Advisory Board

Adam Schau, MBA , PMP Director of Customer Success at Microsoft Federal; Former Board Chair, Computer CORE

Adam’s experience includes five years of experience in progressive Strategy and Operations Management at Microsoft. Responsibilities include proactively supporting business groups by serving as a trusted business advisor to the General Manager and leadership team, striving for process improvements, identifying and solving complex business issues, providing field-level support, and completing special projects for the Vice President’s office.

Previous experience in a variety of professional occupations, including lobbying and legislative organization at the state and national level, management and legal experience in a commercial law firm, project management execution, and entrepreneurial achievements.

Adam received a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science and Business and an MBA in Analytics and Marketing from Indiana University. He holds Project Managers Professionals Certification (PMP) and Certified SCRUM master.

Salvador Bezos, MS ECE, JD Director, Sterne Kessler Goldstein & Fox P.L.L.C.; Former Board Director, Computer CORE

Sal Bezos is a patent attorney and director at Sterne Kessler. Sal provides services in the preparation and prosecution of patent applications before the United States Patent & Trademark Office, developing enforceable patent portfolios capable of withstanding legal scrutiny. Sal is also part of the firm’s Patent Office Litigation Practice, having represented patent owners and petitioners in numerous post-grant proceedings before the PTAB.

Through Sal’s collaboration with Washington, D.C.-area legal aid services, the firm’s pro bono practice has expanded to include an immigration law practice. Through this program, Sal and the firm have filed a habeas petition to reunite an immigrant child with his family, helped victims of violence and abuse apply for US Nonimmigrant Status, and helped DACA recipients apply for status renewal, among other efforts.

Sal is passionate about education. He is an adjunct professor at George Mason University’s Antonin Scalia Law School, where he has taught a course on patent writing since 2012. In addition, Sal served as the chair of the Technology and Engineering Education Advisory Board for Fairfax County Public Schools and as a general board member for ten years, where he provided industry perspectives and review of Fairfax County’s middle and high school engineering curriculum.

Sal holds a J.D. from George Mason, an M.S. in Electrical and Computer Engineering from Georgia Tech, and a B.S. in Computer Engineering from Virginia Tech.

Col. James “Jim” Paige, President/CEO, PTG Consulting Group and Executive Director/Co-Founder, Concerned Citizens Network of Alexandria (CCNA), has a wealth of senior-level experience in military operations, logistics, international affairs, and program management. He is Co-Founder and Executive Director of the Student Leadership Academy (PSLA), a nonprofit, leadership training and long-term mentoring program for underserved, underrepresented and at-risk college students. Deeply committed to education and equity, Jim has partnered with Computer CORE on a number of initiatives as well as providing consultation, guidance, and mentorship.

Jim’s work with the federal government includes serving as the Project Manager and National Coordinator for the “post 9-11” TSA Airport Federalization Project Advanced Team, which developed new airport security screening procedures and implemented them nationwide. As well, he served as Senior Advisor for the U.S. Army National Museum project. In that role, he worked with potential donors, senior leaders, the academic community, and conducted oral history interviews with Tuskegee Airmen, Sioux Code Talkers, and other military veterans. Currently, he works closely with The Bowman Veteran’s Support Group, Birmingham, Alabama and KP21 Productions, Houston Texas, to support homeless veterans.

With broad experience in the international arena, he has worked extensively as a project manager on behalf of the World Bank’s Post Conflict Unit and the governments of Switzerland and Norway for the repatriation of Northern Ugandan Refugees and Child Soldiers. He also served as the Bank’s representative to the United Nations Coordinating Action on Small Arms (CASA) Mechanism, routinely coordinating international conferences and seminars in Africa and Europe As security advisor for The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), he authored HIV/AIDS Strategy for African Military Leaders.

In the private sector, he is a frequently requested guest speaker and regularly conducts strategic communications seminars and leadership training sessions for numerous clients throughout the country. A committed mentor for youth, he served as the Inaugural Board Chairman for the NASA Science, Engineering, Mathematics and Aerospace Academy (SEMAA) Program and continues to mentor young leaders.

Jim, a retired Army colonel, has an MA in Human Resource Management. He is a lifetime member of the Omega Psi Phi Fraternity and was honored at the 2006 Trumpet Awards for his support to victims of Hurricane Katrina.

Justin Wilson Mayor, City of Alexandria; Senior Director at Amtrak; Former Board Treasurer, Computer CORE (2001-2007)

Justin Wilson served on Computer CORE’s Board of Directors from 2001-2007, including 3 years as Secretary then Treasurer. Justin also served on the executive search and transition team during his tenure.

Justin was elected Mayor of the City of Alexandria in November of 2018. As Mayor, he represents the City regionally on the Northern VA Transportation Authority and the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments Board of Directors, and leads several city committees including City Schools Subcommittee, the ARHA Redevelopment Committee, the Quality of Life Committee, Legislative Subcommittee, and the Audit Committee.

