414.906.4616 info@sd-foundation.org

Board of Directors

The Social Development Foundation Board of Directors is a diverse group united by a desire to identify and mobilize resources that help Milwaukee County families move out of poverty. Board directors volunteer countless hours and leverage the group’s collective power to support initiatives that empower people.

Each director is respected in the community, accomplished, and brings a strong set of professional skills to the role. The Foundation board is a robust team that operates with integrity, competence and commitment. Directors trust and challenge each other as they address critical issues in the foundation’s areas of focus. The board ensures that the goals and objectives of the foundation are implemented and achieved.

Click here to learn more about joining the Social Development Foundation Board of Directors.

Alicia Smith McCants Headshot

Alicia C. Smith McCants
President

Alicia Smith McCants is the Vice President of Development and Analytics for Advocate Aurora Health Foundations. Within this role, she manages different departments that include system operations, prospect research, donor and data integrity and donor loyalty and stewardship.

Alicia believes that no amount of success comes without the responsibility of reaching in, giving back, and investing across one’s community.  Alicia is deeply dedicated and involved in several community organizations and programs in Greater Milwaukee and beyond.  Having received the Milwaukee Times Black Excellence Award for volunteerism, Alicia acknowledges that being excellent moves beyond just taking care of oneself, it instead travels outside, down sidewalks, into dark alleyways, living room couches and into the heart of others. 

Stanley Brister Headshot

Stanley Brister
Vice President

Stanley Brister is an active Community Member in Milwaukee. Stanley received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in 1990 and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Phoenix in 2003. Committed to serving the community through volunteerism, Stanley has served on a number of boards including joining the Social Development Foundation in 2018.

 

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Phyllis Clark
Treasurer

Phyllis Clark is a native of the Milwaukee area and currently serves as the Senior Director of External Reporting and Controls at Northwestern Mutual. She believes that no one person can do it all, but working together we can accomplish great things. Phyllis Clark joined the Social Development Foundation Board to assist in the mission of eradicating poverty. She believes giving the community the tools to be successful is critical to this mission.

Phyllis is a Certified Public Accountant in Wisconsin and Texas with over sixteen years of experience in the accounting field. She began her career in public accounting after she obtained a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Phyllis then went on to obtain a Master of Science in Accountancy from the University of Notre Dame.

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Stanthia Grier
Secretary

Stanthia Grier currently works for U.S. Bank in Mortgage Banking. Her volunteer efforts include Milwaukee Urban League Guild, United Way Project Lead, Lead2Change Program, Community, and Engagement committee, past YMCA Metropolitan Milwaukee Board Member, past Parklawn YMCA Board Member, past Hansberry Sands Theatre Company Board Member, and YMCA Black Achievers Alumni. She is an active member of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc. Stanthia holds a Master degree in Business Administration from Cardinal Stritch University and a certificate in Human Resource Management from Cardinal Stritch University. Her passion is to see poverty eliminated in Wisconsin by utilizing resources so communities can be revived. Stanthia joined the board in August 2019.

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Erica N. Bean

Erica Bean is a proud Milwaukee Native and Vice President at BMO Bank N.A. For the past 15 years, she has provided tailored trust administration and financial planning services for clients within the Wealth Management footprint as a Senior Manager of the IMA Team and Manager of the Irrevocable Life Insurance Trust Division for the bank. Before her career at BMO, she worked in various areas of the insurance industry, gaining her work experience at Northwestern Mutual and Travelers Insurance Company. She holds an active intermediary license with the State of Wisconsin, Office of the Commissioner of Insurance and has 25+ years of experience in the insurance industry overall.

Erica holds a Bachelor of Business Administration from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Phoenix. She is an active member and serves as the International Co-Director of Risk Management and serves on the International Audit Team for Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Incorporated. Erica believes in the principle of service and helping others excel in their personal and professional lives. She serves as a mentor, advocate, and supporter to those in her network and local community. Erica is committed to servicing the needs of her community through volunteerism and charitable giving and looks forward to her tenure on the SD Foundation board.

