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Governance


Board of Directors

Girl Scouts of Connecticut's Board of Directors is designed to ensure that members of have a voice in the decision-influencing process of the council. To this end, the bylaws of GSOFCT permit the inclusion of four girl members .

If you are interested in joining the collected voice of the Board of Directors, please review the position description and complete the age-appropriate form below.

All candidates will be interviewed by the board development committee. Selected candidates will be formally voted in during the Annual Meeting each April. 

Get Involved in Governance at Girl Scouts

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Encourage Seniors and Ambassadors to apply for GSOFCT Board Positions

All currently registered Girl Scouts who will be 16 on or before April 20, 2022; may apply for one of the four Girl Board Member slots.

Girls are elected to a one-year term and are eligible to vote on all board resolutions that do not involve contractual obligations. The board meets five times per year, in-person or virtual, so you must have transportation to experience how large non-profit runs and also be the voice for thousands of girls served in Connecticut. Apply Today

Girl Board applications must be received by January 14, 2022.

Why be a girl board member? Hear from past girl board members about why they loved it! 

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Elect your Service Unit Council Delegate and Alternate Delegate

Open to all currently registered adults and girls 14 years of age or older.

As a Delegate, you will represent the Service Unit, elect the council Board of Directors and National Delegates, and vote on any proposed changes to the By Laws.

Position requires attendance at one training session and the Annual Meeting on April 30, 2023. One-year term is renewable up to five-year maximum. Report Your Elected SU Delegate Here!

Service Units must submit the election form by December 15, 2022.

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Be a 2023 National Delegate at the National Convention

If you are an active, currently registered adult member, or a girl who will be 14 or older prior to April 20, 2022 you might be one of the lucky applicants elected to represent Girl Scouts of Connecticut at the 56th National Convention. 

This is a once-in-a-lifetime oppourtunity to represent our council at a national convention where you will vote on important national proposals and also experience the magic of Sisterhood with 10,000 Girl Scout members from all over the U.S. and abroad!

2023 Delegate Applications are now available. Apply Today! 

Applications must be recieved by January 31, 2022.

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    GSUSA Blue Book
    of Basic Documents

     

    Libro Azul de Documentos Básicos  

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    Delegate Position and Responsibilities

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    GSOFCT Bylaws
    (amended April 28, 2019)

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    Council Proposal Process and Form

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    Strategic Learning

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    Service Unit Delegate Election Form

NEW! Check out  the 2019-2020 Annual Report!
Click Here to flip through.

Download PDF Full Report | Fact Sheet

 

 

GSOFCT Board of Directors

Officers

Diana Mahoney - CEO

Girl Scouts of Connecticut’s Chief Executive Officer Diana Mahoney is a passionate leader, STEM enthusiast, and lifelong Girl Scout.  Her dedication to Girl Scouting is evident from her early childhood experiences earning the First Class Girl Scout Award (Gold Award), Girl Scouting’s highest achievement, to her 13 years of service as a troop leader, a Service Unit Registrar, and a Service Unit Manager in the town of Berlin, CT.  Ms. Mahoney previously served as a member of Girl Scouts of Connecticut’s Board of Directors, where she most recently held the title of Board Secretary.  Of Girl Scouts’ four pillars, one took root in Diana’s heart and was the anchor of her career – STEM.   After serving 30 years as a director at Eversource, she retired in the summer of 2020.  Ms. Mahoney holds a Bachelor of Science Electrical Engineering degree (BSEE) from the University of Connecticut and a Master’s in Business Administration (MBA) from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.  As an accomplished engineering professional, with experience in numerous aspects of engineering, design, operations, and organizational leadership, she is fully prepared to lead Girl Scout of Connecticut into the future.

Diana and her husband, Matthew, are residents of Berlin, CT.  They have two adult children, Shannon and Kyle.  Diana and Shannon are both life-time members of Girl Scouts.  Diana’s mother, Diane Sachetti, was also a troop leader, making three generations of Girl Scouts in the family.