An experienced community leader, Justin previously served 8 years on Alexandria’s City Council, including three years as Vice Mayor. Justin’s leadership has led to new investments in schools, transportation and environmental infrastructure. He has worked to expand early childhood education, address growing student enrollment, accelerate economic growth, advance climate policy as well as protecting and expanding housing affordability. Prior to his election to city council, Justin served on city transit and budget committees, and was twice elected president of the Del Ray Citizens Association.

Justin is employed by the National Railroad Passenger Corporation (Amtrak) as a Senior Director. He holds a bachelor’s of science degree in Information Systems from Virginia Commonwealth University, and is a Fellow of the Sorensen Institute for Political Leadership at the University of Virginia.
(Excerpted from www.alexandriava.gov/Council)

Kris McMenamin Founder and President, McMenamin Consulting Group; Former Board Chair, Computer CORE

Kris McMenamin solves problems to realize strategy. The bigger the problem, the more complex – the better. She combines her Big Four consulting firm experience with a healthy dose of irreverence, compelling her to approach each client with an open mind, a commitment to collaboration, and a focus on results. Her specialty is agile business transformation—grounded in 25 years of providing coaching, facilitation, process improvement, strategic planning, technology delivery, and change management to clients in both the federal government and private industry.

While Kris has worked at firms that range from very large to very boutique and respects the value of both, she knows where she wants to be. Having led a small firm on an award-winning 10-year run of solid and consistent growth, today, she is at the helm of her own shop, ready to not only repeat her pattern of success, but to exceed it. “I very much like the idea of being a big firm when it comes to expertise and what we offer our clients, but a small firm when it comes to how we interact with our clients, partners, associates, and potential clients. Big where it’s best, small where it’s smart. That’s McMenamin Consulting Group.”

Abderrahim (Abdul) Agermoune Senior Manager, Data Strategy & Management, Marriott International; Former Board Vice Chair and Alum, Computer CORE

A result-oriented and data-driven leader with 10+ years of experience in the financial, data governance and data & business analytics area, managing highly effective analytics team through complex data-driven projects, developed and implemented tableau dashboards for enterprise reporting, created and monitored KPI’s and managed projects to ensure informed decision making and compliance adherence. Abdul served on CORE’s Board of Directors including a term as Vice Chair, he says, “CORE gave me the self-confidence and skills to grow in my professional life.”

Feven Getachew Founder and President, Liz Marketing; Founder and Director, Path for Her; Former Board Director, Computer CORE

Feven Getachew runs Liz Marketing LLC, a company that provides small- to medium-size businesses with graphic design, promotional materials and print products. In addition to her company, Feven founded a small nonprofit that helps young girls in Ethiopia go to school. The Path for Her organization supports girls in their educational efforts and helps them stay in school by providing them with educational resources. In addition to being on the Board of Computer CORE she is also an active member of BNI, Mount Vernon Chamber of Commerce and Tyson’s Corner Rotary club. Feven holds an MBA in Marketing from Johns Hopkins – Carey Business School.

Gretchen Steenstra Strategic Consultant, DelCor; Former Board Chair and Instructor, Computer CORE

Gretchen Steenstra became involved with Computer CORE in 1999 when she moved to Alexandria and was looking for volunteer opportunities. During the first 10 years of involvement she worked with the staff and volunteers as the organization grew and matured. Her initial focus was teaching and writing curriculum. When CORE identified a student in one of Gretchen’s classes who was interested in computer networking, Gretchen’s organization created a position for the student and developed career pathway to train and mentor the student from a help desk technician to a network administrator. Gretchen said that she learned as much from her students about world politics and lifestyles as they learned about computer software from her. During this time, she had two children – one who was adopted internationally from Guatemala.

After several cycles of teaching, Gretchen joined the Board and was a member of the CEO search and transition team. She served as Board Chair to ensure incoming ED Lynn O’Connell had a smooth transition. Gretchen rejoined the CORE family in 2019 as a member of the 20th Anniversary planning committee.

Gretchen is a Strategic Consultant with DelCor, a technology management company that serves associations and nonprofits. Gretchen is a member of the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE), Project Management Institute (PMI) and a Founding Member of Association Women Technology Champions (AWTC). Gretchen resides in Alexandria with her husband, Dan, and children, Grace and John.

Bo Pham Deputy Director, Division of Decommissioning, Uranium Recovery, and Waste Programs, US Nuclear Regulatory Commission; Former Board Chair, Computer CORE

Bo Pham is a former Board Chair at Computer CORE and brings over two decades of leadership experience at the federal government level to his role on the Advisory Board. Bo was born in Vietnam and immigrated to the United States when he was eight years old, where he and his family settled in the DMV area. Bo is passionate about giving back to the community, and over the years has volunteered with many local nonprofits as well as serving on the boards of several organizations.

Jeffrey Fischer has over 35 years’ experience within the Global Supply industry; of which the final 25 where with UPS. During his UPS career, Jeff worked on developing integrated logistics solutions for the world’s largest Fortune 100 companies. During his tenure he also was a member of the Mail Boxes Etc. (MBE) acquisition team that converted the 3,200+ shipping retail network into today’s UPS Stores.

