As CEO of ICIC, Steve leads a dynamic and growing team of professionals dedicated to achieving economic prosperity in America’s inner cities. Steve is focused on setting ICIC’s strategic direction, leading the organization through a period of rapid growth and extending ICIC’s national visibility and brand. He directs ICIC’s efforts to ... Read More

Howard Wial is Senior Vice President and Director of Research at ICIC. A specialist in urban and regional economic development, he is responsible for designing and overseeing a research agenda to promote the revitalization of economically depressed communities. Howard has extensive experience as an economist and economic policy advisor. He has ... Read More

Oksana Bondar serves as ICIC’s Chief Financial Officer and is the lead on finance and accounting.  She also oversees ICIC’s human resources administration, IT and office management. Oksana has ten years of experience in the nonprofit sector.  Prior to joining ICIC, she served as director of finance and operations at the ... Read More

As senior director of urban business initiatives, Sonia manages ICIC’s partnership with the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses and Santander Bank’s Cultivate Small Business programs. Prior to joining ICIC, Sonia worked at the International Finance Corporation (IFC, World Bank Group) driving business development and knowledge management programs. With a passion for growing the ... Read More

As communications director, Beth develops and leads communications, marketing, and related outreach strategies that connect ICIC’s brand, research, programs and initiatives with external constituencies. Prior to joining ICIC, she served as Executive Director of the District of Columbia’s Office of Lottery and Gaming, overseeing the operations of the DC Lottery, as ... Read More

As a Director on the Inner City Capital Connections (ICCC) team, Diego plays an important role in ICCC’s cohort management, including the development of recruitment strategies, designing internal team goals, analyzing recruitment channels, and cultivating relationships with inner city CEOs across the U.S. Before joining ICIC, Diego worked as a Registered Representative ... Read More

Liz Pugh serves as the director of development, overseeing the implementation of ICIC’s fundraising and alumni relations strategy. She is responsible for maintaining ongoing relationships with ICIC’s current partners, as well as a cultivating new prospects to support our expanding thought and practice leadership. Prior to joining ICIC, Liz worked in nonprofit ... Read More

Jacqueline serves as ICIC’S Director of Talent and Culture. Born and raised in Boston, Jacqueline grew up in Roxbury where the ICIC office is located. She has worked in local non-profits for the majority of her career, and is very familiar with the diverse culture in the area. Jacqueline has both a Bachelor’s and Master’s in ... Read More

As Director of Data Strategy and Innovation, Michael Shore is responsible for formulating ICIC’s overall data strategy, and developing ways to use that data to help optimize programs throughout the organization.  He is also responsible for managing ICIC’s Customer Relationship Management system (Salesforce) and helping drive greater integration of processes ... Read More

As the Deputy Director of Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses, Nicaela manages the team at ICIC and the program nationally to recruit over 7,000 diverse and under-resourced small business owners from around the country every year. Nicaela is also co-chair of ICIC’s Talent and Culture Committee which focuses on diversity, equity, ... Read More

As the Deputy Director on the Inner City Capital Connections (ICCC) team, Marynee oversees the growth and development of the ICCC program, from cultivating and maintaining relationships with key stakeholders to support the expansion to different markets and demographics. In addition, she leads recruitment for ICCC cohorts in Chicago, IL, Hartford, ... Read More

Anna Marie Cruz serves as the Western Regional Manager on the Inner City Capital Connections (ICCC) team, cultivating relationships with entrepreneurship ecosystem leaders, liaising with funding partners, and recruiting small business owners for the ICCC program. Prior to joining ICIC, Anna Marie Cruz was a community loan officer for leading mission-based ... Read More

As Senior Advisor, Vi counsels the Data Strategy & Innovation (DSI) team on the Salesforce-related projects and the Construction Cluster. In her previous role as Deputy Director of DSI, Vi oversaw the delivery and subsequently the reinvention of the Inner City 100 as well as led efforts to optimize recruitment ... Read More

As Senior Advisor, Kelsey Ray works on outreach, recruitment, application and selection processes for the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses program. Her focuses include program capacity building, outreach strategy, and reporting. Prior to ICIC, Kelsey worked for Nokia in Belgium and AIESEC, and youth-leadership focused NGO in Rwanda. Kelsey holds a Bachelor of ... Read More

As executive assistant to the CEO and administrative manager, Sarah Levis Desmond is responsible for managing the calendar of the CEO, travel arrangements and correspondence of the executive team. Sarah also assists with managing special projects and events at ICIC. Prior to joining ICIC, Sarah worked in the Office of the ... Read More

My name is Aurialís [ah-oo-ree-ah-lease] Alvarez, and my background is in marketing, business management and relations. Most recently, I worked in marketing at The Dimock Center supporting institutional advancement and fundraising through content creation, communications and advertising. Before that, I held positions and internships in the business management of fashion ... Read More

As an Analyst on the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses team, Danielle focuses on the implementation of the program’s outreach, recruitment, application, and selection processes. Prior to ICIC, Danielle worked on the PR team at CTP, a Boston-based marketing agency, where she created strategies and identified industry trends to generate media ... Read More

Naomi has a bachelor’s degree in Information Systems, Entrepreneurship and Global Business from Suffolk University. Prior to joining ICCC, Naomi was a manager at the Suffolk University Philanthropy Center and also interned as a Data Analyst at the Suffolk University MBA program.  Naomi has also worked with several non-profits in ... Read More

Miles draws on a variety of social scientific and geospatial methods to characterize and examine underserved communities across the United States. Prior to joining ICIC, Miles worked as a GIS consultant for the Saratoga County Public Health Department, where his assignments included redesigning the county-wide COVID-19 data dashboard. He holds ... Read More

