Melanie Marie Boyer serves as the Executive Director of the Pittsburgh Metropolitan Area Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. A CALU and Duquesne University alumna, is a Colombian & United States Citizen. Melanie is a devoted mom to two handsome young boys, ages 10 and 4. Mrs. Boyer is passionate about helping businesses to reach their full potential and getting funding into the undeserved American entrepreneurial ecosystem. Her goal is to enable rapid success, defined as self-sustaining job and revenue generating businesses that can improve underestimated communities and the region at large.
An entrepreneur at heart, she is a business owner, previously working in freelance marketing, production, recruiting, speech coaching and brand management, among other things. Melanie Marie was awarded the 2022 Pittsburgh Magazine- Top Women in Business Award, 2022 Women of Influence Award from the Pittsburgh Business times, 5 Powerful Latinas in Pittsburgh by the New Pittsburgh Courier, 100 influential leaders to know in Pittsburgh tech by Technical.ly, the 2021 NFL Hispanic Heritage Leadership Award, 2021 Distinguished Leader award by Pittsburgh Professional Women, and a 2021 Black History Achievement Award from the The Pastors Wives of the Churches of God in Christ’s Second Ecclesiastical Jurisdiction of Pennsylvania for her work in the Hispanic community.
She further serves the community through being a participating member of the RAD advisory Board, WPXI Gets Real Advisory Board, Port Authority Stakeholder Advisory Group, Neighborhood Allies Asset Building Network, CCAC Community Equity and Diversity Council and the UPMC Community Health Partnership.
In all aspects of her life, Melanie Marie strives every day to be the catalyst of forward movement and positive growth, seeking progress, prosperity and positivity through partnership.
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Brenda Peyser has held leadership positions in the corporate world and academia for over thirty years. Most recently, she was a professor of communications at Carnegie Mellon, where she also served as associate dean of the School of Public Policy and Management and was the founding Executive Director of Carnegie Mellon University Australia. Brenda has taught in the Carnegie Mellon Leadership and Negotiation Academy for Women and consulted with organizations to improve women’s communication skills.
Before coming to Carnegie Mellon, she worked for a major consulting firm and was a professional actress.
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Lise Vesterlund is a behavioral economist whose highly influential work shows how gender differences in competition, confidence, and expectations contribute to the persistent gender gap in advancement. She is the director of the Pittsburgh Experimental Economics Laboratory (PEEL) and the Behavioral Economic Design Initiative (BEDI).
Lise is a research associate with the National Bureau of Economic Research and the Andrew W. Mellon Professor of Economics at the University of Pittsburgh.
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Laurie Weingart is a professor of organizational behavior who studies team collaboration, conflict, and negotiation, with a focus on how differences across people both help and hinder effective problem solving and dispute resolution. She has served as CMU’s Interim Provost / Chief Academic Officer, and as Senior Associate Dean of Education and director of the Accelerate Leadership Center at CMU’s Tepper School of Business.
Laurie is the Richard M. and Margaret S. Cyert Professor of Organizational Behavior and Theory and director of the Collaboration and Conflict Research Lab at Carnegie Mellon University.
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Saskia is the CEO & President of RADIUS Corporation, a certified women-owned enterprise that is a world-renowned designer and manufacturer of premium personal oral care products.

Angela Reynolds, Ph.D, serves as Chief Executive Officer of YWCA of Greater Pittsburgh. YWCA aims to eliminate racism, empower women, and promote peace and justice in our region.
She previously served as an Assistant Professor at the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs at the University of Pittsburgh, as an instructor in statistics and housing policy, specifically affordable housing and fair housing. Prior to joining YWCA, she was Senior Director of United for Families and 2-1-1 at United Way of Southwestern PA.
Dr. Reynolds is the 2020 ATHENA award recipient, a 2021 Pittsburgh Business Times Woman of Influence, Pittsburgh Smart 50 Class of 2020, member of the Board of Directors for Sustainable Pittsburgh and Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation, Adagio Health Advisory Board, and Highmark Western Region Advisory Board. Dr. Reynolds, a mother of four and caretaker for her mother, is an Associate Pastor of her church.

Sophia Fang is a startup marketer by trade, a creative artist by nature, and a social impact creator by purpose. With a passion for empowering local entrepreneurs, makers, and creators, she's the Head of Marketing at Honeycomb Credit and a Venture For America alumni fellow. Sophia has taught marketing & branding to hundreds of women in tech, startup founders, and college students, including at Carnegie Mellon University, University of Pittsburgh, AlphaLab, Ascender, and Prototype PGH. She has been awarded dozens of public art commissions from city governments, as well as artist awards from The Pittsburgh Foundation and Awesome Pittsburgh. Sophia is also the 2021 recipient of the ATHENA Young Professional Award and a Pittsburgh 30 Under 30.

Yvonne Campos is a nationally recognized businesswoman, facilitator, speaker, entrepreneur, and angel investor. Yvonne founded Next Act Fund in 2016 to help women grow their personal wealth by investing in early-stage, women-owned/led companies, thereby positively impacting women, the region, and the nation. Yvonne has been recognized locally and nationally for her entrepreneurship and community involvement and is actively involved with the Latino Community Center.
Yvonne currently serves on the boards of Highmark, Inc.; Ascender, LLC; Pittsburgh Dance Council; Pittsburgh Metropolitan Hispanic Chamber; and Kelly Strayhorn Theatre. She also continues her service in an honorary board role to WQED Multimedia and Goodwill of Southwestern Pennsylvania.

Laurie Kuzneski is Director of Business Development, and is the resident Culture Guru, funny girl, and often the voice of KIG. Laurie loves drinking wine, public speaking (preferably at the same time), talking about corporate culture, riding her bike, mentoring women-led companies (guy-led companies, too), and supporting many philanthropic endeavors.
Often referred to as Andy Kuzneski’s better half, Laurie is a proud alumna of Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP), and a member of the IUP Board of Trustees where she currently holds the seat of Treasurer.
Before joining the KIG team full-time in 2013, she started and ran her own business – Miss Laurie’s Gourmet Kitchen – out of her home, making and shipping a variety of peanut brittles (her nana’s recipe) all over the United States and the world. As Miss Laurie, she also shared her passion for food by teaching cooking classes to children and adults until she hung up her apron in 2018.
Today, Laurie also serves as a member of the Pennsylvania Mountains Care Network (PMCN), Indiana Regional Medical Center (IRMC), and Punxsutawney Area Hospital Boards of Directors. On top of that, she is on the board of the Indiana County Chamber of Commerce and is an Officer of the Chamber’s Executive Committee.
And on top of that, she is an advisor and mentor to startup companies throughout Western Pennsylvania, and can often be heard speaking about entrepreneurship, culture, insurance and HR for startups, and storytelling at Pitt, CMU, and incubators around the region. A long-time Angel Investor, Laurie is a member of The Next Act Fund, The Rising Tide Fund, and The Fem Tech Fund – all of which invest in women-led/founded companies and women’s health care. Oh, and she’s also a mom of three.

Dr. Tina Chekan is responsible for the strategic direction, vision, growth and performance of southwestern Pennsylvania’s largest network of public charter schools. Propel Schools first opened in 2003 with 180 students, in the basement of the former Homestead Hospital. At the time, Tina was a kindergarten teacher. Over the years, Propel has expanded to 13 schools that serve 4,000 students. Tina is now Superintendent/CEO overseeing both the schools and the Propel Schools Foundation.

Tina has been the integral force behind Propel’s growth, maximizing operational excellence and delivering financial performance. Tina’s focus on raising the bar of achievement for students drives her to find, nurture, and grow talented educators, staff, and leaders. Her commitment to Propel allows families throughout the region to choose excellence in public education regardless of their zip code.

She holds a Master of Education from the University of Pittsburgh, where she also earned a doctorate in Administration/Policy.

Her unyielding belief in community service has led her to board service for organizations specializing in youth achievement and to volunteer service for organizations emphasizing literacy, sportsmanship and community engagement.

Tina’s leadership style, developed throughout her successful career, was honed via Leadership Pittsburgh where she graduated in 2017. She was lauded by the Pittsburgh Business Times in 2016 when she received the Business Women First Award. She is a fellow with the Pahara Institute, an organization that nurtures high-integrity, values-driven leaders who are reimagining public education. She is also a 2021 recipient of the Pittsburg Smart 50 award.

Brittini Wright-Burley is the Owner and CEO Wright Childcare Solutions and The Learning Loft Childcare Centers. The Learning Loft began with a single daycare location in 2011 and has since expanded to 4 commercial centers serving over 300 children. The Learning Loft sites hold Keystone STAR 4 accreditations and are of Pennsylvania's few black-owned Centers to hold NAEYC accreditations. Brittini Wright-Burley is the Owner and CEO The Learning Loft Childcare Centers. The Learning Loft began with a single daycare location in 2011 and has since expanded to 4 commercial centers serving over 300 children. The Learning Loft sites hold Keystone STAR 4 accreditations and are of Pennsylvania's few black-owned Centers to hold NAEYC accreditations.
Brittini is a graduate of the 2019 Entrepreneurial Fellows program at the University of Pittsburgh and holds degrees in Business and Sociology from Duquesne University. She serves as a member of the Duquesne University Office of Diversity and Inclusion Young Alumni Council and a Board Member for the Jubilee Association. As an active member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. Brittini is committed to serving her community and bettering the lives of others through her service.

Victoria Oliver-Deakings grew up in the Garfield area in Pittsburgh, PA . Victoria graduated from Peabody high school; and began a career in customer service at JCPenney. Being a full-time mother of three and a dedicated wife, Victoria had the vision of becoming a business owner which would allow her to spend more quality time with her family. With the support and encouragement of her husband Jeffrey Deakings Sr., Victoria began to vigorously explore her options to become a business owner. Victoria then received a suggestion from her sister Carolyn to start her own daycare. Victoria’s sister offered her children as her first clients and the Deakings Daycare was born right from Victoria’s home in January of 1998.
Fast forward, over 20 years later, Victoria and the Deakings Daycare has grown tremendously . During that time, Victoria graduated with honors in Early Childhood education from CCAC. Victoria has also mentored several female entrepreneurs across the city helping them develop their own child care facilities. Victoria takes pride in helping those who truly have a vision for success and is always available to those who encompass that same mentality.
In addition, The Deakings Daycare has drastically evolved from starting inside her home to now becoming Keystone Stars accredited and voted Pittsburgh Post Gazette’s Fan Favorite. The Deakings Daycare has expanded to four schools (Pittsburgh Obama, Fulton PreK-5, Dillworth Traditional Academy, Pittsburgh Sunnyside PreK-8 )and two full service centers located on the East Side area of Pittsburgh. Victoria takes the most pride in the positive impact she has been able to make upon the children and families over the years.
In closing, Victoria has been able to impact children with severe special needs, adopted children, children from abusive homes, drug impacted homes and children with emotional issues. One of the best feelings in the world for Victoria is when she’s able to witness and be a instrumental part of these children growing and becoming productive citizens. Many of the children Victoria has mentored have grown into great parents, and many now have enrolled their children in the program. The impact that Victoria has made inside and outside of her program is second to none. Victoria continues to spread that positivity daily with the vision of many more great years to come.

Tiffany Lewis, is a wife, mother of three boys, CEO and owner of Children’s Ark Creative Learning Center. Born and raised in Pittsburgh, Pa, Tiffany found her passion in caring for children after not wanting to send her children to any of the daycares she visited so she created the environment she was looking for. CACLC was established in 2014, started in a home and now expanded into two facilities both located in Penn Hills. Our mission is to provide quality childcare that promotes happy, healthy, creative learning to each and every child.

Skilled at project management, with keen attention to detail as well as results, Jan grew her 30-year career at The Hillman Company, a prominent Pittsburgh Family Office, from her original role of software programmer to managing six direct reports in disparate functional areas. A champion of others, Jan naturally engages with people; she leads by example. Over the years she realized the impact of golf on one's business and personal life, yet saw that women were typically not included. Jan took this insight, her passion for golf and along with her business acumen, launched OnPar Now, a welcoming space where everyone can embrace this sport and all the positive attributes this activity has to offer! You can find Jan first light working out at Meraki Studio or running along the Allegheny River. Golf and Kayaking are 2 activities that speak to her soul. Jan has twin sons, one with a passion for cooking, the other with a passion for military history, both amazing young men!

Lynsie Campbell is the founder of two tech companies: ShowClix and LaneSpotter. One was acquired. The other, not so much. Lynsie is also a general partner of The Fund Midwest, a seed-stage venture fund investing in the next generation of tech founders. Before tech, Lynsie worked in the entertainment industry doing stints at The Rosie O'Donnell Show in New York City and as a music publicist in Los Angeles. Her work has appeared in NPR, CNN, Forbes, Billboard, and WSJ. She lives in Pittsburgh with her son Dylan, two dogs, two cats, and seven bikes.

Kate Zarvis has been a successful entrepreneur since 2017. She owns both Maniküre and Küre located in Lawrenceville. Kate's passion for the beauty industry started when she was in highschool working as a shampoo assistant in a hair salon. After graduating from beauty school she found her love for nail designs and honed in on the craft and skill of manicuring. Within the last 4 years Kate has grown Maniküre to over 10 employees who have a waitlist well over 200 and has officially retired from performing services. She opened her second business, Küre, a modern day spa, with a business partner who Kate coaches. Kate works full time as a CEO from home, or better yet, anywhere. She is passionate about growing salons and started to coach and consult this year where she can happily guide other entrepreneurs just like her to work less IN the salon and focus more ON the salon. Who doesn't love to work less and make more?

Monica Tillman-Smith, Owner of Salon XO Natural Hair & Spa is an independent licensed Cosmetologist and Trichologist with over 10 years experience in the beauty industry, she graduated from Bella Capelli, A Paul Mitchell School. Monica has a strong background in customer service, salon quality, product education as well as extensive knowledge and experience in professional hair care. Prior to following her passion, Monica worked in Corporate America and the Non-Profit sector in Finance & Administration for a combined 22 years.
Her main focus is to offer quality services to keep the hair and scalp healthy and thriving , she promotes the beauty in wearing your natural hair and texture" and currently writing a book that is now in its editing phase. Although Curly-Textured hair is what she specializes in, she often assists women wanting to transition from chemical relaxers, wigs and weaves or sometimes just a healthier way to wear these styles and services.
In addition to natural styling, Monica specializes in, Keratin treatments, Curly cuts and color to serve a diverse clientele. As a Trichologist, Monica is highly educated to identify many forms of hair loss while assisting the client in restoring health to the hair follicles through early detection. Monica has a true passion for getting back to hair health first, beauty & wellness from the inside out, and education and awareness of self. She uses all these strengths as a priority when providing real solutions related to your hair goals and self-care.

Alyssa has always been passionate about helping others - making nursing the perfect career field for her.
"I wanted to work in a career field that would give me the opportunity to leave a positive impact on the health and overall well-being of others, so I became a Nurse." Alyssa has been a nurse for 11 years now.
"I started out in critical care but after having kids I found myself feeling burnt out. I decided to transition into aesthetics for two reasons - so that I could enjoy more time home with my family & because I love the autonomy & creativity involved in this field of nursing (& lack of death involved)."
The aesthetics industry tends to hold a bad reputation, as most people are concerned their treatment will be overdone & leave them looking like a clown.
"I opened my own medspa because I'm driven to educate aesthetic nurses on the natural, less is more approach & didn't find that many medspas in Pittsburgh fit into that category. I wanted to open a place you feel comfortable coming to for that extra boost of confidence you're looking for, without forcing you to spend money on unnecessary treatments."

Alicia has always had a love and appreciation for art, design, and fashion and becoming a hair stylist has allowed her to integrate all of her passions into one career. Alicia is a full time licensed cosmetologist and has also graduated from Chatham University where she studied Public Relations and communications.
Not only is Alicia enormously talented in cutting, coloring, and styling hair, she is also very driven and motivated to perfect the business of hair. Alicia’s vision of beauty cohesiveness is now a reality through the grand opening of Stonewater Salon and Spa. Alicia is inspired by the hair industry and is constantly keeping up with the latest techniques and products. She knows that she brings a fresh view of a salon and spreads her knowledge onto her team. Stonewater Salon and Spa was established to bring the community together to share a place of serene relaxation. Alicia wants her clients to walk through the door of Stonewater and feel pampered from head to toe. Alicia advocates for enhancing a client’s natural beauty and strives to make them feel confident in their own skin. She enjoys individualizing her client’s styles and cuts and colors hair according to their own unique personality. Under Alicia’s care, you will see how beautiful you really are, not only on the outside, but inside as well.

Kelly Hanna Riley is President of Global Relocation and Business Development for Howard Hanna Real Estate Services.
Her responsibilities include networking with local and national corporations to market and develop exclusive Howard Hanna relocation and affinity programs for their executives and employees. These programs include Executive Link concierge service, Hanna Gold Advantage, Military on the Move, Senior Platinum Plus, and Hanna Asset Management. In addition, Kelly manages all corporate, broker, relocation management company, and e-commerce referrals that Howard Hanna receives and oversees the relationship between the company’s world-class Relocation Department and the Leading Real Estate Companies of the World® global affiliate network.
Kelly is also President of Howard Hanna’s full-service relocation management company, Relocation Horizons, Inc., which manages and administers the domestic and international relocation policies for various local and national corporations.
Previously, Kelly served as Vice President and Regional Manager of the company’s Pittsburgh North Region, where her responsibilities included fostering the growth and profitability of company offices in northern Allegheny County and Butler County. She began her real estate career as a sales associate with Howard Hanna and was the top producer in the company’s Adams Township office for five years. During her five-year tenure as manager of that office, it grew to become one of the company’s top offices.
As a member of the third generation of the Hanna family to serve a leadership role in the company, Kelly has a deep commitment to the real estate business and to sellers, buyers, and agents alike. She is a graduate of Chatham College and holds a real estate broker’s license. Her charitable endeavors include serving on the board of trustees for Winchester Thurston School, the board of directors for St. Lucy’s Auxiliary to the Blind, and the board of directors for the Howard Hanna Children’s Free Care Fund. Kelly is married to Patrick Riley, and they are the parents of three children.

Kristy Knichel, a lifelong Pittsburgh native, is a second-generation logistics executive. Since taking over as president of her company, Knichel Logistics, in 2007, Kristy has been the driving force behind their yearly growth and reputation as one of the top service providers within the IMC community. Kristy’s proudest accomplishments are winning the inaugural Distinguished Woman in Logistics Award and the Influential Woman in Trucking Award from the Women in Trucking Association along with her appointment as the Intermodal Logistics Conference Chair on the TIA Board of Directors. Today, Kristy’s focus is on expanding Knichel Logistics’ footprint via strategic development and continuing to offer her team members opportunities for growth and self-improvement. Kristy currently resides in Grove City, Pennsylvania with her husband Jason and her son Brayden. She is an avid Steelers fan and enjoys spending time with family and friends on camping trips.

Trendsetter Momtrepreneur Maria Theresa gathered her nerve, banking experience, and growing family in 1996 and took a leap of faith. She launched a dynamic marketing agency specializing in financial institution marketing. Keeping her family at the heart of her new business, Marakae Marketing (Ma [short â], Ra [long A], Kae [long A]) fuses the first syllables of Maria’s name with those of her daughters, Rachael and Kailey.
Embracing her knowledge, unique creativity, and strong communication skills, health care companies, law firms and universities joined Marakae’s client portfolio. Her nationally certified Women Business Entity provides services for branding, consulting, and design along with imprinted corporate gifts and apparel.
Maria’s authentic approach with clients and perseverance earned Marakae Marketing a seat in the top 25% of US businesses celebrating 25 years*. She has been featured in local and national publications for her creativity.
Infusing positivity into 2020 and beyond, Maria’s intuition spoke to her to launch an inspirational website and gift-line, IChoseHappy.Live. Along with motivational messages, the site ignites positive energy by partnering with local charities for customizable, fundraising gifts. I Chose Happy is already receiving national attention for creativity and content.
In addition to enjoying her rewarding career, Maria loves to live healthy, cook, garden, and travel. Her extended fur family includes four rescue cats, one dog and a chinchilla. Maria’s happiest moments are when her home is filled with the bustle of family, but mostly the giggles of her grandson, William.

As a resilience expert and corporate sales trainer, Mj is known for shifting staff attitudes and converting tactics into results. This two-time cancer survivor shares her trademarked strategy-driven techniques with organizations so that they can boost employees’ resilience, maximize team results, and increase revenue. Mj’s sales experience includes being the only female sales executive to be a top-five producer of a national building company, selling three times her annual quota. Mj has won four Gold Awards from PMA, sold a children’s game to Disney, and published 11 non-fiction books. She is the past president of the National Speakers Association. Her newly-released book, Bounce-Up: Outpower Adversity, Boost Resilience, Rebound Higher, has been endorsed by the CEO of the Healthy Workforce Institute.

Kelli is the president and CEO of K2 Creative, a content, PR & marketing, and branding firm which she started in the middle of the 2020 global pandemic. She works with many small business clients, but has found a niche in providing creative copywriting, PR, and marketing services to female business owners, authors, coaches, and speakers. Kelli is the creator, project manager, and a contributing author of "Twenty Won", an anthology of 21 female entrepreneurs sharing their stories of business resilience during the global pandemic. Her chapter, "From Imposter to Inspiration" focuses on how she overcame imposter syndrome to start her business and inspire a group of women to participate in the Twenty Won book.

