Advisory Council

• Earl Bowen, Ph.D., M.S.W.
• Thomas Duffin, Ph.D.
• Robert L. Givens III
• Ron Gladis
• Juliet J. Goodfriend
• Darryl Jones
• Marianne Neary Kaplan, M.S.
• Nancy Kirby, M.S.S.
• Kelly McNally Koney, M.S.S.A.
• Qádriyyah Major-Gray, M.S.S.
• Rhonda McKitten, Esq.
• Eva M. Moya, Ph.D.
• Rashid Njai, Ph.D., M.P.H.
• Shauntia White

Earl Bowen, Ph.D., M.S.W.

Earl Bowen, Jr., is University Counselor and Assistant Professor in the Department of Social & Behavioral Science at Cheyney University. His teaching and clinical practice at the collegiate level has evolved over the course of the past 20 years. His work in the non- profit sector began in the 1980s, as co-founder and president of the board of directors of the Black United Fund of Pennsylvania and as national Field Coordinator for Opportunities Industrialization Centers of America. He later worked as a Functional Family Therapist in the Psychiatry Department at Temple University. Dr. Bowen’s community work and volunteer activities in professional organizations includes the Alliance of Black Social Workers, Association of Black Psychologists and African Caribbean Cancer Consortium. His research and conference presentations both nationally and inter-nationally on the psychosocial impact of prostate cancer among Black men has been circulated in journal articles that address cancer related health disparities and treatment implications. In addition to his social and academic service, Dr. Bowen serves as Associate Rabbi at Congregation Temple Beth EL in Philadelphia, PA. He and wife Debra are the proud parents of 4 sons and 10 grandchildren.

Thomas Duffin, Ph.D.

Tom is the Executive Director of the Penn Restorative Entrepreneurship Program (PREP) which is geared towards helping formerly incarcerated individuals to become entrepreneurs, participate in civic engagement, and advocate for social justice. He is a lecturer the University of Pennsylvania where he teaches courses on Social Impact Entrepreneurship and the History of Social Work, at Bryn Mawr College where he teaches Social Policy, and at Villanova University where he teaches people incarcerated at a maximum-security prison.

Tom completed his Ph.D. and Master of Law and Social Policy degrees at Bryn Mawr College Graduate School of Social Work and Social Research. He also completed his M.S. in Psychology at Villanova University.

Tom recently retired from a long career in financial services industry where he served as First Vice President at Wells Fargo Advisors. Tom was motivated to combine his interests in finance and social change, with a particular emphasis on racial disparities and incarceration. He is a licensed social worker (L.S.W.), where he focuses on financial social work with the aim of connecting underserved populations to resources.

Robert L. Givens III

Robert L. Givens III is the Founder and Owner of RG 360 Consulting, a social venture that exists to foster cultures of collaboration in communities throughout the U.S. by providing leadership training and capacity building services to coalitions and participating organizations. In addition to his role as an entrepreneur, Robert works at Access Services, Inc. as the Strategy Director of Intersect, an innovative program dedicated to supporting those at the intersection of faith and mental
health.

Robert has spent his entire career leading and supporting cross-sector coalitions to address a wide variety of longstanding local, state and national challenges facing vulnerable populations every day. As a result, he has a deep understanding of the social sector’s many strengths and weaknesses. He leverages this expertise on behalf of his clients and his community to cultivate impactful, sustainable partnerships that are committed to doing good together.

Ron Gladis

Ron Gladis considers himself a recovering electrical engineer. A true Renaissance man, Ron has also been an artist, teacher, photographer, film director, author, caregiver and speaker. Throw in his current positions as Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Gestalt Center, a comprehensive community resource that provides caring and professional psychotherapy, counseling, and training to individuals, couples and families, and as President of The Mariah Fenton Gladis Foundation, a non-profit that supports underserved communities through programs that bring a sense of love, compassion, and forgiveness to those with a desire to create better lives, and you get the picture. A wealth of experience. Oh, and yes, he is currently learning to speak Italian.

Juliet J. Goodfriend

In the midst of a successful business career, Juliet Goodfriend learned of the threatened conversion of the 1926 Bryn Mawr Theater into a fitness club. She enlisted the support of regional leaders and began a four year campaign to save it as a cultural resource for the community. In 2002, Goodfriend formally founded the Bryn Mawr Film Institute with a variety of film-entertainment and educational programs. It is now the largest arthouse theater and film education center in the region and is the cultural and business magnet for the Main Line.

Prior to founding and directing the Bryn Mawr Film Institute, Goodfriend founded Strategic Marketing Corporation in 1979, which became one of the largest global custom marketing research and consulting firms for the pharmaceutical industry.

Goodfriend has lectured regularly for national programs on subjects that include women and business leadership, ethics, and disability issues, and has published papers for numerous journals. Goodfriend also developed a course titled Business: A Liberal Art at Bryn Mawr College and is the founder of the Nonprofit Executive Leadership Institute (NELI), of the Graduate School of Social Work and Social Research at Bryn Mawr College.