Pamela Scagliarini - Chair
PamScagliarini

Pamela Scagliarini, Chief Operating Officer of Bridgeport Hospital and Senior Vice President of Operations for Yale New Haven Health System, brings her extensive experience in healthcare operations, process improvement and leadership development to GSOFCT.  In addition to her twenty-plus year career in supply chain management and more recently hospital operations, she also serves as a Women & Leadership course facilitator at the Yale New Haven Institute for Excellence. In addition to GSOCT, she also serves on the Greater New England Minority Supplier Diversity Council Board. Pamela graduated with her M.B.A. in Health Care Management from the University of New Haven and was named Graduate Fellow.  Pam serves as the Chairperson of the Board Development Committee.

Adrienne Parkmond, Esq. - 1st Vice Chair
AdrienneParkmond

Adrienne Parkmond, Esq. brings to Girl Scouts of Connecticut strong change management and grant writing skills.  She is the Chief Operating Officer of The Workplace in Bridgeport, a $25 million non-profit agency responsible for job training, business development and human services for youths and adults, including services for veterans, older workers, and at-risk populations. Adrienne is past President of the Board of the CT Women’s Education and Legal Fund and holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Finance from Villanova University and a Juris Doctor from Quinnipiac University School of Law.  Adrienne resides in New Haven County.

Carol Quinn Toomey - 2nd Vice Chair

Carol Quinn Toomey brings to Girl Scouts of Connecticut STEM focus and technology skills.  She currently is a director in Accenture's public service business. She’s been with Accenture’s Hartford, CT office for 32 years, having joined the company with a Bachelor’s in Chemical Engineering from the University of Connecticut. Since joining Accenture, she has specialized in helping organizations successfully navigate change, particularly as relates to global change programs and large-scale systems implementations. Carol is currently responsible for achieving Accenture’s vision to be the premier innovation and execution partner for the state of Connecticut, and university and nonprofit clients in Connecticut. She is passionate about bringing the best of Accenture every day to support her home state across a range of consulting and technology programs. Carol has been involved with various locally based charities and organizations, including teaching children’s religious studies and serving on the board for a local chapter of the Spina Bifida Association for several years. She lives with her husband, daughter, and son in Portland, CT.

Erica Evans Gioffre -3rd Vice Chair
EricaEvans

Erica Evans Gioffre is a life-long supporter of Girl Scouts of Connecticut and over the years has shared her thorough knowledge of investment and portfolio management.  She is an accomplished business leader with a proven track record of building high performing teams, which deliver results through strategic planning, disciplined execution, coaching, and development of individuals. Currently, she serves as Head of Client Engagement and is a member of the Management Committee at Hirtle Callaghan. In this role, Erica works to ensure clients have the optimal experience with the firm. Erica attended Fairfield University, is currently a member of the International Women’s Forum and is co-creator of the Investment Club for Grace Academy, a school serving under-privileged girls in the Hartford area.  Erica also serves as the Investment Committee Chair and is a member of the finance and executive committees of Girl Scouts of CT.  In addition, she is on the Advisory Board for the Damon Runyon Cancer Foundation.  Erica’s introduction to the Girl Scouts was as a brownie in Mount Dora, Florida where she was raised, is a Lifetime Member of the Girl Scouts and a member of the Juliette Gordon Low Society.

Sarah Broderick - Treasurer

Sarah Broderick is the founder and CEO of The FEAT, an enterprise launched in 2019 that offers products and services targeting the extensive market of experienced professionals that have left the workforce (www.The-FEAT.com). Sarah also serves on the Advisory board of Belpoionte REIT (BELP) and the board of the UConn Werth Institute. Sarah is the former COO/CFO of VICE Media, where she also served on the board of directors.  Prior to VICE, Sarah served in a number of executive finance leadership roles including Chief Accounting Officer at William Morris Endeavor and IMG (Now called Endeavor), Deputy Controller of General Electric, and Senior Vice President at NBC Universal.  She spent her early career at Deloitte & Touche in both M&A and the audit practice and spent two years with Deloitte's firm in Milan, Italy.  Sarah holds a BS and MS from UCONN where she was a four year member and captain of the UConn Softball team. Sarah’s commitment to the next generation of female leaders extends beyond GSOCT, in that Sarah is the author of a soon-to-be published children’s book series Tiny FEATs, which tells stories intended to inspire a new view toward female and male leadership for future generations of young children. Sarah is also the author of No Small FEAT, a book to be released in 2021 that discusses the hidden work force of talent that companies now have the opportunity to access as a result of the workplace changes stemming from the Covid-19 pandemic. Sarah is the proud step-mom to two grown children and lives in Southport, CT with her husband and two toddler-aged daughters.