Renee DeMichiei Farrow is an entrepreneur, corporate director, small business advocate, and Best-Selling Author who is highly lauded for her business branding, marketing, public relations, coaching, government, and nonprofit relations. In her corporate role, she is Director of Business Development for Architectural Innovations, LLC, a woman owned Architectural firm. Renee is most proud of her advocacy in building diverse teams for many projects in the region. This initiative has helped her firm win an Impact ward for Diversity from the business magazine Smart 50 Business.
Renee founded the award-winning business Decorating Details LLC from 1992-2005 and earned recognition as a Pennsylvania Best 50 Women in Business, SBA Regional Women in Business Advocate of the year, YWCA Tribute to Women, Girl Scout Women of Distinction Award, and she was also an Athena finalist. She was honored as a 2015 Plum High School Distinguished Alumni and started a scholarship for a senior in the TV production program for the past 20 years. Known for her civic commitment, Renee currently serves as the Vice Chair of the Board for Gwen’s Girls, board member of SPEO (Southwestern PA Engineers Organization), Plum Distinguished Alumni and is a member of the United Way Women’s Leadership Council where she serves on the CARES and event committees. She is also a member of Chatham’s CWE, Pittsburgh Business and Professional Women and numerous other mentoring and business networks.
Renee is a two-time author, and her second book was release on April 21,2021, Twenty Won and earned the Best-Selling Author/Book designation from Amazon on the release date. Renee has twice run for public office and is a graduate of Leadership Pittsburgh XIX and Coro Women in Leadership Cohort 14. She just completed studies at Duquesne University and is a Certified Professional Coach (PC). She restarted Decorating Details and her coaching business Results With Renee Farrow, during the pandemic in 2020-21.

Lori Ball is a cancer survivor and the founder and partner of Faith & Gratitude, a nonprofit organization providing empowerment and education to cancer patients and caregivers. She always felt an intrinsic desire to help people, but the path to that end always seemed a bit blurry. That is, until the autumn of 2015. Not a believer in coincidences, when she faced her own cancer diagnosis, she just knew “this was it”—the turning point in her life.
Understanding the connection between the mind, body, and spirit—especially when faced with a health crisis-Lori has made it her mission to bridge the gap between traditional standard of care cancer treatment and a more holistic approach.
Lori has worked in business for over 20 years and is now focused on growing her nonprofit where her vision sets the course for the organization.
Lori and her husband, Dave, live in Southwestern Pennsylvania, near Pittsburgh. Together they have one child, a son named Joshua.

Sarah joined AlphaGraphics in the Cultural District in September 2012. Sarah's parents, Bill and Clare, moved from Boston in 2000 to start the business. After 12 years in Corporate America, Sarah made a move to small business and has loved every minute of the excitement to lead a team, problem solve, and grow a business. As of 2018 Sarah became the CEO of AlphaGraphics, a team of over 20 employees, and had led the company through the pandemic. Prior experience, Sarah spent two years in Sydney, Australia, leading Morgan Stanley’s Sales Management effort for the market rollout for Australian Ultra High Net Worth. From 2000 to 2010, she worked at Morgan Stanley in New York, working on the top-performing PWM sales team that was ranked #1 among Barron’s Top 100 U.S. Financial Advisors. Sarah grew up in Concord, Massachusetts, and earned her B.S. at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where she was on the Swimming and Diving team. In Sarah's copious spare time she loves to cook, ski, and play tennis. Her faithful companion Bondi, a black pug, is AlphaGraphics’ mascot and a Cultural District regular. Sarah is married, has a two-year-old and three step-sons, residing in Shadyside.
Member of Board of Directors of Magee Women's Hospital, as well as appointed at large to National Leadership Council of AlphaGraphics Franchisee's. Member of Carnegie Museum Women's Committee and well as Pitt IEE Peer Forum. Graduate of Leadership Pittsburgh Class of XXXI, and Member of Riverlife Communications Sub-Committee. Sarah is a Vice-Chair of the Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy Hat Luncheon for a four-year term.

Ms. Braimbridge-Cox is the President and CEO of Windings, Inc. and a member of the company’s Board of Directors. Heather joined Windings, Inc. in late 2015 as Chief Financial Officer and rapidly progressed to the President and CEO in 2016. Windings, Inc. provides custom electric motor solutions with high specifications for a wide variety of industries including aerospace, defense, factory automation, oil and gas, automotive, medical, and power generation. Heather has helped to lead the 100% employee-owned (ESOP) company in New Ulm Minnesota to a culture of ownership, self-direction, and accountability.
Heather is a Fellow Chartered Certified Accountant (FCCA) and holds an MBA (International Finance) from Oxford Brookes University, Oxford England. She has over twenty-two years of senior leadership experience and a proven track record of effective team management with results driven leadership. Her experience cuts across various specialty industries, including operations in the USA, Canada, and the Caribbean. Before joining Windings, Inc., Heather held multiple CEO, COO and CFO roles.
Heather has a strong and ongoing commitment to giving back to the community which led her to serving on community councils, local school boards, and community action groups for non-profit organizations. Heather currently serves on the board of Second Harvest Heartland and recently completed her term as director with the New Ulm Chamber of Commerce. Heather is also on the QI Board of Open-Door Health Center in Mankato, MN. She continues to be very active on several business industry committees in Southern Minnesota.

Priya is the CEO and Founder of YinzCam, an American company that has worked with 180+ professional teams and leagues for 10 years to design and build their mobile apps, including the La Liga league app, 21 La Liga clubs in Spain, Wolverhampton FC in the U.K., New Zealand Rugby (the All Blacks), 24 NFL clubs in the USA, 22 NBA teams in the USA, 18 AFL clubs in Australia, Madison Square Garden, New Zealand Cricket, the National Rugby League (Australia), and more. She has a Ph.D. in electrical and computer engineering, and is also a Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Carnegie Mellon University in the U.S.A. She is reachable on twitter at @yinzcampriya.

Jessie B. Ramey, Ph.D., is the Founding Director of the Women’s Institute at Chatham University and Associate Professor of Women’s and Gender Studies. She is also a commissioner and was the Founding Chair of Pittsburgh’s Gender Equity Commission. Dr. Ramey is a historian of gender, race, working families, and U.S. social policy. She is widely published across both academic and popular platforms, and has won numerous awards. She has been recognized nationally for her work connecting scholarship and activism, including the Feminist Change Agent Award from the National Women’s Studies Association, a Special Recognition Award from Strong Women/Strong Girls, Pittsburgh’s BEST Ally Award from SisTersPGH, and the Iris Marion Young Award for Political Engagement from the University of Pittsburgh. A parent of two seventh-generation Pittsburghers, Dr. Ramey lives in the city and has been active in the Pittsburgh Public Schools for 15 years.

Janet K. Manuel is Director of Human Resources & Civil Service and EEO/D&I Officer for the City of Pittsburgh.
Ms. Manuel leads the City’s Department of Human Resources and Civil Service & EEO/Diversity and Inclusion initiatives. In addition to overseeing the Human Resources/EEO & D&I functions for over 3,500 City employees, she also leads employment and training opportunities for City residents through the Pittsburgh Partnership and in conjunction with the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services' Employment and Retention Network (EARN) and targeted City Community Development and Block Grant Funds.
Prior to joining Mayor Peduto administration, she held the positions of Vice President, Director, Regional Manager and Manager of Human Resources, for Fortune 500 for profit companies and a local non-profit company.
Ms. Manuel is a SHRM Volunteer Leader and serves as Director, Workforce Readiness for the PA State SHRM Council supporting 26 chapters and over 5,500 employers. Ms. Manuel serves as Chairperson for the CCAC Job Placement and Career Advisory Board (representing all four Pittsburgh campuses). Ms. Manuel serves on the Employer Advisory Board for West PAC (consortium of 40 plus Colleges and Universities in Western PA). Ms. Manuel was recently selected to serve on the Pittsburgh Public Schools (PPS) Career, Technical and Education (CTE) Advisory Board and serve on the Pennsylvania Reentry Council created by Governor Wolf and Attorney General Shapiro.
Ms. Manuel represents the City of Pittsburgh serving on the Pittsburgh Corporate Equity and Inclusion Roundtable (CEIR) and as a Gender Equity Commissioner for the City of Pittsburgh Gender Equity Commission.
Ms. Manuel is a past recipient of the Seven Seals Award by the US Department of Defense for her leadership and initiative in support of the men and women who serve America in the National Guard and Reserve. She is also a past recipient of top fifty African American Women of Excellence for Greater Pittsburgh and the Most Powerful and Influential Women award from the Pennsylvania Diversity Council for Greater Pittsburgh.
Ms. Manuel holds a Bachelors of Business degree from Cameron University and a Master of Science degree in Organizational Studies with a dual concentration in Leadership and Employee Relations from Robert Morris University. Ms. Manuel also holds the SHRM-CP and PHR designations.

Morgan Overton is currently the Community Engagement and Policy Associate for the Women’s Health Activist Movement Global under the Jewish Healthcare Foundation. She works on initiatives to transform maternal health, racial, and reproductive equity on the community and policy level. She also serves as Vice Chair of the City of Pittsburgh Gender Equity Commission. Morgan’s career in public affairs began nearly a decade ago as a fellow for Barack Obama’s 2012 presidential campaign, and has since spanned through roles at the local and state level. Morgan is also a visual artist whose work has exhibited across the United States, and France. Originally from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Morgan earned a Master’s in Social Work with a focus in community organization and social action, and a Bachelor’s in psychology with a minor in studio arts from the University of Pittsburgh. Morgan has been awarded Female Emerging Leader of the Year by GetInvolved! Inc, the Iris Marion Young Award for Political Engagement and Social Justice, and the Pittsburgh Business Times’ 30 Under 30 Awards.

Khamil Scantling is the founder and CEO of Cocoapreneur Pgh, LLC, a Black business consultancy firm based and focused on the Greater Pittsburgh area and co-founder of Greenwood Week Pittsburgh Black business conference. Khamil created the Cocoapreneur Directory to compile and organize Pittsburgh’s Black businesses and provide consumers with businesses in their neighborhoods that they could support and provide Black entrepreneurs with the traffic they need to flourish. Most recently, she raised over $100,000 to aid Black businesses affected by COVID-19.

Mila Sanina serves as the executive director of PublicSource, a nonprofit, non-partisan newsroom delivering public-service journalism in the Pittsburgh region at publicsource.org. Under Mila's leadership, PublicSource has been billed as a convener, an innovative newsroom which is known for its deep local reporting on issues of environment, police accountability, local government, education and economic development.
Mila joined PublicSource in 2016. Since then, PublicSource has tripled its newsroom size, increased its audience exponentially, generated solid financial support, founded its membership program, has won many state and national honors for its journalism and was nominated three times for a prestigious national award in General Excellence by the Online News Association.
Before joining PublicSource, Mila worked for five years at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette where her last position was the deputy managing editor. In that role, she led innovation in storytelling and integration of print and online operations. Before joining the Post-Gazette, Mila worked at The PBS Newshour and CNN International. She started her reporting career in Central Asia. A native of Almaty, Kazakhstan, Mila holds a master's degree from the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs at the University of Pittsburgh and a bachelor's degree from the American University in Bulgaria. In 2018, Mila was one of two recipients of the Emerging Leader Award from the Johnson Institute for Responsible Leadership at the University of Pittsburgh and was featured in Pittsburgh Magazine's list of 40 Under 40 in 2017. In 2020, Mila has been part of the prestigious Media Transformation Challenge program at Poynter (formerly known as Sulzberger Executive Leadership Program). She is a local journalism enthusiast and a fan of Mikhail Bulgakov.

• Tracey Grace is a woman of grit. Before breaking into tech by founding IBEX IT Business Experts (IBEX), Tracey led successful sales teams at companies like Learning Tree and FedEx and obtained her BA and her MBA from the University of Pittsburgh. She also developed software programs like Certifiably Diverse to help clients like the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) boost their supplier diversity. At IBEX, she helps organizations like NASA, US Army & US Air Force, CDC and Cox Communications implement and train workers on cutting-edge technologies. A minority woman founder, Grace realized IBEX’s value wasn’t just in tech training, but also in connecting companies with underrepresented groups. Although her professional expertise lies in Training, IT Governance and Best Practices, she’s a uniquely powerful authority on topics like diversity, networking, and leadership. This year IBEX improved their ranking on the INC 5000 list of Fastest Growing Private Companies to #802 Nationally, #31 in Georgia and #38 in Atlanta.

Newlin provides comprehensive investment and planning advice to families, with a specialty in working with global executives. Many of her clients are professionals and entrepreneurs who need retirement and business transition guidance. She also serves women of wealth seeking advice on career, divorce, and retirement. Newlin has consistently been voted one of the top wealth managers as rated by Pittsburgh Magazine. Driven by a desire to positively impact people’s financial lives, Newlin left her job as an Emmy-nominated television journalist and pivoted into wealth management more than a decade ago. She started her career as an advisor at Integrity Wealth Consulting. Later, Newlin served as vice president and a voting member of the Investment Committee at BPU Investment Management. While there, she also founded Women Connect, an initiative driven to help women executives find success. A frequent speaker, Newlin is a graduate of Ithaca College where she played women’s lacrosse. She is committed to the financial planning profession and is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional who is passionate about empowering others and serving as a mentor to next-gen advisors.

Raised in Montgomery, AL and, like many entrepreneurs, a lifelong learner, Georgena Terry received five degrees including Chatham College, B.A., Drama, 1972; Wharton School, M.B.A., 1974; Carnegie-Mellon University, B.S., Mechanical Engineering, 1980; Vermont Law School, Masters in Environmental Law and Policy, 2012. After a diverse corporate career, including positions at PPG Industries, Westinghouse Nuclear Service Division, and Xerox Corporation, Georgena founded Terry Precision Bicycles for Women designing custom bicycles. In addition to running her business, she volunteers her time with the Clean Energy States Alliance researching clean energy policy.

Gisele Barreto Fetterman is an access and equity advocate, a hugger and the Second Lady of Pennsylvania. She is the founder of Freestore 15104, where surplus and donated goods are received and redistributed to neighbors in need. The Freestore aims to eradicate food and clothing insecurity and has inspired spin off locations and the birth of 412 Food Rescue. Gisele is the co-founder of 412 Food Rescue, a community wide effort to end hunger and reduce food waste. 412FR has rescued over 10 million pounds of food. She is co-founder of For Good PGH, a non-profit that works to advocate inclusion and inspire kindness. Its first initiative, Hello Hijab, has received both national and international praise. Gisele was born in Brazil and emigrated as a child to the US, living as an undocumented immigrant for over a decade. Her work has been featured in the TODAY Show, CNN, NPR and more. Gisele is a Forty under 40 honoree, a Tedx Speaker a Jefferson Awards recipient and a mother of three.

Social, civic and private sector entrepreneur, Selena Schmidt is known for high-impact start-up scaling, community-focused problem solving, and creating strategic growth, She leverages her experience running campaigns, companies, nonprofits, and former City Council President Chief of Staff to build partnerships with the ‘unusual’ suspects, proving difference is a resource. Now serving as Executive Director of the Coro Center for Civic Leadership, she brings her passion for public, private, nonprofit partnerships and commitment to equity, sustainability, and democracy to leadership development.
Committed to equity, inclusion, and public service, Selena served as Harvard Innovation Lab Social Innovation Coach for women founders and on numerous boards including: Strong Women Strong Girls, Coro National Strategic Advisory Committee, Social Venture Partners, NAWBO National PAC Board, and Global Pittsburgh. Selena is especially proud to have been on the team that elected the first African American woman to Allegheny County office. Since returning to her hometown, she co-founded New Leaders Council Pittsburgh, and founding board Vice President of the Latino Community Center.
Alum of Chatham University and Women’s Campaign School at Yale, Selena was honored to serve as moderator for US Senator Robert Casey’s Town Hall and appointments to the Mayor of Pittsburgh Consortium on Early Childhood Education, City of Pittsburgh’s Ethics Task Force, and the Allegheny County Executive Transportation Visioning Team. She was recognized as one of Pittsburgh’s 40 Under 40, Woman of Achievement in Government, National Association of Women in Business Public Policy Advocate of the Year, National Forensics League Distinguished Alumnus of the Year, is proud to have been an NCAA Scholar Athlete, and was recently recognized as YWCA Women of Distinction for Civic and Community Leadership. The National Women’s Hall of Fame recognized Selena’s accomplishments with induction in their Lives & Legacies.

Angela has 20 years of corporate communications experience focused on workforce engagement, media relations, public affairs and crisis response. She joined FedEx Ground in 2008 as a Manager of Communications and was named to her current position in 2013, where she oversees all external and internal communications and messaging for the company. Prior to joining FedEx, Angela held Corporate Communications positions at global chemical companies Lanxess Corporation and Bayer Corporation.
Angela earned her bachelor’s degree from La Roche University and her master’s from Point Park University. She is a graduate of the FedEx EXCEL Advanced Leadership Program and proudly serves on the Board of Directors of Leadership Pittsburgh, Inc. and the Pittsburgh Penguins Foundation. Angela has been honored with several company awards including Excellence in Communications, FedEx Ground Leadership Excellence and is a two-time recipient of the prestigious FedEx Ground Five Star Award. In 2020, she was named one of the Pittsburgh Business Times’ Women of Influence.

Angela Marie Reynolds, Ph.D, a native of New Haven CT, holds a Ph.D. in Public Policy Analysis from the Heinz School at Carnegie Mellon University; M.S. in Statistics also from CMU; and a B.A. in Mathematics (Sociology minor) from Bryn Mawr College. For 12 years, she was an Assistant Professor at the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs at the University of Pittsburgh where she taught statistics and performed research on housing policy, specifically affordable housing and fair housing. In 2012, she changed careers and joined the United Way of Southwestern PA where she most recently served as the Senior Director of United for Families and 2-1-1. Under her leadership, 2-1-1 expanded to cover 30 counties in PA and provided coverage for Southern Kentucky. She served on the state PA 2-1-1 board and 2-1-1 national steering committee. February 24, 2020, Dr. Reynolds transitioned to the YWCA of Greater Pittsburgh where she serves as Chief Executive Officer. The YWCA aims to eliminate racism, empower women, and promote peace and justice in our region.
She is a mother of four (3 adult children and a 5th grader). She resides in the Windgap neighborhood of Pittsburgh with her husband, youngest child, and her mother.

Lillian Rafson, founder and CEO of Pack Up + Go, launched the business in January 2016 at 23 years old. Originally from Pittsburgh, PA, and a graduate of New York University’s Gallatin School with a major in Consumer Culture, Lillian has always had a passion for travel and supporting small businesses. Without raising a dollar, Lillian has grown Pack Up + Go to a multi-million-dollar business with 13 full-time employees. She has been honored as a member of the inaugural Pittsburgh Business Times 30 Under 30 class, and as a Tory Burch Foundation Fellow. She is thrilled to share her love for exploration through Pack Up + Go’s mission of embracing the unknown and encouraging spontaneity in each of its travelers.

Aradhna is the President and CEO of Leadership Pittsburgh Inc. – a regional leadership institute that has graduated 2,800 informed and engaged leaders from the business and civic sectors and linked them with opportunities to help serve the region on a multitude of boards and commissions. Born and raised in India, Aradhna holds an MBA from Rutgers University and an MA in Psychology from Bhopal University. She received honorary doctorates from two universities: Robert Morris University in 2016 and Waynesburg University in 2017.
Aradhna serves on the boards of, among others, Chatham University and First Commonwealth Bank. In recognition of her collaborative ability to accomplish complex projects with broad impact she was invited by Pennsylvania’s then Governor-Elect Tom Wolf to serve on the statewide committee overseeing the work of his transition teams; by the Chancellor of University of Pittsburgh for the blue ribbon Committee on City-County Effectiveness and Efficiency; and by the Allegheny County Executive as a Commissioner for the County Government Review Commission that is constituted once every ten years. Aradhna’s leadership and work has received recognition over the years including as region’s top “40 Under 40” in 2002, as one of the top 25 most influential people in the region from the Pittsburgh Magazine in 2015, as an Outstanding CEO by the Business Times in 2018, and 100 Most Influential People in Pittsburgh region by The Pittsburgh Business Times in 2020. Also, in 2018 the Institute of Politics at the University of Pittsburgh awarded her the prestigious Moe Coleman award for career commitment to service and Syracuse University honored her entrepreneurial spirit in service to military veterans with the Entrepreneurial Spirit Award. Aradhna is a past president of the International Women’s Forum of Pittsburgh. She writes and speaks frequently on talent management and leadership strategy including at a recent TEDx Pittsburgh conference.

