40 Under 40 Award Winners – 2011

Jacinda Abcarian, Executive Director of Youth Radio

Jacinda Abcarian is a graduate of Youth Radio’s class of 1993. She moved from a student and peer teacher to an award-winning reporter and producer.

She has worked as a reporter for WRFG-FM in Atlanta and as a journalism fellow at NPR in Washington, D.C. Awards include a Golden Reel from the National Federation of Community Broadcasters for Accidental Shooting, and the Alfred I. DuPont-Columbia Silver Baton Award for her producer role in the series, Emails from Kosovo.

She was recently honored by the Gerbode Foundation for outstanding executive leadership. Abcarian has been active in media advocacy and violence prevention initiatives that engage low-income youth and young adults on probation for the past 20 years. As Executive Director of Youth Radio she helped develop and maintain strategic partnerships with public and private agencies including the City of Oakland’s Department of Human Services, Alameda County Probation Dept. and Peralta Community Colleges.

Abcarian earned a B.A. in Sociology from UC Berkeley and completed Strategic Perspectives in Nonprofit Management at Harvard Business School. She has served on the City of Oakland’s Mayor’s Youth Task Force and is currently a member of the City of Oakland’s Cultural Affairs Commission and The Crucible’s Advisory Council.

Matthew Butler, CEO and President of Media Matters for America

Matthew Butler is the CEO and President of Media Matters for America. In this role, Butler seeks to increase the audience and the influence of Media Matters and its work. Butler is also reshaping the positioning of Media Matters making it a much more offensive messaging operation.

Butler has over fifteen years of professional campaign experience including serving as Deputy Campaign Manager and Chief Financial Officer for the Presidential campaigns of John Kerry and Chris Dodd, as well as Campaign Manager for Maria Cantwell’s successful 2006 reelection. Butler was also an attorney with the firm of Haight, Brown & Bonesteel in Santa Monica.

Before that, Butler worked the Clinton 1996 and Gore 2000 Presidential races managing coordinated campaign expenditures at the Democratic National Committee. He holds a B.A. in International Studies from American University, and a J.D. from the University of San Diego School of Law. Butler is a native of Columbus, Ohio. Butler joined Media Matters in 2009 and has served as Chief Financial Officer, Director of the Progressive Talent Initiative, and Chief of Staff.

Tiffiniy Cheng, Founder of A New Way Forward, Participatory Culture Foundation, Open Congress, & Downhill Battle

Tiffiniy Cheng is a prolific innovator in politics and society working on creating new kinds of changes in society, and especially focused on participatory politics, structural reform, decentralized power and economic structures, and vibrant and artful societies.

She inspired millions of users to engage and innovate within their own social spaces as Co-Founder of the Participatory Culture Foundation and Miro; promoted higher standards of government transparency as the Founder/Creator of Open Congress; garnered national support for a structural reform movement as Co-Founder of A New Way Forward; and was a Co-Director and Strategist for the pioneering open-media initiative Downhill Battle. She has made other key contributions to vanguard organizations and initiatives in media and politics and continues to set higher standards for participatory government and media through innovative, thought-provoking work with several of the above organizations and additional projects.

Tiffiniy was born in Maucau, China and holds a BS in Engineering/Urban Planning from The Cooper Union. She has lectured at Stanford and Harvard Universities on topics including media, progressive politics and economic policy.

Her interests include developing cultural tools for democratic structures, distributing economic power, and writing on political and continental philosophy.

Shaw-Chin Chiu, Founder/Executive Director of Pacific Health Club

Born and raised in Pago Pago, American Samoa, Shaw-chin Ioana Chiu, is the Founder and Executive Director of Pacific Health Club (PHC), a non-profit dedicated to fighting obesity in Pacific Islander communities globally. PHC provides fitness and nutrition programs and events designed for Pacific Islanders and facilitated by Pacific Islander certified health and fitness professionals.

Prior to founding PHC, Ms. Chiu was the Division Manager for the HR Practice of ZweigWhite Management Consulting, a Senior Regional HR Analyst for the Judicial Council of California, and the Manager of Research and Operations for Michael James Reid & Company. Ms. Chiu also serves on the advisory board of Urban Islanders and is a Community Advocate for the International Center for Peace Project with Grant High School in Sacramento and Samoan Solutions.

As an undergrad at U.C. Berkeley, where she received a BA in Psychology and a BA in Anthropology in 2005, Ms. Chiu was a founding member of Pacific Islanders at Cal (PAC). Ms. Chiu graduated with high honors and dedicated her senior year researching and writing a senior honors thesis on “Possessing spirits and narrating Samoan-American identities: an examination of Samoan identity in the legend of Kelesa”.

Dan Choi, Former First Lieutenant – United States Army

A West Point graduate fluent in Arabic, after an extended tour in Baghdad Iraq as an infantry officer, Lt. Dan Choi helped found a group of LGBT Academy Alumni and came out on national TV, sparking a renewed effort to repeal the policy that eventually brought about his termination.

At trial he gave his testimony in Arabic and when asked to translate he wrote his message in English and Arabic for the officers of the board. While serving as an openly gay infantryman for over 18 months, Lt. Choi appeared on TV and radio to debate the opponents of equality. Upon notification of this discharge he confronted the Senate Majority Leader and relinquished his West Point graduation ring.

He spoke relentlessly at rallies for the rights of other servicemembers and joined the push for Marriage Equality as well as Transgender rights. Six months after his very public discharge, he attended the signing of the Don’t Ask Don’t Tell Repeal Act and got his ring back. He currently serves on the advisory boards of the American Foundation for Equal Rights, currently challenging Proposition 8 in California and Marriage Equality USA.