“We have an opportunity now, in this moment, to shape what leadership looks like in the future.  This starts at a young age, and its organizations like the Girl Scouts that give thousands of young girls the opportunity to gain the skills necessary to become those future leaders. I couldn’t be prouder to play my part in guiding the future of the organization here in Connecticut.”

Dolores Ennico - Secretary

Dolores Ennico brings to Girl Scouts of Connecticut skills of a commercially focused Global C-Suite Executive with a record of helping deliver financial results and driving growth through development and delivery of pragmatic human capital strategies, initiatives and best practices. She has exhibited progressive leadership with extensive success in a variety of business functions (sales and marketing) and human capital (compensation, benefits, talent acquisition, employee relations, EEO and diversity) roles culminating in key role as Chief Human Resources Officer of Olin Corporation, a Fortune 500 company.   Additionally, as Head of Olin Charitable Trust, she was responsible in building budget for Board approval and administering charitable giving for the corporation.

Dolores began her career as a Senior Research Associate at Olin’s New Haven research and development center rising through the ranks to Manager of the Microbiology Lab before transitioning to Manager, Employee Relations, Chemicals R&D where she supported the HR needs of a client group of 300 chemicals research professionals at a brand-new facility in Cheshire, CT.

Dolores serves on the Board of the University of New Haven—Board of Governors and Chair, Academic & Student Affairs Committee. As Chair of the largest committee and Member of the Executive Committee, she has led changes in curriculum and addressed broad student issues to attract high caliber students to the university. Dolores is also a member of the advisory council of the Sacred Heart Academy where she serves on the Building Committee and leads fundraising for high school alma mater. Past Board membership include Lewis & Clark Community College, Alton Hospital, St. Louis Business Health Coalition, United Way of St. Louis and Junior Achievement of Southwest Connecticut.

Dolores, who is known as Dee, is a graduate of the University of New Haven with an MBA in Marketing and an MS in Biochemistry/BS in Microbiology from Southern Connecticut State University.  Delores resides in Fairfield County.



Members at Large

Cheri Amado

Cheri Amado is a senior Software Systems Engineer at Sikorsky Aircraft, a Lockheed Martin Company. She has over 30 years of experience at the company working in various capacities in the Engineering & Technology department including work on numerous military and commercial helicopter programs involving the development of software manufacturing execution systems.

Cheri most recently served on the Steering Committee for Fairfield County’s Community Foundation Fund for Women and Girls.  She also served as the financial officer for the Fairfield County and New Haven CT Professional Chapter of the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE). Cheri currently serves on the Mid-Fairfield County Dress for Success Advisory Board. She is proud to have members of her family and friends that participate in the Girl Scouts. Cheri is also a committed STEM advocate for local area youth.

Cheri holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering from Fairfield University and also holds an MBA and MS in Manufacturing Systems and Operations Management both from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

Erica Czajkowski

Erica Czajkowski brings to Girl Scouts strong accounting and financial skills as well as the perspective of a former Girl Scout and current troop leader. She is an Audit & Assurance (A&A) managing director at Deloitte & Touche LLP, with fifteen years of experience serving public and private clients within both Deloitte’s financial services and commercial practices. Erica specializes within the insurance and manufacturing industries. She has held a number of leadership positions throughout her career.  These positions include participating in Deloitte’s exclusive Management Development Program for Deloitte’s A&A national office driving audit process transformation and national technical consultations for Deloitte’s insurance practice.  She also currently serves as the Hartford office Diversity, Equity & Inclusion leader.  She holds a MBA and BS in accounting from Bryant University.  Erica resides in Hartford County.