In January 2014, Marita Garrett was sworn in as a Councilwoman for Wilkinsburg Borough. As a member and Vice-President of Council, Marita was instrumental in seeking and receiving over $2 million in grant revenue for the Borough; additionally, led the charge to increase capacity in Borough department in increase efficiency in services to residents. Also, at that time then-Councilwoman Garrett saw a need for an increase in community engagement and started, “Wilkinsburg Community Conversations” an initiative to connect and empower residents to work together for neighborhood improvement. From there, she co-founded Free Store Wilkinsburg to assist community members to address emergent needs. In 2017 she was named “Young Democrat of the Year” from the Allegheny County Democratic Committee and selected to attend the NextCity Vanguard conference held in Newcastle, Australia. Additionally, Ms. Garrett has served on panels at the Brookings Institution and United Nation’s World Urban Forum 9.
In 2017, Ms. Garrett was elected Mayor with over 65% of votes in a 4-way race. As Mayor, she reinstated the Public Safety Forums, a monthly series that highlights updates in the Wilkinsburg Police Department and provides an opportunity for community members to express their safety concerns. During her tenure, Mayor Garrett has been largely influential for the renewed interest in Wilkinsburg’s revitalization.
Marita founded CIVICALLY, INC – an umbrella nonprofit organization that focuses on community development by promoting civic and socially literacy to instill self-reliance. In addition to Free Store Wilkinsburg, Community Conversations, she has established Fresh Market and initiatives and received grants for health education, urban farming, and others. In 2019, through Civically, Inc. acquired the Hunter Building – the largest commercial building in downtown Wilkinsburg to stabilize an anchor building and catalyze economic development in the Borough. Thus far, she has brought in over a half of million dollars towards capital planning and improvement projects.
Outside of her political career, Ms. Garrett is the CEO of MarGar Enterprises, LLC, a for-profit company that provides a wide range of outreach and engagement services to non-profits and mid-level corporations. Some of her clients have been Dollar Bank, University of Pittsburgh, CMU, CORO Pittsburgh, Wilkinsburg Development Corporation, New Sun Rising, among others.
Ms. Garrett has a Bachelor’s in Psychology from the University of Pittsburgh, where she now serves as an adjunct professor; and a Master’s in Psychology from Chatham University, where she has been a panel speaker on several occasions for the Center for Women and Politics. Continuing to promote women empowerment, Ms. Garrett is the co-host of Shattered Glass Podcast, where stories of extraordinary women shattering the glass ceiling are highlighted. She was featured in Pittsburgh Magazine’s Women & Business edition. Mayor Garrett has been recognized for her diligence in civic and community engagement by numerous organizations and media outlets. Currently, she serves on the advisory boards for Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Allegheny Regional Asset District (RAD), Phipps Conservatory, among other organizations.

Marimba Milliones is president and CEO of the Hill Community Development Corporation (Hill CDC) in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania's historic Hill District neighborhood. She is a practitioner of and thought leader in equitable development. Her work is focused on assuring equity in urban-core redevelopment involving low-moderate income residents, communities of color and cities. Milliones advocates for and utilizes intentional planning and development practices that honor people, place, culture and the market. She believes in win-win models. To this end, Milliones led negotiations of a community benefits agreement with the National Hockey League's Pittsburgh Penguins to assure equitable development for a historic tract of land in the heart of fast-growing Pittsburgh. The establishment of a city-wide affordable housing task force, and the largest tax financing district in the history of the City of Pittsburgh were sealed as a part of the negotiations.
Milliones’ policy advocacy over the years has resulted in a more equitable approach to development throughout the City. She has designed processes that assure that marginalized communities can be self-determinative in real estate development including community-level review and approval of projects requiring public subsidy. Her organization has pipelined and is preparing over 200 renters for homeownership, and recently launched a residential and commercial community land trust. Most notable is Milliones’ work towards building a Black cultural and commercial neighborhood district anchored by the restoration of the historic New Granada Theater, new office space and storefronts, and 40 units of artist-preference affordable housing. The $45M+ mixed-use development effort will be an iconic example of how culture is a surefire economic development tool.
Milliones has received numerous recognitions and has served on numerous boards including the transition team for Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf’s Department of Community and Economic Development. She is a member of Leadership Pittsburgh Class XXXI and LeadNow Pgh II. Milliones is a Gallup Certified Strengths Coach and brings a strengths-based approach to organizational and community development. She has been recognized by the New Pittsburgh Courier, YMCA, Onyx Woman, and others. In 2015, she was recognized by Pittsburgh Magazine as one of Pittsburgh’s 15 Future Powerbrokers.

Tammy T. Thompson uses her past experiences living in and surviving poverty to relate to families who are working to escape poverty and reach self-sufficiency. She is a certified Housing Counselor and has been teaching financial education, developing workshops, speaking and educating families for 20 years. As the owner and operator of T3 Consulting, Inc. she facilitates and develops homeownership programs for local non-profit organizations in Pittsburgh. She has a passion for educating people about how poverty impacts people psychologically and emotionally using a curriculum that she developed called “Understanding The Psychology of Poverty”. She speaks nationally and internationally on this topic and has been recognized as a Poverty Expert.
Ms. Thompson started T3 Media, a Social Justice media company and has added the title of Executive Producer to her list of accomplishments. In 2017 she produced a Documentary entitled "We Wear The Mask: The Hidden Face of Women In Poverty”.
Tammy is the Executive Director of Circles Greater Pittsburgh where she’s developed multiple wealth building initiatives including, Catapult: Startup to Storefront and the Gallery on Penn retail incubator program.

Carol A. Neyland, Senior vice President of Dollar Bank has worked in the financial services sector for over 30 years. Carol was appointed to head the Community Development Department at Dollar Bank in 2011. Prior to this assignment, she served as a Private Banker at Dollar Bank where she enjoyed building a portfolio of high net worth clients.
Prior to joining Dollar bank, Carol was responsible for regulatory compliance for the local office of TIAA-CREF and was specifically responsible for the regulator supervision of financial advisors that delivered Wealth Management services to professors and physicians at local colleges and universities in Pennsylvania. Before joining TIAA-CREF, Carol spent 26 years at Mellon Financial Corporation, now BNY Mellon where she held a number of positions in increasing scope and responsibilities. Some of these positions included Vice President for Commercial Lending and Senior Credit Officer for the Private Bank, and First Vice President for Private Wealth Management. As a commercial lender, one of Carol’s biggest accomplishments was arranging the $400 million financings of 900 North Michigan in Chicago, IL through a syndicate of domestic and foreign banks. As a Private Wealth Advisor, Carol brought in more than $69 million in assets over a two and a half year period.
Carol graduated from Carlow University with a major in Latin and Greek and later won a teaching fellowship to teach Latin at the University of Pittsburgh. After achieving her Master’s Degree in Classical Languages and unable to find suitable employment, Carol won an appointment as an Academic Advisor and was then able to complete her MBA at the University of Pittsburgh.
Carol has been honored by many organizations some of which includes: the Carlow University Woman of Spirit 1994, the Pittsburgh Courier Women of Excellence, as a Carlow Laureate in 2013, Allen’s Place as a Community Champion in 2015, Celebrate & Share Women of Achievement in 2014 and the ONYX Women Magazines Top 25 Women of Excellence in 2016.
Over the years, Carol has served on a number of non-profit boards, some of which included: Girl Scouts of Western PA, the Urban League, Family Health Council, Pittsburgh Dance Council, Parental Stress Center, Vietnam Veteran’s Leadership Program, Pittsburgh Civic Garden Center, Interfaith Volunteer Caregivers, The greater Pittsburgh YMCA and Neighborhood Allies. Currently, she serves on the boards of Pittsburgh History & Landmarks, The Landmarks Financial Corporation, and Bridgeway Capital.
Carol lives in Bradfordwoods, enjoys casual games of golf, fitness and experimenting in the kitchen.

Meredith Meyer Grelli is Co-Founder and Co-Owner of Wigle Whiskey, Pittsburgh's first distillery since Prohibition. Since beginning distilling in December 2011, Wigle Whiskey has worked to restore Pittsburgh’s legacy as the Birthplace of American Whiskey and the epicenter of Rye. Meredith is a 2018 James Beard Award Semi-Finalist; 2018 Imbibe 75 Beverage Professionals to Watch; and the author of The Whiskey Rebellion & The Rebirth of Rye.
Wigle spirits are distributed throughout the country and the Distillery was been the most awarded Craft Whiskey Distillery in the US By the American Craft Spirits Association for four straight years. Wigle has won Best in Class Gin, Best in Category Rye Whiskey, and Wheat Whiskey and a gold medal for its Bourbon by the American Craft Spirits Association.
In 2017, Meredith co-founded Threadbare Cider & Mead, a Cidery in Pittsburgh PA.
Meredith teaches New Product Development in Chatham University's Master of Food Studies Program, as well as Entrepreneurship for Chatham’s Center for Women's Entrepreneurship.
Before starting Wigle, Meredith worked in brand management at the H.J. Heinz Company, received her MBA from Carnegie Mellon University, worked in community development, studied cooking at Le Cordon Bleu Paris and received her BS in urban history and geography at University of Chicago. Meredith co-founded a Pittsburgh urban beekeeping organization and started the nation's first community apiary.
Meredith was named Alumna of the Year in 2016 by the Tepper School of Business at Carnegie Mellon University; a 2016 100 Women to Watch by the Business Times; a 2008-2010 Forte Fellow, and received the 2010 Canfield Roseman Entrepreneur of the Year Award, as well as the 2006 Harold Goettler Political Institutions Prize. She has been a keynote or featured speaker at a variety of Universities and companies.

Lani Lazzari is the 25-year-old CEO and founder of Simple Sugars, a Pittsburgh based all-natural skincare line for sensitive skin. Lani founded Simple Sugars in December of 2005, when she was just 11 years old, in an effort to create natural skin care products that would be safe to use on her ultra-sensitive skin and relieve her eczema. What started in the basement of her parents' home is now a multimillion-dollar business, and Lani's brand has been endorsed by beauty editors at some of the world's most prestigious beauty magazines and has garnered a loyal fan base all over the world. Lani appeared on ABC's Hit Show Shark Tank in 2013, where she received an investment from billionaire Mark Cuban.

Diamonte Walker is the Deputy Director of the Urban Redevelopment Authority of Pittsburgh (URA), where she provides strategy, vision, operations management, team development, and leadership.
Diamonte joined the agency in 2017, quickly becoming the driving force behind URA’s MWBE strategy. Her commitment to the advancement of equitable development is demonstrated through the administration of the URA’s MWBE Program, compliance monitoring, reporting functions, and other economic inclusion focused initiatives.
With a career span of more than 15 years in the for-profit sector and having recently served as a business development program manager in the non-profit sector, Diamonte understands the complex challenges we face as a region when trying to effectuate meaningful change in neighborhoods.
Diamonte offers a serious look at what can happen when we expand the work of economic development beyond metrics, goals, and buzzwords to create impactful experiences that empower people while transforming a place.
Diamonte holds an MBA and Master of Science in Management and Leadership from Western Governors University. She is a Mayoral appointee to Pittsburgh’s Land Bank Board, serves as Chair to Councilman Corey O’Connor’s Advisory Board on Entrepreneurship and Start-ups, and currently sits on the Housing Opportunity Fund’s Advisory Board. Her notable achievements include being named one of the Pittsburgh Business Times 2019 Women of Influence, a 2019 Lead Now Pittsburgh Fellow, a 2018 Onyx Woman in Leadership, 2017 Pittsburgh Magazine 40 under 40 honoree, and 2016 New Pittsburgh Courier Fab 40 Under 40 awardee. She was recently named one of Talk Magazine’s 100 Most Influential Pennsylvanian African-American Women.
She is strongly committed to helping entrepreneurs from diverse backgrounds take full advantage of today’s marketplace innovations to cost-effectively operationalize their ideas and better position themselves to experience an equitable stake in Pittsburgh’s economic resurgence.

Dr. Pat Downey joined Chatham in 1994, as a Physical Therapy Faculty member. In 2005 she became the PT Program Director and then became the inaugural Dean of the School of Health Sciences in 2014. Her research and publication focus has been on bone health, osteoporosis, and the prevention of falls and fractures in postmenopausal women. Dr. Downey has a bachelor’s degree in physical therapy from West Virginia University, a masters degree in advanced orthopedic physical therapy and a PhD in physical anthropology with an emphasis in functional anatomy, both from the University of Pittsburgh. She was previously awarded the Distinguished Professional Service Alumni Award from West Virginia University’s Program in Physical Therapy and the Vera Heinz-Given Faculty Award from Chatham University.

Dr. Foley has over 25 years of experience in physical therapy and the health and wellness industry. She earned her clinical doctorate in Physical Therapy from Chatham University in 2008 and has maintained a Board Certification in Orthopedic Physical Therapy since 2004. Dr. Foley created Foley Physical Therapy in 2016. Her experience prior to that was in acute, in-patient rehabilitation, home care, and outpatient settings, including most recently as Clinic Director of a local outpatient therapy company. Her practice is a Direct Pay model, intentionally not participating with insurance companies. This model removes restrictions regarding frequency, type, and duration of treatment, and guarantees unrestricted access. The uninterrupted 1:1 session encourages patient communication, education, and participation. The benefits are faster recovery and relevant outcomes, as well as the elimination of repetitive and unsupervised care. Practice focus and special interests include differential diagnosis and the role of the physical therapist as a primary health provider. She is currently pursuing advanced manual skills training through NAIOMT. Nancy is a 1987 graduate of Penn State University with a BS in Sport and Exercise Science and a 4-year Lady Lion swimmer and co-captain of the Eastern Coast Conference champions.

Elizabeth is the owner of Heart of Gold, Pittsburgh Therapy Project LLC and a 2016 graduate of Chatham University’s Master of Occupational Therapy Program. She opened a private practice in August 2019 after spending 16 months traveling the country as a travel occupational therapist and writer while blogging with her dog, Hunny, as A Travel OT and Her Dog. Heart of Gold is Pittsburgh’s first independent trauma-sensitive occupational therapy clinic offering relationship- and body-based treatments for individuals of all ages. She specializes in family-based pediatric occupational therapy services focusing on reflective and empowered parenting of children with complex needs. In addition, she facilitates Trauma Center Trauma Sensitive Yoga (TCTSY) with individuals of all ages as a supplemental, evidence-based practice to support the healing process of complex post-traumatic stress symptoms. She discovered Trauma Center Trauma-Sensitive Yoga while applying for a Schweitzer Fellowship as an MOT student at Chatham. She went on to study TCTSY with the Justice Resource Institute’s Center for Trauma & Embodiment while traveling, becoming one of the only occupational therapists in the United States to earn certification in Trauma Center Trauma Sensitive Yoga (TCTSY) facilitation.

Dr. Tosin Emmanuel is the founder and president of Therapist Without Borders Foundation (TWBF), which is a nonprofit organization that supports the provision of therapeutic services, consultation, and education to the community at large. TWBF was created to with a distinct purpose to improve quality of life, increase engagements in meaningful occupations and community involvement, and promote aging in place in the communities we serve through the provision of valuable skilled services, and instructive education and training. Dr. Emmanuel is also a certified LSVT (Lee Silverman Voice Treatment) BIG Clinician; a practice area which focuses on improving movement in patients with Parkinson’s disease. Dr. Emmanuel has practiced in the rehabilitation medicine sector for about 6 years within various fields of practice which includes psychiatry, sub-acute care skilled nursing facilities, acute care facilities, and home health. Dr. Emmanuel became the Face of Rehabilitation at the 2018 National Nursing Home and Rehabilitation week while working as an occupational therapist at CareRite Centers and also the Face of Rehabilitation at the Emerald Peek Rehabilitation and Nursing Center in Peekskill, NY. She was one of the first females to obtain her Doctorate in occupational therapy within her company at a young age. She began the spinal cord program in her facility which provides therapeutic services that restore and/or maintains function in patients that have acquired spinal cord injuries and surgeries with aims to improve their overall quality of life. Dr. Emmanuel is currently an Assistant Director of Rehabilitation at the Bushwick Center of Rehabilitation and Nursing, a prestigious five-star facility in Brooklyn NY and a weekend Rehabilitation Manager at the Osborn; which is prestigious five-star Sub-acute Nursing facility in Rye, NY.

On 1 July 2019, Bobbi Watt Geer assumed the role of President & CEO of United Way of Southwestern Pennsylvania. This appointment comes after a 30+ year career in the nonprofit sector. Bobbi served previously in a variety of leadership positions within United Way, including Senior Vice President of Administration and Regional Vice President of United Way of Southwestern Pennsylvania. Prior to the organization’s merger, she was President & CEO of United Way of Westmoreland County, serving Westmoreland, Fayette and a portion of Armstrong Counties. Her extensive nonprofit experience includes serving as the chief operating officer for United Way of Westmoreland County, the former president of The Community Foundation of Westmoreland County, development and public relations director for St. Anne Home and in a variety of roles with the American Heart Association. She has been involved with many community committees and boards, including serving as the immediate past chair of the Greater Pittsburgh Nonprofit Partnership Advisory Team and president of the Franklin Regional Panther Foundation. Bobbi holds a doctoral degree in public administration and public policy from the University of Pittsburgh’s Graduate School of Public and International Affairs and earned her master’s degree in nonprofit management from Robert Morris University.

Julia Takeda started her company, Fly Louie while attending Columbia Business School. Fly Louie is an air service using private planes to create a faster alternative to commercial travel. Fly Louie ran its inaugural 33-flight seasonal route between NY and Nantucket in Summer 2018 and, following its seed raise, launched its second route (between NY and Pittsburgh) January 2019. Julia has a BA from Tufts University. Prior to CBS, she was an early hire at an EdTech company she helped grow from 100 students to 14,000 before its sale in 2015.

Caroline built Bolt PR from the ground up and has worked with clients to drive long-term business growth in industries ranging from technology, travel, hospitality and health and fitness, to education, retail, marketing, and community service. During her career, Caroline has helped individuals and brands appear on the front cover of magazines, on national morning and evening news programs, in newspaper business features and on high-profile news sites. Caroline’s work has resulted in high-profile media placements in outlets such as ABC World News, Buzzfeed, E! News, Forbes, Good Morning America, New York Times, and the Wall Street Journal, to name just a few. Over the course of the agency’s 12+ years, Bolt PR has helped a nonprofit raise enough funds to break ground on a development project a full year ahead of schedule; the firm helped a computer app reach two million active users in its first year; it branded and launched a social campaign on behalf of a client that resulted in appearances on nearly every major talk show, morning show, and major news outlet; and it helped a single restaurateur grow from one restaurant location to a national franchise brand in just four years. Bolt PR has been ranked among the top independently owned PR firms, and the agency has earned dozens of industry awards for its work over the years thanks to its amazing team of creative professionals. When she’s not working, Caroline stays busy raising her five- and two-year-old children and is proud to serve as an executive board member for Melvin Ingram’s Mission Possible Foundation.

Toni Murphy is currently the Vice President of Comcast Business. In this role, Toni is responsible for customer acquisition and growth in the small business and mid-market Enterprise fiber connectivity space. Based in Pittsburgh, she leads a team of 160 sales professionals and product enthusiasts across the Keystone Region, which encompasses the states of Pennsylvania, eastern Ohio, West Virginia and western Maryland. In addition to these core responsibilities, Toni leads the Keystone Region Diversity & Inclusion Council, where she is implementing strategies to hire, retain and develop the next generation of diverse leaders in the organization. She joined the Keystone Region in 2015 as the Vice President of Project Management Office and Customer Experience for the Keystone Region of Comcast. In this role, she was responsible for the development, implementation, and administration of strategic plans for the Keystone Region. She led the organization through the transformational deployment of the Net Promoter System, among other business imperatives. Toni has had a storied and meteoric rise at Comcast. Over the last 10 years, she has held a variety of positions across the United States. Prior to Pittsburgh, Toni was the Sr. Director of Market Development for Comcast Business in California Region, where she was responsible for capital optimization and market expansion in the State of California. Prior to California, Toni was the Sr. Director of Business Support & Analytics for the Greater Chicago Region of Comcast. In that role, Toni oversaw business development, finance, strategic planning and general administration for the Business Services organization in Chicago. Toni began her journey with Comcast as Manager of Financial & Strategic Planning at Comcast Corporate in Philadelphia. In this role, she supported the Cable Division on corporate budgeting, capital markets analyses, valuation of M&A opportunities. Of her many accolades at Comcast, Toni is the only African American female and millennial who owns a P&L at the Company. She was also one of the first millennials to be promoted to Vice President across the Enterprise. Toni began her career as an analyst at UBS Investment Bank in New York City, where she focused on the cable/satellite, broadcasting and outdoor advertising sectors. At UBS, she specialized in M&A valuations and leveraged debt, buyouts, which led to her working on notable transactions such Adelphia’s $17.6B sale to Time Warner and Comcast, Clear Channel Outdoor’s $630M IPO and Patriot Media’s $483M sale to Comcast. After UBS, Toni pursued a career in private equity in Los Angeles with Glendon Partners, the operational arm of The Gores Group, LLC, where she worked alongside the management of Gores’ portfolio companies to assess monthly / quarterly performance, growth strategies, and exit valuations. Toni is a graduate of Princeton University with a Bachelor of Arts in French and Economics. Toni currently sits on the board of Strong Women Strong Girls, a Pittsburgh-based non-profit focused on the development and mentorship of female youth and mid-level female leaders and RedChairPGH, another Pittsburgh-based non-profit that focuses on achieving gender balance in IT and Technology. Toni has received many industry awards and recognition for her professional success. In March 2019, she was recognized by Pittsburgh Business Times as a Woman of Influence. She was the 2018 recipient of the ATHENA Young Professional Award. She is very proud of her recognition as one of Cablefax’s Most Influential Minorities in Cable in 2016, 2017 and 2018. Toni was also selected as one of Pittsburgh Magazine’s “40 under 40” in the November 2017 issue. In 2018, Toni was recognized by the National Association of Multi-Ethnicity in Communications (NAMIC) with the Luminary Award, which is one of the most coveted awards for “up and coming” Executives in the Telecom industry.

