Career Expo – Spring 2022

Here’s a recap of this year’s Career Expo:

Conflict Resolution Panel

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Panel

Government, International Development & Humanitarian Assistance Panel

Human Rights Panel

Advocacy and Community Organizing Panel

Philanthropy & Impact Investing Panel


Schedule

12:00 - 1:00 pmConflict Resolution
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
Entrepreneurship, Startups, and B Corps
1:00 - 2:00 pmGovernment, International Development, and Humanitarian Assistance
Human Rights
2:00 - 3:00 pmAdvocacy and Community Organizing
Philanthropy and Fundraising

12:00 – 1:00 PM

Conflict Resolution

Rachelle Vertenten, Global Administration North America Area Leader in HR Services for IBM

In her current role, Rachelle is responsible for the executive administrative assistant support provided to IBM executives across North America. Currently, the organization includes approximately 400 professionals in the US and Canada – all supporting NA executives. Rachelle’s focus is on people operations and simplifying complex transformational goals to the assistant population to align them with IBM executives and with the company’s priorities and strategic direction.

Rachelle joined IBM in 2018. Her main interests include company culture, conflict management, and people operations. Prior to IBM, Rachelle was Chief of Staff for Columbia University Global Centers. Her work focused on communication, conflict management and company culture.

Zander Willoughby, Communications Officer for ConnexUs at Search for Common Ground

Zander is a peacebuilding advocate passionate about conflict resolution and sustainable futures from West Michigan, USA. He is formerly a SFCG Youth, Peace, and Security Advocacy Expert and a SFCG Global Youth Leadership Council member. He previously served as Program Manager for +Peace at the Alliance for Peacebuilding and as Peace Studies Coordinator for the Manchester University Peace Studies Institute & Program in Conflict Resolution in North Manchester, IN, USA, where he also served as a mediator, trainer, and board member for Education for Conflict Resolution. Zander attended Manchester University, where he holds a BA in Political Science & French and a minor in Peace Studies. He has prior experience studying international relations at SciencesPo Strasbourg, nonviolent civil resistance in Palestine, and crisis response in NE Nigeria. Zander is based in NE Washington, DC, and loves all things coffee, hockey, language learning, and foraging.  

Bridget Mundy, Program Coordinator at the Imagine Center for Conflict Transformation

Bridget Mundy is a 2021 graduate of the MAPJ program and is based in Tbilisi, Georgia. She currently works to co-develop and co-direct projects at the Imagine Center for Conflict Transformation in the South Caucasus. The Center’s projects include regional dialogues, education, analytic and multimedia journalism, and project management training.  

Philip Gamaghelyan, Kroc School Faculty Member & Co-Founder and Board Member of the Imagine Center for Conflict Transformation

Philip Gamaghelyan, PhD, is the author of Conflict Resolution Beyond the International Relations Paradigm: Evolving Designs as a Transformative Practice in Nagorno-Karabakh and Syria (2017). Gamaghelyan is also a conflict resolution scholar-practitioner, the co-founder and board member of the Imagine Center for Conflict Transformation, and the managing editor of the Caucasus Edition: Journal of Conflict Transformation.

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

Erwin de Leon, Chief Diversity Officer of Columbia University’s School of Professional Studies

Erwin de Leon is also a Lecturer in the Nonprofit Management Program, a Research Fellow at Knology, and a member of the Empire State Bioethics Consortium. His research and teaching interests include nonprofit organizations; diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA); organizational ethics; data and technology in civil society; and AAPI and immigrant communities. Prior to his current position, he was a Research Associate at Urban Institute’s Metropolitan Housing and Communities Policy Center and Center on Nonprofits and Philanthropy. He has also served in various organizations, including the Institute for Children, Poverty & Homelessness; The Aspen Institute; Center for Progressive Leadership; Human Rights Campaign; Episcopal Relief and Development; Educators for Social Responsibility; and the Metropolitan Museum of Manila. He was an executive committee member of the Filipino Veterans Recognition and Education Project, an organization that led the effort to secure the Congressional Gold Medal for Filipino-American WWII soldiers. Dr. de Leon received an Ph.D. in public and urban policy and an M.S. in nonprofit management from The New School. A native of the Philippines, he completed his B.S. in management engineering from the Ateneo de Manila University.

