StartingBloc Team
Convening, nourishing and supporting community requires a lot of us showing up.
The StartingBloc Board of Directors is listed below. We do our work alongside a team of 25+ volunteer Regional Chairs in cities all around the world, dozens of event-based volunteers, and a few highly dedicated operations and systems volunteers each year. We recognize and honor their work and contributions.
StartingBloc Team
Convening, nourishing and supporting community requires a lot of us showing up.
The StartingBloc Board of Directors is listed below. We do our work alongside a team of 25+ volunteer Regional Chairs in cities all around the world, dozens of event-based volunteers, and a few highly dedicated operations and systems volunteers each year. We recognize and honor their work and contributions.
Our board of directors
King Adjei-Frimpong
King is a management consultant for the Bridgespan Group. Prior to Bridgespan, King served as a Director of Research & Strategy for the Commission on Economic Opportunity – focusing on partnership development and new initiatives. He began his career as an AmeriCorps volunteer, helping low-income families save on their utility bills.
He has a deep passion for advancing core civil and economic rights as well as environmental justice.
King is a proud StartingBloc Bos ‘14 Fellow. King earned his MBA from the University of Virginia – Darden School of Business, where he was a Consortium Fellow and his bachelor’s from UCLA. He’s a budding podcast host who is interested in understanding and sharing stories of resilience.
Callie Chamberlain
Callie Chamberlain is committed to health, health care, and well-being for all. Callie oversees social responsibility for Optum, a global health services organization with over 150,000 staff members serving 124 million individuals, 200 health plans, and 100,000 health care facilities.
In her role, Callie is responsible for advancing inclusive access to care, whole person health, and structural equity across the Fortune five company, transforming the organization’s approach to operations and culture, and reforming the health system to work better for everyone. A strong commitment to intercultural and interreligious dialogue, Callie has filmed an award-winning documentary highlighting the role of women in the refugee crisis, co-founded a microwork application connecting refugees to income opportunities, contributed to the implementation of Youth 2030: the UN Youth Strategy, and developed grassroots strategies in Egypt, Morocco, and Qatar on behalf of the United Nations to prevent violent extremism across the Middle East and North Africa. A deep believer in the power of community, she founded New Leaders Council-Twin Cities, Minnesota’s largest progressive leadership and development program dedicated to building a network of Millennials working across sectors to advance equity in the region. Now in its sixth year, the organization has a network of over 70 alumni, 6 of whom are in state and local office. Callie is reading one book a week by an author of color and developing a community doula program serving low-income and un/underinsured women. She is a Reiki master, aspiring DJ, and forever in search of the spiciest cocktails in downtown Los Angeles.
Julian Rhoads
Julian Rhoads is a senior program officer for Leadership and Exchange Programs at The Asia Foundation. He is responsible for design, implementation and oversight of flagship leadership development and exchange programs in Asia and the U.S.
He joined The Asia Foundation in 2011 as executive assistant, providing professional and administrative support for the president of the Foundation. In 2015, he assumed the role of special assistant to the president and assistant secretary to the board of trustees, serving as principal aide to the president in executing overall institutional goals with advisory, research, and operational support, and providing support to the board of trustees. Previously, Julian was a researcher & administrative assistant in the Innovation Team at the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) headquarters in New York in the Division of Communication, developing solutions to last-mile development problems using new technologies. Julian serves on the board of StartingBloc, a non-profit organization that is shifting the culture of leadership through StartingBloc Institutes, convenings and consultancy programs. Julian served on the board of Thousand Currents from 2013 to 2019 as Secretary and Treasurer, and previously chaired their Young Professionals Group. Julian holds a bachelor’s degree in International Studies from the University of Chicago, and is a lifelong StartingBloc Fellow. Born and raised in Massachusetts, he lives in Oakland, CA.
Rhoda K. Tamakloe
Rhoda K. Tamakloe is the Program Manager of the Kapan Educational Foundation.
