Board Members - SICDA - Social Integration and Community Development Association

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BOARD OF DIRECTORS	PROGRAM COUNCIL
Margot Gotzmann, President & Member of the Board Dr. Margot Gotzmann is a social activist, consultant, scholar and manager. Her fields are: economic/social/human development, social security systems, management, intercultural management, multiculturalism and history of ideas. In the recent past she collaborated with UNDP, European Union, Asia-Europe Foundation, the Council of Europe, governmental/scientific/non-profit institutions of European Union She was main organizer and keynote speaker at international conference series on human development and multicultural dialog. She was an adviser to CEO’s of banks and large businesses and governments and for many years served as a CEO for businesses and governmental agencies in the area of social security systems and was an initiator, founder and president of several non-profit organizations in the field. She is also a co-author of enactment of social security acts in Europe and pension program reforms. She was founder and president of school of management, and lecturer in social security systems’ management & financing, social security reforms, pension programs; economic, social, human and cultural development, history of ideas and heuristics. She holds a Master’s degree in Economics, and a Doctoral degree in the history of socio-economic development. Anthony J. Spencer, Vice President & Member of the Board Better known as Tony to his friends, is currently employed with the City of Annapolis as Coordinator of Human Services for the Mayor’ office. In June 97, he graduated Magna Cum Laude from Sojourner/Douglass College, Baltimore, Maryland, where he majored in Administration/Management and served as Vice President of his senior class. After 23 years of distinguished public safety service, Spencer retired from the Annapolis Fire Department, in December 97 and joined ranks with the Maryland Fire and Rescue Institute (MFRI) at the University of Maryland, in College Park, Maryland as a Faculty/Lecturer: Industrial Training Specialist. Tony is also pursuing his Master's Degree in Public Administration/Human Resources Development Sequence, at Bowie State University, Bowie, Maryland. From August 1999 to June 2004, Spencer was appointed to Anne Arundel County School Board. He is still a member of the Maryland Caucus for Black School Board Members. July 2002, Mayor Ellen O. Moyer assigned Tony as the Coordinator of Community and Social Programs. In this capacity, Spencer managed community grants, and served as liaison to community groups seeking various grants. Representing the City of Annapolis, in that effort, Spencer partnered with community organizations. Along with his daily routine, he represented Mayor Ellen O. Moyer at various functions. Consultant and Trainer: Coordinating government and private sector services to meet community and individual needs. Community Involvement: Presently: Represents the Annapolis Fire Department on the Martin Luther King, Jr. Prayer Breakfast Committee, director on the Board of Advisory for BB&T Bank; Formerly: member of the Annapolis Rotary Club and a Paul Harris Fellow, member of the Boys and Girls Club of Annapolis and Anne Arundel County board of directors, liaison to the City of Annapolis Commission on Aging and Mayor Moyer’s Education Advisory Committee, member of the Anne Arundel Community College's Advisory Board of Diversity, president of the Sojourner-Douglass College Alumni Association for the Southern Maryland Annapolis campus, vice president of the Anne Arundel County Public School Board, served on the Scholarship for Scholars committee, secretary and treasurer of the Maryland Association of Boards of Education, vice president and president of the Annapolis Community Partnership (formerly the Alliance for a Drug-free Annapolis), member of the Volunteer Center of Anne Arundel County, a member of the Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts Board of Directors, chaired the 21st Century Community Learning Center's Citizens Advisory Committee for four Annapolis area after-school programs, chaired the Alumni Association for Leadership Anne Arundel and served on their Board of Directors, president of the Frontiers International Annapolis Chapter, member of the Maryland State Arts Council's Advisory Panel, Kunta Kinte Heritage Festival Committee, member on the Board of Directors for Hospice of the Chesapeake, a member on the Maryland Fire and Rescue Institute’s Committee for Maryland’s Fallen Firefighter Memorial, trustee on The Labrano Family Scholarship Foundation, Board of Directors and chair of the Diversity Committee for the Annapolis and Anne Arundel County Chamber of Commerce, and member of the Cultural Arts Foundation of Anne Arundel County. Independent Vocal Performer: Tony manages a performing artist career which has included appearances with Jimmy Smith, Smokey Robinson & the Miracles, War, The Soul Stirrers, The Dixie Humming Birds, The Gospelaires, The Pilgrim Jubilee, James Cleveland, Shirley Caesar, for the Fishnet Festival with Larry & Bobbi Andes (1986-90), BeBe & CeCe Winans, Larnelle Harris, Carmen, Jesse Dixon, Twila Paris, First Call, The Bill Bather Vocal Band, Doug Ollgum, Michael W. Smith, Raheem DeVaughn, and many others. He has performed with various entities: internationally with the Calgary Alberta Philharmonic Orchestra, in Alba, Italy where he performed the “Mozart to Motown” Concert with St. Mary’s College, Stefan Scaggiari, Sue Matthews, Brian Ganz and other international artists in the 2003 Saluzzo Spring Festival, with Maestro Ernie Green and the Florida Philharmonic, in Tampa, Florida. In February ‘06 Tony accompanied Stefan Scaggiari in his hometown of Evansville, Indiana to perform the Mozart to Motown concert with the Evansville Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra. Along with his poetic and vocal gifts, Tony, is a freelance model and has executed various levels of acting: “The Meeting” with Kevin McClavain and Greg