SENIOR TEAM PROFILES

DESTANY ARNOLD, DIRECTOR OF CHANGE SUMMER DAY CAMPS

Destany Arnold is a seasoned facilitator, strategist, and operations leader with over 20 years of experience spanning youth development, curriculum design, and multi-franchise business operations. Her career reflects a deep commitment to creating spaces where young adults and children can grow into confident, capable leaders, 

Before joining Change Summer, Destany served as the founder and lead consultant of DArnold Consulting, where she partnered with mission-driven organizations to design impactful youth programs, facilitate staff training, and conduct strategic program audits. She also served as a Senior Director at C5 Georgia Youth Foundation, leading multi-week residential camp leadership experiences and year-round civic engagement programming for teens across metro Atlanta..

Destany also spent nearly a decade as Operations Director for a multi-franchise corporation, overseeing Human Resources, training and expansion for nine restaurants while managing the construction and launch of ten AT&T Authorized Retail Stores across Georgia.

Destany holds a Certificate in Youth Theology from Princeton Theological Seminary and multiple certifications in risk management and outdoor leadership. She is currently completing her B.A. in Pre-Law at Georgetown University. Her love for this work is rooted in a belief that all children deserve the chance to explore and discover new possibilities. She’s happiest outdoors, having completed multiple expeditions through the Adirondacks, the Bighorn Mountains, and Yellowstone, and brings that same sense of curiosity and wonder to her work with youth. Destany is also a proud aunt to seven nieces and nephews, an avid cook, a frequent traveler, and golfer.

DARE’RA SPRAGG, NYC REGIONAL DIRECTOR OF CHANGE SUMMER DAY CAMPS

Dare’ra believes every child deserves adults who help them recognize the power of their voice. Growing up in Richmond, Virginia, she was an introspective and deeply curious child who often felt more comfortable getting lost in a Nancy Drew book than speaking up in a room full of people. In fact, when she was four years old, her preschool teacher spent months encouraging her mother to have her tested because she rarely spoke in class. Everything changed the day Dare’ra finally found the confidence to ask a classmate to give her crayon back. That small moment became the beginning of understanding how important confidence, self-advocacy, and belonging are in shaping young people.

A graduate of the University of Virginia and Johns Hopkins University, Dare’ra has spent over a decade serving students and families in historically underserved communities as a teacher, instructional leader, and school principal. Most recently, she served as Principal of Uncommon Brownsville South Middle School in Brooklyn, where she became known for her joyful leadership, strong systems-thinking, and deep commitment to helping students discover and cultivate their unique gifts. Throughout her career in education, she has focused on creating environments where students feel challenged, supported, seen, and inspired to grow both academically and personally.

Dare’ra’s love for summer experiences began during her own childhood through community programs, family road trips to Alabama, and later through YADAPP, a peer leadership and youth development program where she first attended as a camper before later returning as a camp counselor. Those experiences helped shape her belief that summer is a powerful space for exploration, confidence-building, connection, and discovering who you are outside the structure of the traditional school year.

As the NYC Regional Director for Change Summer, Dare’ra is excited to help build joyful, structured, and engaging summer experiences for campers across Brooklyn while developing strong teams and systems that help young people thrive.

Outside of work, Dare’ra is a passionate lover of the arts and can often be found at a jazz show, Broadway play, comedy show, or open mic night around New York City. A former collegiate a cappella singer, she still loves music and performing whenever she gets the chance. She is also an avid traveler and reader who believes experiencing different cultures expands empathy and perspective, and she proudly carries those values of service and community into her membership in Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. Above all else, Dare’ra is completely obsessed with her six-year-old teacup Yorkie, Jax, who proudly accompanies her on as many adventures as possible.