With over 10 years of experience working in higher education, Rhoda is deeply committed to improving college access and success for low-income populations. She currently serves as an alumni interviewer for her alma maters Wesleyan University and Phillips Exeter Academy. Originally from Sandy Hook, CT, Rhoda now resides in Brooklyn.
Evgeniya Pyatovskaya
Evgeniya is a Ph.D. student at the University of South Florida working towards her degree in Communication Studies. She returned to school to pursue research in organizational and intercultural communication with a focus on resilience.
Before her Ph.D. Evgeniya was an Associate Director of a Research and Education Center at Tomsk State University (Russia), where she worked on the development of a unique language-learning online platform. Evgeniya holds a graduate degree in International Relations and has worked in Russia and abroad. Her experience includes teaching languages, serving as a program manager at a non-profit organization in New York, and working alongside a Vice-rector for International Affairs to advance an international profile of a state university and to develop and implement the university’s internationalization strategy. A StartingBloc Fellow of LA ’20 Institute, Fulbright scholar, and an Atlas Corps Fellow, Evgeniya’s main aspiration is to promote intercultural understanding and dialogue.
Michelle K. Rhodd
Michelle is the founder and CEO of Governance Advantage LLC, a consulting firm in Washington, DC, that provides strategic and governance support to mission driven organizations.
She is also a StartingBloc DC ’18 Fellow. Michelle holds a MBA from Johns Hopkins University in Washington, D.C., a LLM in International Business Law from the University of Manchester, Manchester, England and an AB in International Relations from Wheaton College, Norton, Massachusetts.
Nils Klinkenberg
A StartingBloc Boston’11 Fellow, Nils has been delighted to mentor or volunteer at more than fifteen Institutes, including serving as StartingBloc’s Mentorship Program Lead since 2015.
Nils is the Executive Director of the Beacon Hill Friends House, a 21-resident housing cooperative and center for Quaker learning and action in the heart of downtown Boston. He previously worked at The Cadmus Group helping federal and state agencies manage energy efficiency and sustainable transportation programs. Nils is enthusiastic about many things, including science, civic engagement, cooperation, community, big-picture sustainability, applied weirdness, civilizational resilience, clever people, and the future.
Pamela Pelizzari
Pamela Pelizzari is a StartingBloc NY ‘10 Fellow and a Principal with the New York Health practice of Milliman, a global actuarial consulting firm.
Prior to her time at Milliman, Pamela served as a Senior Technical Advisor with the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation, an office of the US Department of Health and Human Services funded under the Affordable Care Act to test innovative payment methodologies in the Medicare program. She now consults with a wide variety of healthcare stakeholders working to develop and implement value-based payment arrangements. Pamela holds a Masters in Public Health from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and an ScB in Applied Mathematics from Brown University.
Sheneika Simmons
As the Program Manager for the North Carolina Center for Afterschool Programs (NC CAP), Sheneika works with the NC CAP Director to develop, lead, coordinate, and drive the NC statewide afterschool Network’s initiatives.
She supports the design and delivery of various professional development opportunities, advocacy, and the shaping of policy that assists in the advancement of out-of-school time learning. Before joining NC CAP, Sheneika earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology from Ferrum College and a Masters of Science in Educational Studies from Johns Hopkins University. Currently, she is working towards her Ph.D. in Human Services, emphasizing Community Intervention and Leadership from Walden University. Sheneika is a Teach For America, Eastern North Carolina Corps Member Alumni (2015), and a StartingBloc Raleigh-Durham (2018) Fellow. Since joining Teach For America, Sheneika remained in the classroom until joining NC CAP in January 2020. She has been able to work with youth, communities, and organizations in various capacities, such as the Teach For America’s National Advisory Board, Steering Committee, and BIPOC Mentoring Program. With over seven years of experience engaging various populations, she strives to increase access to high-quality learning experiences for all, no matter their geographic location or socioeconomic status. She hopes to continue elevating and improving future pathways and opportunities for all.
