The Innovation Center: Board of Directors

Vance Yoshida, Chair
Senior Consultant, La Piana Associates, Inc.

Vance is a senior consultant with La Piana Associates, Inc., a management consulting dedicated to improving the capacity of the nonprofit sector, and specifically to helping nonprofit organizations become stronger, more effective, and sustainable for the long-term. Most recently, Vance was the Development Director at the Pangaea Global AIDS Foundation, where he developed and implemented strategies for fund raising, development, communications, marketing and outreach for this startup global HIV/AIDS organization. Prior to this, he served as a senior Director of the Tides Center in San Francisco managing all aspects of this organization, providing financial, HR (including payroll and benefits administration), insurance, program guidance, contract compliance and management coaching services to over 350 non profit projects and organizations. Vance currently serves on the boards of the Asian and Pacific Islander Wellness Center, Asian Health Services, and the Every Child Can Learn Foundation.

W. Roger Curry
President & CEO, Consolidated Freightways (retired)

As president of Consolidated Freightways, Roger was responsible for the operations of a $2.4 billion transportation company with over 25,000 personnel throughout North America. He also supervised the operations of Redwood Systems, CF/Alfri-Loder, Canadian Freightways, Ltd. and Milne and Craighead, a customs brokerage firm serving the United States and Canada. He was appointed president and CEO in 1994, and his retirement in 2000 came after thirty-one years in the transportation industry, including positions as a director of terminal properties, president of CF Airfreight, senior vice-president of marketing, and president and chief executive officer of Emery Worldwide, where he oversaw the dramatic financial turnaround of that company. In addition to his service on the Innovation Center’s Board of Directors, Roger serves on the board of the Prince of Peace Lutheran Church in Saratoga, CA, the Challenge Learning Center in Mountain View, CA and Morningside College in Sioux City, IA

Carolyn Edlebeck
Waupaca Healthy Community / Healthy Youth

For more than 7 years, Carolyn has been a partner of the Innovation Center for Community and Youth Development based in Waupaca, WI. In addition to her work on the Waupaca Healthy Community / Healthy Youth Team, Carolyn is a lead trainer in the Innovation Center’s national cadre of trainers. Her voice and story were featured in the Innovation Center Publication: Creating Change: How Organizations Connect with Youth, Build Communities and Strengthen Themselves and she is the co-author of the upcoming article, “Leading, Learning, and Unleashing Potential: Youth Leadership and Civic Engagement”, to be published in the journal New Directions for Youth Development. Carolyn is an avid community volunteer with experience in Mexico and Finland as well as in Waupaca, and she is currently a high school senior considering a degree in international relations.

Tomer J. Inbar

Partner, Morgan Lewis

Tomer J. Inbar is a partner in the tax practice at Morgan Lewis. Mr. Inbar's practice focuses primarily on representing tax-exempt organizations in a variety of matters, including exemption applications, audits, unrelated business income tax issues, general corporate transactions, corporate governance matters and charitable giving. In addition, Mr. Inbar has extensive experience in the areas of low-income housing and economic development, lobbying and political activity, intermediate sanctions, charter schools and program-related investments of private foundations.

Mr. Inbar regularly speaks at conferences for tax-exempt organizations. Recent topics have included lobbying by charitable organizations, presented at the "Representing and Managing Tax-Exempt Organizations" conference sponsored by the Georgetown University Law Center, legal aspects of program-related investments presented at the Counsel on Foundation's annual conference, and board governance considerations and liability concerns presented at the Greater Washington Society of CPA's 10th annual Not-for-Profit Symposium. Mr. Inbar is proficient in both Japanese and Hebrew.

Mr. Inbar is admitted to practice in the District of Columbia and New York.

Carla M. Roach
Ph.D. Candidate, Stanford University

Carla M. Roach is a graduate research assistant with the John W. Gardner Center for Youth and their Communities (JGC). Together with community-based teams and other JGC staff, she is conducting a multi-year study to generate a deeper theoretical understanding of the community school model and identify lessons regarding its implementation. Prior to joining the JGC, Carla served as Project Director for a three-year Ford Foundation initiative that explored the links between youth development and civic activism. She holds a masters degree in Community Services Management and is pursuing a Ph.D. in Education at Stanford University. Carla’s areas of expertise include youth development and community building; her dissertation research involves a cross-case study of community-based collaboratives that promote youth development.