Stephanie graduated from Chatham in 1990 with a degree in International Business and is the Head of Commercial Banking at PNC. Ms. Novosel has been with PNC Bank since 2000, and now oversees one of the largest C&I client segments, serving 20,000+ clients across the bank’s footprint of 35 markets, and leading 650+ professionals who work with companies ranging from $5-50MM in sales size. Since joining PNC, she has had a wide range of responsibilities, including COO for Corporate & Institutional Banking for six years. In addition to working with all of the segments and products that comprise C&I banking on their programs and client experience processes, she lead the integration of several large bank acquisitions into C&I, along with many functions including client analytics, sales development and support, and strategic decision support. Ms. Novosel was also Deputy Group Head of international banking, and has lead several product areas including commercial deposits and investments. She began her career at PricewaterhouseCoopers, working in audit, tax, and management consulting practices. Ms. Novosel has a B.A. in International Business from Chatham University. She is currently on the Board of Trustees for Chatham University, the Board of Directors for the Pine Richland Youth Center, and the Advisory Board of the Center for Women’s Entrepreneurship. She has been a member of the Advisory Committee to the Export-Import Bank of the United States, Vice President of the Board of Directors for Reading Is Fundamental Pittsburgh and other organizations. She was the founding Executive Sponsor of PNC’s Young Professionals headquarters chapter, and has volunteered or worked with many organizations such as the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Western PA, Big Brothers / Big Sisters of Beaver County, and the CORO Center for Civic Leadership.

Stacy began her career with Ernst & Young as a Staff Auditor in their Atlanta office after graduating from Miami University (OH) with a BS in Accounting. She is a licensed Certified Public Accountant in the state of Pennsylvania. Stacy spent five years at Ernst & Young serving audit clients primarily within the Telecommunications and Manufacturing industries followed by a year with the firm’s Transaction Advisory Services group providing buy-side due diligence support to strategic buyers and private equity firms. Additionally, Stacy spent four years with GE Energy in Atlanta in a business development role supporting due diligence, transaction execution, and integration activities for over $1 billion in mergers and acquisitions. She also served as a Portfolio Finance Manager in GE’s Contractual Services business managing the financial operations of a portfolio of service contracts in excess of $500 million. Stacy also served as the Sarbanes Oxley (“SOX”) leader for GE Energy and championed process improvement and other controllership initiatives at GE. While at GE, Stacy obtained her Green Belt certification in Six Sigma and was a member of GE’s Experienced Financial Leadership Program. Stacy relocated to Pittsburgh 13 years ago to become Vice President and Corporate Controller of UPMC, a role she currently holds. In addition, she is also the Executive Sponsor for UPMC’s finance talent development programs including the Summer Associate program as well as the full-time Financial Management Rotation (FMR) program and an Executive-in-Residence at the University of Pittsburgh’s College of Business Administration. Outside of the professional setting, she enjoys spending time with her young daughter and husband, traveling, reading, cycling, kayaking and cheering on Pittsburgh’s sports teams.

R. Yvonne Campos, founding CEO of market research and strategy firm, Campos Inc, is a nationally recognized focus group moderator, facilitator and consultant. Under her leadership, Campos Inc, founded in 1986, became the premier research company in the Pittsburgh market by introducing new and innovative research techniques and consumer trend analysis. She is the founder of two Pittsburgh chapters of the Women Presidents’ Organization, a peer-to-peer learning model for women-owned businesses with revenues over one million dollars. Yvonne is a very active member of the Pittsburgh business community; she has been recognized locally, regionally and nationally for her entrepreneurship and community involvement.

Asha Persaud is the founder and Chief Executive Officer of The Hope Learning Center. In this role, she leverages more than 15 years of expertise in the fields of clinical and school based therapy, behavioral intervention services, specialized education alternatives, and executive management to lead a team of educators and therapists in the delivery of customized services to children on the autism spectrum. Ms. Persaud oversees all levels of corporate direction and strategy at The Hope Learning Center, facilitating company activity in contracts, consulting, innovation and development. Under Asha’s leadership The Hope Learning Center has grown its programming to include outpatient therapy, three privately licensed schools, development and operation of a customer relation management system, teletherapy practice, and an early childhood education center. She has consistently developed high-quality, groundbreaking services to deliver on the mission of The Hope Learning Center by being the premier provider of educational and therapeutic services for children with special needs.

Melanie Querry knew she wanted to become an entrepreneur long before she could spell it. Upon graduation from Penn State University, she pursued an advertising sales position with KDKA-TV and also Comcast, where she built an extremely successful career. In 2006, Melanie recognized and seized the opportunity she had anticipated since childhood, risking all of her personal finances, as well as her personal life (working nearly every night and weekends for years), to take a chance on her dream. She started Beyond Spots & Dots – a full-service advertising agency - with no investors, partners or clients. Within twelve years of business, Melanie has helped to lead her company to be named among the Pittsburgh Business Times’ Fastest Growing Companies, Top 20 Ad Agencies and Best Places to Work, and Entrepreneur Magazine’s Best Entrepreneurial Companies in America list, as well as the Inc. 5000 Fastest Growing Companies list five (5) times. Her personal honors have included being named to the Pittsburgh Business Times’ BusinessWomen First list and earning Enterprising Women Magazine’s Enterprising Women of the Year Award, as well as the Women of Achievement award. Melanie volunteers her time working with young adults and other Entrepreneurs to help them follow the path of success. Melanie is a graduate of Penn State University. Today, Beyond Spots & Dots is operated by Melanie and her husband, Andreas. They have a five-year-old son and travel for fun.

Gina is a successful, driven and resourceful entrepreneur with over 25 years of experience. She focuses as a customer centric leader, while demonstrating a track record of achieving financial goals with a consistent record of growth, which ultimately led to the successful exit of her company in 2013 to an international conglomerate. Gina was an Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Finalist in 2008. Gina launched her real estate investment business in 2015, renovating her first home successfully. Her business focuses both on residential redevelopment and commercial investing. Gina is a member of Next Act Fund and Co-Chair of the Investment Committee. She has been active in the due diligence process, both leading and participating in teams.

Shelley Fant is the founder and President of FCG Solutions. Prior to founding FCG she was an Assistant Vice President and Senior Attorney with the Federal Home Loan Bank of Pittsburgh. Shelley is committed to community service and engagement. As such, she currently serves on the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland’s Board of Directors (Pittsburgh Branch) and on the Board of Directors of the Pittsburgh Civic Light Opera. Shelley was honored as follows: • Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development as one of “Pennsylvania’s Best 50 Women in Business” in recognition of her commitment to business growth, professional excellence and her community. • Minority Small Business Person of the Year by the U.S. Small Business Administration (Western Pennsylvania District) in recognition of her outstanding performance and commitment to excellence as an entrepreneur. • A Woman of Excellence by the New Pittsburgh Courier • She is a member of the Women President’s Organization’s, a national peer advisory organization for women who own and lead multimillion-dollar businesses. Shelley earned her a B.S. in Marketing from Hampton University and her J.D. from Cleveland State University. She is licensed to practice law in Pennsylvania and New York.

Francine Cameron has over 25 years of experience in economic & housing development, accounting, financial services and professional training. Her career includes positions as an Auditor for Deloitte & Touche´ LLP; Investment Research Analyst and Corporate Banking Representative with PNC Financial Services; Business Development Specialist and Manager of Home Mortgage and Rehabilitation at the Urban Redevelopment Authority of Pittsburgh; Senior Deputy Director of Fannie Mae, and Manager of Financial Services with the Prudential Insurance Company of America.

Saloam Bey is a Pittsburgh native, mother, new grandmother, U.S. Air Force combat veteran, who served in Operation Enduring Freedom and currently runs two successful businesses - Credit Power, LLC, and Higher Power Homes, Inc. Saloam’s companies strategically offer credit/financial services designed to empower individuals and businesses to understand, improve and leverage credit to increase their overall financial well-being. Credit Power is a credit restoration/repair company and Higher Power Homes offers traditional and non-traditional home purchase options for low to moderate income individuals and families. Fearless in her pursuit to make a difference, Saloam is in the process of starting her third business, a personal care home that focuses on providing housing to women (with children) who have been diagnosed with a mental health disorder; she plans to call it Hope Housing. Saloam recently launched her first Credit Seminar Course, Taking Care of Your Personal and Business Credit 101 (October 2018). Saloam is a board member for the Women Entrepreneurs of Pittsburgh, a member of the Wilkinsburg Chamber of Commerce and African-American Chamber of Commerce of Western Pennsylvania. As a Unit Supply Specialist in the USAF, Saloam gained an understanding for process, systems and systematic communications, developed the ability to communicate with people, navigated through a large organization to get desired results. Her service included supervising over $1.5 Billion in weaponry and system. After her honorable discharge (2008), Saloam set her plan into motion. She earned her degree from Northern VA Community College in 2013 and spent years working in the finance, banking and credit industries. In 2015, Saloam combined her life and work experience, degree and inside working knowledge of the industry with her personality, natural abilities and desire to help change people’s lives to start her first business and first line of vehicles for change - Credit Power.

Tracy Certo is founder and publisher of NEXTpittsburgh, the go-to online publication about the people advancing Pittsburgh and the innovative and cool things happening in the region. Launched in early 2014, NEXTpittsburgh helps readers get more engaged with and better navigate our city. Prior to founding NEXT, Tracy was publisher and editor of Pop City and editor of Columns, AIA Pittsburgh’s magazine. A writer and photographer at heart, she travels frequently and is an advocate for healthy, vibrant and sustainable cities, especially Pittsburgh. She has led or participated in seven international Habitat for Humanity trips, including Chile, Mozambique and Thailand. She was named a Woman of Distinction by the Girl Scouts of Western PA for her work in the arts in Pittsburgh, and a Woman of Achievement by Cribs for Kids. She has received numerous writing awards and most recently was featured on C-SPAN in an hour-long segment interviewing author Ted Dintersmith.

Betsy Benson is publisher and vice president of Pittsburgh Magazine, where she oversees operations at one of the region’s top media organizations. A graduate of the University of Pittsburgh, Betsy has worked in journalism and publishing for more than 30 years. She is the 2018-2019 president of the national City & Regional Magazine Association.

Before joining WESA and WYEP as Director of Corporate Support, Dorothy worked in commercial Television for 20 years. She started her advertising career here in Pittsburgh within a local advertising agency as a broadcast buyer. In 1982, she relocated to Greenville, SC with an ad agency, and in 1985 moved to Atlanta, Ga where she started her TV advertising selling career. In 1993 she returned to Pittsburgh as National Sales Manager of WTAE-Tv. She also worked with KDKA-TV as National Sales Manager. 2001 Dorothy made the transition from commercial tv to Public Media, working with WQED. Now, working with WESA and WYEP for over seven years, Dorothy is honored to be selected to share with you some insight on marketing your business.

Dena Trusiak is the Director of Audience Development at the Pittsburgh Business Times. She is currently responsible for all local audience sales and marketing efforts including print and digital subscriptions, reprints, People on the Move, Company on the Move, and email newsletter recipients. She is also responsible for classified advertising sales and works with residential and commercial real estate clients. Since joining the Business Times team in 1992, Dena has held several positions including Assistant Circulation Manager, Circulation Director, and Consumer Marketing Director. She enjoys helping customers learn how to use the Pittsburgh Business Times products and services to grow their business. Dena lives on O'Hara Twp. with her husband and two daughters. She enjoys biking, skating, tennis, and spending time outdoors.

Lisa Slesinger is the Co-Owner and General Merchandise Manager of Larrimor's in Pittsburgh, PA. Year after year, Larrimor's (established by Harry Slesinger in 1939) remains Pittsburgh's only retailer to receive Esquire Magazine's "Best of Class" recognition, a prestigious industry honor recognizing exceptional retailers who have endured the test of time and are poised to do so for decades to come. Larrimor's now specializes in women's and men’s contemporary and designer clothing, jewelry and accessories. In 2019, Larrimor's will celebrate 80 years of serving our community. As many people realize, few businesses succeed to the third generation; we have done so by focusing on customer experience - long before CX was a buzzword or a class title. We remain a family owned, locally grown hometown business with one goal: to consistently provide exceptional customer service, impeccable tailoring, exquisite fabrics and superb styling. Ms. Slesinger's prior industry experience includes Product Development, Merchandising, and Buying while at Macy's, May Company, and the Talbotts. Returning from NYC to Pittsburgh in 1997, Lisa, an active member of the Pittsburgh Chapter of WPO, and has served as a Trustee at Shady Side Academy. Lisa is the current President of The Forum Group, an association of elite family owned apparel businesses across the USA.

Sandra Taylor is an internationally recognized expert with credentials in environmental and corporate responsibility, supply chain management, international trade, communications and public relations. She has experience with varied global organizations and business sectors. Currently she is Falk Professor of Socially Responsible Business at Chatham University and she maintains the consulting business she founded in 2008, Sustainable Business International LLC, that assists companies at various stages of environmental and corporate responsibility practice. Previously she was senior vice president for Corporate Responsibility with Starbucks Coffee; and Eastman Kodak Company where she led global public affairs and corporate citizenship. She has held other senior leadership positions, including government service. Sandra has had a lifelong passion for winemaking and published her first book, The Business World of Sustainable Wine – How to Build Brand Equity in a 21st Century Wine Industry, in 2017. She received a BA from Colorado Women’s College in French; a JD degree from Boston University School of Law; and a MBA from the Bordeaux School of Management in France.

Jenna’s Thread journey was serendipitous. She finished grad school, started a family, and promised herself she would never settle for a job she didn’t love again. While freelancing at the Idea Foundry, a start-up business incubator and Thread’s first investor, Jenna was assigned to help Thread turn a brilliant idea into a sustainable for-profit business plan. She met the team, believed in the model, became a founder, and never looked back.  That was 8 years ago.   Jenna is the tenacious person at Thread that helps to build whatever is needed to keep Thread production moving forward.  She spent her first few years brokering recycled plastic and consulting Thread’s plastics recycling partners in Haiti to improve operations, throughput, and quality.  Then, creating partnerships in Haiti, Honduras, El Salvador, Mexico, Taiwan, China, Korea, and the United States, she built and managed the global textile supply chains necessary to turn that plastic into Thread fabric and beautiful products for Thread’s brand partners, like Timberland and Marmot.  Most recently, after $3MM in sales and excited to take the next step, Thread began producing its own product made with Thread fabric - a Better Backpack.  The company envisions improving all work week essentials in a better way - with a focus on the more inventive use of recycled materials. To support this new venture, Jenna led the build out and now manages Thread’s own production floor in Homewood, PA.   Responsibly building a global business – with 100% transparency – takes grace and resolve.  Her favorite parts?  Working with the Thread team to build a business that creates jobs, has a responsible impact on the world, and inspires better consumerism.  What’s next? EDUCATION Masters of Public Management, Carnegie Mellon University – The Heinz College, concentrations in social business and health systems management. Bachelor of Science in Education/English and Communications, The Pennsylvania State University. Nominee for Women and Girls Foundation’s “Celebrating Women! Having a Global Impact” Award (2013)

Katharine Eagan Kelleman is chief executive officer of Port Authority of Allegheny County. Prior to joining Port Authority, Kelleman worked at Hillsborough Area Regional (HART) in Tampa, Fla. in several executive leadership roles, including chief of service development, chief operating officer, and chief executive officer. During her tenure at HART, Kelleman grew ridership by more than 20 percent; adopted technologies like the OneBusAway application; expanded public-private partnerships with entities like MegaBus, Red Coach and Coast Bike Share; launched a regional fare program; and oversaw HART HyperLink – the nation's first transit agency-operated rideshare program. Prior to her time at HART, she worked in leadership roles for the Maryland Transit Administration and Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART). She began her career in public transit as a transit planner in San Angelo, Texas. Kelleman received her Bachelor’s degree in art history from the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs and her Master’s degree in public administration from San Angelo State University. She is a member of the American Institute of Certified Planners, and serves on the Board of Directors for the American Public Transit Association.

In August 2015, Dina L. Clark began her role with Covestro LLC as the Head of Diversity & Inclusion at their North American headquarters based in Pittsburgh. In this role, Dina spearheads the development and implementation of diversity strategies and initiatives for Covestro across the United States and Mexico. Dina also serves on Covestro’s global diversity and inclusion council, as well as the global diversity core team, currently based in Leverkusen, Germany. Her primary focus areas of diversity, equity and inclusion are complemented by a strong training background. She has conducted several presentations nationwide, including workshops for Family Communications Inc. (producers of “Mr. Rogers Neighborhood”), Vassar College, University of Michigan, Magnet Schools of New York, New York State Department of Health and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. In addition to training, Dina was selected for a fellowship with the Children’s Defense Fund in Washington, D.C. and was named as one of Pittsburgh’s 40 under 40 leaders by Pittsburgh Magazine. She was also named one of 50 recipients of the "Women of Excellence" award, from the Pittsburgh Courier, a 2015 recipient of the Allegheny County Bar Association Homer S. Brown Spirit Award and in 2017 was featured in the Women & Business section of Pittsburgh Magazine for her work in developing and strengthening D & I strategy. Dina is very involved in the Pittsburgh community. She is a graduate of Leadership Pittsburgh Inc. (Class XXIII), and currently serves on several boards and advisory committees. In addition, Dina has also worked as a professional tester for housing discrimination for the Fair Housing Partnership of Pittsburgh and as a long-term diversity/anti-bias trainer for the Anti-Defamation League. She was also selected as a participant for the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Citizen’s Academy and continues to serve as a board member of the FBI Citizen’s Academy Alumni Association, with a focus on civil rights. Dina has a bachelor’s degree in psychology/child and family studies from Syracuse University, a master’s degree from Duquesne University, with a focus on global leadership, and she is currently working on her Doctorate in Education at Point Park University, with a focus on leadership and administration.

Stefani Pashman is the CEO of the Allegheny Conference on Community Development and its affiliated organizations – the Greater Pittsburgh Chamber of Commerce, the Pennsylvania Economy League of Greater Pittsburgh and the Pittsburgh Regional Alliance. For almost 75 years, the Conference – one of the United States’ foremost civic leadership organizations – has been bringing together public and private sector leaders to drive an agenda to improve the economic future and quality of life in the 10-county Pittsburgh region. As the CEO, she drives the Conference’s work plan, builds regional collaborations and empowers partners. Before joining the Conference, Stefani served as CEO of Partner4Work and its predecessor, the Three Rivers Workforce Investment Board, for seven years. With a strong entrepreneurial spirit, Stefani transformed the organization from a $1.5 million research-based organization into a nearly $20 million public-private system that relies on research and analytics to make change in the community. She served in Governor Rendell’s Administration at the PA Department of Human Services as Director of Policy and as Special Assistant to the Secretary, and she previously worked in private consulting at Avalere Health and Navigant and as an analyst in the White House Office of Management and Budget.

Kathi R. Elliott earned a Doctor of Nursing Practice degree from Chatham University in August 2014. Dr. Elliott also completed dual Master's degrees in Nursing and Social Work from the University of Pittsburgh in 2008. She has over 20 years of experience in social service, community and individual mental health treatment. Advocacy and giving back to others in need is a value that has been instilled in her by her mother and founder of Gwen's Girls, the late Commander Gwen Elliott. In August 2015, Dr. Elliott accepted the position of Executive Director at Gwen's Girls, whose mission is to empower girls and young women to have productive lives through exposure to holistic, gender-specific programs, education, and experiences. As a visionary leader, Dr. Elliott is purposed to lead Gwen's Girls in becoming a well-recognized forerunner in the integration of evidence-based clinical prevention and intervention policies and practices that enhance the child and social welfare system. her culmination of education, work and life experiences will assist her in continuing the legacy of providing a comprehensive approach to addressing the issues that impact the well-being of girls, women and families.

Nina’s passion for art, new media and social learning led her to found Assemble, a community space for arts + technology, in 2011. On her own, Nina works in a variety of media including architecture, film, sound, and installation and often explores the idea of recycling noise into a system or elevating the vernacular to the spectacular. Nina co-founded I Made It! Market in 2007. An idea based on urban acupuncture, this nomadic market partners with community, arts and non-profit organizations to raise funds and awareness to assist in improving their communities while allowing local artists and crafters to sell their wares. Nina holds degrees in architecture from Southern California Institute of Architecture and Carnegie Mellon University, where she is also adjunct faculty.

Originally from the San Francisco Bay Area, Savannah has been inspired by cities all her life. Living in design centers London, New York and Los Angeles she has developed a signature style that is modern and bold. Her collection of home textiles offers wallpaper, fabric-by-the-yard, decorative pillows & throw blankets. After training at the University of Pennsylvania, University College London and New York’s Fashion Institute of Technology, Savannah worked in both the home and apparel design sectors for inspiring brands including Kelly Wearstler, Martha Stewart, and Kravet Fabrics. She has spent time in both Turkey and India, working closely with mills in Bursa, Istanbul and Bangalore and gaining firsthand textile and design experience. The Highland Park based designer launched her eponymous brand and online shop in October 2015.

Kristi is passionate about connecting technology trends, physical space, and human stories. She is responsible for enabling organizations to support their people through physical and digital space. She focuses on discovering and defining the connections between environment, culture and outcome. She pulls together interdisciplinary teams to think deeply about the interaction between physical and virtual space, and explores the widest possible definition of “environment” in service of our client’s desired outcome. Prior to joining MAYA, Kristi worked in Washington, DC as a management consultant, facilitating culture change tied to physical change for federal agencies. She has worked in California and Arizona as a behavioral strategist creating workplace, mixed use development, and hospitality strategies. Kristi was also the CEO of her own firm that provided architecture, interiors, FF&E and construction. Over 15 years, she grew that firm to the largest woman owned architecture firm on the west coast. Additionally, she was on the faculty at Arizona State University teaching in both the Colleges of Architecture and Business, with research focused on the impact physical environment has on human behavior. Kristi has been interviewed by The Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, Forbes, and other top-tier outlets. You can also find her speaking about workplace, culture, community, and the future of work at conferences across the country.