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Attorney Sarah Blackwell

Sarah Blackwell is an immigration attorney practicing for 15 years in Milwaukee County.  A strong believer in giving people tools to make changes in their lives, Sarah has her own law practice and focuses on helping people become lawful permanent residents through a family member. She is witness to the powerful effect becoming documented has on the lives of her clients, both emotionally and financially. Sarah sees the Social Development Foundation as playing a similar role in the community: providing resources to the Social Development Commission (SDC) to allow SDC to deliver programs that can help transform the lives of Milwaukee residents.

Prior to being an immigration attorney, Sarah worked in healthcare for most of 20 years in various management positions, both in Milwaukee and in London, England.  A native of London, Sarah emigrated to the US both as a child and as an adult. She has lived in the Milwaukee area for over 20 years.  

Sarah has a bachelor’s degree from University of Wisconsin-Madison and a law degree from Marquette University.

Gwendolyn Johnson Smiling

Melissa Buford – SDC Commissioner, City of Milwaukee

Melissa was born and raised in Milwaukee, WI and received her education through Milwaukee Public Schools. As a graduate of Milwaukee Trade and Tech High School (now known as Bradley Tech), she learned many skills that would carry her through life and throughout her career. Melissa found herself as an employee within the school district for over 20 years. She held many positions and ultimately became a special education teacher until her departure from the district in June, 2022. Melissa served over 15 schools during her time with MPS and created lasting relationships with many students, parents, and staff members.

Although Melissa did not attend college immediately following high school, she decided to return to school to further her education. During her time with MPS, Melissa obtained a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Bryant and Stratton and a master’s degree in special education from Grand Canyon University. 

In June of 2022, Melissa joined the Office of Mayor Cavalier Johnson’s Outreach Team.  Melissa’s responsibilities include; implementing new initiatives, youth engagement, northside faith-based liaison, African American affairs, public safety efforts, and more. Through this position, Melissa served as the mayoral appointment to the Board of Directors for Safe and Sound from October, 2022 to February, 2022. Currently, she is involved in many efforts to implement new initiatives to support the City of Milwaukee’s top priorities.

One of Melissa’s strongest assets is event planning. Melissa has organized and planned many events throughout the community. Most notably, Melissa is the Board Chair and organizer for Garfield’s 502 R&B Festival (formerly known as Garfield Days). In July of 2023, Melissa and the team were able to successfully bring a fun, safe, and entertaining festival to the Halyard Park area after a four-year break. The festival attracted over 20,000 attendees. Melissa also serves on the Board of Directors at Abundant Faith Church of Integrity, and SDC Board of Commissioners. 

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Serina Chavez – SDC Commissioner, District 5

Serina Chavez is a creative innovator dedicated to strategic branding and communications. Her 20+ year career extends across a broad spectrum of industries including non-profits, higher and private education, hospitality, arts, entertainment, and technology.

Ms. Chavez is the Founder of XO3 Media, a B2B marketing agency dedicated to empowering clients to achieve meaningful and sustained growth through thoughtful brand solutions.

In 2022, Ms. Chavez was elected as SDC’s District 5 Commissioner and was appointed to serve on the SD Foundation board.

Gwendolyn Johnson Smiling

Gwendolyn Johnson

A Milwaukee native, Gwendolyn Johnson is the Program Manager, Supplier Diversity & Sustainability with MSC Industrial Supply Co. responsible for the development and management of MSC’s Supplier Diversity and Environmentally Preferred Product Programs. She has led workforce development and business capacity building initiatives, and diversity, equity and inclusion efforts within her prior roles.  

Gwendolyn holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Graphic Design from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, a Master of Business Administration from Cardinal Stritch University, and a certificate in Diversity and Inclusion from eCornell University.

Gwendolyn is committed to being a part of continued growth, education, and development within Milwaukee and joined the Social Development Foundation Board of Directors to increase business development and growth within the communities we serve. She also serves on the board for the United Methodist Children’s Services of Wisconsin, Washington Park Urban Ecology Center Advisory Committee, and is a life member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated. Gwendolyn counts her greatest achievement as being a proud mother to one daughter.