Benito Delgado-Olson, Executive Director of K to College

Benito Delgado-Olson is the cofounder and Executive Director of K to College. An Oakland native and graduate of several public schools, Benito has a lifelong interest in the public benefit (nonprofit) sector and education.

Benito graduated with a double major from the University of California, Berkeley in 2007. During his senior year, he founded the student group that would eventually evolve into present day K to College. From its beginning, Benito has recruited a diverse and professional board of directors, developed and implemented the proven K to College business model, secured public and private partnerships at the state and local level and fundraised several million dollars for program operations.

As the Executive Director, Benito is responsible for implementing K to College’s strategic plan in a cost-effective and time-efficient manner. He is also responsible for the day-to-day operation of the organization, serves as the chief public information officer and works in collaboration with the board to shape the future goals of the organization. Called “a force of one,” by those who know him, Benito’s leadership has taken the idea of K to College and turned it into the largest effort to address the material resource gap in the nation.

Amy Edwards, Performance Budget Specialist – U.S. Senate Budget Committee

Amy B. Edwards is the performance budget specialist for the U.S. Senate Budget Committee. Edwards supports the Committee’s Task Force on Government Performance chaired by Senator Mark Warner.

Previously, Edwards was a manager at the Pew Center on the States where she produced a 50-state report card on management and served as a performance consultant to governors across the country. Edwards also served as the Senior Director for Performance and Leadership at the Council for Excellence in Government. She was also the Communications Director for Harvard University’s Innovations in American Government Program, where she identified and worked to replicate the most innovative practices from all levels of government. Edwards has also worked in government relations at the Close Up Foundation and at the National Head Start Association.

Edwards serves on the Board of Directors for Offender Aid and Restoration (OAR) of Arlington Virginia. OAR provides re-entry services for adults and juveniles involved in the criminal justice system to give them a second chance.
Edwards holds a Masters in Public Administration from Troy State University and a bachelors degree from Radford University.

Phaedra Ellis-Lamkins, CEO of Green for All

Phaedra Ellis-Lamkins is the Chief Executive Officer of Green For All. Phaedra has led Green For All to several groundbreaking policy victories at the federal, state, and local levels. At the federal level, she led a successful effort to include two key provisions in the House’s climate and energy bill: securing funding for job training, and guaranteeing broad access to clean-energy jobs. Under Phaedra, Green For All has helped states like Washington and New Mexico pioneer state-level green jobs and energy-efficiency programs.

Phaedra’s many achievements have won her wide praise and recognition. In 2011, The Grio recognized Phaedra as one of their 100 History Makers In The Making. Black Enterprise Magazine honored Phaedra as one of their 40 Next: Emerging Leaders for Our Future(2010). Essence named Phaedra one of the 25 Most Influential African-Americans(2009). She has been featured in various outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, the San Francisco Chronicle, and The Huffington Post, and on ABC, BET, CNN, MSNBC, and NBC.

Board service includes: Chair of the Department of Labor’s Advisory Committee on Apprenticeship; the Economic Policy Institute; the Tipping Point Community Board, and a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader.

Dean Fealk, Partner – DLA Piper

Dean Fealk is an award winning attorney, community and political activist and policy expert. As partner and chair of the global equity group at DLA Piper, he spearheads the most internationally-focused practice at the world’s largest law firm. He advises leading multinationals on legal and strategic issues related to doing business overseas and has counseled on transactions valued in excess of $20 billion throughout Asia, Europe, South America and the Middle East. In recognition of his innovation and leadership in the practice of law, The Daily Journal named Dean one of California’s “Top 20 Attorneys under 40″ and Law and Politics magazines have designated him a “Super Lawyer Rising Star.”

Dean co-heads his firm’s pro bono committee which provides free legal services to those most underserved and under-represented in the community in areas including domestic violence prevention, access to education and political asylum. A graduate of Leadership San Francisco, Dean has collaborated with local leaders on community trusteeship and strengthening the socio-political fabric of the city.

Dean hold’s advanced degrees from the London School of Economics UC Hastings. As a Fulbright Scholar, he was the first US citizen to clerk at the Constitutional Court of Korea.

David Flink, Executive Director – Project Eye-to-Eye

Like many who are eventually diagnosed with dyslexia, David Flink’s first exposure to the treatment of this learning difference was on the cold linoleum floor outside his 5th grade classroom. He existed for a year in this reading group of one where his teachers, although often well intentioned, did not teach David fundamental reading skills but instead, shame.

Though struggling through much of his pre- college education, David eventually succeeded in school and, once attending Brown University, decided he needed to transcend his past and empower others who might be encountering similar difficulty in school. Hence, he co-founded Project Eye-To-Eye.

In addition to his work in Project Eye-To-Eye, David graduated from Brown University with Honors with degrees in Education and Psychology and holds a masters degree in Disability Studies from Columbia University Teachers College. The Orton Gillingham Society has recognized his Honors Thesis on the Treatment of Dyslexia through Multisensory Learning.

David has lectured at Brown, Dartmouth, Vassar, Columbia, Reed College, and at numerous conferences for organizations including the International Dyslexia Association. David has served as an Admissions Officer for Brown University, where he evaluated over 4,000 applications, and was the Disability Admissions Liaison at Brown University.