Leanne Meyer is Program Director of the Carnegie Mellon Leadership and Negotiation Academy for Women and Director of Leadership Development at the Tepper School of business at CMU. Leanne’s work focuses on assisting leaders navigate critical inflection points where many have outgrown their professional identity and, given the demands and responsibility of their roles, need to change their perspectives regarding what is important and accordingly, how they spend their time and what new skill sets and behaviors they develop. Leanne’s journey began in South Africa. She was specifically influenced by the events in her home country, which ignited her interest in the possibility for human change and transformation. She has spent the past twenty years applying and building her change agent skills in South Africa, England, Ireland, and now America. Leanne’s calling is to help leaders make sense of their lives through the reclamation of passion and purpose. Leanne consults and coaches regularly, and her clients include such companies as Salesforce, GlaxoSmithKline, McKesson, SAP, UBS, Bayer, EQT, Highmark, UPMC and the American Bar Association. Leanne holds a Master’s degree in Industrial Psychology.

Lisa leads a team government and community affairs professionals supporting more than 1,300 communities in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Ohio and northwest Maryland. Lisa is responsible for advancing business growth and policy through advocacy and strategic partnerships and manages franchising, compliance and community investment. Lisa has held a similar roles for Comcast in the mid-west and New England. Lisa practiced administrative law in Vermont prior to joining Comcast in 2006. A lawyer by training, Lisa has extensive negotiation and advocacy experience. She has led numerous collaborative efforts to address key policy issues such as the digital divide, lead paint and health care privacy. Lisa graduated from Trinity College, Hartford Connecticut and magna cum laude from Vermont Law School. A believer in giving back, Lisa has served on various nonprofit boards such as the Urban League of Southwest Michigan and Detroit. Lisa’s personal passion is promoting equity and opportunity for women and girls. She has been a crisis intervention counselor, an advocate and fundraiser, and more recently, a Chapter Advisor for Women in Cable and Telecommunications. She relocated to Pittsburgh in 2015 and is a recent graduate of Leadership Pittsburgh.

Stephanie Cohen is Vice President of Strategic Planning for FedEx Ground, headquartered in Moon Township, Pennsylvania. Stephanie began her career at FedEx Ground 24 years ago in Customer Service. From there she held positions in a number of areas – including Internal Audit, Product Marketing, Administrative Process Engineering, New Services and Field Technology Support – before being named the Managing Director of Administrative Process Engineering in 2006 and the Managing Director of New Services Planning in 2009. Stephanie has led FedEx Ground involvement in numerous strategic enterprise projects, customer implementations and solution designs and strategy research and integration initiatives. She has distinguished herself through her leadership, commitment to continuous improvement and collaboration across the enterprise.   As an accomplished leader, Stephanie attended the FedEx Executive Leadership Institute and has been honored with numerous company awards, including the prestigious FedEx Ground Five Star Award on two separate occasions. A native of Philadelphia, Stephanie earned her bachelor’s degree from the University of Pittsburgh and her master’s from Carnegie Mellon University. Stephanie currently resides in Sewickley, PA, with her husband and three children.

Mary Kay Modaffari has excelled in the competitive world of advertising and marketing by leading with her heart. For more than 25 years, Mary Kay has been a key part of the success at independently owned Brunner where she served as Executive Vice President and Partner. While in leadership there, Mary Kay helped grow the agency to a peak of nearly 200 staffers, $180 million in billings and recognition as one of the top 100 independent agencies in the nation. Over that time, Brunner earned a reputation for two things: award-winning creativity and a supportive, vibrant culture. Mary Kay is credited as the driving force behind the culture (which made the creativity possible). She has an uncanny knack for connecting with clients on a human level, hearing what they say while also listening for what they need. Her positive nature and focus on finding strategic solutions have made her an invaluable partner for dozens of Brunner clients including Bob Evans, UPMC, GNC, Zippo, LaRosa’s Pizzeria, Giant Eagle, Westinghouse Corporation/CBS, Knouse Foods, Mellon Financial and PNC Bank. In her earlier career, Mary Kay earned her account service stripes at agencies now within Saatchi & Saatchi Advertising. Throughout her successful career, Mary Kay has made giving back to her community a priority. She currently serves on non-profit boards of directors and advisory boards such as The Mentoring Partnership, UPMC Cancer Center Wellness & Integrative Oncology Program and the Center for Women’s Entrepreneurship at Chatham University. Her daughter Melanie works in the healthcare industry. The swirl on her cone comes courtesy of her significant other, Don.  He and Mary Kay own multiple Dairy Queen franchises.

Leah Lizarondo is Co-Founder and CEO of 412 Food Rescue. 412 Food Rescue works to eliminate hunger and promote a healthy environment by rescuing viable food about to go to waste and redirecting to nonprofits that serve those who are food insecure. 412 Food Rescue is an innovative approach to food recovery with rapid response reverse logistics model that utilizes technology to aggregate and automatically match food donors and beneficiaries. The organization works with a network of dedicated volunteers and deploys a scalable technology and replicable model designed to eliminate food waste at the retail level. Leah received her Masters Degree in Public Policy from Carnegie Mellon University graduating with Highest Distinction and is an advocate for healthy food accessibility, food safety policy and sustainability. She has also trained at the Natural Gourmet Institute in New York City and received her Certification in Plant-based Nutrition from Cornell University. She began her career as a product manager in Southeast Asia, working in consumer packaged goods and technology before moving on to her passion in food and health advocacy. She has a track record of leadership in nonprofits in New York and Pittsburgh. She is interested in social innovation and technology and mines her experience launching startups as she works to establish 412 Food Rescue. Leah is an active advocate for food, health and innovation in Pittsburgh. She is also the founder of The Brazen Kitchen, an award-winning blog and Pittsburgh Magazine weekly column. Leah is currently Editor-at-Large for NEXTpittsburgh, covering social innovation. Leah’s work has been featured in print and online publications including MSN’s Re:Discover Series, NPR, Oprah.com, GOOD Magazine online, and local media. The Brazen Kitchen won the 2013 National City & Regional Magazine Awards. Leah has delivered numerous talks in the field of food policy and innovation. In April 2014, she gave the TEDx Talk “Why the Farm Is Not Getting to the Table.” The video can be accessed on tedx.ted.com.

Wendy Downs is the owner/designer/manufacturer of Moop, canvas bags for men and women. Currently based in Pittsburgh, PA where they hand manufacture each and every Moop bag, start to finish, in their downtown Pittsburgh storefront.

Rose is a graduate of Eastern New Mexico University with a Bachelor's of Science degree in Elementary Education. She taught elementary and middle school science and math for several years before retiring to transition into a stay at home mom after moving to Pennsylvania. Rose and her husband Jeff have 3 children, one of whom was diagnosed at an early age with autism. As a mother of a son with autism, her family was thrust into the world of autism and intensive therapy. Rose saw a need for a product that could keep Abram sleep safely at home or away. Out of this need The Safety Sleeper was born and has helped hundreds of children and adults with special needs worldwide. Her company, Abram’s Bed, was started in 2009 with the vision to become every customer's choice in their pursuit of creating a secure and safe environment for their loved one, every night, at home or wherever they may travel. Rose, her husband and a dedicated staff build, manufacture and orchestrate the shipping for The Safety Sleeper at their facility in Pittsburgh PA.

As a long-time Pittsburgh resident with a brief stint in Los Angeles, Jen is grateful to have started a business that mixes her heritage sewing skills with her educational background from The Art Institute of Pittsburgh and Los Angeles Trade Tech. Since opening the sewing studio in 2012, Jen has enjoyed the challenges that come with being an entrepreneur and the opportunity to push the boundaries of sewing, whether in fashion, wearables, or soft goods product development.

Cathy is the President of Aero Tech Designs Cyclewear. They are an e-commerce company with 99% of their sales from their website, amazon, ebay, Walmart and jet. The company designs and manufactures their softgoods on the North Side of the city in a 60,000 sq ft. facility. As a cycling company, they enjoy the added benefit of being located on the Three Rivers Heritage Bike Trail. The company employs about 50 people. Aero Tech Designs in a vital part of the planning and implementation of trails into and out of the city of Pittsburgh.

Entrepreneurship began for Torie after attaining her PA Real Estate License. She found out shortly afterwards that food was her true calling, and started Day La Soul Catering in the spring of 2015 on her own via social media, specifically Facebook & Instagram. Since the start, I've catered dozens of private events, personal "cheffed" to many, and speak while doing live food presentations.

Creating delicious food , and sales and marketing campaigns, Terri Dowd has carved a niche for herself now founding her 3rd corporation. Dowd’s food blog ParmesanPrincess.com launched the home chef’s career into a cooking tv show “Between The Eats,” which she co-hosts with Pittsburgh chef David Carmine. With an audience of 10 million, Dowd’s entrepreneurial spirit brought funding and an eye for linking Between The Eats’ marketing videos to a ROI sales strategy. A few months ago, Dowd joined forces with 4 other fellow entrepreneurs and WythU was born, developing overall marketing and strategic business development strategy for National and International clients. Dowd sits as VP of WythU and is looking forward to Season 3 of Between The Eats and many new homemade recipes on her blog!

The beverage category is Michele’s playground. As a sales and marketing expert with 25+ years of experience, Michele knows the industry inside and out. Michele spent nearly 15 years at the Boston Beer Company where she helped build the Sam Adams brand before starting her own consulting business. Simply put, Michele never loses sight of what really matters for a beverage brand: the liquid inside the bottle and how to get it to the consumer. That’s why it’s no wonder she’s helped so many brewers and distillers successfully bring their brands to market, working with brands such as FIJI Water, Sierra Nevada Brewing, New Belgium Brewing, Firestone Walker, Straub, Yuengling, Heineken, Rogue Ales and Founders Brewery to name a few of her clients. When not working or enjoying time with her amazing sons, Will and Andrew Michele is an avid cyclist, skier and tennis player and a green-thumbed outdoorswoman with the backyard gardens to prove it.

For over 35 years, Mary Grace Musuneggi been helping women develop clear strategies for pursuing their financial goals. She is Chairman & CEO of The Musuneggi Financial Group, where she recently launched the Starting Out/Starting Over program for women who are hitting the “Start” or “Reset” button: new graduates, new mothers and grandmothers, new business owners, women transitioning into a second or even third career, and women who are navigating divorce or finding themselves single—by choice or by chance. Throughout her career, Mary Grace often met women who were facing challenges that dramatically influenced the quality of their lives. In response to this, she founded Single Steps Strategies, an educational resource that helps women work towards abundant, balanced and successful lives. Single Steps Strategies recently celebrated twelve years of empowering women through information and education. An award-winning advisor and business owner, Mary Grace is the author of Single Steps: Strategies for Abundant Living and the forthcoming A Man is Not a Plan. She frequently speaks to women’s organizations about successfully navigating the intersections of financial planning and lifestyle issues.

Karen Hacker, MD MPH is the Director of the Allegheny County Health Department and is responsible for overseeing the health of the 1.2 million resident of Allegheny County. Under her leadership, Allegheny County has launched its first Plan for a Healthier Allegheny which represents a collaborative community process to improve the health of the county. Using collective action to solve problems and measuring and monitoring progress is a key focus of her agenda. Prior to her current position, Dr. Hacker was Executive Director of the Institute for Community Health and the Senior Medical Director for Public and Community Health at the Cambridge Health Alliance where she oversaw community affairs and conducted community-based participatory research and health services research. Dr. Hacker is an Adjunct Professor in the Departments of Health Policy and Management and Behavioral and Community Health Sciences at the University Of Pittsburgh Graduate School Of Public Health and a Clinical Professor at the University Of Pittsburgh School Of Medicine. She is an internist and adolescent medicine specialist and holds an MD from Northwestern University and an MPH from Boston University.

janera solomon is the executive director of the Kelly Strayhorn Theater, a historic live arts venue in Pittsburgh now in its ninth year of presenting progressive, evocative new works in dance, theater, music, film, education and cultural programming. Recognized for her transformative leadership and contributions to the revitalization of East Liberty, janera managed the merger of the Kelly Strayhorn Theater and the Dance Alloy in 2011, while maintaining affordable dance instruction at The Alloy School and creating a series of diverse programs designed to inspire and engage a wide range of audiences. An experienced curator, janera worked with the Philadelphia Live Arts Festival and developed the First Voice International Black Performing Arts Festival produced by the August Wilson Center for African American Culture in 2007. She has worked on a range of cultural projects: including the Museum of the African Diaspora in San Francisco, the August Wilson Center, Brooklyn Museum of Art, and several others with Toronto based, cultural planning firm Lord Culture. janera maintains volunteer board positions for several organizations including: the Carnegie Museums Pittsburgh and The Ellis School. In 2014, she formed the August Wilson Center Recovery Committee. In a recent settlement, it was announced that the AWC will continue as a fully dedicated center for African-American culture in Pittsburgh. In 2015, janera was featured in Pittsburgh Magazine’s as one of the “50 Most Powerful People in Pittsburgh.”

For the past twenty-five years, A.J. has focused her work, within both the ad agency and market research sides of the business, on deeply understanding the customer in order to inspire brand and marketing strategy that drives genuine results. She is accomplished in using all forms of data to uncover marketing insights, conducting all forms of qualitative research, and loves swimming around in the cross-tabs of quantitative projects to find clues to future behavior. An honors graduate of Boston College, A.J.'s education focused on an integrated knowledge of American social, intellectual, and cultural history. Infinitely curious about what drives people to do what they do, A.J. approaches her research and planning work by looking for the "story" behind the statistics. And this curiosity has been the key to maintaining client relationships over time--some for over 20 years. Clients can rely on A.J. to dig deeply into whatever new challenges they face each year.

Eve Picker’s world is wrapped around cities and change. With a background as an architect, city planner, urban designer, real estate developer, community development strategist, publisher, and instigator, Eve has a rich understanding of how cities and urban neighborhoods work – and how they can be revitalized. Amongst her many urban (ad)ventures, Eve has developed a dozen buildings in blighted neighborhoods, launched a Pittsburgh- focused e-zine called Pop City, and founded and organized a speaker series, cityLIVE!, on city-centric issues. She has taught urban design and participated in Sustainable Design Assessment Teams for the American Institute of Architects in cities from Los Angeles to Springfield, Ohio, helping with urban design and to set a strategic course for downtowns and housing developments. Eve has strategized about how to encourage residential development of vacant upper floors in downtown Pittsburgh. And with cityLAB, she has instigated bottom-up projects like the “6% Place,” the “Garfield Night Market” and a “Tiny House.” Now Eve has launched – and leads – Small Change, a real estate equity crowdfunding portal to help fund transformational real estate projects. Small Change packages offerings for developers to help them build projects that make cities better, and provides investment opportunities for everyone who cares about cities and wants to see positive change. To learn more about Eve, and to see her TEDx talk and completed projects, visit evepicker.com.

Lisa Scales, who earned a Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree from Boston University School of Law and Bachelor of Arts degree in Social Sciences from Seton Hill College, began her career as an assistant corporation counsel for the City of Chicago and worked as an associate in a Greensburg law firm before joining Just Harvest and then Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank. Throughout her career, Ms. Scales has held many positions on boards and committees for organizations such as the Community Food Security Coalition, Hunger-Free Pennsylvania, Bayer Center for Nonprofit Management at Robert Morris University, and the Joint State Government Commission Obesity Study Advisory Committee. In her current role as President and CEO at the Food Bank, Ms. Scales leads the organization in distributing 23 million meals annually throughout 11 counties of Southwestern Pennsylvania.

Dr. Lai was born in Taiwan and grew up in Knoxville, TN. She attended the University of Michigan to study infectious diseases. But not wanting to be stuck in a lab, she decided to get a medical degree from the University of Virginia. She enjoyed being a family doctor but didn't like being on call at night. When Dr. Wei-Shin Lai couldn't get back to sleep after patient phone calls late at night, she and her husband, Jason Wolfe, invented an ingenious natural sleep aid: SleepPhones. Winner of the Small Business of the Year 2016 from the Small Business Administration, Ernst and Young 2016, and the Consumer Technology Association 2015, AcousticSheep LLC's business took off in 2013 when the founders finally quit their day jobs to work on helping people all of the world sleep better.

Dana's background and area of expertise comes as a building block of knowledge gained over the years. Upon graduation, Dana took her knowledge of real estate and construction and married it with her education to become a steel trade analyst with an emphasis on pipe/tube and stainless steel. Pipe/tube coverage and forecasting forced her into gaining a greater knowledge of the oil and gas industry. Since that time, Dana has transitioned from being an analyst over to being a landman for pipeline projects, rising through the ranks to eventually managing teams in two states that oversee the purchasing of easements, and reclamation work of those construction projects. In 2015, her teams enabled the construction of 51.14 miles or 270,000 feet of pipeline. Dana is a 2005 graduate of Chatham University with a B.A. in Communications and completed her Master's degree from Point Park University in 2006. Additionally, she is a member of the Center for Women's Entrepreneurship at Chatham University and proudly serves as a board member of the Chatham University Alumni Association Board.

Prior to joining Massaro, Demeshia held positions of increasing responsibility at Fortune 500 and 100 organizations, most notably Nike, Inc., where she worked for over a decade honing her business, coaching, and strategic developmental skills. Demeshia joined Massaro in 2011 as the director of human resources, where she began collaborating with senior leaders to instill the value of coaching and workforce development to achieve strategic targets. Because she was instrumental in enabling the company to move forward by creating a culture of data-driven, actionable items, she was promoted to an officer role in the organization. With a focus on personal accountability-driven leadership, stakeholder/customer focus, with an eye on business outcomes, Demeshia has held various leadership roles in the organization including a stint as interim head of the largest business unit in the organization, vice president of Massaro Corporation and executive vice president and COO. She has a master's degree in business administration and an undergraduate degree in chemistry. As a graduate of Leadership Pittsburgh, Demeshia is continuing her desire to serve her community by serving on the boards of the Sarah Heinz House, Goodwill Industries, and the Development Committee for Junior Achievement.

Caroline Fitzgerald is the Public Programs Manager at the Heinz History Center where her responsibilities include engaging the community, promoting the History Center brand, and curating a roster of 100+ programs yearly. In the last year, Caroline has led the charge in designing programs that attract younger audiences and has more than tripled the History Center’s number of Millennial-targeted programs. Under Caroline’s leadership, the History Center rolled out its first successful 21+ After Hours events, which drove close to 1000 millennials into the museum and was recognized by Pittsburgh Magazine. Earlier this year, Caroline was a featured speaker at the Pittsburgh Museums Educators' Roundtable where she discussed strategies for driving millennial audiences into museums through programming. Caroline also serves on the Millennial Engagement Advisory Board, a project led by the Arts Finance Cohort aimed at deepening engagement of Millennials with non-profit organizations. Prior to joining the History Center, Caroline worked in Marketing for Kohl’s Department Stores. While at Kohl’s, Caroline coordinated company-wide marketing promotions where she partnered with the Consumer Insights, Marketing Analytics, and CRM teams to develop marketing plans rooted in customer trends, research, and insights. Caroline graduated from the Schreyer Honors College at Penn State University with degrees in Marketing and Women’s Studies.

Sabrina Saunders is a youth advocate and visionary social entrepreneur working to build strategic partnerships that enhance opportunities for communities of need. She is the former Director of Education and Youth Development for the Urban League of Greater Pittsburgh, served as Youth Policy Manager for the City of Pittsburgh’s Mayor’s Office and as a congressional field representative to the Federal Departments of Homeland Security, State, and Education for Pennsylvania’s 14th congressional district. In the spring of 2014, Saunders became the Executive Director of Strong Women, Strong Girls, Inc. (SWSG) a nationally recognized nonprofit mentoring organization in Pittsburgh, PA and Boston, MA. At SWSG, she is responsible for the strategic development, management, and enhancement of operations, as well as generating financial and community resources for the organization. Saunders has been acknowledged locally and nationally by numerous organizations and publications for her commitment to the region. An alumnus of Carlow University, she holds a Masters of Science degree in Organizational Influence and Public Policy and a Bachelor of Arts degree with a minor in Philosophy from Edinboro University of PA.

Lynn M. Banaszak is the executive director of the Disruptive Health Technology Institute at Carnegie Mellon University. She is one of Pittsburgh’s most connected female executives, guiding, mentoring, and coaching female professionals and start-up technology companies. Prior to her appointment at CMU, Lynn was Vice President and Chief Relationship Officer at the Pittsburgh Life Sciences Greenhouse, a biotechnology investment organization, where for nearly a decade she worked with 400 start-up companies, helped deploy nearly $20M in direct investment in 75 companies, leveraging over $900M in additional capital to the region. In addition, she shaped the organization’s strategic direction and the region’s global position as a life sciences industry leader. Lynn was also one of the original Directors of the $8.1M Accelerator Fund, LLC venture firm. Lynn is a founding board member of the Pittsburgh Chapter of Women in Bio, a non-profit organization to support and recognize emerging women leaders in the biosciences industry of Western Pennsylvania, Eastern Ohio, and West Virginia, and a member of the founding board that created the Association for Corporate Growth Women’s Council. In addition, Lynn was recruited by the University of Pittsburgh to facilitate the first Bench to Bedside course for the $5M Coulter Program, a campus-wide effort led by Pitt’s Swanson School of Engineering that identifies, selects, funds, and mentors translational research by clinician-bioengineer teams that address unmet clinical needs through innovative technologies. She is an entrepreneurial mentor for Alphalab Gear, a hardware and robotic startup accelerator that provides physical product companies with investment, mentorship, and connections.

