Currently Shernita Bethea is the current Past President of the Virginia Association of Housing Counselors and serves on the Board of Directors for Senior Services of Southeastern Virginia and the Hampton Roads Housing Consortium. Shernita has spent countless hours helping agencies and organizations throughout the state of Virginia improve their programs and resources.

Phipps has 17 years of experience at People Incorporated with previous roles that include Senior Vice President and Vice President and Chief Development Officer. He has worked to increase the availability of investment capital and services to low-income communities and was instrumental in the development of the agency’s New Markets Tax Credit program. His specialties include raising and deploying investor capital, project development, program compliance and community outreach for a variety of community economic development and strategic initiatives.

He currently serves as the Vice-Chair of the Virginia Community Action Partnership. He also serves on multiple boards, including HousingForward Virginia, the New Rivers/Mount Rogers Workforce Development Board, and the Virginia Housing Rental Housing Advisory Council. Phipps resides in southwest Virginia with his wife, Bella, and their three daughters.

Tom received both his undergraduate and law degrees from the College of William and Mary.

He is an appointed member of the Consumer Financial Advisory Board (CFPB) Consumer Advisory Board. He is also actively involved in the community as a member of the Virginia Asian Advisory Board, Asian Pacific American Bar Association of Virginia, and Virginia Center for Inclusive Communities – Richmond Chapter. Tom and his wife Gretchen Garber are proud parents to two very rambunctious yet loving boys.

Prior to joining the Richmond Fed, he spent 12 years at Enterprise Community Partners, providing housing and community development technical assistance and capacity building support to nonprofits, neighborhoods, cities, counties, states, and the federal government. His previous experience includes leading a nonprofit housing and social services organization in Washington, D.C., conducting fair housing and civil rights investigations and leading programs for a youth and juvenile justice organization.

In this position, Leslie focuses on issues impacting fair housing and real property policy. She is the primary point of contact for state and national organizations who influence these issues. In addition, Leslie creates and leads the association’s diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts. When she isn’t deep into policy and making great strides for the community, you can find her relaxing with family, traveling, or working out. If you see her on one of her many long walks around Richmond, be sure to wave! Lastly, Leslie’s love for Asian cuisine, especially Korean food, plays a big role in her life.

Repeatedly hired and promoted to challenging operations to improve asset management, quality of service, employee recruitment and retention, training and development of staff, ultimately leading to increased profitability. Developed and executed strategic revenue, marketing, and business strategies in existing, transitional, and start-up assets from $1m to $12m in annual revenues whilst simultaneously leading teams ranging from 15 to 90 members. During her hotel management career, Yolunda oversaw renovations and redevelopment projects ranging from as little as $1m to upwards of $10m.

Since living in Charlottesville, Yolunda has endeavored to contribute positively to the fabric of what is deemed as “community” by: volunteering as a GED tutor for the Adult Learning Center, acting as a facilitator for Dialogue on Race, community organizing for the City of Promise, and helping to create a social networking organization to connect African Americans in Charlottesville known as the Black Professional Network to name a few. Yolunda also decided to return to college to get her Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration while also participating in and volunteering for an entrepreneur development program known as Community Investment Collaborative which led to the development of her co-owned business, A Taste of Home Southern Cuisine; a food truck and catering business. Yolunda’s desire to work more effectively in her community led to her participation in the Board Development Academy through the Center for Non-Profit Excellence. Upon completion of her board training Yolunda began serving on the board of Girl Scouts of the Virginia Skyline, Charlottesville Albemarle Convention and Visitor’s Bureau, and BPN.  Yolunda was raised to believe in the Golden Rule, to seek to give more than you seek to receive, and to bring forth thoughtful solutions to challenging opportunities. These values are what drive her vision and her purpose.

Prior to joining Virginia Housing, Monique was the Chief Operating Officer at the Better Housing Coalition and Vice President at Virginia Community Capital.

Monique holds a Ph.D. in Public Policy and Administration from Virginia Commonwealth University, a Master of Business Administration from the University of Richmond, and a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Virginia.

In her personal time, she enjoys being a mentor, teaching and practicing yoga, and traveling with her husband Darius and daughter Phoebe.

McCulloch is the Co-chair of the West Piedmont Better Housing Coalition Board and serves on the ODU MPA Advisory Board. She lives in Henry County, Virginia with her family.

Jill received a Bachelor of Arts in Communications from James Madison University and a Master of Regional Planning in Housing, Community Development and Real Estate from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.  Throughout her career, she also served on numerous boards and advisory committees of nonprofit organizations.

Prior to his role as Senior Development Manager, Austin served as a Financial Analyst and Multifamily Development Analyst with The Lawson Companies. Austin earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from Old Dominion University in Norfolk, VA, with concentrations in both finance and economics. He holds the Housing Credit Certified Professional designation through the National Association of Home Builders.

Ms. Shaw is a strong supporter of the community and dedicates herself to the development and success of programs that boost the well-being of the citizens of Newport News. She holds a Bachelor’s degree from Salem College and an MBA from the University of Phoenix. Originally from North Carolina, she has resided in Virginia since 2002.