Events

Joanne made her first trip to WISE Zambia’s headquarters in Kaoma in 2013. That adventure led to a lifelong commitment to the nonprofit. She visits every year — except during the worst of COVID-19 — and has taken several small teams and individuals from the US to Kaoma and environs. Her relationships with staff and students in Zambia provide the inspiration for her advocacy and devotion to the work. Joanne was Board President for one three-year term and in 2022-’23 serves as both Secretary and Interim Board Chair as WISE transitions to a governing board. She presents the WISE Zambia story for schools, churches, and civic groups, and on radio and television. In addition, she tours the US occasionally, creating friends for WISE through presentations and fundraisers. 

Joanne enjoyed a career as a singer, music educator, and choral director, with a degree in music from Indiana University. She’s grateful to the many individual donors who provide the majority of WISE Zambia’s funding; to her home Rotary Club of Lewiston-Auburn, ME and its activism in facilatating District International Grants for WISE; and to HDR Foundation for its generous support. With two grown children who live in Maine, a son in Austin, TX and two grandchildren, she is also known as “Kuku Jo-Jo” to her many “grandchildren” in Kaoma.

Emily Ball Cicchini, PhD
Executive Director

Serving as the Executive Director, Emily has balanced BookSpring’s hopeful vision for the future with its strong tradition of promoting reading in the home since 2015. She’s inspired by the critical work of sustaining a steady stream of the right books to the right kids at the right time. She has over 30 years of experience in nonprofit and education sectors, including leadership roles with Texans for the Arts, VSA Arts of Texas, ZACH Theatre, The University of Texas at Austin, The International Centre for Women Playwrights, and One Voice Central Texas. Her work is guided by a strong interest in social justice, access to knowledge for all, and a deep passion for language and stories. She’s a prolific and award-winning writer in a variety of genres. As a lifelong learner with a BFA in Theatre, MFA in Dramatic Writing, and Ph.D. in Organizational Communication and Technology, she loves poetry and enjoys gardening and space-watching with her family. Her favorite children’s book is The Golden Books of Poems for the Very Young by Louis Untermeyer, pictures by Joan Walsh Anglund, and also the Basher Science Series.

Jessy Morris
Volunteer Coordinator

No matter if you’re an individual looking for a way to give back or leading a group of volunteers for a team building event, Jessy is the person to reach for helpful activities across all programs and book donation deliveries. Jessy recruits, trains, and oversees all BookSpring volunteers, and also manages our Open Book and BookSpring Days community based partnerships. She helps manage book donation requests and coordinates with our partners to connect the books we receive with those who need them. Before joining this staff, Jessy worked as a Literacy Tutor through AmeriCorps, helping students in first and second grade improve their reading skills. Outside of her role at BookSpring, she likes to make new clothes, repurpose secondhand items into unique pieces, play guitar, and practice yoga. Her favorite children’s books are the Madeline series.

"Community and Collaboration” are key to success.  In today's world we need people more than ever.  Thom Singer has been turning live events into human laboratories for over 15 years, allowing the participants to have more meaningful conversations while on site and long after the conference is over.

As COE at the Austin Technology Council and a professional speaker on the topic of human connection and trust, Thom brings his high energy presentations and action-oriented content corporate and association audiences. Thom knows that as the speaker or master of ceremonies he has a responsibility to set the tone for a strong conference attendee experience. Known as "The Conference Catalyst" he creates an atmosphere of fun and interaction that lasts beyond his presentation. His most popular keynote, “Uncommon Connections: We are stronger together” is the right message for our turbulent times.

He earned his Certified Speaking Professional (CSP) in 2014 and is committed to the business of meetings.  He is the author of 12 books and is the host of five podcasts;  "Making Wave at C-Level" podcast, the “Digital Enterprise Society Podcast”, "Speakernomics", "The Sales Tech Podcast", and the “Webinar Talk Show”.  On his shows he has interviewed over 1000 business leaders with a focus on discovering how the most successful people get farther across the gap between potential and results.

At 50 years old Thom decided to reinvent his life and make age 50 to 75 the best years of his life. This meant saying yes to things that scared him, and trying new things. Since that time Thom has jumped off buildings, took up running (and lost 30 lbs), plays chess, and began performing stand-up comedy.