Alan Williams of Bay Watch, Remember the Titans, and The District, for Isuzu Rodeo: visual and voice-over, and a number of industrial videos for the FCC, the FAA, Motorola, and Radialkeratonomy with Dan Powell of Take One Video, Inc. Tony is married to Dr. Vivian Gist Spencer, has three children: twin daughters, Tiffany Renee and Tonya Rochelle Spencer, and one son, Aaron Jamal Spencer. He is also the proud grandfather to four grandchildren: Amirah Amani McCoy, Axaivier Jamal Spencer, Alayiah Coates and Ahmani Jemele Spencer. Richard Fintan Galway, Honorary Vice President Richard Fintan Galway, born in Ireland has degrees in music, education and sociology. Since 1985 in the US, is a family business owner, owning four Irish restaurants in Maryland and Massachusetts. He holds position of the Secretary of the Maryland Avenue and State Circle Association and is the President of the Annapolis Irish Cultural Society, a charitable organization whose goal is to help people of similar backgrounds and ancestry to organize and form self-help groups and to help distribute aid and funds to others less fortunate. Fintan is also a Board Member of the HCAT Advisory Board for the Culinary Arts (Hotel and Catering Industry of America) and a Trustee on the board of the Arts Council of Anne Arundel County as well as the chairman of the Nominating Committee of the Council. Irene Zoppi, Honorary Vice President Dr. Zoppi is former Adjunct Professor from the College of Notre Dame, Strayer University and University of Maryland, College Park. Additionally, Dr. Zoppi is a Lieutenant Colonel in the U.S. Army (Reserve) with expertise in the military intelligence, civil affairs, and public affairs fields. Dr. Zoppi holds a Ph.D. in Education Policy, Planning, and Administration from the University of Maryland (2004); a Master’s in Business Administration from Johns Hopkins University (2000); and Bachelor of Arts in Modern Languages from the University of Puerto Rico. SHe is the immediate past Executive Director for Centro de Ayuda/Center of Help (501c3) non-profit charitable organization in Annapolis, Maryland where she has successfully completed her two year engagement bringing the organization to the new level of development and multicultural outreach. Steve Lebowitz, Treasurer & Member of the Board Steve Lebowitz is an Annapolis based political consultant specializing in opposition research and electronic and traditional media. Formerly, he lobbied at the federal and state level for a diverse portfolio of clients including local and nation-wide businesses. He served in various staff capacities with two state legislatures and the U.S. Congress. He was the youngest elected delegate to the Democratic National Convention and he has twice been elected to the Democratic State Central Committee of Maryland. He is a board member at Kneseth Israel Congregation of Annapolis, and a parent-volunteer for Aleph Bet Jewish Day School, where he is active in a capital campaign for a new facility. He has advocated for a more open immigration policy and enhanced immigrant integration. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in American Studies. Robert Rosewarne, Secretary & Member of the Board Robert Rosewarne is a media consultant, and marketing specialist. He was recently working for Yellow Book and Gregory Welteroth Worldwide, developing new business sales. He has account management and business to business (B2B) experience and experience in media planning and purchasing (Print, Radio, Cable, Direct Mail & Network TV) as well as in implementing and measuring direct response advertising. For 10 years, he served as Volunteer Camp Counselor at the Ronald McDonald Camp (Pediatric Oncology Camp). He also worked in marketing in the UK and Australia. He holds a Bachelor of Business Administration/Hotel Management degree, with Marketing Major. Bernadett Black, Member of the Board Bernadett Black is an attorney at law and a trained mediator. She is a specialist in alternative dispute resolution (ADR) and mediation (one of her areas of mediation are employee disputes in the U.S. Federal government). She has also completed a Child Access training course. In the past, as a lawyer, she has represented copyright cases, created publishing contracts with authors, assisted the redesign and privatization of a major publishing house, worked as an associate attorney for a private law firm (drafting employment contracts and related documents). She has also established a private law practice (formation of new companies, litigating contract law cases). She performed voluntary work at the Anne Arundel County Conflict Resolution Center administrative office.	Prof. Nicholas Kittrie, Chairman of the Program Council Nicholas Kittrie, Ph.D., is an international lawyer and a distinguished academic. Currently University Professor at the American University, Washington College of Law. Has served as counsel to the United States Senate Judiciary Committee, and is an expert in American and international public and criminal law. Past president of the American Society of Criminology, former dean of the Washington College of Law, and chair of the United Nations Alliance of NGOs on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, he is the author and editor of over fifteen books and numerous articles. He frequently appears in mass media to deal with topics such as political offenders, terrorist activities, war crimes, drugs and alcohol, extradition, penology and criminal sentencing. Educated at the London School of Economics (U.K.), the University of Cairo (Egypt) and the Universities of Kansas, Chicago and Georgetown (USA), he is fluent in several languages. He has traveled extensively and has lectured at universities and congresses in Europe, Asia and Africa. He has served as legal consultant to several foreign governments and to the United States Vice-President's Commission on Terrorism. Among Kittrie's books (as author or editor) are Rebels With A Cause: The Minds and Morality of Political Offenders; The Tree of Liberty: A Documentary History of Rebellion and Political Crime in America; The