Our Team

Vilas Dhar

President and Trustee

Vilas is an entrepreneur, technologist and human rights advocate with a lifelong commitment to creating more robust social institutions that foster shared opportunity.

Karen Kelley Gill

Vice President of Operations

Karen oversees the Foundation’s internal infrastructure including finance, grants management, compliance, and IT.

Hussainatu Blake

Education & Workforce Strategist

Hussainatu (“Hussa”) leads the Foundation’s work to build educational opportunity and a diverse, digitally literate workforce in collaboration with foundation leadership, experts & researchers, and external stakeholders.

Hussa spent 13 years providing education/workforce opportunities via the use of technology, strategic partnerships & programming. She has global experience in education/workforce development that includes for-profit, non-profit, government, & academia. Hussa is also Adjunct Faculty at Middlebury Institute of International Studies (MIIS) and Baltimore City Community College. She holds a JD from Atlanta’s John Marshall Law.

Yolanda Botti-Lodovico

Policy and Advocacy Lead, Office of the President

As the Policy and Advocacy Lead, Yolanda works with the Office of the President to communicate the Foundation’s strategic positions on AI policy, while advocating for a thriving, equitable, and sustainable future for all.

Previously, Yolanda was the Policy Lead for a lab at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, where she worked on the COVID response. Her background is in refugee and human rights advocacy, in the legal, public, and nonprofit sectors. Yolanda holds an MPP from the Harvard Kennedy School and a BA in International Studies and Art History from Boston College. In her free time, Yolanda enjoys martial arts and creative writing.

Nick Cain

Director of Strategy

Nick leads the Foundation’s strategy team, which works to advance digital, AI, and data-driven solutions to global challenges through a combination of hypothesis-driven grantmaking, partnerships, and ecosystem engagement.

Prior to PJMF, Nick was a Principal at Google.org, where he developed a $30M tech-focused climate change portfolio and led additional grantmaking on education and accessibility. Nick is a board member at Path Home, and he founded Frontline Foods Portland, which raised more than $200K for local restaurants in the early days of COVID-19. Nick earned a bachelor’s degree from Columbia University and an MBA from Berkeley.

Marcus Davis

IT Manager

Marcus is the IT Manager for PJMF. His role is to support the team with their day-to-day technical needs and concerns while also visioning and building technology solutions to support the team as we push forward.

Before joining the PJMF team, Marcus worked as a senior technical support engineer and as the team lead for the helpdesk team at Symbio Systems. He also served as a volunteer IT Director for a local non-profit. Marcus holds several industry-standard certifications and is currently working on a Bachelor’s degree in Cloud Computing at Western Governors University.

Suzanne DiBianca

Trustee

Suzanne is Chief Impact Officer and EVP of Corporate Relations at Salesforce.

Suzanne leads Salesforce’s stakeholder capitalism strategy—including the company’s global corporate relations and sustainability efforts. Through the Salesforce Ventures Impact Fund, she invests in innovative cloud companies driving positive change across sustainability, education, equality and social sector technology solutions. Suzanne was co-founder and president of the Salesforce Foundation and co-created Pledge 1%.

Rebecca Distler

AI, Data, and Digital Health Strategist

Rebecca leads the Foundation’s work to advance digital health equity in collaboration with Foundation leadership, programmatic teams, and external partners.

Rebecca has spent nearly a decade building partnerships and programs with technology companies, foundations, non-profits, and governments to advance innovation in global health. Most recently, she served as Global Health Programs Lead at ID2020 and Director of Global Health Initiatives at Element, a AI digital identity company. Rebecca holds a MPH from the Yale School of Public Health and a BA from Yale University.

Meaghan English

Senior Manager, Office of the President

In conjunction with the Office of the President and Board of Trustees, Meaghan manages the Foundation’s work in developing and delivering on strategic priorities and new partnerships.

Previously, Meaghan managed business in society partnerships and focused on social impact and corporate responsibility at the Boston Consulting Group. She holds a BA in Political Science from Boston College and an MA in Gender & International Development from The George Washington University. Outside of work, Meaghan enjoys yoga, running, and traveling (and learning new languages along the way)!

Annette Florczak

Controller

Annette oversees the daily accounting operations of the Foundation to ensure compliance and continuous improvement of financial controls.