Tyeese Gaines, Chief Resident – Yale New Haven Hospital

Dr. Tyeese Gaines is a physician-journalist with over 10 years of print and broadcast experience. She is currently a health contributor for NBC’s theGRIO.com. She has appeared as a medical expert on MSNBC and ABCNews.com, and written for Boston Magazine and NBC6 in Miami.

Dr. Ty is currently practicing as chief emergency medicine resident physician at Yale-New Haven Hospital in Connecticut, and soon transitioning to an attending physician position at Raritan Bay Medical Center. In addition to her doctorate in medicine, she holds degrees in African-American Studies and Journalism. Dr. Ty is also the author of a time management book for women, entitled “The Get A Life Campaign.”

After 9 years of various national leadership positions in Student National Medical Association, an organization committed to increasing the number of minorities in medicine from 2006-2007, she was elected chairman of the board of directors. She continues to mentor minority pre-medical and medical students, helping them prepare for successful medical careers. Her research and academic interests include head injury and improving patient’s understanding of their discharge instructions and medical care.

Britta Guerrero, CEO – Sacramento Native American Health Center

Britta Guerrero currently serves as the Chief Executive Officer of the Sacramento Native American Health Center, Inc (SNAHC), a AAAHC accredited, non-profit urban Indian health center. In economically challenging times, SNAHC has emerged as a leader in the provision of quality health care delivered through a culturally competent, family-centered and wrap around delivery system.

Britta graduated from Humboldt State University and began her healthcare career in non-profit clinics; she has extensive experience working within non-profit hospital systems and comprehensive knowledge of quality improvement systems, including AAAHC, JACHO, and IMQ. Her passion for healthcare for the underserved brought her back to service within her own community. She takes the responsibility of representing an Indian organization very seriously, and has made it her personal/professional mission to insure Native American’s have access to healthcare in urban areas such as Sacramento, a population that is often over looked, tremendously underserved and is still suffering from disproportionate health disparities.

Her most important role however, is as a wife and a mother to her 2 children, to whom she credits her ability to be flexible yet firm. Guerrero is an enrolled member of the San Carlos Apache Tribe.

Kwanza Hall, Atlanta City Councilman, City of Atlanta

The Honorable Kwanza Hall was first elected to the Atlanta City Council in 2005. He was re-elected without opposition in 2009. Hall represents Atlanta’s most diverse Council district, which includes Downtown, the Martin Luther King Historic District, the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library, Georgia Tech and Georgia State universities. Hall is Chair of the City Council’s Advisory Committee on International Relations.

Before joining City Council, he served 3 years on Atlanta’s Board of Education. An Atlanta native, Hall is an alumnus of Benjamin E. Mays High School and attended the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He is Director of Business Development for MACTEC Engineering and Consulting. Before joining MACTEC, he was Vice President of Technology for Ambassador Andrew Young’s GoodWorks International.

In September 2009, Hall was named Atlanta’s “Best Local Political Figure” by Atlanta’s highest-circulation independent newsweekly. In 2008, he was named one of Georgia Trend magazine’s “40 Under 40.” Earlier this year, he was honored by Atlanta’s Park Pride for government leadership on greenspace issues. Other recognitions include Leadership Atlanta (2010); German Marshall Memorial Fellowship Program (2007); and Leadership Georgia (2007). Hall lives in the King Historic District with his wife, Natalie Hall, and their sons, Mario and Marc.

Craig Hanson, General Partner – Next World Capital

Craig’s work combines policy centered on economic development, foreign policy and national security, as well as politics to drive change. Craig is a Truman Security Fellow with the Truman National Security Project, a nationwide think tank and leadership institute; he is also the Co-Founder of Truman Members for Obama, which engages the national security and foreign policy community in support of President Obama.

He is the Chair of the Silicon Valley Leadership Committee of Nuru International, an innovative non-profit fighting extreme poverty in the developing world. Craig conducts analysis and drafting of ideas exploring development programs to foster entrepreneurship as an economic engine and integral part of U.S. foreign policy. In politics, Craig is on the National Finance Committee of Obama for America. During Kamala Harris’ campaign for Attorney General, Craig was the Co-Founder of Silicon Valley for Kamala (SV4K), and served on AG Harris’ Transition Team.

Craig serves on the Board of the Las Lomitas Education Foundation supporting public education. In business, Craig is a Partner with the international venture capital firm Next World Capital. He graduated from Carleton College and the Stanford Graduate School of Business, where he was a Sloan Fellow and President of his class.

Melissa Harris-Perry, Contributor & Host, MSNBC

Melissa Harris-Perry is professor of political science and founding director of the Project on Gender, Race and Politics in the South at Tulane University. She formerly served on the faculties of the University of Chicago and Princeton University. She is author of the award-winning book, Barbershops, Bibles, and BET: Everyday Talk and Black Political Thought, (Princeton 2004) and the forthcoming book, Sister Citizen: Shame, Stereotypes and Black Women in America. (2011 Yale University Press)

Professor Harris-Perry is a contributor to MSNBC. She regularly provides expert commentary on U.S. elections, racial issues, religious questions and gender concerns for many MSNBC shows and for radio. Her writings have appeared in newspapers throughout the country. She writes a monthly column for The Nation magazine titled Sister Citizen. She is also a regular contributor at TheNation.com.

Professor Harris-Perry received her B.A. in English from Wake Forest University, her Ph.D. in political science from Duke University and an honorary doctorate from Meadville Lombard Theological School. She is also a M.Div. student at Union Theological Seminary in New York. She lives in New Orleans with her husband, James Perry. She is the mother of a terrific daughter, Parker.

