Leadership

Executive Committee

Conrad Woody, Chair
Conrad Woody is the Managing Partner of Odgers Berndtson’s Washington office and leads the US Association and Corporate Affairs Practice. His portfolio of search work includes advising clients on independent board director, corporate affairs, communications/public affairs, public policy, government affairs, corporate social responsibility, trade association CEO, and leadership roles. He is a member of the U.S. Board Practice and co-leads the firm’s U.S. Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Council. Prior to joining Odgers Berndtson, he was a Principal at another global executive search firm and a key member of the firm’s Government Affairs Practice. Before this, he was with Goldman Sachs & Co, where he was a member of the firmwide campus and diversity recruiting teams. He began his career as an aide for Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC). Conrad has a degree in political science from Howard University and serves as an advisory board member for Poligage, the world’s first online marketplace for public policy insights and government affairs advisory services. Additionally, he is a member of the Economic Club of Washington and serves as Chairman of the Board of Step Afrika! and a director on the non-profit board of Starting with Today Inc., and BAAR Art Residency and Journey. Conrad is a frequent speaker on career strategy, leadership, and corporate boards.

Kym Taylor, Vice Chair
Selected as one of Maryland’s Top 100 Women by The Daily Record, Delegate Kym Taylor is equal part business owner, politically engaged activist, and community leader. For over 30 years, Delegate Taylor and her family have made their home in Prince George’s County. She and her husband Steve co-founded their business, Family Choice Healthcare, almost 30 years ago. From its base in New Carrollton, the company has grown to a network of agencies throughout the northeast: Maryland, Washington, D.C., Pennsylvania, and New Jersey. With 800 clients and over 700 employees, Kym serves as the Vice President – Marketing and Strategic Solutions, and Vice President of the Board of Directors.

Kym serves as the Vice Chair for the Prince George’s Public Schools (PGCPS) Health and Biosciences Advisory Board and is a member of the PGCPS Career and Technical Education Advisory Board.  Kym is also serving her second term on the Prince George’s County Advisory Committee on Aging. Kym is a Charter Member of the Willow Oak (MD) Chapter of The Links, Incorporated. She is a Charter Member of the National Harbor Chapter of Jack and Jill of America, Incorporated, a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, a member of the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH), and Vice Chair of the Board for Step Afrika! Delegate Kym Taylor holds an MBA in Decision Sciences and Finance from Clark Atlanta University and a BBA in Information Systems from The George Washington University. She has been happily married to her husband, Steve, for 32 years!

Natasha Watkins, Secretary
Natasha Watkins received a B.B.A. in Finance from Howard University, an M.B.A. from Marymount University, and an M.S.W. from Catholic University. Natasha Watkins is a clinical therapist who works with patients to address their emotional health needs and enhance their overall well-being. She is an active member of the Washington DC Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc. and the Washington DC Chapter of Jack and Jill of America. She also serves on the Selection Committee for the Williams-Franklin Scholarship Foundation. Natasha is originally from Brooklyn, NY, and lives with her family in Chevy Chase, DC. 

Jeffery D. Kennerly, Treasurer
Jeffery Kennerly is a Vice President, Financial Advisor based out of Morgan Stanley’s West Conshohocken, PA office. The Families and Institutions that he advises benefit from more than 15 years of diversified experience. Since incepting his practice at Morgan Stanley in 2017, Jeffery has worked closely with corporate & not for profit executives, entrepreneurs, and families, acting as a dedicated financial advisor across market cycles and across family generations. Jeffery is a member of Morgan Stanley prestigious Pacesetter’s Club (2020, 2022-2024), which recognizes a group of the Firm’s successful Financial Advisors. Having started his career in public accounting, before transitioning to management consulting, he has advised public and closely held companies, in addition to not for profits. Jeffery developed his institutional experience while assisting those organizations through various financial and strategic challenges. This focused perspective allows him to address the planning needs of the business owners and not for profit executives he advises. Jeffery earned his Certified Exit Planning Advisor (CEPA®) designation, the most widely accepted and endorsed exit planning platform available. As a CEPA®, Jeffery focuses on cross-functional consulting and value acceleration, drawing on a multi-disciplinary global network of high caliber advisors in the exit/succession planning community. Jeffery serves on the Executive Committee of the Board of Directors for Step Afrika!, is an Advisory Board Member for Bowie State University’s School of Business, a Life Member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Incorporated and a General Member of the Association of African American Advisors. He is also involved with his children’s school (The Westtown School) as a lower school Parent Clerk assisting with hosting new families and advising the athletic department as a member of the Athletic Advisory Council.