Annette was previously the Senior Director of Finance, Operations and Grants with the Blue Shield of CA Foundation and Deputy Director of the Brookline Community Foundation. She has an MBA from UMass Boston, a BS in Physiology from Cal State Long Beach, and is a Certified Management Accountant. In her free time, Annette runs ultramarathons and enjoys traveling with her husband and two dogs.

Clara Gamboa de Levin

Operations Coordinator

Clara works closely with the Director of Finance and Operations, the Grants Manager, and the Controller to develop and implement data- and technology-forward solutions to improve team and individual workflows.

Previously, Clara was a Data Analyst at Cambridge Associates, an investment firm in Boston. Her work focused on data management and analytics for the Global Business and Development team, producing reports to predict client and prospect trends which enabled the team to develop informed marketing strategies. Clara earned her BA in studio art & art history from the University of Vermont.

Sarah Grady

Grants Manager

Sarah manages the grantmaking process with a focus on creating equitable systems, compliance, and technology.

Sarah’s experience in philanthropy spans nearly 10 years in both programmatic and grants administration roles for various nonprofits and foundations. Most recently, Sarah was the program and grants manager at the Silver Giving Foundation and a program associate at the Heising-Simons Foundation. She serves on the board of NextGen America and the Hope Strengthens Foundation.

Nikita Japra

Senior Manager, Accelerator Program

Nikita leads strategy and partnerships for the Accelerator program. She also advises on the Data and Society team’s broader strategy and field-building efforts to ethically and responsibly advance nonprofit data maturity.

Previously, Nikita worked on the strategic development of The Rockefeller Foundation’s Precision Public Health Initiative. She was an inaugural member of the NBC News Health and Medical Unit, where she wrote and produced coverage broadcast nationally. Nikita holds an MPH from Columbia University, an MA in Media Studies from The New School, and a BA in International Relations and Writing from Johns Hopkins University.

Diamond Jones

Program Associate, Rising Leaders for Equity

Diamond assists the grant diligence process, formulates presentation materials, complete action items for grant partners and partner organizations, and conducts applicable research.

Prior to PJMF, Diamond served in the Chapel Hill community as a literacy tutor working with underrepresented students. She also partnered with nonprofits in Chapel Hill and Durham to provide educational resources for English language learners and communities that lack access to public libraries. Diamond completed her BA in Classical Archaeology at UNC Chapel Hill. She enjoys racquetball, new recipes, and scenic walks.

Kara Knappe

Executive Assistant, Office of the President

As the Executive Assistant to the President’s Office, Kara provides direct support to the President of the Foundation, and assists with special projects.

Kara comes to PJMF by way of California where she spent much of her youth focused on theater. After years of performing, she moved to NYC where she worked as a personal assistant for an art collector and philanthropist. She has since moved to Nashville, TN where she has worked as a personal assistant as well as in executive assistant roles with the Nashville Health Care Council and SHEPHERD Foundation.

Eloy Leibas

Manager, Talent Recruitment

Eloy works to create and continuously evolve the philanthropy’s recruitment strategy, candidate experience, and employer brand initiatives.

Previously, Eloy supported the recruitment function for organizations of various sizes, including start-ups, regional firms, nationwide companies, and global enterprises. He earned his BBA in Marketing / Management from the University of Houston. When not at work, he’s spending time with his wife, Jacqueline, and their dog, Billie. He also is a student at the University of Houston-Downtown for his MBA in HR Management.

Ben Mann

Director, Direct Data & AI Services

Ben leads the Direct Data & AI Services team within Data and Society. He provides leadership and strategic technical inputs to the Accelerator and multi-year grants on incorporating data science in our programs.

Ben is a passionate data technologist, always on the search for creative solutions to big, messy problems. He has worked globally with non-profit, academic, and other organizations to apply advanced analytics and AI. He has a history of leading entrepreneurial projects and building teams to test new ideas. He has applied his background in engineering and public policy to measure the impact of humanitarian assistance.

George Mastoras

Communications Manager

George leads the Foundation’s communication efforts and oversees branding, storytelling, social media, external communications, and media.

