Kenyan Team

Dr. Kakenya Ntaiya
Founder & President

Dr. Kakenya Ntaiya
Founder & President
Engaged at age five, Dr. Kakenya Ntaiya experienced female genital mutilation (FGM) as a young teenager in preparation for early marriage. Her life was set to follow the traditional Maasai path of ending school to become a wife and mother, but Kakenya had a different dream. She negotiated with her father to return to school after undergoing FGM. When she was accepted to college in the United States, she promised her rural Kenyan community that she would use her education to help the village in exchange for their support. Kakenya went on to earn her PhD in education from the University of Pittsburgh and returned to her community to fulfill her promise.
Kakenya founded Kakenya’s Dream, an international nonprofit organization, to educate girls, end harmful traditional practices including FGM and child marriage, and uplift her community. In 2009, the Kakenya Center for Excellence boarding school opened its doors, serving 30 students. Today, Kakenya reaches thousands of young girls, boys, and community members each year through three holistic and girl-centered programs she pioneered at Kakenya’s Dream.
Kakenya was featured in Bill Gates' Heroes in the Field series in 2022 and Melinda French Gates’ first book, The Moment of Lift, in 2019. She is a proud CNN Hero Finalist and National Geographic Emerging Explorer. Kakenya was honored to receive the Feminist Majority Global Women’s Rights Award from the Feminist Majority Foundation in 2013 and the Vital Voices Global Leadership Award in 2008. Kakenya was also recognized by Women in the World as a “Woman of Impact" and counted among the Women Deliver 100 Most Inspiring People Delivering for Girls and Women.

Mercy Ngeno
Country Manager

Mercy Ngeno
Country Manager

Daniel Kishoyian
Director of Programs

Daniel Kishoyian
Director of Programs

Michael Chepkwony
Communications Manager

Michael Chepkwony
Communications Manager

Caroline Laitei
Network for Excellence Program Officer

Caroline Laitei
Network for Excellence Program Officer

Rhoda Ndayia
Health & Leadership Training Program Officer

Rhoda Ndayia
Health & Leadership Training Program Officer

Monica Nderitu
Finance & Administrative Officer

Monica Nderitu
Finance & Administrative Officer
Monica is a certified public accountant and a registered member of the Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Kenya (ICPAK). She holds a bachelor's degree in commerce and finance from Dedan Kimathi University. Monica is passionate about helping the less fortunate in society. During her free time, she enjoys hiking and traveling.

Faith Nainyeyie Parsaloi
Centers for Excellence Program Officer

Faith Nainyeyie Parsaloi
Centers for Excellence Program Officer

Lydia Peyiai
Network for Excellence Program Officer

Lydia Peyiai
Network for Excellence Program Officer
Lydia has also worked as an intern in the mechatronics department at Almasi Bottlers Limited in Eldoret. Lydia holds a bachelor's degree in physics from the University of Eldoret. She resonates with the mission of Kakenya’s Dream and believes in the positive transformation of communities through the eradication of harmful cultural practices.

Anne Naanyu Elizabeth
School Counselor

Anne Naanyu Elizabeth
School Counselor

Maureen Wanjiku Waweru
Program Accountant

Maureen Wanjiku Waweru
Program Accountant
Maureen started her career as an intern at World Vision before joining a logistics company where she worked as the branch manager and accountant. She later joined a microfinance firm in Nairobi where she served as an accountant before joining Kakenya’s Dream.
Maureen is passionate about empowerment of women and girls, and is inspired by the impact Kakenya's Dream is making in the community.
During her free time, Maureen likes watching movies and hiking.

Michael Keriako
Health & Leadership Training Program Assistant

Michael Keriako
Health & Leadership Training Program Assistant
Michael holds a bachelor's degree in ecotourism and hospitality management from Chuka University and is currently pursuing a master's degree in environmental science at Kenyatta University. He believes in transforming the community through education and empowering the community through ecotourism.