C. Brian Williams, Founder and Executive Producer
C. Brian Williams is a native of Houston, Texas, and a graduate of Howard University. Brian first learned to step as a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. – Beta Chapter, in the Spring of 1989. While living in Southern Africa, he began to research the percussive dance tradition of stepping, exploring the many sides of this exciting, yet under-recognized American art form, and founded Step Afrika! in 1994. Williams has performed, lectured, and taught in Europe, Central and South America, Africa, Asia, the Middle East, the Caribbean, and throughout the United States. Through Williams’ leadership, stepping has evolved into one of America’s newest cultural exports and inspired the designation of Step Afrika! as Washington, DC’s official “Cultural Ambassador.”

In 2022, the National Endowment of the Arts designated Williams as a National Heritage Fellow, the nation’s highest honor in folk and traditional arts. He received many Artist Fellowships, the World Alive! Distinguished Artist Award by Arts Emerson; the Mayor’s Arts Award for Visionary Leadership from the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities; Distinguished Arts Award from the Coalition for African Americans in the Performing Arts; and the Pola Nirenska Award for Contemporary Achievement in Dance. He is also featured in Soul stepping, the first book to document the history of stepping, and at the Smithsonian Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, DC.

Board of Directors

Lamont Akins
Lamont Akins is a seasoned transformational leader with over two decades of multifaceted experience spanning public, private, and nonprofit sectors. Lamont is currently serving as Director of Governmental and External Affairs at Pepco. Lamont is responsible for engaging in stakeholder relations with local officials, community leaders and businesses, consumer and nonprofit organizations within the Pepco DC region, including advocating, shaping policy and managing issues to deliver value to our customers and key stakeholders. Before his tenure at Pepco, Lamont served as the Director of the Mayor’s Office of Community Affairs (MOCA) under DC Mayor Muriel Bowser’s administration, where he led community-driven partnerships, orchestrated crucial initiatives, and oversaw 13 constituent service offices and 12 DC Government boards/commissions, all which function as crucial conduits between residents and the Executive Office of the Mayor. Prior to his role with Mayor Bowser, Lamont served as the Director of Constituent Services for At-Large DC Councilmember Anita Bonds and has contributed significantly to various community development and public affairs roles with notable organizations such as AARP, Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services, and the Fairfax County Department of Housing and Community Development. An Arkansas native, Lamont holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff and a Master of Science in Community Development from Delta State University. He actively contributes as a member of the Board of Trustees at the University of the District of Columbia and the Board of Directors for Step Afrika! With a deep-rooted dedication to service, Lamont is a valued lifetime member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated. Lamont resides in the vibrant Brightwood Park neighborhood of Ward 4 in the District of Columbia. Contact the Office of the Board of Trustees.

Ann Belkov
Ann is the retired Superintendent of the Statue of Liberty National Monument and Ellis Island Museum. She had a 25-year career with the National Park Service that also included her positions as Superintendent of Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve in Louisiana and Chickamauga-Chattanooga National Park and Russell Cave National Monument in Tennessee, Georgia and Alabama. A D.C. native, she also worked for the D.C. Department of Recreation for nine years. Ann took a civilian assignment with the U.S. Air Force in the Far East during the Vietnam conflict. She received the Freedom Foundation Award and the Department of Interior Superior Performance Award. She retired in 1996 and has since been active in the D.C. arts and nonprofit scene, as an active board member of both Step Afrika! and the Atlas Performing Arts Center. Ann also serves on the Board of the U.S. Park Police Foundation.

Dyonicia “Dy” Brown
Dyonicia “Dy” Brown is a nonprofit executive and connector who is currently the Deputy Executive Director at Young Invincibles. Her expertise encompasses non-profit management, partnerships, program creation & implementation, community outreach, employee experience, and organizational engagement. Prior to her promotion, she served as the Sr. Director of Regional Strategy, where she was instrumental in partnering with the management team to create sustainable virtual programming, regional employment growth and implementing organizational culture, and staff engagement initiatives. She pioneered the launch of Mental Health Mondays for the company. Dy has also served in numerous leadership capacities including National Executive Director for Jack and Jill of America, Inc. with over 252 chapters nationwide and has worked in multiple roles in DC government. Her background is embedded in a commitment to civic engagement, philanthropy, celebrating the arts, and encouraging purposeful travel. Ms. Brown received an MSA in Organizational Development from Trinity University and a BBA in Marketing from Howard University. She currently serves on Step Afrika!’s Board of Directors. Dy is a Sephora Equity Advisor, an active member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. and a lifetime member of Leadership Greater Washington. Dy originally hails from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and continues to keep strong ties with that community. You can find her in the evenings and weekends cheering on her beloved New Orleans Saints, container gardening, and watching movies. 

