About
Service
The Hawk Foundation was founded in 2018 to revive, preserve, and share African cultural traditions as a source of healing, empowerment, and community. We serve as a bridge between Africa and the diaspora, transforming trauma, displacement, and silence into Educational pathways.
Mission
Our mission is to promote education, holistic health, and trauma healing within the African American community, the African continent, and beyond, creating a ripple effect of empowerment and equity.
Vision
We provide a safe, respectful space for remembering, learning, and reclaiming identity. By keeping African cultural expression alive and evolving, we restore dignity, strengthen futures, and honor lineage.
Meet the team.
Meet the board members and teammates that make the foundation thrive.
Executive Director
Javoen Byrd
Javoen S. Byrd serves as Executive Director of The Hawk Foundation for Research and Education in African Culture. He holds a Master’s Degree in Ethnomusicology from the University of Washington, focusing on African and African Diasporic healing traditions, musical lineages, and cultural histories.
His leadership spans the Pacific Northwest, Africa, and international partnerships, directing federal and state-funded initiatives in civics and cultural education, youth rehabilitation, and cross-cultural curriculum development. He formalized a national partnership with Nigeria’s Ministry of Culture and Tourism, expanding the Foundation’s global cultural preservation efforts.
Javoen has also partnered with the Muckleshoot and Nisqually Tribes to develop culturally rooted empowerment programs through drumming, adapting the Foundation’s framework to support Indigenous traditions. His work advances cultural integrity, historical truth-telling, and the arts as tools for identity, healing, and community transformation.
Board Member
Ayandoja Aloyinlapa
Ayandoja Aloyinlapa comes from a revered lineage of Traditional Ayan—sacred drummers entrusted with carrying the spiritual voice of the Yoruba people. He is the son of the late Aare Ilu of Oyo State, one of the highest titles bestowed upon a master drummer. Through his father’s lineage, he inherits the responsibility to uphold the drum as a vessel of history.
His mother, Yeye Ọ̀ṣun Ateyẹsẹ̀ of Òkè Ògùn land, is a respected chief priestess devoted to preserving Yoruba spiritual and cultural traditions, grounding him in ritual practice.
Following his ancestors’ path, Ayandoja serves as both master drummer and priest, embodying the bond between rhythm, spirit, and cultural memory. A dedicated educator, he transmits ancestral knowledge with integrity and reverence.
As a cultural custodian and bridge-builder, Ayandoja advances The Hawk Foundation’s work across Africa and the global African diaspora, ensuring traditional knowledge is honored and preserved for future generations.
Board Member
Shawna Hawk
Shawna Hawk has devoted her life to the empowerment of women and youth of color, particularly Black women and girls. Shawna spent the first part of her career as an early childhood and youth educator, then transitioned to become a teacher trainer and family education specialist, with a focus on incorporating cultural diversity into the classroom.
Shawna also spent many years doing child abuse prevention classes and being a domestic abuse survivor advocate and facilitator. Shawna went on to earn a Master’s degree in Leadership and Education, bi-cultural development, and Social and Human Services. Her Thesis topic, African American Women and the development of healthy psychosocial self-empowerment strategies, led her to continue her education and research. In her research, she found that music, dance, and cultural preservation of one's ancestral background were very important to this work. Shawna went on to create the Women of Color in Leadership Movement.
Board Member
Dr. Joy DeGruy
Dr. Joy DeGruy is a globally respected social scientist, educator, and author whose work has reshaped how we understand trauma, healing, and Black liberation. She is best known for her groundbreaking book Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome, a seminal work that examines the lasting impact of slavery and systemic racism.
Dr. DeGruy holds advanced degrees in Social Work, Social Research, Speech Communication, and Clinical Psychology, and has taught in universities across the country—including serving as an Assistant Professor at Portland State University and a Visiting Scholar at Morehouse College.
Today, she leads transformational healing work as President & CEO of DeGruy Publications and Executive Director of Be The Healing, a nonprofit dedicated to restoring wellness and cultural wholeness.
Having Dr. Joy DeGruy on the Hawk Foundation Board strengthens our mission and deepens our commitment to African-centered education, cultural preservation, and generational healing.
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Communications Director
George Collins
George Collins is a cultural communicator, a global storyteller, and a dedicated Board Member of the Hawk Foundation, where he also serves as Communications Director. His work is grounded in amplifying truth, preserving culture, and uplifting the voices of African and African-American communities.
Before joining the Hawk Foundation in 2024, Collins spent over a decade as a radio host and podcaster, traveling to India, Kenya, Turkey, the U.K., and cities across the U.S. to capture the stories of everyday people. His global journeys shaped his belief that narrative is a powerful tool for healing, connection, and liberation.
At Hawk, he channels this ethos into a communications strategy, helping guide the organization’s voice.
Alongside his work in the cultural sector, Collins also represents a range of roofing and waterproofing manufacturers across public and private industries. In this role, he champions sustainability and long-term stewardship through high-quality building materials and responsible construction practices.
Board Member
Taye Adefemi
Adefemi Taye is a cultural advocate, tourism enthusiast, and emerging Afrobeat recording artist born and raised in Jos, Plateau State, Nigeria. A proud son of Igboora, Ibarapa Central in Oyo State, Adefemi studied Business Administration from Plateau State Polytechnic, Jos.Beyond the classroom, Adefemi’s heart beats for African culture, travel, and music. He has actively participated in cultural festivals both in Nigeria and abroad, using every stage and journey to celebrate and share the richness of the continent’s heritage. As a passion that led him to become a dedicated member of the Hawk Foundation for Research and Education in African Culture.Currently, Adefemi is pursuing his dream of becoming a globally recognized Afrobeat artist and signed a publishing contract with the acclaimed Colorado-based label Color Red Music. Through his music, cultural work, and travels, he continues to bridge communities and shine a vibrant light on African stories for the world.
