Our Board
Keaira Caldwell-Anderson, Licensed Realtor
Keaira is a member of the National Association of Realtors. She studied at the University of Missouri-Kansas City, where she received a Bachelor’s of Arts in Criminal Justice & Criminology and a second BA in English – Creative Writing. With a passion to invest in herself as a means of better serving others, Keaira acquired her Masters of Social Work with an emphasis on Social Economic Development from Washington University in St. Louis. She is a graduate of the St. Louis Regional Chamber’s St. Louis Business Diversity Initiative Fellows Program.
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.
Justin Idleburg, Community Catalyst of Equity & Innovation, Idleburg Consultants; Board Member, Forward Through Ferguson
Justin Idleburg is a racial equity strategist who works with governmental leaders and grassroots, faith-based nonprofit organizations. He contributes guidance in health, education, workforce development, and equitable community development to create an understanding of what a racial equity lens applied looks like on the journey to dismantling disparities.
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.
Travis Sheridan, Chief Community Officer, Wexford Science &
Technology
In his work, Travis expresses his passion for entrepreneurship as a driver for economic development and using data to make informed business decisions. He was formerly President of Venture Café Global Institute where he was responsible for growth and expansion of the organization. Sheridan was also the founding Executive Director of Venture Café St. Louis-the first expansion city outside of Cambridge, MA. Travis grew the St. Louis program to become one of the largest weekly events for innovators and entrepreneurs in the U.S.
Shilpa Thornton, MD, Retired Physician
Shilpa is an ophthalmologist who practiced in the St Louis area for over 20 years. She was also an instructor at Washington University’s Department of Ophthalmology, where she taught cataract surgery. Shilpa also led the Ophthalmology division at SSM Health St Mary’s Hospital. Now retired from private practice, Shilpa focuses uses her skills and experience to provide access to medical care in underserved communities. She travels annually to Kenya and Tanzania, performing cataract surgery and offering ophthalmologic services to patients in those countries.
Hank Webber, Principal, Urban Impact Advisors
Hank is a nationally recognized higher education and community and economic development leader. From 2008 to 2021, Hank was Executive Vice Chancellor at Washington University in St. Louis. He served as Chair of the Board of Directors of the Cortex Innovation Community; during his tenure Cortex grew from 1,000 jobs and under 100 companies to 6,200 jobs and over 425 companies. He teaches courses in American public policy, community development, American cities and sustainable urbanism and writes widely on segregation, inclusive urban development, and the role of anchor institutions in American cities.
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.