Mikaila Harper
Princeton in Africa Fellow | Program & Communications Officer

Mikaila Harper
Princeton in Africa Fellow | Program & Communications Officer

Sarah Louis
Princeton in Africa Fellow | Education & Program Officer

Sarah Louis
Princeton in Africa Fellow | Education & Program Officer
U.S. Team

Jessica Hammond
Chief Operating Officer

Jessica Hammond
Chief Operating Officer

Beth Cosby
Director of Operations

Beth Cosby
Director of Operations

Zoe Blossom
Communications Manager

Zoe Blossom
Communications Manager
Prior to joining Kakenya’s Dream in 2018, Zoe consulted for the World Bank Disability and Development in the Social, Urban, Rural and Resilience Global Practice and held positions at Together for Girls, the Center for Health and Gender Equity (CHANGE), and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in Washington, D.C.
She holds a bachelor’s degree in international affairs and a master’s degree in international development studies from George Washington University. She currently resides in Portland, Oregon with her partner Cameron and two dogs, Jamaica and Chowder. In her free time, Zoe enjoys exploring the beautiful Pacific Northwest wilderness, thrifting for vintage treasures, and tearing up the dance floor.

Emma Wen
Development Coordinator

Emma Wen
Development Coordinator
Kenya Board of Directors
NAIROBI OFFICERS

Rehema Kahurananga
Regional Communications and Constituency Manager, International union for Conservation of Nature
Board Chair

Rehema Kahurananga
Regional Communications and Constituency Manager, International union for Conservation of Nature
She currently serves as the Regional Communications and Constituency Manager with the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Prior to that, she was the Head of Content Development with Kenya Airways. There, she oversaw content strategy implemented through a variety of digital and traditional channels to drive the airline’s messaging internally and externally. Doing so during a pandemic was a unique opportunity to learn, adapt, and innovate.
Rehema has 15 years of communications experience spanning print media, the nonprofit space (specifically in reproductive and maternal and child health, HIV, and alternative energy), as well as in technology and the micro, small, and medium enterprise (MSME) sectors with a focus on access to finance. Some of the responsibilities she has enjoyed most include translating overall strategic plans into regional and country-level communication plans; setting up systematic story collection processes; offering communications advisory support to all levels of staff; creating traditional and digital content; and preparing team members to serve as spokespersons.
Rehema is a writer at heart. Prior to becoming a fully-fledged communications professional, she spent five years penning dozens of articles at True Love – East Africa’s top-selling women’s magazine – as a writer and later deputy editor. She holds a bachelor’s degree in communication from Randolph College in Virginia, USA.
When she is off the clock, you will most likely find Rehema enjoying a novel or audiobook, spending quality time with her family, or catching up with interesting digital and lifestyle trends. Rehema is extremely keen on developing narratives about Africa that offer inspiration locally and across the globe. She resonates with the following quote made famous by acclaimed Nigerian author Chinua Achebe: "Until the lions have their own historians, the history of the hunt will always glorify the hunter."

Leah Kiguatha
Lead Counsel, Kiguatha & Company Advocates Lecturer, Kenya School of Law
Board Secretary

Leah Kiguatha
Lead Counsel, Kiguatha & Company Advocates Lecturer, Kenya School of Law
Leah is a member of the Nairobi Children’s Court Bar Bench Committee, the High Court Family Division Bar Bench Committee, and the LSK Gender Committee.
She currently teaches at the Kenya School of Law, is an adjunct faculty member of Pwani University, and served for six years at Kenyatta University School of Law teaching family law and international human rights courses.
COMMUNITY OFFICERS

James Merinyo
Pastor and Overseer, Dominion Chapel, Keyian Division

Anna Ntaiya
Co-Founder, Rehema Widows Group
NAIROBI & COMMUNITY DIRECTORS

Purity Kagwiria
Director, With and For Girls Initiative

Purity Kagwiria
Director, With and For Girls Initiative
Purity has dedicated her life to ensuring that girls and young women from especially under-resourced backgrounds can have opportunities to dream and journey toward the futures they hope to see. She has a passion for developing curricula and programs that keep girls at the center as well as coaching the next generation of girl and young women leaders.
Prior to joining WFG/Purposeful, Purity was the Executive Director of Akili Dada, a leadership incubator for girls and young women who are passionate about social change. Purity has previously served as a founding advisory committee member of FRIDA|The Young Feminist Fund, and in early 2015, she was named one of the 18 Phenomenal African Feminists to know and watch. In 2016, she was named a finalist of the Most Influential Women in Governance and Business in Africa. She is currently a member of the East Africa Girls Brain Trust and a trustee of the Resource Centre for Girls and Women, an organization that works to empower girls from rural communities in Kenya.
Purity holds a master of business administration from the African Leadership University School of Business, Rwanda, a bachelor's degree in gender and development from the University of Nairobi, Kenya, and a diploma in journalism from the Kenya Institute of Mass Communication.

