Business Advisory Council

What is the Business Advisory Council?

The Business Advisory Council (BAC) is a motivated group of local business and community professionals who provide valuable support, coaching and advice to our Employment teams. This group meets regularly to bring wisdom and experience, share professional networks and learn more about the gifts and talents of this untapped workforce.

Mission and Purpose

The BAC’s mission is to increase workforce opportunities for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities throughout Montgomery County and the DC metropolitan area.

Members of the Business Advisory Council:

  • Serve as ambassadors to other businesses
  • Provide advice and information about local workforce needs and trends
  • Share professional contacts and networks for our teams to cultivate
  • Provide feedback to our job seekers and support staff on how best to present/market ourselves
  • Plan and participate in our annual National Disability Employment Awareness Month events
  • Hire skilled entry-level job seekers
  • Host one of our skilled and motivated interns
  • Host mock interview events
  • Give feedback about resumes and portfolios
  • Provide workplace experiences – work trials, tours and shadowing opportunities

BAC Members:

  • Katie Knight, Ivymount (LinkedIn)
  • Amy Lowenstein, Retired HR Professional (LinkedIn)
  • Anna Mariani, Eurest Hospitality (LinkedIn)
  • Maristela Monteiro, Community Member (LinkedIn)
  • Karla Nabors, Montgomery College (LinkedIn)
  • Jed Seifert, Jakprints Inc., Stakes, LLC (LinkedIn)
  • Michelle B. Smith, 1st Choice Staffing (LinkedIn)
  • Kelly Wilson, Fairmont Hotel (LinkedIn)
  • Bart Yablonsky, Dawson’s Market (LinkedIn)

Contact Us for More Information:

Steve Blanks
Director of Partnerships
sblanks@seeconline.org

Pam Toole
Employer Outreach Team Manager
ptoole@seeconline.org

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Eric Schwab is the Finance Director at SEEC. He oversees the operations of the Accounting Department, including accounts payables/receivables, payroll, and billing. Before working with SEEC, Eric worked for Choice Hotels International for 15 years and served in various finance and business intelligence roles. He has also served as an Assistant Director of Finance with Erickson Senior Living.

Eric loves spending time with his family and taking care of his two dogs.

He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration (Finance Concentration) with a minor in Economics from Salisbury University and an MBA (Finance Concentration) from Loyola College in Maryland.

Jillian Fisher-Bouchelle, MSW, LMSW, is the Program Director of Health and Quality Assurance at SEEC. In this role, Jillian oversees SEEC’s Clinical Services, including Behavioral Support Services. Jillian works with SEEC’s Nursing Services to provide a holistic approach to health and wellness for people supported and staff.

Jillian joined SEEC in 2015 and worked for Project SEARCH Montgomery County before joining the Knowledge Management team. In her early career, Jillian served as Resource Coordinator for low-income senior citizens and people with disabilities in Baltimore City. She also worked in the child welfare system in Baltimore City, serving as a social worker to children in treatment foster care.

Jillian has three small children and enjoys walks and runs in all the Montgomery County Park trails.

Jillian holds a bachelor’s degree in Women’s Studies and Sociology from Goucher College and a Master of Social Worker Degree from Rutgers, the State College of New Jersey, and maintains a Maryland social work license.

Rose Ansara is the Department Director for Transition Services at SEEC, overseeing two Project SEARCH intern to work programs—one in Maryland and one in Washington, DC—as well as the Moving Out Program. With a passion for amplifying voices and promoting equitable accessibility, Rose’s work experiences focus on historically marginalized communities, including individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities, people of color, the Deaf and Hard of Hearing community, and older adults.

Rose serves on the DC Homeland Security Disability Community Advisory Board, contributing to disability emergency preparedness. She is fluent in American Sign Language, and also works as an ASL interpreter.

Rose holds a bachelor’s degree in Human Development and Family Sciences from George Mason University, with a concentration in Public Policy & Advocacy and a Minor in ASL.

In her free time, Rose enjoys spending time with her nieces and nephews, nature walks, reading, and cooking.

