Seán is a Deloitte Consulting LLP Principal with a twenty-five-year career driving industry leading client excellence, talent experience, new market development, and operational efficiency. Currently, he serves as Deloitte’s Integrated Transformation Leader implementing a comprehensive transformation of the Firm’s operations (talent, finance, IT, sales, and marketing) across its 170,000-person enterprise.

Most recently Seán served as the Chief Operating Officer (COO) for Deloitte’s $7.5 Billion Government and Public Services (GPS) business. He had operational responsibility for 27,000+ people globally and led a comprehensive future of work transformation centered on client and talent experience. Previously, Seán was Deloitte’s GPS Human Capital leader, where he led a strategy resulting in 100% growth and recognition by Kennedy Research as the number one Human Capital Practice in the global government industry.

A recipient of Washington Executive’s COO of the Year Award, Seán is a regular speaker on transformation trends, innovations, and the future of work with clients and national media outlets. During the pandemic he testified before the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee, providing insight into the virtualization of work and how to recover, and thrive.

Following many years as a leader in Deloitte and BearingPoint’s US Homeland Security business, Seán went on to build and lead Deloitte’s Global Security and Justice Sector, where he focused on solution development and delivery for missions spanning security, trade, immigration, policing, and justice across 22 countries.

With more than 20 years of service on not-for-profit and political action committee Boards, Seán is committed to social and community impact. He has taken an active role in developing solutions to the scourge of human trafficking and has published articles and led projects for government agencies and survivor advocacy groups. To this end, he is the recipient of Consulting Magazine’s® Excellence in Social & Community Investment Award. Currently, he is Chairman of the Board for the Greater Washington Area Community Foundation and Board Treasurer for the Air Traffic Control Association (ATCA).

Seán holds an M.A. from American University and a B.S. from the University of Oregon. He resides in Northern Virginia with his family and enjoys traveling, cycling, rugby, and soccer.

Cliff White was a founding partner and the financial architect of NEW Customer Service Companies Inc. (NEW), the nation’s leading provider of extended service plans and buyer protection programs for consumer products. The award-winning post-sale consumer care company became a unit of Asurion Corporation through a merger in 2008.

Mr. White is a graduate of Lehigh University, where he currently serves on the advisory board for the Dean of the College of Business and Economics. He started his career as a CPA with Deloitte Haskins & Sells in New York City. Currently he and two other founding members of NEW are partners in SWaN Investors, a diversified private investment fund with several dozen investments, including the Washington Nationals Baseball Club & Monumental Sports & Entertainment.

In addition to sitting on the Board of The Community Foundation, where he and his wife Debbie have their family foundation, Mr. White is also on The Community Foundation’s Sharing Montgomery Grants Committee and is the founder and chair of The Community Foundation’s Neighbors in Need Montgomery Fund, which assists vulnerable county residents with safety net services (food, housing and employment), workforce development and educational opportunities. Mr. White and his wife are also donors in Venture Philanthropy Partners, an innovative philanthropic organization that makes capacity investments in high-performing nonprofit organizations that serve children and youth of low-income families in the National Capital region, where Mr. White currently serves on its board as Vice Chair. Mr. White is also the treasurer of St. Dunstan’s Episcopal Church in Bethesda, MD.

Quanda Allen is the Market Managing Director of PNC’s Institutional Asset Management Group in Greater Washington, where she leads a team of experienced investment, client service and sales professionals responsible for delivering PNC’s outsourced investment solutions, retirement plan services and proprietary fixed income capabilities.  Through a comprehensive, disciplined process, PNC’s IAM Group provides investment services to a wide array of corporations, charities, associations, healthcare organizations, and municipalities.

Quanda is a results-driven leader with more than 15 years of experience in nonprofit asset management, marketing, and business strategy. Her career is marked by a consistent track record of driving revenue growth, leading complex projects in matrixed environments, and delivering exceptional customer success solutions. As an execution-focused leader, Quanda excels in collaborating with functional partners and key stakeholders to secure measurable outcomes. She has successfully driven competitive advantage by enabling go-to-market strategies and refining value propositions in wealth management at three of the country’s largest financial institutions.

Quanda's leadership extends into the nonprofit sector, where she directed over $11 million in philanthropic funds from private foundations to support education, at-risk seniors, youth development, and the arts as a corporate trustee and bank officer. As an institutional client-facing relationship manager for 10 years, she provided fiduciary oversight and investment and administrative solutions for more than 75 nonprofit organizations. Her early career included senior nonprofit leadership roles in marketing and fundraising. She began her career at Bain and Company, one of the world’s largest and most respected management consulting firms.

