Young Professionals Wisdom Council

Skyne Betha, Manager of Supplier Diversity at Compass Group North America, Foodbuy Division, is responsible for the company’s corporate-wide program. This includes implementing and developing processes, procedures and communication to increase business with minority and woman-owned business enterprises. A native of Rose Hill, North Carolina, Skyne earned a bachelor’s in Business Administration from Mount Olive College.

In addition to her involvement with Engage Charlotte, Skyne is also a board member of the Diversity Business Council and volunteers for the non-profit organization Gifted Girls and Emerging Young Leaders, a program that will impact the lives of girls in grades six through eight by providing leadership development, civic engagement, enhanced academic preparation and character building.

Joel Canino currently works as Director of Leasing for The Ghazi Company, a local commercial real estate development firm. He is also an owner of Mighty Men Property Services, a commercial lawn care and painting company servicing the Charlotte area. Joel attended Palm Beach Atlantic University in Palm Beach, Florida, where he earned his bachelor’s degree in international business. He enjoys playing soccer and basketball, spending time with family, and meeting new people here in Charlotte.

Courtney Colosi relocated from Rochester, NY to the Queen City in 2007. She is currently a recruitment consultant with Chiquita Brands International. In addition to Engage Charlotte, Courtney is Director of Community Involvement for Business Leaders of Charlotte (BLOC), where she is directly responsible for the organization’s outreach events and fundraisers.

Courtney also donates time and energy to The Komen Foundation and Habitat for Humanity. In her spare time, Courtney enjoys spending time with friends and family, traveling, working out, or taking her pup, Canoli, for a stroll. Courtney graduated from State University Of New York at Buffalo with a degree in Communication and minor in Marketing.

Joanna Gammon is a Recruiter for MadisonGunn. She has a bachelor’s degree in Business Management with a concentration in Entrepreneurship from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. Joanna is actively involved in Charlotte’s business, religious & sports community.

Peter Gilchrist works in corporate communications for Bank of America. He has a bachelor’s degree in journalism and mass communication from UNC-Chapel Hill. A native Charlottean, Peter spends his free time playing with his beagle, L.C.; battling the local golf courses; or attending a concert at one of Charlotte’s many live music venues.

Tameka Green is a diversity generalist in the Diversity Department at Compass Group North America. Tameka is responsible for the internal and external communications of Compass Group’s Diversity Strategies and Initiatives. A native of Wilmington, North Carolina, Tameka earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communication Studies from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Tameka has been heavily involved in the community over the past few years. Tameka serves as the Chairperson of the Planning Committee for the Chamber’s Annual Meeting, serves on the Board of Directors of the Southwest Chapter of the Chamber and was recently appointed to the Board of Directors of the Chamber. Moreover, she is a member of the Charlotte Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists, serving as Chairperson for the Democratic National Convention’s planning committee.

In her spare time, Tameka volunteers with various organizations in the community. She is an individual rights committee member for Lifespan Services, and is a member of Bethlehem Center’s Scholarship Selection Committee. Moreover, she is a member of the YWCA’s 1902 Young Donor Society’s Planning Committee and of the United Way’s Young Leaders Council. As a result of her community involvement, Tameka was recognized as a Standout Charlottean by the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation in June 2010 and a “Top Forty under Forty” by the Charlotte Business Journal in March 2011.

Reema Hagez was born with an entrepreneurial spirit and is driven by her mentor’s motto …“Think Big but Start Small”. Born and raised in Richmond, Virginia, she moved here in 2000 after distinguishing Charlotte’s competitive edge of having the right resources aligned with a driven environment of opportunity. Reema graduated with a Bachelor's in Business Management with a concentration in Entrepreneurship from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. She is a Human Resources Advisor in Advice and Counsel at Bank of America and specializes in handling complex employee relations to help mitigate risk and minimize exposure to the firm. Reema is delighted to be part of Charlotte’s dynamic business community including Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) , Engage Charlotte, United Way Young Leaders, and Hands on Charlotte. One of her favorite things is to provide newcomers and citizens with valuable reasons to call this fascinating city home. During her spare time, she loves going to the beach, traveling, and enjoys social and professional networking opportunities.

Michael Juby represents borrowers and lenders in a variety of tax-exempt, real estate and corporate financings as an attorney at Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP. Michael has been involved with Engage Charlotte since 2006 and served as its chair in 2008 and 2009. Michael also serves on the executive committee of the NC State Young Alumni Council and the steering committee for Hands On Charlotte’s Service Juris Day. Michael and his wife, Anna, have a daughter, Anne Botts.

