profits throughout San Diego to demonstrate social change.

Dr. Shapiro has taught classes on Research Methodology for UC San Diego and is trained in both Qualitative and Quantitative methodologies with a specialization in labor market data. Before attending graduate school he worked in the Conflict Resolution field in Washington D.C., was a public school teacher in South Carolina, and built homes with Habitat for Humanity in Louisiana.

Dr. Shapiro holds a Ph.D. and M.A. in Sociology from the University of California, San Diego and a B.A. in Social Thought and Analysis from Washington University in St. Louis.