Dr. Jacquelyn Garofano

Dr. Jacquelyn Garofano is a STEMinist and fierce advocate for increasing the presence of women in STEM fields: “see her, be her”.  A Connecticut native and first-generation college student, Jackie earned a bachelor’s in physics with honors from Southern CT State University and master’s and doctoral degrees in materials science and engineering from the University of Connecticut. After nearly a decade-long career at Raytheon Technologies, she was appointed Chief Technology Officer at the Connecticut Center for Advanced Technology. Jackie has a dozen technical publications and three U.S. patent awards to her credit. She is an active member of the Society of Women Engineers, the Emerging Leaders Society, Women United and is a long-time leadership donor and volunteer for the United Way of Central and Northeastern Connecticut. She was named one of Connecticut’s Women of Innovation® twice, “40 Under 40” by Connecticut Magazine and Hartford Business Journal, and the 2018 Future is NOW awardee by the CT Women’s Education and Legal Fund for her work to advance women and girls in the STEM field. Most recently, she’s been named the recipient of the 2020 Petit Family Foundation Women in Science Leadership Award and the 2020 Spark Award for mentorship by the Society of Women Engineers.

Jonna Gerken

Jonna Gerken brings to Girl Scouts of Connecticut a passionate STEM background and interest in supporting girls to be courageous in becoming whatever they want to be.  She served as the Society of Women Engineers (SWE) FY18 President. In this capacity, she led 40,000-member international organization which encourages more women to enter and stay in engineering fields. She is also a project manager in the Global Transitions organization at Pratt & Whitney, a division of United Technologies Corporation (UTC). She manages global manufacturing source transitions to ensure timely approvals for cost, delivery & capacity improvements. At Pratt & Whitney since 2000, she has held numerous positions of increasing responsibility within both Operations & Engineering. Gerken holds a BS in industrial and management engineering and an MBA in technology development, both from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. She received the 2019 Influential Women in Manufacturing Award, 2016 Pettit Family Foundation Women in Science Leadership Award from the Connecticut Science Center, the 2014 STEP Award from the Manufacturing Institute, the 2011 Pratt & Whitney Diversity and Inclusion Award, and the 2006 SWE Distinguished New Engineer Award.  Jonna reside in Hartford County.

Bill James

William James Bill James brings to Girl Scouts of Connecticut his strong financial skills and compassion for the Girl Scouting program.  He began his career with Merrill Lynch in 2008, followed by over five years at U.S. Trust, most recently as Vice President, Trust Officer.  Bill returned to Merrill Lynch in 2017 as a Financial Advisor and is currently a partner in The James Fischer Group. Bill earned a Master’s of Science in Political Sociology from The London School of Economics, and a B.A. in Political Science from Hobart College.  Bill served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Romania for two years where he taught English as a foreign language in a high school.  Bill is a member of the Metropolitan Club of New York City, and is a member of the U.S. alumni association of The London School of Economics.  Bill resides in Fairfield County.

Marie Kulesza

Marie Kulesza was an active non-board member of the GSOFCT Board Development Committee for a number of years, ensuring strong candidates for the Board are screened, interviewed, and presented to the Board for selection.  This year she played a lead role in the interview process for Girl Board Members.  Marie is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Accounting at Central Connecticut State University. Her teaching areas are in financial accounting, financial reporting theory, and auditing. She holds a BS in Accounting from Central Connecticut State University and a MS in Public Accounting from University of Hartford. She is a member of the CTCPA Advisory Board, American Institute of CPAs, Institute of Management Accountants, and Community Accounting Services. Marie resides in Hartford County.

Maribel La Luz

Maribel La Luz brings to Girl Scouts of Connecticut a passion for public relations and strategic communications and the Girl Scout program.  She is well connected in the Latino community and Government officials in Connecticut.  She has over 15 years of experience in strategic communications, public relations, marketing, electoral politics, and community engagement. She is currently the Senior Advisor on External Affairs for the CT Department of Economic and Community Development, a direct strategic advisor to the Commissioner. In this role she helps develop strategic plans, engage, and involve stakeholders including community, government, non-profit and private sector leadership across the state to drive business development and the agency’s overall mission. She is the former Director of Communications and spokeswoman for Governor Ned Lamont, former Director of Communications for the Connecticut State Colleges and Universities - the state’s 17 public higher education institutions and former spokeswoman and Director of Communications and New Media for the City of Hartford.

Maribel La Luz previously worked as the Vice President of Communications for the United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, based in Washington D.C. She was directly responsible for securing 23 new media partnerships for the organization as well as anchoring and co-producing a nationally syndicated TV series on NBC titled: Hispanic Business Today.