Dr. Stephen T. Russell
Associate Professor, Division of Family Studies and Human Development, University of Arizona

Stephen’s research on adolescent sexual orientation, health, and competence has been supported by a 1999 Wayne F. Placek Award from the American Psychological Foundation, and a William T. Grant Foundation Faculty Scholar Award (2001-2006). He leads a national United States Department of Agriculture Cooperative Extension network called Bridge for Adolescent Pregnancy, Parenting, and Sexuality. Stephen is also a member of the William T. Grant Foundation Consortium for Youth Civic Development, the National Youth Development Research Response Task Force, and a member of the Advisory Committee for the Rural Center for AIDS / STD Prevention (Indiana University, Purdue University, and Texas A&M University).

Denise Shannon, Treasurer
Executive Director, Funders Network on Population, Reproductive Health and Rights

Denise leads the Funders Network on Population, Reproductive Health and Rights, a network of grantmakers who share a common goal to ensure people’s access to information and services to manage fertility and protect and promote their sexual and reproductive health. She has provided independent consulting and a range of communications services for clients, including the Ford Foundation, the MacArthur Foundation, and the Innovation Center for Community and Youth Development. Denise has served as Director of Education and Communications and as Executive Vice President for Catholics for a Free Choice (CFFC). Her articles have appeared in the New York Times and other major newspapers.

Wendy Wheeler, President
Chief Executive Officer, Innovation Center for Community and Youth Development

As a president and a founder of the Innovation Center for Community and Youth Development, Wendy seeks out, nurtures, and brings to scale exceptional strategies to support young people, strengthen communities, and promote social justice. An expert in training and organizational development, Wendy consults for organizations, universities, and philanthropic institutions. Prior to founding the Innovation Center, she held leadership posts at the YMCA, YWCA, Girl Scouts of the USA, and National 4-H Council. She serves on Advisory Boards for the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement at the University of Maryland, the Journal of Applied Developmental Science, the Encyclopedia of Youth Activism, and the New England Network of Youth Services. She has written numerous articles for both practitioners and academics, including an article on youth development and civic engagement for the 2003 Handbook of Applied Developmental Science. Wendy is an International Fellow and visiting professor in Applied Developmental Science at Tufts University.

	“We believe in the power of youth and communities to transform themselves. Our job is to give them the tools, training and technical assistance they need to succeed.” —Wendy Wheeler, President, Innovation Center