A’isha Henry is the Program Director of Supported Living at SEEC. She has over twenty years of experience working in the field of social service. She has worked in various capacities serving children in foster care, providing wrap around services to under-resources adolescents, and with adults with disabilities. She has worked as a Direct Support Professional (DSP) and Program Manager.

A’isha has a passion for helping people to live joyful lives and helping to ensure they receive quality services. She is a world traveler with a particular interest in Africa- a love she inherited from her mother. She is an art collector, animal lover and she enjoys cooking, reading and spending time in nature.

Tona Craviotto is the Program Director of Employment Services at SEEC. He runs a person-centered and evidence-based program aimed at obtaining competitive integrated employment, providing job coaching, employer outreach, and employee retention services to the people SEEC supports.

Tona joined the nonprofit world in 2005 after 10 years in the financial-banking field. He worked as a director for three large nonprofits in the DMV area dedicated to supporting the immigrant community, people experiencing homelessness, and returning citizens with long incarceration sentences. He developed and implemented a suite of vocational and life skill trainings that uplift people and communities through the power of employment.

Tona holds a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and Management from the University Tecnologica de Mexico.

Kelly Paparazzo is the Program Director for Community Engagement at SEEC. Kelly oversees and guides front-line supervisors and their teams in their tactical implementation of SEEC’s mission and vision. Before joining SEEC, Kelly provided leadership for several programs including vocational services and the Community Living program. While the scope of her work is wide, Kelly uniquely maintains a personal touch with the people she serves, their families, and her dedicated staff.

When she’s not at work, you will find her spending time with her family or watching the Steelers, her beloved football team. She holds a bachelor’s degree in sociology from Frostburg State University.

Karen Lee has served as CEO of SEEC (Seeking Employment Equality and Community) since 1990. Under Karen’s leadership, SEEC has grown from a $100,000 budget to over $20 million dollars. Karen has worked with her team to build an infrastructure that supports competitive integrated employment, supported living, and other services that ensure people with disabilities can thrive in a life of their choosing.

From 2015-2017, Karen was asked by Maryland Department of Health Deputy Secretary Bernard Simons to assist Maryland in creating a pathway to grow Maryland’s capacity to increase competitive integrated employment. During her Fellowship with the Maryland DDA, Karen worked with stakeholders including self-advocates, families, state personnel, providers, and legislators to create an Employment First strategic plan and supporting policies and practices.

Since that time, Karen has become a national subject matter expert working with the US Department of Labor, Office of Disability Employment Policy and the Administration on Community Living to shape Federal, State and local public policy related to building capacity to increase competitive integrated employment for people with disabilities.

Karen holds a Master of Education degree in Special Education, Transition, and Secondary Education from the University of Maryland. She lives in Silver Spring, Maryland where she and her husband raised their three boys.

Close up of person smiling in aqua shirt wearing glasses

Nancy joined SEEC in 2010 as the Human Resources Director. Nancy has gained her 20+ years of HR experience from previous positions with Automatic Data Processing (ADP), ASP Healthcare and the US Naval Academy. Nancy has also served in leadership roles with First Greater Harvest Church as the church administrator under Bishop Jeffrey Mitchell and Dream Life Worship Center under Pastor Kenneth Robinson.

Nancy enjoys spending time with her children and husband. Moreover, she LOVES shopping and participating in fashion makeovers. Nancy is a member of the Baltimore Chapter of Chesapeake Human Resources Association (CHRA) and Society for Human Resources Management (SHRM). Nancy holds an undergraduate degree from Morgan State University in Business.

Djibril Kamara joined the SEEC staff in 2021, with over two decades of leadership experience in the IT industry, most recently with The Arc Montgomery County. Djibril understands what is required to bring new technologies and systems to the developmental disability field, and has been described as a caring leader, who is genuinely curious about new and emerging software/hardware to improve organizational operations. He is dedicated to making technology accessible and useable to people across all spectrums of ability. Djibril’s staff-centric and person-centered approach ensures SEEC continues to support the IT needs and trainings for our team members and the people we support, while also pushing the envelope with leading edge tools to expand the impact of our work.

Djibril holds a Bachelor’s degree and a Master’s degree in information technology and business management from Houston Baptist University. He also has a number of IT certifications including Microsoft Certified System Engineer (MCSE), Cisco Certified Network Administrator (CCNA), and Network+.