Darryl Jones

Darryl Jones was the President and CEO of Maryland Nonprofits from 2008 until 2011, when he had to retire due to an injury. Prior to Maryland Nonprofits, Jones served as Executive Director of Communities in Schools of the Nation’s Capital. During his tenure as Vice President of the National Crime Prevention Council, Jones trained executives in leadership and coalition building, and was the keynote speaker, lead facilitator and curriculum writer for the U.S. Department of Justice, as well as many other organizations. Jones is a retired police officer where he was an academy instructor, a member of the SWAT team, and served three terms as the union president.

Jones is a Kellogg Fellow, and has received dozens of awards and honors for leadership and volunteerism. He studied political science at Howard University, and Management and Leadership at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government.

Marianne Neary Kaplan, M.S.

Marianne Kaplan is the founder of Kaplan Consulting Network. She holds a Master’s degree in Organization Development from American University and an undergraduate degree in psychology from West Chester University. Marianne is certified in numerous psychotherapy and coaching models and instruments including Gestalt, Hakomi, Myers-Briggs, EQ Profile, and the Enneagram.

Much of Kaplan’s organizational work focuses on lessening the negative impact of boundaries (race, gender, age, functional, hierarchical, geographic, etc.) between and among individuals and groups. She also works closely with organizational leaders, helping them to examine and correct inclusion deficits in their organizations. Kaplan is committed to issues of social justice and to increasing the voices of non-dominant social groups in our society.

Nancy Kirby, M.S.S.

A native of Haddonfield, NJ, Nancy Kirby received her undergraduate education at Bennett College for Women in Greensboro, NC, and an M.S.S. from the Bryn Mawr College Graduate School of Social work and Social Research. Prior to her position of Assistant Dean and Director of Admissions at GSSWSR from 1979-2010, she worked in public child welfare, maternal and infant care, women’s reproductive health and as a professor at Beaver College, now Arcadia University. Her community service has included board membership with Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania, Spectrum Health Services Inc., Inglis Services, UUHouse Outreach Program, Valentine Foundation, Kendal Corporation, and the Douty Foundation. Kirby’s ongoing involvement with and commitment to social justice issues began with public school desegregation in New Jersey during her elementary school years and civil rights engagement during her college years.

Kelly McNally Koney, M.S.S.A.

Kelly McNally Koney (she/they) is founder and principal consultant at The Kyla Alliance, an integrated coaching and consulting practice committed to equity, justice, and well-being for individuals, organizations, and communities. Throughout her work, Kelly weaves compassion, collaboration, and critical consciousness for radical transformation. Kelly holds degrees from The Ohio State University (BS) and the Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences at Case Western Reserve University (MSSA) where she was employed for eight years and first experienced the power of participatory action research and appreciative inquiry (two methodologies she continues to incorporate) to uplift and amplify traditionally marginalized voices in change efforts. Kelly is assistant editor for Reflections: Narratives of Professional Helping, an online journal that centers the healing power of personal stories in professional development, as well as co-author of numerous publications, including Sustaining Our Spirits: Women Leaders Thriving for Today and Tomorrow. Kelly is involved in various initiatives promoting anti-racism, food and land sovereignty, and environmental justice. She cultivates her own personal balance by connecting with the earth, something she does regularly as a part-time employee at Flying Cloud Farm and during meditation, yoga, and hikes in the Blue Ridge Mountains of western North Carolina.  

Qádriyyah Major-Gray, M.S.S.

Qádriyyah Major-Gray earned a Master of Social Service from the Bryn Mawr College Graduate School of Social Work and Social Research. She has a passion for serving underrepresented communities, which has continued since the beginning of her teenage years. She has great interest in children and families experiencing trauma within inner city neighborhoods, such as in Philadelphia, as well as an interest in violence prevention. Over the past few years Qádriyyah has taken interest in individuals, families, and communities impacted by chronic illness and health inequalities that become visible during such challenging health journeys. As a helping professional, she strives to be empathetic, kind, and inquisitive. Qádriyyah believes that when social workers attempt to understand those we serve, we more easily care for the wellness of all human beings. She continues to serve her community as a full-time Oncology Social Worker at Fox Chase Cancer Center, meeting the needs of patients and their support systems impacted by cancer diagnoses. Among the many ways she supports her patients and their supports, her primary role is providing therapeutic counseling to individuals and groups attempting to manage physical and emotional side effects of their cancer treatment. Interventions and evidence-based approaches most utilized by Qádriyyah include but are not limited to: motivational interviewing, psychodynamic approach, healing centered-engagement, and cognitive behavioral therapy. Her commitment to life-long learning and social justice brings her to the Social Justice Initiative Advisory Council.