Roseline Komoni
Teacher, Mapashi Primary School

Roseline Komoni
Teacher, Mapashi Primary School

Jeremiah Ole Koshal
Assistant Professor of Leadership, United States International University – Africa (USIU)

Jeremiah Ole Koshal
Assistant Professor of Leadership, United States International University – Africa (USIU)
Dr. Koshal is also currently the Chairman of Council of Moi University, a public university with over 45,000 students and over 250 academic programs. He plays an oversight role in financial and governance matters of the university.
Dr. Koshal is also one of the Lead Consultants at Africa Centre for Entrepreneurship and Leadership (ACEL), an agency that offers consultancy services, as well as training for entrepreneurs, managers, and leaders for a more transformative corporate and public marketplace. Some of the areas of consultancy and training include strategy development, supervisory training, senior and middle levels leadership, coaching and mentoring, change management, performance management, and succession planning, amongst others.
Dr. Koshal has also presented in international conferences in the areas of leadership, governance, and business development. He has authored a book, a book chapter, papers, and reports on research he has conducted on entrepreneurship, economic development, kingdom business, and leadership. Dr. Koshal is also an avid grant proposal writer.

Florence Koskei
Teacher, Mapashi Primary School

Florence Koskei
Teacher, Mapashi Primary School

Hillary Omala
Executive Director, Carolina for Kibera

Hillary Omala
Executive Director, Carolina for Kibera
Omala’s experience is extensive and diverse– from new project start up to successful turnaround of established operations of diverse community projects and service delivery systems. Omala has served in various senior management capacities and as a board member in different organizations. Currently, he is the Executive Director at CFK. He previously served as Policy and Partnerships Director at Lwala Community Alliance, Executive Director at Kakenya’s Dream and as the Clinic Services Manager at the KEMRI/CDC Program.
Omala holds a master's degree from the University of Nairobi in health economics and policy development and is currently undertaking research in the area of healthcare financing. He also holds a bachelor's degree in sociology and communication from the University of Nairobi.

ROBINA BOSIBORI Omosa, MBA
Director & Financial Management Consultant at Eagle Financial Consultancy.

ROBINA BOSIBORI Omosa, MBA
Director & Financial Management Consultant at Eagle Financial Consultancy.
Robina currently serves as the vice-chair of the board at the Association of Women Accountants of Kenya (AWAK). She has also held positions including treasurer and chair of the Finance & Strategy Committee and Mentorship & CSR Committee. Robina has developed, introduced, and implemented programs in training, finance, mentorship, and social development for AWAK members and the local community. Robina also holds director/board positions at the Kenya Airports Authority (KAA) and Centre for Advancement of Social Innovation and Transformation ( CASIT).
Previously, at the NTAP (Network of Technical Assistance Providers) USAID-funded Grant Management Solutions (GMS) project, a consortium led by Management Sciences for Health (MSH), Robina served as secretariat coordinator. She has also worked with Almaco Management Consultants as a finance & administration manager/consultant. Robina has also held management positions with Deloitte, Ernst & Young Kenya, ExpatWoman.com, and Diversey Gulf.
Robina holds an MBA from The University of Manchester and a bachelor's degree from The University of Nairobi. In her spare time, Robina enjoys hiking and mentorship and CSR activities especially geared toward empowering young women on financial independence, sustainability, and literacy.
U.S. Board of Directors
OFFICERS

Pamela Ress Reeves
Founder, Reeves Advisory
Reeves served as the UN human rights officer in Liberia during the country’s civil war, and has worked in over 20 countries on governance transitions over the past three decades. Reeves is the Vice Chancellor of Brown University and serves on the boards of directors of Kakenya’s Dream, the John Carter Brown Library, and the University of Global Health Equity in Rwanda. She holds a bachelor's degree from Brown University and a master's degree from Yale University.

