SEEP: About SEEP: Staff

	William Tucker, Executive Director Bill comes to SEEP with over 25 years of experience in Latin America and the Middle East, including extensive work with SEEP members ACCION, WOCCU, and NCBA. Bill joined the SEEP staff in 2007, having previously served on SEEP’s Board of Directors in 2006.
	Keisha Y. Brassfield, Program Assistant Keisha offers program and administrative support for the Member Services, Value Initiative, and Operations teams. Keisha has worked for the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization in Alexandria, VA., and managed 2 tax retail offices for H&R Block, and Citibank in New York. She attended New York University.
	Stephanie Chen, Program Associate Stephanie supports the Practitioner Learning Programs in Youth and Workforce Development and SEEP’s Strategic Alliances for HIV/AIDS Impacted Communities. She also supports SEEP’s USAID IGP learning networks on Financial Services and Enterprise Development. Prior to joining SEEP, Stephanie was a business development associate with Mercy Corps in China, where she provided technical assistance on a local microfinance program in Hainan that was part of the World Bank’s Sustainable Forestry Development Project. In addition, she has two years of experience in the private sector as an analyst with Deutsche Bank in New York City. Stephanie received her B.S. from Cornell University and her M.A. in International Relations from The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University.
	Catherine Cheng, Accountant Catherine has over two years of experience working in accounting and finance. Prior to her position at the SEEP Network, she was staff accountant at both small and medium sized for-profit corporations as well as non-profit organizations. At SEEP, Catherine assists Robin in maintaining the financial integrity of the organization. She is in charge of the day to day accounting transactions and making sure that SEEP is maintaining good accounting practices.
	Sonali Chowdhary, Deputy Director for the Value Initiative Sonali Chowdhary has over 8 years of experience practitioner, technical advisor, trainer and researcher. She has expertise in microfinance, value chain development and livelihood security work. In India, she worked extensively with Basix, a livelihood promotion and microfinance institution. She started out designing financial products for lending in watershed areas and moved into building the capacity of financial institutions. Among other accomplishments, she helped to establish a training center on livelihood security. She currently serves as the de facto deputy director for the Value Initiative to advance urban value chain development and help millions of people work their way out of poverty. Join her and other global leaders in discussions on the SEEP Network’s Enterprise Development Exchange
	Kristen Cortiglia, Senior Program Associate, Network Development Service Kristen Cortiglia is a Senior Program Associate at the SEEP Network where she manages the financial, technical and operational activities of three country-level microfinance associations participating in the Network Strengthening Program. Kristen joined SEEP in 2006 after working on several capacity-building initiatives at the United Nations Development Programme, most notably a corporate-level gender mainstreaming training module for headquarters and country office staff. Kristen has more than five years experience working on issues related to women’s economic empowerment with organizations such as Human Rights Watch, V-Day, and the National Council for Research on Women. Kristen holds a B.A. in sociology from the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, and an M.A. in international development from American University in Washington, DC.
	Diana Dezso, Program Director, Network Development Services Diana manages SEEP’s work with regional and country-level microfinance networks around the world, including the Citi Network Strengthening Program. In addition to her programmatic role, Diana assists in the development of SEEP’s institutional policy and strategic decision-making. Diana comes to SEEP from ACCION New York, the largest microfinance organization in the United States, where she developed the client financial education and technical assistance program. She has also worked with CAPA, a microfinance project of World Vision International in Romania. Diana has a Masters degree in Public Administration from New York University’s Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service.
	Bill Farrand, Director of Operations Bill manages the day-to-day and longer-term strategic operations of SEEP. Before joining SEEP, Bill worked in the for-profit and non-profit sectors in the U.S., Asia, and Latin America. Bill has advanced studies in accounting and finance, computer programming and project management. Bill has a Master’s in Business Administration from Bellevue University and a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Wisconsin. He has worked with various SEEP members including FINCA, Catholic Relief Services and Katalysis Bootstrap Fund.
	Kim Jessen, Intern, Member Services Kim provides program support to the Member Services team at SEEP. She manages a Practitioner Learning Program on Ecotourism in Central America, helps with the Annual Conference, and assists with general membership needs. Kim’s work experience includes a two-year fellowship in non-profit management with El Pomar Foundation, two years of fundraising and volunteer management with the American Cancer Society, and an internship in the International Relations division of the US Olympic Committee. Kim has a BA in International Studies from UNC-Chapel Hill and will graduate with a MA in International Development from George Washington University in May of 2009.
	Jeanne L. Long, Members Services Coordinator Before joining SEEP, Jeanne was a Systems Administrator within the IT Security Department of Marriot International. While working at the Young Americas Business Trust (YABT), an NGO affiliated to the Organization of American States, she focused on social and economic development for the youth in the Western Hemisphere. Jeanne received her B.A. in Sociology, Anthropology and Spanish from St. Mary’s College of Maryland.
