Denise Griffin Johnson is a lifelong Baltimore resident and cultural organizer who draws on her home community cultural values of respect, understanding, cooperation, intentional family dialogue, celebration, and education. Denise has a Master’s Degree of Science in Family Counseling from Coppin State University, has worked in non-profit and governmental organizations, and served on numerous boards and advisory groups focused on community and family. In 2007, as Project Director with Bon Secours of Maryland Foundation working with an OSI Artist Fellow, she discovered the powerful tool of Arts and Culture for creative expression and meaningful participation in community revitalization. A member of Alternative Roots, co-founder of CultureWorks, and Field Agent for the US Department of Arts and Culture, Denise helped lead the 2015 Imagining America conference.