Amber Lineback is a Culture, Communications, and Development Consultant for Piedmont Natural Gas, and she is passionate about helping teams achieve healthy, high performance. She earned her undergraduate degree from UNC-Chapel Hill, and she’s currently pursuing her Masters in Organizational Development at the McColl School of Business at Queens University.

Andrea Miceli is a Change Manager for Bank of America, where she specializes in facilitating change projects for the Leadership Development team. Andrea holds an International MBA from the University of South Carolina and a Bachelor of Science in communication studies from Northwestern University. In addition to her involvement with Engage Charlotte, Andrea has also volunteered with Junior Achievement and Citizen Schools.

Andrea’s weekends usually involve culinary adventures inspired by Clean Catch Fish Market or the King Street Farmers Market, running or yoga, and making plans for her next international vacation.

Wes Misson is an attorney in the banking and finance practice group at the law firm of Mayer Brown LLP. He regularly represents both foreign and domestic banks in a variety of securitizations as well as cross-border financings for private equity and real estate funds. An Ohio native who grew up in Virginia, Wes moved to Charlotte in 2007 after graduating law school with honors at The Ohio State University where he served as a managing editor for The Ohio State Journal of Criminal Law and as a member of the National Moot Court Team. He obtained his bachelor's degree in journalism and political science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and also spent time abroad studying international law at Oxford University. Wes represents his firm in the Young Lawyers' Section of the Mecklenburg County Bar and also actively participates in various charitable activities. Aside from the office, Wes enjoys staying active, traveling, meeting new people and is a passionate sports fan.

Ally Oelerich joined Charlotte Center City Partners in August 2008 as Event Coordinator, responsible for the planning and coordination of all events in both Uptown Charlotte and the Historic South End. These events ranged from Belk Carolinas Carrousel Thanksgiving Day Parade, Time Warner Cable BBQ & Blues, the First Night Charlotte festival to celebrate the New Year, South End Soul, Presbyterian Hospital July 4th Spectacular and the annual Center City Vision Awards in the Spring.

As of July 2010, Ally transitioned from Event Coordinator to Communication Associate, helping to coordinate media and PR requests and releases as well as coordinating volunteers at all CCCP events. Ally also handles all content on the "Things to Do" section of the FindYourCenter.com website. This includes reviewing and uploading accurate and compelling content supporting CCCP and ArtsFest, Inc. events as well as events generated by organizations other than CCCP or ArtsFest.

Prior to her position with CCCP, Ally worked as a Marketing Coordinator for TA Associates Realty in Boston, Massachusetts where she helped coordinate the company's annual cycle of events, including a summer outing, holiday party, annual meeting and annual golf tournaments.

Ally is originally from Stony Brook, New York and graduated from Oswego State University in 2004 with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Public Relations. In her spare time, she enjoys running, playing tennis and hiking - activities she can enjoy with much greater frequency having traded Boston's snowy winters for the much more hospitable climate of Charlotte and the Carolinas.

Ashley Osterstrives to raise the visibility of UNC Charlotte and make known the many resources to the community as she leads the Community Affairs team at the University. With a love for big city life, Ashley is passionate about the smart growth of Charlotte as we grow public transportation systems, arts and culture offerings and green space in our community. Thankful to serve on boards with the YMCA, Charlotte Chamber and US Airways Education Foundation, she is learning so much and hopes to contribute back to this vibrant community. Spare time is enjoyed with her husband and daughter—they live in Wilmore and attend church at Warehouse 242.

Meigan Powell, Past Chair, of Powell & Partners Creative has used her skills as a media buyer, planner and marketer to enhance the success of brands such as Wachovia, GM, Zatarains, Arby’s and Benihana, to name a few. Her wide-ranging New York agency experience spans projects as diverse as devising media plans for Six Flags theme parks, and implementing all local Hispanic broadcast buys and merchandising for Heineken, Heineken Light and Amstel Light. Better yet, her bachelor’s degree in art and design, means she also has high creative wattage, making big-idea contributions to brainstorming sessions with clients’ “buzz’ marketing efforts.

