ABOUT US
We are a Queer, BIWOC-led 501(c)(3) non-profit dedicated to co-creating more equitable, anti-racist, feminist, and trauma-responsive structures. We invest in healing and liberation at personal, interpersonal, and systemic levels. Our name represents our core mission: to center communities overlooked or marginalized by systems of oppression, including low-income, BIPOC, LGBTQIA2+, (im)migrant communities, and individuals with disabilities.
ORIGIN STORY
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On the Margins, Inc. (OTM) is anchored in a singular, ancestral truth: Our healing is inextricably bound up in one another’s liberation.
Rooted in the fertile soil of liberation psychology and abolitionist praxis, OTM honors the ancestral technologies of freedom fighters and the resilient wisdom of those at the margins. Founder Dr. Daniela Dominguez (Danny)—a Queer Latina and licensed psychologist from Mexico—brought this vision to life by weaving together liberatory practices from radical feminism, antiracism, and trauma responsiveness.
THE CATALYST
Through her work on the frontlines of healthcare, Dr. Dominguez witnessed the devastation of systemic inequities on Queer, Trans, and BIPOC communities. She saw clearly that the medical-industrial complex often pathologizes our survival strategies, erases indigenous wisdom, and ignores the root causes of suffering.
In 2023, Danny launched OTM as a direct challenge to these systems. She understood that we cannot simply treat the wounds of oppression; we must transform the conditions that created them and co-create sustainable structures of care.
A REGENERATIVE ECOSYSTEM
To sustain this work without replicating the burnout of the non-profit industrial complex, OTM brings together a diverse collective of healers, facilitators, cultural workers, artists, community health workers, and researchers. We forged a symbiotic collaboration with On the Margins Family Therapy & Psychological Services, Inc. (OTMFTPS) to bridge the strengths of the non-profit and professional sectors. This collaboration allows us to practice community care alongside clinical excellence, fostering a sustainable path toward collective liberation.
This is not merely service delivery; it is a political imperative. By increasing access to culturally responsive, joy-centered care, we disrupt the cycles of harm that keep our communities fragmented. Today, OTM stands at the intersection of liberation and healing justice. We operate on the conviction that healing happens through connection, and that relationship is where liberation takes root.
In times like these, we must turn toward each other rather than away. Every program we offer is guided by that singular, ancestral promise: 'Til We're All Free.
TEAM
We are a collective of health professionals, artists, researchers, and consultants operating at the intersection of feminism, anti-racism, and trauma-responsiveness. Inspired by BIPOC scholars, feminists, freedom fighters, community organizers, and abolitionists, we collaborate to dismantle white-supremacist, heteropatriarchal, cisnormative, mono-normative, and colonial practices within educational, healthcare, research, and community settings. Our aim is to support transformative and healing justice efforts grounded in their wisdom.
LEADERSHIP & BOARD
Our board membership comes from a variety of fields of practice and expertise, and is drawn from a spectrum of constituencies (e.g., nonprofit, academia, corporate, and community). Our board is invested in learning about the organization and has an outstanding commitment to the organization's success, mission and vision. They provide strong direction, support, and accountability and are engaged as a strategic resource.
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Dr. Daniela Domínguez is an Associate Professor at the University of San Francisco and the Founder and President of On the Margins. She is a licensed psychologist and professional clinical counselor with a special interest in liberation psychology, anti-racism, migrant justice, and gender and sexuality matters.
Her program of research has focused on understanding how Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) cope with stress and use specific strategies to draw upon resiliencies to achieve positive health. In 2020, the Society of Counseling Psychologists honored her with the “Early Career Award for Distinguished Professional Contributions to Counseling Psychology.” In 2021, the Society of Counseling Psychologists honored her with the “Social Justice Award” for her demonstrated evidence of achieving community change that supports groups on the margins.
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Jacob Anthony Ramírez (he/him) is an educator and poet. The son of a farmworker and a teacher’s aide, he grew up on the south side of Merced, California, in the 1980s among Chicano, Black, and Hmong communities. These were formative experiences that shaped his worldview and creative voice.
As an English and Multilingual Learner instructor, Ramírez was named Educator of the Year in Merced County and received distinguished teaching honors from both the California State Assembly and the U.S. Senate. He has also taught in the People’s Republic of China, the United Arab Emirates, and Turkey. While in Turkey, he collaborated with National Book Award winner Elizabeth Acevedo to develop spoken word poetry workshops for Turkish and Syrian students. While no longer a classroom educator, he taught for twenty years.
In 2019, Ramírez earned an MA in Creative Writing from Lancaster University in England, where he graduated valedictorian. Since, his poetry has appeared in Best New Poets 2022, Best American Poetry, The Breakbeat Poets: LatiNEXT, Latino Book Review Magazine, Wet Grain, among other publications. In 2022, Oxford Brookes University's Ignition Press published Kitchen Boombox, his debut pamphlet—a collection that investigates Ramírez’s childhood abuse, Afro-Latin jazz influences, and Mexican culture. It has since been adopted by educators across California.
Ramírez will defend his Ph.D. in Creative Writing this September. His doctoral thesis, Unmasking the Mestiza, triangulates Gloria Anzaldúa’s Borderlands/La Frontera, Bobbie Harro’s “Cycle of Socialization,” and the influence of American feminist poets to propose a framework for a Latiné/x poets writing in the 21st century. His manuscript, Reverb, is an outcome is his proposed framework.