War Against Authority: From the Crisis of Legitimacy to a New Social Order; The Right to Be Different: Deviance and Enforced Therapy; Crimes and Punishments: International Criminal Law and Procedure; The Future of Peace in the Twenty-First Century, and The Laws of War and the Laws of Peace; The Mentally Disabled and the Law. He currently serves as University Professor at the American University in Washington, D.C. Dr. Maria Cseh, Vice Chairman of the Program Council Maria Cseh, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor of Human and Organizational Learning (HOL) at The George Washington University, Coordinator of the HOL Doctoral Program, and Lecturer at the University of Pécs, Hungary. Her cross-cultural and international research studies on workplace learning, organizational development and change, and leadership were published in peer-reviewed journals and book chapters and presented at international conferences. She is a member of the Advisory Board for four international journals, serves on the Board of Directors of the Academy of Human Resource Development and consults on organization development and change and evaluation projects with profit and non-profit organizations. Dr. Larry Hajime Shinagawa, Vice Chairman of the Program Council Larry Hajime Shinagawa, Ph.D., has been appointed Director of Asian American Studies and Associate Professor of American Studies. For the past 30 years, he has been involved in the fields of sociology, American studies, multicultural education, ethnic studies, and Asian American studies. Prior to coming to the University of Maryland, he was the Director of the Center for the Study of Culture, Race, and Ethnicity and Associate Professor of the Sociology Department of Ithaca College. As the Center Director, he was responsible for the development of academic programs in African New World Studies, Asian American Studies, Latino Studies, Native American Studies, and Comparative American and Ethnic Studies at Ithaca College. Dr. Larry Atkins, Member of the Program Council G. Lawrence Atkins has more than 30 years of experience in public policy development, policy analysis and strategic planning at the local, state, and federal level and the private sector. He was founder and president of Health Policy Analysts, where he advises a number of Fortune 100 companies, pharmaceutical, insurance and other health industry companies and trade associations. He coordinated the Corporate Health Care Coalition (CHCC), a national coalition of 25 multi-state, self-insured companies that joined together in 1993 to represent the concerns of large corporate purchasers of health care benefits. CHCC members have been in the forefront of efforts to ensure high-quality, cost-effective health care and are a major force in on-going private sector efforts to improve the healthcare delivery system through provider accountability. He was also directing the Employer Health Care Innovation Project, which coordinates state legislative and policy activities of self-insured corporate purchasers on ERISA issues. He holds a doctorate in social welfare policy with an emphasis on economics of aging from Brandeis University. He currently serves as Executive Director for U.S. Public Policy at Merck & Co., Inc. . Dr. Avi Beker, Member of the Program Council Avi Beker received his Ph.D. from the Graduate Center of the City University of New York specializing in international security, arms control and the United Nations. He was a member of the Israeli mission to the United Nations (1977-82). For twenty years Beker served in the World Jewish Congress, as the executive director in Israel, the international director and finally as the Secretary General, the chief executive officer of the umbrella organization of world Jewish communities. Beker participated and led international campaigns against anti-Semitism, Holocaust restitution, defending Jewish human rights and advocating for rights of Jews from Arab countries. Under the auspices of the WJC, he founded the Israel Council for Foreign Relations and the Institute for Research of the WJC which he subsequently headed. He has published books and articles on international politics and security, disarmament, Israel’s foreign policy and Jewish affairs. He lectures regularly on these topics in Israel and abroad. On December 2007 Beker received the Boris Smolar award from the American Jewish distribution Committee (JDC) for his research studies and essays on international Jewish affairs. In 2004-7 he lectured to MA students of Diplomacy and headed the program on Jewish Diplomacy at the school of Government and Policy at Tel Aviv University. His book The Chosen: the History of an Idea and the Anatomy of an Obsession was published on May 2008 by Palgrave-Macmillan. Tom Brenneman, Member of the Program Council Tom Brenneman serves as Policy Associate for Migration & Human Security with the 3D Security Initiative. He is a founding member of Cooperative By Design, LLC. an Arizona-based Peacebuilding Consortium with whom he serves in peacebuilding working with faith communities, social services and law enforcement. Working in the field of peace-building and restorative justice since 1992, Tom holds a degree in social work from Eastern Mennonite University and is currently a graduate student in sociology at American University. He is a co-founder of the Sonoran Borderlands Peacebuilding Initiative (SBPI) and related Centro de Paz para Ambos Nogales (CEPAN), conflict resolution initiatives addressing migration and security concerns along the Arizona-Sonora border. Remi Duyile, Member of the Program Council Financial management veteran who has led the growth of several finance and mortgage related initiatives; specializing in business development, valuation and management. In not-for-profit capacity, focuses on empowering underserved communities and leadership education. Currently CEO of Legacy Premier Foundation, CEO of Image Consulting Group, recently Vice President of the Bank of America. Jonathan Greenwald, Member of the Program Council Jon Greenwald is a veteran foreign service officer and former director of the U.S. Department of State's Office of Counter-Terrorism. During a distinguished diplomatic career Greenwald held embassy and consular posts throughout Europe. From 1991-93, in the Office of Counter-Terrorism, he devised diplomatic strategies for dealing with Libya, and led a mission during the Gulf War. Most recently, Greenwald served in Brussels, where he helped negotiate the New Transatlantic Agenda on U.S.