Stacey B. Randall is the chief consultant and founder of SBR Consulting which helps companies improve employee loyalty and engagement, understand and leverage generational diversity and recruit and retain top talent. Her passion for being the voice of employees runs deep and parallel with her mission of raising awareness of demographic changes affecting the city’s workforce as well as determining what it will take to position Charlotte as a city of choice among young talent. As the original founder of Engage Charlotte, Stacey serves on the board of NAWBO, PeerLeaders and manages a senior-level HR leadership group. Her free time is spent grabbing catnaps as her active 2-year old son and 2-month old daughter keep her and her husband very busy.

Demond Richardson is a Sourcing Manager on Wells Fargo’s Supplier Diversity team, He is responsible for strategy development, supply chain partnering, relationship management and MWDBE outreach and engagement. Demond is able to impart valuable input and guidance, due to his experiences as a global supply chain sourcing professional, a small business owner and as an attorney negotiating contracts related to technology and the sports and entertainment industries.

Being a proud native of Charlotte, North Carolina, Demond is energized and enthused by his community development and mentoring activities and achievements. Demond is a mentor and advisor for West Charlotte High’s Emerging Leaders Program, Villa Heights Elementary School and the Emerging Leaders Summer Program for Black Males. Demond assists the community by providing many hours of pro bono legal services in the areas of contracts, consumer protection and elder law.

Demond serves as a member of the Board of Directors for the Georgia Minority Supplier Diversity Council. He is also a member of the Procurement Corporate Advisory Board for the United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and an active member of the American Bar Association, National Bar Association, African American Real Estate Professionals of Charlotte and Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc.

Demond received his Bachelor of Arts from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte and a Juris Doctorate from North Carolina Central University School of Law where he received the distinguished Earl Warren Legal Defense Scholarship. Demond currently lives in Charlotte with his beautiful wife Angela and their two wonderful, brilliant and entertaining children Selassie and Nia.

Robert Rhyne graduated from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte with a bachelor’s in computer science. Throughout his college career, he was a member of the University Honors Program (UHP) and Students in Free Enterprise (SIFE). Robert interned for the non-profit group Youth Service America (YSA) in Washington, D.C., during the summer months of 2005 and for the investment company Vanguard during the summer months of 2006. Robert has been with Wachovia since June of 2007 where he is a Web developer in the Technology Operations Group. He likes to stay active in the community through volunteering. Robert also enjoys reading, spending time with friends and traveling.

Megan Sadler is an attorney in Wishart Norris Henninger & Pittman, PA's Commercial Litigation practice group and regularly assists closely held businesses to resolve simple and complex commercial disputes in federal, state as well as the North Carolina Business Court. Megan moved to North Carolina in 2001 to attend law school at Wake Forest University School of Law where she served as the 2003-2004 Research Editor for the Wake Forest Law Review and graduated cum laude in 2004. From Winston-Salem, Megan moved to Raleigh to clerk for a justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court. In 2005, Megan moved to Charlotte to work with her firm and, like many of her fellow West Virginian's, fell in love with the Queen City. Megan is significantly involved in serving on the board for Ten Thousand Villages of Charlotte as well as the Wishart Norris Henninger & Pittman Charitable Foundation and supporting St. Innocent's Orphanage and Project Mexico.

Kyle Woodruff is a Vice President in the Commercial Lending Group of First Citizens Bank in Charlotte, NC. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics Degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a Master of Business Administration Degree from Wake Forest University. Kyle is active in the Charlotte Chamber of Commerce, serving on the Board of Directors for the Ballantyne Chapter of the Chamber. He is also actively involved in Rotary International. Kyle serves on the Young Alumni Leadership Council for the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and is a member of Christ Episcopal Church. A Wilmington, NC native, Kyle enjoys spending time at the beach and attending sporting events in Chapel Hill.

Chad Zalesiak is the Charlotte account manager for CSC Leasing, a technology financing company with corporate offices in his native Richmond, Va. CSC Leasing provides custom lease solutions to meet the ever-changing business and competitive needs of growing organizations – from startups to Fortune 500 companies. Chad is a political science and economics double major graduate of Hampden-Sydney College (2008). Outside of Engage Charlotte, Chad is involved in several areas of Charlotte, including coaching youth lacrosse and serving as an Ambassador for NCTA (North Carolina Technology Association). His brother Mark is a student at the College of Charleston, his father is an engineer for Dominion Power, and his mother is the Head of the Lower School at Hilton Head Preparatory School. In his free time, Chad enjoys hunting, fishing, surfing, cooking and live music.