Quanda is a board member of the Greater Washington Community Foundation and an active participant in the Capital Campaign committee at Sitar Arts Center. She is part of the 2020 class of Leadership Greater Washington and holds an Executive MBA from Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business. Additionally, she is a proud graduate of Howard University (B.B.A. in Marketing), Georgia State University (M.U.P.S. in Nonprofit Management), and The American College (Chartered Advisor in Philanthropy).

David Shiffrin is a former real estate attorney with over 25 years of experience in the commercial real estate field. He was a partner with the law firm of Linowes and Blocher until 1991 when he joined the Resolution Trust Corporation where he was Senior Counsel for Real Estate.  He also served in that capacity at the FDIC when the RTC completed its work.  After leaving the FDIC, Mr. Shiffrin was a Special Advisor to the FCC Auctions Division, assisting the Commission with its auction program of wireless telecommunications spectrum.

Mr. Shiffrin served from 1999-2000 as the Interim Executive Director of CulturalDC (fka Cultural Development Corporation), a private nonprofit organization in Washington, DC, that engages in real estate development for the arts.

Mr. Shiffrin serves on the Board of Trustees of The Community Foundation.  Mr. Shiffrin also serves on the Boards of several nonprofit associations, including Arena Stage, and CulturalDC.  He co-chaired the capital campaign for the Source Theater, a project of CulturalDC.   He has been a member of the Boards of Trustees of WETA and Facilitating Leadership in Youth (FLY), served on the Clark University Board of Visitors, and served for many years at The Maret School as a senior advisor to the Scholarship Auction.  Mr. Shiffrin was the Chair of the Board of Trustees of Arena Stage from 2010 until 2013 and currently serves as a Vice Chair of the Board.

Mr. Shiffrin has a B.A. from Clark University and a J.D. from the New England School of Law.   Mr. Shiffrin is married to the former Peggy Kobacker.  

Decker Anstrom serves on the Board of Directors of Discovery, Inc., as well as on the boards of national nonprofit groups (Island Press; Climate Central; and Planet Forward).

Anstrom, who lives in Washington, D.C., served as U.S. Ambassador and Head of the U.S. Delegation to the 2011 and 2015 World Radiocommunication Conferences (WRC 12 and 15), held under the auspices of the International Telecommunications Union. WRC’s, which convene every three to four years, are treaty level conferences involving more than 150 countries that consider international and regional spectrum allocation and regulatory issues that support satellite, mobile, aviation, and other wireless services.

He retired as President of Landmark Communications and Chairman of The Weather Channel Companies in late 2008, following Landmark’s sale of The Weather Channel to NBC. He also served on the Board of Directors of the Comcast Corporation from 2001-2011.

Prior to his positions at Landmark (headquartered in Norfolk, VA), Anstrom had a long career in public service and in the communications industry. During the Carter Administration, he was a senior staff member in the White House Office of Management and Budget, working on the creation of the U.S. Department of Education, and then served in the White House Office of Presidential Personnel. He subsequently joined and later became President of Public Strategies, a Washington-based public policy consulting firm.

In 1987 he joined the National Cable Television Association (NCTA) as Executive Vice President; he became President and CEO in 1994. During his tenure he led the cable industry’s efforts that helped result in the Telecommunications Act of 1996. In 1999, Anstrom joined The Weather Channel Companies (TWCC — which included The Weather Channel cable network, weather.com, and WSI, the leading business-to-business weather provider) in Atlanta, GA as President and CEO. In 2002, he became President of Landmark Communications, a privately held, diversified media company that owned newspapers, local television stations, database centers and print and classified advertising businesses, as well as The Weather Channel Companies. In that position he also served as Chairman of TWCC.

In addition, Anstrom has served on numerous cable industry boards (including NCTA, which he chaired for two years), two nonprofit boards in the Hampton Roads area (the Chrysler Museum and public television and radio broadcaster WHRO), and on the Boards of the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, the Institute for Educational Leadership, and the National Environmental Education Foundation.

Anstrom received a BA degree from Macalester College (St. Paul, MN) and attended the Woodrow Wilson Graduate School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University for one year.

Michelle grew up in Pittsburgh, PA and moved to the Washington, DC area shortly after college. She is a Certified Financial Planner and brings over 25 years of solid financial and asset management experience to Potomac Financial Consultants, LLC. During Michelle’s career she has held positions at Arthur Andersen, Private Wealth Advisors, and several other financial and asset management firms, including Potomac Financial Consultants, LLC.