A clinical and environmental microbiologist, Dr. Stout is recognized worldwide for more than 30 years of pioneering research in Legionella. The author of more than 200 articles in peer-reviewed journals, as well as textbook chapters on Legionella and Legionnaires’ disease, her expertise includes prevention and control strategies for Legionnaires’ disease. Toward that end, Dr. Stout has evaluated all major Legionella disinfection technologies in use today and continues to explore new approaches for Legionella detection and control. Dr. Stout assisted in developing the first Legionella prevention guideline in the United States that has been modeled by national and global health agencies and organizations. Additionally, she serves on the ASHRAE Legionella standard committee for Legionella Guideline 12 and the SPC 188 committee for ANSI / ASHRAE Standard 188-2015 Legionellosis: Risk Management for Building Water Systems, the first U.S. standard for Legionella passed in June 2015.

Kate Boyce joined DICK’S Sporting Goods in 2006 as a buyer for Men’s Nike Athletic Apparel. Over the last nine years, Kate has risen through the company, serving as a Divisional Merchandising Manager for the company’s Women’s Athletic Apparel business. In 2015, Kate helped launch a new line of business for DICK’S Sporting Goods, a women’s specialty boutique shop called Chelsea Collective. Under Kate’s leadership, the DICK’S Sporting Goods Women’s business has more than doubled during her tenure with the Company. She has also seen the chain grow from just over 250 DICK’S Sporting Goods stores in 2006 to the 645 stores that are open today. Kate currently serves as the DICK’s Sporting Goods’ Vice President and Divisional Merchandize Manager of Women’s Athletic Apparel and Accessories. In this role, she oversees the merchandising of Chelsea Collective and the DICK’S Sporting Goods Women’s Athletic Apparel & Accessories merchandising teams. Kate holds a BA in Advertising and Public Relations from Penn State University.

Moriarty Consultants, Inc. provides non-medical, in-home care services as well as disability services to meet the needs of consumers, while assisting them in maintaining the utmost possible level of independent living. Arlinda grew up in Pittsburgh, in the Garfield Projects. She attended Peabody High School. At Peabody, Arlinda had successes with making the honor roll, but had some struggles in some areas. She would later be diagnosed with Attention Deficit Disorder, providing answers to the reasons for her struggles. Once diagnosed, she was able to learn more about ADD and how to deal with the disorder while reaching her lifetime goals of building resources to help the community. Over the years Arlinda has built over ten businesses. Her most successful business venture, Moriarty Consultants, Inc., is currently one of the largest minority owned firms in Pennsylvania. Arlinda earned her Degree in Social Science from Robert Morris University. Arlinda is a woman of great passion in her beliefs, and has dedicated her life’s work to many charities, and building opportunity and resources to the inner city communities, and those of lesser fortune.

Miss Meatball is a mobile food and catering business started by Sara Lechman. Sara is a lifelong resident of Westmoreland County and is committed to bringing gourmet food to the Western Pennsylvania Area. She is a classically trained Chef who has worked in kitchens everywhere; From the critically acclaimed Michelin Star and Zagat Rated Restaurants of New York City to catering. Miss Meatball can be found at Fairs, Festivals, and Places of Employment for lunch; Miss Meatball can also be found on twitter, Facebook, and via email. Catering is also available (not limited to just meatballs).

Michelle Pendel is a licensed & registered dietitian who has a BA in Science and an MBA with a healthcare emphasis. She is currently working as a health coach for a local insurance company. Michelle is also proud to be one of three co-founders and members of the Farm Truck Foods team. Farm Truck Foods is in the business of helping bridge the gap that exists between local farmers’ fresh products and Pittsburgh’s food deserts. We help provide both education and universal access to whole, nutritious, affordable and local foods. Michelle loves supporting local farming and also enjoys experimenting with new food dishes in her spare time.

Jackee Ging is the owner of Style Truck, Pennsylvania’s first mobile boutique. A Grove City College Graduate, Jackee started her professional career as an Area Sales Manager for Kaufmann’s, and then as a Sales Manager at a local, high-end boutique, yet didn’t have the desire to commit a lifetime to retail. She made the move to advertising and was an account representative for an international technical publication. After that, and for nearly 20 years, she was in the professional services industry as a business development/marketing manager. Later, she would work as a consultant for an international firm, working directly with the CEO/CFO and it was there she was exposed to entrepreneurship. As her contract ended and opportunities around Pittsburgh were limited, she took it upon herself to combine her love of shopping/fashion with her varied background and take the plunge to start her own business. An In Style Magazine article featured the concept of fashion trucks, which caught her eye, and months later she became a truck driver and owner of Style Truck.

Kim graduated from the University of Pittsburgh in 1985 with a degree in Civil Engineering. She went on to become a licensed professional engineer, and she worked 22 years as a project manager in the heavy construction industry. Although she thought she would continue in that field for her entire working career, that all changed one day in October 2004, when she heard about mobile dog grooming. Literally overnight, she decided that was what she wanted to do. She wrapped up the project she was on and took a six-month sabbatical, just to make sure she hadn’t lost her mind (as everyone was convinced she had)! After that, she officially quit her job and started grooming school. Once she graduated, she worked in a local salon for a year to gain experience and confidence before purchasing her state-of-the-art mobile grooming salon/van in July 2007. Since then, she has never once regretted her decision to make such a dramatic change. Her business, Vantastic Mobile Grooming, quickly grew to capacity and, besides the appreciative clients and lovable animals she gets to work with on a daily basis, she absolutely loves the freedom and flexibility that a mobile business gives her.

Dawne S. Hickton is the former Vice Chair, President and Chief Executive Officer of RTI International Metals, Inc. (RTI), where she was employed for over 18 years. RTI was a global supplier of advanced titanium and specialty metals products and services in commercial aerospace, defense, propulsion, medical device, energy and other markets. Ms. Hickton served as CEO from April 2007 until July 2015, when Alcoa acquired RTI. For the past 2 years Ms. Hickton has been recognized as one of the top 100 global leaders in STEM by STEMconnector. Ms. Hickton serves as chair of the Pittsburgh branch of the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland. In addition, she is a member of the Board of Directors of Jacobs Engineering Group, Inc., one of the world’s largest and most diverse providers of technical professional and construction services, serving on the audit committee. She is also a member of the Board of Directors of Triumph Group, Inc., a global leader in manufacturing and overhauling aerospace structures, systems and components, and serves on that board’s audit and nominating and corporate governance committees. Ms. Hickton is a member of the Board of Directors of the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum and a director of The Wings Club.She is a member of the University of Pittsburgh's Board of Trustees, serving on the student affairs and property and facilities committees, as well as chairing the School of Law's Board of Visitors. Ms. Hickton is a 1979 graduate of the University of Rochester and received her law degree from the University of Pittsburgh, School of Law in 1983. She resides in Pittsburgh with her husband, The Honorable David J. Hickton, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Pennsylvania, and their children.

Rania Harris began her catering business thirty years ago from her Mt Lebanon kitchen. Her goal was to cater “just a few” parties a year - to satisfy her love for cooking and entertaining. Eventually, one party led to another and happily her business grew into a full-scale catering operation, along with a gourmet take-out shop, a cafe, a cooking school, a pastry shop had a regular cooking segment on WTAE-TV’s weekend news. She can now be seen on KDKA TV 2 every Wednesday on Pittsburgh Today Live and during football season, on the Hines Ward Show. Rania had a natural sense of food presentation. Not withstanding, she enhanced this by studying under Master Pastry Chef Gunther Heiland and the Culinary Institute’s Chef Timothy Ryan (formerly of La Normande). In addition to Rania’s involvement with the local culinary community, she was also featured nationally in Bon Apetit as “an outstanding cooking school teacher” in their April 1985 issue. Recent recognition appeared in September 2004 as the lead story in the Pittsburgh Post Gazette’s food section featuring Rania’s home and garden in conjunction with her cooking school program, as well as the lead story in the August 2005 Sunday edition featuring catering her daughter’s wedding. Since that article, there have been many articles in the Pittsburgh Post Gazette and in the Pittsburgh Tribune about Rania. Rania’s culinary career has led her to catering for Presidential candidates, Senators, Governors and several well-known Hollywood personalities. Throughout the years, Rania’s philosophy remained simple and consistent: To treat each one of her clients and students as though they were guests in her own home...and never hold back on a recipe request!!!

Furniture Maker, designer and artist, Kate Joyce received her BA from the University of Pittsburgh in 1972, apprenticed in Switzerland and co-founded the Northwest Gallery of Fine Woodworking. Her work has been published in Fine Woodworking, Design Book II. Before moving to Seattle, in 1974 she successfully challenged the Brotherhood of the Pittsburgh Carpenter's Union, in a Federal Class Action, effectively opening all trade unions to women in the United States. In Seattle, her three decade career encompassed varied and major commissions, solo and group exhibitions and numerous publications of her work. As designer and art consultant, she worked with private, business and institutional clients. In 2000, Joyce curated and acquired an eighty piece contemporary art collection for the Seattle University School of Law. Having returned to Pittsburgh in 2011, she regularly works with Typhoon Lighting on restoration, design and fabrication. In 2013 she lectured at the Carnegie Museum about her work and her precedent setting career, in conjunction with their Empowering Women Exhibition. A major solo show at BE Galleries, in Lawrenceville in April of 2015, was featured in SHADY AVE, The Pittsburgh Post Gazette, The City Paper, and the Pittsburgh Tribune Review. She maintains a shop and design studio in Point Breeze and makes her home in Edgewood.

A lifelong aviation enthusiast, Christina Cassotis is an energetic and innovative industry leader. With more than 20 years of international experience in communications, aviation strategy and business development, Ms. Cassotis excels in managing partnerships and engaging stakeholders in support of major goals and initiatives. Ms. Cassotis began her career in commercial aviation working for the Massachusetts Port Authority which operates Boston Logan International Airport. She served as Deputy Director of Communications, leading strategy surrounding airport improvement projects including Massport’s controversial program to build a new runway. In 1999, she joined SH&E - a global commercial aviation consulting firm - advising airports worldwide on economic strategy, developing business plans and working with U.S. state departments of transportation on airport system planning. Most recently, she served as Managing Officer for Airport Services for ICF-SH&E, leading a global team of airport consultants in areas of competitiveness and business strategy for clients worldwide. Ms. Cassotis holds an MBA from the MIT Sloan School of Management and a BA from the University of Massachusetts. A frequent speaker at aviation industry events worldwide on issues relating to airport planning, strategy, and competitiveness, she began her position as CEO of the Allegheny County Airport Authority, which operates Pittsburgh International Airport and Allegheny County Airport, in January 2015. Her goals are to increase air service, improve efficiencies and advance both airports as regional economic development assets.

Meredith is Co-Founder and Co-Owner of Wigle Whiskey, Pittsburgh's first distillery since Prohibition. Since opening in March 2012, Wigle Whiskey has worked to restore Pittsburgh’s legacy of Rye Whiskey. More than 60,000 visitors visit the Distillery each year to learn about Whiskey production and regional history. Wigle spirits are distributed in ten states and have won a host of medals, making it the most awarded craft whiskey distillery in the United States. Meredith leads the charge on Marketing, including Distribution, New Product Development, Events, PR and Partnerships. Meredith teaches New Product Development in Chatham University's Master of Food Studies Program. Before Wigle, Meredith worked in brand management at the H.J. Heinz Company, went to business school at Carnegie Mellon University, worked in community development, studied cooking at Le Cordon Bleu Paris and studied urban history and geography at University of Chicago. Meredith co-founded Burgh Bees, a Pittsburgh urban beekeeping organization and started the nation's first community apiary. Meredith is on the Board of The Mattress Factory, The New Hazlett Theater and is a member of the Pittsburgh Technology Council's Create Advisory Committee.

Former WPXI News Anchor Darieth Chisolm has launched a new video podcast show, Hustle & Heart TV with Darieth Chisolm. The show has a #1 rated TOP podcast status on iTunes with subscribers and viewers in several different countries and was a Top 10 Finalist for the 2015 Podcast Awards.

It’s available on 5 different platforms, iTunes Video & Audio, Stitcher Radio, YouTube and at www.HustleandHeartTV.com.

Darieth interviews inspiring and successful people, showcasing their strategies, rituals and principles for success. Anyone looking to start, grow or expand a business, dream or passion should watch the weekly shows for motivation, guidance and inspiration, plus practical tips, tools and resources.

Podcasting is the fastest growing medium available for entrepreneurs to build brand, influence and income. Darieth is coaching entrepreneurs to strategize on ways to create and launch their own video and audio podcast shows. She is gearing up to launch her own Academy in the summer of 2015. You can find more details at www.ThePodcastersAcademy.com.

Darieth’s entrepreneurial experiences were cultivated while working as a television news anchor for WPXI TV, the NBC Affiliate in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Channel 11 News at 11pm and 10pm newscasts before she retired in September 2013 after 20 years on the news set. She also brings her own experiences as a business owner to her international audience. In 2013, Darieth was the 54th highest paid distributor with It Works Global, a network marketing company with over 70 thousand representatives. Darieth also spent 3 and a half years as the owner of Fullbody Fitness Club, an aerial arts studio in Pittsburgh.

In October of 2014, Darieth sold Fullbody Fitness Club to focus exclusively on Hustle & Heart TV and on coaching people on ways to build their brand, influence and income through podcasting.

Darieth is currently the host of Hustle & Heart TV, a business coach and she is set to release her first book, HUSTLE: Why Now is the Time to Unleash your Passions.

"Success in anything is hard work and hustle, passion and heart, commitment and sacrifice, trial and error, failure and triumph. Hustle & Heart TV and Hustle, the book, expose these truths and pump fresh ideas into the hearts and minds of my viewers, listeners and readers." Darieth says, "With my busy schedule, my other businesses and my personal life being so demanding, I too need course correction and motivation from others who are successful. That’s why I started Hustle & Heart TV, so that I could pool the resources and mindsets of powerful people and then share this with others. I trust you’ll be inspired by their stories and encouraged to take action and make your dreams come true."

Although Darieth’s news career had been full of many outstanding awards and recognition, she says "Nothing makes me more excited than when I see people dream big and go after those dreams. I love watching people having huge breakthroughs and succeed! Entrepreneurs share a unique ability to be tough and have unwavering belief in themselves and their visions and goals."

She now features other successful entrepreneurs, authors, artists, celebrities and business owners on her video podcast show. You can subscribe to Hustle and Heart TV on iTunes, Stitcher Radio, YouTube or watch and listen directly from her website at www.HustleandHeartTV.com or www.DariethChisolm.com.

Currently a Senior Vice President, Tacy will soon be taking over as CEO of DDI. An expert in unique solutions to address talent management challenges, Tacy brings her experiences in assessment centers, 360s, development planning, and customized leadership solutions to maximize growth for individuals across the leadership pipeline. Her clients include Sam’s Club, ADP, BNY Mellon, Lockheed-Martin, and Texas Children’s Hospital. Tacy is a published author and her new book, "Your First Leadership Job" with co-author Rich Wellins will be available in May.

Wendy Staso is the Owner, President, and Chief Executive Officer of Huckestein Mechanical Services, Inc., the only woman owned and operated mechanical contractor in the tri-state area. She purchased the struggling 60-year-old company on January 1, 2010, and during her tenure, has instituted major changes to address the challenges facing the company. Under her leadership, Huckestein revised its vision to focus on its strengths – building on the master skills of the workforce to provide extraordinary service, deliver strong project management, and engineer simple, cost effective solutions for the most challenging of situations. She also made the difficult decisions necessary to reduce costs and stabilize the company, positioning it for profitability. These decisions included rightsizing the workforce, strategically outsourcing non-core competencies, realigning the business to focus on higher margin service work, selling assets that were excessive and unnecessary under the new business model, and paying off debt.

Today the company delivers core capabilities via a trademarked process called Sustainable System Delivery. Through this total life-cycle management model, the company strives to instill confidence and deliver worry-free, sustainable mechanical operations for facility owners and end users, creating long-term relationships based on mutual trust. She plans to double revenue over the next four years with the same high-margin, negotiated work. While the lead times to develop this type of work are lengthy, the sustainability of the client base is worth the patience and effort.

Superpowers, you say? We’re convinced that Denise DeSimone, Chairman of C-leveled, has an uncanny ability to launch ventures with tremendous success. Since graduating from the University of Pittsburgh with a B.A. degree in 1983, she has founded eight companies, including C-leveled. This woman means business.

With Denise at the helm, revenues have increased by millions at every company she’s touched. If you ask Denise, the real story behind her business savvy is the idea of building companies by forming teams that listen to clients’ challenges, assess their needs, and examine processes in order to develop solutions. Her approach: no nonsense.

We’re not the only ones who think Denise has a secret telephone booth, super-man style. Her companies have been named among the 2008 Best Places to work in Pittsburgh as well as the Top 100 Fastest Growing Businesses. Most recently, she is the recipient of the Ernst & Young 2008 Entrepreneur of the Year for Western PA, West Virginia, and upstate New York as well as Pennsylvania’s Best 50 Women in Business for 2009 and Pittsburgh Women in Business Winner 2011. Her achievements include 2007 Southwestern Pennsylvania’s Top 5 Women Entrepreneur recognition and Deloitte & Touche Fast 50 Growth Companies.

R. Yvonne Campos, founding CEO of market research and strategy firm, Campos Inc, is a nationally recognized focus group moderator, facilitator and consultant, designing, strategizing, and implementing market research for corporations, educational institutions, non-profits and professional organizations.

Under her leadership, Campos Inc, founded in 1986, became the premier research company in the Pittsburgh market. She is the founder of two Pittsburgh chapters of the Women President's Organization, a peer-to-peer learning model for women owned business with revenues over one million dollars.

Yvonne is a very active member of the Pittsburgh business community and has been recognized locally, regionally and nationally for her entrepreneurship and community involvement.

She currently serves as chairperson of the Goodwill of Southwestern Pennsylvania board, is a member of Pittsburgh Dance Council Advisory Board, and serves on the boards of WQED Multimedia, Highmark Health and Quantum Theatre.

Yvonne received her BS in Psychology at the University of Utah, and is a graduate of Leadership Pittsburgh's Class XI, Tepper School of Business’s Donald H. Jones Entrepreneurship Program, Tuck Executive Education Program and Harvard Kennedy School Executive Education Program.

Dr. Jo Ellen Parker became the 10th president of Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh in August 2014. She came to Carnegie Museums from Sweet Briar College, where she served as president since July 2009. Prior to joining Sweet Briar, Dr. Parker served as Executive Director of the National Institute for Technology and Liberal Education (NITLE). Dr. Parker also served as President of the Great Lakes Colleges Association (GLCA), a consortium of 12 selective liberal arts colleges. Before undertaking these national leadership positions, Dr. Parker served her alma mater, Bryn Mawr College, as a faculty member and an academic affairs and student life administrator. There, she taught Victorian literature, women’s literature and English composition while serving in the dean’s office. Before joining the faculty at Bryn Mawr, she taught in the English department at Swarthmore College. She earned her A.B. in English from Bryn Mawr, her M.A. in English from the University of Kansas, and her Ph.D. in English Literature from the University of Pennsylvania, writing her dissertation on George Eliot.

Regina Koetters is driven to unleash the unrealized potential of the Rust Belt and chose Pittsburgh to begin her work in 2008. A native of Louisville, Kentucky, Regina was commissioned as an officer in the United States Navy in 1999 upon graduation from the United States Naval Academy with a B.S. in Naval Architecture. In 2007, she transitioned to the United States Navy Reserve and completed her graduate studies in progressive real estate development and business at the University of Michigan the following year.

During her Naval career, she has managed operations and maintenance of the largest air base in Iraq, led airborne maritime patrol and reconnaissance missions in the Mediterranean and Atlantic regions, and facilitated maritime security and economic development projects in Western Africa.

Since relocating to Pittsburgh, she has championed several initiatives for sustainable development projects in downtown Pittsburgh, augmented a public-private team endeavoring to reintroduce passenger rail service to the Allegheny Riverfront, and in 2012 she launched Marty's Market, a unique food business in the Strip District dedicated to strengthening the Southwestern Pennsylvania food system.

Joyce Gannon, a Pittsburgh native, began her journalism career at a daily newspaper in West Virginia where she earned her stripes covering everything from murders and fires to courthouse politics. She then spent several years at the Pittsburgh Business Times writing about the technology sector that emerged in the city following the collapse of the steel industry. She joined the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette as a business news copy editor and now writes about a diverse range of topics including local foundations, charitable giving, the local nonprofit sector, the Pittsburgh chemical industry, and women in business. Her work appears in the print edition and on the paper’s website, www.post-gazette.com. She holds a journalism degree from Penn State University.

Jody Doherty is Regional Vice president of Community Investment for Comcast. She manages Comcast Foundation giving for the Keystone Region by identifying partnership opportunities that demonstrate commitment in the areas of digital literacy, youth leadership and development, as well as volunteerism. Additionally, Doherty directs the regional efforts of Comcast Cares Day, one of the largest corporate volunteerism initiatives in the country, and the region’s United Way campaign.

With a career in communications spanning 30 years, prior to joining Comcast, Doherty was Vice President of Public Affairs for the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra where she headed their government relations and global visibility efforts. She has held leadership positions in Allegheny County government and with WTAE-TV.

Honored, with many notable awards, she is the recipient of the Association of Cable Communicators Beacon for Comcast’s successful United Way communications campaign and a PRSA Renaissance Award for Public Service for the launch of Fugitive Files On Demand. She has also garnered four UPI and AP honors.