Emily Heroy, Executive Editor – Gender Across Borders

Emily Heroy is the Executive Editor and a founder of Gender Across Borders. Combining her interest in international development work and feminism, Gender Across Borders was created in April 2009 as a global feminist blog.

Emily has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Gender and Sexuality studies from New York University. She has previously worked and volunteered at: Women and Youth Supporting Each Other, Girls for Gender Equity, NARAL Pro-Choice New York, the Association for the Promotion of the Status of Women, and the Peace Corps in Morocco. In March 2011, she was named one of the top 100 ”most inspiring people delivering for girls and women ” from the NGO Women Deliver.

Emily likes dogs, French macarons, and Lauryn Hill. Though Emily is a true wanderlust, she happily resides in Chicago with her black labrador and her fiance. In her spare time, she enjoys playing classical piano, drinking fine wine and reading literature along the lines of Jamaica Kincaid and Margaret Atwood. She will be working towards a Master of Arts in the Teaching of History in the fall of 2011.

Jason Hodge, Firefighter/Commissioner, Ventura/Oxnard Harbor Commission

Mr. Jason Hodge is a firefighter, Emergency logistics specialist, community leader and elected Oxnard Harbor commissioner.

Born next to the International Port of Hueneme, Mr. Hodge has had a long interest in logistics and international trade. Mr. Hodge has BA in Political Science from Texas State University and is currently serving as the Political Director of the Ventura County Professional Firefighters Association. He works as an advocate for firefighters and public safety on a state and national level serving as deputy political director for the California Professional Firefighters .

As an emergency logistics officer, Mr. Hodge has helped manage some of the largest fires in modern history in California. He is currently a member of a state wide emergency response team and an active firefighter in Camarillo, CA.

He is very active in various non profits and political organizations. He founded the Channel Islands Community Foundation which has recently been used to fund scholarships, build parks and support local swim programs. He is also an active fundraiser for NPR, the local Boys and Girls Club and others.

Michele Jaker, Executive Director – Planned Parenthood Affiliates of New Jersey

Michele Jaker is the Executive Director of the Planned Parenthood Affiliates of New Jersey (PPANJ) and the Family Planning Association of New Jersey (FPANJ). PPANJ is the statewide public affairs and government relations arm of New Jersey’s five Planned Parenthood affiliates and FPANJ is the membership association representing the majority of New Jersey’s family planning health care agencies. She also serves as the director of the Planned Parenthood Action Committee of New Jersey, a statewide political action committee that works in support of pro-choice and pro-women’s health candidates in New Jersey.

In addition, Michele serves as the public defender for the Borough of Fanwood. Prior to her current positions, Michele was the Chief of Staff to State Senator Joseph Vitale, Chair of the Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee.

Michele received degrees both in political science and history from Douglass College at Rutgers University in 1995, a masters degree in public policy from the Eagleton Institute/Bloustein School at Rutgers University in 1997 and a law degree from Rutgers University – Newark in 2000. She is a member of the New Jersey State Bar Association since 2001.

Ayofemi Kirby, Director of Programs and Strategy – Mobilize.Org

Ayofemi Kirby’s goal is to help others see the importance of doing the best they can, with what they have, right where they are and she believes in the power of thoughtful communication and civic innovation to change our world. Currently the Director of Strategy and Programs at Mobilize.org (formerly the Director of Communications), Ayofemi is building a model of engagement that will train the now-generation of Millennial civic entrepreneurs, giving them the skills and resources needed to develop and lead solutions to social problems.

She is a graduate of the Journalism school at UNC Chapel Hill, earned her graduate certificate in nonprofit management from Duke University, and is currently earning her master’s in public communication at American University where she is president of the graduate student council. Most recently, Ayofemi was chosen as one of 12 American Express NGen 2011 Fellows where she will join emerging leaders within the non profit sector for a year of workshops on leadership development and skills training. Ayofemi lives in a small studio in Adams Morgan and hopes to have a puppy to share it with very soon.

Rosalyn Lehman, Executive Director – Iowa Rivers Revival

Rosalyn Lehman is executive director for Iowa Rivers Revival (IRR) and field director for Iowa’s Water and Land Legacy (IWILL). Roz is native to Des Moines, Iowa, having graduated from East High School and Drake University with a BA in Sociology.

Her experience in community and policy organizing is attributed to her education and working for Planned Parenthood, the Iowa Democratic Party, IRR and IWILL. As executive director for IRR she is helping to grow a statewide network of river supporters who are committed to the protection, restoration and enhancement of Iowa’s rivers and streams through advocacy and education.

As field director for IWILL, she works with coalition members to raise awareness among Iowans about the importance and need for a permanent, reliable and accountable revenue source to improve water quality and natural areas in Iowa, conserve agricultural soils and restore wetlands to protect against future flooding. In her personal time she enjoys exercise, spending time with family and friends, traveling, live music, camping, movies on a rainy day, books and magazines, fantastic food, planning parties and hosting meals/BBQs.

James Lynch, Senior Deputy Appointments Secretary, Governor Jerry Brown

In 2006, after graduating law school, James Lynch became deputy research director for Phil Angelides’ campaign for governor of California. After three months traveling in Mexico and Nicaragua learning Spanish, James moved to Washington, D.C., where the House Democratic Caucus put him to work for three freshman representatives researching their legislative histories.