Michael O’Kane
Entrepreneur, Business Consultant, Philanthropist
Michael was the Founder and CEO of Evolver, Inc. Since founding Evolver in 2000, he oversaw the company’s emergence as an IT solutions leader in the federal, commercial, and legal markets. Michael promoted a planned and structured approach to achieve desired business results while optimizing cost, schedule, and risk parameters. He successfully established subsidiaries in the UK and Canada to support contract performance in those countries. Guided by Michael’s leadership, creativity and resourcefulness, Evolver grew exponentially and received numerous industry accolades from the Small Business Association (SBA), Inc. 500/5000, Virginia’s “Fantastic 50,” SmartCEO Future 50, and Washington Technology Fast 50.
While building Evolver’s contract portfolio, Michael performed several technical and management roles across three national census programs in the US, UK, and Canada. As Operations Architect and Data Quality Manager he was instrumental in the planning and execution for these significant federal data collection efforts. For the US 2000 Census, he was responsible for operations planning, deployment, and systems administration of the data capture production system in four geographically dispersed locations. He authored the original Facilities and Operations Plan and Production System procedures, served as the Dress Rehearsal system support manager, developed the installation strategy and schedule, and then managed the hiring and performance of four System Administration teams across the enterprise.
For the 2001 UK Census, Michael was the operations and data quality manager responsible for system installation and maintenance, production management, data quality, and communications support including reports distribution, management dashboards, and executive committee briefings. For the 2006 Canadian Census, Michael collaborated with Statistics Canada and the engineering product teams to draft the Phase I Data Quality Management Plan and initial set of production reports.
Prior to founding Evolver, Michael served in various technical and management roles for large and small organizations supporting US Navy programs at NAVSEA, NAVAIR, and SPAWAR. He was a financial analyst for the Vertical Launch System (VLS) and a supply chain manager for the AEGIS shipbuilding program office.
Currently, Michael serves as vice president of a family foundation, directing charitable donations to several non-profit organizations. The foundation focuses on environmental, educational, and performing arts organizations.
Michael earned his bachelor's degree from George Mason University in business administration.

Tara Bunch
Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, American Kidney Fund
Board Treasurer

Tara Bunch
Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, American Kidney Fund
Prior to joining AKF, Ms. Bunch was the Chief Business Operations Officer at the National Geographic Society. In this capacity, she served as an enterprise leader accountable for managing critical staff functions, including information technology, human resources, facilities, finance and planning, and metrics, evaluation, and research. She worked with staff function leaders to set important policies and strategies, consistent with overall society objectives and values, and was accountable for reporting on financial and operational performance.
Ms. Bunch joined National Geographic in 2010 as director of global strategy and business development. In that role, she was active in National Geographic’s efforts across digital, publishing, and commerce, focusing on travel and kids businesses. She moved into the role of Chief of Staff in 2014 and became Deputy Chief Operating Officer in 2016.
Prior to joining National Geographic in 2010, Ms. Bunch consulted for Travel Channel Media, developing financial projections for digital and other businesses in preparation for the sale of Travel Channel Media to Scripps Networks.
She previously spent nearly seven years at Discovery Communications in several financial planning and analysis roles, overseeing annual strategic and tactical business plans for all of Discovery’s digital businesses. Working with management teams, she identified strategic and financial opportunities to grow current business and evaluate new business prospects.
Ms. Bunch began her career in strategic consulting for media and entertainment businesses at Accenture. She holds an MBA from Harvard Business School and a bachelor's degree in economics from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. She lives in Washington, D.C.

KATHY HALL
Director, Equality for Women and Girls Program, Summit Foundation
Before joining Summit, Kathy was Deputy Director of Women and Population at the United Nations Foundation, where she helped launch UNF’s Universal Access Project and expanded its work on adolescent girls, culminating in the Girl Up campaign. Prior to that, she was Co-Executive Director of Just Detention International in Los Angeles. Kathy helped build and then directed the Global Legal Program of the Center for Reproductive Rights from 1996-2004, as the concept that “reproductive rights are human rights” became more firmly rooted in international human rights law. She advocated alongside women’s legal and rights organizations at the UN and in dozens of countries around the world. Kathy served on the boards of Funders for Reproductive Equity (FRE) for six years, two of those as co-chair, and the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee for seven years.
Kathy graduated magna cum laude from Princeton University and received her JD from Columbia Law School where she was a member of the Columbia Law Review. She enjoys being active– these days mainly biking and yoga– and sharing her passions for travel, sports, the outdoors and social, racial, and gender justice with her teenage son.
DIRECTORS

