The People Behind First Place®
Board of Directors (Click for bios)
Sara Dial
Board Chair
Sara Dial & Associates President and CEO
Joyce Millard Hoie
Vice Chair
Former Raising Special Kids Executive Director
Tess Burleson, CPA, MBA
Board Secretary
TGen Chief Operating Officer &
TGen Health Ventures President
Jack Henry
Board Treasurer
Founder & Managing Director
of Sierra Blanca Ventures, LLC
&
Clarke’s Grandfather
Denise D. Resnik
Board Member
First Place Founder, President/CEO
DRA Collective Founder & CEO
SARRC Co-Founder & Emeritus
Board Member & Matt's Mom
Nancy L. White, J.D.
Board Member
Steptoe & Johnson Partner
& Molly's Mom
Howard Sobelman
Board Member
Snell & Wilmer Partner
Susan I. Smith
Board Member
Director of IT Frontline Services
Salt River Project & Aaron's Mom
Kathy Hancock
Board Member
Vertex Advisors Group Consultant
Michael Trailor
Board Member
Native American Connections Chief Strategy Officer
Tom Ortega
Board Member
RIESTER Chief Creative Officer
Amy Pawlowski
Board Member
UnitedHealthcare Complex Care Programs Community Plan Executive Director
Leadership
Denise D. Resnik
President/CEO & Matt's Mom
Nancy Ottmann
Executive Director
Marci Muhlestein
First Place Global Leadership Institute Center for Education, Training & Employment Director; Transition Academy Managing Director
Global Leadership Institute Faculty
George Braddock
Creative Housing Solutions, LLC Director
Catherine Camp Boyle
Autism Housing Pathways, Inc. Founder & President
Mother of a young man with autism
Peter Gerhardt, Ed.D.
EPIC School Executive Director
Anna Hundley, M.Ed.
Autism Treatment Center (ATC)
Texas Executive Director
Raun D. Melmed, M.D.
SARRC Co-Founder & Medical Director
Melmed Center Director & Developmental Pediatrician
Marci Muhlestein
First Place Global Leadership Institute Center for Education, Training & Employment Director; Transition Academy Managing Director
Daniel Openden, Ph.D., BCBA-D
SARRC President & CEO
Jeff Ross, M.A.
First Place Adult Transition Specialist
Paul Shattuck, Ph.D.
AJ Drexel Autism Institute
Drexel University Associate Professor & Life Course Outcomes Research Program Leader
Christopher Smith, Ph.D.
SARRC Vice President & Research Director
Advisors
Steven A. Betts
Betts Real Estate Advisors Founder & President
Peter Bell
Ascendigo Autism Services
President & CEO and Tyler's Dad
Joe Blackbourn
Everest Holdings
President & CEO
David C. Brown
Home Matters® CEO & National NeighborWorks® Association (NNA) Executive Director
Catherine Camp Boyle
Autism Housing Pathways, Inc.
Founder & President
Mother of a young man
with autism
Ellis Carter
Caritas Law Group, P.C.
Legal Counsel
Joseph Cooper
NuvOx Pharma Chief Business Officer
James D. Howard, Jr.
Dudley Ventures Founder & Principal Shareholder
Bill Karny
Col. Harland Sanders Foundation President (USA)
& Charlotte's Grandfather
The Late Natalie S. Lang
Lang Associates
Business Consultant
Raun D. Melmed, M.D.
SARRC Co-founder & Medical Director; Melmed Center Director & Developmental Pediatrician
Ian Paregol
DC Coalition for
Disability Service Providers
Executive Director
Wellington "Duke" Reiter, FAIA
Solutions Initiative at the
ASU Foundation
Senior Vice President & Managing Director
Paige Rogers, M.S.W., C.P.R.P.
Community Connections Consulting Services Founder Former SARRC VLSA Director
Jeff Ross, M.A.
First Place Adult Transition Specialist
Michael Sklar
Sonata Properties
Broker & Managing Member
Michael Trailor
Native American Connections Chief Strategy Officer
Linda J. Walder, Esq.
The Daniel Jordan Fiddle Foundation (DJF) Founder & Executive Director
Capital Campaign Cabinet
Melissa Ahearn Lange
Northwestern Mutual
Financial Advisor
Susan Drescher-Mulzet
Philanthropist &
Community Volunteer
Keith Earnest
Van Trust Executive Vice President & Market Leader
Danielle Feroleto, M.A., CPSM
Small Giants, LLC
Owner & Founder
Jim Fijan
CBRE Executive Vice President
Lorena Garcia
Bloguettes & Esto es Púrpura Co-Founder
Adam Goodman
Goodmans Interior Structures President
John W. Graham
Sunbelt Holdings
President & CEO
The Late Natalie S. Lang
Lang Associates
Business Consultant
Lisa Pavelka McAlister, CPA
Mother & Autism Advocate
Thomas W. Roberts
VEREIT, Inc.
Executive Vice President &
Chief Investment Officer
Judy Schubert
Philanthropist &
Community Activist
