DC Staff

Rosetta Lai, Interim Executive Director. Rosetta spent twenty years in the corporate sector in organizational development with global corporations, such as Motorola, NCS/Pearson and SRA/IBM. Prior to joining the corporate world, Rosetta spent eight years in education, where she was Dean of Women at Lake Forest Academy in Chicago, and Academic Dean at St. Mary’s Academy in South Bend, IN. Throughout her adult life, Rosetta has been active in Asian American non-profit organizations. She served as the President of the Organization of Chinese Americans (OCA), Chicago Chapter in the 1980s and is the current National President of the Organization of Chinese American Women (OCAW). Rosetta received a B.A. in History from St. Mary’s College, Notre Dame, IN and a Masters in Sociology from the University of Notre Dame.

Katherine Lum, Chief Operating Officer. Prior to joining AALEAD, Katherine served in various capacities with Investcorp, responsible for marketing, financial, business management, compliance and operational matters for its regulated hedge fund companies. She also held various positions with JPMorgan Securities Inc. and its predecessor companies, providing financial advisory, private placement and structured products services to clients. Katherine graduated with a B.Sc. in Business Management, summa cum laude, and a Master in Business Administration, both from Brigham Young University.

Catalina Talero Academic and Enrichment Program Manager. Catalina Talero has six years of experience working with youth in Ward 1. Currently an Angeline M. Anderson Fellowship recipient finishing an M.Ed. in International Education at George Washington University, she earned an honors, double B.A. at the University of Toronto in Liberal Art and Political Science. Her academic and professional interests include systems and funds management for programs serving underprivileged children and youth. Her preferred evaluation tools are outcomes-by-design based. Developmental and achievement modeled programming forms the core of her past work experience; examples range from American Legacy Foundation leadership community building (at D.C. Children and Youth Investment Trust Corporation) to Latin American Youth Center advocacy programming and fundraising. Catalina enjoys traveling, Salsa dancing, and cooking.

Rick Chen, Development Associate.

Giao Dang, Mentoring Program Coordinator.

Kelly Shim, Secondary School Program Coordinator.

Danilo Francisco, Elemenatary and Secondary School Program Coordinator.

Alexander Vallejo, Administrative Assistant. Alex studied Jazz Performance at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia, PA and Comparative Literature at West Chester University in West Chester, PA. He is involved in advocacy work for mentally ill youths in the DIY (do-it-yourself) community, distributing self-published literature and leading workshops about mental health issues at alternative venues throughout the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic regions.

Maryland Staff

Anita Kattakuzhy, Program Manager. Anita graduated from Towson University with a B.S. in Elementary Education and continued teaching during her Peace Corps service in Guyana, South America as a Community Health Educator. While in Guyana, she helped to establish Youth for Change, an annual camp for secondary students promoting leadership, healthy lifestyles, and education. Following this, she attended the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London for a Master's program in Social Anthropology - Migration and Diaspora Studies. Her master's dissertation, titled "Perilous Models - Analysis of the Asian American Experience," explored the Model Minority Myth and its effects on Asian American voice. She is active of the South Asian Malayali community in Maryland and belongs to the St. Thomas Syrian Orthodox Church of Westminister/Baltimore, MD.

Yamir Perez, Maryland Academic and Mentoring Program Coordinator. Yamir was a teacher at Nicholas Orem Middle School in Prince George's County for two years. He received his B.A. in Spanish from the University of Maryland, College Park and is currently working towards a Masters degree in Counseling at Bowie State University.

Sharon Wong, Maryland Family Program Manager. Sharon studied social work at Hong Kong Shue Yan College, and received her honor diploma in 1998. After graduation, she worked with children, youth, and families. As an accomplished social worker, she assisted over 100 newly arrived women from China in Hong Kong (HK). Sharon supported them in their adjustment periods in HK and advocated for their rights. She furthered her studies at the University of Alabama and received her Masters in Social Work (MSW) in 2005. Sharon looks forward to serving new immigrants and refugees in Maryland.