She is a graduate of Seton Hill University with dual degrees in Accounting and Human Resource Management. Michelle achieved the Certified Financial Planner designation through the College of Financial Planning. She is actively involved in the financial services industry, is a member of the Financial Planning Association, and is actively involved in the Million Dollar Round Table.  She volunteers her time with the MDRT Foundation in various roles each year.  Michelle is a Registered Representative of Kestra Advisory Services. She is currently a member of the Gaithersburg-Germantown Chamber of Commerce and Poolesville Chamber of Commerce, as well as a past president of Women Business Owners of Montgomery County.

In Michelle’s spare time, she spends time with her husband and twin children shuffling them between sporting events, as well as she enjoys time on her peloton or running in road races.

Richard K. Bynum is chief corporate responsibility officer for The PNC Financial Services Group and a member of its Executive Committee. In this role, he leads the PNC Foundation; Community Affairs; ESG practice; Community Development Banking; and Diversity and Inclusion. In addition, Bynum is leading the implementation of PNC’s Community Benefits Plan through which the company will provide at least $88 billion in loans, investments, and other financial support to benefit communities of color and low- and moderate-income individuals and communities, people as well as other underserved individuals and communities over the Plan Period, a 4-year period from Jan. 1, 2022, through Dec. 31, 2025.

Bynum is an accomplished executive with nearly 20 years of executive leadership experience. Prior to being named to his new role in July 2020, Bynum served as regional president for PNC’s Greater Washington market from 2017-2020. He previously served as a member of PNC’s retail executive leadership team, where he led the Business Banking division. Prior to that, he served as the Greater Washington retail market executive from 2010-2014, where he led consumer and small business sales. In addition, he served as chief operating officer for Business Banking, where he led the sales force operating platform for hundreds of small business bankers across PNC’s footprint. 

Bynum began his career with PNC in 2005 in its Executive Leadership Program, holding key roles in the development and execution of revenue-driving businesses and initiatives; strengthening the brand; and enhancing engagement of employees while fostering innovation throughout PNC.

Prior to joining PNC, Bynum had a 12-year career as a senior manager for the American Red Cross. His last role with the organization was as the managing director for disaster response & emergency communications at the Chicago chapter. During his career, he was an operations director for the Kosovo Refugee Operation as well as the September 11th effort in New York.

Bynum, recognized as one of Washington, D.C.’s, most influential business leaders by the Washington Business Journal, serves on the boards of numerous non-profit and civic organizations, including the corporate council for the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History & Culture; the Economic Club of Washington, D.C.; the Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts; the Federal City Council; the United Way of the National Capital Area; the Greater Washington Community Foundation, and the Virginia Early Childhood Foundation.

Bynum holds an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at the Northwestern University and an undergraduate degree in Political Science from Florida State University.  He also is a graduate of the Consumers Bankers Association Graduate School of Retail Bank Management.

Robin Meisner Cameron is a Managing Director at CBIZ.  Robin specializes in tax planning and compliance for high-net worth individuals, attorneys, executives, and business owners. She develops strategic plans to minimize clients’ income and estate tax liabilities and especially enjoys teaming with her clients’ wealth managers and attorneys to find the best solutions for her clients.  One of Robin’s favorite things about her work is helping people meet their philanthropic goals in the most meaningful and tax efficient ways possible.  She also enjoys helping anyone interested to better understand their tax return.

Robin is a graduate of the University of Virginia and is the recipient of the Elijah Watts Sells Award for outstanding performance on the CPA exam. She is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) and the Maryland Association of Certified Public Accountants (MACPA). In 2012, Robin won the recognition of the Washington, D.C. region’s top business executives in the SmartCEO Magazine SmartCPA Readers’ Choice, as a trusted advisor, innovator and leader. In 2025 she was listed among Washingtonian Magazine’s Top Financial Advisors.

In her former life, Robin was a professional stage manager and assistant director.  Her passion for theatre fueled many of her volunteer pursuits, and she spent 18 years volunteering with students in schools and youth community theatres to help them develop that same passion.  Since that chapter closed, Robin has supported her favorite non-profit, the Greater Washington Community Foundation, in part by serving on the Montgomery County Advisory Board and the Sharing Montgomery committee.     

Michael A. Echols (Mike), is the CEO of a Kennedy Space Center based non-profit called IACI, and CEO of a for-profit company he founded called Max Cybersecurity LLC (dba Max Services), located in Washington DC. Max Cybersecurity provides national security and cybersecurity project management. In 2018, Max Services provided quality assurance for all power restoration activities across Puerto Rico following hurricane Maria for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Mike spent 10 years in critical infrastructure protection and cybersecurity leadership at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). He led several White House national security initiatives before resigning his position in September 2016.