Maribel La Luz began her career at a media and marketing agency based in lower Manhattan serving clients like Nickelodeon and the NFL, she holds a Master of Arts in Secondary Education, a Marketing Management certification from New York University and a Bachelor’s from New School University. She currently also serves on the Board of Directors of the Mark Twain House.  Maribel resides in Hartford County.

Meryl Mallery

Meryl Mallery brings to Girl Scouts of Connecticut as strong passion for STEM, engineering, and a passion for progressing women in STEM fields.  Meryl is currently the Vice President of Engineering at Ensign-Bickford Aerospace & Defense Company.  She leads the engineering team which designs and develops innovative solutions to meet the needs of the Aerospace, Missiles and Warfighter markets for flight termination, rocket stage separation, satellite deployment and military breaching.  Mrs. Mallery has over 25 years of experience in the Aerospace and Defense Industry.

She began her career in 1987 working at the Kaiser Marquardt Corporation in Van Nuys, CA.  For the next three years she worked on the analysis and design of liquid and gas rocket propulsion systems for tactical and missile defense.  She spent the next several years working at Sverdrup Technology in Huntsville, Alabama supporting the Space Shuttle main engine program at Marshall Space Flight Center. In September of 1997, she began her career at the Ensign-Bickford Aerospace and Defense Company (EBAD) starting as a Research and Development Engineer working on commercial mining and blasting IR&D projects.  She moved to the Aerospace group in 1999 and worked as both an Aerospace Project Engineer and Analytical Engineer before being promoted to Manager of Aerospace Project Engineering in 2008, Director of Project Engineering in 2011 and then becoming the Vice President of Engineering in 2015. She is passionate about supporting STEM education and is an active member of the Connecticut Science Center Board of Trustees as well as the Connecticut Women’s Hall of Fame (CWHF) Board of Trustees.

Meryl holds a B.S. in Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering from U.C. Davis and an M.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Penn State.

Teresa Polley

Teresa Polley brings to Girl Scouts of Connecticut very strong financial, corporate governance and market skills. Terry is a successful CEO, senior finance executive and CPA with 30+ years of experience in business, corporate governance, government relations, enterprise risk management, and global capital markets regulation.  A thought leader recognized for shaping financial reporting, she built the foundation of her career at a global public accounting firm.  As President/CEO of the Financial Accounting Foundation, Terri steered the organization through a complex transformation during a period of unprecedented demand for financial reporting transparency.  Her appointment to President in 2008 and CEO in 2010 coincided with the global financial crisis, placing extraordinary demands on the body charged with establishing generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) through its entities—the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) and the Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB).  Terry resides in Fairfield County.

Elise Sinha

Elise Sinha Elise is a Junior Girl Scout Troop Leader in Wethersfield for Troop 10276. She has a strong commitment to Girl Scouting not only as a troop leader, but as an active member of the GSOFCT Board of Directors and GSOFCT Board Development Committee.   Professionally, Elise is the Senior Director for Operational Excellence at Hartford Healthcare.  In this role she advances the organization’s operating model with Lean, Project Management and Change Management expertise.  Her extensive healthcare leadership experience includes Project Management, Organizational Development, Electronic Health Record/ Clinical Information Technology, and Respiratory Care.  Elise holds her Master’s in Managed Care Systems from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and BS in Respiratory Care from the University of Hartford.  In addition to serving on the Board of Directors for GS of CT, she is also a member of the United Way Women’s United Steering Council, is a Southern New England Project Management Institute Mentor, and is an Apraxia Kids Team Coordinator.  She lives in Wethersfield, CT with her husband, son and daughter.  Elise resides in Hartford County.

Desiree Wolfe

Desiree Wolfe Desiree has more than 25 years of experience bringing great  ideas to life through product management and marketing for companies in the financial services and technology industries.  Currently, she is the Director of Product Management for Webster Bank, with responsibility over the management, direct marketing and analytics  for the Deposits, Lending, Payments, and Investments product lines within  the Consumer and Small Business segments. Previous to Webster, Desiree has held product and marketing leadership roles at Fiserv, Chase, and Foote Cone & Belding. 

Desiree serves as the Vice Chair of the Deposits and Payments Committee of the Consumer Bankers Association and as a member of the BAI Research Executive Council.  She  has received  “40 Under 40” and “Champion for Celebrating Diversity” awards, both from the Fairfield County (Connecticut) Business Journal.

