Brianna Cebello rejoins IESC as a New Business Associate in 2020. Prior to rejoining IESC, Brianna was a Peace Corps volunteer in the education sector in the Dominican Republic. Brianna holds a B.A. in International Affairs concentrated in International Development and a minor in Spanish Language and Literature from the George Washington University. At GWU, Brianna worked for IESC as the New Business Intern and served as the Academic Chair for Sigma Iota Rho, the GWU International Affairs Honor Society.

Sujeewa has more than 25 years of experience with U.S. government and donor-funded development projects, including project management and financial management. He is also very experienced with organizational budget planning and management. He has managed a wide variety of programs operating under different contract mechanisms and has a strong understanding of U.S. government regulations, requirements, and expectations. He has worked with IESC, in the field or home office, since 1991. He holds an M.B.A. from AIT, Thailand and a B.Sc. from the University of Sri Lanka.

Valentine joins IESC’s Enterprise and Workforce Development practice area as a Program Associate after having served as a Secondary Science Educator in the Peace Corps in Guinea where she taught middle school Chemistry and Physics. In Guinea, Valentine developed an interest for development economics and was involved in Gender and Development projects. She is passionate about the role of the private sector in development and how economic growth can be harnessed to empower communities, particularly women and girls. Valentine holds a BS in Biochemistry from the University of Notre Dame. She was born and raised in Belgium and is fluent in French.

Judit is a senior international and business development executive with over 20 years of experience. At IESC, she is responsible for IESC’s business strategy, leads IESC’s new business development activities and manages a team of talented new business professionals. She is passionate about economic development and job creation, municipal management, and sustainable urban development. She is a perceptive trainer and facilitator with experience in association and institutional capacity building. Previously, she served as chief of party, designed and implemented multimillion-dollar development programs in Europe, Middle East, Africa and Asia, and held new business director positions. She was instrumental in the establishment of the ICMA China Center in Beijing. After hours, you may spot her on the ballroom dance floor. More about Judit.

Claire Dewey started working with IESC in 2019 as a Program Associate joining the Trade and Market Driven Agriculture practice area. Prior to joining IESC, Claire was a Senior Business Development Associate at World Learning, a Fundraising and Communications Intern at the Grassroots Business Fund, and a volunteer English teacher in Chile with the English Opens Doors program. Claire has an M.A. in International Development from the Josef Korbel School of International Studies at the University of Denver and a B.A. in International Studies and Latin American Studies from the University of Oregon.

Chad joined IESC in 2014. He is a trade, enterprise, and project management specialist with more than 23 years of professional experience, including more than 17 in international development working on economic growth programs funded by the United States (USAID), Great Britain (DfID), and Sweden (SIDA). He has led and supported multi-country technical teams on program strategy, design, and implementation. Chad has worked in Asia, Africa, and Eastern and Southern Europe on value chain development, trade capacity building, and commercial policy and regulation reform. He is a long-term member of the Washington International Trade Association and holds a bachelor’s degree in social science and Latin America area studies from the University of Minnesota and a master’s in international commerce and policy from George Mason University.

Brendan Gernes joins the Trade and Market Driven Agriculture practice area as Program Associate. Prior to joining IESC, Brendan was a Client Associate at Alerus Financial in St. Paul Minnesota, and a volunteer with Hogar de Cristo, an organization in Guayaquil, Ecuador that supported microfinance efforts and youth outreach in the community. Brendan has a B.A. in Political Science from Creighton University in Omaha, Nebraska.

Tanya recently earned her MPH in Maternal and Child Health from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and has a B.A. in International Studies with a Middle Eastern Studies concentration and Political Science minor from DePaul University in Chicago. Prior to graduate school, she served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in central Tanzania, and as the Implementation Adviser for the Aga Khan Foundation on their Health Improvement Project in southern Tanzania.  Most recently, Tanya was a Graduate Fellow working on nutrition programming with Sight and Life and IntraHealth International (Tajikistan). Tanya is motivated to work on programs that improve access to social services and economic development for individuals and communities around the world.

Serving as President & CEO since 2018, David Hartingh is responsible for the strategic, programmatic, financial and management operations of IESC. David is an entrepreneurial international development executive with more than 23 years of experience in international economic development, small and medium enterprise development, and international trade. Prior to becoming IESC’s President & CEO, he was IESC’s Chief Operating Officer/Executive Vice President. He previously served as IESC’s Vice President of Global Programs and Associate Vice President and practice lead for trade and enterprise development. During his tenure at IESC, David has been instrumental in transforming IESC’s operating model and systems and competitively winning and successfully delivering results on numerous large-scale economic development projects around the world. His experience prior to joining IESC headquarters in 2005 includes managing a USAID-funded international trade and investment project operating in 37 countries, advising private sector clients with an international trade policy consulting firm, launching and selling his own franchised small business, and advising businesses as a consultant. He holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Virginia and a master’s degree in International Economic Affairs from George Washington University.