In 2008, James moved back to the west coast to become research and policy director for Senator Jeff Merkley’s successful campaign. James returned home to California in 2009 consulting for interest groups and candidates throughout the country, including candidates for Senate and the House of Representatives. James then moved to Oakland in 2010 to become the director of research and rapid response for Governor Jerry Brown’s successful campaign against Meg Whitman. On Brown’s inauguration day, James was sworn in as Brown’s senior deputy appointments secretary.

James currently lives in Sacramento, his hometown. He earned a B.A. in History and Political Science from the University of California, San Diego, where in 2003 he led a successful campaign to expand the school’s student union. James became a member of the California State Bar in 2006 after his graduation from the University of Pacific’s McGeorge School of Law.

Zachary Mannheimer, Executive Director – Des Moines Social Club

After a road-trip to 22 cities around the country, Zachary settled in Des Moines in 2007 to found the Des Moines Social Club, an arts and educational non-profit. Focused on the retention and recruitment of young people, DMSC uses the arts as a catalyst to create unprecedented community engagement. Since opening its doors in 2009, DMSC has hosted over 500 arts related events and seen over 100,000 patrons. Founding the non-profit from scratch, Zachary has raised over $1,000,000 in his short time in Des Moines towards the downtown project, where he serves as Executive Director.

Zachary has taught and lectured at NYU, Wagner College, Muhlenberg College and St. Margaret’s in Ascot, England.

Zachary has articles and essays published in: The New York Theater Review and American Theater Magazine. The Des Moines Social Club has been featured in Time Magazine, USA Today, The Village Voice, The New York Times and The Des Moines Register.

Zachary was recently awarded 40 under 40 in Des Moines’ Business Publications, The Iowa Governor’s Volunteer Award, and the DSM Young Professional of the Year Award in 2009. He holds a dual BA in Theatre Arts and Philosophy from Muhlenberg College in Allentown, Pennsylvania.

Emily May, Executive Director – Hollaback

Emily is an international leader in the anti-street-harassment movement. In 2005, at the age of 24, she co-founded Hollaback! (iHollaback.org) in New York City, and in 2010 she became the first full-time executive director. Hollaback!’s mission is to give women and LGBTQ folks an empowered response to street harassment, and ultimately, to end it. Emily, who hold a Master’s Degree from the London School of Economics in Social Policy, argues that a crowd-sourced movement is the key to changing policy and minds, and ultimately, creating a world where everyone has the right to feel safe and confident.

Prior to running Hollaback!, Emily worked in the anti-poverty world as a case manager, political action coordinator, director of development, and most recently, a one-woman research and development team. She has also worked on four political campaigns. Emily is a winner of the 2008 Stonewall Women’s Award, was a 2009 Progressive Women’s Voices Fellow, was selected as a 2011 “21 leaders” winner by Women’s E-news, an Ashoka “ChangemakHER,” and one of thirty “Women Making History” by the Women’s Media Center.

Brian Moore, Principal and Founder – Brian J. Moore & Company

As a college student, Brian realized many accomplishments, including holding and office in student government, starting a fraternal organization, and creating the first adverting program for the student newspaper. And after graduating from Dominican University of California with a degree in Communications, Brian worked for a number of organizations helping to create marketing plans and programs.

With the growth of these experiences, Brian was able to start his own company and work with more organizations to complete their marketing efforts. Brian has been successful in creating numerous marketing programs and plans. Along with providing guidance in marketing, Brian has helped individuals and companies develop their businesses with strategic plans and partnerships. Today, Brian continues to grow as a business owner and a student. He has recently returned to the classroom, working towards an MBA in marketing at Concordia University.

As an entrepreneur, Brian is passionate about helping individuals and organizations grow and develop. He is always looking for ways to give back to the community through his time and skills, and he sits on the Alumni Board of Directors for Dominican University and on the Education Board of a private school in Orange County.

Navneet Singh Narula, Chief Leadership Officer – UNITED SIKHS

Navneet Singh Narula is an award winning serial Entrepreneur and a Global Change Leader. He is the Chief Leadership Officer at United Sikhs, a UN Mandated Global Sikh Humanitarian Relief NGO, where he has personally led many global disaster relief and humanitarian aid programs.

He has dedicated many months rescuing people, bagging dead bodies and providing relief in tragedy areas of Asian Tsunami 2004, Hurricane Katrina 2005, Kashmir Earthquake 2006 and Haiti earthquake in 2010, to lead and manage humanitarian aid projects totaling $USD 25 million.

Narula has been honored as Humanitarian of the Year in 2006 by MIB foundation and recently honored by President Obama with the Lifetime Presidential Service medal in 2010.

Formerly, he was a Management Executive at Accenture and recognized as one of the “Best Management Executives” at American Business Awards 2007 and honored as “Top 30 Consultants” in America 2008, named “Outstanding 50 Asian Americans in Business” and selected as “Top 40 under 40″ Leaders in America.

Navneet has also been selected as the prestigious American Marshall Memorial Fellow, Asia21 Leadership Fellow, East-West Leadership Fellow and Aspen Society’s Socrates Fellow to help create solutions for a sustainable world.

George Olokun, Chairman & President – Young Professionals 100

George A. Olokun is a leading world Empowerment|Inspirational Speaker, Best Selling Author, Visionary Catalyst, & Social Entrepreneur.

An Empowerment Speaker that delivers a spectacular speech on just about any subject and will move just about any crowd. George travels all over the Nation and has spoken for a list of major entities.

In 2003, he founded an award winning mentor program by the name of Mentor One, that has been life impacting for hundreds of people for nearly 10 years.

