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Mimi Darmstadter
Founder
My Life’s Work – Coaching and Consulting LLC
Mimi Darmstadter is a seasoned leader in Human Resources and a certified executive and career coach with 25 years of experience in the learning and development space. Mimi's foremost goal is to support her clients, many of whom are women, in leadership/management roles, to identify and succeed in careers that align with their values, interests, experiences, skills, and workplace expectations.
Mimi holds a dual BA from the University of Michigan in Psychology and Creative Writing and a Master’s Degree in Social Service Administration (e.g. social work) from the University of Chicago. She completed Georgetown University’s Leadership Coaching program and am a certified coach through the International Coach Federation(ICF).
As a working mom, two boys ages 9 and 12, many of Mimi's clients are parents who seek to integrate their personal and professional lives and their achievement goals for each. Mimi's websites are www.mylifesworkcoaching.com and www.workingmamagroup.com.
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Julie Lenzer Kirk
Executive Director
Maryland Center for Entrepreneurship
Co-chair
StartUp Maryland; Author, Speaker, Entrepreneur
If “entrepreneurial energy” had a place in the dictionary, Julie Lenzer Kirk’s picture would be the illustration. Having been self-diagnosed as a terminal entrepreneur, others have called her an innovator, visionary and activator specializing in GSD or getting shtuff done. She leverages her experiences as a serial entrepreneur to provide inspiration and practical guidance to others. Recently, Julie stepped up to co-chair Startup Maryland, a regional initiative of the Startup America Partnership.
Julie has started more companies than she can remember from as early as age 8 when she ran carnivals out of her backyard. She founded her first “real” company, Applied Creative Technologies, Inc. (ACT), in 1995 as an IT solutions firm focusing on manufacturing operations and inventory control. With Fortune 500 clients and international installations, she grew the company to multi-millions in revenues, winning several national awards for workplace excellence. Through her 10-year leadership, ACT developed and commercialized ACTrax, a leading-edge production and warehouse management system, for which she negotiated the sale in 2005.
In 2010, Julie co-founded the Path Forward Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship as a nonprofit organization that develops and delivers innovative programs to expand economic opportunity for women through entrepreneurship. This passion was fueled from six years instructing the internationally-acclaimed and National Science Foundation funded ACTiVATE® program at the University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC). Through this program, which was named “Best Specialty Entrepreneurship Program” by the US Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship, Julie expanded her proven “Boot in the Butt” facilitation process to accelerate women’s business and leadership growth, resulting in expanded opportunities for them as well as the communities they serve.
Julie received the Athena Award in 2004 as recognition for her contributions to other business women and the community and was named to Maryland's Top 100 Women 2005 and 2008 by The Daily Record. She is a member of the Life Sciences Advisory Board for Astia, a charter member of the Startup America Partnership’s women’s entrepreneurship working group, and on the advisory board of several start-up companies.
As a speaker who is in demand across 4 continents Julie’s approaches to leadership, innovation, and success are inspiring and uniquely engaging. She is frequently quoted in the media – from Entrepreneur to Redbook and Family Circle magazines - and having appeared in numerous broadcast interviews, she also writes and blogs frequently. Her book, "The ParentPreneur Edge: What Parenting Teaches About Building a Successful Business" (John Wiley & Sons), which shares business tips and advice for starting, growing, and running a business using parenting metaphors, is available online.
Today, Julie can be found at the Maryland Center for Entrepreneurship in Columbia, Maryland, where, as the Executive Director, she is leveraging her extensive experience as an entrepreneur to turn dreamers into doers and working to ignite an entrepreneurial culture across the region.
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Elizabeth Lilley, Bus '94
Chief Perspective Officer
Sonata Venture Solutions, LLC
Elizabeth Lilley is a partner in possibility in business, career, and community. Wearing glasses since the age of two, she brings a variety of fresh perspectives in facilitating a vision of growth and transformation beyond the limitations of the day to day business experience.
Elizabeth has been facilitating change as a Coach, Consultant, Business Analyst, and Project Manager for more than 25 years with extensive experience in financial services, information technology, manufacturing, NGO’s, and professional career strategies.
Her current initiatives include coaching emerging business and technology executives to rebalance their portfolio of roles for professional success at the next level. She is also growing The Launchbox® with Sonata Venture Solutions, a workshop series helping entrepreneurs and business leaders survive and thrive in both stable and volatile economies. Elizabeth is compiling her experiences with executives and professionals who are compelled in today’s world of work to lead many roles whether in one organization or across many. Young adults have recently been finding their way to her for authentic career development in a challenging and rapidly changing world.