Takawira Kapikinyu (Takah) has 16 years’ experience in the development sector. He was recently Technical Advisor for Monitoring Evaluation Accountability and Learning (MEAL) at Catholic Relief Services (CRS) focusing on Global Grants and USAID Food Security Activities. He supported partners and staff increase their capacities in MEAL. Before CRS he was Manager, Monitoring and Evaluation, Knowledge Management and Learning at Winrock International. There he gave technical assistance on M&E to projects which work on Anti-Child Labor, Anti-Trafficking in Persons, Women Empowerment in Agriculture, Youth and Education. Takah spent much of his early career in Emergency Humanitarian Assistance, working for Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS), Refugees International (RI) and International Organization for Migration (IOM). He holds a BS in Sociology, Post-Graduate Diploma in Project Planning and Management and MS in Rural and Urban Planning from the University of Zimbabwe, and an MA in Sustainable International Development from Brandeis University. Takah was born and raised in Zimbabwe and is an avid photographer.

Gabriela has more than 10 years or experience managing international development programs, including programs funded by USAID, USDA, US State Department, World Bank and various private foundations. She joined IESC in 2014. Her current work focuses on value chain development and market-driven agriculture. Gabriela has managed program implementation in Latin America, Africa, Asia and Eastern Europe. Prior to joining IESC, Gabriela managed a diverse range of programs across sectors, from food security and education to workforce development at Counterpart International and the Nature Conservancy. A native of Quito, Ecuador, Gabriela in fluent in English, Spanish, French, and Italian. She holds an M.S. in nonprofit management from the University of Maryland.

Joann Maynard started her human resources career more than 15 years ago managing the Human Resources function in small and large organizations in various industries, including government contracting and non-profits. Joann recently held the position of Senior Human Resources Generalist at IMA World Health, a non-profit working in the health sector, supporting USAID and DFID contracts. She was working closely with leadership, U.S. and field office staff on a variety of HR-related matters; to include employee relations, benefits, recruiting, compliance, policies and training. She holds a BS degree in Human Resources Management from Colorado State University and is currently pursuing an MBA at the University of Colorado.

Courtney joined IESC in 2016 after beginning her career at DAI, bringing experience managing programs across a wide variety of technical focuses in Africa, Southeast Asia, and most recently, Afghanistan. Courtney is responsible for ensuring the success of her programs through managing daily operations over the life of the program, organizing efficient startups and closedowns, and collaborating with the program team to achieve technical objectives. Additionally, Courtney has spent significant time in the Afghanistan office supporting her program team in a range of roles. Courtney holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. More about Courtney.

Brynn Miller joins the Trade and Market Driven Agriculture practice area as a Program Associate supporting the Dominican Republic Exporting Quality Program in 2019. Prior to joining IESC, Brynn was a Kid’s Program Manager at the Light and Leadership Initiative in Huaycan, Peru, where she worked with children needing supplemental access to educational resources. Additionally, she was a Peace Corps volunteer in Nicaragua where she trained and coached young community entrepreneurs to build upon business ideas. She has experience working in Washington D.C. as an executive assistant for Capital Seniors Housing, a private equity real estate firm. Brynn has a B.A. in Economics from St. Mary’s College of Maryland.

Julie joined the new business team in 2016 and also serves as the gender focal point at IESC. She has over 10 years of experience in project management and business development in economic growth and governance with a variety of U.S. government donors, including USAID, USDA, State Department, and FEMA. She thrives on private sector development, program design, program budgets, gender analysis, and attention to detail. Julie has a dual M.A. in sustainable international development and women’s and gender studies from the Heller School at Brandeis University. She got her start in international development working on a community development program in Uganda and has had a passion for East Africa ever since.

Gulbahar is an experienced business development specialist and strategist with nearly nine years of experience managing and collaborating with teams to develop proposals and design technical solutions to address development challenges across a variety of industries, including financial services, technology, and product development. Most recently at the World Council of Credit Unions, she led business development teams to win new projects in the Philippines, Ukraine, Guatemala, Kenya, Mali, and Haiti with funding from USAID, World Bank, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. She has also managed digital finance and research projects in Haiti and the Philippines. Previously, Gulbahar worked as a program development officer at Cultivating New Frontiers in Agriculture focusing on agriculture support and development, and as a project and proposal coordinator at the International Business & Technical Consultants, Inc. She holds an MBA from SDA Bocconi and a bachelor's in international affairs from the George Washington University.

Andrea joined IESC in 2013. She is responsible for IESC’s enterprise and workforce development portfolio, including management and strategy, and cross-cutting leadership for volunteer services. Andrea brings a range of relevant international professional experience to IESC, including management consulting, nonprofit operations, and international education administration. Previously she worked for Deloitte Touche where she worked in Russia and Central Asia before helping to build and manage the firm’s international development consulting practice in sub-Saharan Africa. At Arcadia University Study Center in Cape Town, Andrea established the center, designed the curriculum and supervised the study abroad experience of students from major universities across the United States. Andrea has a B.A. from Georgetown, an M.A. from George Washington, and an M.B.A. from the University of Cape Town.

