Leadership
Our work simply wouldn't be possible without the above-and-beyond efforts of our incredibly hard-working volunteer Board and our small but mighty team of employees.
National Board of Directors
CHAIR
Kurt Van Wagenen
President & CEO, FirstLight Fiber
Vice Chairs
Gregory T. Durant
Vice Chairman & Deputy CEO, Deloitte & Touche, USA, LLP
Carla A. Harris
Vice Chairman, Senior Client Advisor & Managing Director, Morgan Stanley
A. Louis Parker
Retired Corporate Vice President, General Electric
Philips Academy, Class of 1973*
Board Members At Large
Keith Evans
President, The Westminster School
Darrell Ford
Senior Vice President & Chief Human Resources Officer, DuPont
Roxane Gay
Author and Professor
Phillips Exeter Academy, 1992*
Michelle Gittens
Walmart eCommerce
National Advisory Council Chair, Phillips Academy Andover, 1999*
Gennell Jefferson
Managing Director, State Street Global Advisors
Theo Killion
Retired Chief Executive Officer, Zale Corporation
Hill School, 1970*
Suzan Morno-Wade
Executive Vice President & Chief Human Resources Officer, Xerox
Sandra E. Timmons
A Better Chance President
Donald W. Torey
Executive Vice President of Alternative Investments & Chief Investment Officer, State Street Global Advisors
Rhonda Trotter
Partner, Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer, LLP
The Hotchkiss School, Class of 1979*
Board Emeritus
Peter Allan Atkins
Partner, Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, LLP
National Advisory Council
The National Advisory Council is a group of professionals dedicated to helping A Better Chance carry out its mission to increase substantially the number of well-educated young people of color who are capable of assuming positions of responsibility and leadership in American society. Founded in 2009, the goal of the Council is to initiate and boost engagement for A Better Chance through a combination of fundraising and volunteer efforts. Each year the Council hosts The Rising Stars Awards to celebrate the accomplishments of rising professionals of color.
For information on joining the National Advisory Council, please contact Katie McKenna at kmckenna@abetterchance.org or 646-346-1377.
Council Leadership
Michelle Gittens
Walmart eCommerce
National Advisory Council Chair, Phillips Academy Andover, 1999*
Council Members
Najee Coverson
Carmel Partners
Eric A. Logan
KPMG
Phillips Exeter Academy, 2009*
Nicole Madison
FTI Consulting
Ethel Walker, 1999*
Nicole Melwood
Northfield Mount Hermon School, 2001*
Jarron Smith
TIAA
Jasmine Wade
New York University
Westminster School, 2006*
George S. Wilson II
National Basketball Association
Middlesex School, 2004*
A Better Chance Staff
Small but Mighty
Our staff, which works from our headquarters in New York, several regional offices, and often the road, is listed below by category.
If you do not know who specifically can best help you, use our more general contact information:
Leadership
Supporting Administrators
Regional Offices
- Northeast (Including NYC Metro)
- Northwest
- Middle States (including Mid-Atlantic and Midwest)
- Southeast
- Southwest
Northeast (Including NYC Metro)
Northwest
(Northern CA, AK, ID, MT, ND, OR, SD, WA, WY )
436 14th Street, Suite 1310
Oakland, CA 94612-2710
Main: (510) 763-0333
Fax: (510) 763-0434
Erin Gevertz
Assistant Program Manager for Admissions and Placement, Northwest Region
Work:
(510) 496-1151
Middle States (including Mid-Atlantic and Midwest)
(DC, DE, MD, PA, VA, WV, Southern NJ, IA, IL, IN, KS, KY, MI, MN, MO, NE, OH, OK, WI)
PO Box 1041
Lansdowne, PA 19050
Main: (610) 992-0995
Fax: (215) 893-5177
Justine LeDonne
Assistant Program Manager, Admissions & Placement, Middle States Region
Work:
(610) 992-0995
Southeast
(AL, AR, FL, GA, LA, MS, NC, SC, TN)
3485 N. Desert Drive
Building 2, Suite 108
East Point, GA 30344
Phone: (404) 761-2040
Fax: (404) 855-2890
Sonia Simpson
Assistant Program Manager for Admissions and Placement, Southeast Region
Work:
(404) 761-2040
Southwest
(Southern CA, AZ, CO, HI, NM, NV, TX, UT)
3601 S. Flower Street
Tyler Building, Room 99
Los Angeles, CA 90089
Phone: (213) 740-3993
Fax: (213) 232-3773
Stephanie Carolina Flores
Assistant Program Manager for Admissions and Placement, Southwest Region
Work:
(213) 928-7920