/*Post Slider Meta*/

Board of Directors

Phillis Wheatley Community Center Serving Greenville SC Board of Directors Debra Rice

Debra Rice, Chair

HR Growth and Solutions Manager, Bon Secours Mercy Health

Debra currently works in the M&A space where she is responsible for mergers, acquisitions and divestitures.

Debra has held various management positions throughout her career, with increased responsibility in each role. She recently served as the Board President for the Greenville Literacy Association, where she led the organization during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Read More

Debra previously served as a Human Resources Business Partner for ADUSA Distribution, LLC, where she led a team of dynamic HR professionals that oversee the center’s employee life cycle. She played an intricate part in substantially increasing the wages for new and existing associates to attract and retain talent. She was also a vital part of “standing up the business” for ADUSA’s location in Mauldin, SC, by staffing the center and creating guidelines that align with company policy and organizational objectives.

Debra grew up in Greenville and spent her summers and after school at Phillis Wheatley. She took part in many of the community center’s enrichment programs. She experienced firsthand the joy and life-changing opportunities the community center provided. It drives her passion for leading the organization into the next century.

When Debra’s not working or volunteering, she enjoys making memories with her nieces and nephews and introducing them to new experiences through travel. She also enjoys e-bike riding and spending long weekends in New York City.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/debranrice

Ted Kelly Phillis Wheatley Community Center Board Member

Ted Kelly, Vice Chair

President & CEO, Interserv Maintenance Management Solutions, Inc. and Interserv Hospitality Solutions

With more than 26 years progressive experience in senior executive management and business advisory services, Ted Kelly has supervised solutions-oriented business plans, developed quality assurance measures, and managed client satisfaction programs for small companies to international manufacturing giants. As President and CEO of Interserv, Ted leads growth and strategic direction for the company as it targets the Hospitality, Government, Restaurant, and Retail sectors by providing oversight in all key business areas while positioning Interserv for steady sales growth.

Read More

Previously, Ted has held a variety of position in engineering, sales, management, and business development. Ted’s experience also includes a variety of corporate quality assurance engineering positions involving QA standards, QA Training, and Six Sigma activities. In addition to this, he has provided project management duties for two international manufacturers, KEMET Electronics and Rockwell International.

Ted’s broad range of experience allows him to provide clients strong decisive leadership, effective articulation of vision and dynamic guidance and motivation in a hands-on, team-oriented atmosphere.

Phillis Wheatley Community Center Serving Greenville SC Board of Directors Sheria Clark

Sheria Akins Clarke, Secretary

Attorney

Sheria Clarke is a prosecutor with experience in complex whistleblower cases. An experienced investigative and government policy attorney, she has served as the Staff Director for the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform in the United States House of Representatives, one of the largest and most powerful House Committees. She also served as Majority Counsel for the House Committee on Ethics, Counsel for the Select Committee on Events in Benghazi, Libya, and was an investigator on the House Ethics Committee. She worked closely with House Leadership, the Chairpersons of both Ethics and Oversight and Government Reform, and her work on House Ethics was bipartisan. She provided both legal and investigative work on scores of congressional hearings, interviewing witnesses, developing investigative strategies.

Read More

Sheria’s previous experience also includes clerking on the North Carolina Court of Appeals and serving as an adjunct professor at Wofford University where she lectures on the U.S. Congress and the Criminal Justice System. Sheria is active in her community serving as President of a non-profit leadership program for underprivileged girls, and a member of the board of a local community center. Sheria is a graduate of Liberty University and The University of North Carolina School of Law.

Phillis Wheatley Community Center Serving Greenville SC Board of Directors Steve Nail headshot

Steven Nail, J.D., Treasurer

Dean, College of Business, Anderson University

Steve Nail is currently the Dean, College of Business, at Anderson University. He is a labor and employment attorney who began his career with the National Labor Relations Board. Thereafter, he served as Assistant General Counsel for Michelin, including two stints in France, where he worked on the structuring of the European Economic Community and served in the HR and Legal Departments. Later he served as the Vice President of Labor and Employee Relations before moving on to Hubbell where he served as the Vice President of Human Resources.

Read More

In 2020, and again in 2021, Steve was named as one of the 50 most influential people in the Upstate. He was appointed by Governor Nikki Haley to serve on the SC Healthcare Planning Committee and was reappointed by Governor McMaster in 2018. Steve was named the 2012 South Carolina HR Professional of the Year and awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award in 2016, by the Greenville SHRM chapter. He is a frequent speaker, a published author, co-host of the Survive HR podcast, and mentor to many in the HR profession. He often coaches individuals and consults organizations on strategic matters. He is a Registered Corporate Coach, certified by the Worldwide Association of Business Coaches and holds SPHR and SHRM-SCP certifications.