Gwendolyn Johnson Smiling

Leyla Mousavi

Leyla Mousavi serving as the Director of Architecture and a Distinguished Fellow at Johnson Controls, is deeply passionate about merging technology with social good. Her expertise in crafting sophisticated software solutions is driven by a commitment to data-driven decision-making aimed at addressing societal challenges like sustainable green buildings. Residing in city of Milwaukee, her involvement would help in steering our organization towards developing impactful tech-based solutions in Milwaukee and beyond by advocating for the use of technology to create meaningful and sustainable changes in the community.

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Jeff Roman

Jeff Roman is an activist, organizer, strategist, and community advocate whose work lies closely at the intersections of race, policy, politics, and health. Over the last decade plus, Jeff has played a pivotal role in helping Milwaukee, WI, move toward making advances in achieving racial equity. His work within community as well as the nonprofit, philanthropic, and government sectors has included serving as a program officer at Community Advocates Public Policy Institute, being a two-term equal rights commissioner, and serving as the first chief equity officer at Milwaukee County, the first government jurisdiction in the United States to declare racism a public health crisis. Jeff, the oldest of five boys raised by a single mother, studied community education at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, was a racial equity fellow with the Aspen Institute Roundtable on Community Change, and is deeply committed to building the leadership, organizational, and advocacy capacity of Black and brown communities globally. Jeff currently works at Derute Consulting Cooperative.

Elmer Moore Jr.

Dr. George P. Hinton, Ex-Officio CEO, Social Development Commission

Dr. George P. Hinton is the CEO of the Social Development Commission (SDC). As a Commission on Poverty and Wisconsin’s largest Community Action Agency, SDC operates numerous programs to improve the quality of life for Milwaukee County’s residents experiencing poverty. Through various services, SDC serves tens of thousands of people each year helping them to find their pathway to success.

George has diverse work experience. He’s served as the executive director for INROADS, Inc. – Milwaukee. He’s held several executive leadership positions with the Children’s Health System of Wisconsin. From 2008-2012, Hinton served as president of Aurora Sinai Medical Center in Milwaukee. He is also the founder of the Hinton Group, a healthcare and business consulting firm that works with private and nonprofit organizations.

Support Staff

Aaron Hurvitz, JD, Donor Development & Relations, SD Foundation
Barbara McKillop, Lead Grant Writer, SDC
Chantell Sain, Marketing Supervisor, SDC
Eileen Devine, Marketing Event Coordinator, SDC
Carmen Stroud, Marketing Graphic Designer, SDC

Join Our Board

Social Development Foundation Board Member Roles and Responsibilities

Title: Member, Social Development Foundation

Purpose: The role of board members is to provide their time, professional knowledge, and leadership in helping to meet and maintain the mission of the Social Development Foundation. In particular, board members help to secure private sector financial and volunteer support for the Social Development Commission (SDC) programs.

Term: 3 years

Obligations of the Board: Board members are expected to work together in the best interest for the foundation, with decisions being made by consensus.  Board members should:

  • Provide governance to the SD Foundation
  • Work with staff to establish a Strategic Plan for the foundation then maintain, update and adjust as needed
  • Monitor finances
  • Contribute skills, knowledge, and experience when appropriate
  • Commits to work with development staff in efforts to raise funds for the SDC
  • Ensures compliance with policies relative to fundraising and other policies relative to the SD Foundation
  • Identifies individuals, small businesses, and corporations whose philanthropic areas of interest could include programs specific to SDC
  • Responds to all SD Foundation board meeting notices
  • Plans to spend at least one day per year experiencing agency activities

Specific Duties:

  • Attend meetings, participate and show commitment to board activities
  • Serve on a fundraising committee or non-fundraising committee
  • Be well informed and prepared for meetings
  • Educate yourself about the needs of SDC’s customers
  • Represent SD Foundation to the public, private sector and overall community
  • Use your personal and professional associations to connect resources and individuals to the foundation
  • Make a personal financial gift each year

Frequently Asked Questions
Board Interest Form