Women’s History Month 2025 Pt. 2: Circles USA All Stars

Circles USA proudly marks Women’s History Month 2025 with a two-part post: in Part One, we took a deep dive into key facts and figures on core issues affecting women’s economic wellbeing. Here, we celebrate some women All Stars of Circles USA: leaders at every level who have set a high-water mark for dedication and ingenuity during CUSA’s 25+ years of building community to end poverty.

Noumoua Lynaolu

Noumoua—aka CUSA’s very first Circle Leader—has lived several lifetimes’ worth of growth and challenge in her journey from young mother in poverty to community organizer. In a life path that brought her Hmong family from Laos to California to Iowa and back to California again, our OG Circle Leader has traveled far, bringing invaluable insight and memories of Circles USA’s founding days and original leadership.

Joan Kuriansky

Joan, our Board Chair and former Executive Director of Wider Opportunities for Women (Washington, DC), is a powerhouse advocate for women, workers, Jewish people, and many others facing systemic obstacles to prosperity. She is also the creator of our policy platform addressing key issues our chapters flagged as high priority for poverty alleviation.

Jennifer Pelling

Jennifer—a CUSA Board member since 2018—is a founding member of the Tsuha Foundation, a partner org supporting groups like Circles USA that come alongside low-income people to break the cycle of poverty. She also oversees our Board Advisory Council and was instrumental in upgrading our Circles USA website, marketing materials, and curriculum. Jennifer recently finished producing a suite of new videos that capture the transformative power of Circles.

Lynette Fields

Lynette is the Executive Director at Poverty Solutions Group (PSG) Inc., a community action agency that launched in 2020 with support from St. Luke’s United Methodist Church and soon became the parent org for Circles Central FL. A tireless leader and innovator within the CUSA community of practice, Lynette also (along with our National Coach Addie Hartnett) pioneered the collaboration between Circles and Family Promise, the nation’s foremost organization addressing the crisis of family homelessness.

J. Cherelle Fleming

Nominated from among thousands of exceptional Circle Leaders nationwide, Cherelle is a 2024 Lives Transformed awardee. Her extraordinary story—a lifelong journey encompassing generational poverty, addiction, recovery, and the triumph of achieving academic and professional credentials to secure financial independence for her family—is a testament to the tenacity and brilliance of women Circle Leaders nationwide.

Michelle Crawford

Michelle, Executive Director of Circles Salt Lake, stepped into the role of Regional Coach for CUSA’s Western Region in 2023. A key coordinator and resource person for Circles chapters in Utah, California and Nebraska—which collectively serve a majority of single mothers in their region—Michelle has helped secure TANF grants for local three-year funding and piloted new ventures like a summer cohort, Circles Fast Forward, and collaborations with Teen Resource Centers in area school districts. She is among the most dynamic, impactful team leaders in Circles USA: a true original, even among our national cohort of extraordinary women.