Closeup of person with a light blue shirt smiling with white background.

Steve has served as the Director of Partnerships since 2019, having previously joined SEEC in 1999 as the Director of Medical Day programs and transitioning to Director of Workforce Development. In his current role, Steve is developing a more strategic approach to how the agency engages with its respective external partners, be they the families we support, the employer community, the people we support, funders/donors, volunteers, etc. Steve oversees SEEC’s first volunteer and internship unit, which has grown a strong base of community allies to serve as mentors, career counselors, educators, neighbors and partners to the people we support. He also weaves his unique experience and history with SEEC to benefit internal departments, lending his knowledge and guidance to leaders throughout the agency.

Steve acts as a liaison for the Governance Committee of the agency’s Board, and support to the Executive Committee. Steve prides himself on refreshing many of the board’s processes and tools, and engaging board members through strategic work, leading to a stronger group. Steve also serves as special projects lead for agency-wide initiatives requiring executive oversight, such as investment activity, and building-related matters. During the recent pandemic, Steve championed the successful implementation of 3 COVID-19 clinics in conjunction with CVS ensuring over 300 people we support, their families and staff received that all important vaccine. As a veteran of the employment field for persons with IDD, Steve has had the opportunity to present at various regional, national and international industry conferences including the Maryland Coalition for Inclusive Education (MCIE) Transitioning Youth Conference, Maryland Association of Community Services, TASH International Conference and multiple APSE (Association of Persons with Supported Employment) International Conferences & Regional Institutes, as well as Project SEARCH International Conferences. Steve’s prior experience includes working in the for-profit sector as a business consultant for Fortune 500 companies on a range of strategic and organizational issues.

Steve has a unique interest in this field, as his eldest brother has a developmental disability and is successfully living and working in the community in Kansas City, Missouri. Steve holds a Master of Engineering, Economics, and Management degree from University of Oxford, England.

Person with dark blue shirt smiling with white background.

Donné Settles Allen is the Director of Projects and Parent to Parent Program Coordinator. After joining SEEC in 2015, she was appointed by Governor Hogan to serve on the Maryland Commission on Disabilities to represent parents of children with disabilities. In her role as the Parent to Parent coordinator, she cultivates peer support relationships, curates and promotes interactive community events for parents raising children with disabilities. She also serves on the statewide leadership team for the Maryland Community of Practice for Supporting Families. Before her role at SEEC, Donne was a financial analyst with Prudential Retirement in Edison, NJ. Donné holds a bachelor’s degree from Rutgers University in Economics and Africana Studies. In her “spare” time, she corrals her 3 sons to many sports and cultural events with her husband, Ed and she loves Sunday brunch!

Closeup of person in a blue dress.

Jessica Neely joined SEEC’s staff in 2016 as Director of our Community and Employment Network. During the 2019-2020 year, Jessica left Maryland to pursue a Masters of Arts in Teaching for Social Justice degree with the Spark Teacher Institute in Vermont. She rejoined SEEC in June of this year and has stepped into the position of Director of Knowledge Management. In this role, Jessica oversees a team responsible for the development and implementation of knowledge management activities. These include promoting evidence-based practices, managing data-driven systems change to continuously improve service delivery, and developing training and educational initiatives.

Prior to working with SEEC, Jessica served as a Division Director with The Arc Prince George’s County where she helped facilitate in that agency’s transition to community-based supports. She also served as The Arc’s Director of Family Services and Community Affairs, Jessica brings her love of equity, education, and community options for all people to SEEC. After a first career in education, she worked as the executive director of an arts and literature nonprofit in Washington, D.C., promoting reading, writing, and literacy.

In addition to the MAT in Social Justice, Jessica holds a Bachelor of Arts in English from Vassar College and an M.A. in English from Stanford University. She is the mother of a daughter and two sons in their 20’s.

