Please join us in celebrating Haydée Santana’s many accomplishments and contributions to Propel ATL as she transitions out of her role on our staff as Senior Director of Strategy & Growth. 

Haydée moved to Atlanta from her hometown of St. Petersburg, Florida, where she volunteered for community arts organizations like The Studio@620 and served on the Executive Board of Alachua County Emerging Leaders in Gainesville, FL as its Vice President. Upon arriving in Atlanta, Haydée became a supporter of what was then the Atlanta Bicycle Coalition and participated in our Collaborators Salon. 

Her first official role with the organization came in 2015, when she hosted #EverydayBiking pop-up events to encourage more people to try biking. She next managed our Bike Valet program, coordinating volunteers and using her marketing skills to promote the service to attendees, increasing the value of Bike Valet for event organizers. Following these contract roles she joined the staff in 2016, and quickly became an integral part of the team. Haydée eventually took on a leadership position and shepherded the organization into its next phase through our 2019 strategic plan. 

Haydée’s strategic thinking, diligent planning, commitment to supporting our staff and communities, and dedication to inclusive, sustainable, growth has elevated Propel ATL’s work and impact during her tenure. Haydée has served as a critical leader in Propel ATL’s accomplishments over the last few years — including expanding our strategic mission beyond biking, merging with PEDS, rebranding the organization from Atlanta Bicycle Coalition to Propel ATL, establishing methods for and training staff to track progress against our strategic plan, developing our hiring and personnel planning process, and implementing important staff support and care provisions. Her persistence, positivity, commitment to our guiding principles, and excellent work toward our strategic goals have greatly influenced Propel ATL’s growth toward building an Atlanta where everyone moves safely, easily, and sustainably. We will always be thankful to Haydée for inspiring us to do our best work, her leadership, her bright shining presence, and her belief that accomplishing our goals is in fact possible!

We look forward to staying connected with Haydée in whatever her next adventure holds. Haydée, we will miss seeing you at work but we sure will look forward to seeing you on the 21🚍, and out and about enjoying all that Atlanta has to offer! 

Community Kudos: Thank you Haydée!

“It has been an immense pleasure to work with you all these years, we only want to wish you the best of everything as you deserve. Thank you for all the hard work that you have done! We appreciate you!!!” -Michelle and Kris Dunbar, owners of Aztec Cycles

“It has been my honor and privilege to know and work with Haydée. She has done an outstanding job and will be missed.” -Henry Slack, co-founder of Atlanta Bicycle Coalition (now Propel ATL)

“The thing I will miss most about Haydée is her smile and laugh. Working with her over the years as a board member, I have been lucky enough to be in the same room (albeit sometimes virtually) as her and get to work alongside as well. Her spirits, attitude and smile lift up any room and especially during the pandemic, I was so thankful to work with her for that reason. Of course her hard work at the organization never went unnoticed, but for me being in her presence is what I will remember fondly the most.” -Naoya Wada, current board member and past board chair, Propel ATL

“Working with Haydée has been inspiring — I feel more confident in leaning into the hard questions and not letting up until I've found a solution. Her no-nonsense attitude and brilliant smile will be missed! Sashay away, Haydée!” -Karli Blalock, Propel ATL Program Coordinator

“Haydée, you are such an inspiring person to work with and know. I feel very blessed to have had you as my supervisor over these last few years. Your leadership has encouraged me into so much growth — both personally and professionally. Your unique ability to strive toward achieving goals while showing immense care and consideration for all of the people involved is rare and uplifting. Thank you for supporting and guiding me through the highs and lows, and for challenging and coaching me to discern, sharpen, and develop my experience, knowledge and strengths 😉. I will always cherish our big laughs, ‘secret’ smoothie finds, and shared affinity for creative emoji use. I look forward to staying connected with you, and am excited to see what you do in your next adventure🚀🌟💯!” -Margaret Mullins, Propel ATL Senior Operations Manager

"Haydée you are a BOLD listener. It is rare that someone is as bold in action as they are in listening. You are truly a pioneer in this way. Your actions challenged us to promote growth and provided support to nurture understanding. You listen to provide insight, to gain knowledge, to find solutions, or just to be a much needed “amen corner.” You are also bold enough to ask those you are in collaboration with if they have been listening — not just to others, but also to themselves. We have had some fabulous 30-minute meetings 😜 and I look forward to continuing those conversations. Continue to be bold in all you do — you are on your way to One Majorly Fantastic new journey! 🏆" -Sagirah Jones, Propel ATL Senior Advocacy & Engagement Manager

“Haydée is THE instrumental factor in our growth and evolution over the seven years she served with the organization. Her generous and collaborative spirit, rigorous thinking, deep commitment to our guiding principles, and ability to self-reflect and grow continuously inspire me every day." -Rebecca Serna, Propel ATL Executive Director