In her community, Desiree serves on the Executive Committee of the Connecticut Woman’s Hall of Fame as Vice Chair and is a member of the Girl Scouts of Connecticut Board.  Desiree earned her bachelor’s degree from Georgetown University and her MBA from Columbia Business School.    Desiree is the proud mom of twin Cadette Girl Scouts.  

Dr. Don Sawyer III

Dr. Donald Sawyer III, Ph.D brings to Girl Scouts of Connecticut a passion for Equity, Inclusion, and student development.   Dr. Sawyer currently is the Vice President of Equity, Inclusion, and Leadership Development at Quinnipiac University.  His focus is on student development and student affairs.  In addition to his officer role, Dr. Sawyer is also a tenured Associate Professor of Sociology.  Don holds a Ph.D. in Sociology, an MA in Sociology, and an MS in Cultural Foundations of Education from Syracuse University along with a BA, Psychology from Hartwick College.  Don is also an entrepreneur owning two businesses: Don Sawyer Photography and DCS3 Educational Consulting.

Tricia Hyacinth

Tricia Hyacinth brings to Girl Scouts of Connecticut non-profit experience and a passion for women and girls.  Tricia is a driven servant leader possessing an entrepreneurial mindset and a distinguished record of success in the non-profit sector.  She is a critical thinker and thought leader who cultivates and manages strategic partnerships, innovates & launches new initiatives, and drives organizations toward excellence.  Tricia currently is the Executive Director of Five Frogs.  Prior to Five Frogs, Tricia worked for Fairfield County’s Community Foundation as the Senior Director assigned to the Fund for Women & Girls in which she was responsible for the strategic leadership of a $17M endowed fund. Tricia holds a bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Brooklyn College, a master’s degree in political science from Southern Connecticut State University, and an MBA from the University of Connecticut.  Tricia resides in Fairfield County.

Wendy Carroll

Wendy Carroll brings to Girl Scouts of Connecticut an extensive background in transformational project leadership, investment management, and financial services.  She is a Senior Investment Management and Mutual Funds leader with strong project management, compliance, risk management, investment management, and diversity network expertise.  Wendy is a recognized financial services leader with over 27 years of experience, focused on investment management operations and support.  She is currently the Senior Vice President-CIM U.S. Fund Product Manager at Citi.  Prior to her work at Citi, Wendy held senior level positions at several financial institutes.  Wendy holds a Bachelor of Science in Quantitative Methods/Finance/Information Systems from Babson College.  Wendy resides in Fairfield County.  

David Noble

David Noble brings to Girl Scouts of Connecticut skills in research, big data, and strategy along with a passion to empower people/students to do amazing things.  David was a former attorney who transitioned into a faculty member and has published numerous papers.  David now is the Managing Director of the Peter J. Werth Institute for Entrepreneurship & Innovation where he builds the future by working with partners across the University of Connecticut.  While serving students, faculty, and the state of Connecticut to help provide an energetic and innovative workforce, he also works with internal and external partners to seed and grow both existing and new initiatives.  At the Institute, David works to build greater depth and breadth of entrepreneurship and innovation courses, programs, and opportunities across the entire UConn campus.  David holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Political Science from Northeastern University, a Law degree from the University of Miami School of Law, an MBA from Elon University, and a Ph.D. in Management from the University of Alabama.  David resides in Fairfield County.

 

Girl Board Members

Makena Logan

Makena Logan attends Avon High School and is very involved with school activities and clubs including Mock Trial (where she serves as President), Model UN, Science Olympiad, Girls Who Code, Student Government project leader, A.V.O.N. Club, LEO club, Healthcare Science Club and the Sierra Club.  She is also the President of the Teen Advisory Board at the Avon Public Library.  Makena seeks to learn more about governance and financial management of a large organization such as GSOFCT.  She also looks forward to further improving her public speaking and confidence.  Makena has earned her Silver and Bronze Awards, Senior Community Service Bar, Gold/Silver Torch Awards, Senior Service to Girl Scouting Bar, and the Ambassador Community Service Bar.  She is currently working on her Gold Award. Makena has been a Girl Scout since Kindergarten and is currently a Juliette at the Ambassador level.  She is currently a member of the Property Task Force, Innovation Task Force, and the CEO Advisory Board.