-European Union ties that President Clinton signed in 1995, defining U.S. political and trade engagements in Europe. He currently serves as Vice President of the International Crisis Group (ICG), where he supervises the ICG research and reporting cycle, working with program and project directors around the world to develop and maintain a steady stream of targeted reports and briefing papers on the full range of crises and subjects that the International Crisis Group covers. He maintains senior-level contacts with Washington-based officials and diplomats, frequently speaks to student groups and participates in conferences and seminars in the U.S. and Europe. He also undertakes advocacy trips worldwide, most recently to Iran. He is a graduate of Princeton University and the Harvard Law School, and has written extensively on foreign policy issues. MaryElla Keblusek , Member of the Program Council She holds a Master of International Service degree from American University and a Bachelor of Science degree in mathematics and computer science from Vanderbilt University in Nashville Tennessee. Ms. Keblusek has extensive experience in both the nonprofit and corporate realms, holding positions such as Vice President/General Manager for Mercer Human Resources Consulting and Automatic Data Processing and Executive Director of Seattle-based NGO Giraffe Heroes Project. She was Nigeria Project Director of nonprofit Global Citizen Journey, leading a 19-person delegation from the US to live in Warri and the creeks for 3 weeks in 2005, and is Associate Producer of Sweet Crude, the first full-length documentary about the Niger Delta. Fernando Mata, Member of the Program Council Fernando Mata serves currently for Heritage Canada (Ottawa) and has recently completed his position as senior research officer with the Multiculturalism Program of Citizenship and Immigration Canada. He holds a doctorate in ethnic studies from York University (Toronto). He has been working for twenty years on various topics related to ethnic diversity and international migration. His current interests are in the issues of long term integration immigrant needs, community support and multicultural readiness of institutions. He is currently a member of steering committee which coordinates with Statistics Canada a projection of visible minority and religious groups for the year 2031. Soren Jessen-Petersen, Member of the Program Council Soren Jessen-Petersen, is a Head of the Washington Office of the Independent Diplomat and a Guest Scholar at the United States Institute of Peace (USIP) where he has been writing a book on the interplay between politics and humanitarian consequences. He is also a lecturer at the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University. Since November 2006 been served as Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General in Kosovo and head of UNMIK, including serving at the level of UN Under Secretary-General. He has also served as the Chairman of the European Union Stability Pact's Migration, Asylum, Refugees Regional Initiative (MARRI), as Assistant High Commissioner at UN High Commission for Refugees, headquarters in Geneva, and as Director of the UNHCR Liaison Office at the United Nations Headquarters in New York. Dr. Esther Ezra Lopatin, Member of the Program Council Esther Ezra Lopatin, Ph.D., is currently a Professorial Lecturer at The George Washington University (teaching European Union Politics and International Relations Theory) and was recently a Visiting Scholar at the Institute for the Study of International Migration (ISIM) at Georgetown University. Graduate of Department of Political Science, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, she received her Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Munich, where she examined the effect of EU integration on the development of European immigration and asylum policy. Prior to her graduation, she was a Transatlantic Fellow at the German Marshall Fund of the United States in Washington D.C., examining the impact of the changed international security situation on transatlantic cooperation in the field of immigration. Esther was working for Immigration and Assimilation Committee of the Knesset (Israeli Parliament). She also organized a series of panel discussions with officials from both sides of the Atlantic, focusing on how to foster transatlantic dialog in the fields of migration and security in the post 9/11 security environment. She speaks fluently English, German, Hebrew, Arabic and working French. Dr. Moshe Weisblum, Member of the Program Council Dr. Moshe Pinchas Weisblum is a scholar, a rabbi and social leader. He was a volunteer for the elite paratrooper unit in the Israeli Defense Forces and he finished his army career as a commissioned officer, with the rank of Major. He is an author of many books and publications, including: "Table Talk: Biblical Questions and Answers", "Ruth Talk”, “The Hermeneutics of Medieval Jewish Thought: Understanding the Linguistic Codes of Rashi and Nachmanides". In 2005, he was awarded the Sidney Breitbart Prize in Jewish philosophy from Baltimore Hebrew University. He was a professor at the Academy for Jewish Religion in Manhattan, NY. He is a member of the New York Board of Rabbis, New Jersey Board of Rabbis, Union of Traditional Judaism, and Morasha Rabbinic fellowship. Dr. Weisblum serves also as a consultant to the media as commentator on social and political issues. He holds a Masters Degree in Public Administration from Fairleigh Dickinson University, New Jersey, and a doctorate in philosophy from Baltimore Hebrew University.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