Rhonda McKitten, Esq.

Rhonda McKitten is the founder and CEO of JustiSolutions, an advisory firm providing strategic and system-based solutions to better the lives of those in, and those impacted by, the criminal and juvenile justice system. Ms. McKitten is also the Director and co-founder of the Pennsylvania DMC Youth/Law Enforcement Corporation, a 501(c)(3) that helps police departments and local jurisdictions reduce racial and ethnic disparities at the point of arrest and improve relationships between youth and law enforcement. Ms. McKitten has over 20 years of justice system experience with positions in the Defender Association of Philadelphia, Philadelphia Police Department, city government and judicial system and has trained defenders, prosecutors, judges and law enforcement throughout the United States. She currently serves as the vice-chair of the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency’s Racial and Ethnic Disparities Subcommittee and is a Georgetown Center for Juvenile Justice Reform Fellow and a past Stoneleigh Fellow. Ms. McKitten is a graduate of Georgetown University and Georgetown University Law Center and has taught juvenile justice at Temple University Beaseley School of Law.

Eva M. Moya, Ph.D.

Dr. Eva M. Moya is an Associate professor in the Department of Social Work at the University of Texas at El Paso. She is a heath disparities researcher and community engaged scholar with an interest in developing policy and education interventions to improve prevention efforts in underserved populations. Her work seeks to design community-based interventions using social determinants and ecological model strategies to address health inequalities in communities of color. She has worked to address the burden of social and health inequalities in the U.S.-Mexico Border for the past 37 years, primarily in a multi and interdisciplinary fashion. Research trajectory includes projects in community-based participatory research, social work macro practice approaches, use of Photovoice method, homelessness, and HPV education technology with Latino populations. She conducts community-engaged scholarship initiatives focused on high impact practices in education, homelessness and interdisciplinary education. Dr. Moya is also experienced in working with faculty and students as well as community partners in the areas of qualitative research, educational interventions and training of community health workers. She has successfully administered federal and binational research projects, collaborated with other scholars and researchers, and produced more than 30 peer-review publications and 13 book chapters. She is a Kellogg Fellow and board member of the Alliance of Leadership Fellows. Eva received the 2020 Othli Award from the Government of Mexico General Consulate in El Paso for leadership and service to Mexican communities in the United States.

Rashid Njai, Ph.D., M.P.H.

Rashid Njai, PhD, MPH, [University of Michigan, School of Public Health], BS [Pennsylvania State University], MSW [Boston University] credits good mentorship for his own personal, academic and professional development, and maintains being an instrumental mentor for others. Dr. Njai has over 20 years of community based public health experience and is a social force determined to create change and wellness for all. He founded UPHOLD: a non-profit action ecosystem, to combine his passion for scholar activism, measurement and intervention on structural drivers and social determinants of health (e.g. food and housing insecurity, discrimination) to address disparities and the application of community-informed approaches towards impact, accountability and sustainability of non-profit/CBO investment efforts. He was both a Kellogg Health Policy and American Psychological Association predoctoral fellow and a National Minority Quality Forum 40 under 40 recipient. In commitment to his applied service leadership, Dr. Njai is a 2021 graduate of Boston University’s clinical MSW focusing on trauma informed care for youth/young adults and communities of color. He has served for the last two years as, Lead for the Minority Health and Health Equity Science Team in the CDC’s Office of Health Equity. 

Shauntia White

Originally hailing from Prince George’s County, Shauntia is an entrepreneur, educator, and advocate. Shauntia has conducted research on women, families, and children in Ethiopia, China, South Africa and Kenya, and continues to volunteer across local, state and federal government on various projects to address workforce improvements, substance abuse, and domestic violence, just to name a few. In 2010, she received the School of Public Health's Dean Senior Scholar award at the University of Maryland, College Park. Throughout her social work career, she served as an Advisor to CSWE’s Policy Education and Practice Committee, and testified and organized on behalf of legislation and programs pertaining to the social work workforce, educational access, and youth and family development. Shauntia has been recognized as a Prince George’s County Social Innovation Fund 2015 “Forty UNDER 40 Prince George’s County” honoree and Distinguished Alumna for Prince George’s Community College 2015 Convocation. In 2016, she earned the titles of “Organizer of the Year” by the Congressional Research Institution for Social Work and Policy, “Advocate of the Year” by the National Association of Social Workers-DC Metro Chapter, and provided social work insights to Sage Publications, focusing on child development, youth and social work.

Shauntia holds a Master’s degree in Social Work from the University of Maryland, Baltimore, a Master’s degree in Human Development and Family Science from Oklahoma State University, a Bachelor’s degree in Family Science from the University of Maryland, College Park, and an Associates Degree with honors from Prince George's Community College. She is certified in Human Service Leadership and Management, Nonprofit Management and Leadership, Entrepreneurship Education, and Political Campaign Management.