George is the CEO of GDot Empowerment, LLC. “A Global Enterprise”, from the conference room to the community he is an extremely passionate individual that loves people and to help others overcome obstacles in their lives. Thousands have been empowered by the words and publications of George A. Olokun and in 2010 the long awaited Best Seller “Empowered To Achieve” authored by George was published.

George currently serves as Chairman & President of the “Young Professionals 100″ Auxiliary of the 100 Black Men of Atlanta, Inc., and sits on two non-profit organization board of directors, along with one foundation and has held a plethora of other leadership/service roles.

Tyler Olson, State Representative – Iowa House of Representatives

Tyler Olson is serving his third term in the Iowa House of Representatives. He serves as Ranking Member of the Appropriations Committee and on the Commerce and Judiciary committees. As ranking member of the Appropriations Committee, Tyler leads the caucus process to identify priorities and serves as primary caucus spokesman on budget issues.

Tyler received the Bethel A.M.E. Church Excellence in Governing Award, American Heart Association Legislator Award of Excellence and American Cancer Society Capitol Dome Award in 2008. He received the Iowa Dental Association Legislative Leadership Award in 2009. Tyler was named State Legislative Champion in 2010 by the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society for his work expanding access to cancer clinical trials. The Cedar Rapids Education Association named Tyler 2011 Friend of Education for his work expanding access to early childhood education.

Tyler is the Vice President at Paulson Electric, a fourth-generation family business with offices in Cedar Rapids, Dubuque and Waterloo. He is active in the community including leadership of a successful push to change Cedar Rapids’ form of government and establishing the Downtown Housing Summit bringing together developers, elected officials, property owners and potential tenants to stimulate interest in housing in core neighborhoods.

Meg Palisoc, Teacher, Co-Founder and CEO, Synergy Academies

Meg Palisoc is the Co-Founder and CEO of Synergy Academies, a non-profit organization that operates public charter schools in South Los Angeles. As an administrator at the University of Southern California, Meg noticed that college students who came from inner-city K-12 schools were often not as academically prepared as their peers.

For this reason, Meg left higher education and became an elementary school teacher. As a teacher, she saw that inner-city schools were not improving quickly enough. So, in August 2004, Meg started Synergy’s first school, Synergy Charter Academy. Within just four years, Synergy’s educationally disadvantaged students catapulted their academic achievement from among the bottom 10% of all students statewide to among the top 10% of all students statewide. This achievement helped Synergy Charter Academy become the first elementary school in the history of South Los Angeles to be named a National Blue Ribbon School in November 2010.

Meg also helped start a STEM-focused middle school and high school, Synergy Kinetic Academy and Synergy Quantum Academy, to empower Latino and African American students to pursue a career in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math. Meg’s long-term vision is to train educators nationwide on how to create educational equity for all students.

Jason Panda, Managing Director – B Holding Group, LLC

Jason Panda, Esq. is an Attorney, Businessman and Social Justice Advocate.

Jason is the Managing Director of b condoms. He oversees the growth and strategy for the only minority-owned, socially responsible condom company. b condoms uses part of its condoms sales to fund grassroots organizations that create change in sexually transmitted disease rates within at-risk communities. Prior to co-founding b condoms, Jason worked as an Attorney for several international law firms in Washington, DC, New York City, NY and Tokyo, Japan. As an Attorney, his practice focused on protecting inventors against patent infringers. Jason also co-founded the Student Employment Council, an internet-based employment matching service that connected college students with job opportunities.

Jason is an avid traveler and enjoys watching independent films and spending time with friends. He is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Morehouse College. At Morehouse, he was an Oprah Winfrey Scholar. Jason also graduated from Georgetown University Law Center, where he served on the Moot Court Team. He actively speaks at colleges around the country including Johns Hopkins University, Morehouse College, and the University of Southern California and was recently recognized as one of the “Ten Young Entrepreneurs to Watch” by Black Enterprise.

Eboo Patel, Executive Director – Interfaith Youth Core (IFYC)

Named by US News & World Report as one of America’s Best Leaders of 2009, Eboo Patel is the Founder & President of Interfaith Youth Core (IFYC), a Chicago-based institution building the global interfaith youth movement.

Author of the award-winning book Acts of Faith: The Story of an American Muslim, the Struggle for the Soul of a Generation, Eboo is also a regular contributor to the Washington Post, National Public Radio and CNN. He is a member of President Obama’s Advisory Council of the White House Office of Faith Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, and holds a doctorate in the sociology of religion from Oxford University, where he studied on a Rhodes scholarship.

Eboo serves on the Religious Advisory Committee of the Council on Foreign Relations, on the Board of the Chicago Council on Global Affairs and the National Committee of the Aga Khan Foundation USA. He has spoken at the TED Conference, the Clinton Global Initiative, the Nobel Peace Prize Forum and universities around the world, and has written for the Chicago Tribune, the Review of Faith and International Affairs, and the Sunday Times of India.

Ameya Pawar, Alderman-Elect – City Of Chicago

Ameya is the Alderman of Chicago’s 47th Ward. Prior to his election, Ameya was on staff at Northwestern University in the Office of Emergency Management. While working at Northwestern, Ameya and two of his classmates from the University of Chicago were awarded a contract from Taylor and Francis to write a textbook based on their work in emergency management. The textbook is based on a model Ameya developed with Charna Epstein and Scott Simon at the University of Chicago’s MSTRM program — the model is called Social Intelligence.