Previously, George was the Director of Communications at the National Center on Time & Learning and the Nellie Mae Education Foundation. George also served as National Political Coordinator at Progressive Majority. He has degrees from George Washington University and Stonehill College. George was honored to work in John Lewis’s office organizing a congressional delegation to Selma to remember Bloody Sunday.

Hazem Mahmoud

Data Solutions Architect

Hazem provides direct technical assistance around Data Analytics, Engineering and Operations to Foundation grantees and partner organizations.

Before focusing on nonprofits, Hazem worked with Cloudera Inc.’s leading clients in designing, architecting and deploying the Cloudera platform. Hazem spent over 15 years in systems engineering and DevOps roles, in the banking, advertising, and mobile industries. Hazem has a BS in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from the University of Michigan and an MS Information Systems from Metropolitan State University.

Patrick McGovern

Trustee

Patrick is the current Chair of the Board of Trustees and a longtime technology executive.

For 25 years, Patrick has been committed to emerging tech solutions. He previously ran SourceForge, was VP of Marketing at Splunk, CMO at Skout, and VP of Marketing at Risk I/O. Patrick also launched WhereApps, and consults for Silicon Valley-based and global tech companies. A Trustee at The People’s Portfolio and The Tech for Global Good Executive Council, Pat holds a BS from the University of San Francisco.

Vera Ogdanets

Cloud Engineer, Direct Data & AI Services

Vera works on the Data and AI Services team to support grantee partners, helping with the design and implementation of cloud-based solutions that advance the use of technology and AI in their data journey.

Vera has experience deploying infrastructure and cloud solutions for a wide range of organizations, from small businesses to enterprise accounts. She graduated from the University of Georgia with a BBA in Management Information Systems. During her time there, she also worked with AIESEC, a nonprofit committed to achieving peace and fulfillment of humankind’s potential. For fun, she loves traveling, music, and her cats.

Alisa Orlowsky

Team Coordinator, Data and Society

Alisa oversees the administrative functions for the Data and Society team, including coordinating and logistics. Alisa also provides support to Data and Society programming operations.

Alisa graduated from Santa Clara University with a philosophy degree and a minor in chemistry. She also completed a certificate in Values in Science and Technology. Previously, Alisa supported Santa Clara University’s Wellness Center as the Social Media and Marketing Coordinator. Outside of work, Alisa is interested in reading, cooking, and health & wellness.

Frank Ortiz

Program Associate, Rising Leaders for Equity

Frank supports grant management with various methods such as drafting presentations and conducting research.

Since 2015, Frank has worked in basic needs interventions to support and understand the access of food, housing, and transportation. That led them to pursue an MSPH in preventative health. Through this, they have worked to evaluate programming, provide and manage direct pragmatic and policy shifts within academic settings, lead college system-wide advocacy initiatives, and support operations of basic needs services.

Linda Tsai

Senior Manager, Operations

Linda helps drive ongoing operational excellence guided by outcomes and a commitment to inclusion, diversity, equity, and accessibility (IDEA) to support the Foundation’s impact.

Linda was special assistant to the Cloudera Foundation CEO, executing on chief-of-staff functions. She also has served as Vice President for Strategy at The Tech Interactive and Senior Communications Director at American Heart Association. Her first love was newspapers; she wrote, edited and managed at publications including the Mercury News and Miami Herald. She holds dual degrees in Journalism and Business from Mizzou.

Chelsey Walden-Schreiner

Data Scientist, Direct Data & AI Services

Chelsey provides data science support to Data and Society grant partners, including assistance during initial project design, advanced data analysis, and modeling.

Chelsey collaborates on data-driven approaches to global challenges. In past academic and industry roles, she partnered with non-profits, government, and other stakeholders to co-create and disseminate analytical methods for socio-environmental initiatives. She has a PhD and MS focused on geospatial data science and environmental resources from NC State, and a BA in journalism and mass communication from Iowa State.

Monica Wright

Operations Manager

Monica supports operations, systems management, and technology solutions for the Foundation.

Monica graduated from Boston College with a bachelor’s degree in history and communications. She spent eight years managing Trademark Tours, a tourism start-up in Cambridge, MA. During COVID-19, Monica joined Neighborhood Villages to advocate for early education and policy reform and facilitate the reopening of Boston childcare centers. In her spare time, she listens to podcasts and teaches cardio dance and cardio boxing.

Patrick J. McGovern Foundation