OMG's Board Chair Carla Dickstein, Senior Program Officer Coastal Enterprises, Maine Carla Dickstein is Senior Vice-President for Research and Policy Development at Coastal Enterprises, Inc. (CEI), a community development corporation and community development finance institution serving primarily Maine. She oversees CEI's impact assessment work, policy research and development, and research on new CEI initiatives. Recent reports and papers address predatory lending practices in Maine, CEI's experience in measuring its impact, and entrepreneurial attraction strategies for rural Maine. In addition to OMG, she also serves on the boards of the Maine Center for Economic Policy, the Maine Energy Investment Corporation, and the Maine Citizen Trade Commission. Prior to CEI, Ms. Dickstein was on the faculty at West Virginia University's Regional Research Institute and the West Virginia University Extension Service. She holds a B.A. from Smith College, a Masters in Planning from the University of Minnesota, and a Ph.D. in City and Regional Planning from the University of Pennsylvania. Vice Chair Heather Noonan, Director of Government Affairs & Education Advocacy American Symphony Orchestra League Heather Noonan is the director of government affairs and education advocacy for the American Symphony Orchestra League, a service organization for more than 950 symphony orchestras nationwide. >From the League's Washington, DC office, Ms. Noonan represents orchestras before Congress, the White House, and federal agencies. As director of government affairs, her legislative portfolio includes federal policies related to the National Endowment for the Arts, education, immigration, cultural exchange, and nonprofit tax issues. Ms. Noonan serves on the national steering committee of the Arts Education Partnership and has served on the US Department of Education's steering committees for the America Goes Back to School project and Partnership for Family Involvement in Education. Ms. Noonan has served on the board of directors of the American Youth Philharmonic Orchestras and was the newsbreak editor for the Teaching Artist Journal from 2003 - 2005. She edited the League's 1998 publication and 2003 web site Artists from Abroad: The Complete Guide to Immigration and Tax Requirements for Foreign Guest Artists, and frequently consults orchestras regarding immigration procedures. Prior to joining the League in 1996, she was a legislative associate for the American Arts Alliance. Ms. Noonan earned a bachelor's degree in political science and studied art history at Western Washington University in Bellingham, Washington. Treasurer Gertrude J. Spilka, Director OMG Center for Collaborative Learning A founding director of OMG, Gertrude J. Spilka has over twenty-five years experience advising public and nonprofit organizations and national foundations on program development and evaluation, strategic planning, organizational restructuring and policy. The areas of her work include the arts, education reform, communications policy, community building, and non-profit management. Much of her recent work has investigated effective policy and systems change efforts across various fields. During her tenure at OMG, Gerri has advised on program strategy and directed numerous evaluations. Ms. Spilka has served on numerous non-profit boards including the Glynwood Center for Sustainable Development in New York, The Charter High School for Architecture and Design in Philadelphia, and the Neighborhood Gardens Association/A Land Trust in Philadelphia. Bernardine Watson Social Policy Consultant Bernardine H. Watson is a social policy consultant with over twenty-five years experience working with foundations, the private sector, think tanks, and other nonprofit organizations to plan and implement social policy initiatives and document policy issues. Ms. Watson's work focuses mainly on the intersection between youth development and community development. The impact of race and poverty on youth's lives are consistent themes in her work. Since becoming an independent consultant in 2003, Ms. Watson's clients have included the Annie E. Casey Foundation, the Ford Foundation, Just Partners Inc., Public/Private Ventures, The White Dog Café Foundation, The United Way of Southeastern Pa., and the William Penn Foundation. Prior to becoming an independent consultant, Ms. Watson spent ten years as a vice president and executive vice president at Public/ Private Ventures, a national youth policy organization where she was responsible for developing and generating funding for new projects; establishing and maintaining relationships with Congress, federal agencies and major foundations; and developing strategy and policy papers for internal use and external publication. She has published widely on youth development issues. Ms. Watson is a native of Philadelphia and until her relocation to Washington in 2004 was very active in Philadelphia's arts community. She was a member the Painted Bride Art Center board of directors from 1989-2000 and served as president from 1995-2000. She also served on the board of Scribe Video Center from 2000-2004. In 2002, she won the Philadelphia Celebration of Black Writing poetry award. Beverly Coleman, Program Director Philadelphia Neighborhood Development Collaborative Beverly Coleman is program director of the Philadelphia Neighborhood Development Collaborative. Ms. Coleman has more than 15 years of experience in community development activities, most recently as Program Officer at The Pew Charitable Trusts where she managed a grant portfolio related to urban and economic development activities. She was also the Project Director for the Targeted Neighborhood Initiative, a comprehensive demonstration program aimed at improving low-income neighborhoods in Philadelphia. Ms. Coleman has a M.A. in Government Administration from the Fels Center of Government at the University of Pennsylvania and a B.A. in Urban Studies from the University of Pennsylvania. Robert C. Penn, Executive Vice President & Chief Operating Officer East Baltimore Development Incorporated Robert C. Penn is Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of East Baltimore Development Inc. (EBDI), a 501 (c) 3 not-for-profit organization with the lead responsibility for managing the implementation of East Baltimore's revitalization initiative. He previously served as President and CEO of Vanguard Management Group, Inc., a Chicago-based minority owned general management consulting company; Executive Vice President and Director of West Coast Operations for Public Private Ventures, a Philadelphia-based national non-profit organization. He is a former General Superintendent and Chief Executive of the Chicago Park District. Mr. Penn compiled a distinguished military record as a Combat Infantry Commander in Vietnam, he was decorated with two Bronze Stars for Valor, a Purple Heart, three Crosses of Gallantry and several other military honors.