Their work calls for the real-time aggregation of data to develop composite views of communities to better inform emergency preparedness, mitigation, response and recovery activities. Ameya and his co-authors have presented their work at annual FEMA conferences and other national conferences since 2008. Ameya holds a M.S. in Threat and Response Management from the University of Chicago and a M.P.A. in Public Administration from the Illinois Institute of Technology.

Ameya is currently enrolled in a third master’s degree program at the University of Chicago in the school of Social Service Administration. In 2009, Ameya was a US State Department Scholar.

Vimala Phongsavanh, Program Director – Socio-Economic Development Corporation for Southeast Asians

Vimala Phongsavanh graduated from Providence College in 2008 with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science. After graduating from PC Vimala served as an Americorps VISTA from 2008-2009 in Chinatown Boston at the Asian Community Development Corporation.

After serving as an Americorps VISTA, Vimala was inspired to change her own community. She worked at NeighborWorks Blackstone River Valley in Woonsocket, RI as the Education Programs Coordinator from 2009-2011. In her position she ran a out-of-school time program for 75 high risk youth in the community. Her program focused on leadership development and access to college. In 2009, at the age of 22, Vimala was elected to the School Committee by the City of Woonsocket.

Vimala made history in the City of Woonsocket by being the first Asian-American elected to local office, she was also the first Lao-American ever elected to a school committee in the United States. Vimala currently works at the Socio-Economic Development Center for Southeast Asians, located in Woonsocket and Providence, RI serving as the Program Director for Social Services. Vimala has served on the board of Family Resources Community Action since 2009.

Todd Rogers, Executive Director – Analyst Institute

Worked as Democratic pollster before going to get my PhD at Harvard in organizational behavior and psychology. Have been founding Executive Director of the Analyst Institute for last four years. We work with AFL-CIO, SEIU, Rock The Vote, League of Conservation Voters, EMILYs List, and dozens of other progressive groups around the country. We use the insights and methods of behavioral science to optimize voter contact programs. This entails using randomized experiments and the psychology of human decision making to develop and evaluate political innovations.

I will begin as an assistant professor of public policy at Harvard Kennedy School this fall. I will continue working with the Analyst Institute on a consulting basis to help progressive political organizations become more effective, and will also take this general approach to education to develop and evaluate behavioral science inspired tactics to help teachers become more effective in the classroom.

The most important biographical element in my development is the fact that I had cancer as a young adult, and have spent many summers since working as a volunteer counselor at a camp for children with cancer. This experience, and these inspiring kids, help keep what matters in sharp relief and keep everything else in perspective.

Joe Ross, Executive Director – Citizen Schools California

Joe Ross serves as executive director of Citizen Schools California. Under his leadership, Citizen Schools transitioned from a focus on afterschool programming to education reform, and launched innovative school partnerships in California that make possible longer academic days in public schools serving low-income populations.

Previously at Cisco, Ross led the introduction of Flip Video camcorders to Latin America. Ross came to Cisco through the acquisition of Pure Digital, where Ross served as chief of staff to the founding CEO, and held leadership responsibility for corporate and business development. During his eight years of military service, Ross served as deputy assistant chief of staff for the fleet component of the U.S. Southern Command and was responsible for leading new cooperation programs in Latin America. He was also stationed in South Korea and deployed to Kuwait to provide tactical support to Marine Corps missions in Iraq.

In politics, Ross is an elected member of the California Democratic Central Committee, and played an instrumental role in the 1992 presidential campaigns of Paul Tsongas. The recipient of a Truman Scholarship, Ross holds a BA from Yale and a JD from Stanford, where he founded The Legal Workshop, and was President of the Law Review.

Bethany Rubin Henderson, Executive Director/Founder – City Hall Fellows

Bethany Rubin Henderson is the Founder and Executive Director of City Hall Fellows, the only non-partisan national service corps preparing the best and brightest to lead America’s cities. Working in New York City government over a decade ago inspired Bethany to find a way to engage more young people in local public service across the country. Since launching City Hall Fellows 4 years ago, Bethany has raised over $2,500,000 from public and private sources to recruit, place, train and mentor 62 Fellows in San Francisco, Houston and Baton Rouge.

Previously, Bethany was a trial lawyer at Quinn Emanuel, the largest litigation-only firm in the country. Bethany has authored 8 journal articles on topics ranging from cities’ human capital needs to intellectual property law. She holds a J.D. from Harvard Law School and both a B.A. and M.A. in Political Science (summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa) from the University of Pennsylvania. Bethany is a 2009 Echoing Green Fellow, a 2010 New Leaders Council Fellow and a member of the 2011 Jewish Funds for Justice Selah Leadership Program. In 2010, Next American City magazine recognized Bethany as an emerging urban leader by naming her to their 30-person Next American Vanguard.

Chris Sommers, Founder – Pi Pizzeria

President Obama’s enthusiasm for Pi made the restaurant’s founder Chris Sommers a local celebrity when Chris cooked for him in the White House. Chris has been running his expanding chain of pizza eateries-and his life-with an inspirational level of dedication and integrity. Chris’ “Green” Mission is reflected everywhere: design and construction to draft beer and the area’s only “green” wine list . He recycles 75% of waste in the Pi restaurants.

Pi’s business is based on integrated philanthropy, in which Pi donates a percentage of each year’s receipts to nonprofits. Behind the scenes, Chris is forming a 501(c)(3). Pi is expanding nationally to Washington, DC & elsewhere around the country.