Among his leadership accomplishments at DHS, Mike served as:

• Point person for the rollout of Presidential Executive Order 13691 for President Obama

• Chair of the Communications Sector – one of 16 U.S. Critical Sectors

• Chair of the Network Security Information Exchange

• Designated Federal Official for the President’s NSTAC – 30 CEO level members from Defense, IT and Comm Sector companies making recommendations to the President.

Mike most recently authored four Forbes online articles. He was also featured on a PBS cybersecurity special called Roadtrip Nation. Mike has led two organizations to CSO 50 Award honors. And, he is on the HHS Cybersecurity CISA 405d Task Force.

Mike is a graduate of the National Preparedness Leadership Initiative – Harvard Kennedy School of Public Health and the Federal Executive Institute. He holds a Master of Business Administration, a Master of Science in Biotechnology, a Graduate Certificate in Technology Management from University of Maryland University College. His Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice is from the University of Maryland where he now serves as President of the Black Male Alumni Network. Mike was the University of MD. Distinguished Alumni in 2018.

Matthew W. Edwards focuses on high-stakes matrimonial cases involving complex financial arrangements, family-owned or closely held businesses, and complex custody matters. Matt also helps clients negotiate and enforce prenuptial agreements. In addition to legal analysis, Matt routinely works with forensic accountants, valuation experts, certified financial planners, and professional therapists to provide a clear path to a quick and favorable resolution of his clients’ divorce and custody matters. Matt also advises as general and civil litigation counsel to high-net-worth clients and their businesses. When necessary, Matt is a tenacious courtroom advocate at the trial court and appellate levels.

Matt volunteers as a family law mentor for the D.C. Bar Advice & Referral Clinic, where he advises pro se litigants on family law and domestic violence matters. Over the course of his career, Matt has devoted thousands of hours to pro bono work, including on behalf of the Greater Washington Community Foundation.

Matt was recognized by Best Lawyers in 2020. He currently serves as Chair of the Litigation Community of the D.C. Bar, and as a member of the D.C. Bar Rules of Professional Conduct Review Committee. He is also a member of the Virginia Trial Lawyers Association.

Prior to joining Ain & Bank, Matt was a commercial litigator in the Washington, D.C. offices of Willkie, Farr & Gallagher LLP. While there, he focused on complex commercial and securities litigation on behalf of clients such as the General Electric Company, Facebook, Inc., and Big 4 accounting firms.

David Ford is an independent business and legal advisor to, as well as an investor in, the seniors-housing industry, commercial real-estate ventures and start-up enterprises. He is a principal investor in (and former Vice Chairman of) a leading developer and operator of seniors-housing communities in California, Nevada and Washington.

David previously served as the COO and General Counsel of a government contracting firm that provided IT consulting services to defense and other federal agencies. For the first two decades of his professional life, he was an attorney in private practice in Washington, D.C., where he specialized in mergers and acquisitions in the healthcare, technology and government-contracting industries.

David is a founder, board member and Chairman Emeritus of the D.C. chapter of Minds Matter, Inc., a not-for-profit organization whose mission is to transform the lives of accomplished high school students from low-income families by preparing them for success in college. He is a member of the Board of Directors of Teach for America – DC and Virginia Region; is the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Cosmos Club Foundation; is a member of the Foundation Board of the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts; is a member of the Board of Trustees of the Greater Washington Community Foundation; and previously served on the Executive Board of the American Seniors Housing Association. Along with his wife Tibby, David’s primary charitable focus has been on educational equity and healthcare services for underserved populations.

David is a graduate of Rollins College and the University of Virginia School of Law, a member of the District of Columbia Bar, and a long-time D.C. resident. He is also the author of a memoir, Blind in One Eye: A Story About Seeing the Possibilities, in which a mid-life adoptee learns of and adapts to the surprising facts of his secretive birth family. David’s overriding pastime these days is flying, having recently gotten a later-in-life private pilot’s license.

Dr. Monica Goldson is the first black woman to lead a nonprofit organization that implements equitable, rigorous, scaled and sequenced future-readiness curricula and experiences for school systems to bring unique programming to every student from middle school through high school focused on financial literacy.  Junior Achievement of Greater Washington engages global, national and local business leaders in meaningful and authentic interactions with students. We recruit and train thousands of volunteer mentors from our community to provide consistent guidance, insights and support for over 40,000 students in the region every year.