David Canada
David Canada is director of Global Supplier Diversity for Boeing Defense Space & Security (BDS). Named to this role in 2023, he has primary responsibility for building stronger relationships with the diversity office at the DoD and with the respective representatives of the branches of services. David joined The Boeing Company in 2007 as an industrial engineer on the V-22 Osprey line. He implemented new project management tools that resulted in automated workforce planning and improved the schedule planning efficiency. David grew, taking on new challenges and roles across Boeing. As IT procurement manager, he managed 18 procurement agents, 30 suppliers, and more than $250 million in contracts. He moved on to serve as chief of staff to the Vice President of BDS IT Business Partners. He continued his career as the Senior Manager, Mergers & Acquisitions Integration Strategy, where he led mergers and acquisitions estimated at $2.5 billion, and manages critical cybersecurity issues and systems. David earned a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Howard University, and a master’s degree in business administration and a Certification in Project Management. Giving back is a part of who David is. He serves on the board of the following non-profit organizations: Black Alliance of Colleges & Employers (BACE), Step Afrika, Wearable Tech Ventures, The Life Enrichment Group and Positive Deposits. David is also very passionate about STEM education and the increasing number of minorities in technology fields. He is an active corporate representative for the Black Engineer of the Year Awards, Advancing Minorities Interest in Engineering and the National Society of Black Engineers. In addition, he was selected to be a member of the Racial Equity Task Force and co-lead the BGS Diversity & Inclusion Council. 

John W. Hill
John W. Hill is Founder and Chief Executive Officer of J Hill Group, a professional services practice that helps clients improve their management operations. Prior to starting his consulting practice, from 2004 to 2012, John served as CEO of the Federal City Council, a non-profit, non-partisan organization dedicated to improving the Nation’s Capital. In November 2013, John was named Chief Financial Officer of the City of Detroit, Michigan on a non-employment personal services contract. He was CFO of the City of Detroit until late 2018, when Detroit recovered from bankruptcy oversight. Mr. Hill has previously held several executive and financial leadership positions, including as Chief Executive Officer of In2Books, Inc. and as a Partner at Andersen, LLP. John served as a trustee and Chair of the compensation committee and as a member of the audit and nominating & corporate governance committees of Chesapeake Lodging Trust, a publicly traded REIT. He previously served as a member of the audit committees for various public companies, including Highland Hospitality Inc., and private entities, including Prestwick Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Mr. Hill served as President and Treasurer of the DC Public Library Board of Trustees and served on board of trustees for The Shakespeare Theatre Company, and as Chair of the board of directors of the National Minority AIDS Council. Mr. Hill received a degree in Accounting from the University of Maryland, passed the CPA exam, and became a Certified Public Accountant in 1977.

Janel Merritt
Janel serves as the Chief Operating Officer and the strategic planning advisor to the CEO of Digidoc d.b.a. Public Sector Solutions Group (PS2G). PS2G is a world-class technical consulting firm that solves the government’s problems through software implementations, professional services, and staffing. Janel is a 2019 recipient of the Leadership Award from Women in Technology (WIT). Having a passion for mentorship, she enjoys guest lecturing for her Alma Mater, Howard University’s School of Business. She also shares the company’s philanthropic and investment vision, creating mentorship programs for girls and local schools to provide STEM support. Janel holds a board seat with Women Energy Network (WEN). She has been a Metropolitan Baptist Church member for over two decades, serving in the music ministry. Janel graduated with a bachelor’s degree in marketing from Howard University and is a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. A mom of two, she currently lives in Alexandria, Virginia, with her husband Lindsey and their dog, Bison.

Christopher Montgomery
Christopher has more than 20 years of management and industry experience as an organizational effectiveness professional and is currently a Director in KPMG’s Transformation Delivery Practice. Throughout his career, he has been an avid supporter of creative, cultural, and community organizations. He has provided strategic consulting and financial support to Jazz at Lincoln Center (NYC), The Laundromat Project (former Board member), the Bedford-Stuyvesant YMCA (Board member), and The Thurgood Marshall College Fund (Advisor). Christopher also served on the cultural institution investment review team at the Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone in Harlem. Christopher is a Cornell University and Columbia Business School graduate and a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. A native Washingtonian, he lives in 16th Street Heights. 

Troy Patterson
Troy is a real estate agent with The Spera Group at TTR Sotheby’s International Realty. A North Carolina native, he first came to Washington in 1987 with the U.S. Coast Guard. He graduated from the University of North Carolina and American University, which led to extensive work fundraising in the nonprofit sector. He raised funds for Studio Theatre, Georgetown University, The National Building Museum and The National Association of Home Builders. Troy continues this work through his support with several local and national organizations. His diverse career in non-profit fundraising and management led to a love of real estate, which he has been successfully practicing for the last 18 years.

