About Centro Civico Cultural Dominicano
As an active 501(c)(3) nonprofit based in Washington Heights and Hamilton Heights, the Centro Cívico Cultural Dominicano (CCCD) has been promoting and celebrating both Dominican and American cultures since 1962. CCCD stands as a testament to the strength and resilience of the Dominican community. Over the past five decades, as waves of immigrants arrived, a new generation of educated Dominican Americans has emerged, contributing across sectors including education, finance, law, politics, and the arts. With a strong drive for achievement, Dominicans have pursued integration into American society while proudly preserving their cultural identity.
Our mission is to enrich and empower youth and adults through arts and culture. We do this by providing access to essential services and resources, such as political, professional, educational, and cultural programs, that equip our community to take a more active role in advocating for and uplifting Dominican and Hispanic voices.
Our mission is to enrich and empower youth and adults through arts and culture. We do this by providing access to essential services and resources, such as political, professional, educational, and cultural programs, that equip our community to take a more active role in advocating for and uplifting Dominican and Hispanic voices.
Lisandra María Ramos
Executive Director
Lisandra María Ramos is a senior higher education executive, cultural strategist, and interdisciplinary arts leader whose career bridges academia, nonprofit management, and cultural production. She currently serves as Special Assistant to the President for Initiatives & Administration at the State University of New York at Old Westbury and as Executive Director of the Centro Cívico Cultural Dominicano in New York City.
At the Centro Cívico Cultural Dominicano, Ms. Ramos leads organizational strategy, fundraising, cultural programming, and archival preservation efforts that honor and advance Dominican and Afro-Caribbean diasporic heritage. Under her leadership, CCCD has secured critical grant funding, curated exhibitions, directed symposiums, and amplified diasporic voices through innovative community-centered programming.
In her leadership role at SUNY Old Westbury, Ms. Ramos advises on university-wide strategic planning, chairs institutional equity initiatives, and has led transformative projects such as the Performance to Budget Program—a participatory budgeting model aligning institutional priorities with community engagement. She has been instrumental in strengthening Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI) efforts, forging cross-sector partnerships in healthcare and STEM, and expanding comprehensive support systems for undocumented and first-generation students.
An expert in inclusive leadership, cross-sector collaboration, and cultural production, Ms. Ramos has consulted for global organizations such as UNESCO and the Ford Foundation. She is co-founder of the acclaimed Latina satire collective Fulana, producing nationally recognized multimedia performances and residencies that blend cultural critique with humor. Her creative collaborations include performances with Guillermo Gómez-Peña at El Museo del Barrio and the Rasanblaj Symposium and Exhibition.
A sought-after speaker, facilitator, and educator, Ms. Ramos has delivered workshops and presentations for institutions such as Harvard University, Cornell University, Dartmouth College, and the SUNY System. Her scholarship and practice center on equity-centered leadership, diasporic identity, performance studies, and the intersections of arts, policy, and community engagement.
Ms. Ramos holds an M.F.A. in Creative Writing from New York University, an M.A. in Popular Theater from NYU’s Gallatin School, and a B.A. in Africana, Latin American & Caribbean Studies and Theater from Union College.
At the Centro Cívico Cultural Dominicano, Ms. Ramos leads organizational strategy, fundraising, cultural programming, and archival preservation efforts that honor and advance Dominican and Afro-Caribbean diasporic heritage. Under her leadership, CCCD has secured critical grant funding, curated exhibitions, directed symposiums, and amplified diasporic voices through innovative community-centered programming.
In her leadership role at SUNY Old Westbury, Ms. Ramos advises on university-wide strategic planning, chairs institutional equity initiatives, and has led transformative projects such as the Performance to Budget Program—a participatory budgeting model aligning institutional priorities with community engagement. She has been instrumental in strengthening Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI) efforts, forging cross-sector partnerships in healthcare and STEM, and expanding comprehensive support systems for undocumented and first-generation students.
An expert in inclusive leadership, cross-sector collaboration, and cultural production, Ms. Ramos has consulted for global organizations such as UNESCO and the Ford Foundation. She is co-founder of the acclaimed Latina satire collective Fulana, producing nationally recognized multimedia performances and residencies that blend cultural critique with humor. Her creative collaborations include performances with Guillermo Gómez-Peña at El Museo del Barrio and the Rasanblaj Symposium and Exhibition.
A sought-after speaker, facilitator, and educator, Ms. Ramos has delivered workshops and presentations for institutions such as Harvard University, Cornell University, Dartmouth College, and the SUNY System. Her scholarship and practice center on equity-centered leadership, diasporic identity, performance studies, and the intersections of arts, policy, and community engagement.
Ms. Ramos holds an M.F.A. in Creative Writing from New York University, an M.A. in Popular Theater from NYU’s Gallatin School, and a B.A. in Africana, Latin American & Caribbean Studies and Theater from Union College.