About Us
Public Engagement Partners helps institutions, organizations, and government connect with the public and collaborate across differences to create an effective democracy.
Public-serving Design and Idea Creation
We believe in the power of everyday people. We've experienced the value of working together across difference. Together, we can build stronger, more connected communities that encourage healthy civic life.
Our Story
It all started with
Don Quixote
The concept of "living one's passion" seems uniquely fitting with the background of the Founder and Principal of Public Engagement Partners. Quixada was named after Don Quixote, and the idea of dreaming the impossible dream and fighting the impossible fight has been a constant frame of how she thinks about her life. As young as five years old, she was working the voting booth polls while her grandfather ran for mayor, instilling the importance of civic life from a young age. Her parents always emphasized the value of community. Quixada graduated college in the wake of 9/11 and took her first job organizing interfaith dialogues in New York with a nonprofit that had been a leader in the Civil Rights’ Freedom Rides. These life lessons sparked Quixada’s passion for democracy and working together across difference.
Quixada Moore-Vissing, PhD
Founder and Principal
Quixada is a community engagement designer, civic researcher, and published author. She has led civic initiatives with a range of foundations, universities, think tanks, and nonprofit organizations. Quixada is a fellow at Public Agenda, New Hampshire Listens, the University of Maine and Salem State University.
Erin Puglia, MPP
Associate
Erin Puglia is experienced in facilitation, qualitative research, and evaluation. She formerly worked with New Hampshire Listens as well as the New England Municipal Sustainability Network, where she created sustainability profiles for various New England communities.
Jennifer Logsdon, PhD
Senior Associate
Jennifer’s expertise centers on higher education, research, and criminal justice. She formerly served on the New Hampshire Juvenile Parole Board and currently sits on the advisory board for the Center for Community Engagement and Experiential Learning at the University of New Hampshire.
Courtney Wrigley, MA
Senior Associate
Courtney is a community development professional whose experience is rooted in elevating local knowledge and involvement to improve systems and address big, complex topics that affect community life. She is a skilled facilitator, trainer, and evaluator and has experience working with rural populations.
Sara Clarke-Vivier, PhD
Senior Associate
Sara is an educator whose work spans formal and informal learning environments. She has worked in schools, colleges and universities, camps, museums, and science and community centers. She is interested in collaborative design and assessment that includes stakeholders in the research process.
Our Values
Equity
We take an equity lens to our work – we feel all voices are important and deserve to be heard. Because some voices have historically been left out from the decision-making table, we design our processes to ensure that these populations have a key role – especially people of color, low-income people, women, LGBTQ+ and the differently-abled.
Multi-partisan
We believe making room for many different perspectives is best for our communities and democracy. Red, blue, and other – it is critical we listen and share with each other to create policy that works for all of us. Regardless of your political affiliation, we want to work with those who aim to serve, create equitable and collaborative processes, and better connect with communities.
Nonviolence
We value peace in our work – taking the stance that any process we create should do no harm. Nonviolence is both a principle and a practice. We integrate values of cultural sensitivity, awareness and intent, and justice into everything we do.
Quality
We value quality – we hire well-trained, talented, smart people to create ideas and strategically carry out the work. We make timeliness, professionalism, and good products a priority. Ultimately, we want our clients to be happy with what we create, integrate their voice and needs throughout process and achieve lasting results.
Dialogue & Deliberation
We feel that when leaders and communities come together to listen, share, and explore ideas, the outcomes that result are stronger and more sustainable.
Public Wisdom
The public has many assets and insights to offer. We will help you identify how to integrate local stakeholders into your process, from initial idea to final outcome.