My Name is Cassandra Ashley.I was born and raised in Houston, Texas. I graduated from the High School for Engineering Professions/Booker T Washington. I attended college at Prairie View A&M University and University of Houston Downtown. After entering into a career in accounting services which lasted for 7 years, I decided to begin a career in public service. I started out as the Director of Education, for the Union County Boys and Girls Club of New Jersey, where I was responsible for building curriculums for programs for individuals aged 3 to age 80 in 5 area clubs. In 2001, I started E.P.I.P.H.A.N.Y. ( Empowering People In Preparing Honestly and Negating Yesterday), a non-profit organization, who’s sole purpose was to help prison inmates prepare for release and decrease recidivism rates. My work with E.P.I.P.H.A.N.Y. lead to KPFT 90.1’s Ray Hill’s Prison Show. After which, I began volunteer reporting for the Award Winning News Department, covering issues important to the prison reform movement in Texas. After Hurricane Katrina, and spending several days in a Red Cross Shelter where hundreds of New Orleaneans arrived, I began vigorously reporting on the trials and difficulties our Louisiana neighbors were experiencing trying to get the assistance they deserved. I covered both the Survivors March on New Orleans and March on Washington for their “Right to Return”. For more than a year I wrote for KPFT News, and was hired as Associate News Producer. As a news Producer, I was able to meet the large family of community activists fighting for equality amongst brown and black populations in Houston. I was chosen to represent KPFT in a national broadcasting of the National Conference for Media Reform in January 2007. During which, I was honored and privileged to interview the Rev. Jessie Jackson. Most recently I began executive producing “Black HISsotry, HERstory, OURstory on Pacifica (National) & KPFT 90.1 Houston: A Celebration of Black History Month 2008.. The project included projecting an air of inclusion, and coordinating programmers from diverse backgrounds to complete dynamic and entertaining educational programming. KPFT is currently a sponsor of the 32nd Annual “Original” MLK Day Parade, for which I am assisting with gathering sponsors and participants.