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Board, Management & Staff |
Grameen America has assembled a top management team, including Professor Muhammad Yunus himself, to lead the organization’s efforts to help break the cycle of poverty through microfinance in disadvantaged U.S. communities.
Professor Muhammad Yunus
Member of the Board of Directors of Grameen America, Inc.
Professor Yunus is famous worldwide for his successful application of the concept of microcredit, the extension of small loans to entrepreneurs too poor to qualify for traditional bank loans. Professor Yunus founded the Grameen Bank. In 2006, he and the bank were jointly awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, “for their efforts to create economic and social development from below.” Professor Yunus himself has received several other international honors, including the ITU World Information Society Award, Ramon Magsaysay Award and the World Food Prize and the Sydney Peace Prize. Professor Yunus holds a Ph.D in Economics from Vanderbilt University and M.A. and B.A. from Dhaka University in Bangladesh. He is the author of Banker to the Poor and Creating a World Without Poverty.
Professor H.I. Latifee
Member of the Board of Directors of Grameen America, Inc.
Professor Latifee is an economist and Managing Director of Grameen Trust, the international outreach affiliate of Grameen Bank. Professor Latifee has been with the Grameen organization since its founding by Professor Yunus in 1973. Before joining Grameen Trust in 1994, Latifee was a Professor of Economics at the University of Chittagong in Bangladesh. As a result of his experience with Grameen Bank, Grameen Trust and Grameen partners worldwide, Professor Latifee is a highly regarded microfinance expert. He holds a B.A. and M.A. from Dhaka University in Bangladesh as well as a M.A. from Boston University. He is a winner of Business Week's Stars of Asia Award, 2001, for his leadership in the field of microcredit and poverty alleviation.
Vidar Jorgensen
President of Grameen America, Inc.
Member of the Board of Directors of Grameen America, Inc.
Mr. Jorgensen is the principal proponent and organizer of Grameen America. In addition to Grameen America, Mr. Jorgensen is a supporter of Grameen projects worldwide. He is the majority owner of six industry based conference and research companies, which in turn own and manage over 300 conferences and several membership-based research groups focused on biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, health care, insurance, financial services, entertainment, and infrastructure development. Mr. Jorgensen’s companies include WRG Research, Inc., Cambridge Healthtech Institute, Cambridge Healthtech Associates and The World Health Care Congress, which was launched in conjunction with The Wall Street Journal and CNBC. Mr. Jorgensen holds a B.A (Honors) in Political Science from Harvard University.
Shah Newaz
Senior Vice President and General Manager
Mr. Newaz has over 25 years experience with Grameen as a manager with global experience in establishing Grameen businesses in Bangladesh and the Dominican Republic. Mr. Newaz has moved his family from Bangladesh to Queens, New York and has a long-term commitment to the success of Grameen America. Mr. Newaz started his career in August 1982 as a field manager in the Grameen Bank Project and has since worked in various capacities within the Grameen network. Prior to joining Grameen America he was Deputy General Manager & Head of the Training and Special Programs Department of the Grameen Bank. Mr. Newaz completed his B.S. and M.S. at Chittagong University in Chittagong, Bangladesh.
Ritu Chattree
Vice President of Finance and Development
Ms. Chattree has over 20 years experience in finance and not-for-profit. Previously, she was the Vice President of Development at the New York Academy of Sciences and the Deputy Director of Development and Outreach for Human Rights Watch, a leading human rights NGO. Ms. Chattree has spent the majority of her career in international investment banking and private equity fundraising. She has worked throughout the U.S., Europe and Asia for the firms J.P. Morgan, Merrill Lynch and Bear Stearns focusing on mergers & acquisitions, direct equity investments, restructurings and joint ventures. Ms. Chattree completed her MBA from INSEAD in Fontainebleau, France and holds a BSFS in International Economics from the School of Foreign Service, Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. Originally from India, Ms. Chattree speaks Hindi as well as French.
Elgin Clemons
Counsel and Senior Advisor
Mr. Clemons is a senior lawyer with the firm of Wright, Lindsey & Jennings, LLP. He has many years of experience in investment banking and corporate law and in the development and management of for-profit and not-for-profit organizations. He has worked for a variety of organizations, including Magna Securities Corporation and Shearman & Sterling and he served for several years as President and General Counsel of Enterprise Corporation of the Delta, one of the nation’s leading community development finance institutions. He is a graduate of Princeton University’s Woodrow Wilson School Undergraduate Program and NYU School of Law, where he was a Root-Tilden Public Interest Scholar.
Isabel Maxwell
Senior Advisor (West Coast)
Ms. Maxwell is a leader in technology, business, media, venture capital, philanthropy and social entrepreneurship. She was co-founder of the pioneer Internet portal, The Magellan Online Guide, and served as President of Israel’s Commtouch Software (Nasdaq: CTCH). She is a 2001 World Economic Forum Technology Pioneer and received the 2001 Einstein Award for Leadership in Technology. Ms. Maxwell is the Chair of the Israel Venture Network (IVN) Leadership Initiative and a member of the Board of Governors of the Peres Center For Peace. She promotes social entrepreneurship broadly and serves on a number of philanthropic boards. Ms. Maxwell completed her M.A. (Oxon) at St. Hilda's College, in History & French and has a Diploma in Education from Edinburgh University.
Melanie Sanzone
Director, Donor & Foundation Relations
Ms. Sanzone has diverse experience in the non-profit sector, including program management, fundraising and donor relations. She began her career in 2002 with the Berkshire South Community Center in Great Barrington, MA where she helped launch a successful after school program for youth. After leaving Berkshire South, she served as a volunteer youth worker in Bolivia and Peru where she raised funds and led educational programs for disadvantaged children. Prior to joining Grameen America, Ms. Sanzone served as the Assistant Director of Corporate and Foundation Relations for the National Foundation for Teaching Entrepreneurship, a New York-based international non-profit organization. Ms. Sanzone holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Communications and International Studies from Northwestern University in Evanston, IL. She has previously lived in Mexico, Bolivia and Peru and speaks Spanish.
Alethia Mendez
Center Manager
Ms. Mendez joined Grameen America as a Center Manager and plays a critical role in the functioning of the organization’s microfinance activities in Queens. Under the guidance of senior banker, Shah Newaz, she is responsible for recruiting, training, motivating and maintaining relationships with Grameen America’s borrowers. She has previously worked in customer service for Sherpa’s Pet Trading Company. Ms. Mendez, who speaks fluent English and Spanish, is expected to matriculate in May 2008 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology and French Languages & Literature from Stony Brook University.
Christopher Dole
Center Manager
Mr. Dole is a recent college graduate who works closely with Alethia Mendez to expand the mission of the Grameen America Jackson Heights office by reaching out to low-income communities in Queens. He has previously worked for Dogears Network LLC, Sony BMG, Vprod LLC and AE Capital in New York and Instituto Internacional in Madrid, Spain. Most recently he worked as a Financial Analyst for The Transportation Group. A fluent speaker of Spanish and Creole, Chris holds a B.A. in Political Science and Latin American Studies from Columbia University.
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