As an Associate on the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses team, Monica focuses on the implementation of the program’s outreach, recruitment, application, and selection processes. This involves leading strategic advising for outreach tactics, local community partnership building, and scholar section practices. Monica graduated from Franklin & Marshall College in Lancaster, Pennsylvania with ... Read More

As an analyst on the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses team, Kaitlyn focuses on the implementation of the program’s outreach, recruitment, and selection processes. Prior to ICIC, Kaitlyn worked for Ararat Jewelers helping the company re-develop their website, business, and media strategy, and for Mercy Corps as a Business Development Intern. Kaitlyn ... Read More

Prior to joining ICIC, Lara led business recruitment and attraction for several large cities throughout the U.S. specifically, Boston, MA and Houston and Austin, TX. Her accomplishments include the attraction of a large international wind turbine energy manufacturer that began a cluster of industry recruits in the clean technology sector ... Read More

As a senior research analyst at ICIC, Peter utilizes academic and applied practice in both quantitative and qualitative methods to support and lead a number of research projects. A skilled data and survey analyst Peter has led and supported numerous entrepreneurship evaluation projects, including ICIC’s evaluation of JPMorgan Chase’s Small ... Read More

As an Urban Business Initiatives Associate, Eileen’s primary focus is the implementation of the outreach, recruitment, application, and selection process for the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses program. Prior to ICIC, Eileen was an Associate at World Education, where she provided program and financial management assistance on USAID funded education programs ... Read More

As a Program Coordinator on the Inner City Capital Connections (ICCC) Team, Dustin is responsible for cultivating relationships with business owners from across the country.  Dustin Farris joins ICIC after a year of service as an AmeriCorps member at CityYear, working in a 4th grade classroom at the Mather Elementary School ... Read More

As a senior program coordinator within IC100 and ICCC, Maria manages the recruitment and delivery of the IC100 award. She also leads the ICCC Data Team and works to streamline ICCC processes. Maria has a bachelor’s degree in applied mathematics and statistics, with a minor in business, from Johns Hopkins University. ... Read More

Prior to joining ICIC, Jarred was an intern in Baltimore’s City Council. Jarred worked under District 1 Councilman Zeke Cohen as an aid in both the Public Safety Committee and in Constituent Services. There he dealt primarily with issues regarding city conduits, water billing, and surveillance. Jarred has also worked as ... Read More

As the SeniorCommunications Associate, Julie works closely with senior leadership to develop ICIC’s brand by supporting the organization’s robust dissemination and engagement initiatives. Prior to joining ICIC, Julie helped develop and build a startup within BCG Digital Ventures in San Francisco, where she managed communications for the entrepreneur in residence program. ... Read More

As a Senior Program Coordinator on the Inner City Capital Connections (ICCC) Team, Nadia manages the One-on-One Coaching component of the ICCC program, overseeing efforts around the matchmaking process, coach recruitment and onboarding, and the cultivation of local and national coaching partnerships. Additionally, Nadia leads recruitment for the ICCC cohorts ... Read More

Prior to joining ICIC, Paola worked at SBSC billing company and Brooke Charter Schools as an Office Manager providing administrative support to staff and visitors. Originally from Puerto Rico, she graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Labor Relations. In her free time, Paola volunteers with MA HOBY, a nonprofit organization dedicated ... Read More

As a Program Coordinator on the Inner City Capital Connections (ICCC) Team, Catie is responsible for building relationships with inner city CEOs and members of small business communities across the country. Prior to joining ICIC, Catie interned at a Public Relations firm that specializes in Silicon Valley tech startups, helping clients ... Read More

As an Analyst on the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses team, Chris focuses on the implementation of the program’s outreach, recruitment, application, and selection processes. Prior to ICIC Chris worked as a business to government sales development representative at ClearGov, a Massachusetts based software company. There he aided the company’s outreach ... Read More

As a Program Coordinator on the Inner City Capital Connections (ICCC) Team, Amber is responsible for building relationships with inner city CEOs and members of the small business community across the country. Prior to joining ICIC, Amber worked as an Executive Assistant for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central New Mexico, a ... Read More

As a Program Coordinator on the Inner City Capital Connections (ICCC) Team, Derek is responsible for building relationships with inner city CEOs and members of the small business community across the country. Prior to joining ICIC, Derek worked as a Research Associate for Nockamixon Impact Development, an early stage social impact consultancy.  ... Read More

Chris brings a diverse skillset and background in academic research, local government policy, and socioeconomic data analysis to ICIC. As a senior research analyst, Chris primarily engages on projects relating to economic development and cluster growth and provides support in the form of qualitative and quantitative analysis of inner city ... Read More

As a fundraiser at ICIC, Alejandro enjoys advocating for the mission of the organization and sharing the success and impact of our programs with others. Since graduating from Trinity College in 2016, Alejandro has held multiple fundraising positions, primarily focused on grant writing, donor management, and reporting. Outside of work, ... Read More

As a Senior Program Coordinator on the Inner City Capital Connections (ICCC) Team, Maria is responsible for building relationships with key stakeholders to identify and recruit businesses for the ICCC programs in Boston, MA, Washington, D.C., Baltimore, MD and Denver, CO.  In addition, Maria manages the Webinar component of the ... Read More

As a Senior Program Coordinator on the Inner City Capital Connections (ICCC) Team, Indhira is responsible for cultivating relationships with key community stakeholders and partners to connect with small business owners from across the country.Additionally, Indi is responsible for the creation of all ICCC’s graphics on social media and in ... Read More

As a senior analyst on the Research team, Devon is a key contributor to ICIC’s foundational research on inner cities, including work on the definition of an inner city and on inner cities’ economic and social conditions. Working with Census data and GIS mapping tools, Devon applies expertise in statistics ... Read More