Amy Blackwood
Deputy General Counsel and Head of Ethics at Save the Children, US

Amy Blackwood
Deputy General Counsel and Head of Ethics at Save the Children, US

Kathleen Bonk
Strategic Communications Consultant

Kathleen Bonk
Strategic Communications Consultant
She is the lead co-author of the Jossey-Bass Guide to Strategic Communications for Nonprofits, part of the Jossey-Bass Nonprofit and Public Management series along with dozens of book chapters, toolkits, studies, and papers related to the rights of women and girls.
Over the past 40 years, Kathy has been at the forefront of dozens of issue campaigns with various coalitions that marked a sea of change in domestic and global policies affecting women and girls. She was instrumental in increasing worldwide media coverage of the International Conference on Population and Development in Cairo in 1994, and was an advisor to the U.S. delegation to the UN’s Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing in 1995. She served as lead media strategist for the Global Campaign for Women’s Human Rights at the UN Conference on Human Rights in Vienna that first used the term “women’s rights are human rights.”
Under her leadership, CCMC worked primarily on multi-year, issue-oriented campaigns and initiatives for dozens of prominent foundations including work with the Ford Foundation, the African Union, and several other donors on campaigns to end forced, early, and child marriage and the Women Peace and Security Initiative of the Compton Foundation.
Kathy was awarded a W.K. Kellogg Leadership Fellowship in 1989 that focused on global women’s rights resulting in the establishment of the first family planning clinics in the then Soviet Union. In 2013, she was named one of 21 Leaders for the 21st Century by Women’s eNews, this is along with numerous other awards and special recognitions.
In addition to serving as vice-chair of the board for Kakenya’s Dream, she serves on the board of the National Press Club Journalism Institute, Too Young To Wed, the Trojan Sexual Health Advisory Committee, and as an advisor to Ms. Magazine. She is on the visiting faculty of the Georgetown University’s Center for Juvenile Justice Reform at its Public Policy Institute providing communications training on reforming child welfare and juvenile justice. She is also a consultant to the Annie E. Casey Foundation, Casey Family Programs and the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health on their Forum and Voices in Leadership programs.

Leslie J. Calman, PhD
Retired CEO, Engineering World Health

Leslie J. Calman, PhD
Retired CEO, Engineering World Health
Leslie previously held positions as Executive Director of Mautner Project: The National Lesbian Health Organization; VP for External Relations at the International Center for Research on Women; and Executive VP at NOW Legal Defense and Education Fund. She has served on the Boards of the National Coalition for LGBT Health, and Breast Care for Washington.
Leslie received her PhD in political science from Columbia University and taught political science and women’s studies at Barnard College from 1983 to 1998. She also served for seven years as Director of the Barnard Center for Research on Women. She has published two books on social movements in India, and been widely quoted in national media on women's issues and LGBT issues.

SARAH CRAVEN
Director, United Nations Population Fund, Washington, D.C

SARAH CRAVEN
Director, United Nations Population Fund, Washington, D.C
Ms. Craven has worked on advocacy campaigns focused on empowering women and girls and ending harmful traditional practices including child marriage and female genital mutilation. Through this work, she met Kakenya Ntaiya a few weeks after Kakenya's graduation from Randolph-Macon College and served as one of the founding board members for Kakenya's Dream. Prior to her work at UNFPA, she held positions at the U.S. Department of State and on the legislative staff to U.S. Senators Tim Wirth of Colorado and Spark Matsunaga of Hawaii. She served as policy advisor to CEDPA during the 1994 International Conference on Population and the 1995 Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing, China.
She holds a bachelor's degree from Macalester College, a master's degree from Cambridge University (UK), and a JD from Georgetown University Law Center where she was a Public Interest Law Scholar. In 2010, she was named one of Macalester College’s Distinguished Citizens.

Diane Crockett
Chief Financial Officer, The Summit Charitable Foundation

Diane Crockett
Chief Financial Officer, The Summit Charitable Foundation
Diane's prior experience includes more than 17 years of service at The AES Corporation, a global power company. She began her tenure with AES as Accounting Manager for the corporate office, was promoted to Manager of Financial Reporting, then promoted to Director of Finance and Administration, where she was responsible for the company’s annual report to shareholders, annual proxy statement and all reporting to the Securities and Exchanges Commission. Throughout her tenure, Diane traveled to a number of developing countries in support of the company's electric power generation development efforts. As CFO of AES Aurora, she focused her attention on AES’s Central American subsdiaries. Diane completed her career at AES as Director of Financial Planning and Analysis. Prior to her time at AES, Diane held accounting positions at Claritas, a geodemographic marketing company and Aetna Life and Casualty Insurance company.
Diane earned a bachelor's degree in education from the University of Connecticut and a Master of Business Administration with a concentration in accounting from the University of New Haven. She is a member of the Greater Washington Society of CPAs. She lives with her husband on the western shore of the Chesapeake Bay.