Phillis Wheatley Community Center Serving Greenville SC Board of Directors Dennis Braasch

Dennis Braasch

Owner, Industrial Project Innovation

As one of the Owners of IPI, Dennis provides leadership and operating experience to IPI. Dennis’ experience, built over four decades of project work in many industries and countries, adds credibility to the services IPI delivers.

Read More

Dennis has more than 40 years’ experience in the global engineering and construction industry working on a variety of US and global projects in both the private and public sectors.

While at Fluor, Dennis held positions as President of the Heavy Industrial Group, Vice President/General Manager of the Fluor Greenville office, Vice President Global Construction, Vice President of Global Project Controls; Automotive Division Manager, and others. After leaving Fluor in 1999, Dennis continued his career as President of Global Performance (acquired by WOOD) and most recently, as Owner Director of Industrial Project Innovation (IPI).

In addition to the Phillis Wheatley Board, Dennis serves on the United Way of Greenville Board and is a member of the Construction User’s Round Table (CURT).

Outside of the office, Dennis enjoys doing anything outdoors and spending time with family.

Phillis Wheatley Community Center Serving Greenville SC Board of Directors Russ Braasch

Russ Braasch

Owner, People and Culture, Industrial Project Innovation

Russ has a 15+ year career in the engineering and construction industry, beginning with Global Performance and continuing with Industrial Project Innovation, a company that Russ and his business partners founded in 2016 to perform project/program management services in the industrial sector. Industrial Project Innovation is a company focused on working with industrial clients to plan and deliver their capital programs and projects, and Russ serves as the Operations Manager for the company, as well as supporting and overseeing key client accounts.

Read More

Russ is a graduate of the Clemson University Construction Science & Management program and enjoys spending time away from the office with his children, friends and family. Hobbies include listening to live music, cooking/grilling, and following the Clemson Tigers and Atlanta Braves.

Phillis Wheatley Community Center Board James Haltiwanger 1

James N. Haltiwanger Jr., AAMS, CRPC, AIF, CEPA

Financial Advisor, Falls Park Capital of Raymond James

Prior to becoming a Financial Advisor, James was an entrepreneur and business owner. This background led him to join Raymond James as a Financial Advisor due to the firm’s core values of client-first, conservatism, independence, and integrity, making it the premier alternative to Wall Street.

Read More

He has earned the designations Accredited Asset Management Specialist, AAMS®, Chartered Retirement Planning Counselor, CRPC®, Accredited Investment Fiduciary, AIF® and Certified Exit Planning Advisor, CEPA®.

 Active in the community, James has been involved with the Greenville Rotary, Metropolitan Arts Council, United Ministries, Habitat for Humanity, United Way Young Philanthropists, and his church. A graduate of North Greenville University in Marketing, he received Clemson University’s Arthur M. Spiro Award for Excellence in Entrepreneurship when he attended Clemson. He also received the South Carolina Collegiate Entrepreneur Award, was a national runner-up for the North American Collegiate Entrepreneur, and was an award finalist for the InnoVision Technology Awards.

The South Carolina native lives in Greenville with his wife, Christine, Department Chair, Health Science & Associate Dean, School of Health and Wellness at North Greenville University, and their two children, Laura and Davis. They are members of Christ Church Episcopal in Greenville, SC.

Phillis Wheatley Community Center Serving Greenville SC Board of Directors LattimoreRay Formal Color HiRes

Ray A. Lattimore, SHRM-SCP, SPHR

President / CEO of Marketplace Professional Staffing

Ray Lattimore is the founder and president of Marketplace Professional Staffing, Inc., a staffing and employment company headquartered in Greenville, South Carolina. He was born and raised in Greenville, and he is an alumni of Phillis Wheatley Community Center.

Read More

After securing basketball scholarships to attend college, he received an A.A. in liberal arts from Spartanburg Methodist College and a B.A. in business administration from Southern Wesleyan University. Ray won additional scholarships from Greenville Technical College and earned two additional associate degrees in marketing and computer technology while there.

Ray worked as a business systems analyst for the Information Technology department of the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company in Greenville. In addition to managing several wide-reaching projects for MetLife, Ray taught computer science as an adjunct professor of Information Technology at Greenville Technical College.

During his time at Greenville Tech as a professor, Ray mentored many underprivileged college students to prepare them for the professional workforce. In 1993, Ray started “Marketplace Services,” a small business that prepared citizens of his community for successful entry into the corporate workforce.

In March of 1996, he became Founder, President and CEO of a new venture – Marketplace Professional Staffing – the business he still heads today. Marketplace services enterprises such as Procter & Gamble, Michelin Tires North America, Verizon Wireless, MCI, Hilton Hotels, Marriott Hotels, Embassy Suites and Perrigo, the Greenville City Zoo, the Southern Connector, the Greenville Hospital System, and the Greater Greenville Chamber of Commerce.