Mydashia Hough, Diversity & Inclusion Manager of The Henry Ford

Mydashia has a higher education and nonprofit background that shapes her approach to developing diversity and inclusion strategies and programming. Before entering the museum world, Mydashia worked in student affairs at Columbia University, where she co-founded the Exploratory Committee on Race and Identity at the School of Professional Studies, leading the charge for DEI programming and initiatives for the school. As a thought-leader in this space, Mydashia has presented at several regional and national conferences, sharing best practices and empowering other higher education professionals to explore race and identity and jumpstart their own departmental and campus initiatives. As a recent career changer, Mydashia now leads as Diversity & Inclusion Manager at The Henry Ford, where she’s developing long-term strategies to diversify their workforce and build on their existing commitment to becoming a more accessible, inclusive, and equitable institution.

Entrepreneurship, Startups, and B Corps

Kacie Brennell, Director of the Impact Lab at Mission Edge

Kacie helps early stage entrepreneurs design and execute sustainable revenue streams for their social impact businesses. She has worked in multiple industries including ecommerce, education, tech, and nonprofit. Her constantly winding career path led her to San Diego where she continues to discover her love for supporting entrepreneurs in their career and personal goals in any way she can.

Bilan Stribling, Advisory Associate at KPMG LLP

Throughout her professional journey, Bilan strived to make a positive impact in both the public and private sector through her thought leadership and bold engagement in negotiation strategy and conflict resolution. In March 2018 and 2019 she presented her research at the Annual Land and Poverty Conference at the World Bank in Washington, D.C. Her research explores the conditions of poverty and landlessness for internally displaced people in the Democratic Republic of Congo. In 2016, Stribling unveiled her research model which investigates the possible outcomes when making the first offer in a negotiation at the 6th International Bienniale Negotiation Conference in Paris. 

After completing a fellowship at the United Nations as a Development Associate, Stribling became interested in solving complex problems faced by financial institutions. For nearly five years, she worked at Bloomberg LP. as an Equity Specialist and Account Manager. Stribling held a Lecturer position at Columbia University where she taught a course on the Foundations of Conflict. Today, Stribling is passionate about using creative and unconventional approaches to solving major business problems and making an enterprise-wide impact.

Sienna George, Social Impact Strategist and Community Engagement Lead at goodbuy

Born and raised in Boise, Idaho, Sienna (she/her) graduated with her master’s degree in Social Innovation from the University of San Diego’s Kroc School for Peace and Justice Studies in 2020. Since then, Sienna has worked for Boise-based B Corp, Oliver Russell, where she designed and delivered educational curriculum as a part-time university adjunct, and led experiences to support individual and collective capacity for social impact and entrepreneurship. Currently Sienna serves as the Social Impact Strategist and Community Engagement Lead at goodbuy: the easy button for conscious shopping. goodbuy is a browser extension and mobile-friendly small business search engine that redistributes opportunity to 183,000+ small businesses by making shopping with small, values-aligned businesses accessible and easy at the moment of search. 

1:00 – 2:00 PM

Government, International Development, and Humanitarian Assistance

John Patterson, Regional Humanitarian Advisor at USAID – Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance

John is BHA’s lead for all disaster response and risk reduction programming in Easter Europe and Israel/West Bank Gaza. In 9 years with USAID John has deployed to over 25 different countries inducing the Philippines for Typhoon Haiyan in 2013, Liberia for the West Africa Ebola Outbreak in 2014, Haiti for Hurricane Matthew in 2016, Colombia for the Venezuela regional crisis in 2018, Aremaina for the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict of 2020 and is currently in Moldova responding to humanitarian needs generated by the war in Ukraine. From 2004 to 2011, he was a Commissioned Officer in the United States Navy, serving on USS Rentz (FFG-46), USS Mobile Bay (CG-53) and conducted counter drug operations in Central America and counter terror operations in the South Pacific and Middle East. John received his MA in Peace and Justice Studies from the Joan B. Kroc School of Peace Studies at the University of San Diego in January of 2013 and his BS in English Literature from the United States Naval Academy in May of 2004.

