Staff

Kelly Aiken is vice president of the National Fund. As a workforce development leader, Kelly has over 20 years of experience building and sustaining multi-sector partnerships focused on providing low wage workers access to career pathways and family-sustaining jobs. Prior to joining the National Fund, Kelly served as director of labor and workforce development at the Massachusetts Senior Care Association, where she helped develop the employer-led Quality Jobs for Quality Care Initiative to give nursing home workers a pathway to a living wage. From 2006 to 2014, Kelly served as director of healthcare workforce initiatives at the Regional Employment Board of Hampden County in Springfield, Mass. Kelly earned a master's degree in education and community development from the University of California at Davis and a bachelor’s degree in environmental design from the University of Colorado Boulder.

Amanda Cage is the president and CEO of the National Fund for Workforce Solutions. Amanda joined the National Fund in March 2020, bringing more than 25 years of federal workforce system, grantmaking, and organized labor experience to the organization. Throughout her career, Amanda has focused on ensuring economic inclusion and stability for workers and their families. Most recently, she served as the chief program officer at the Chicago Cook Workforce Partnership. There she managed a $70 million portfolio of public and private funding and a network of over 50 agencies for the country’s second largest workforce system. Before that, Amanda served as director of human capital strategy for the Chicago Workforce Investment Council, where she led a citywide effort to increase Chicago’s competitiveness in a global economy. For five years, she led the workforce development portfolio at the McCormick Foundation, and she was the 2004 J. Ira & Nicki Harris Foundation Fellow at the Chicago Community Trust. Amanda started her career as a labor organizer working for Jobs with Justice and the Service Employees International Union and was a Trade Union Program Fellow at Harvard Law School. She is an Aspen Institute Economic Opportunities Program 2017-2018 Job Quality Fellow and a 2019 Leadership Greater Chicago Fellow. Amanda sits on the board of WorkRise, a research-to-action network on jobs, workers, and mobility and sits on the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago’s Advisory Council on Agriculture, Small Business and Labor. Amanda earned a bachelor’s degree from Oberlin College and a master’s degree in public policy from the Harris School at the University of Chicago.

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Lisa Chensvold is marketing and communications director at the National Fund, where she brings 15 years of experience delivering and leading strategic communications for organizations that discover, inspire, and tackle the world’s toughest challenges. After starting as an independent writer and editor, she cultivated and refined a broad range of communications skills at the University of North Carolina’s Institute for Global Health and Infectious Diseases, where she eventually headed internal and external communications for this world-class research and clinical care enterprise. In 2011–2012, Lisa was a leader in public relations efforts around a landmark HIV prevention study that was featured on the cover of The Economist and named “Breakthrough of the Year” by Science magazine. In 2014, she relocated to Washington, DC, where she directed communications for IESC, a global nonprofit dedicated to private sector solutions to inclusive economic development. In addition to being a passionate advocate for clear communications and plain language, Lisa is also a classically trained soprano and active musician. She holds an M.A. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a B.A. from the University of California at Santa Barbara.  

Caroline Corona is a program associate at the National Fund where she supports projects that activate employers to invest in the workforce and make jobs better for a competitive advantage. Prior to joining the National Fund, Caroline worked in a variety of roles that focused on housing and mobility in Columbus, Ohio, and gained further experience in economic development at both the local and national level with the International Economic Development Council, the Columbus Chamber of Commerce, and the Metropolitan Policy Program at the Brookings Institution. Caroline earned a B.A. in public management, leadership and policy and a B.S. in city and regional planning from The Ohio State University.

Joshua Enoch serves as communications manager for the National Fund for Workforce Solutions. He works in close collaboration with the marketing and communications director to assist in developing communications strategies and create content for the National Fund's communications efforts. Furthermore, Josh works in coordination with other National Fund team members to assist in additional tasks surrounding communications related to grant reporting, proposal development, research, and events held throughout the year. Prior to joining the National Fund, Josh served as director of operations and senior associate at Control Point Group, a political consulting firm, where he oversaw the crafting of strategic direction and communications programs for elected officials, candidates for office, and issue advocacy groups. Josh earned a bachelor’s degree in economics at the University of Maryland.