Business aside, Chris is heavily involved in St. Louis politics, community service and an overall commitment to “doing good while doing well”. He serves on the board of Earth Day and on the Young Professionals board of Safe Connections, a nonprofit dedicated to reducing the impact and incidence of domestic violence and sexual assault. Chris, 35, is committed to doing good by campaigning for and contributing to political candidates and causes. He plans and hosts popular fundraising and political events to make a positive difference for the St. Louis region.

Kara Suffredini, Executive Director – MassEquality

Kara Suffredini leads MassEquality, Massachusetts’ statewide grassroots advocacy organization working to ensure equality for every lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender person in Massachusetts from cradle to grave.

Since taking the helm in September 2010, Kara has shepherded MassEquality from a single-issue marriage equality campaign to a multi-issue organization and overseen a number of historic victories, including electing a supermajority of pro-LGBT lawmakers to the State House in the 2010 election cycle, winning Senator Scott Brown’s game-changing vote in favor of the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” securing an Executive Order from Gov. Deval Patrick prohibiting discrimination against transgender state workers, and ensuring the confirmation of the first openly gay judge to the Commonwealth’s highest court.

Before joining MassEquality, Kara launched the Department of Public Policy and Community Engagement at Family Equality Council, the foremost national organization advocating for LGBT families, and worked to draft and pass hundreds of pro-LGBT laws across the U.S. as the State Legislative Director at the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force. An attorney with over a decade of LGBT legislative advocacy experience, Kara was named one of the best LGBT attorneys under 40 in 2010 by the National LGBT Bar Association.

David Swift, Attorney – Kinsella Weitzman Iser Kump & Aldisert

David Swift is an attorney at the entertainment litigation boutique Kinsella Weitzman Iser Kump & Aldisert LLP in Santa Monica, California. David’s practice focuses on complex business litigation, intellectual property, and white-collar criminal defense. David currently serves on the Judicial Appointments Committee of the Los Angeles County Bar Association, which is responsible for evaluating and rating candidates for judicial office. David also serves on the Litigation Section Executive Committee for the Los Angeles County Bar Association.

In 2009-2010, David served as the President of the Los Angeles County Bar Association Barristers (which represents the over 7,000 lawyers in Los Angeles County in their first 10 years of practice), and from 2008-2010, David served on the Executive Committee and Board of Trustees for the Los Angeles County Bar Association. David has also served on the advisory board of the USC Public Interest Law Foundation since 2004.

David earned his J.D. from the University of Southern California School of Law, where he served as the President of the USC Public Interest Law Foundation, was a member of the USC Law Review and was elected to the Order of the Coif. After law school, David served as a law clerk to the Honorable Cynthia Holcomb Hall in the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Before joining Kinsella Weitzman Iser Kump & Aldisert LLP, David practiced civil litigation at the Los Angeles office of Munger Tolles & Olson.

David graduated from Pomona College with a B.A. in Politics, Philosophy and Economics. At Pomona, he served as the Associate Chair of the Pomona College Judicial Council and was a four-year member of the men’s varsity soccer team.

In 2010 and 2011, David was recognized as a “Rising Star” in Super Lawyers magazine – an honor awarded to the top 2.5% of lawyers in the Southern California area under 40 years of age.

Sissy Trinh, Executive Director – SEACA

Sissy Nga Trinh is the Founder and Executive Director of the Southeast Asian Community Alliance (SEACA), whose mission is is to build power among Southeast Asian youth and their communities in Los Angeles for a more just and equitable society through intergenerational, multiethnic dialogue, leadership development, and community organizing.

She is oversees the development of the organization’s programs, including the Youth Organizers Program where youth are charged with solving key issues impacting their neighborhoods through community organizing and advocacy. Prior to her position at SEACA, Sissy served as a Policy Advocate and Community Education Coordinator, focusing on local and federal policy issues of universal access to health care for children, welfare reform, workforce development and immigrant and refugee rights.
She also previously worked as a workers rights advocate and organizer with Vietnamese janitors and Asian and African-American hospital workers. Sissy is a 2002 Echoing Green fellow and received her bachelor’s degree in English and World Literature from Pitzer College. In her free time, Sissy practices hatha yoga, kung fu and random languages (currently Vietnamese, French and Spanish).

Christopher Tyson, Asst Professor of Law – LSU Law Center

Christopher Tyson is an Assistant Professor of Law at the LSU Law Center where he writes and teaches in the areas of property, local government law, real estate and land use. He has published both scholarly articles and commentaries in various print and online publications. He also maintains a blog at www.chrisjtyson.com.

He is a graduate of Howard University, the Harvard Kennedy School and the Georgetown University Law Center. He worked on U.S. Senator Mary Landrieu’s legislative staff, a position he began the day after Hurricane Katrina. He also worked as a volunteer prison educator and in management consulting.

He is the former President of the Board of Directors for Baton Rouge’s Capital Area Transit System where he led a management overhaul of the agency and an ambitious community outreach campaign. He continues to advocate for the community’s mass transit system. He considers mentoring his passion and is currently a mentor to several young men in high school, college and graduate school. He is active on the boards of the Baton Rouge Youth Coalition, Baton Rouge Big Buddy and FuturePAC, the Baton Rouge Area Chamber of Commerce’s political action committee.

He is a Senior Fellow with Louisiana Progress, a member of the 2009 Leadership Louisiana class and is a 2010 Fellow of the New Leaders Council. He has been recognized as a member of the Baton Rouge Business Report’s 2010 Top 40 Under 40 and the National Bar Association’s 2011 Top 40 Lawyers Under 40. He is married to Dr. Gia Tyson.

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