KELLY DENSON
Vice President, Education Policy & Programs, Association of American Publishers

KELLY DENSON
Vice President, Education Policy & Programs, Association of American Publishers
Kelly is vice president of education policy and programs for the Association of American Publishers. In this role, Kelly advises AAP members on state and federal education initiatives that impact the American publishing industry, advocating for clear policies that reflect and advance the important contributions of education publishers. These include digital materials personalized to the individual learning needs of the student and high-quality content accessible to and affordable for every student. Kelly also serves as a key advisor to the academic community, leading joint publisher-academia events and other public outreach that promotes the critical partnership between the publishing and education communities.
Kelly holds a bachelor's degree in the biological basis of behavior from the University of Pennsylvania and a master’s degree in education from Harvard University.

Folake Fabunmi-Vining
Business Development Executive, IBM

Folake Fabunmi-Vining
Business Development Executive, IBM
For the past 15 years, in parallel to her corporate career, Folake has been a passionate contributor to the nonprofit sector providing expertise in strategic planning, program development, donor and volunteer engagement, and helping to scale them through innovation and new operational models. As a certified Enterprise Design Thinking Coach and Advocate, she brings a human-centered approach and experience to facilitate transformation at critical times and to support decision-making in complex and difficult stakeholder ecosystems. She has built and led global teams and is adept at working across multiple cultures to drive common goals.
Ms. Fabunmi holds a bachelor’s degree in accounting from the University of Lagos, an MBA from Manchester Business School in the UK, and a master's degree in project management from the George Washington University in Washington, D.C. She is a certified Project Management Professional.

Dr. Anne-Marea Griffin
Senior Director, UNICEF USA, Global Cause Partnerships

Dr. Anne-Marea Griffin
Senior Director, UNICEF USA, Global Cause Partnerships
Her early experience ranged from positions at Save the Children, Africare and the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies. While in Africa, she founded and managed an education-oriented NGO (AHEAD, Ltd) in Uganda, where she served as Board Chair before closing the project in 2015. Her early career began within the foreign policy arena in Washington D.C., beginning in the field of advocacy as Deputy Director of TransAfrica, later moving to Capitol Hill, where she joined the ranks of professional consultants at the House of Representatives Subcommittee on Africa.
While in Africa, Anne held senior level consultancy work with major philanthropic institutions such as the Ford Foundation, ELMA Philanthropies, Carnegie Corporation, and the MasterCard Foundation. She was recently Deputy Director, Office of Program Partnerships with the U.S. African Development Foundation and also recently served as Director, Global Health Advocacy Incubator, a program of the Campaign for Tobacco- free Kids, with a focus on South Africa and the Caribbean.

Betty Hudson
President, Hudson & Associates

Betty Hudson
President, Hudson & Associates
Hudson was a member of the AFLAC Board of Directors from 1990 until May of 2018, serving as a member of the company’s Finance and Investment Committee, and chair of the Sustainability Committee. She is co-chair of the Washington Chapter of Women’s Corporate Directors, an international organization of more than 3,000 women serving on more than 5,000 corporate boards worldwide, and is a member of the WCD global advisory council.
In addition to her service on the Board of Directors of Kakenya’s Dream, she is a member of the Board of Planet Forward, a national initiative working to enhance environmental story-telling at the college level, and is a past president of the New York Women’s Agenda and the Montclair Board of Education in Montclair, New Jersey, and a former chairman of the Inova Fairfax Children’s Hospital Quality Committee. She is also a former board member of the Inova Health Care Services Board and the Associates Board of Directors of the Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts.

Marlene M. Johnson
Executive Director Emerita, NAFSA

Marlene M. Johnson
Executive Director Emerita, NAFSA
Johnson’s leadership in government, business, and the nonprofit sector spans more than four decades. In 1970, she co-founded an advertising and public relations firm in St. Paul, Minnesota. From 1983 to 1991, she served as lieutenant governor of Minnesota. Later, she served as associate administrator for management services and human resources in the U.S. General Services Administration during the Clinton Administration and as Vice President for People and Strategy at Rowe Furniture.
Johnson also currently serves on the Board of Directors of Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA), the Advisory Council of the US-China Education Trust, and is a former board member of the Communications Consortium Media Center, the Alliance for International Educational and Cultural Exchange, AFS-USA, AFS Intercultural Programs, the World Press Institute, and the National Association of Women Business Owners. In 1988, she was awarded the Royal Order of the Polar Star by the Kingdom of Sweden.

