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Support indigenous communities sharing their stories through their voices.
Shmuel Tamo - President
Founder and President Shmuel (Samuel) Joseph Tamo was born in Little Rock, AR as a member of the diasporic Assyrian nation - an indigenous group originating over 5000 years ago in Mesopotamia. He double-majored to acquire his B.A. in International Studies - Diplomacy & Sociology with an Honors Interdisciplinary Studies Minor from the University of Central Arkansas and Norbert O. Schedler Honors College. By 2014, Shmuel earned an MA Social Justice & Human Rights - NGO Management at Arizona State University. In the following seven years, Sam taught 6th grade world history and coached middle and upper school cross country in Little Rock, AR.
His personal life experiences as a stateless indigenous person and his travels to indigenous sites throughout the Americas highlight his passion for indigenous culture and preservation.
Diego Morales - Treasurer
Diego Morales Ibarra serves as the Deputy Director at Conexion de Negocios Latinos, bringing a dynamic and multifaceted approach to his professional journey. In addition to being the Owner of DIMORI Services LLC, a burgeoning consulting company, Diego brings a wealth of experience and expertise to this role. His background includes a successful tenure as the strategic partnerships manager at the Arkansas Small Business and Technology Development Center (ASBTDC), where he also served as the coordinator for the pilot program Arkansas Business Navigator. While at ASBTDC, Ibarra excelled at strengthening relationships with stakeholders through outreach and event coordination to ensure the program was accessible to minority communities in Arkansas.
A native of Guanajuato, Mexico, Ibarra completed a business degree at the Autonomous University of the State of Hidalgo. In 2017, he accepted a job in Little Rock to serve at the Mexican Consulate, eventually ascending to the role of coordinator of community and economic development. Ibarra is passionate about serving the needs and demands of minority populations by developing collaborative strategies in public health, finance, and education.
CREDENTIALS: Deputy Director - Conexión de Negocios Latinos
Shibla Betshmuel - Secretary
Shibla’s passion for language, poetry, and cultural preservation is a perfect match for IRP’s mission. His deep understanding of storytelling and community-focused work will bring tremendous insight to our team as we continue empowering indigenous voices through film and music production.
About Shibla:
Shibla Betshmuel was born in Baghdad, Iraq in 1995. After the war of 2003, and specifically in 2006, his family moved to the north of Iraq, to Duhok (Nohadra), due to the deteriorated security situation in Baghdad. In Duhok, Shibla discovered his passion for poetry and language. He received his B.A. in English Literature in Duhok, Iraq and moved to the U.S. to continue and expand his education. He graduated with an M.A. in English Literature with a concentration on modern Assyrian poetry.
His graduate studies, intermingling with different people, and exposure to English literary and academic works of great modernist poets prompted his adoption of a new style in writing the Assyrian poem; a few of these poems are included in his book Riqda D Qalama (The Pen Dance).
He is currently a member of The Authors Guild in the U.S. and a volunteer in BET KANU's language committee, whose mission is to spread and advance the Syriac (Assyrian) language—both Surit and Surayt dialects.
We are excited to have Shibla’s expertise and leadership help us preserve and amplify cultural stories for generations to come!
Header Image: Totora-built island and house along with pottery depicting a typical Uros home on Lago Titicaca.
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