Chairman, Robert Glusenkamp

Senior Vice President, Rodgers Builders

Robert Glusenkamp serves as Senior Vice President for Rodgers Builders, one of the country’s top contracting firms. Mr. Glusenkamp received undergraduate degrees in Architecture and Environment Planning at  Indiana 's Ball State University and earned an MBA from the McColl School of Business at Queens University of Charlotte. He has been the team leader on some of Rodgers Builders' most significant projects, including Belle Meade Retirement Resort in Southern Pines, North Carolina . Mr. Glusenkamp is a member of the American Institute of Architects, and past president of the Associated Building Contractors of the Carolinas . He serves on the Advisory Board for UNCC College of Architecture .

President, Stephanie Ansaldo

The Echo Foundation

As a non-profit president, family therapist, and community volunteer, Stephanie Goldberg Ansaldo has devoted her career to advancing humanity.  Herself the product of a multi-cultural family, she finds richness in individual differences and embraces diversity. Based on her belief that understanding and mutual respect is the cornerstone of a successful society, Ansaldo cofounded The Echo Foundation with Nobel Laureate for Peace Elie Wiesel. As President, she works to promote personal responsibility for humankind. She designs innovative initiatives to address the urgent issues of our time while connecting students and community leaders alike with some of the world’s foremost humanitarians. In the context of this multifaceted programming, individuals come to understand their personal power for positive change. Ansaldo received her B.S. in Child Development from Virginian Polytechnic Institute and State University and her M.S. in Clinical Counseling from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.  She has received The Charlotte Business Journal Women in Business Achievement Award; the UNC Charlotte Alumni Award; the inaugural Bob Barret Social Justice Award; The Order of the Long Leaf Pine, North Carolina's highest civilian honor; The Charlotte Observer “Heroes of Democracy” Award; and recognition as a finalist for the Nancy Susan Reynolds Award for her commitment to addressing issues of inhumanity, injustice and human suffering.

Vice Chair, Kenneth Levine

Director of Retirement Benefits, Goodrich Corporation 

In his role as Director of Retirement Benefits for Goodrich Corporation, Mr. Levine has the opportunity to travel and interact with colleagues from many different backgrounds and cultures. Mr. Levine is a pension actuary by training and spent ten years in benefits consulting before joining Coltec Industries, which later merged with Goodrich, in 1996.  He grew up in Connecticut and graduated from the University of Virginia. He and his wife Sharon moved to Charlotte from New York City in 1993. Mr. Levine is a Fellow of the Society of Actuaries. He also serves as a Citizen Trustee of the Charlotte Firefighters' Retirement System.  

Treasurer, Rajnish Bharadwaj

EVP, Cross Border Governance, Wells Fargo

Rajnish Bharadwaj joined The Echo Foundation Board of Trustees in January 2009.  Mr. Bharadwaj is an Executive Vice President at Wells Fargo and serves as the Head of Cross-Border Governance.  He moved to Charlotte in 2005 when he joined Wachovia.  Prior to Wachovia, he was based in New York and was a Partner in the financial services practice of A.T. Kearney, a global management consulting firm.  Mr. Bharadwaj has worked and lived in many countries – Canada, India, Mauritius, Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, UK, and the USA.  

Chairman Emeritus, Ambassador Mark Erwin

President, Erwin Capital

Mark Erwin is the President of Erwin Capital, Inc., a family-owned investment company. During the Clinton Administration he served in two positions. In 1997, President Clinton appointed him to the Board of Directors of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation.  . From 1999-2001 he served as United States Ambassador to the Republic of Mauritius, the Republic of the Seychelles and the Federal Islamic Republic of Comoros. Ambassador Erwin was an Adjunct Professor at the Business School of Winthrop University and has guest lectured at many schools and universities. He received an honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from Winthrop University .  In 2000 he received the Order of the Long Leaf Pine from the Governor of North Carolina. Military service was provided to the United States Air Force. Currently he serves on the North Carolina Economic Development Board, the Board of Directors of NewDominion Bank, Chairman of The Avenir Foundation, the Board of Advisors of The African Presidential Archives and Research Center at Boston University, the Board of Directors of Opportunity International, the Board Directors of the UNC Charlotte Foundation and the Lynnwood Foundation Board.      

Patricia Blackburn

VP, Corporate Communications & Public Affairs, Ingersoll Rand

Ms. Blackburn has over 30 years of award-winning corporate communications experience, including positions with RSM McGladrey, Bank of America and Goodrich Corporation. She is currently Vice President, Communications & Public Affairs for Ingersoll Rand. A native of Pittsburgh , Ms. Blackburn holds B.A. and M.S. degrees from Northwestern University ’s Medill School of Journalism in Evanston, Illinois.  She also attended the Executive Program on Communications Strategy at Northwestern’s Kellogg Graduate School of Management. Ms. Blackburn is a member of the Arthur W. Page Society and recipient of two Gold Quill Awards of Excellence from the International Association of Business Communicators. She currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Charlotte Chamber of Commerce and Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism, and is a former Trustee of Charlotte Chamber Music. She is a graduate of Leadership Charlotte, a prominent leadership development program.