Prior to taking on this role, Dr. Goldson retired from Prince George’s County Public Schools (PGCPS) as the Chief Executive Officer after 32 years of service. She began her career as a high school mathematics teacher with plans to become an actuary. Within her first few weeks on the job, she realized that education was her true calling. She steadily moved up the administrative ranks, serving in such roles as principal, associate superintendent, deputy superintendent and chief operating officer, just to name a few, prior to her appointment as CEO. During her tenure, Dr. Goldson leveraged a full-scope alternative financing model to design, build, finance and maintain the internationally-recognized Blueprint Schools construction program to build six new middle schools in two years — the very first U.S. public school system to use a public-private partnership (P3) for construction.  Using a traditional and non-traditional construction program model, Dr. Goldson ushered in 17 new schools that will be built in 5 years.  Prior to her departure, she is encouraged by the school district’s progress in working to reverse pandemic-related learning interruptions.  The 2023 Maryland Comprehensive Assessment Program (MCAP) results show that PGCPS students achieved scores higher than four other school districts in the state on the assessments for English grades 3-8, English 10 and Algebra 1.

Dr. Goldson holds three degrees from HBCUs – a bachelor’s degree in mathematics from Florida A&M University, a master’s degree in Elementary and Secondary School Administration from Bowie State University, and a doctorate in Educational Administration and Policy from Howard University.  She served on President Biden’s HBCU Advisory Panel and is currently the Vice President for the Maryland State Board of Education. Beyond the schoolhouse, Dr. Goldson is the recipient of numerous awards and honors. 

With over 25 years’ experience in the cultural sector, creative industries, social impact and law, Rachel Goslins is the Executive Director of the Miliken Center for Advancing the American Dream. Prior to that she served as the Director of the Arts & Industries Building at the Smithsonian Institution where she was responsible for all aspects of developing and implementing plans to reopen the building, closed to the public for over a decade, as a space to explore creativity, innovation and the future. She also served as Executive Director of the President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities, an advisory committee to President Obama on cultural policy, from 2009 until late 2015. Under her management, the Committee launched several major national initiatives in education and cultural diplomacy, facilitated significant federal and private funding for arts and humanities programs across the country, and spearheaded a successful campaign to use high-profile artists, actors and musicians as advocates for arts education. Earlier in her career, Rachel founded a documentary production company, directing feature documentaries and working on productions for PBS, the Discovery Channel, the National Geographic Channel, and History. She also served as the Director of the Independent Digital Distribution Lab, a joint PBS/ITVS project. Before working in the arts, Rachel was an international copyright attorney with Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher and the U.S. Copyright Office. Rachel received her B.A. in English Literature from UC Santa Cruz and her J.D. from UCLA's School of Law. She is an Advisory Board Member of the Institute for Contemporary Art in Richmond, VA, a 2012 Henry Crown Fellow of the Aspen Institute and serves on the Advisory Committee for the Halcyon Incubator.

In 2011, Jeff Hamond recognized something few others did – that philanthropic organizations were not doing enough to tell their story in Washington.  He felt so strongly about this, he left a senior economic policy position on Capitol Hill to develop and lead Van Scoyoc Associate’s Philanthropy Practice – the only one of its kind.  

Today, as the field of philanthropy evolves quickly – with private foundations growing in policy influence, and also living donors, mission/impact investing, and social entrepreneurs playing an expanded role – Jeff is one of sector’s fiercest advocates.  He understands the enormously important role philanthropy and not-for-profits have in American society and culture, and helps these organizations highlight their work for policymakers.  As a Vice President at VSA, Jeff works directly with private and community foundations, and others in the philanthropic space, to share the good work they are doing in local communities, as well as educate lawmakers about the consequences of adverse policy decisions.   

Before joining VSA, Jeff spent seven years as Economic Policy Director to Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY) and prior to that served in similar roles for Senators Kerry (D-MA) and Bayh (D-IN).  Jeff also had leading roles in policy development at two well-regarded non-profit organizations – Redefining Progress and the Progressive Policy Institute. 

Known for his policy creativity and strategic approach to advocacy, Jeff played a key role in developing several economic initiatives while on Capitol Hill, including the HIRE Act (passed on a bipartisan basis in 2010 to encourage the hiring of unemployed workers); the American Opportunity Tax Credit (included in the stimulus package in 2009); the “Cash for Clunkers” program; and an array of legislative initiatives to benefit the charity and foundation sectors.  His work with charities, nonprofits, and foundations helped Sen. Schumer earn the recognition that led to his being named the co-chair of the Senate Philanthropy Caucus in 2008. 

Jeff earned a Bachelor of Arts at Tufts University, then obtained a Master in Public Policy from the John F. Kennedy School of Government.