Jeanie Milbauer
Co-Founder, Momentum

Jeanie Milbauer
Co-Founder, Momentum
Jeanie is a serial entrepreneur for issues related to women and girls. Along with her business ventures, including a soon to be launched new endeavor, Jeanie has invested in women as a trustee of the Tikkun Olam Women’s Foundation, a women's impact fund investing in social change for women and girls. She helped launch Aura, a Washington, D.C. Women’s networking group that connects Jewish women professionals to their heritage and to each other, and she is part of launching the WIN, the new Women’s Impact Network of JWI. Jeanie sits on the board of trustees of Hillel at Cornell and is an active participant at the University in other capacities, as well as Maccabi, USA and Women's Philanthropy at the Federation of Greater Washington. She has served as trustee or advisor of a number of community-based organizations with national reach as well as school board service.

ANISA S. TOOTLA
Executive Director, American Health Information Management Association Foundation

ANISA S. TOOTLA
Executive Director, American Health Information Management Association Foundation
Most recently, Anisa served as the Chief Operating Officer of the League of Women Voters (LWV). LWV is a non-partisan membership organization committed to the informed and active participation of individuals in government, increasing the understanding of major public policy issues, and influencing public policy through education and advocacy. As COO, Anisa directed strategic planning, finance, human resources, compliance, risk management, information technology, member services, and administrative functions of both the League of Women Voters of the United States and its affiliate, The League of Women Voters Education Fund. Anisa also served as interim CEO in 2018, working closely with the boards of directors in advancing the organization’s modernization initiatives and providing stability and support to staff through change.
Before joining the League in 2014, Anisa spent twelve years at AARP Foundation in a variety of roles. As Vice President of Programs, she led the creation and development of AARP’s work on hunger and its signature "Drive to End Hunger" cause marketing campaign, aimed at solving the issue of senior hunger in America. Prior to her VP role, Anisa served as Senior Director of Strategy and Operations, where she worked with the President of AARP Foundation in the strategic repositioning of the organization. This included identification, development, and implementation of the organization’s new vision, mission, and social impact areas.
Anisa’s global view and deep appreciation of other cultures and points of view has influenced her professional journey. Her outlook is shaped by her birthplace and roots in South Africa, as a young exchange student through Youth for Understanding in Japan, extensive travel, and notably her experience as a Peace Corps volunteer in Nigeria focused on health information systems. Anisa is a graduate of DePaul and Johns Hopkins Universities and holds a bachelor's degree in international studies and a master's degree in business administration.
Advisory Council
Kakenya’s Dream partners with a diverse group of recognized experts and innovative thought leaders to help us best support the girls and young women in our programs. We look to our Advisory Council to offer advice on issues affecting our community and technical expertise on nonprofit management and/or program design and delivery.
Erika Asikoye
Director of Freedom School of Literacy Academy, The Center for Black Educator Development
LaNitra M. Berger
Senior Director of the Office of Fellowships and Associate Director of the African and African American Studies Program, George Mason University
Wendell Chambliss
Vice President and Deputy General Counsel, Freddie Mac
Kathryn Graves
Senior Associate Dean for Development and External Relations, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University
Shira Kilcoyne
Director, Government Affairs, Emerging Markets & Asia Pacific, GlaxoSmithKline
Shehzad Lokhandwalla
Co-Founder and CTO, OKO
Samuel Martinez
Founder and Managing Director of CFO + Accounting Outsourcing Solutions LLC
Dr. Shannon Marquez
Dean of Global Engagement and Director of the Center for Undergraduate Global Engagement (UGE), Columbia University
Judith Fiske Moak
Former Nonprofit Leader and Founder, Complete Circle Consulting (retired)
Kevin Moak
Former Chairman and Chief Executive, Gibbs & Cox (retired)
Travis Ning
U.S. Executive Director, MAIA Impact
Kristin Stubbins
Senior Partner at PwC & Primary LBW Trust Contact
Elizabeth A. (Betsy) Tyson
Former Vice President for Government Affairs, Emerging Markets and Asia Pacific, GlaxoSmithKline (retired)
David Vaux
Chairman, Learning for a Better World (LBW) Trust
Lee Wood
Former Nonprofit Consultant, Strategies for Growth (retired)