Marissa is a detail-oriented project management specialist and environmental researcher, with nearly seven years of experience in the non-profit field. She holds a B.S. in Zoology with minors in French and International Studies from North Carolina State University and recently completed a dual M.A. in Sustainable International Development and an MBA in Social Impact degree program at the Heller School at Brandeis University. Before joining IESC, she led market research for the Food Security and Agricultural team at RTI International and developed a knowledge management system for corporate capability statements, past performance references, & technical proposals. Her passion for international development grew from an opportunity to study wildlife conservation and management in the tiger parks of Northern India during her undergraduate career. Marissa has an affinity for interdisciplinary work and enjoys travel and group fitness in her free time.

Kayla is a project manager with over six years of experience in international development and nonprofit management. She has been working with IESC since 2015. Currently, she manages two Farmer-to-Farmer projects in Ghana and the Middle East and North Africa region. Prior to IESC, Kayla managed the USAID-funded Diasporas for Development Initiative in Jamaica, Kenya, Ethiopia, Peru and the Philippines. Kayla is also a proud AmeriCorps alumna who served in Boston Public Schools for two years. She also holds a B.A. in African history from the University of Vermont and studied at the University of Ghana.

Cindy has over 20 years of experience in all aspects of accounting, payroll, and administration. She joined IESC in 2006. As the director of accounting, she is responsible for the day to day operations of the accounting staff and accounting operations. Cindy has worked across a range of industries, including manufacturing and distribution, nonprofit, banking, and commercial airlines. She holds a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Sacred Heart College.

Farmeenullah has over 7 years of experience in accounting, finance, and grants and compliance in Afghanistan. As senior accountant at IESC he is responsible for oversight of field office accounting. Previously, he was a program accountant at IRI Washington, where he supported program financial management. He was also a compliance manager at Counterpart International for a large, $70 million democracy and governance program in Afghanistan, where he was responsible for grant funds management and contract compliance. He holds B.B.A. in financial management from University of Pune (India) and is certified in Microsoft Excel from QA Ltd. (London). He is proficient in English, Pashtu, Dari, Urdu, and Hindi.

Erin joined IESC in 2000 and has more than 20 years of professional experience and 18 years of experience in international development. She has managed overseas technical assistance and capacity-building programs across Africa, Asia, the Middle East, and Southeast Europe. She has been responsible for program design, quality control and a wide range of implementation activities across multiple sectors. As vice president of operations, she oversees IESC’s operations, systems, processes, compliance, human resources, security, and monitoring, evaluation, and learning. She holds a B.A. from the University of Washington and an M.A. from the George Washington University.

David joined IESC in 2016 and provides support to two trade and market-driven agriculture programs. David is also earning an M.S. in project management at George Washington University, where he is studying how big data can be used to support organizations with decision making. David came to IESC as a returned Peace Corps volunteer (Armenia, 2011-13) with experience in USAID and State Department projects and corporate social responsibility.

Pamela joined IESC in 2019. With more than 20 years of international development experience, she is accomplished in the capture and administration of U.S. foreign aid contracts and grants and in the creation and implementation of organizational practices that engender strong management of donor funds.  She is IESC’s lead administrator for all contracts and grants matters, ensuring compliant, efficient and effective contract and grant operations. Previous work includes her tenure as a USAID contracts specialist, director of grants and contracts departments at two international NGOs, and principal and founder of a consulting practice that served more than 50 international nonprofit organizations in the areas of donor compliance, business development, organizational strategy, and capacity development. Pamela holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Massachusetts Amherst and a Masters degree in public policy and administration from the University of Maryland.

Erin started with the new business team at IESC in January 2017, providing research and coordination support for upcoming and current proposals. Prior to joining IESC, she taught English overseas and high school science in the U.S. She holds a B.A. in Biology and a Masters in Secondary Education from the University of Virginia and recently earned an M.A. in sustainability with a concentration in environmental policy and international development from Harvard. Her professional interests include sustainable economic development, climate change mitigation and adaptation, and international tourism development. More about Erin.

Haylee joined IESC in 2019 as our Volunteer Recruiter for the Farmer-to-Farmer program. Prior to joining IESC, she worked for one of the most widely known agricultural companies in the world, John Deere, at their headquarters in Moline, IL where she was in Human Resources. She has a B.A. in Communication Studies, Art and Graphic Design from Augustana College in Rock Island, IL, where she traveled abroad to Greece and Mexico. Through these study abroad experiences she was able to work with communities, entrepreneurs, small business owners and artisans (including their families) to improve their livelihoods in a sustainable way as well as further develop her intercultural communication skills. She is currently pursuing an M.A. in International Studies from Concordia University, Irvine.