Board of Directors

Our amazing Board of Directors keeps us focused on our mission to create playspaces through the leadership and participation of communities.

Board members

Board member profiles

Ms. Michele Atkins
President and CEO
Heritage Community Initiatives
Braddock, Pennsylvania
Board member since 2007

Michele R. Atkins is President & CEO of Heritage Community Initiatives, a not-for-profit organization whose mission is to ensure adequate resources to build sustainable families in the Mon Valley of western Pennsylvania. Ms. Atkins has worked for numerous not-for-profit organizations, interfacing with boards of directors, supervising staff in multiple locations, creating and implementing strategic and business plans, creating and implementing a variety of national fundraising strategies and campaigns and representing organizations to the media. Ms. Atkins earned a B.A. from Carlow College and has received many honors and awards including Carlow College Woman of Spirit, Carlow College Distinguished Alumnae Award, Joseph Gilbert Award for Excellence in Management, Vectors Pittsburgh Woman of the Year in Community Service, Variety Club Sweetheart Award, Ronald McDonald Children's Charities of Tri-Ad-Mac Big MAC Award, and the Humanitarian Award from the Fraternal Societies of Greater Pittsburgh.

Mr. Tony Bucci
Chairman & CEO
MARC
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Board member since 2008

Tony Bucci is a marketing communications professional with 40 years experience. He began his career at MARC USA and moved steadily up the ranks to be named Chairman in 1997. Under his helm, MARC USA has become one of the nation's leading independent advertising agencies. Tony is widely recognized for his philanthropic efforts and serves on the boards of Girls Inc., KaBOOM!, the Civic Light Opera and the Manchester Craftsmen's Guild. He is past national Chairman and Emeritus Member of the Board of the Make-A-Wish Foundation of America,currently serves on the National Advisory Council, and is an Emeritus Member of Duquesne University. A graduate of Duquesne University, Tony and his wife Linda reside in Pittsburgh.

Mr. Michael Deich
Director of Policy and Government Affairs
Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
Washington, DC
Board member since 2010

Michael Deich, director of policy and government affairs, coordinates policy and advocacy efforts on behalf of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation's three program areas—Global Health, Global Development, and United States. He also oversees efforts in support of the philanthropic sector. Prior to joining the foundation in 2007, Deich was managing director of the Hamilton Project at the Brookings Institution. Deich also has served as the associate director for general government and finance within the Office of Management and Budget, as special assistant to the president for economic policy, and as senior director of the National Economic Council. Deich holds a doctorate in economics from the University of Michigan and a bachelor's degree in economics from the University of California at Berkeley.

Mr. Robert DeMartini
Chief Executive Officer
New Balance Athletic Shoes
Boston, Massachusetts
Board member since 2008

Rob DeMartini is the President and CEO of New Balance Athletic Shoe, Inc. with 18+ years of experience in consumer products. His career includes Procter & Gamble, Gillette and Tyson Foods. Currently Rob sits on the Board of Directors at Welch's; AAFA and KaBOOM!. Most recently Rob was awarded the 2011 Most Playful CEO in America by Playworks Inc. Rob is a graduate of San Diego State University and resides in Boston with his wife, Nancy.

Mr. Richard Devaney
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
Crossbeam Capital
Bethesda, Maryland
Board member since 2009

Mr. Devaney has over 27 years of institutional housing finance experience and presently serves as the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Crossbeam Holdings. Mr. Devaney was the initial founder of Crossbeam Capital, an institutional real estate investment advisor, and launched its first private equity real estate investment fund, Workforce Housing I – 2007, LP, capitalized at approximately $150 million. In 2010, Mr. Devaney created Crossbeam Holdings in a merger with Concierge Asset Management Company, which provides asset, property and construction management services nationally. Collectively, Crossbeams Holdings and its subsidiaries, with 200 full time employees, own or manage over 25 apartment communities in 9 states providing housing to tens of thousands of residents. Mr. Devaney is married, lives in Washington, DC and is the proud father of two young children. Mr. Devaney holds a BA degree from Belmont Abbey College with majors in Economics and Business Administration.