Currently employed by the Sonoma County Office of Education, Ramírez supports districts eligible for differentiated assistance, focusing on policies and plans that improve outcomes for Multilingual Learners. He also coaches educators to foster equity for all students, especially those furthest from justice. Additionally, he supports the GENIUS Initiative, a grant-backed program targeting support for African American students in collaboration with UCLA and the counties of Los Angeles and Kings.
In 2024, Ramírez launched Sonoma County Youth Voice (SoCoYoVo), a publication dedicated to uplifting and amplifying youth voices. Its first issue featured poetry by incarcerated youth in Sonoma County. In 2025, he also managed the county’s inaugural Social Justice and Equity Conference. He lives in Cloverdale, California with his wife, Anna, and two children, Isabel and Ben
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Marianne Marar Yacobian (she/her) is Professor Emerita of Global Studies from Menlo College. Dr. Marar taught Diversity in the Workplace, Sex & Culture, Human Rights Education, and Global Studies. She earned her doctorate and Outstanding Dissertation Award at the University of San Francisco in International & Multicultural Education with an emphasis in Second Language Acquisition. She is an expert in the intersectionality of racial/ethnic/gendered identities and human rights activism. Her research interests include refugee human rights education, transnational citizenship, genocide recognition, social movements/revolution, and the sociopolitical underpinnings of critical global education. As a mother-educator, Dr. Marar’s teaching pedagogy is predicated on the importance of decolonizing education whilst reclaiming agency and dignity vis-à-vis social justice consciousness.
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Charlie brings a deep, personal commitment to building community resilience to the Board of On the Margins, Inc. (OTM). Growing up in a small, rural town in Tennessee, Charlie's family relied on government assistance nutrition programs. This experience provided firsthand insight into the complexities of navigating regulated resources and highlighted how existing systems often fail to account for critical issues like resource scarcity, the impact of disabilities, and the limited opportunity for financial growth.
After graduating high school, Charlie served as a medic in the US Army before earning a Bachelor of Arts degree in Community Needs in Emergency Management.
During his degree program, Charlie concentrated on the foundational principles and current systems of Social Work and Emergency Management. This study revealed a critical gap: many existing systems are not adequately equipped or designed to help individuals and families develop genuine resilience for real-life circumstances. This realization inspired Charlie to take action with organizations like OTM.
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Talene is a former venture capital banker turned full-time mother and youth advocate. She held numerous roles at leading technology banks in Silicon Valley prior to transitioning to working with local charitable organizations. Her latter work has focused on supporting our most marginalized communities with specific outreach to children and their care-takers. She believes in living intentionally, and in the power of connection to create equitable practices for our most under-resourced community members.
Talene holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics and Business Administration from Saint Mary’s College of California and an MBA from Santa Clara University. She lives with her beloved husband and three daughters/teachers.
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As a nonbinary trans person who grew up in poverty in the South, raised by a single mom who cleaned houses to care for her 4 children, I have definitely experienced many layers of discrimination and injustice. Being a member of a marginalized minority helped to open my eyes to the rampant destructive powers of racism and white supremacy.
As an educator and school therapist I have spent many years empowering youth to stand up for DEIB in their schools and helped get several DEIB trainings into the schools where I formerly worked. Since running my own private therapy practice, I have felt a shift in being regularly involved in social justice action and very much want to be dedicating more time and energy to this movement. I am dedicated to antiracist education and action and believe in the abolition of borders and prisons and all of the institutions which uphold/reinforce white supremacy. I am also dedicated to continuing to grow in my own knowledge, understanding, and impact around antiracism and social justice. I believe that the inner and outer work is a journey of growth and healing, not a destination.
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Emelina Minero, a queer and PreK-12 journalist, social media marketer, copywriter, editor, and community builder for over a decade, has worked with companies and nonprofits like Curve Magazine, the George Lucas Educational Foundation, Meta, and Remind.
She is a board member of Amor Para Todos (APT), an organization that works with schools and communities to create more gender and LGBTQIA+ inclusive environments for youth. Her work with APT unearthed her passion for connecting with and working in her local community.
Emelina lives her life guided by unconditional love for herself and others and is passionate about connection, uplifting and empowering others, community, and healing.
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For the past 19 years, Montserrat has been privileged to serve the diverse communities of Sonoma County at Providence. As Mission Leader for Healdsburg and Petaluma Valley Hospitals and the Providence Clinic Network, she has ensured a commitment to serving all is woven into every aspect of care—from bedside to boardroom.
Immigrating to the US from El Salvador during a time of war instilled in her a profound appreciation for community and the power of shared stories. This fuels her dedication to amplifying diverse voices and perspectives. Her background—a BA in Psychology from San Jose State University and a degree in Interior Architecture and Design from UC Berkeley with a focus on Trauma Informed Spaces—informs her approach to fostering healing and inclusivity. Further studies at Stanford deepened her conviction in Human-Centered Design as a catalyst for innovative solutions that prioritize human needs.
Beyond her role at Providence, she served as Regional Co-Chair for the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Council and co-founded ¡DALE!, a youth-led program empowering students to champion social and educational justice.
Montse is often found cheering her husband Issa and her son Julian at baseball fields across the country.
OUR PARTNERS
We collaborate closely with social change leaders, community organizers, individuals, families, foundations, and socially responsible corporations to maximize social justice impact where health and liberation intersect. By uniting the collective power and passion of our partners with community members, we forge a more feminist, anti-racist, affirming, and trauma-responsive community.