Valli Pendyala

Valli Pendyala attends South Windsor High School and has been a part of Girl Scouting since the fourth grade.  They credit their Girl Scouting experience with providing them an avenue to make new friends after moving to Connecticut.  They are extremely involved with their school and community.  They serve as the student representative on the South Windsor Board of Education Equity Council, president of the SWHS Sexuality and Gender Alliance, president of the SWHS Asian American Student Alliance, Vice-Chair of the SWHS Model United Nation Team, an attorney on the SWHS Mock Trial team, and a member of the SWHS Student Council.  Valli looks forward to sharing their passions for inclusivity with the Board to support GSOFCT in “making the world a better place.”  Valli has earned the Silver and Gold Awards.  They are currently an Ambassador in Troop 10920.

Elizabeth Schlein

Elizabeth Schlein attends Darien High School where she is a member of the National English Honors Society for English, French, Math and Science and the captain of her Soccer team.  Elizabeth is currently Ambassador in Troop 50186 and has been a Girl Scout since Kindergarten.  She is interested in learning more about what it takes to run an organization as large as Girl Scouts.  Elizabeth has earned her Bronze and Silver Awards and is currently working on her Gold Award.  She has served as Council Delegate, a member of the Innovation Task Force and serves on the CEO Advisory Board. 

Catherine Hearne

Catherine Hearne attends Glastonbury High School and is passionate about ballet dancing along with Girl Scouts.  She is a Juliette and is interested in helping with programming for other Juliettes and promoting the continued use of online programming for girls who can’t make in person activities.  She is a Company Dancer in the Connecticut Concert Ballet, a member of the Advisory at Glastonbury High School, as well as a member of the Russian Club.  Catherine has earned her Bronze and Silver Awards, Leader in Action, and the Program Aide.  She is currently working on the Volunteer in Training and is a member of the CEO Advisory Board. Catherine has been a Girl Scout since Kindergarten and is currently a Juliette at the Ambassador level.

 

Board Development Committee

Elise Sinha (Chair)

Elise Sinha Elise is a Junior Girl Scout Troop Leader in Wethersfield for Troop 10276. She has a strong commitment to Girl Scouting not only as a troop leader, but as an active member of the GSOFCT Board of Directors and GSOFCT Board Development Committee.   Professionally, Elise is the Senior Director for Operational Excellence at Hartford Healthcare.  In this role she advances the organization’s operating model with Lean, Project Management and Change Management expertise.  Her extensive healthcare leadership experience includes Project Management, Organizational Development, Electronic Health Record/ Clinical Information Technology, and Respiratory Care.  Elise holds her Master’s in Managed Care Systems from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and BS in Respiratory Care from the University of Hartford.  In addition to serving on the Board of Directors for GS of CT, she is also a member of the United Way Women’s United Steering Council, is a Southern New England Project Management Institute Mentor, and is an Apraxia Kids Team Coordinator.  She lives in Wethersfield, CT with her husband, son and daughter.  Elise resides in Hartford County.

Yasmin Blackburn, Esq.
YasminBlackburn

Yasmin Blackburn, Esq. is a Senior Associate at Kidambi & Associates, P.C. in Trumbull, Connecticut, a boutique-business immigration law firm where Yasmin specializes in bringing multinational and executive managers, engineers, doctors, and professional athletes and coaches to the United States.  She is also on the board of directors for the Foundation for Educational Opportunities, Inc. (FEO), a non-profit foundation focused on strengthening and supporting the community by fostering an increased heightened interest in academics and social issues while, promoting higher education and instilling a desire to succeed in and contribute to the Greater Hartford community. Yasmin has been a proud Girl Scout since the age of 6 and is a lifetime member.  She receives great joy through Scouting and hopes to continue instilling that love in girls by leading the multi-level troop she started in 2010. In addition, Yasmin has been a Girl Scout Gold Award Mentor since 2013 and is currently the Pak treasurer for her son's Boy Scout Pack. Yasmin earned her J.D. at Temple University Beasley School of Law. She also holds a BA and MA from Iowa State University where she honed the grant writing and leadership skills used to this day.

Desiree Wolfe

Desiree Wolfe has more than 25 years of experience bringing great ideas to life through product management and marketing for companies in the financial services and technology industries.  Currently, she is a Senior Director, Banking Industry Advisor for Salesforce.  Prior to her present role, Desiree has held product and marketing leadership roles at Webster Bank, Fiserv, Chase, and Foote Cone & Belding. 

