Our Board
Maxine Clark, Chief Inspirator of the Delmar DivINe
Maxine is one of the true innovators in the retail industry. During her career, her ability to spot emerging retail and merchandising trends and her insight into the desires of the American consumer have generated growth for retail leaders, including department store, discount and specialty stores. In 1997, she founded Build-A-Bear Workshop®, a teddy-bear themed retail-entertainment experience. Today there are more than 500 Build-A-Bear Workshop stores worldwide. In June 2013, Maxine stepped down from her Chief Executive Bear role to apply her entrepreneurial skills to her passion for improving K-12 public education and encouraging and investing in women and minority entrepreneurs.
Jaime Haro, Senior Director for Corporate Strategy and Risk Management, Ameren Missouri
Jaime Haro is an Industrial Engineer with an MBA from Tulane University. For Ameren, he brings a wealth of expertise to the role of head of Corporate Strategy and Enterprise Risk Management. Having previously led the energy trading group, Jaime now plays a pivotal role in the company’s strategic planning, measuring and mitigating company-wide risks. His responsibilities extend to providing insightful reports to the Board of Directors, and contributing to the long-term success and resilience of the organization.
Mary M. McKay, Ph.D., Vice Provost for Interdisciplinary Initiatives
at Washington University in St. Louis
Dr. McKay joined Washington University in St. Louis as dean of the Brown School in 2016, continuing the School’s legacy of creating vital knowledge, initiating social change, and preparing leaders to address social and health challenges both locally and globally. Dr. McKay was subsequently appointed to the Provost’s office, where she enhances interdisciplinary research and builds collaborations to ensure the successful implementation of the university’s strategic plan.
April Mickens Jolly, Principal, Jolly Advisory Consulting
April Mickens Jolly founded Jolly Advisory Consulting as a small but mighty boutique firm that builds equity and social impact strategies while coaching the leaders that advance them. As Principal and lead consultant, April engages with partners to provide expertise, guidance, and support on the journey from strategy to action to impact.
Sandra Moore, Managing Director, Advantage Capital
With over three decades of experience in urban planning, economic development and community revitalization efforts, Sandra M. Moore joins the Advantage Capital team as chief impact officer to guide the design of our investments and investment strategies to maximize community impact, to assist our investment team in growing and sharing our community impact results and to also study our results to ensure we are producing as we hope and project.
Jajuana Patrick, Senior Director, Organizational Development & Talent
Management, Ascension Health
Jajuana is a data-centric, talent management executive with over 20 years of leadership experience. She is an influential communicator and recognized as a thought leader and director of transformation who champions diversity, equity, and inclusion while fostering a positive culture centered on employee recognition, satisfaction, and retention. Jajuana brings broad and deep experience in leadership development, organizational strategies, educational programming at a multinational level. She obtained her Bachelor of Science in Business Management at National Louis University and her Master of Business Administration from Fontbonne University.
Geetha Rao Sant, JD, Adjunct Professor, School of Law, Washington
University in St. Louis
Geetha Sant teaches various courses at Washington University School of Law including Nonprofit Planning & Drafting, Entrepreneurship Law, and Employment Law. Most recently, she was Senior Lecturer in Law and the Director of the Entrepreneurship Clinic at the Law School. Previously, Geetha was in private practice, where she provided legal services to nonprofit and for-profit clients of varying sizes—from entrepreneurial startups to well-established Fortune 50 companies and national nonprofit organizations—in governance and compliance matters and a wide variety of corporate transactional matters. Geetha serves as an advisor to nonprofit organizations throughout the United States and is an active volunteer who has served as chair and in various other capacities on the boards of numerous educational, arts, and human services nonprofits.
Cynthia Williams, Assistant Dean of Community Partnerships, Brown
School at Washington University in St. Louis
As assistant dean for Community Partnerships and co-chair of the Steering Committee for Community-Based Partnerships, Cynthia co-leads efforts to advance the Brown School’s mission to partner with organizations and communities in the School’s priority areas, to improve the quality of service to community members and enhance opportunities through use of best evidence. She works to advance a community-based partnership model in St. Louis and the surrounding community to transform and increase community participation at the Brown School through research, teaching, and volunteerism.
Amy Kweskin, Senior Executive & Board-Level Leader
Amy Kweskin spent nearly 30 years at Washington University in St. Louis, culminating as Executive Vice Chancellor for Finance and CFO, where she led all institutional finance functions, strengthened financial resilience, and advanced transformational initiatives including a need-blind, no-loan admissions funding model, a university-wide ERP overhaul and oversaw more than $3 billion in bond financings. Amy served on the board with the Jewish Federation of St. Louis, Cortex Innovation Community, and the International Women’s Forum – Missouri.
Roy Whitley, President and CEO, Rx Outreach
Roy J. Whitley is the President and CEO of Rx Outreach, where he leads efforts to expand access to affordable medications for people underserved by the healthcare system in communities nationwide. Under his leadership, the organization has launched the Fill the Gap Prescription Assistance Program, ensuring life-saving medications reach those who need them most. Roy serves on the Boards of the Humane Society of Missouri and Believe Academy. Roy’s strategic vision, financial expertise, and commitment to social impact continue to drive innovation and meaningful change in healthcare and beyond.
Shelby Shagrin, Managing Director and Head of Investment Banking, Benjamin F. Edwards
Shelby’s career encompasses banking at Continental Bank in Chicago; investment banking, specializing in mergers and acquisitions at A.G. Edwards & Sons and vice president of Finance and Planning at a public company. Shelby is the founder and past president of the Spirit of St. Louis Women’s Fund (SOS), and currently on the board and the Chairperson of the Advisory Council. Since its founding in 2006, SOS has delivered almost $4 million in focused and informed grants to more than 100 small nonprofits. Shelby holds an MBA from Olin School of Business at Washington University, and a BA from the University of Pennsylvania
Brian Pratt, Principal, AHM Group
Brian founded Ballast in 2020 and serves as Managing Director to lead brokerage and development consulting practice areas. With prior leadership positions at Green Street Real Estate Ventures LLC, Deloitte, KPMG and PGAV Planners, Brian’s career spans urban planning, including market feasibility, entitlements, public-private financing, incentives, asset management and business operations. Brian has negotiated tax credit programs for a diverse portfolio of businesses and industries nationwide and analyzed real estate development and business investment projects on behalf of 150 municipal, county and state organizations.
Stephen Matic, Chief Strategy Officer, Module Building Systems
Stephen is focused on making housing more attainable and revitalizing neighborhoods in the city of St Louis. Stephen volunteers on the Finance Committee of COCA, and the Eagle Scout Committee of the troop in Clayton where his three kids are perfecting the art of playing with matches. Born and raised in Chicagoland, Stephen studied English and Journalism at Northwestern University and is currently getting his Executive MBA at Olin Business School, Washington University.