PROGRAM COUNCIL

Margot Gotzmann, President & Member of the Board
Dr. Margot Gotzmann is a social activist, consultant, scholar and manager. Her fields are: economic/social/human development, social security systems, management, intercultural management, multiculturalism and history of ideas. In the recent past she collaborated with UNDP, European Union, Asia-Europe Foundation, the Council of Europe, governmental/scientific/non-profit institutions of European Union She was main organizer and keynote speaker at international conference series on human development and multicultural dialog. She was an adviser to CEO’s of banks and large businesses and governments and for many years served as a CEO for businesses and governmental agencies in the area of social security systems and was an initiator, founder and president of several non-profit organizations in the field. She is also a co-author of enactment of social security acts in Europe and pension program reforms. She was founder and president of school of management, and lecturer in social security systems’ management & financing, social security reforms, pension programs; economic, social, human and cultural development, history of ideas and heuristics. She holds a Master’s degree in Economics, and a Doctoral degree in the history of socio-economic development.

Anthony J. Spencer, Vice President & Member of the Board
Better known as Tony to his friends, is currently employed with the City of Annapolis as Coordinator of Human Services for the Mayor’ office. In June 97, he graduated Magna Cum Laude from Sojourner/Douglass College, Baltimore, Maryland, where he majored in Administration/Management and served as Vice President of his senior class. After 23 years of distinguished public safety service, Spencer retired from the Annapolis Fire Department, in December 97 and joined ranks with the Maryland Fire and Rescue Institute (MFRI) at the University of Maryland, in College Park, Maryland as a Faculty/Lecturer: Industrial Training Specialist. Tony is also pursuing his Master's Degree in Public Administration/Human Resources Development Sequence, at Bowie State University, Bowie, Maryland. From August 1999 to June 2004, Spencer was appointed to Anne Arundel County School Board. He is still a member of the Maryland Caucus for Black School Board Members. July 2002, Mayor Ellen O. Moyer assigned Tony as the Coordinator of Community and Social Programs. In this capacity, Spencer managed community grants, and served as liaison to community groups seeking various grants. Representing the City of Annapolis, in that effort, Spencer partnered with community organizations. Along with his daily routine, he represented Mayor Ellen O. Moyer at various functions.

Consultant and Trainer: Coordinating government and private sector services to meet community and individual needs. Community Involvement: Presently: Represents the Annapolis Fire Department on the Martin Luther King, Jr. Prayer Breakfast Committee, director on the Board of Advisory for BB&T Bank; Formerly: member of the Annapolis Rotary Club and a Paul Harris Fellow, member of the Boys and Girls Club of Annapolis and Anne Arundel County board of directors, liaison to the City of Annapolis Commission on Aging and Mayor Moyer’s Education Advisory Committee, member of the Anne Arundel Community College's Advisory Board of Diversity, president of the Sojourner-Douglass College Alumni Association for the Southern Maryland Annapolis campus, vice president of the Anne Arundel County Public School Board, served on the Scholarship for Scholars committee, secretary and treasurer of the Maryland Association of Boards of Education, vice president and president of the Annapolis Community Partnership (formerly the Alliance for a Drug-free Annapolis), member of the Volunteer Center of Anne Arundel County, a member of the Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts Board of Directors, chaired the 21st Century Community Learning Center's Citizens Advisory Committee for four Annapolis area after-school programs, chaired the Alumni Association for Leadership Anne Arundel and served on their Board of Directors, president of the Frontiers International Annapolis Chapter, member of the Maryland State Arts Council's Advisory Panel, Kunta Kinte Heritage Festival Committee, member on the Board of Directors for Hospice of the Chesapeake, a member on the Maryland Fire and Rescue Institute’s Committee for Maryland’s Fallen Firefighter Memorial, trustee on The Labrano Family Scholarship Foundation, Board of Directors and chair of the Diversity Committee for the Annapolis and Anne Arundel County Chamber of Commerce, and member of the Cultural Arts Foundation of Anne Arundel County.

Independent Vocal Performer: Tony manages a performing artist career which has included appearances with Jimmy Smith, Smokey Robinson & the Miracles, War, The Soul Stirrers, The Dixie Humming Birds, The Gospelaires, The Pilgrim Jubilee, James Cleveland, Shirley Caesar, for the Fishnet Festival with Larry & Bobbi Andes (1986-90), BeBe & CeCe Winans, Larnelle Harris, Carmen, Jesse Dixon, Twila Paris, First Call, The Bill Bather Vocal Band, Doug Ollgum, Michael W. Smith, Raheem DeVaughn, and many others. He has performed with various entities: internationally with the Calgary Alberta Philharmonic Orchestra, in Alba, Italy where he performed the “Mozart to Motown” Concert with St. Mary’s College, Stefan Scaggiari, Sue Matthews, Brian Ganz and other international artists in the 2003 Saluzzo Spring Festival, with Maestro Ernie Green and the Florida Philharmonic, in Tampa, Florida. In February ‘06 Tony accompanied Stefan Scaggiari in his hometown of Evansville, Indiana to perform the Mozart to Motown concert with the Evansville Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra.
Along with his poetic and vocal gifts, Tony, is a freelance model and has executed various levels of acting: “The Meeting” with Kevin McClavain and Greg Alan Williams of Bay Watch, Remember the Titans, and The District, for Isuzu Rodeo: visual and voice-over, and a number of industrial videos for the FCC, the FAA, Motorola, and Radialkeratonomy with Dan Powell of Take One Video, Inc.
Tony is married to Dr. Vivian Gist Spencer, has three children: twin daughters, Tiffany Renee and Tonya Rochelle Spencer, and one son, Aaron Jamal Spencer. He is also the proud grandfather to four grandchildren: Amirah Amani McCoy, Axaivier Jamal Spencer, Alayiah Coates and Ahmani Jemele Spencer.