Frank Bryant

Partner, Poyner & Spruill, LLP

Frank Bryant is a partner in the law firm of Poyner Spruill.  He is a Charlotte native and has a B.A. and a J.D. degree from UNC-Chapel Hill.  He is a former member of board of directors of Council For Children’s Rights, Johnston YMCA, Charlotte Mecklenburg Seniors Centers, Greater Charlotte Sports of Hall of Fame, and is a current member of board of directors of the Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority and Babcock Graduate School of Management Family Business Center. 

Robert Davies

Owner, Candescence

Robert Davies began his career in advertising and marketing in Chicago in 1980 and has spent his entire work life devoted to brand building and planning brand campaigns. He has worked for six advertising and marketing communications agencies, and has served clients in dozens of industries. His career includes positions in media, account management, strategic planning, and agency ownership. In 2004 Mr. Davies created Candescence, an S-Corporation specializing in branding strategy and brand activation and especially “Brands in Transition”. Candescence’s mission is to advance brands facing uncertainty by improving their strategy and implementing well crafted branding campaigns. Mr. Davies received a B.S. in marketing from Miami University in 1979, an MBA from DePaul University in 1980, and spent five years studying anthropology at Northwestern University during the 1980s.

Dr. Zenobia Edwards

Dean, Metropolitan College, Johnson C. Smith University

Zenobia Edwards is Dean of Metropolitan College at Johnson C. Smith University. A career educator with 12 years of experience, Dr. Edwards arrived at JCSU in July of 2009. As Dean, she recruits students, hires faculty, and ensures operational processes and procedures are in place. A former science teacher and principal, Dr. Edwards earned her bachelor’s degree in biological science from Wofford College, and a master’s in biological science and education specialist in administration from Converse College . She earned her doctorate in education administration from Nova Southeastern University . Dr. Edwards was a school partnership manager with College Summit, a nonprofit that has helped 35,000 low-income high school seniors navigate the college application process.

Dr. Joan F. Lorden

Provost & Vice Chancellor, Academic Affairs, UNC Charlotte

Dr. Lorden is the Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs at University of North Carolina at Charlotte , where she provides leadership for seven colleges, research institutes, and a university-wide graduate school.  She also currently serves as the principal investigator for an NSF ADVANCE Institutional Transformation grant, designed to increase the recruitment and retention of women faculty in science and engineering. She is a member of the Howard University Specialized Neuroscience Research Program Advisory Committee and serves on the Board of Directors for the Charlotte Research Institute and the Institute for Social Capital.  She is active in community organizations, serving on the boards of several local organizations, including the Blumenthal Center for the Performing Arts and the Echo Foundation.  She has served as a member of the Charlotte Advisory Board for the Knight Foundation.  Dr. Lorden received a B.A. from the City College of New York and a Ph.D. in psychology from Yale University.

Dr. Cindy Moss

Director of Science & Math, Charlotte Mecklenburg Schools

As director of science and math for the Charlotte Mecklenburg Schools, Dr. Cindy Moss is responsible for the science and math curriculum, as well as assessments and professional development impacting 130,000 students. Previously she taught high school biology, chemistry, anatomy, and IB/AP Biology at Independence High School in Charlotte . Her doctoral dissertation earned the Curtin Institute of Technology's Outstanding Dissertation prize, and a shortened version was among 15 pieces selected for publication in the National Science Teachers Association publication, Exemplary Science in Grades 9-12. Dr. Moss has given presentations in 22 states and 12 countries on best practices in science teaching, and has authored numerous articles, textbook chapters and books for the National Parks Service and the National Science Teachers Association. She earned her B.S. in zoology as a Morehead-Cain Scholar at UNC Chapel Hill and her M.S. in science teaching from Syracuse University.

Kevin P. Shea 

Principal, The North Highland

Mr. Shea is a Principal with The North Highland Company, a global management and technology consulting firm.  Prior to joining North Highland, he worked in the Corporate and Investment Banking group at Wachovia Securities providing senior debt financing to middle market companies and private equity firms focused on the Media, Telecom, Consumer Products and Retail industries.   He moved to Charlotte in 1991.  He received his BS from the University of New Hampshire and his MBA from the University of North Carolina-Charlotte.   Mr. Shea is very active in the community and serves on the board of the Lake Norman YMCA, volunteers his time as a youth baseball coach and served on the executive board of the Western North Carolina Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. 

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Gail Brinn Wilkins, ASID

President, Gail Brinn Wilkins, Inc.

Gail Brinn Wilkins has been a professional ASID designer for more than 25 years.  She attended the New York School of Interior Design and participated in the Parsons School of Design “Study in Paris” program, where she studied design at the Louvre, museum.  Principal in her own business for the past 25 years, she has used that training to create uniquely personalized elegance for a burgeoning list of corporate and residential clients from New York to Washington State. Her professional credits include membership in the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID).  She was voted Designer of the Year by the North and South Carolina Chapter of ASID as well as many other design awards in her field through the years.  Her home and garden were selected for the 1972 and the 1988 Mint Museum Home and Garden Tour of fine houses.  Her work has been published in many local and national publications; she also has written many articles on design.