	Vance Yoshida, Chair Senior Consultant, La Piana Associates, Inc. Vance is a senior consultant with La Piana Associates, Inc., a management consulting dedicated to improving the capacity of the nonprofit sector, and specifically to helping nonprofit organizations become stronger, more effective, and sustainable for the long-term. Most recently, Vance was the Development Director at the Pangaea Global AIDS Foundation, where he developed and implemented strategies for fund raising, development, communications, marketing and outreach for this startup global HIV/AIDS organization. Prior to this, he served as a senior Director of the Tides Center in San Francisco managing all aspects of this organization, providing financial, HR (including payroll and benefits administration), insurance, program guidance, contract compliance and management coaching services to over 350 non profit projects and organizations. Vance currently serves on the boards of the Asian and Pacific Islander Wellness Center, Asian Health Services, and the Every Child Can Learn Foundation. W. Roger Curry President & CEO, Consolidated Freightways (retired) As president of Consolidated Freightways, Roger was responsible for the operations of a $2.4 billion transportation company with over 25,000 personnel throughout North America. He also supervised the operations of Redwood Systems, CF/Alfri-Loder, Canadian Freightways, Ltd. and Milne and Craighead, a customs brokerage firm serving the United States and Canada. He was appointed president and CEO in 1994, and his retirement in 2000 came after thirty-one years in the transportation industry, including positions as a director of terminal properties, president of CF Airfreight, senior vice-president of marketing, and president and chief executive officer of Emery Worldwide, where he oversaw the dramatic financial turnaround of that company. In addition to his service on the Innovation Center’s Board of Directors, Roger serves on the board of the Prince of Peace Lutheran Church in Saratoga, CA, the Challenge Learning Center in Mountain View, CA and Morningside College in Sioux City, IA Carolyn Edlebeck Waupaca Healthy Community / Healthy Youth For more than 7 years, Carolyn has been a partner of the Innovation Center for Community and Youth Development based in Waupaca, WI. In addition to her work on the Waupaca Healthy Community / Healthy Youth Team, Carolyn is a lead trainer in the Innovation Center’s national cadre of trainers. Her voice and story were featured in the Innovation Center Publication: Creating Change: How Organizations Connect with Youth, Build Communities and Strengthen Themselves and she is the co-author of the upcoming article, “Leading, Learning, and Unleashing Potential: Youth Leadership and Civic Engagement”, to be published in the journal New Directions for Youth Development. Carolyn is an avid community volunteer with experience in Mexico and Finland as well as in Waupaca, and she is currently a high school senior considering a degree in international relations. Tomer J. Inbar Partner, Morgan Lewis Tomer J. Inbar is a partner in the tax practice at Morgan Lewis. Mr. Inbar's practice focuses primarily on representing tax-exempt organizations in a variety of matters, including exemption applications, audits, unrelated business income tax issues, general corporate transactions, corporate governance matters and charitable giving. In addition, Mr. Inbar has extensive experience in the areas of low-income housing and economic development, lobbying and political activity, intermediate sanctions, charter schools and program-related investments of private foundations. Mr. Inbar regularly speaks at conferences for tax-exempt organizations. Recent topics have included lobbying by charitable organizations, presented at the "Representing and Managing Tax-Exempt Organizations" conference sponsored by the Georgetown University Law Center, legal aspects of program-related investments presented at the Counsel on Foundation's annual conference, and board governance considerations and liability concerns presented at the Greater Washington Society of CPA's 10th annual Not-for-Profit Symposium. Mr. Inbar is proficient in both Japanese and Hebrew. Mr. Inbar is admitted to practice in the District of Columbia and New York. Carla M. Roach Ph.D. Candidate, Stanford University Carla M. Roach is a graduate research assistant with the John W. Gardner Center for Youth and their Communities (JGC). Together with community-based teams and other JGC staff, she is conducting a multi-year study to generate a deeper theoretical understanding of the community school model and identify lessons regarding its implementation. Prior to joining the JGC, Carla served as Project Director for a three-year Ford Foundation initiative that explored the links between youth development and civic activism. She holds a masters degree in Community Services Management and is pursuing a Ph.D. in Education at Stanford University. Carla’s areas of expertise include youth development and community building; her dissertation research involves a cross-case study of community-based collaboratives that promote youth development. Dr. Stephen T. Russell Associate Professor, Division of Family Studies and Human Development, University of Arizona Stephen’s research on adolescent sexual orientation, health, and competence has been supported by a 1999 Wayne F. Placek Award from the American Psychological Foundation, and a William T. Grant Foundation Faculty Scholar Award (2001-2006). He leads a national United States Department of Agriculture Cooperative Extension network called Bridge for Adolescent Pregnancy, Parenting, and Sexuality. Stephen is also a member of the William T. Grant Foundation Consortium for Youth Civic Development, the National Youth Development Research Response Task Force, and a member of the Advisory Committee for the Rural Center for AIDS / STD Prevention (Indiana University, Purdue University, and Texas A&M University). Denise Shannon, Treasurer Executive Director, Funders Network on Population, Reproductive Health and Rights Denise leads the Funders Network on Population, Reproductive Health and Rights, a network of grantmakers who share a common goal to ensure people’s access to information and services to manage fertility and protect and promote their sexual and reproductive health. She has provided independent consulting and a range of communications services for clients, including the Ford Foundation, the MacArthur Foundation, and the Innovation Center for Community and Youth Development. Denise has served as Director of Education and Communications and as Executive Vice President for Catholics for a Free Choice (CFFC). Her articles have appeared in the New York Times and other major newspapers. Wendy Wheeler, President Chief Executive Officer, Innovation Center for Community and Youth Development As a president and a founder of the Innovation Center for Community and Youth Development, Wendy seeks out, nurtures, and brings to scale exceptional strategies to support young people, strengthen communities, and promote social justice. An expert in training and organizational development, Wendy consults for organizations, universities, and philanthropic institutions. Prior to founding the Innovation Center, she held leadership posts at the YMCA, YWCA, Girl Scouts of the USA, and National 4-H Council. She serves on Advisory Boards for the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement at the University of Maryland, the Journal of Applied Developmental Science, the Encyclopedia of Youth Activism, and the New England Network of Youth Services. She has written numerous articles for both practitioners and academics, including an article on youth development and civic engagement for the 2003 Handbook of Applied Developmental Science. Wendy is an International Fellow and visiting professor in Applied Developmental Science at Tufts University. © 2007 Innovation Center for Community and Youth Development