As a shareholder with Diversified Search, Denielle partners with corporations, boards of directors, and not for profit leaders to identify executive level talent for corporate boards and c-suite roles across multiple sectors. She also served as CEO of STEMconnector, a professional services firm committed to increasing the number of STEM-ready workers in the global talent pool and is a Board Advisor for POD. 

Denielle previously spent fifteen years as Group Counsel, Programming and Business Affairs at the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS), where she directed work on behalf of PBS and its 300 plus member stations. Before joining PBS, she held legal and business affairs roles with Thales, Inc., Time Life (TWX), and Discovery Communications, Inc. (DISCA) where she also supported corporate philanthropy and community affairs efforts. Denielle began her law career in private practice as a commercial attorney with Wiggin and Dana and was subsequently associated with the New York firm of Cowan Liebowitz and Latman, 

A past Regional Judge for President Obama’s Presidential Commission on White House Fellowships, Denielle is committed to service. She also served as a Trustee of the Toy Industry of America Foundation; on the Advisory Committee of DCVLP (DC Volunteer Lawyers Program to end domestic violence) and on the Board of Governors of the Case Western School of Law. She is a member of The Links, Inc. and Delta Sigma Theta, a public service sorority. 

Denielle has a B.A. in Political Science from Tufts University, a Law Degree for Case Western Reserve University, and is an alumna of Columbia University Graduate School of Business.

Sarah Johnson is a respected leader in the Washington, DC estate planning community who concentrates on estate planning, trust and estate administration, business succession planning, asset protection, and charitable giving while minimizing income, estate, gift and generation-skipping transfer taxes. Recognized as a Fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel (ACTEC) and as a Top Attorney in the Washingtonian magazine, Sarah focuses on planning for multi-family offices, entrepreneurs, real estate developers, and art collectors. She particularly relishes streamlining and improving existing estate plans for her high net worth clients.

Prior to attaining her law degree, Sarah was a senior financial analyst in the Valuation Services Group of Arthur Andersen LLP in Atlanta, and in that capacity gained considerable knowledge in valuing assets and using discounts in estate planning. Sarah also clerked for American Cancer Society's Office of Corporation Counsel, where she became familiar with the tax laws applicable to charitable organizations.

Sarah is a Southerner at heart and puts clients at ease with her relaxed, friendly manner. She earns their respect with her attention to detail, honesty and depth of knowledge. A master of organization, she strives to simplify and de-clutter her clients’ estate plans wherever possible.

Jill Landefeld specializes in investment management, asset allocation and portfolio construction for a client base that includes foundations, endowments, cultural institutions, trusts, families and private individuals. She has more than 15 years of financial industry expertise, with work experience in four cities and two continents.

Prior to Brown Advisory, Jill was a Vice President at Stifel providing broad investment management services to a selection of institutional and private clients. She joined Stifel in 2015 following its acquisition of Barclays Wealth and Investment Management in the Americas. Prior to her roles in wealth management, Jill provided balance sheet advisory and public sector bond origination services for national treasuries and government agencies with Barclays Investment Bank in London. She also assisted supranational organizations with structuring debut bond transactions in local currencies in frontier markets.

Jill earned a bilingual (English/ Spanish) Masters of Business Administration from IESE Business school in Barcelona, Spain in 2012. She also earned a Bachelor of Arts with Distinction in Foreign Affairs from the University of Virginia in 2004.

Jill has lived in Washington DC for many years. She is a current Ambassador and former Board Member for an international charity that works to increase the quality and availability of education for girls in developing countries. She also serves on the Board of Trustees for the DC History Center, which is an educational non-profit that seeks to deepen awareness of our city’s past to connect, empower and inspire.

Karen Leder has over 30 years of marketing, fundraising, event planning, and communications experience for both for-profit and nonprofit organizations. In 2011 she founded the Power of Pink to honor her sister, who is a two-time breast cancer survivor. The Power of Pink has raised over $1 million to help women receive breast health services in the Greater Washington region, regardless of their ability to pay.

In her last “full-time, paid” position, she served as the associate publisher of a National Journal magazine, Government Executive, overseeing revenue from print and online advertising, circulation, and conferences. With a passion for health and fitness, Karen is currently an Integrative Health and Wellness Coach and also teaches yoga and group exercise classes.

She has a B.S. in Journalism with a minor in Marketing from the University of Maryland, College Park. Karen is a native Washingtonian and resides in Bethesda with her husband, Ethan. Together, they have three children and a playful chocolate lab, Josie.