Richard Fintan Galway, Honorary Vice President
Richard Fintan Galway, born in Ireland has degrees in music, education and sociology. Since 1985 in the US, is a family business owner, owning four Irish restaurants in Maryland and Massachusetts. He holds position of the Secretary of the Maryland Avenue and State Circle Association and is the President of the Annapolis Irish Cultural Society, a charitable organization whose goal is to help people of similar backgrounds and ancestry to organize and form self-help groups and to help distribute aid and funds to others less fortunate. Fintan is also a Board Member of the HCAT Advisory Board for the Culinary Arts (Hotel and Catering Industry of America) and a Trustee on the board of the Arts Council of Anne Arundel County as well as the chairman of the Nominating Committee of the Council.

Irene Zoppi, Honorary Vice President
Dr. Zoppi is former Adjunct Professor from the College of Notre Dame, Strayer University and University of Maryland, College Park. Additionally, Dr. Zoppi is a Lieutenant Colonel in the U.S. Army (Reserve) with expertise in the military intelligence, civil affairs, and public affairs fields. Dr. Zoppi holds a Ph.D. in Education Policy, Planning, and Administration from the University of Maryland (2004); a Master’s in Business Administration from Johns Hopkins University (2000); and Bachelor of Arts in Modern Languages from the University of Puerto Rico. SHe is the immediate past Executive Director for Centro de Ayuda/Center of Help (501c3) non-profit charitable organization in Annapolis, Maryland where she has successfully completed her two year engagement bringing the organization to the new level of development and multicultural outreach.

Steve Lebowitz, Treasurer & Member of the Board
Steve Lebowitz is an Annapolis based political consultant specializing in opposition research and electronic and traditional media. Formerly, he lobbied at the federal and state level for a diverse portfolio of clients including local and nation-wide businesses. He served in various staff capacities with two state legislatures and the U.S. Congress. He was the youngest elected delegate to the Democratic National Convention and he has twice been elected to the Democratic State Central Committee of Maryland. He is a board member at Kneseth Israel Congregation of Annapolis, and a parent-volunteer for Aleph Bet Jewish Day School, where he is active in a capital campaign for a new facility. He has advocated for a more open immigration policy and enhanced immigrant integration. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in American Studies.

Robert Rosewarne, Secretary & Member of the Board
Robert Rosewarne is a media consultant, and marketing specialist. He was recently working for Yellow Book and Gregory Welteroth Worldwide, developing new business sales. He has account management and business to business (B2B) experience and experience in media planning and purchasing (Print, Radio, Cable, Direct Mail & Network TV) as well as in implementing and measuring direct response advertising. For 10 years, he served as Volunteer Camp Counselor at the Ronald McDonald Camp (Pediatric Oncology Camp). He also worked in marketing in the UK and Australia. He holds a Bachelor of Business Administration/Hotel Management degree, with Marketing Major.

Bernadett Black, Member of the Board
Bernadett Black is an attorney at law and a trained mediator. She is a specialist in alternative dispute resolution (ADR) and mediation (one of her areas of mediation are employee disputes in the U.S. Federal government). She has also completed a Child Access training course. In the past, as a lawyer, she has represented copyright cases, created publishing contracts with authors, assisted the redesign and privatization of a major publishing house, worked as an associate attorney for a private law firm (drafting employment contracts and related documents). She has also established a private law practice (formation of new companies, litigating contract law cases). She performed voluntary work at the Anne Arundel County Conflict Resolution Center administrative office.

Prof. Nicholas Kittrie, Chairman of the Program Council
Nicholas Kittrie, Ph.D., is an international lawyer and a distinguished academic. Currently University Professor at the American University, Washington College of Law. Has served as counsel to the United States Senate Judiciary Committee, and is an expert in American and international public and criminal law. Past president of the American Society of Criminology, former dean of the Washington College of Law, and chair of the United Nations Alliance of NGOs on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, he is the author and editor of over fifteen books and numerous articles. He frequently appears in mass media to deal with topics such as political offenders, terrorist activities, war crimes, drugs and alcohol, extradition, penology and criminal sentencing. Educated at the London School of Economics (U.K.), the University of Cairo (Egypt) and the Universities of Kansas, Chicago and Georgetown (USA), he is fluent in several languages. He has traveled extensively and has lectured at universities and congresses in Europe, Asia and Africa. He has served as legal consultant to several foreign governments and to the United States Vice-President's Commission on Terrorism. Among Kittrie's books (as author or editor) are Rebels With A Cause: The Minds and Morality of Political Offenders; The Tree of Liberty: A Documentary History of Rebellion and Political Crime in America; The War Against Authority: From the Crisis of Legitimacy to a New Social Order; The Right to Be Different: Deviance and Enforced Therapy; Crimes and Punishments: International Criminal Law and Procedure; The Future of Peace in the Twenty-First Century, and The Laws of War and the Laws of Peace; The Mentally Disabled and the Law. He currently serves as University Professor at the American University in Washington, D.C.