He also worked within UPS’s sales training, business development, operations, product development, and customer experience divisions.

Prior to joining UPS, Jeff worked for Fuji Photo Film and Lever Brothers in New York City.

Jeff has written and published over 100 articles, has been a guest columnist to the Cambridge Information Network and the Global Business Network, and writer for the Candid Camera TV show.

He was an adjunct professor in New York and Georgia colleges teaching logistics, international management, thesis research and writing, and organizational management.

He holds both a Bachelor of Science in Transportation and Distribution Management and a Bachelor of Science in Marketing from Syracuse University. And, earned a Master of Business Administration in Management from Long Island University.

Jeff is a native of the New York City area and moved to Atlanta with UPS in 1994. He has been married to his wife Nancy 35+ years with 2 adult children Matthew and Christine.

Since retiring in March 2018, Jeff has been spending more time supporting various community efforts with his church’s men’s group. One that he and his fellow members have made their own is The Extension, a homeless shelter and recovery program, located in Marietta, GA, for men and women with alcohol and drug addiction. His efforts have expanded to other charities within the Atlanta area and other parts of the country, primarily Computer CORE.

Bill Browning Workforce Innovation Manager for Fairfax County Department of Family Services; Author with The Aspen Institute, and Harvard Education Press; Former Board Secretary, Computer CORE

Bill Browning is an independent consultant with a 30-year career combining program management roles in corporate training, a community-based nonprofit, community college, and workforce development policy and leadership development. As a program manager for a community-based nonprofit workforce training program and community college, he led the design and implementation of new initiatives that were recognized as national models, including an innovative nonprofit-college “co-enrollment” partnership and a holistic advising service to enroll and support low-income adults returning to college.

At the Aspen Institute and as a consultant, Browning has authored numerous case studies of promising practices in workforce development that have been published by The Aspen Institute, Achieving the Dream, Jobs for the Future, HHS and others. He is the co-author, together with Dr. Chad Hoggan, of the 2019 book, Transformational Learning in Community Colleges, published by Harvard Education Press.

Deb Roepke Computer CORE Co-Founder and Former Executive Director; President at Evigglad Community Power, LLC; Principal Investigator, and Strategic Technology Instructor at NRECA

Deb Roepke started an on-campus job in Macalester College’s computer store despite not knowing how to turn on the computer at first! Three years later she’d developed the skills to excel at Grinnell College Computer Services, supervising 50 part-time students and delivering critical tech support for 2,000 people. Soon her staff of college students were realizing job opportunities that their classmates were not – receiving offers for high-paying jobs. Meanwhile, Deb was asked to teach an “Introduction to Computing” class at the local community college, starting with the “On” button and working through mouse, keyboarding, internet, and Microsoft Word. She was surprised to learn after one term that 50% of her students got new jobs or promotions. The penny dropped and Deb realized that by using resume writing as the Microsoft Word project, or job searches to show how to use the internet, she was teaching in a way that connected even the most basic computer skills to better job opportunities for her students.

In 1997 her computer experience brought her to Alexandria. Here, she began Computer CORE, building on previous successes using computer skills as a framework to develop career skills. With a friend, John Nelson, she wrote a concept paper that Fairlington Presbyterian Church’s elders approved, granting initial CORE funding and space used until moving in 2014. Deb initially served as CORE’s board chair, later moved onto the staff, and served as executive director until 2008.

Since leaving CORE, Deb has been active in local and national efforts. She has supported or run several political campaigns, provided consulting and coaching to non-profit executives (especially founders and executives during organization transitions), and used her coalition-building experience to lead a national utility-scale solar deployment as electric cooperatives implemented their first solar energy projects.

Deb has a BS in Biology from Macalester College, a MA in Science Technology and Public Policy from George Washington University, and a Masters Certificate in Six Sigma from Villanova University. In 2003 she married John Nelson. Deb and John have two daughters, Sophia and Charissa.

John Nelson was instrumental in the founding Computer CORE together with Deb Roepke. He provided guidance for Computer CORE’s direction, mission, even the organization’s name, and continues to provide support both financially and strategically. John was on CORE’s Board of Directors for 9 years, including 2 years as Secretary and 3 years as Chair.

An international defense analyst with more than 20 years of experience leading high-level planning and analytical efforts, John played an integral role in multiple NATO studies, including the Non-Lethal Weapons (NLW) Effectiveness Assessment (SAS-060), which won the 2008 NATO Scientific Achievement Award.

Involved with organizational strategic planning and alternative futures analysis, John is also responsible for day-to-day oversight of the NATO Non-Lethal Weapons Assessment (SAS-078) and the efforts of its 10 participating nations and 3 NATO organizations; he authors and presents analytical papers at international events including the Analytical Support to Defence Transformation Symposium (SAS-081) as well as providing ongoing support to the Non-Lethal Capabilities Defence Against Terrorism initiative (DAT-11).

John has a dual BS in Physic and Mathematics from Michigan State University, and earned his Masters in Applied Mathematics from Indiana University Bloomington.