A graduate of the University of Pittsburgh, Jody serves on the Boards of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Pittsburgh, Urban League of Greater Pittsburgh and the Pittsburgh Metropolitan Area Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.

Deb Mortillaro is a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America and has been a partner in Dreadnought Wines since 1992. Deb’s culinary career took her to Italy, Chicago and then to Pittsburgh, PA to be a private chef for 15 years.

When joining Dreadnought Wines Deb helped create an education series about wine and wine appreciation. She also developed a gift program, starting the first company in PA to include wine in gift baskets that could be shipped within the United States. In 2009 Deb created a shipping company licensed to transport alcohol in Pennsylvania and is now expanding this business into other states.

Deb has continued her own wine education by becoming certified through the Wine and Spirits Education Trust in London. Most recently Deb has done presentations for Ameriprise, Bayer, First Commonwealth Bank and the Canadian Council of Ontario.

Carla is an attorney with degrees from Columbia and Duquesne University. She co-founded AgRecycle in 1991 and today AgRecycle is Pennsylvania’s largest composting company, handling over 80% of all food scraps that are composted within the Commonwealth. AgRecycle is one of the oldest and most successful composting companies in the U.S., and certainly a pioneer in transforming yard trimmings, pre and postconsumer food waste and food processing residuals into high-value compost products. Castagnero’s success as a business, marketer and educator in the value of organics is evidenced by the company’s distinguished client list, which includes the Pittsburgh Pirates and Pittsburgh Zoo.

Carla, along with Alice Waters of Chez Panisse Restaurant, are the only two recipients of the Organic Pioneer Award from the Rodale Institute not working in traditional agriculture. The Rodale Institute is the foundation arm of Rodale Press and Organic Gardening Magazine.

Ilana Diamond is the Managing Director of AlphaLab Gear, Innovation Works’ hardware start-up accelerator which provides physical product startups with investment, mentorship, and connections. She helps entrepreneurs make rapid progress through the early stages of product and customer development. Prior to joining AlphaLab Gear, Ilana was CEO of Sima Products, an international consumer electronics accessory corporation where she had full P&L responsibility for global operations. Based on innovative technology developed at Sima, Ilana founded and managed a commercial alerting startup, helped raise outside capital, and spun the company off into a separate entity. She negotiated and completed sale of the company in 2010. Earlier in her career, as a management consultant for PwC, Ilana provided market strategy advice, turnaround assistance, and merger and acquisition support to executive management of Fortune 500, middle-market, and growing companies.

Ilana holds a BA in Biological Sciences and Economics from Northwestern University, and an MBA from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management.

Peggy Morrison Outon is the founding Executive Director of the Bayer Center for Nonprofit Management at Robert Morris University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Peggy has three decades’ experience in the nonprofit sector and has served as a management consultant to more than 800 nonprofit organizations. As a volunteer, she has served on 34 boards–7 as president, including chairing the founding board of the Alliance for Nonprofit Management, a national network of nonprofit capacity builders. She currently serves a Board Chair for the Albert Schweitzer Fellows, Pittsburgh.

Under her leadership, The Bayer Center has served as a national model of excellence for management support organizations, studied by organizations from Texas to Michigan. In August 2006, she was named by the leading national publication for nonprofit management to their list of national leaders, The Nonprofit Times Top 50 for Power and Influence. In May 2008, she was named the Pearl of Excellence by the Girl Scouts of Western Pennsylvania. In March 2010, she was honored as a Woman of Achievement by the Cribs for Kids/SIDS International annual dinner. 22 March 2011 was designated by the Pittsburgh City Council as Peggy Morrison Outon Day in Pittsburgh in recognition of her commitment to the nonprofit sector.

Melanie Querry is the President and Founder of the Pittsburgh advertising agency, Beyond Spots & Dots. Melanie's expertise is in strategizing with business owners and marketing managers to understand how to allocate their marketing budgets more effectively so the dollars work harder on the business’s behalf. As a graduate of The Pennsylvania State University, she has a degree in Advertising, specifically. Melanie was successful in the broadcast television and cable television sales areas for over 12 years, before starting the company on her own. At Beyond Spots & Dots, she has been successful in leading her team to Inc. Magazine’s "Inc. 5000 Fastest Growing Companies," a select group of companies cited for their rapid growth, for two years in a row. In addition, she helped lead the team to the 2011 & 2012 Pittsburgh Business Times "Pittsburgh’s 100 Fastest Growing Companies." Melanie has direct experience in managing the research and strategic advertising planning for many businesses in various industries, such as: higher education, automotive, tourism, financial, energy, retail, and more. On a daily basis, Melanie oversees the development of each integrated marketing communications plan, including market research, media planning and buying, website development execution, management of brand standards, implementation of online branding elements, and determining appropriate messaging and choice of medium for each target audience. Melanie currently oversees all aspects of the business, from new business planning to media planning, negotiating and buying, to training and supervising daily employee practices. Most importantly, she is passionate about growing the business and implementing planning for optimal growth through market research, marketing campaign implementation, and campaign analysis on behalf of clients with which the agency works.

Mary Del Brady is an entrepreneur whose 38 years of professional experience include the founding of several companies in the services and biotechnology industries. She has also held an executive role within an academic health system, was president of a national association of business owners with international responsibilities and has served as director/advisor for numerous for-profit and not-for-profit boards. She and her husband have preserved a national landmark – two historic mansions in the East End of Pittsburgh – which they have converted into the Mansions on Fifth, a boutique luxury hotel.

Mary Del currently serves as Chairperson and CEO of Wellbridge Health, a health IT and care management solutions company. Since 1997, she has helped to launch several biotechnology companies. She has special expertise in cancer molecular diagnostics, currently serving as Chairman of the Board of Cvergenx, Inc., a spin out of the H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center, whose novel testing can predict a patient’s sensitivity to radiation therapy. She was the founding CEO of RedPath Integrated Pathology, leading the company through its first 5 years of business and winning critical financial, reimbursement and commercialization milestones. She was also co-founder of several medical device companies whose products achieved FDA approval, as well as, the founding CEO of TissueInformatics.Inc, one of Pittsburgh’s first and highly regarded biotechnology companies.

A business owner and advocate for most of her professional life, Mary Del has served in numerous volunteer leadership roles and has been the recipient of numerous awards including the E & Y Entrepreneur of the Year award; the University of Pittsburgh’s Katz Graduate School of Business Distinguished Alumnus Award; the President’s Award of Achievement from Slippery Rock University; one of Pennsylvania’s Best 50 Women in Business, and the Pittsburgh YWCA Tribute to Women Business and Leadership Award. She was named Women-in-Business Advocate for Pennsylvania by the U.S. Small Business Administration in 1983, and in 1992 she was inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame as one of the earliest Presidents of the National Association of Women Business Owners.

Mary Del continues to serve as a volunteer leader for a number of organizations in the arts, education and healthcare. She has a BA in Humanities from Slippery Rock University and an MBA from the University of Pittsburgh. She and her husband share four adult children and residences in Pittsburgh and Nova Scotia.

Michele began her career in 1987 working in the family business, Rice Enterprises LLC dba McDonald’s Restaurants. Michele has been working in the business for 26 years, as they say in McDonald’s she has "ketchup in her veins." She worked her way through all levels of management. Throughout her career as a manager, she won numerous awards for Outstanding Manager and Outstanding Restaurants in her region. In 2003, Michele accomplished her lifelong dream of becoming an approved McDonald’s owner operator. She has continued to work in the family business and manage the day to day operations of the restaurant. She also has the responsibilities of strategic planning, training and development, office and benefits administration, and hiring. Michele also holds several leadership positions within McDonald's Pittsburgh Region.

In May 2012, Michele was appointed CEO of Rice Enterprises LLC. She currently operates the business with her parents, James and Edith Rice, and siblings Melissa and James Rice. There are approximately 1000 employees to whom we provide extensive training, development, and growth opportunities. In addition, she gets to do what she is extremely passionate about by mentoring many young men and women on life and career skills that will be valuable throughout their lives.

A native of Akron, OH, Michele attended the University of Akron. Michele attended and is a member of The Institute for Entrepreneurial Excellence Program at the University of Pittsburgh. She is on the board of the National Black McDonald’s Owners Association, South Hills Chamber of Commerce, and CCAC Educational Foundation. Michele is a member of the African American Chamber of Commerce and the South Hills Chamber of Commerce.

Michele has 2 children and 1 granddaughter.

In March of 2010, Dorothy was selected as one of the 25 Top Women Business Leaders by the Pittsburgh Business Times. She is also the recipient of the 2008 Pittsburgh Airport Chamber's Small Business Excellence Award. In 2007, she was chosen Person of the Year by the Brentwood Baldwin Whitehall Chamber of Commerce where she is a past president and has served on the Board of Directors since 2001. In both 2011 and 2013, TWO MEN AND A TRUCK® was featured in the Pittsburgh Business Times as one of the Top 100 Fastest-Growing Companies in the region. And in 2012, TWO MEN AND A TRUCK® received the Super Service Award from Angie's List. Just recently, she was awarded the Spirit of Amelia Earhart Award by the Pittsburgh Chapter of Zonta International for succeeding in a male-dominated field.

Giving back to the community is an important core value and the basis for our tag line, "Movers who Care." TWO MEN AND A TRUCK® has donated moving services on a yearly basis to many local charities. Dorothy serves on the Cribs for Kids board of directors. She actively participates in all of the nine local chambers she belongs to and advocates passionately on behalf of small business owners, especially on behalf of women. In 2006, she started a local networking organization for women in the Brentwood Baldwin Whitehall area which meets monthly at South Hills Country Club. Attendance averages between 30 and 40 women each month. Each November, the women's networking has a Christmas Bazaar with tables for vendors and a raffle with proceeds going to the local food banks. Those efforts have raised over $5,000.

Kadee is a Pittsburgh native aside from the three years she spent living abroad in Hong Kong. She has always been interested in promoting healthy lifestyles, earning a degree from Edinboro in Health & Fitness education. She went on to open her first fitness studio in 1992 in the heart of Shadyside. Since then, she has been involved in numerous business ventures. When she opened her first independently–owned fitness facility, Bodytech Health & Fitness, in Aspinwall in 1996, Kadee grounded herself in the Aspinwall community. This groundwork paved the way for her next and newest business venture with her sister, Bella Christie & Lil’ Z’s Sweet Boutique, a boutique bakery, on Commercial Avenue in Aspinwall in 2011. Currently overseeing both businesses, Kadee is a single parent living in Aspinwall and raising her daughter Zoe (AKA Lil’ Z), who serves as inspiration for Bella Christie & Lil’ Z’s creations.

Linda is co–owner and Director of Marketing for Penn Brewery. She has worked in marketing, brand management, and consumer promotions for over twenty years and held positions with HJ Heinz Company, Sara Lee Corporation, and GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare prior to acquiring Penn Brewery with her two business partners. During her career she has worked on such well–known brands as Aquafresh Toothpaste, Kiwi Shoe Polish, and Weight Watchers food products. A native of Pittsburgh, Linda holds a bachelor’s degree from Franklin & Marshall College and an MBA from the University of Chicago.

Sandy was named President and CEO of Pennsylvania Brewing Co. (Penn Brewery) in July, 2010. Along with Linda Nyman and Corey Little, she purchased a controlling interest in Penn Brewery in November 2009. Prior to Sandy’s involvement with Penn Brewery, she worked for both USX Steel Corporation and BNY Mellon, specializing in software engineering and project management. Sandy grew up in Baldwin Borough, and earned her bachelor’s degree at the University of Pittsburgh. She also holds a master’s degree in information science and an MBA from the Katz Graduate School of Business.

Latasha Wilson-Batch has been Continuously Helping Uplift Community Kids™ since 2002. She serves as the Executive Director of Best of the Batch Foundation, whose mission is her passion. The foundations' mission is to help unlock potential in financially challenged communities with resources for children and families through education and empowerment. Her passion is to empower those she reaches to give their best efforts. The result is a community committed to becoming the "best of the batch" in facet of life.

Her efforts have helped raise over $800,000 for the foundation through many educational and extracurricular activities. Under her leadership, she oversees and organizes structural reading and computer literacy programs, a 350 participant seven-week summer basketball league, Batchpack for kids initiative and several after-school mentoring programs. At Christmas they wrapped and delivered over 5,000 toys and household items as secret Santa's on Christmas Eve. The unique scholarship program she created not just helps fund students education, but assist in transitions for students attending higher education out of state.

Aside from her day job, Latasha remains devoted to supporting many local and national charitable causes. She volunteers with Strong Women Strong Girls, Women Shelter City of Pittsburgh, United Way of Allegheny County, Beyond the Game, and with other local organizations.

Despite all of her commitments, Latasha travels to Swaziland, South Africa with Beyond the Game for mission trips, an organization committed to building schools for orphans, mentoring raped pregnant teens, supplying the children with food and care, giving the love of Jesus and education. She has adopted three children, by visiting once a year paying for their schooling, food and clothing and helped build an additional hut for the family.

Latasha embraces a high standard of excellence and does not accept mediocrity in her business, charitable or personal life. She has been honored by the National Association of Women Business Owners "Make the Connection Award" and The UPMC Center for Inclusion "Champion Award." She also sits on the board for the Hill House Association, Strong Women Strong Girls, Future Stars Track Club, and Dignity & Respect National Campaign for Youth, and the ATHENA-Pittsburgh host committee.

Latasha has adopted how to "Live with Meaning" from being a part of a wonderful organization called Power & Joy. She fully believes that success comes from within and that her attitude determines how successful she will be. She encourages everybody to be somebody for someone.

Latasha received a M.S. in Human Development in Sports from University of Tennessee a B.A in Physical Education and a B.S. in Psychology from Johnson C. Smith University. She is currently completing her degree at Carlow University. Latasha is the soul mate to Charlie Batch and together they have five four-legged kids: Roxie, Bunz, Snoop & Nate and Aysia. They reside in Wexford, PA.

Cybergenetics developed the TrueAllele® technology to automate STR DNA interpretation using computers. In 2000 TrueAllele was adapted for the forensics field to help the Forensic Science Service of the UK automate its reference sample processing for their national convicted offender database. Cybergenetics continued to develop the TrueAllele technology for use with complex mixtures, including working to help identify victim remains from the World Trade Center terrorism attack. TrueAllele is currently the most sophisticated, and scientifically validated, commercial computer technology for interpreting complex STR DNA evidence from crime scenes. Cybergenetics has provided testimony in state, federal, military and foreign courts in multiple cases ranging from homicide, rape, violent assault, sexual molestation, robbery and terrorism. The TrueAllele technology has Pennsylvania State Supreme Court precedent.

Dr. Ria David is president of Cybergenetics. She and Dr. Mark Perlin built the Oakland based biotechnology company, established in 1994. Dr. David received her PhD in American History with a focus on business culture from Carnegie Mellon University in 1999. She has an Executive MBA from the Katz Business School of the University of Pittsburgh.

Rachel Blaufeld is a Freelance Writer and Founder of the blog, Back’nGrooveMom, a lifestyle blog on the intersection of building a business and raising a family and everything in between where NO topic is off limits. Originally a personal blog detailing her own adventures of inventing a product and starting a business, Rachel discovered she had a wide audience of women looking for tips and conversation on remaining relevant while growing a family and a business and/or just wanting to find themselves again when kids became school-age.

Growing her own little piece of internet real estate entirely though networking online and connecting organically on Twitter, Facebook, and Linked-In, Rachel often shares networking and tips for navigating the internet. Lending her opinion on the importance of engaging online and blogging for small business, Rachel occasionally blogs on blogging. As a true hybrid between a parenting and a business-savvy blog, Rachel and Back’nGrooveMom quickly expanded to be featured in Tory Johnson’s Spark and Hustle book, on TV and radio, and the pages of Fast Company and The New York Times. Rachel also writes regularly at The Huffington Post, Modern Mom, Gal Time, Four Seasons Resorts, StartUpNation and CorpNet.Com.

Rachel can be found providing brand influence while continuing to be an outpost at the crossroads of being a mom and business owner. When not writing or hiding behind her computer, Rachel can be found watching basketball with her sons.

Doctor G (Deborah Gilboa, MD) of AskDoctorG.com empowers parents to raise respectful, responsible and resilient kids.

Around the country and around the world, she works with parents to increase their knowledge and to use the parenting instincts they already have. Doctor G focuses on practical tools and teaching skills, not just dishing out advice. From one minute tips on making your life easier while building kids’ character to her downloadable guides (chores at every age, boundaries for tech use and more) Doctor G makes parenting more simple and more effective.

As a Board Certified Family Physician, mother of four, author of Teach Resilience: Raising Kids Who Can Launch! and a professional parenting speaker, she captivates parents through her humorous straight talk and takes the guilt out of parenting. She especially loves taking questions directly from parents and educators.

Dr. Debi Gilboa is the host of and parenting expert for PBS’s series "iQ Smart Parent" premiering February 2013. Doctor G has served as an expert resource for Parents magazine, MSNBC, Yahoo News, USA Today and numerous other media outlets.

Doctor G is a regular contributor to Huffington Post Parents, Your Teen Magazine and several of the largest parenting sites online. Doctor G is a Clinical Assistant Professor at University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and the recipient of multiple awards.

Kiya Tomlin is a women's wear designer and dressmaker, specializing in custom dresses. With a love of fashion since childhood, Kiya submerged herself in design textbooks and sewing manuals, creating prom dresses for friends and family. After graduating from The College of William and Mary, Kiya realized her childhood hobby was actually her true passion. She enrolled at The University of Cincinnati's College of Design, Art and Architectural Planning to study design formally, and continues to elevate her craft through fit and couture workshops around the country. At her new studio location in Pittsburgh's East End, Kiya works closely with each client to create designs unique to their individual taste and figure. Kiya's designs are elegant and timeless, displaying her love of unusual and luxurious textiles. Clients of all ages, shapes and sizes looking for casual day dresses to evening couture can come "experience the design".

Kiya Tomlin Pittsburgh, LLC Meadeworth Design Building 111 Penn Circle West Pittsburgh, PA 15206

Debra Burk joined ANSYS in May, 2011 bringing extensive global human resource management expertise in North America, Europe and Asia. Prior to joining ANSYS, Burk held various vice president human resources positions for Thermo Fisher Scientific, in various divisions, groups and regions (Asia Pacific). Prior to Thermo Fisher, she held human resources leadership roles within IBM (former Transarc, Inc.) and II-VI, Inc. Burk holds a B.S. in Business Administration from Robert Morris University and an M.S. in Human Resources from LaRoche College. She is also a certified Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) from the Human Resource Certification Institute.

Nancy Furbee brings over twenty years of exemplary human resources experience to each of her client engagements. She has a well– rounded background in all facets of the HR profession and uses this to support her clients with fresh ideas and creative solutions. Nancy’s corporate career gave her great experience in a variety of industries ~ including manufacturing, supply chain, insurance and software development.

Nancy’s high energy and thoughtful nature provides her the ability to work with groups of any size and composition. She quickly establishes credibility and rapport with individuals during one-on-one coaching and with groups in team- building environments.

Nancy holds certifications in Everything DiSC Personality Assessments and Compression Planning Facilitation. She has a Master’s Degree in Human Resources Management, with a specialty in Training & Development, and a Bachelor’s in Finance and Business Administration from La Roche College.

Nancy is a recent graduate of the Leadership Pittsburgh Class of XXVII. Additionally, she is an active member in the HR Leadership Forum, the Society of Human Resources Management, and the Pittsburgh Human Resources Association. She is a founding member of the Women’s Nonprofit CEO Leadership Forum and a recent winner of the Fifty Distinguished Alumni Award from her alma mater.

Active in her community, Nancy served as a Founding Board Member for Venture Outdoors and currently serves on the Board for Pittsburgh Cares and BikePGH. She was appointed by City Council to the North Park Council of Friends and volunteers for Hair Peace, HEARTH, Venture Outdoors, and other area non-profits. Nancy’s ability to work with diverse groups, from board members to volunteers, adds great value to each of the organizations she supports.

Overall, Nancy’s life experiences and consulting and coaching work help bring a broad range of perspectives to each of her projects.

Dr. Catalano has extensive experience in the field of Alzheimer's disease drug discovery. She served as Director of Discovery Biology for South San Francisco-based startup Acumen Pharmaceuticals, Inc., where she led a scientific team to the development of novel, first-in-class assay systems responsible for the discovery of the company's first small molecule lead candidates targeting oligomers. Dr. Catalano has over 14 years of experience as a cell biologist in the fields of neuroscience and oncology, and nine years of experience in the drug discovery industry.

Dr. Catalano received her Ph.D. from U.C. Irvine and postdoctoral training at U.C. Berkeley and Caltech in the field of neurobiology. While a scientist at Roche Palo Alto, she held leadership positions in the Neurophysiology and Neuroimaging groups and led exploratory programs against targets involved in anxiety, depression and schizophrenia. Following this, Dr. Catalano joined Rigel Pharmaceuticals, Inc. as a Senior Scientist and pioneered the use of high content phenotypic screening technology to discover R763, an Aurora kinase inhibitor that recently began its third PhI clinical trial.

Dr. Catalano founded Cognition Therapeutics in 2007, and re-located the company to Pittsburgh from California to take advantage of the world-class neuroscience research, highly educated workforce and synergies with local companies that the city offers.

4moms designs and manufactures juvenile products. These aren't just any old juvenile products, though: they're the first in the industry to employ robotics technology, and they do so in truly innovative ways. 4moms' mamaRoo infant seat replaces traditional swings and bouncy seats and replicates the natural movements parents make to comfort their children (by way of a dual-axis coordinated motion robotic platform). The mamaRoo started shipping in May of 2010 and is now available in more than 500 locations in the US, as well as in 17 countries internationally.