Dr. Maria Cseh, Vice Chairman of the Program Council
Maria Cseh, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor of Human and Organizational Learning (HOL) at The George Washington University, Coordinator of the HOL Doctoral Program, and Lecturer at the University of Pécs, Hungary. Her cross-cultural and international research studies on workplace learning, organizational development and change, and leadership were published in peer-reviewed journals and book chapters and presented at international conferences. She is a member of the Advisory Board for four international journals, serves on the Board of Directors of the Academy of Human Resource Development and consults on organization development and change and evaluation projects with profit and non-profit organizations.

Dr. Larry Hajime Shinagawa, Vice Chairman of the Program Council
Larry Hajime Shinagawa, Ph.D., has been appointed Director of Asian American Studies and Associate Professor of American Studies. For the past 30 years, he has been involved in the fields of sociology, American studies, multicultural education, ethnic studies, and Asian American studies. Prior to coming to the University of Maryland, he was the Director of the Center for the Study of Culture, Race, and Ethnicity and Associate Professor of the Sociology Department of Ithaca College. As the Center Director, he was responsible for the development of academic programs in African New World Studies, Asian American Studies, Latino Studies, Native American Studies, and Comparative American and Ethnic Studies at Ithaca College.

Dr. Larry Atkins, Member of the Program Council
G. Lawrence Atkins has more than 30 years of experience in public policy development, policy analysis and strategic planning at the local, state, and federal level and the private sector. He was founder and president of Health Policy Analysts, where he advises a number of Fortune 100 companies, pharmaceutical, insurance and other health industry companies and trade associations. He coordinated the Corporate Health Care Coalition (CHCC), a national coalition of 25 multi-state, self-insured companies that joined together in 1993 to represent the concerns of large corporate purchasers of health care benefits. CHCC members have been in the forefront of efforts to ensure high-quality, cost-effective health care and are a major force in on-going private sector efforts to improve the healthcare delivery system through provider accountability. He was also directing the Employer Health Care Innovation Project, which coordinates state legislative and policy activities of self-insured corporate purchasers on ERISA issues. He holds a doctorate in social welfare policy with an emphasis on economics of aging from Brandeis University. He currently serves as Executive Director for U.S. Public Policy at Merck & Co., Inc.
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Dr. Avi Beker, Member of the Program Council
Avi Beker received his Ph.D. from the Graduate Center of the City University of New York specializing in international security, arms control and the United Nations. He was a member of the Israeli mission to the United Nations (1977-82). For twenty years Beker served in the World Jewish Congress, as the executive director in Israel, the international director and finally as the Secretary General, the chief executive officer of the umbrella organization of world Jewish communities. Beker participated and led international campaigns against anti-Semitism, Holocaust restitution, defending Jewish human rights and advocating for rights of Jews from Arab countries. Under the auspices of the WJC, he founded the Israel Council for Foreign Relations and the Institute for Research of the WJC which he subsequently headed. He has published books and articles on international politics and security, disarmament, Israel’s foreign policy and Jewish affairs. He lectures regularly on these topics in Israel and abroad. On December 2007 Beker received the Boris Smolar award from the American Jewish distribution Committee (JDC) for his research studies and essays on international Jewish affairs. In 2004-7 he lectured to MA students of Diplomacy and headed the program on Jewish Diplomacy at the school of Government and Policy at Tel Aviv University. His book The Chosen: the History of an Idea and the Anatomy of an Obsession was published on May 2008 by Palgrave-Macmillan.

Tom Brenneman, Member of the Program Council
Tom Brenneman serves as Policy Associate for Migration & Human Security with the 3D Security Initiative. He is a founding member of Cooperative By Design, LLC. an Arizona-based Peacebuilding Consortium with whom he serves in peacebuilding working with faith communities, social services and law enforcement. Working in the field of peace-building and restorative justice since 1992, Tom holds a degree in social work from Eastern Mennonite University and is currently a graduate student in sociology at American University. He is a co-founder of the Sonoran Borderlands Peacebuilding Initiative (SBPI) and related Centro de Paz para Ambos Nogales (CEPAN), conflict resolution initiatives addressing migration and security concerns along the Arizona-Sonora border.

Remi Duyile, Member of the Program Council
Financial management veteran who has led the growth of several finance and mortgage related initiatives; specializing in business development, valuation and management. In not-for-profit capacity, focuses on empowering underserved communities and leadership education. Currently CEO of Legacy Premier Foundation, CEO of Image Consulting Group, recently Vice President of the Bank of America.

