Anwar Saleem is the Executive Director of H Street Main Street, Inc., a position he has held since 2007. Mr. Saleem founded this non-profit organization in 2002 to guide the revitalization of a critical and long-neglected neighborhood commercial corridor in Washington, D.C. He served as chairman of the Board of Directors until taking the direct responsibility for the delivery of commercial revitalization and business retention services as executive director. Mr. Saleem's interest in H Street NE began long before 2002. He has owned a hair salon on the street since 1989 and has purchased several buildings over the years. A native Washingtonian, Mr. Saleem, grew up in the surrounding neighborhoods and remembered the commercial streets in its heyday. The economic growth strategy that Mr. Saleem developed has resulted in more than 3,600 new jobs on the H Street corridor. Through direct recruitment and partnerships, he helped to attract more than 300 new businesses to H Street NE. His efforts have drawn more than 6.5 billion dollars in additional investment and development to the community. He has developed alliances with D.C. Government officials who bring substantial resources into H Street, including a leg in the new streetcar system and Tax Increment Financing. As a small business owner himself, Mr. Saleem understands the challenges that independent entrepreneurs encounter. He has helped business owners successfully apply for grants and loans to upgrade storefronts and the interiors of their buildings. Increasing H Street's marketability has been a priority for Mr. Saleem. He led the rebranding of the commercial district into an arts and entertainment district. He created the H Street Main Street's Clean Team, which removes debris, graffiti, and snow to create a more appealing and safer environment for business clients and the residential community. He was a key leader and a driving force behind the initial planning of the corridor. Mr. Saleem's commitment to marketing and promotion includes the annual H Street Festival. Attendance has grown from 5000 people in 2007 to more than 150,000 in 2019. For many corridor businesses, the Festival- generated revenue is equivalent to the retail "Black Friday" that much larger downtown commercial districts experience. The event was either awarded Best Neighborhood Festival & the Best City Festival (Washington City Paper) from 2011 through 2019. Also, the event was awarded the Best City Festival from 2017 through 2019 by the Washingtonian Magazine. The H Street Festival generates over 6.1 million dollars in spending. With a commitment to future generations, Mr. Saleem has annually recruited, hired, and mentored over 600 DC students in summer work-and-learn programs. Under Mr. Saleem's leadership, H Street Main Street has become a commercial revitalization success story. The National Trust for Historic Preservation honored the organization with the Great American Main Street Award in 2013. USA Today ranked H Street #1 amongst the 10 most up and coming neighborhoods in America. Forbes Magazine named H Street NE one of the "hippest corridors" in the country. He is driven and has taken on additional challenges within the H Street service area, expanding its boundaries to provide services to the underdeveloped and the at-risk commercial districts of both Bladensburg and Benning Roads. Mr. Saleem continues to work as a volunteer in civic, advocacy, and youth development organizations that strengthen communities in Washington, D.C., his hometown. In early 2015 he was invited by the National Main Street Center. He actively participated with leaders and subject matter experts from around the country, setting new standards and assisted in reimaging the national organization by serving on the National Main Street Center 4-Point Refresh Taskforce. Mr. Saleem continues to work as a volunteer in civic, advocacy, and youth development organizations that strengthen communities in Washington, D.C., his hometown.

Jane Lang practiced law in Washington DC for over 30 years. She was the first woman partner at Steptoe & Johnson and later served as General Counsel of the US Department of Housing and Urban Development under President Carter. As Co-Founder and Partner in Sprenger & Lang, with her late husband Paul Sprenger, she litigated plaintiffs’ class actions on behalf of victims of workplace discrimination. In 2001, Jane co-founded the Atlas Performing Arts Center in Washington DC and served as Atlas Board Chair through 2014. She has also produced several award-winning plays. Jane graduated from Swarthmore College and the Law School of the University of Pennsylvania. She is a Trustee of the Atlas, the Eugene M. Lang Foundation (Chair) and Swarthmore College. Jane lives in Washington DC with her partner Robert Kapp. She has two children, three stepchildren and fourteen grandchildren.

Marqui A. Lyons, a 5 th generation Washingtonian. Currently employed over 25 years with Airlines for America, formerly known as Air Transport Association of America. Currently a volunteer for Food and Friends, serves as a goodwill ambassador, and conducts community walking tours. Has served as Chairperson of the Atlas Performing Arts Center Community Advisory Council and member of the Board of Directors of the Trinidad Neighborhood Association. In addition, she has served as the Co-Chair of the Greater H Street, NE Heritage Trail Working Group; House/Team Captain for Rebuilding Together; Election Official; Lead employer team volunteer efforts with Food and Friends, Rebuilding Together, and Christmas in April; former Girl Scout Troop Leader and Girl Scout from Brownie to Adult levels; Candy Striper for the former Cafritz Hospital and Greater Southeast Community Hospital. Has served on various community task forces and panels related to the urban/economic development in Wards 5 and 6 especially the H Street, NE corridor and Trinidad communities. Graduate of the Duke Ellington School of the Arts and attended the University of Maryland, Baltimore County.

Derek Hyra is an associate professor in the School of Public Affairs at American University and the Founding Director of the Metropolitan Policy Center American University. His research focuses on neighborhood change, urban politics, and race. Dr. Hyra is the co-editor of Capital Dilemma: Growth and Inequality in Washington, DC (Routledge 2016), and author of The New Urban Renewal: The Economic Transformation of Harlem and Bronzeville (University of Chicago Press 2008) and Race, Class, and Politics in the Cappuccino City (University of Chicago Press 2017). He is working on his fourth manuscript, Roots of the Riots: Race, Policy, and Neighborhood Inequality(University of California Press).

 Dr. Hyra’s research has been showcased in both academic journals, such as Journal of Urban Affairs, Urban Affairs Review, and Urban Studies, and popular media outlets, including the British Broadcasting Corporation, C-SPAN, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, and The New York Times. He has also received funding from the American Council of Learned Societies, the Annie E. Casey Foundation, and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

 Dr. Hyra strongly believes in public service. He has served as board chair of the Alexandria Redevelopment and Housing Authority and as an Obama appointee on the U.S. Small Business Administration’s Council on Underserved Communities. He was also a U.S. Congressional candidate in Northern Virginia in 2014. He currently serves as the chair-elect of the American Sociological Association’s Community and Urban Sociology Section and as an Advocacy Advisory Council member of the United Planning Organization in Washington, DC. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Chicago.