A Certified Hudson Institute Coach (CHIC) and member of the International Coach Federation, Elizabeth received her Masters in Information Technology Management from Johns Hopkins University, a certificate in Transformational Leadership from Georgetown University, and her BA in French from Salisbury University. Through the Global Business Network, Elizabeth completed the renowned training "Developing and Using Scenarios" for strengthening organizational strategy and future perspective. She is qualified to administer and interpret a number of professional development assessments and is also a Certified Reach Personal Brand Strategist.
As a global citizen from an early age, Elizabeth enjoys the free exchange of information and a good intellectual discussion with friends and colleagues. She cannot stand to be land-locked and needs to be near the water. Currently, she resides in the port city of Baltimore, Maryland, USA. Visit www.ElizabethLilley.com to learn more.
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Jennifer Matthews, Bus '00, '02
Award-winning Author, Motivational Speaker, Financial Coach
Creating Financial Literacy, LLC
Ms. Matthews provides financial literacy services, training, and mentoring that help people understand cash flow and better manage cash on hand. Ms. Matthews is the author of 12 Ways To Put Money In Your Pocket Every Month Without A Part-time Job: The Skinny Book That Makes Your Wallet Fat, nominated for a 2013 NAACP Award. The Institute for Financial Literacy selected her book as their 2012 Adult’s Book of the Year, General, and presented Ms. Matthews with an Excellence in Financial Literacy Education (EIFLE) Award. The book is available at www.MoneySmartBook.com.
Ms. Matthews has more than 8 years of experience assisting clients with developing and adhering to spending plans, increasing and understanding credit scores, affordable homeownership, and achieving financial goals. She develops and conducts workshops, tele-seminars, and corporate trainings. Her services also include affordable detailed, personalized wealth creation systems for her clients. Ms. Matthews also developed Post Foreclosure Help, a 5-part comprehensive program to help families recover financially and reposition themselves to return to homeownership.
Ms. Matthews was a Delegate at the Global Summit on Financial Literacy, and was one of only 100 people invited to participate in the White House Office of Faith Based and Community Initiatives Compass in Action Roundtable on Financial Literacy. She is the former Maryland/DC State Coordinator for The Delta Challenge Homebuyer Initiative of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. She is the past co-chair of the Economic Development Committee. Under her leadership the Committee garnered several Regional and one International award for outstanding, effective community programming.
Ms. Matthews appeared on Washington Watch with Roland Martin, and has been a regular guest financial expert on WUSA TV9’s Mind Over Money consumer show in Washington, DC (a CBS affiliate station). She was a featured expert in two PBS documentaries Facing the Mortgage Crisis in DC, and Pursuit of the Dream: Building Credit for Life. Ms. Matthews has been a guest on Evening Exchange on WHUT TV and quoted in US News & World Report. She was featured in an article in Foreclosure Mass Monthly newsletter, and interviewed by Kiplinger’s Personal Finance magazine.
Ms. Matthews earned a BA in Labor Studies from Rutgers University, an MA in Professional Communication from LaSalle University, and an MBA from The Johns Hopkins University. She holds Certificates of Professional Recognition in Homebuyer Education Training and Beginning to Intermediate Foreclosure Prevention, both from NeighborWorks America.
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Melody McCoy, MSW
Vice President, External Affairs and Communications
Jhpiego
Melody McCoy is the Vice President of External Relations and Communication for Jhpiego. Having joined Jhpiego in 2008, she has assisted in growing substantially the domestic reputation of the organization. Working closely with the Leadership Team of Jhpiego, Ms. McCoy has secured national and international coverage for the organizations work, has developed a strong Advisory Council and donor strategy and maintained a significant presence for the organization on Capitol Hill.
In her current position at Jhpiego she is responsible for oversight of Jhpiego’s media and communications strategy, government affairs, individual donor and local foundation relations.
Ms. McCoy has an MSW from the University of Maryland at Baltimore. She comes to Jhpiego with extensive experience in government affairs, communications and development. Having worked for the United States Congress in government and community relations, she has also worked for several executives in state and local government.
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Rick Milter, PhD
Professor
Johns Hopkins Carey Business School
Richard G. Milter, Ph.D. is professor in the Johns Hopkins Carey Business School. He has held previous teaching and leadership positions at Ohio University, Boston College, Universiti Teknologi MARA (Shah Alam, Malaysia), the University at Albany, Loyola University of Chicago, and Janus Pannonius University (Pecs, Hungary).
Rick serves on editorial boards of the Information Age Publishing series Research in Management Education and Development and the Springer Verlag Publishing series Innovation and Change in Professional Education. He serves as Associate Series Editor of the Springer Science and Business series Advances in Business Education and Training.
