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Executive Team
Beth Carls, Co-founder/CEO/Managers Chairman - As a national
marketer, small business owner, and public company founder, Beth's experience
with Fortune 1000 companies gives her the background, contacts, leadership,
management and vision needed to help make the Company a nationally recognized
leader. In 1996, Beth worked with nine other partners to found a private
Internet professional services firm that was the fastest growing private
company in Houston from 1996-1999. In 1999, she helped IPO eight companies into
a public Internet professional services firm. She currently teaches online
business courses for the University of Phoenix. She received her BBA from Sam
Houston State University and her MBA from Abilene Christian University.
Amy Looper, Co-founder/Chief Visionary Officer - Amy began her
entrepreneurial career in 1983 as founder and president of an advertising and
marketing design firm; leveraged her expertise in 1996 and helped co-found a
new e-commerce company that grew 8,164 percent in just three short years; and
in 1999, helped merge eight companies to form a new Internet consulting firm,
the largest mid-market cap IPO in the high-tech sector that year. Amy’s
e-commerce experience is reflected in her subject matter expertise in customer
relationship management (CRM), marketing and Web-based strategies. She received
her BFA from Sam Houston State University.
Stephen T. Peskin , Chief Financial Officer - Steve joined MindOH! in 2006 as the Chief Financial Officer. He has both a public and private accounting background. He was
certified as a public accountant in Massachusetts in 1984. He then went on to hold the positions of Controller and CFO, as well as VP of Finance in both public and private companies for over 20 years. These positions were in a multitude of industries, including
(8) years as CFO/VP of Finance & Operations of a radio broadcasting group of (12) stations in a three state area. In addition to these positions, he has also created and operated several of his own companies over the years, doing business both domestically and overseas.
Operations
Team
Jonti Bolles, Consultant
- Jonti Bolles combines experience in architecture, business, and
education to implement projects that teach and inspire. Previous work teaching
at Prairie View A&M University and the University of Houston, consultant
with HOK Consulting, Upchurch Architects, and most recently as a Creative
Learning Consultant for EduNeering, Inc. have given her the background to work
with clients and educators on a variety of undertakings. For more than 13
years, Jonti has provided expertise in teaching, design/build, performance
analysis, Instructional Design, grant administration, and consulting as she has
been invited to participate as an Architecture critic and lecturer at UH,
PVAMU, UTA, TAMU, exhibited at the Dallas Museum of Art, and selected as a
judge in the Brandon Hall Excellence in Learning Awards. She received her BBA
in Economics/Finance from Texas Wesleyan University and her Master of
Architecture from the University of Texas at Arlington.
Elizabeth Van Auken, Grant Writer – Elizabeth has 12 years of
experience in education as an award-winning ESL teacher, adjunct professor, and
grant director. In four years, she brought in several million dollars in
funding for Sharpstown Middle School in Houston Independent School District.
She successfully oversees grant programs from conception to evaluation,
garnering a top rating from the Houston Annenberg Peer Review Team, one of the
largest foundations of its kind. She has presented at local and national
conferences and her articles and short stories have appeared in Texas Magazine
and the Houston Chronicle. Elizabeth earned her BA in English Language and
Literature from the University of Michigan and her MA from Eastern Michigan
University.
Amy Strecker, Director of Community Content - Amy joined MindOH! directly following her Teach For America service as a high school English teacher in North Carolina. While teaching in one of the nation’s lowest performing high schools, Amy’s students earned the highest scores on North Carolina’s standardized testing program, and she received several outstanding teaching awards. From her classroom experience, she believes character education is an integral part of academic success and is intrigued by innovative methods of facilitating relationships between kids, parents, and mentors. Amy holds her BA in English from The University of Texas at Austin and her Secondary Teaching Certification from East Carolina University. She continues her relationship with Teach For America by serving as a Corps Area Representative in Eastern North Carolina.