Renee is a retired federal government executive with nearly 30 years’ experience in legal and administrative positions at the Federal Communications Commission, an agency charged with overseeing the Nation’s communications systems.  Since leaving government, she has been active in non-profit grant making in the greater Washington DC area. 

At the FCC, Renee held a variety of positions including Deputy General Counsel, Deputy Chief of the Mass Media Bureau, Deputy Managing Director and senior advisor to several Chairmen and Commissioners.

Following her early retirement, Renee joined Giving Together, an area women’s giving circle supporting women and families in need.  She co-chaired the Grants Committee, the Accelerator Subcommittee (a subgroup targeting grants to BIPOC-led and -serving local residents) and the Racial Equity Working Group.  A long-time Giving Together Board member, in 2022 she became Co-President.  During her two-year term, the giving circle experienced unprecedented growth.

Renee has served on The Community Foundation’s Sharing DC Committee since 2015.  She was named Chair in 2019, a role she continued until the end of the 2025 grant making cycle.  Following adoption of The Community Foundation’s current strategic plan, Renee led the Committee’s transition to the Foundation’s new grant making framework.  The group has centered racial equity as its guiding principle, doing its part to help close the racial wealth gap in the Washington DC area.

Renee has a J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center and a B.A. from American University.  She lives in Washington DC with her husband.

Ronald Machen is a partner at the law firm of WilmerHale.  He serves on the firm’s Global Management Committee and is Co-Chair of the firm’s Investigations and Criminal Litigation Group.  He is an experienced litigator, having tried more than 35 cases to verdict, who specializes in complex criminal and civil actions. He also routinely helps clients navigate high-stakes, crisis situations that garner the attention of multiple regulators, Congress and private litigants.  Before returning to the firm in 2015, Mr. Machen served as United States Attorney for the District of Columbia, where he oversaw the investigation and litigation of major criminal and civil matters.  As U.S. Attorney, Mr. Machen embraced a holistic approach to public safety by investing in intervention and prevention programs designed to educate young people, reduce domestic violence, and protect immigrants and other underserved communities.  He also created the first Conviction Integrity Unit, focused on identifying past wrongful convictions, in any federal prosecutor’s office.  Mr. Machen was recently identified as a Criminal Law Trailblazer by the National Law Journal, recognized by Chambers USA for his white-collar crime and government investigations practice, and selected by his peers as one of the Best Lawyers in America.

Richard handles real estate, finance, and tax matters for numerous cultural institutions (including The Phillips Collection, The Arena Stage, and The Shakespeare Theatre); public policy groups (including the World Wildlife Fund, the National Wildlife Federation, the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, and the Planned Parenthood Federation of America); quasi-governmental entities (The Smithsonian Institution, The National Academies of Science, and the Institute for Defense Analyses); and other large and small nonprofit organizations.

Richard provides services as borrower’s counsel, underwriter’s counsel, credit enhancement counsel, trustee’s counsel, servicer/originator counsel, and bond counsel to clients nationally. He also represents clients in all phases of real estate acquisition, development, financing, leasing and disposition, as well as nonprofit and for-profit organizations in federal and local tax matters, including Tax Increment Financings, Special Tax District financings, real estate tax matters, and exempt organization taxation.

Richard has extensive experience in both real estate and municipal and public finance and tax and has represented numerous public and private, for-profit and not-for-profit developers and owners of all classes of real estate, as well as lenders, credit enhancers, underwriters, trustees, and governmental entities. He regularly represents clients in the public financing of facilities for use by the federal and local governments and has represented the developer or credit enhancer in projects for the GSA, IRS, NIH, DOE, the US Army, VA, and NOAA, as well as for various localities. Richard also represents public and private entities in public/private partnerships, including in connection with several professional sports venues and in the redevelopment of several major infill redevelopment projects in Northern Virginia.

In the municipal finance area, Richard has, among other things, represented the first non-hospital, non-university nonprofit to achieve an investment-grade rating (the Association of American Medical Colleges) in numerous real estate and bond financing matters; the first conduit borrower to use tax exempt bonds issued by the District of Columbia; and the borrower in the largest new money 501(c)(3) issuance then having been reported.

Richard is a former general counsel to The Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts, The AIA Legacy Foundation, and Discovery Create Children’s Museum. He is a member of the board of The Arena Stage, The Washington Hebrew Congregation, and serves as general counsel to the Washington Housing Conservancy, a nonprofit workforce housing operator. 