AmeriCorps Vista Volunteers

Berbelichary Caraballo, Loiderman Middle School Site Coordinator. Chary received her B.A. in English with minors in Spanish and Women Studies at the College of Saint Elizabeth in NJ. Prior to joining AALEAD, she attended the March of Remembrance and Hope program in Poland where she learned about the Holocaust and the intolerance, injustice and racism which continues to fuel hate in the world. She also volunteered with Angel Wings for several years, providing support for children from broken homes. Chary aspires to attend law school in the future.

Jeri Song, Academic Program Assistant in Maryland. Jeri received her Bachelor of Arts in American Studies along with a minor in Social Welfare from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. Jeri has had previous experience teaching Korean students English through a Summer Day Camp Program in Silver Spring, MD.

Mai Huynh, Academic Program Assistant in Maryland. Mai received her B.A. in Women’s Studies and American Studies at Wellesley College. Prior to joining AALEAD, Mai worked at non-profit in Tokyo, Japan where she learned about globalization’s impact on human trafficking. She also traveled throughout India to learn about grassroots development. Her experiences abroad, combined with her education, fueled Mai’s desire to work in the public sector.

The AALEAD Board of Directors is a dynamic, diverse group of professionals, parents, and students. To keep itself accountable to AALEAD’s clients, the Board of Directors is mandated by its own charter to include parents and students from its target population.

Teresa L. Lee is an Associate Vice President in the Payment and Health Care Delivery Department of the Advanced Medical Technology Association. Teresa is an AALEAD mentor and has in the past served on the boards of Asian Pacific American Bar Association of Washington, DC, the APABA Women’s Forum and the APABA Educational Fund. She has a B.A. in Rhetoric and Economics from the University of California-Berkeley, a J.D. from George Washington University, and a M.P.H. from Harvard University.

Maxine Freund is a tenured professor in the Graduate School of Education and Human Development at the George Washington University, Washington, D.C. Currently she serves as the Director of Special Projects for the Graduate School, and holds a faculty line in the Department of Teacher Preparation and Special Education engaging in pre k-12 work across the Department. Additionally, Dr. Freund currently directs several externally funded projects including an Educational Specialist Leadership Program, and is Co-Principal Investigator on a newly funded Title II Higher Education Grant in collaboration with the District of Columbia Public Schools and multiple nonprofit, university and for profit partners.

Board Chair Hansel Pham is an attorney specializing in international dispute resolution at White & Case LLP. Hansel also serves on the board and as legal counsel for two other nonprofit corporations both of which focus on promoting educational projects. Prior to joining AALEAD, he volunteered as a big brother and after-school mentor to recent Southeast Asian refugees in Dorchester, Massachusetts. Hansel graduated from Harvard College with a B.A. degree in Economics and East Asian Studies and received his J.D. from Harvard Law School.

In 1995, Julia Moe founded and designed an arts education program sponsored by the Corcoran Gallery of Art, serving middle and high school students in the DC Schools. The program featured studio art classes taught by professional artists in the fundamentals of drawing and painting. Over seventy youth worked with public artists and landscape architects to create public artworks that reflected their local culture, neighborhood history and natural resources. In 2005, she launched an annual scholarship program that sends five DC youth to attend an international film festival, MountainFilm in Telluride, Colorado. Students have a chance to interview film makers, broaden their understanding of the filmmaking process, and view films focusing on culture, environment and change.

Ban Tran is an Assistant Vice President and Senior Financial Advisor with Merrill Lynch’s global Private Client Group. Mr. Tran has two decades of professional experience in the international banking and financial services industry, specializing in trade finance and international private banking covering both Europe and Asia. He serves on the Boards of the Vietnamese Association for Computing, Engineering Technology and Science, and Devotion to Children, a local nonprofit. Mr. Tran graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a B.A. in Economics and International Relations, and earned his MBA in International Finance from George Washington University.