Phillis Wheatley Community Center Serving Greenville SC Board of Directors Addy Matney Headshot

Addy Matney

Principal / Senior Executive Consultant / Vice President; Community Relations, TM Public Relations and Governmental Affairs

Addy Matney is a consultant with 20 years of experience in community relations, nonprofit board governance, collective impact, facilitation, and project planning. Addy is currently the Senior Executive Consultant/Vice President of Community Relations for TM Public Relations and Governmental Affairs (TMPR). She is also currently serving as the Interim Executive Director of the Piedmont Health Foundation.

Read More

Addy graduated with honors from Clemson University with Bachelor of Arts degrees in Political Science and English.
Active in numerous nonprofit organizations, Addy was the 2014-2015 board chair of The Children’s Museum of the Upstate. She served as the board chair of Piedmont Health Foundation in 2015. In January of 2016, the Greenville County Legislative Delegation appointed her to serve on the board of the Greenville Transit Authority — the governing body that oversees the county’s public transit system, Greenlink. She currently serves as vice chair and has served as its chair and as its treasurer. In 2019, Addy was recognized by the Transportation Association of South Carolina as Urban Board Member of the Year.
In the past, she served the community with Pendleton Place for Children and Families, the Circle of The Children’s Museum, and the Junior League of Greenville.

Phillis Wheatley Community Center Brad Pochard scaled

Brad Pochard

Associate Vice President of Enrollment Management and Dean of Admission, Furman University

Brad Pochard has served as Associate Vice President of Enrollment Management and Dean of Admission at Furman University since 2008.  Prior to arriving in South Carolina, he served as Director of Admission at his alma mater, Wittenberg University in Springfield, OH, for seven years. 

Read More

He earned a degree in Political Science in 2001 and a master’s degree in Business Administration in 2005.

Brad is active in many professional and community organizations including the National Association of College Admission Counseling (NACAC), the Southern Association of College Admission Counseling (SACAC), advisory board member of Echo Delta and is in his third serving as President of the Travelers Rest Youth Association (TRYA).

His wife, Brianne, serves Furman as Associate Director of Grants and is a long-term member of the Travelers Rest YMCA board.   Together they have two sons, JT (13) and Evan (8) who attend Northwest Middle School and Gateway Elementary in Travelers Rest.

Phillis Wheatley Community Center Serving Greenville SC Board of Directors Art Seaver

Art Seaver

CEO, Southern First Bank

R. Arthur “Art” Seaver, Jr., is the founder and Chief Executive Officer of Southern First Bank and its holding company Southern First Bancshares. Southern First opened in 1999 and now operates in 12 locations in the Greenville, Columbia, and Charleston markets of South Carolina as well as the Charlotte, Triangle and Triad regions of North Carolina and Atlanta, Georgia with approximately $3.3 billion in total assets. Mr. Seaver is a 1986 graduate of Clemson University with a bachelor’s degree in financial management and a 1999 graduate of the BAI Graduate School of Community Bank Management.

Read More

Mr. Seaver is passionate about making a difference in the Greenville community. He has been involved with a number of non-profits throughout the years, giving of his time and resources to impact the lives of those around him. Mr. Seaver is past Chairman of the Board for the United Way of Greenville County and past Chair of the Palmetto Society. Past organizations that he has worked with include the Community Depository Institutions Advisory Council — Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond, Board of Directors — Thornblade Club, Board of Directors — South Carolina Bankers Association, Leadership Greenville, Greenville Chamber of Commerce, South Carolina Network of Business and Education Partnership, Junior Achievement, Greenville Convention and Visitors Bureau, Junior League, and First Presbyterian Church.

Phillis Wheatley Community Center Serving Greenville SC Board of Directors Wendy Walden

Wendy Walden

Associate Vice President of Executive Affairs, Greenville Technical College

Wendy Walden is the Associate Vice President for Executive Affairs at Greenville Technical College. In her role, she is a member of the president’s cabinet, serves as the chief diversity officer, and oversees executive communications for the college. Her work has resulted in strategic partnerships with leaders across business sectors to create initiatives to meet changes in academic programs and workforce needs in business and industry. Under her leadership, the college has been nationally recognized in consecutive years for its impact on diversity and helped position Greenville Technical College as a premier two-year technical college statewide, regionally and nationally.
Phillis Wheatley Community Center Serving Greenville SC Board of Directors Nancy Callahan

Nancy Callahan

Ex-Officio Board Member
Recreation Division Director, Greenville County Parks and Recreation

Nancy Callahan is the Recreation Division Director for Greenville County Parks, Recreation, and Tourism. She oversees a variety of county programming efforts including after-school programs, summer day camps, special events, therapeutic recreation, athletic programs, sports tourism, and Pleasant Ridge Camp and Retreat Center. A graduate of Clemson University’s Parks, Recreation, and Tourism Department, she has been in the business of helping people make the most of their leisure time for over 38 years.

Read More

She is also on the Board of Directors for the Carolina Elite Soccer Academy and has served on various committees with the United Way of Greenville, LiveWell Greenville, Greenville CAN, and the South Carolina Recreation and Parks Association.