Richard was recognized as a leading real estate lawyer in Washington, DC by Chambers USA from 2006-present, and by The American Lawyer. He was recognized as a Leading Lawyer by The Legal 500 US (2019-2023). He has been selected by Super Lawyers magazine as a leading real estate lawyer since 2011. Richard was named a “top lawyer” in real estate by Washingtonian magazine’s biennial list and he is listed in The Best Lawyers in America. In 2023, he was recognized as “Lawyer of the Year” for Public Finance Law, Washington, DC by The Best Lawyers in America. 

Richard is married, has three children, and together with his wife collects contemporary art. He also has a passion for the theater and the beach. Richard began his career as an advocate for the development and preservation of low and mixed income housing in transitional neighborhoods of Cleveland.

Thomas Penny is the President of Donohoe Hospitality, one of the largest and most experienced hotel management companies in the Washington, DC region, overseeing more than $600 million in hotel asset value. In this role, he drives growth, innovation, and cultivates a supportive, inclusive company culture that promotes upward mobility and celebrates team members for achieving best-in-class results.

Penny is deeply committed to expanding the business while creating pathways for team members to advance into senior levels within the company. As a leading voice for diversity in hotel ownership and executive leadership, he champions the need for the boardroom to reflect the diversity of the break room.

By promoting internal team members and attracting new talent, Penny has built a dynamic team driven by entrepreneurship, collaboration, adaptability, empathy, creativity, and innovation, all aimed at achieving operational excellence and delivering superior results for our partners and stakeholders.

He also serves on numerous industry, education, and nonprofit boards, including the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AH&LA), Hotel Association of Washington, DC (HAWDC), Livingstone College, Marriott-Sorenson Center for Hospitality Leadership at Howard University, and the National Academy Foundation (NAF), among others.

Outside of his professional endeavors, Penny is an avid reader of history and leadership books. He treasures time with his family and enjoys spending time by the water.

President of Menkiti Group, David Roodberg is responsible for overseeing all aspects of the business including operations, development and strategic planning. Prior to joining Menkiti Group, David was the President & CEO of Horning Brothers and the Executive Vice President of Combined Properties. David has a BS degree from Duke University and an MBA from University of Michigan. David is also involved on the boards of Washington Tennis and Education Foundation, Urban Land Institute (DC) Executive Committee, Wesley Housing Development Corporation and University of Maryland Masters in Real Estate Advisory Board. David has also been appointed by the Mayor to serve on the Housing Production Trust Fund Board for Washington, DC setting strategies for the City’s investment in affordable housing.

Archie has counseled political campaigns, global corporations, NGOs, and trade associations to use technology to solve modern communications challenges. A veteran of Madison Avenue, political campaigns, and tech startups, Archie builds offensive and defensive narrative strategies to enhance reputations and influence audiences using data, analytics, and advertising technologies.

Before founding DKR Insights, Smart was an Executive Vice President at MSL / Publicis Groupe, where he was responsible for managing global client engagements. He led integrated marketing and rapid response communications campaigns for clients in the healthcare, consumer packaged goods, and defense sectors.

Previously, Archie served as Chief Technology Officer for Mitt Romney's 2012 presidential campaign and as Chief Technology Officer at Targeted Victory. He was responsible for all technology operations, marketing analytics, online fundraising, social media, and digital advertising. Smart is President of the Smart Family Fund, a philanthropic organization supporting education, civics, arts, and underserved communities.

Over the course of his 40-year career, he has litigated numerous high-profile civil and criminal matters, often under intense media scrutiny. Bill practices in federal and state courts nationwide and has tried more than 60 cases to judgment. Named one of Washington, DC’s top 30 “Superstar” attorneys by Washingtonian magazine in 2011, Bill’s professional accomplishments have been noted with recognitions in publications such as The Best Lawyers in America, Chambers USA, International Who’s Who of Business Lawyers, and Benchmark Litigation.

Bill’s clients have included public officials such as former International Monetary Fund (IMF) managing director Dominique Strauss-Kahn, former Rep. Tom Feeney, and the late Sen. Alan Cranston; executives such as former New York Stock Exchange Compensation Committee chair Kenneth Langone, former Salt Lake City Olympic Committee chair Thomas Welch and former CEO of Massey Energy Company Donald Blankenship; and a wide variety of public and private organizations, including Fortune 500 companies, hedge funds, law firms, and unions, among others. He has conducted internal investigations in addition to representing clients in criminal prosecutions, regulatory enforcement, civil litigation, congressional investigation, and ethics inquiries. A former public defender, Bill is also committed to pro bono work and his clients include death row inmates.

Bill is a sought-after speaker at American Bar Association and National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers conferences and he has taught at the University of North Carolina Law School, the George Washington University Law School, and Catholic University Law School.