Katy Barrett is the Director of Communications and Development at SEEC. Katy oversees the agency’s strategic communications, marketing materials, development initiatives, internal and external events, videos, social media and the SEEC website. Prior to SEEC, Katy worked for seven years as Director of Corporate Relations at Massachusetts College of Art and Design. Katy has worked in public relations, marketing, communications and community relations with companies including Comcast, BJ’s Wholesale, AT&T Broadband and STARZ!. A former Peace Corps volunteer, Katy has a BA in English from Vassar College and an MBA from Boston University.

Sherry Beamer is the Director of Services. Sherry oversees the Program Directors of Employment Services, Project SEARCH and Community Engagement to assure that SEEC participants are realizing their employment goals. Sherry has worked to support people with disabilities to lead quality, empowered lives for over 30 years in a variety of direct service, case management and leadership positions throughout the country. A few of the organizations Sherry has worked for include the California Regional Centers, Relias Learning, and Easter Seals. For 15 years, Sherry established and led a consulting company influencing transformational organizational change for disability agencies.

Sherry holds a Masters degree in Social Work Administration from the University of Illinois, Chicago and a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology/Social Work from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. Sherry has been an active member of APSE (Association for Persons Supporting Employment First) for over a decade. Most recently Sherry served as the President of the California Chapter. Sherry loves the arts, nature and travel – and spending time with her adult son who is in the “family business” of human services.

Stephanie Snyder is the Chief Financial Officer at SEEC. She assists the Executive Director with strategic and tactical matters as they relate to budget development, cost benefit analysis, compensation modeling, cashflow management, and investment initiatives. She oversees the development of the financial statements and ensures that the organization has the proper internal controls to safeguard SEEC’s assets.

Prior to SEEC, Stephanie worked for nine years at EdOps, serving as an outsourced CFO for various public charter schools in DC. Prior to her work at EdOps, she completed an Education Pioneers fellowship at Uplift Education and provided financial analysis support for Allstate Insurance. She holds a BBA in Corporate Finance and International Studies from East Tennessee State University and an MBA from Thunderbird School of Global Management.

Stephanie enjoys spending time with her dog, Sadie, and traveling the world.

Karen Lee has served as CEO of SEEC (Seeking Employment Equality and Community) since 1990. Under Karen’s leadership, SEEC has grown from a $100,000 budget to over $20 million dollars. Karen has worked with her team to build an infrastructure that supports competitive integrated employment, supported living, and other services that ensure people with disabilities can thrive in a life of their choosing.

From 2015-2017, Karen was asked by Maryland Department of Health Deputy Secretary Bernard Simons to assist Maryland in creating a pathway to grow Maryland’s capacity to increase competitive integrated employment. During her Fellowship with the Maryland DDA, Karen worked with stakeholders including self-advocates, families, state personnel, providers, and legislators to create an Employment First strategic plan and supporting policies and practices.

Since that time, Karen has become a national subject matter expert working with the US Department of Labor, Office of Disability Employment Policy and the Administration on Community Living to shape Federal, State and local public policy related to building capacity to increase competitive integrated employment for people with disabilities.

Karen holds a Master of Education degree in Special Education, Transition, and Secondary Education from the University of Maryland. She lives in Silver Spring, Maryland where she and her husband raised their three boys.

Karen Lee has served as CEO of SEEC (Seeking Employment Equality and Community) since 1990. Under Karen’s leadership, SEEC has grown from a $100,000 budget to over $20 million dollars. Karen has worked with her team to build an infrastructure that supports competitive integrated employment, supported living, and other services that ensure people with disabilities can thrive in a life of their choosing.

From 2015-2017, Karen was asked by Maryland Department of Health Deputy Secretary Bernard Simons to assist Maryland in creating a pathway to grow Maryland’s capacity to increase competitive integrated employment. During her Fellowship with the Maryland DDA, Karen worked with stakeholders including self-advocates, families, state personnel, providers, and legislators to create an Employment First strategic plan and supporting policies and practices.

Since that time, Karen has become a national subject matter expert working with the US Department of Labor, Office of Disability Employment Policy and the Administration on Community Living to shape Federal, State and local public policy related to building capacity to increase competitive integrated employment for people with disabilities.

Karen holds a Master of Education degree in Special Education, Transition, and Secondary Education from the University of Maryland. She lives in Silver Spring, Maryland where she and her husband raised their three boys.