Glenn Eric Singleton
Glenn Eric Singleton has devoted over thirty years to constructing racial equity worldwide and developing leaders to do the same. Author, thought leader, and strategist, he is the creator of Courageous Conversation™ a protocol and framework for sustained, deepened dialogue, and Beyond Diversity™, the curriculum that has taught hundreds of thousands of people how to use it. Glenn is the Founder and President of Pacific Educational Group, Inc. (PEG), an agency that guides leadership development in education, government, corporation, law enforcement, and community organizing. He is the award-winning author of Courageous Conversations About Race; A Field Guide for Achieving Equity in Schools, Third Edition; and MORE Courageous Conversations About Race. Glenn has trained law enforcement leaders with the U.S. Embassy in Western Australia and established the Courageous Conversation South Pacific Institute and the Courageous Conversation Aotearoa Foundation, both located in Auckland, New Zealand. For eight years, he served as an adjunct professor of educational leadership at San Jose State University. Glenn has been a guest lecturer at Harvard University and has instructed faculty, students and administrators at the University of Minnesota, New York University School of Medicine, and the LBJ School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas. A graduate of the University of Pennsylvania and Stanford University, Glenn is Board President of the Courageous Conversation Global Foundation and the Founder and National Advisory Board Member of the Foundation for a College Education of East Palo Alto, CA. He is a member of Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc. and 100 Black Men. He lives in Washington, D.C. 

Kebharu Smith
Kebharu Smith is the Director of Amazon’s Counterfeit Crimes Unit (CCU), an international team of lawyers, investigators, and analysts whose mission is to disrupt and dismantle counterfeit organizations by targeting them through external enforcement efforts. Before joining CCU, Kebharu served as Senior Corporate Counsel with the DOJ’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section (CCIPS). Before that role, he served as an Assistant United States Attorney (AUSA) and Assistant District Attorney (ADA) in Houston. Kebharu is a Life Member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., an alumnus of Thurgood Marshall School of Law (at Texas Southern University), and a member of the National Bar Association and the National Black Prosecutor’s Association. Kebharu and his wife, Mignon Smith, enjoy traveling, sailing, original art, and theatre and serve as Ambassadors for the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture.

Brandon Todd
Brandon Todd serves as Sr. Director of Corporate Public Policy for Washington Gas (WGL). Brandon leads WGL’s government affairs and public policy group and works in close collaboration with senior leadership to support the development and management of public policy positions. Brandon supports developing and advocating WGL’s legislative, regulatory and public policy positions, and implements comprehensive government relations strategies and policies. He provides guidance on the economic and social implications of federal and state energy and environmental policies that affect WGL.

Brandon previously served six years on the Council of the District of Columbia representing Ward 4 . Brandon is an experienced community leader and advocate with expertise in political management, public policy, and government affairs, and has deep knowledge of the legislative process and depth of relationships in both the public and private sectors. Brandon has over 13 years of experience leading change in D.C. Government and communities across the District, and the region.

He currently serves on the Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce board of directors, The Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington board of directors, Step Afrika board of directors, The Tyson’s Alliance board of directors, Airport Authority Task Force board of directors, the University of the District of Columbia Foundation Board, Duke Ellington School of the Arts board of Directors and is a member of Leadership Greater Washington, and the Government Relations Group.

Brandon holds a Bachelor of Science in Communications with a concentration in Public Relations from Bowie State University and a Master of Business Administration with a concentration on Organizational Development from Trinity Washington University.

Melanie Trottman
Melanie Trottman is a storyteller – by training and at heart, now as a content strategist and creator for clients at global communications firm Edelman, and previously as a longtime reporter for The Wall Street Journal. Melanie is currently a Senior Vice President and Editorial Director in the Washington, D.C. office of Edelman, where she leads an Editorial workstream within a group of former journalists and other creatives who shape content strategy and creation for clients. In her role, Melanie has helped build, revamp, and run award-winning multichannel content newsrooms or other editorial engines for industry-leading brands in sectors ranging from hospitality and tech to healthcare and finance. She shapes content of all types, ranging from feature stories and executive bylines to short-form social posts, videos, and brand narratives. Melanie also helps clients conceive and shape research reports and surveys that earn attention to advance thought leadership for audiences ranging from media to consumers. Before joining Edelman in 2017, Melanie spent more than two decades as a journalist with The Wall Street Journal and its publisher, Dow Jones Newswires, where she collectively covered topics and industries ranging from aviation/travel and biotech/pharma to workplace regulation. A proud native of St. Louis, Missouri, Melanie is a graduate of Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism and a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. She’s also a lifelong lover of the arts.