Jonathan Greenwald, Member of the Program Council
Jon Greenwald is a veteran foreign service officer and former director of the U.S. Department of State's Office of Counter-Terrorism. During a distinguished diplomatic career Greenwald held embassy and consular posts throughout Europe. From 1991-93, in the Office of Counter-Terrorism, he devised diplomatic strategies for dealing with Libya, and led a mission during the Gulf War. Most recently, Greenwald served in Brussels, where he helped negotiate the New Transatlantic Agenda on U.S.-European Union ties that President Clinton signed in 1995, defining U.S. political and trade engagements in Europe. He currently serves as Vice President of the International Crisis Group (ICG), where he supervises the ICG research and reporting cycle, working with program and project directors around the world to develop and maintain a steady stream of targeted reports and briefing papers on the full range of crises and subjects that the International Crisis Group covers. He maintains senior-level contacts with Washington-based officials and diplomats, frequently speaks to student groups and participates in conferences and seminars in the U.S. and Europe. He also undertakes advocacy trips worldwide, most recently to Iran. He is a graduate of Princeton University and the Harvard Law School, and has written extensively on foreign policy issues.

MaryElla Keblusek , Member of the Program Council
She holds a Master of International Service degree from American University and a Bachelor of Science degree in mathematics and computer science from Vanderbilt University in Nashville Tennessee. Ms. Keblusek has extensive experience in both the nonprofit and corporate realms, holding positions such as Vice President/General Manager for Mercer Human Resources Consulting and Automatic Data Processing and Executive Director of Seattle-based NGO Giraffe Heroes Project. She was Nigeria Project Director of nonprofit Global Citizen Journey, leading a 19-person delegation from the US to live in Warri and the creeks for 3 weeks in 2005, and is Associate Producer of Sweet Crude, the first full-length documentary about the Niger Delta.

Fernando Mata, Member of the Program Council
Fernando Mata serves currently for Heritage Canada (Ottawa) and has recently completed his position as senior research officer with the Multiculturalism Program of Citizenship and Immigration Canada. He holds a doctorate in ethnic studies from York University (Toronto). He has been working for twenty years on various topics related to ethnic diversity and international migration. His current interests are in the issues of long term integration immigrant needs, community support and multicultural readiness of institutions. He is currently a member of steering committee which coordinates with Statistics Canada a projection of visible minority and religious groups for the year 2031.

Soren Jessen-Petersen, Member of the Program Council
Soren Jessen-Petersen, is a Head of the Washington Office of the Independent Diplomat and a Guest Scholar at the United States Institute of Peace (USIP) where he has been writing a book on the interplay between politics and humanitarian consequences. He is also a lecturer at the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University. Since November 2006 been served as Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General in Kosovo and head of UNMIK, including serving at the level of UN Under Secretary-General. He has also served as the Chairman of the European Union Stability Pact's Migration, Asylum, Refugees Regional Initiative (MARRI), as Assistant High Commissioner at UN High Commission for Refugees, headquarters in Geneva, and as Director of the UNHCR Liaison Office at the United Nations Headquarters in New York.

Dr. Esther Ezra Lopatin, Member of the Program Council
Esther Ezra Lopatin, Ph.D., is currently a Professorial Lecturer at The George Washington University (teaching European Union Politics and International Relations Theory) and was recently a Visiting Scholar at the Institute for the Study of International Migration (ISIM) at Georgetown University. Graduate of Department of Political Science, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, she received her Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Munich, where she examined the effect of EU integration on the development of European immigration and asylum policy. Prior to her graduation, she was a Transatlantic Fellow at the German Marshall Fund of the United States in Washington D.C., examining the impact of the changed international security situation on transatlantic cooperation in the field of immigration. Esther was working for Immigration and Assimilation Committee of the Knesset (Israeli Parliament). She also organized a series of panel discussions with officials from both sides of the Atlantic, focusing on how to foster transatlantic dialog in the fields of migration and security in the post 9/11 security environment. She speaks fluently English, German, Hebrew, Arabic and working French.

Dr. Moshe Weisblum, Member of the Program Council
Dr. Moshe Pinchas Weisblum is a scholar, a rabbi and social leader. He was a volunteer for the elite paratrooper unit in the Israeli Defense Forces and he finished his army career as a commissioned officer, with the rank of Major. He is an author of many books and publications, including: "Table Talk: Biblical Questions and Answers", "Ruth Talk”, “The Hermeneutics of Medieval Jewish Thought: Understanding the Linguistic Codes of Rashi and Nachmanides". In 2005, he was awarded the Sidney Breitbart Prize in Jewish philosophy from Baltimore Hebrew University. He was a professor at the Academy for Jewish Religion in Manhattan, NY. He is a member of the New York Board of Rabbis, New Jersey Board of Rabbis, Union of Traditional Judaism, and Morasha Rabbinic fellowship. Dr. Weisblum serves also as a consultant to the media as commentator on social and political issues. He holds a Masters Degree in Public Administration from Fairleigh Dickinson University, New Jersey, and a doctorate in philosophy from Baltimore Hebrew University.