Nita Sharma is the administrative assistant at the National Fund. She works closely with all staff to support its mission and the implementation of programs. Before joining the National Fund, Nita worked for the District Government Department of Health as program support specialist with the Cancer & Chronic Disease Bureau.

Andrea Kippur serves as the development director for the National Fund for Workforce Solutions. She works in close collaboration with program directors, senior leadership, and the board to raise funds for the organization and its partner sites. Prior to joining the National Fund, Andrea worked with a variety of organizations in the Washington, D.C. area, including the Capital Area Food Bank, the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, and Playworks. Starting as a political canvasser with the Human Rights Campaign, Andrea has 10+ years of fundraising experience working to build financial resources for progressive organizations. Andrea earned a bachelor’s degree in politics at Occidental College and a Multidisciplinary Business Studies Certificate from the Georgetown University Continuing Education Program.

Melissa Kleder is program manager at the National Fund and oversees the implementation of the Healthcare Workforce Development Academy, a technical assistance initiative to help healthcare organizations implement and scale programs that develop their frontline workers. Prior to joining the National Fund, she provided technical assistance and operational support to a diverse network of safety-net sexual and reproductive health organizations at the National Family Planning & Reproductive Health Association. In 2007, Melissa relocated to the DC metro area where she fine-tuned a range of skills including project management, community outreach and education, and legislative advocacy with NARAL Pro-Choice Maryland. After receiving a bachelor's degree from The Ohio State University, Melissa began her career providing counseling and case management support at two Cleveland-area abortion care providers and a domestic violence center. After several years in direct service, she traveled to the United Kingdom to earn a master's degree in gender, culture, and society from the University of Essex.

Bryan Lindsley leads the National Fund’s efforts related to systems change. Prior to joining the National Fund, he was executive director of the Minneapolis Saint Paul Workforce Innovation Network (MSPWin), a funder collaborative and National Fund site. Bryan has been the executive director of Minnesota’s state workforce development board, a policy analyst, employment counselor, and research consultant. He has studied race, apartheid, and nation-building in southern Africa, and the economics of fair trade coffee in Guatemala. Bryan has a bachelor’s degree in social justice from St. Olaf College and a master’s degree in public policy with a concentration in community and economic development from the Humphrey School of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota. He is an alumnus of the James P. Shannon Leadership Institute.

Hollie Marston is the network director, responsible for nurturing the vitality of our network of regional collaboratives. She is experienced in facilitating communities of practice and enjoys creating spaces for changemakers to accelerate collaborative innovation and learning. Prior to joining the National Fund, Hollie spent 10 years at FSG, a strategy consulting firm, where she deepened her knowledge of systems change, engaged community foundations in advancing impact, led the Retail Opportunity Network of workforce organizations, and supported a community of employers advancing job quality through Talent Rewire. Prior to FSG, Hollie worked within the field of socially responsible investing, assessing company practice on a variety of social and environmental metrics.

Kanny Morgan is program manager at the National Fund, where she works closely with program staff to support learning and evaluation. Prior to joining the National Fund, Kanny gained experience working in workforce development and public policy, both at the local and national level, as a research intern with the Metropolitan Policy Program at the Brookings Institution and as a project coordinator with the Sonoma County Economic Development Board and Workforce Investment Board. Kanny earned a bachelor’s degree in economics with a minor in entrepreneurship from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. 

Jonathan Osei is program associate at the National Fund, where he works closely with the director of evaluation and learning to support systems change initiatives and evaluation activities. Prior to joining the National Fund, Jonathan gained experience working public policy advocacy, community development, and economic empowerment at the local level as a coordinator with Community Empowerment Fund and StepUp Durham and at the national level as an intern with National Community Reinvestment Coalition. Jonathan earned a bachelor's degree in public policy with a minor in economics from Duke University.