4moms' newest product is the Origami: the world's first power-folding stroller. At the touch of a button, it folds itself, and it may seem like a humble use of cutting edge technology, but the Origami makes life easier for any parent or grandparent with arthritis, a disability, or just two full hands. The Origami has already received press on The Wall Street Journal, as well as on The Today Show and CNN.

4moms believes that the future of robotics lies in products that take very abstract or expensive technology and make it practical for ordinary use. Both the mamaRoo and the Origami embody this philosophy, solving common difficulties of childrearing using robotics technology previously unseen in the juvenile industry. Our unique approach to solving the problems parents face every day, as well as the innovation and creativity evident in the products we build, differentiates 4moms from the rest of our industry and makes us a great place to work.

4moms designs and manufactures juvenile products. These aren't just any old juvenile products, though: they're the first in the industry to employ robotics technology, and they do so in truly innovative ways. 4moms' mamaRoo infant seat replaces traditional swings and bouncy seats and replicates the natural movements parents make to comfort their children (by way of a dual-axis coordinated motion robotic platform). The mamaRoo started shipping in May of 2010 and is now available in more than 500 locations in the US, as well as in 17 countries internationally.

4moms' newest product is the Origami: the world's first power-folding stroller. At the touch of a button, it folds itself, and it may seem like a humble use of cutting edge technology, but the Origami makes life easier for any parent or grandparent with arthritis, a disability, or just two full hands. The Origami has already received press on The Wall Street Journal, as well as on The Today Show and CNN.

4moms believes that the future of robotics lies in products that take very abstract or expensive technology and make it practical for ordinary use. Both the mamaRoo and the Origami embody this philosophy, solving common difficulties of childrearing using robotics technology previously unseen in the juvenile industry. Our unique approach to solving the problems parents face every day, as well as the innovation and creativity evident in the products we build, differentiates 4moms from the rest of our industry and makes us a great place to work.

Born and raised in Pittsburgh, JulieHera is an independent Producer and Filmmaker. A graduate of Pine-Richland High School and Carnegie Mellon University (BFA), she has performed in New York Off-Broadway, in Pittsburgh with the Civic Light Opera and Pittsburgh Playhouse and was seen in the movies The First Wives Club and the Preacher's Wife. She served as the Managing Director and Producer of an award-winning off-Broadway theater company and as the Business Manager of a New York- based film and photography studio whose clients

JulieHera conceived the idea for Journey to Normal in the spring of 2009, and has had the privilege of watching it evolve and take on a life of its own. Slated for release in spring 2013, the film documents the experiences female veterans have rejoining their families and communities after a deployment to the combat zone.

Vocalist, Olga Watkins has studied music privately since age five. She worked briefly as an opera singer before studying culinary arts then went back to music and started singing and writing music. Currently, Olga works full time as the manager and leader of the Olga Watkins Band. Her band is best known locally and abroad amongst ex-pat Pittsburgher’s for their Steelers fight song, "Drink up Yinz Bitches". Olga lives in the Highland Park neighborhood of Pittsburgh with her daughter, husband and two mastiffs.

Donna M. Baxter is the CEO of Soul Pitt Media, an African American internet marketing and graphic design firm based in Pittsburgh, PA. Founded in 2000, this award-winning company helps individuals, businesses and corporations reach African American consumers through online advertising, print and radio with clients including numerous small business owners, along with the August Wilson Center, Allstate Insurance, McDonald’s, Highmark, Verizon Wireless, the US Army and many others.

Soul Pitt Media helps people connect with the Minority community through TheSoulPitt.com, Pittsburgh’s premier Minority community award winning web site, which receives over 450,000 page views per month and Soul Pitt Quarterly, a community magazine which is a spin-off of the website, in which 10,000 complimentary copies are distributed around Pittsburgh each quarter. Donna also co-hosts the Soul Pitt Xtra community radio show, along with Terina Hicks which airs on WGBN AM 1150.

Donna serves as a speaker and digital consultant and is on a mission to educate Minority and women business owners on the power of the Internet. She has spoken to audiences about technology at various events including the Women’s Economic Development Outreach Tour (WEDO), Seton Hill’s Annual E-Magnify Conference, the 2008 PA Governor’s Conference and Duquesne University’s Annual Entrepreneur’s Growth Conference to name a few. Former rap artist turned internet Tech Diva, Donna Baxter has gone from "Rhymer to Digital Designer". This "Cool Nerd" explains technology in ways you’ve never heard all while making it easy to understand, funny, and entertaining and leaving audiences motivated to "Get Online or Get Left Behind!"

Named "Rookie of the Year" by The National Association of Women Business Owners in 2006, Donna has since been recognized and featured in numerous newspapers, magazines, radio and television shows and has also won many business and community awards. Pittsburgh Magazine named her one of the "40 Under 40" young leaders for 2006 and featured her in their Spotlight on Women in Business in April 2010.

Donna is also the co-founder of 2 Tech Divas, who work with entrepreneurs to teach them how to dramatically improve productivity or market presence using technology. Through digital coaching, seminars and Laptop Workshops™, they have been helping entrepreneurs with their services resulting in some of their clients earning online income in excess of $20,000 per month.

Originally from Johnstown, PA, Donna holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communications / Media from the University of Pittsburgh and a Master’s degree in Education and Instructional Technology from AIU. She is the author of the forthcoming book "Dr. King Would’ve Had a Dream and a Blog: and 26 Other Reasons to Get Online or Get Left Behind!" Find out more about Donna on her personal site at www.donnambaxter.com.

Chris Dilla is the founder of Bocktown Beer and Grill, located just moments off the Robinson Town Centre exit in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She has just recently opened a second Bocktown Beer and Grill in the Beaver Valley Mall, in Monaca, Pennsylvania. She’s dreaming of five restaurants in the area, and a future where she actually has time to blog, consult and play with her dog, Growler. She secretly hopes someone will get around to inventing a usb port for her brain, so she doesn’t have to sit and type it all out.

Chris came to entrepreneurship at 40. She was able garner financing through a combination of sheer will, borrowing to the hilt against her home, and showing the bank an extremely long work history within the industry. She attended every class and workshop she could, met dozens of peers and advisors, and realized early on, she was not in this alone. Around the same time, the social media tools seemed to mature into something the world could not ignore. Today, she is only 6 years into her journey, and is anxious to help other budding entrepreneurs grow through the use of social media tools. Chris doesn't use many conventional methods to advertise her business. In fact she opened her second location through the use of social media exclusively. She has built a community of followers who care about her success, and without traditional advertising has opened her second restaurant with double the sales volume of her first restaurant’s first year.

Other stuff:

• Attended University of Pittsburgh, graduated 1987, BA in Liberal StudiesSemester at Sea 1985 Fall Semester
• Worked within the restaurant industry since she was 16, tossed pizzas, bartended, served, hosted, managed kitchens, you name it. Her restaurant experience was all local and for family owned business in the Pittsburgh region. All but one of them still exist and thrive in this region and this economy. She learned so much from them and has a commitment to local-ism and small business from these experiences.
• She has created 100 jobs in the region and wants to challenge her own staff to grow with her as she reaches for her goal of 5 locations.
• She has one other restaurant concept that she wants to develop into 100 units in a fast-serve environment, that will offer further opportunities for growth for her staff.
• Link to my blog: http://uncapd.wordpress.com/
• Twitter: @bocktown @BT_Robinson @BT_Monaca
• FB: www.facebook.com/bocktown, www.facebook.com/bocktownmonaca, www.facebook.com/bocktownrobinson

Elizabeth Terrell is the Director of Business Development for UPS in the Mid Atlantic District. Elizabeth is responsible for the district’s sales performance & strategy, which includes annual revenues of $1.6 Billion and managing 165 employees.

Elizabeth is a member of the Mid Atlantic District’s Business Planning Unit, a 9-person cross function team of the district’s senior staff responsible for the strategic leader­ship of the district, as well as day-to-day operations.

Prior to relocating to Pittsburgh in her current position, Elizabeth served as the Direc­tor of Sales for the Virginia District. Elizabeth received her BA in Marketing from Texas State University and MA in International Business from Webster University.

Elizabeth began her career with UPS in 1992 as a sales intern and was then promoted to a supervisory position in Central Texas. She has since held a range of positions within Business Development including: Major Accounts Manager, International Accounts Manager, Sales Support Manager, as well as a special assignment to UPS Corporate in Atlanta.

Elizabeth currently serves on the Sales Advisory Board at Texas State University. She also served as the 2010 Auction Committee chair for the American Heart Associa­tion’s Go Red campaign in Richmond, Virginia, as well as participating on the United Way Women’s Leadership Committee. Elizabeth lives in Cranberry Township with her husband Hank and two children, Travis and Julia.

As Vice President and Senior Relationship Manager, Helen Collins serves as the primary contact for the delivery of all wealth management services for her clients. She establishes a business plan for each client and works with the wealth management team to achieve service standards. Collins also delivers an overall client review that addresses both investment funds' performance and administrative processes. She has planned and frequent interaction with clients, which are expected to yield increased client satisfaction, strengthened client commitment, enhanced retention and additional revenues.

Helen Collins joined PNC in 2000 as a senior trust advisor. Prior to joining PNC Helen assisted high net worth individuals and families in meeting their tax, estate, and financial planning goals. She brings over 18 years of experience in all facets of personal and charitable trust administration.

Helen Collins holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Speech from the University of Pittsburgh and is a summa cum laude graduate of Duquesne University School of Law. She has been published in Law Review and was a Patent Moot Court winner.

In addition, she is a member of the Board of Directors of Altrusa International of Pittsburgh and Stage Right Community Theater.

Has held finance and marketing positions on Wall Street and in the corporate world. Her financial career spans two decades, including over a decade spent with Thomas H. Lee Company, a Boston-based early entrant and long term leader in private equity, where Ms. Watts was the Vice President of Marketing, and as one of the early female corporate finance executives at Lehman Brothers Kuhn Loeb in New York. Ms. Watts was the co-head of a venture-backed medical services company with 120 employees and offices in Boston and Chicago where her responsibilities included raising venture capital funding. She worked as a management consultant for Booz, Allen & Hamilton in New York and Chicago between years of business school. Prior to attending business school, Ms. Watts was a straight commission sales representative for American Hospital Supply Corporation, where she was awarded the Sales Representative of the Year Award for the Midwest Region .

Graduate School of Business, University of Chicago
Master of Business Administration, Concentrations in Finance and Marketing.

Michigan State University, The Honors College
Bachelor of Arts, with high honors.

Trilingual: English, German and Ukrainian
Married with three grown children.

Lynsie Camuso is the Co-Founder and President of ShowClix, a full-service event ticketing company that provides venues, promoters and event organizers with innovative solutions to manage every aspect of their ticketing operations, including online and telephone ticket sales, box office management, admissions control, product bundling and event promotion. The company currently works with over 1,700 live music venues, performing arts groups, museums, festivals, nightclubs, artist management companies, non-profit organizations and colleges and universities around the world.

Prior to founding ShowClix in 2007, Lynsie spent the majority of her career in the entertainment and music industries, working in the music department at The Rosie O'Donnell Show, in the Pittsburgh Pirates front office, and as a publicist at The Mitch Schneider Organization, where she worked on press campaigns for artists such as David Bowie, Tom Petty, matchbox 20 and Alanis Morissette.

Lynsie holds a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism from Duquesne University and currently serves on the Advisory Boards for Innovation Works' AlphaLab program and AllFacilities Energy Group.

Professional Experience
Kate Dewey is a principal of McCrory & McDowell LLC and a member of the Executive Committee. She has more than thirty years of direct experience with a variety of nonprofit organizations, foundations, public agencies and corporations at the local, state and national level. Kate is particularly interested in strategic alliances and building sustainable nonprofit delivery systems. She currently serves as adjunct faculty for Duquesne University's Trusteeship Institute.

Prior to joining McCrory & McDowell LLC, Kate was the founding partner of Dewey & Kaye, Inc., which merged with McCrory & McDowell LLC in July 2004. Kate was Manager of Community Affairs for Mellon Bank Corporation. From 1985 until 1991, Kate served as the founding Executive Director of Grantmakers of Western Pennsylvania, an association dedicated to promoting effective philanthropy. Before moving to Pittsburgh in 1982, Kate was a Principal in Semerad Associates of Washington, D.C., a consulting firm specializing in governmental affairs, planning, and development services for nonprofits school-to-work policy formulation, and public/private ventures. She has held a variety of additional posts in both the public and private sectors, including serving as Executive Vice President of 7001 Ltd., President Ford's signature initiative focused on strengthening school-to-work transition services for high-risk youth; Interstate Juvenile Probation and Parole Coordinator/Liaison to Juvenile Corrections and Mental Health for the State of New Jersey; and Director of Ambulatory and Residential Treatment Services for New Jersey Division of Youth and Family Services.

Professional/Community Impact
Kate is the 2008 winner of the ATHENA Award in Pittsburgh. The ATHENA Award is recognized internationally as the premier honor for excellence in leadership among business, professional and community leaders. She currently serves as Chair of the Mentoring Partnership, Secretary of Human Services Center, and director of Leadership Pittsburgh. In the past, she has served on the boards of Sewickley Valley Hospital, Leadership Pittsburgh, Susan B. Komen Pittsburgh Chapter, Coro National, Coro Center for Civic Leadership, the Center for the Performing Arts, Pennsylvania Nonprofit Leadership Committee, The Society for Arts in Craft, the Allegheny County Commission on the Future of Libraries, the Allegheny County Children and Youth Services Advisory Committee, and the McCandless Town Council. She is a 1990 graduate of Leadership Pittsburgh, which is sponsored by the Greater Pittsburgh Chamber of Commerce, and the 1999 Recipient of the Greater Pittsburgh YWCA's Tribute to Women Award.

Publications
Ms. Dewey has presented at a variety of national and community conferences. She has also been quoted in a variety of national and local publications including the Chronicle of Philanthropy, Nonprofit Times, Council on Foundations, Pittsburgh Business Times, Washington Post, and the Post Gazette. In 2009, Dewey & Kaye released the nationally recognized research report, The Recession's Impact on Safety Net Needs in Ohio and Pennsylvania and Nonprofit Leadership: A Model for Growing Leaders. Additional publications include: Nonprofit Mergers: An Assessment of Nonprofits' Experiences with the Merger Process; Nonprofit Capacity in Changing Times; Imagine, Involve, Implement: Transforming Grantmaker Practices for Improved Nonprofit Results; and Basic Steps in Establishing a Corporate Giving Program, published by the Council on Foundations.

Education
Kate received her Bachelor's degree from Rider College and a Masters in Social Work from Rutgers University. She was certified in 1995 as a management trainer by the Avraham Y. Goldratt Institute, an international educational organization.

Julie Talerico has been with PITTSBURGH Magazine since 2002. As editorial director, she launched PITTSBURGH Home & Garden magazine and oversaw the successful re-launch of PITTSBURGH Weddings magazine. She was named editor-in-chief in 2006. She worked as an award-winning editor and writer for national titles such as Redbook, Woman's Day and Seventeen magazines. In addition, she has been a publishing consultant for various local and national publications, where she earned an award of excellence from MagazineWeek.

Clare Ansberry is bureau chief of the Wall Street Journal's Pittsburgh office. She joined the Wall Street Journal as a reporter in 1985, covered several of the paper's major beats and now concentrates on conceptualizing and editing stories for reporters, while also writing features about aging and community.

She has won numerous journalism awards and is the author of the book, The Women of Troy Hill, published by Harcourt and co-author of "Comes the Peace: My Journey to Forgiveness," published by Simon & Schuster. Both books grew out of stories she wrote for the Wall Street Journal.

She graduated from St. Francis University, Loretto, Pa. with a B.A. in English. She and her husband, Matt Smith, live in Mt. Lebanon and have three children, Jessie, Peter and Eli.

As publisher and editor of Pop City, Tracy Certo has grown the lively online publication from 4000 subscribers in March of 2006 to more than 31,300 today. Pop City focuses on new economy issues and the people and places advancing the Pittsburgh region, from innovation and arts to nonprofit and development news. In June, 2009 Tracy traveled to Turin, Italy and Essen, Germany as part of a German Marshall Fund trip to study the revitalization of the two regions that, like Pittsburgh, were decimated by single-industry decline. Like other transplants to this city, she is charmed by the rich and eclectic offerings of Pittsburgh--and welcomes the opportunity to showcase them through Pop City.

Prior to launching Pop City, Tracy started her career as an account executive in an advertising agency and ran her own marketing and writing business for more than a decade, with clients ranging from PNC to Carnegie Mellon University. She has written about topics ranging from architecture and urban design to sustainability and economic development. A native of Chicago and a two-time boomeranger to Pittsburgh, she most recently returned from Los Angeles where she worked in national media sales, with post-grad studies in writing and photography at UCLA. She started her career as an account executive in an advertising agency.

Lauren Lawley Head is editor of the Pittsburgh Business Times, where she leads the publication's print and online news operations. She is responsible for representing the Pittsburgh Business Times as a speaker at events and on panels throughout the region. She also has taken an active role in the development of several digital media initiatives for the Business Times' parent company, American City Business Journals, which publishes more than 40 business newspapers around the country.

Business journalism is truly Lauren's passion. She earned two degrees from the University of Missouri Columbia, one in journalism and one in economics, and has been combining the two specialties ever since. As a business reporter, Lauren covered the retail, technology and health care industries for the Cincinnati Business Courier, where she won a number of awards for her work. She went on to serve as the managing editor of the Dayton Business Journal in Ohio and joined the Pittsburgh Business Times as editor in February 2003.

Lauren serves on the board of the Economic Club of Pittsburgh and is a member of the United Way of Allegheny County Women's Leadership Council.

She lives in Adams Township with her husband, Dave, and their son, David.

Ruth Byrd-Smith is Director of the Allegheny County Minority/ Women/ Disadvantaged Business Enterprise Department, located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She was appointed to this position in February of 2004. In this position as Director, Ruth oversees the budget, certification of minority, women and disadvantaged business enterprises, technical assistance programs, and dissemination of information on contracting opportunities.

Prior to her appointment, Ruth was principal of Ruth Byrd-Smith Consulting, a firm that assisted governmental entities in managing diversity and communication issues. Ruth holds a bachelor's degree in Corporate Communications from Point Park College.

Ruth is Chair of the Governor's Advisory Commission on African American Affairs, the Pennsylvania Unified Certification Oversight Board and a member of many other organizations and boards.

In 2006 Ruth was awarded the Minority Business Champion for the SBA Region III which is a seven state area and in 2007 was awarded the Civic and Community Leadership award from the YWCA. In 2008 and 2009 respectively, Ruth was the recipient of the New Pittsburgh Courier - 50 Women of Excellence Award and Onyx Woman Network - 2009 Lifetime Achievement Award.

Ruth's son and daughter-in-law reside in Virginia Beach, VA.

Georgia Berner is owner and CEO of Berner International Corporation and Berner Energy Recovery, Inc., both are privately held companies focused on indoor air quality and energy conservation. Berner International is the first U.S. manufacturer of air curtains and ancillary products that work to separate environments while lowering energy costs. Berner Energy Recovery manufactures energy recovery units, which improve indoor air quality and energy efficiency while bringing in 100% fresh, outside air.

Georgia started her career as an educator in Japan in 1968, where she worked for seven years. In 1984, Georgia took over Berner International Corporation upon her husband's death. During her first two decades as owner, the company has seen a triple digit increase in growth and profits. Georgia is personally involved in strategically guiding both companies, particularly in the innovation, marketing and human resource areas. While under Georgia's leadership, both companies have become employers of choice in the region. They have grown to close to 65 employees and continue to offer fully paid health benefits to all full-time employees.

Georgia is a recognized advocate for energy conservation, social programs and philanthropy in Pennsylvania, as well as nationally. Georgia’s board participation _includes/ social services, manufacturing and industry concerns, women's issues and the arts. Georgia currently serves on the board of directors of Catalyst Connection (Pennsylvania Industrial Resource Center for Manufacturers), Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission, Children's Advocacy Center, New Castle, PA, Economy League of Western Pennsylvania, Adagio Health, Women's Campaign Forum Foundation, Lawrence County Crisis Shelter and the Pennsylvania League of Young Voters. Georgia has held board positions for the Federal Reserve Bank, Pittsburgh branch, the Lawrence County Economic Development Corporation, the Air Movement and Control Association (AMCA) and for the National Association of Manufacturers in Washington DC. She is an advocate for small business leadership and has been a part of several national initiatives, including the Wall Street Journal's / Winning Workplaces Top 10 Small Workplaces.

In 2005, Georgia ran in the Democratic primary to represent PA Congressional District 4, but was defeated in a very close race. During her campaign, Georgia learned about the health care issues we face in this country and the inability of health care to meet the needs of millions of Americans. In an effort to help more Americans understand the complexities of the insurance industries grip on our health care system, she designed and developed www.whatitpost.com. WhatIfPost.com is a non-partisan web site that gives a comprehensive look at the problems and the options to reform health care in America. In recognition of Georgia's passion and commitment to people and health care, Women Impacting Public Policy (WIPP) recently appointed Georgia to their Healthcare National Advisory Board.

A graduate of Hollins College, Georgia received her Bachelor of Arts degree in 1964, and has earned two master degrees, Master of Arts in English in 1966 and another, Master of Science in Social Psychology in 1982, from the University of Pittsburgh.