Joel Day, Research Fellow at the University of Southern California’s Center on Public Diplomacy

Dr. Joel Day is also a Lecturer for the School of Global Policy and Strategy at the University of California San Diego. He received his Ph.D. in International Affairs from the Josef Korbel School of International Studies at the University of Denver. In addition to his academic work, Day has served as Senior Advisor for Covid19 Response and Recovery for the City of San Diego. department director, and advisor on issues of violent extremism and targeted violence, acting as the City’s representative to the Strong Cities Network and other city to city diplomatic networks. He is currently a candidate for San Diego City Council. 

Christina Burhans, Supervising Investigator with the San Diego County District Attorney’s Office

Christina Burhans has over twenty-five years of experience working in public safety. In her current role, she is responsible for managing, supervising, and coordinating the activities of an investigative unit in the Bureau of Investigations, which is the law enforcement arm of the District Attorney’s office. Christina is currently assigned to the South Bay branch which serves the communities of Chula Vista, National City, Imperial Beach, and parts of the City of San Diego and the U.S. Border with Mexico. Christina, and her team, work in collaboration with lawyers, paralegals, and victim advocates on identifying how best to protect and serve the victims of San Diego County. 

Prior to employment at the DA’s office, Christina worked for the San Diego Police Department.  She worked in a variety of assignments, including ‘patrol’ where she responded to calls for police service; ‘field training’ which entailed mentoring newly assigned officers in their field training; ‘community relations’ where she worked with community groups on pressing community issues and lastly, as a police detective, conducting criminal investigations for a variety of crimes. 

Christina received her M.A. in Peace and Justice Studies from the Joan B. Kroc School of Peace Studies at the University of San Diego and has an Executive Certificate in Public Policy from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. 

William Warshauer, President and CEO of TechnoServe

William Warshauer is the president and CEO of TechnoServe, a nonprofit that harnesses the power of the private sector to help hardworking people in the developing world lift themselves out of poverty.  Since joining TechnoServe in 2014, Will has led the organization to grow its impact to historic heights and to achieve a #1 ranking in charities fighting poverty, as assessed by an independent ratings agency. 

Will brings more than 30 years of experience in international development and the private sector to his position. He launched his career as a Peace Corps volunteer in Sierra Leone and has since worked in over 40 developing countries. Prior to joining TechnoServe, Will served as chief operating officer of Pact and as president of the Pact Global Microfinance Fund, which made over $120 million in loans to poor rural women in 2013. Previously, Will served as executive vice president for health and development solutions with Voxiva Inc., which was an early pioneer in developing mobile phone-based health information systems. As a former executive vice president at PSI, he led initiatives such as the development of the organization’s global strategic plan and oversaw a $90 million portfolio of social marketing health programs in Africa.

Human Rights

Kathyann Powell, CEO and Founder of Saving Jane

Kathyann Powell migrated to the US from Barbados with her mother in 1986 and was interested in fashion from an early age, eventually attending FIT and obtaining a merchandising degree. She then parlayed that experience into a 14-year career in luxury retail sales which she found to be lucrative, but unfulfilling in spite of winning accolades from her management team and national recognition, while being featured in company magazines.

In 2017, she attended a leadership training program and chose to retire from fashion and sales and use her new freedom to explore all the things she never had time to do. She became a gourmet chef, took up Pilates and yoga and moved to Las Vegas to enjoy the weather. About three months later, in late February of 2018, she had an epiphany and chose to dedicate her life to helping survivors of human trafficking. She founded Saving Jane in March of 2018. Today she spends her time creating new ways to address the three pillars of Saving Jane: Awareness, Prevention and the Aftercare of survivors.

