TAP Board of Directors

May 2011

Marc Turner, President

Managing Director

Renaissance Advisory Group, LLC

William (Bill) Carr, Treasurer

Director of Professional Services

SAP Public Services, Inc.

Tracy Elizabeth Schloss, Esq., Secretary

Attorney

Drinker, Biddle & Reath, LLP

Members

Kathleen A. Bowes, Ed.D.

Coordinator of Instructional Technology, Widener University

Deborah Brown

Parent Advocate

Parent of TAP graduate (Class of 2010) currently excelling at Cheyney University

Debbie Dickinson, Esq.

Attorney

Independent Representative, Sipalda Designs

Robin G. Mamlet

Senior Consultant

Witt-Kieffer Executive Search

Former Dean of Undergraduate Admissions, Stanford University

Former Dean of Admissions, Swarthmore College

LeAnne J. Mangano

Development Consultant

Sister of TAP graduate (Class of 2010) currently attending Wesleyan West Virginia University

Nadine McHenry, Ed.D.

Director of Science Teaching Center

Widener University

Frederic L. Pryor, Ph.D.

Senior Research Scholar

Swarthmore College

Department of Economics

George Tillery

Underwriter, PHH Mortgage

Janice Hoffman Willis, Ed.D.

Retired Psychologist, Chester Upland School District

Christina Lolley Wilmer

Parent Advocate

Parent of Current TAP Student (Class of 2013)

Sabrina Ford Williams, Ph.D.

Lead Consultant,  Behavioral Health Research & Consulting

Widener University

*All Board Members make a financial contribution to TAP each fiscal year.

Former Board Members who served their term(s):

Diana Campbell

Director, Urban Teacher Residency Program (UTRP)

The Philadelphia Education Fund

Marshall Muhammad

Founder

Muhammad Tax Services

Lisa Smulyan

Professor, Department of Education

Swarthmore College

Marc A. Turner

Managing Director

Renaissance Advisory Group

TAP Staff

Nicola Tollett Jefferson, Founder & Executive Director

Ms. Jefferson is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Smith College (anthropology and French) and received her J.D. from Columbia University.  In May 2003 she completed the program for secondary-level teacher certification at Swarthmore College.  Certified to teach social studies, French, and Spanish in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, she has served as a teacher in various middle schools and high schools in Delaware County, PA.  As the Director, Ms. Jefferson’s duties include leading the fulfillment of TAP’s Vision, Core Values and Strategic Plan; Collaborating with the Fundraising Committee and critical partners to insure the success of program goals; and empowering TAP staff, volunteers and interns to attain organizational goals.

Jennifer Atchison, Director of Math and Science Program

Ms. Atchison is in the Ph.D. program at Drexel University in the Department of Materials Science & Engineering in the College of Engineering.  She holds a B.S. in Materials Engineering from the same institution.  She is currently a graduate student in the Meso Materials Laboratory under the direction of Dr. Jonathan Spanier and is a NSF Graduate Teaching Fellow in K-12 Education. Her teaching experience includes working with Philadelphia middle school students to encourage interest in science, technology, engineering and mathematics; serving as a biology lab instructor at Charter Prep School in Philadelphia; and serving as a program coordinator for a National Science Foundation (NSF) Young Scholars Program at Drexel University.  As the Director of TAP’s Science Program, her job includes creating and providing innovative, hands-on math and science enrichment experiences for the TAP students.

Elizabeth (“Lisa”) Ruffini, Lead Teacher/Alumni Coordinator

Ms. Ruffini worked for a number of years as a substitute teacher at The Walden School, a private, Montessori-based school that serves elementary through middle school students in Media, PA.   Her volunteer work has included tutoring young people in an urban after-school program and serving as the President of her child’s high school Home & School Association. Ms. Ruffini graduated from Lafayette College (Easton, PA) with a B.A. in Chemistry.  As TAP’s Program Facilitator, her job includes administering the curriculum goals and strategies of the organization and providing a safe harbor for the TAP students.

Sherry Halpern, Director of Operations

Ms. Halpern joined TAP in April 2011 having had extensive work experience in the areas of Film & Video Production, Sales & Marketing,  and Television Broadcasting.  Her past credits include Producer of the 1986 Philadelphia Phillies Radio and TV Campaign, Producer of the nationally syndicated, weekly half-hour television series on medicine and healthcare, “House Call with Dr. Timothy Johnson,” and various positions over a three-year period at WGBH-TV (PBS) in Boston, MA.  From 1987-2005 Ms. Halpern was Co-Owner of a Professional Writing Business in Media, PA.

Present or Past Consultants for TAP

Edward F. Swenson & Associates, Inc. (EFS)

EFS has collaborated with more than 100 nonprofit agencies across the Mid-Atlantic region since 1989.  EFS helps nonprofit organizations accomplish mighty goals, irrespective of their size. The firm has an accomplished record of successfully counseling nonprofit groups that vary in mission, area of focus, and annual budget size. Since its founding, EFS has counseled clients involved in arts and culture; children, youth and families; community and economic development; education; and stewardship of the natural and built environments. The EFS client list contains a range of organizations, including Plymouth Meeting Friends School, Lantern Theater Company, Friends of Van Cortlandt Park, and Manayunk Development Corporation.

Greenseeds, Inc.

Greenseeds has been providing grant services for social justice and community service organizations for more than twenty years.  During that time, it has helped local, state, regional, and national organizations raise over $15 million in grant funds.    Mr. Terry Rumsey  of Greenseeds has served in a consulting role with TAP since TAP’s founding in 2002.  Green Seeds’ clients include Ceasefire New Jersey, Community Interactions, Inc., the Mental Health Association of Southeastern Pennsylvania, and the national Witness to Innocence organization.  TAP contracted with Mr. Rumsey in July of 2006 to develop a consistent grants program for the project. TAP has raised nearly $200,000 in grant awards (some grant awards extended over multiple years) during this period.  Terry Rumsey has played a critical role in the development of the TAP fundraising efforts.

TAP Interns

Current and Past Interns (Partial List):

Andrew Hernandez (Summer 2011)

Tilden Bowditch (Summer 2011)

Kalli Havens (Summer 2011)

Meghan Malloy (Summer 2010)

Susan Seitz (Summer 2010)

Alexandra (“Alex”) D’Ignazio (Summer 2009)

Justin Ruffini (Summer 2009)

Randall Keith Benjamin, III  (Summer 2008)

Kelly O’Donnell (Summer 2008)

TAP Volunteers

TAP has been fortunate to have the volunteer services of many highly talented and effective people.  If you are interested in volunteering for TAP contact staff@tapofchester.org.