Mr. Timothy M. Fesenmyer
Counsel
Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP
New York, New York
Board member since 2010

Timothy M. Fesenmyer is a corporate attorney at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP concentrating primarily in mergers and acquisitions, securities law and general corporate law. He has significant experience in sophisticated corporate transactions in a wide variety of industries, including consumer products, financial services, media and entertainment, telecommunications, food and beverage, professional sports, building products, insurance, retail and technology. Mr. Fesenmyer also advises clients in connection with other non-transactional corporate, securities and business-related matters, including SEC reporting obligations and disclosure issues, corporate governance, and stockholder and compliance matters. Since 2008, Mr. Fesenmyer, together with several of his colleagues, has provided pro bono legal services to KaBOOM!. Mr. Fesenmyer has a B.A. from Miami University and an M.P.A. andJ.D. from the University of Pittsburgh. He resides in Manhattan with his wife and their two children.

Mr. Darell Hammond
Co-Founder and Chief Executive of Play
KaBOOM!
Washington, DC
Ex-officio board member since 1996

Darell Hammond is the Founder and CEO of KaBOOM!, a not-for-profit based in Washington, DC dedicated to saving play by making sure there is a great place to play within walking distance of every child in America. KaBOOM! works with communities and corporations to build playgrounds in all 50 states where there are none. To help start the conversation and educate Americans about the importance of play in children's lives, Hammond wrote KaBOOM!: How One Man Built a Movement to Save Play (Rodale, April 2011). Founded out of Hammond's apartment in 1996, KaBOOM! has raised $200 million, rallied a million volunteers, led the hands-on construction of 2,000 playgrounds, and inspired a movement for the child's right to play. Hammond lives in Washington, DC with his wife Kate Becker.

Mr. Andrew Harrs
Regional Industry Leader
Technology Media & Telecommunications
Deloitte & Touche
Washington, DC
Board member since 2006

Mr. Harrs is a principal at Deloitte Financial Advisory Services LLP ("Deloitte FAS") where he leads the Deloitte FAS Federal Practice. He has over 20 years of experience providing a wide range of financial and business operational transaction and due diligence support to financial and strategic buyers. He also has several years of large program management office experience with commercial and federal government clients and served as a lead manager of the Program Management Office (PMO) in the bankruptcy and reorganization of WorldCom. He has an MBA from The George Washington University and a BS from Cornell.

Mr. Richard Kelson
New York, NY
Board member since 2008
Board Chair

Richard B. Kelson is a private equity investor and advisor to middle-market companies. He is the Chairman and CEO of ServCo, LLC, a strategic sourcing and supply chain management company. He retired from Alcoa, Inc. in 2006 as Chairman's Counsel. He also served as Alcoa's Executive Vice President and CFO for nearly a decade. Prior to that, he was Alcoa, Inc.'s Executive Vice President – Environment, Health and Safety and General Counsel. He currently serves as a member of the Board of Directors of MeadWestvaco Corporation, PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. and Commercial Metals Corporation. He was a member of the Board of Trustees at Carnegie Mellon University from 2000 to 2006 and serves on the board of the University of Pittsburgh Law School Board of Visitors. Mr. Kelson graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a bachelor's degree in political science and obtained a Juris Doctor degree in law from the University of Pittsburgh.

Mr. Bill Novelli
Distinguished Professor of the Practice
Georgetown University McDonough School of Business
Washington, DC
Board member since 2010

Bill Novelli is a professor in the McDonough School of Business at Georgetown University. He teaches in the MBA program and leads the Global Social EnterpriseInitiative for the School. Previously, he was CEO of AARP, President of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, EVP of CARE and President of Porter Novelli, now one of the world's largest public relations firms. He holds a B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania and an M.A. from Penn's Annenberg School for Communication, and pursued doctoral studies at New York University. He taught marketing management for 10 years in the University of Maryland's M.B.A. program and also taught health communications there.