Our board of directors
Alen Amini
Alen is an incoming management consultant with the Bridgespan Group and serves as the executive director of Carry the Future.
Raised in Ohio, he was formerly a vice principal and high school math teacher in Southeast Arkansas and served as a Fulbright fellow in rural Tajikistan. A recent graduate of the Harvard Kennedy School and the Dartmouth College Tuck School of Business, he is a proud StartingBloc 2011 NYC fellow.
Callie Chamberlain
Callie Chamberlain is committed to health, health care, and well-being for all. Callie oversees social responsibility for Optum, a global health services organization with over 150,000 staff members serving 124 million individuals, 200 health plans, and 100,000 health care facilities.
In her role, Callie is responsible for advancing inclusive access to care, whole person health, and structural equity across the Fortune five company, transforming the organization’s approach to operations and culture, and reforming the health system to work better for everyone. A strong commitment to intercultural and interreligious dialogue, Callie has filmed an award-winning documentary highlighting the role of women in the refugee crisis, co-founded a microwork application connecting refugees to income opportunities, contributed to the implementation of Youth 2030: the UN Youth Strategy, and developed grassroots strategies in Egypt, Morocco, and Qatar on behalf of the United Nations to prevent violent extremism across the Middle East and North Africa. A deep believer in the power of community, she founded New Leaders Council-Twin Cities, Minnesota’s largest progressive leadership and development program dedicated to building a network of Millennials working across sectors to advance equity in the region. Now in its sixth year, the organization has a network of over 70 alumni, 6 of whom are in state and local office. Callie is reading one book a week by an author of color and developing a community doula program serving low-income and un/underinsured women. She is a Reiki master, aspiring DJ, and forever in search of the spiciest cocktails in downtown Los Angeles.
Julian Rhoads
Julian Rhoads is a senior program officer for Leadership and Exchange Programs at The Asia Foundation. He is responsible for design, implementation and oversight of flagship leadership development and exchange programs in Asia and the U.S.
He joined The Asia Foundation in 2011 as executive assistant, providing professional and administrative support for the president of the Foundation. In 2015, he assumed the role of special assistant to the president and assistant secretary to the board of trustees, serving as principal aide to the president in executing overall institutional goals with advisory, research, and operational support, and providing support to the board of trustees. Previously, Julian was a researcher & administrative assistant in the Innovation Team at the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) headquarters in New York in the Division of Communication, developing solutions to last-mile development problems using new technologies. Julian serves on the board of StartingBloc, a non-profit organization that is shifting the culture of leadership through StartingBloc Institutes, convenings and consultancy programs. Julian served on the board of Thousand Currents from 2013 to 2019 as Secretary and Treasurer, and previously chaired their Young Professionals Group. Julian holds a bachelor’s degree in International Studies from the University of Chicago, and is a lifelong StartingBloc Fellow. Born and raised in Massachusetts, he lives in Oakland, CA.
Kenny Andejeski
Kenny is a StartingBloc NOLA’16 Fellow who builds community as a creative entrepreneur, facilitator, consultant and strategist.
Margaret Chapman
Margaret Ann Chapman is a principle with several organizations including the Unfunded List and Statera Strategies.