Desiree serves as the Chair of the Deposits and Payments Committee of the Consumer Bankers Association and as a member of the BAI Research Executive Council.  She has received “40 Under 40” and “Champion for Celebrating Diversity” awards, both from the Fairfield County (Connecticut) Business Journal.

In her community, Desiree serves on the Executive Committee of the Connecticut Woman’s Hall of Fame as Chair and is a member of the Girl Scouts of Connecticut Board.  Desiree earned her bachelor’s degree from Georgetown University and her MBA from Columbia Business School.  Desiree is the proud mom of twin Cadette Girl Scouts.

Jade Melvin

Jade Melvin is a Senior Manager of Strategic Programs of The Women's Business Enterprise National Council and formerly the Business Development and Marketing Manager – Tuck Executive Education MBE Programs of Tuck School of Business-Dartmouth College. Jade is affiliated with many other organizations and is the Founder of Beyond the Heels, Holding LLC. In addition to the BDC, she also serves on our Diversity and Inclusion Task Force. Jade is currently pursuing an advanced degree from St. John’s University.

Marie Kulesza

Marie Kulesza was an active non-board member of the GSOFCT Board Development Committee for a number of years, ensuring strong candidates for the Board are screened, interviewed, and presented to the Board for selection.  This year she played a lead role in the interview process for Girl Board Members.  Marie is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Accounting at Central Connecticut State University. Her teaching areas are in financial accounting, financial reporting theory, and auditing. She holds a BS in Accounting from Central Connecticut State University and a MS in Public Accounting from University of Hartford. She is a member of the CTCPA Advisory Board, American Institute of CPAs, Institute of Management Accountants, and Community Accounting Services. Marie resides in Hartford County.

Teresa Polley

Teresa Polley brings to Girl Scouts of Connecticut very strong financial, corporate governance and market skills. Terry is a successful CEO, senior finance executive and CPA with 30+ years of experience in business, corporate governance, government relations, enterprise risk management, and global capital markets regulation.  A thought leader recognized for shaping financial reporting, she built the foundation of her career at a global public accounting firm.  As President/CEO of the Financial Accounting Foundation, Terri steered the organization through a complex transformation during a period of unprecedented demand for financial reporting transparency.  Her appointment to President in 2008 and CEO in 2010 coincided with the global financial crisis, placing extraordinary demands on the body charged with establishing generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) through its entities—the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) and the Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB).  Terry resides in Fairfield County.

Carin Gendell

Carin Gendell is a recently retired management consultant and executive coach with a 25-year track record of helping senior executives and business owners improve organizational results through leadership skills, performance management tools, and organizational development strategy. Her clients included Fortune 500 companies and Federal agencies. Prior to building her consulting business, Carin was a marketing executive at Kraft General Foods for 14 years and served as VP of Marketing for the Post Cereals Division.  She holds a B.S. in Journalism and an MBA from the Kellogg School at Northwestern University.  She recently relocated from the Washington DC metro area where she served on the Women's Advisory Board for the Girl Scouts of the Nation’s Capital Council and volunteered as both a troop leader and Service Unit Manager in Northern Virginia.  Carin resides in Fairfield County.

 

Board Member EMERITUS

Lt. Governor Susan Bysiewicz
SusanB

Lt. Governor Susan Bysiewicz, was sworn in on January 9, 2019 as Connecticut’s 109th Lieutenant Governor. Previously as Secretary of the State, she helped thousands of businesses grow, registered thousands of voters, cut bureaucratic red tape, honored veterans, and fought to keep elections fair. Lt. Governor Bysiewics’ first political office was serving as a state representative in the Connecticut General Assembly, representing the towns of Middletown, Middlefield, and Durham for three successive terms starting in 1992 until 1998. Lt. Gov. Bysiewicz graduated from Middletown High School, Yale University and Duke Law School. She is the author of Ella: A Biography of Ella Grasso, Connecticut’s 83rd governor.

 

 

Hiking Today. Trailblazing Tomorrow. Become a Girl Scout. Join Now
Hiking Today. Trailblazing Tomorrow. Become a Girl Scout. Join Now