Rick’s research and publications have paralleled his consulting activity in the areas of executive judgment, strategy, group decision-making processes, management information systems, negotiation strategies, managerial ethics, leadership, and innovative learning platforms. Having formerly served as chairman of EDiNEB, an international network of innovative educators based in Maastricht, the Netherlands, Rick has delivered keynote addresses and seminar courses on decision making, leadership, business policy, organization development, creative thinking, and strategic management to audiences in the US, Malaysia, Sweden, and Hungary.
He has presented workshops to educators on action-learning strategies across the U.S., Sweden, Hungary, the Netherlands, Russia, Japan, and Malaysia. He was co-founder and director of an MBA program that earned best practice status for technology-mediated learning by AACSB and APQC.
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Shanti Norris
Co-Founder and Executive Director
Smith Center for Healing and the Arts
Ms. Norris serves as Executive Director of Smith Center for Healing and the Arts. She initiated the Smith Center hospital Artist-in-Residence program and Healing Arts Gallery. She runs the weeklong retreats for people with cancer, and oversees new initiatives, including the Faith-based Community Navigation project at Smith Center. Former Vice President of Kent Homeopathic Associates, she has an extensive background in complementary medicine and mind-body approaches to healing.
She has taught meditation, yoga philosophy and stress reduction for over 35 years and underwent a formal ten-year mentorship with a renowned yoga master. She is a three-term member of CARRA, the patient advocacy program at the National Cancer Institute and a graduate of Project LEAD from the National Breast Cancer Coalition. She is a graduate of the Georgetown University Non-profit Leadership certificate course and the James P. Shannon Leadership Institute in Minneapolis/St Paul. She is a former board member of the Society for the Arts in Healthcare and Chaired their Annual Conference in 2004.
She is a founding board member of The Art Connection in the Capital Region and a founding member of Arts in Healthcare Advocates (AHA.) She is a frequent speaker on the healing power of the arts. Her formal art training began at New York University and The Cooper Union in New York City and includes running the fine art studio of artist Peter Max. She is a member of ArtTable, the mother of three adult children, and is a painter and sculptor.
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Amy Venuto
Executive Director
Ripken Baseball Group
Amy Venuto carries 17 years of experience in professional baseball. Joining Ripken Baseball in 2002, Venuto entered as Director of Sales for the IronBirds. She led the team’s ticketing department to sell out every single game each season. Additionally, Amy helped create the Ripken Stadium Events Department, hosting concerts, trade shows, weddings, private parties, among other events.
Currently, as Executive Director for Ripken Baseball Group, Venuto is responsible for assisting in and helping to develop the sales and marketing initiatives of the Aberdeen IronBirds (Aberdeen, MD) and Charlotte Stone Crabs (Port Charlotte, FL). Both teams have witnessed terrific success in attendance and overall operations over the last several years. Venuto is also responsible for the customer experience initiatives of the team experience.
Venuto is the current Host President of the Cal Ripken World Series, overseeing all aspects of this international event, and led the 2013 Cal Ripken World Series to an attendance record.
Venuto was recognized in 2005 as the New York-Penn League’s Rawlings Woman Executive of the Year. In 2010, Venuto was one of three recipients for Ballpark Digest’s Executive of the Year. She is active with the Women in Baseball Leadership Event, serving on the committee, and emcee-ing this annual event.
Venuto graduated from Carleton College in Northfield, Minnesota; and is the proud mother of Alexandra Venuto. |
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Kim Weeks
Director
Boundless Yoga
Voted in 2012 for the second time as DC’s Best Yoga Teacher by the Washington City Paper readers, and the featured yoga teacher for NBC4 Washington’s weekly yoga segment on The Midday Show, Kim has practiced yoga for 20 years and taught for 10. She is head of Boundless Yoga’s Advanced Studies Programs and its creative, driving force. She teaches students about the body’s intrinsic alignment and health and believes disease is the West’s form of meditation.
After spending the 90′s working on Wall Street in New York City, London, and parts of Asia, Kim left the corporate world in 2002 to start Boundless Yoga. Kim has studied with Sri Swami Satchidananda, John Schumacher, Erich Schiffmann, JJ Gormley, Sarah Powers, Paul Grilley, and Ramanand Patel. She is drawn to these yoga masters because of their ability to address the body’s inherent ability to transform. Kim first studied in the Integral Yoga tradition and since 2002 has migrated toward an Iyengar-derived approach.
In 2012 Kim was featured in PBS Religion and Ethics NewsWeekly’s documentary titled “None of the Above: The Rise of the Religiously Unaffiliated” and was a guest expert on NPR’s Interfaith Voices on the same subject. |