Karen Zent, Content Writer and Congressional Liaison – Karen
Zent has worked in national politics for over twelve years and has extensive
education advocacy experience. She is currently writing and editing special
projects for MindOH! and acting as a liaison to Congress on our behalf. Her
experience includes serving President Bush in the Office of Intergovernmental
Affairs, working for the Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives, and
serving a Member of Congress. For over six years, Karen served as Director of
Government Relations for Communities in Schools, a national non-profit
organization dedicated to dropout prevention, where she secured and negotiated
over $47 million through appropriations, competitive awards and interagency
agreements. Although she lives in Washington, D.C., Karen still considers
Houston home. She received her B.A. in English from Texas A&M University.
In her spare time, she writes stories and serves as a docent at The National
Museum of Women in the Arts.
Managers
and Executive Officers
Charles DeLacey, Treasurer –
Charles currently works as a Vice President for a real estate development
company. Formerly, he worked as a Vice President of Corporate Finance for a
Fortune 10 company, where his responsibilities included restructuring
non-debtor subsidiary financings and debtor asset sales, taking a lead finance
role in a $1.8 billion sale of one of the company’s ventures, and structuring
and closing financings for more than $2 billion in bank and capital markets.
His past work experience includes positions as Senior Vice President of
Corporate Banking for Compass Bank, Vice President of Corporate Banking for
First City Bancorporation of Texas, Vice President of Corporate Banking for
First Union Bank, Nashville Tennessee and Vice President of Media Lending for
Texas Commerce Bank. Charles received his bachelor’s degree in political
science and history from Western Kentucky University, and a Diploma Course in
International Economic Relations from the London School of Economics.
Alicia L. Goodrow, Attorney at Law, Phillips & Reiter, General Counsel,
MindOH! - Alicia Goodrow is an attorney with Phillips and Reiter
PLLC who also serves as MindOH!'s general counsel and on our board. At MindOH!,
Alicia's responsibilities include general corporate and tax planning, private
equity placement, management of distributorship relationships, and contract
management with major school districts. Alicia was formerly Assistant General
Counsel and Senior Director of Taxation for Enron Corp. principally responsible
for legal issues related to partnership investments, tax planning, and
financial planning for Enron Wind Corp., Enron Pipeline Company, and Enron
Global Finance. She was also an associate with Locke, Liddell & Sapp, LLP
in the Houston office working with closely held and family owned mid-cap
businesses in tax, partnership, and general business planning. Alicia has over
15 years of both in house and private practice experience in counseling
management and investors in various corporate matters, including optimizing
organizational structures for tax, liability, and intellectual property
management purposes; private placements, succession planning for business
sales; and mergers and acquisitions. She holds a Juris Doctor degree, from the
University of Texas and; bachelor’s degrees in economics and history from the
College of William and Mary.
Ken Olan, Former Executive Vice President Retail Banking and Former Corporate
Marketing, Southwest Bank of Texas
Ken led the Retail Banking Division for Houston’s largest independent
bank, Southwest Bank of Texas. He
was also responsible for enterprise-wide marketing and retail product
management. Ken entered banking in 1986 when he joined Citibank as the
company’s first Sales Development Manager. It was in
that role that Ken began to closely study the subject of human potential,
performance and motivation.
In recent years Ken has become a highly-requested motivational speaker for
subjects ranging from sales leadership and marketing effectiveness to
performance management and delivering on the customer "experience." He is
particularly passionate about helping kids maximize their personal potential.
He sits on the board of trustees for the Houston Independent School District
Foundation and on the Adult Advocacy Task force of HISD.
Ken is a graduate of Indiana University, Bloomington, where he earned a double
major in marketing and advertising. He now resides in Sugar Land, Texas with
his wife and two children.
Stephen T. Peskin , Chief Financial Officer - Steve joined MindOH! in 2006 as the Chief Financial Officer. He has both a public and private accounting background. He was
certified as a public accountant in Massachusetts in 1984. He then went on to hold the positions of Controller and CFO, as well as VP of Finance in both public and private companies for over 20 years. These positions were in a multitude of industries, including
(8) years as CFO/VP of Finance & Operations of a radio broadcasting group of (12) stations in a three state area. In addition to these positions, he has also created and operated several of his own companies over the years, doing business both domestically and overseas.
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