Buu-Linh Tran is an Outsourcing Manager with Raffa & Associates, working with nonprofits on accounting system transitions, budgeting concepts, efficient year-end audit processes, and successful implementation of business procedures. Prior to joining Raffa, Buu-Linh worked with an international outsourcing organization, where she led a global team on the implementation of financial software products. Buu-Linh graduated from the University of Maryland with a BS in Accounting, and received a Master of Science in Information Systems Technology from George Washington University; she is registered in Maryland as a Certified Public Accountant.

Heidi Ha is a Managing Director with ICOR Partners, LLC focusing on strategic planning, IT and operational turnaround for public and private clients. Previously as a member of Booz Allen and Hamilton's Strategic Transformation Group, she led the development of the firm’s business transformation services, and managed pre- and post-merger integration, outsourcing transitions and privatization engagements. Heidi has also held management and executive positions with Capital One Financial Corporation, Intelsat, LCC International and Teligent. Heidi holds a Bachelors and Masters Degree in Electronics and Electrical Engineering from the University of Cambridge, England and an MBA from the Darden School of Business Administration, University of Virginia.

Amy Hoang Wrona is a Senior Associate at Strategic Analysis, Inc., where she is responsible for the management and organizational consulting function of the company's Policy and Strategy Division. Prior to Strategic Analysis, Amy had worked at McKinsey and Company, as a subject matter expert in alliances and joint ventures. Amy is a former mentor at AALEAD and has also served on the Capital Campaign Committee. She holds an MA and a BA in International Economics and Southeast Asia Studies from Johns Hopkins University.

Roopal Saran is the Director of Client Services at Kaboom in Washington, DC.

Jimmy Lynn is the Vice President of Diversity Partnerships and Strategic Relationships for Americal Online.

Smita Dutta is a Principal of IBM Global Services in Bethesda, MD.

Samuel Hahn is a Principal of Tatum LLC in Tysons Corner, VA.

Mimi Le is an Associate Professor of Psychology at George Washington University in Washington, DC.

Meehee Hwang

Annie E. Casey Foundation

Asian Pacific American Bar Association

Asian Pacific American Legal Resource Center

Bank of America

Banyan Tree

Jerry Taylor and Nancy Bryant Foundation

CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield Bronze Sponsor of our 9th Annual Dinner!

Catholic University Bronze Sponsor of our 9th Annual Dinner!

 

Citibank Gold Sponsor of our 9th Annual Dinner!

Citigroup Foundation

Clark Winch-Cole

Columbia Heights/Shaw Collaborative

Crowell and Moring Foundation

D.C. Children & Youth Investment Trust Corporation

Edna McConnell Clark Foundation

Eugene & Agnes E. Meyer Foundation

Fannie Mae Foundation Fund of the Community Foundation for the National Capital Region

Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund

Freddie Mac Foundation

Frederick H. Prince Trust

Gilbert and Jaylee Mead Family Foundation

Harman Family Foundation

Human Genome Sciences Bronze Sponsor or our 9th Annual Dinner!

Latham & Watkins LLP

Lois & Richard England Family Foundation

Marpat Foundation, Inc.

Moriah Fund, Inc.

Morningstar Foundation

Morris & Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation

National Neighborhood Coalition

PEPCO Bronze Sponsor of our 9th Annual Dinner!

Philip L. Graham Fund

Pitney Bowes Foundation

Pragmatics, Inc. Bronze Sponsor of our 9th Annual Dinner

Raffa & Associates, P.C.

Ronald McDonald House

The Salvation Army Bronze Sponsor of our 9th Annual Dinner!

State Farm

The Catholic University of America

The Coca-Cola Company

The Washington Post

UBS Financial Services

U.S. Office of Refugee Resettlement

Vanguard Charitable Endowment Program

Venable Foundation

Venture Philanthropy Partners, Inc.

Verizon Bronze Sponsor of our 9th Annual Dinner!

Weinberg Foundation

White & Case LLP Bronze Sponsor of our 9th Annual Dinner!

Willows Development Co.

and many individual donors