Andrew Worth, Community Engagement at SURVIVORS of Torture, International

Andrew is the Community Engagement Coordinator at Survivors of Torture, International (SURVIVORS), a nonprofit dedicated to caring for survivors of politically motivated torture and their families who live in San Diego County. Prior to working with SURVIVORS, he lived in Estonia for five years and worked as an international business development director in a startup. Andrew earned his BA in International Security and Conflict Resolution from San Diego State University and a MA in European Union – Russia Studies from the University of Tartu, Estonia

2:00 – 3:00 PM

Advocacy and Community Organizing 

Eryn Nieves, Civic Engagement Program Director

Eryn Nieves was born and raised in Los Angeles, but has always had deep roots in San Diego. She began her journey at Alliance San Diego when she was a freshman in College, participating in her first voter outreach program. As a canvasser for Alliance San Diego, she became a vital part in empowering voters to become advocates for change in the community. Her leadership and determination contribute to her role. As a Black woman, who is first generation American born to an immigrant Mother, she carries her culture proudly and allows this to guide her commitment to social change. Outside of developing community leaders, she enjoys the company of her family and exploring different eateries in San Diego.

Nancy Cruz, Director, Organizing Environmental Health Coalition

Nancy Cruz was born and raised in a working-class immigrant household in San Diego. She received her bachelor’s degree in 2012 from UCLA with a double major in Sociology and Chicana/o Studies and a minor in Labor and Workplace Studies. In 2021, she joined EHC as the Organizing Director with over 15 years of community organizing and over a decade of labor organizing experience. Through her community engagement, she has successfully helped remove shooting ranges installed by JROTC programs from schools in the San Diego Unified School District, has brought international artists to San Diego and successfully fought to stop deportations of detained migrants at the local and statewide level. As a labor organizer, she has fought to win dignity and justice for Janitorial Workers in San Diego, mobilized workers to organize and take direct action to win local initiatives to raise the minimum wage in San Diego and ensure that all workers in California are able to accrue sick time, led work that realized significant contract improvements for postdocs in the UC system, and helped establish the first Academic Researcher union. Nancy, currently, serves as an Advisory Board Member of CPI’s program Students for Economic Justice and as Board Member of Project YANO.

Juan Soto, Organizing Director with Justice Overcoming Boundaries & Gamaliel

Juan F. Soto is the Executive Director of Gamaliel of Metro Chicago, Gamaliel of Illinois and Gamaliel Network’s Director of the Civil Rights for Immigrant Department. Juan is also a senior trainer for the Gamaliel Network and mentors and trains organizers at the local and national level. He oversees Fiesta del Sol, the largest four day Mexican cultural event that draws in over 1.3 million people annually.

Philanthropy and Fundraising

Monica Brown, Client Advisor with Moore Philanthropy

Monica Brown has over 15 years of experience in philanthropy, cultivating her profound expertise in strategy development across individual and major giving, corporate and foundation relations, donor engagement, and board development.

She has devoted her career to some of New York City’s most venerable civic, healthcare, and educational institutions, including Columbia University, where she currently serves as an associate faculty member in the Masters Nonprofit Management program. Previously, she served as Managing Director of Development for Educators for Excellence-NY, a teacher-led, student-focused policy and advocacy organization, where she led development growth and strategy focusing on private philanthropic investment. 

Nelli Garton, CEO, Co-Founder of Tablecloth, Inc.

Nelli Garton, Ph.D. is an accomplished strategist, problem-solver, and change agent. Dr. Garton is the CEO and co-founder of Tablecloth Inc., a technology company that provides a software platform and services to help investors understand their impact on people, communities and the planet. The through-line of her career has been to strengthen the organizations and ensure that resources flow to what works.

As an accomplished academic, she has extensive skills in quantitative and qualitative data and has always been more interested in how they were used than simply collecting them. In the past she has consulted to a variety of clients on board development, evaluation and impact, program planning and assessment, policy analysis, organizational development and fundraising. Previously, she was a Senior Principal at LeSar Development Consultants, Partner in Keel Asset Management, a Vice President at the Jacobs Center for Neighborhood Innovation, and Senior Researcher and Lecturer at the Sillerman Center for the Advancement of Philanthropy at Brandeis University. She is on the executive committee of the Wilson Foundation and leads their investment committee, she co-founded and currently chairs the San Diego Impact Investor Network, is the secretary for the board of directors of San Diego Grantmakers.