	Rathi Mani, Intern, Network Development Services Rathi graduated with a B.A. in International Relations and Spanish from Washington University in St. Louis. After teaching English in Chile post-graduation, Rathi moved to D.C. to intern with the Inter-American Dialogue researching social inclusion policies for Afro – Latinos. More recently, she spent the summer of ‘07 working with a small micro-finance NGO in Zanzibar in East Africa. Rathi is currently finishing her second year in the International Development Master’s program at American University. Rathi currently provides part-time program management support to the Capacity Building Team at SEEP.
	Mary Mcvay, Director of the Value Initiative Mary McVay has over 20 years’ experience in microenterprise development as a practitioner, donor, researcher and trainer. Ms. McVay worked directly with business development programs in Kenya and Atlanta, Georgia (United States) and with USAID/Kenya. From 2000-2006 she co-authored an annual global analysis of enterprise and market development programs, published as “the ILO Reader.” During the same period she offered distance learning courses through the International Labor Organization and facilitated numerous workshops with the ILO and the SEEP Network. From 1997-2006, Ms. McVay facilitated the Business Development Services / Market Development working group, the practitioner learning program, Performance Measurement Framework for BDS, and designed and delivered the training “The State of the Art in BDS.” As Director of the Value Initiative, Ms. McVay is facilitating global learning to advance urban value chain development and help millions of people work their way out of poverty. Join her and other global leaders in discussions on the SEEP Network’s Enterprise Development Exchange.
	Laura Meissner, Program Manager Laura manages SEEP’s Practitioner Learning Programs (PLPs) in Youth and Workforce Development and Building Alliances to Serve HIV/AIDS Impacted Communities. She also serves as the co-facilitator of SEEP's economic recovery standards initiative, manages the USAID IGP learning networks on Financial Services and Enterprise Development, and manages the expansion of SEEP’s FRAME Tool for financial performance reporting. Prior to her current position, Laura was a Senior Program Associate on the Network Development Services team. Originally from Cleveland, Ohio, Laura has lived in West Africa and Central America, as well as having conducted work for SEEP in Benin, West Bank/Gaza, Paraguay, Ethiopia, South Africa, and Iraq. Laura received her B.S. from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service and her M.A. in International Development from American University.
	Jenny Morgan, Program Manager, Network Development Services Jenny is the Program Manager for SEEP’s Global Capacity Building Program for Microfinance Networks, funded by the Ford Foundation. Additionally she works closely with four regional and country-level microfinance networks, in the Latin America and the MENA regions, through the Citi Network Strengthening Program. Jenny joined SEEP from the domestic microfinance sector where she managed OnTRAC (Training, Resource and Advising Center) at ACCION New York. She received her Masters in Public Administration from New York University and her BA in International Studies from Middlebury College.
	Robin Munson, Director of Finance Robin has over twenty years of experience working in financial management for non-governmental organizations. Prior to her position at the SEEP Network, she was Director of Finance for PACT, a non-profit international development organization and was the accountant for FSI USA, a NGO working on development issues in Russia. At SEEP, Robin maintains the financial integrity of the organization. She prepares and analyzes the budget, interfaces with external auditors, and manages human resources.
	Melissa Nussbaum , Special Projects Manager Melissa manages SEEP’s special projects particularly relating to membership, fundraising, action research and capacity building. Currently, she manages grant programs focused on delivering financial services for isolated populations, value chains for the poor and sustainable ecotourism in Central America. Before coming to SEEP, Melissa was a USAID Fellow for Save the Children-US in Vietnam, where she provided technical assistance and training in micro finance and Business Development Services (BDS) for micro enterprises. She also has five years of experience managing strategy, organization and human resources development programs in the private sector. Melissa has a Masters in Public Policy from Georgetown University and a Bachelor of Arts from Boston College.
	Sabina Rogers, Senior Program Associate, Member Services Sabina manages the knowledge management process and coordinates SEEP Network’s member-driven working groups. She helps to develop a more cohesive marketing and communications strategy for SEEP’s various programs, initiatives, and publications. Prior to her work at SEEP, Sabina served three years in the Peace Corps in Togo as a Girls Education and Empowerment Extension Agent and was program manager for a small US-based NGO, the Afghan Youth Sports Exchange, which uses sports as a catalyst for change in the lives of Afghan youth. Sabina earned her M.S. in Development Management at American University’s School of International Service and her B.A. at the Johns Hopkins University.
	Jada Temple, Program Assistant Jada Temple provides program assistant support for Network Development Services IGP and Practitioner Learning Programs at SEEP. Prior to recently joining the SEEP Network, she worked for federal government agencies such as the State Department, the Pentagon and the Smithsonian Institution as well as serving in the US Navy.