She’s served as the Director of Finance and Administration for the International START Secretariat, the Fiscal Manager for the George Washington University Cancer Institute, which focuses on survivorship, patient navigation and patient access to care advocacy within Washington, D.C., and nationwide, and a Finance Specialist for The Pew Charitable Trusts. For six years, Margaret was Vice-President of Political CFOs, Inc, a campaign finance firm specializing in all fiscal and compliance aspects of federal, state and local campaigns as well as state political parties and PACS. Before joining Political CFOs, she was Director of Operations for the West Virginia Democratic Executive Committee, where she oversaw the development and implementation of a statewide coordinated campaign plan budget and managed all state and national events for the state party. Throughout her career, Margaret has focused on implementing strategic financial planning and event logistics to enhance overall campaign and organizational goals. She firmly believes that, when done well, finance and operations can be strategic tools that further programmatic aims and increase efficiency overall. She has her Masters in Business Administration and European and Eurasian Studies from the George Washington University and Bachelors Degrees in Economics and International Affairs from Marshall University in Huntington, WV. Margaret also works as Treasurer on the Board of Directors at the non-profit Triage Cancer. Previously, she served as president of the board of directors for Street Sense, a Washington, D.C., non-profit helping create economic opportunities for the district’s homeless population. During her tenure as board president, Margaret facilitated the growth of the board from five to 15 members and the implementation of a three-year strategic plan for the organization.
Michelle K. Rhodd
Michelle is the founder and CEO of Governance Advantage LLC, a consulting firm in Washington, DC, that provides strategic and governance support to mission driven organizations.
She is also a StartingBloc DC ’18 Fellow. Michelle holds a MBA from Johns Hopkins University in Washington, D.C., a LLM in International Business Law from the University of Manchester, Manchester, England and an AB in International Relations from Wheaton College, Norton, Massachusetts.
Nils Klinkenberg
A StartingBloc Boston’11 Fellow, Nils has been delighted to mentor or volunteer at more than fifteen Institutes, including serving as StartingBloc’s Mentorship Program Lead since 2015.
Nils is the Executive Director of the Beacon Hill Friends House, a 21-resident housing cooperative and center for Quaker learning and action in the heart of downtown Boston. He previously worked at The Cadmus Group helping federal and state agencies manage energy efficiency and sustainable transportation programs. Nils is enthusiastic about many things, including science, civic engagement, cooperation, community, big-picture sustainability, applied weirdness, civilizational resilience, clever people, and the future.
Pamela Pelizzari
Pamela Pelizzari is a StartingBloc NY ‘10 Fellow and a Principal with the New York Health practice of Milliman, a global actuarial consulting firm.
Prior to her time at Milliman, Pamela served as a Senior Technical Advisor with the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation, an office of the US Department of Health and Human Services funded under the Affordable Care Act to test innovative payment methodologies in the Medicare program. She now consults with a wide variety of healthcare stakeholders working to develop and implement value-based payment arrangements. Pamela holds a Masters in Public Health from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and an ScB in Applied Mathematics from Brown University.
Rachel Fagen
Rachel Fagen is a consultant, facilitator, and advisor to leadership teams and social benefit organizations.
She works with social innovators and investors who want to make a difference and do it well – helping to clarify their goals and challenges, develop initiatives and organizational capacities to match, and build the leadership required for transformative good in every community. Rachel has served as facilitator, strategist and consultant for MIT and the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL), the US State Department, the federal innovation agency of Columbia (iNNpulsa), entrepreneur and author Seth Godin, international startup accelerator MassChallenge, national and international NGOs, multinational industry divisions, and individual venture philanthropists. Previously, Rachel was Systems Manager for the Center for Effective Philanthropy, a nonprofit organization focused on the development of data and insight to enable higher-performing funders. Rachel continues to mentor and advise nonprofit and philanthropic organizations on similar initiatives. Rachel lives in Boston’s Dorchester neighborhood with her partner, two small children, and a regular rotation of neighborhood organizers, journalists, mathematicians, local activists, and cats who come to visit. She will always say yes to Vietnamese iced coffee and promises never to make everyone go around the room and say one thing about anything.
Rhoda K. Tamakloe
Rhoda K. Tamakloe is the Program Manager of the Kapan Educational Foundation.
With over 10 years of experience working in higher education, Rhoda is deeply committed to improving college access and success for low-income populations. She currently serves as an alumni interviewer for her alma maters Wesleyan University and Phillips Exeter Academy. Originally from Sandy Hook, CT, Rhoda now resides in Brooklyn.