Ms. Kimberley Rudd
Franchisee
Curves International Inc.
Chicago, Illinois
Board member since 2007

Kimberley Evans Rudd is a marketing communications professional with 20 years of experience in corporate, non-profit and government sectors. Her career includes tenures at Burrell Public Relations, the Chicago Park District, and KaBOOM!, a national non-profit organization. Currently, Kimberley is a multi-unit franchisee with Curves International, Inc., the nation's largest women's fitness business. She also is a communications manager for Communities In Schools of Chicago, a non-profit, dropout prevention organization, and serves on the board of the Curves Chicagoland Co-op, a trade association of Curves franchisees. Kimberley is a graduate of Northwestern's Medill School of Journalism and resides on Chicago's southside with her husband, David, and their two children.

Mr. George Sherman
Senior Vice President, Services Capabilities
Best Buy
Richfield, Minnesota
Board member since 2007

George Sherman is senior vice president of services at Best Buy, a multinational retailer of technology and entertainment products and services. Sherman oversees the Geek Squad services brand. Prior to joining Best Buy, Sherman spent 15 years with Target Corporation and 5 years with Home Depot in Atlanta, where he held positions of senior vice president of operations and home services division president. Sherman received his BA from St. Michaels College in Vermont, and later obtained his MS from Central Michigan. He also served as an officer in the Air Force for 6 years. In his spare time, he enjoys staying active by golfing, skiing and running, in addition to traveling with his wife Laura and two children, Ashley, 15, and Evan, 10.

Mr. Andy Stefanovich
Chief Curator and Provocateur
Prophet
Richmond, VA
Board member since 2010

Chief Curator and Provocateur at Prophet, Andy has earned a reputation as one of the most disruptive and effective advisors in business. He has spent the past 20 years helping companies like GE, General Mills, Proctor & Gamble, The United States Olympic Committee, and the Coca Cola Company drive innovation from the inside out -- enriching their people and driving marketplace growth. Andy's true passion lies in guiding clients through the powerful evolution from inspiration to creativity to innovation. He teaches practical skills, leadership behaviors, and specific processes for developing and implementing ideas at work. Andy's first book, Look at More: A Proven Approach to Innovation, Growth and Change was released in April 2011.

Mr. Mike Steib
CEO
Vente-Privee USA
New York, NY
Board member since 2011

Mike is the CEO of Vente-Privee USA, an e-commerce venture backed by American Express & Vente-Privee, the world’s largest private sale site. Mike joined in August 2011 after 4 ½ exciting years building Google TV Adsad helping to grow Google Mobile Ads& YouTube’s advertising business. Previously, Mike was the General Manager of Strategic Ventures at NBC Universal, co-led NBC Weather Plus, and served as vice president in the NBC Corporate Development group.  In 2000, Mike worked on the incubation of new media businesses for Walker Digital, LLC.  He spent the two prior years as a management consultant with McKinsey & Company.

Mike was honored as one of Crain’s New York 40 Under 40professionals in 2008. He was also recognized as one of TV Week’s 2008 “Twelve to Watch”, was selected for the Multichannel News “40 Under 40” list in 2007, and was chosen for TV Week’s “Hot List” in 2006.  He is a named inventor of three digital media patents. Mike serves as a Board of Director for nonprofits KaBOOM! & Literacy Partners.  He is a member of the Milken Institute Young Leaders Circle, graduated from UPenn, and lives in Manhattan with his awesome wife and their little boy.

Mr. Julius Walls, Jr.
Chief of Staff
Greater Centennial AME Zion Church
Mount Vernon, New York
Board member since 2007

Julius Walls Jr. is Chief of Staff for Greater Centennial A.M.E. Zion Church, a 5000 member church, supporting the pastor in overseeing the staff of 24 ministers and 60+ ministries. Walls has worked in business, academia, and ministry serving as CEO of the Greyston Bakery, a $7 million social enterprise, as VP, Operations for a $23 million chocolate manufacturing company, and as an adjunct professor at the business graduate schools at NYU and BGI. He co-authored MISSION, INC., The Practitioners Guide to Social Enterprise, 2008. Born in NY, Walls attended college seminary before receiving his B.S. from Concordia. Walls serves on several local and national non-profit and government boards.