Mikaela Romero is program manager at the National Fund. She works in close collaboration and coordination with National Fund staff to support the organization’s various programs and operations. Prior to joining the National Fund, Mikaela gained experience in public policy advocacy and equitable economic development as both an intern at Women’s Action for New Directions, and program officer at the Elliott School's Global Gender Program. She earned a bachelor’s degree in politics from the University of California at Santa Cruz, and a master’s degree in international affairs at the George Washington University’s Elliott School of International Affairs.

Tom Strong is a passionate advocate for worker voice and the business benefits of investing in good jobs. As the National Fund’s director of employer activation, he leads efforts to engage employers in local industry partnerships to increase their competitive advantage, make jobs better, and build more resilient communities. Tom previously co-led the Hitachi Foundation’s Good Companies/Good Jobs program, and also worked as an open-book management coach with the Great Game of Business. Tom has an MBA from the University of Arizona, a bachelor’s degree from Reed College, and is a founding board director of the Georgia Center for Employee Ownership.

Janell Thomas is the director of worker success and is responsible for co-creating opportunities and solutions that allow workers to reach their full potential. She is experienced in program management and implementation, community engagement, partnership building, strategic planning, organizational development, program evaluation, and creating equitable solutions for organizations to achieve a thriving culture. Janell has over 10 years of experience providing training and technical assistance in various arenas, including local, state and nationally known organizations pertaining to the reduction of violence, disparities, and inequities. She earned her bachelor’s degree in psychology and her master’s degree in public health from Morgan State University. She strongly believes all people should have the right to choose the life they want to live, not the life they have been forced to live.

Janice Urbanik is senior director for innovation and strategy at the National Fund for Workforce Solutions. She leverages her past experience as the executive director of Partners for a Competitive Workforce in Cincinnati to help other National Fund sites achieve their full potential. Janice also facilitates the Employer Roundtable of the Cincinnati Child Poverty Collaborative, where employers learn from other employers about the policies and practices they can implement to improve recruiting, retention, and advancement while also building competitive advantage in their industry. Janice and her work teams have been recognized nationally for their work assisting underrepresented populations to attain and retain employment in growing industry sectors in the region.

Elicia Wilson is the chief operating officer for the National Fund and is responsible for ensuring the effectiveness of the administrative systems necessary for achieving the National Fund’s mission and overseeing the implementation of National Fund programs. With legal and nonprofit experience, Elicia previously served as a research assistant and law clerk for Kids in Need of Defense (KIND), a national nonprofit that helps unaccompanied children navigate the U.S. immigration system. She has also worked for several public and private law offices and volunteered at City Life, a Boston grassroots group that promotes socioeconomic equality. She currently serves on the Global Advisory Committee of (Re)Connecting Youth, an initiative that aims to foster learning and energize support for holistic solutions that provide the millions of youth in the country that are not in school or work with opportunities to lead healthy, productive lives. Elicia earned a Juris Doctorate from Suffolk University Law School and is a licensed attorney in Massachusetts. She earned her bachelor's degree in business administration from Bryant University.

Michelle Wilson, Ed.D., is the director of evaluation and learning at the National Fund. Michelle has worked in a variety of settings focusing on issues of access and equity in health and educational settings.  She has spent over 18 years conducting community-level research, evaluation, and program development and specializes in research and evaluation design and implementation in complex and challenging settings. Michelle earned a doctorate in adult and community college education from North Carolina State University, a master's degree in applied anthropology from the University of Maryland, and a bachelor’s degree in sociology and anthropology from North Carolina A&T State University.

Abby Wood is a program manager at the National Fund, supporting efforts related to systems change. Prior to joining the National Fund, Abby worked as a research manager with McKinley Advisors, a strategy consulting firm, leading research efforts and leveraging her experience in the public and nonprofit sectors to create solutions for clients across a variety of industries. She earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from Truman State University in Missouri, and a master’s degree in nonprofit management at the American University School of Public Affairs.