Honors
The 2024 Forty in Their 40s
Meet the leaders hitting the primes of their careers.
From left to right: Cathy McVey, Katherine Gilmore Richardson and Carolina DiGiorgio Andrew Horton
The 40s are the decade when many hit their professional stride – a time of transition and triumph, when youthful impulses and even career gambles can yield serious impact.
This year, City & State Pennsylvania's 40 in Their 40s features power players spanning not only the commonwealth, but also two distinct age cohorts: Gen X, roughly those 44 and up, and millennials, who – true to their generational might – constitute the majority here (and everywhere). But as this list reveals, Pennsylvania's go-getter 40-somethings are true individuals.
This year's honorees include a fire chief who crusades nationally for first responders, lobbyists making a difference for criminal justice and youth, and an ER physician bringing global insights to Jefferson Health. More than one person on this list saw something broken and vowed to fix it – a commitment to betterment inspiring to people of any age.
Tyrell Brown
Not everybody would see the logical transition from teaching preschool to heading LGBTQ organizations. But for Tyrell Brown, 42, it’s all about being an inspirational leader – the kind they grew up in Delaware County admiring in movies like “Lean on Me“ and “Dead Poets Society.“
“Managing people and situations – the classroom is what gave me the tools to do it,“ says Brown, a former early childhood educator who now leads Galaei, a Philadelphia social justice nonprofit focused on communities of color and LGBTQ populations. “And patience. A lot of people tell me I’m the most patient person they’ve ever met. You know, I’m just used to repeating myself to 5-year-olds.“
Since joining the organization as deputy director in 2021, Brown has taken over a nearly $1 million budget that funds community programming and supportive services, including housing. Brown is also the founder and head of Philly Pride 365 – a flagship program and the city’s largest annual event – as well as Philly’s National Coming Out Day. They are just getting started, though: Brown envisions a “large-scale mobilization“ of LGBTQ-focused health care and other resources.
Recently, Brown scored a major education grant to coordinate gender and sexuality training in a local public sector institution. While Brown is not yet able to offer details, the former educator is clearly thrilled about the expansion of Galaei’s mission into their beloved classroom. “Education is a way of knowing who we are as a people,“ Brown says, “and charting a path forward.“
Todd Brysiak
Twenty-some years into his political career, Todd Brysiak is still jazzed about passing legislation. “Each issue is like a puzzle, and you have to figure it out,“ says the 45-year-old, who is vice president of government affairs at Triad Strategies.
A self-described generalist, Brysiak draws on his years in various Harrisburg roles to collaborate with the governor’s office, state lawmakers and private-sector clients. Economic development is a big part of his portfolio; he recently celebrated the passage of a hard-won $10 million state grant program to acquire and redevelop abandoned shopping centers.
Brysiak grew up in Delaware County and, after studying communications at Lycoming College, started his career as a reporter, where he found himself covering local government; eventually, he realized he’d rather be on the other side. Brysiak learned the legislative ropes over a decade at the state House of Representatives, including as chief of staff to then-Minority Leader Dave Reed.
“You’re at the table for every major public-policy decision,“ explains Brysiak. Highlights of his tenure included pension reform, unemployment compensation bills and the legalization of medical marijuana – “huge, given the impact it had on many folks,“ he adds.
In his spare time, Brysiak raises money for childhood cancer research, advocating for a recent $9 million state allocation; his 16-year-old daughter is a survivor. “I’ve been fortunate, because of some of the roles I’ve had in politics, to be able to be a voice for a lot of those kids,“ he says, “and to help make some impactful changes.“
Otis L. Bullock Jr.
Otis Bullock Jr.’s political career is a testament to the power of community and relationships.
His introduction to politics came from civically engaged summer camp organizers who took their young charges to Harrisburg and to meet then-Philadelphia Mayor Ed Rendell. Years later, his neighborhood barbershop owner was the contact Bullock needed to secure the City Council job that launched his career.
That role – as an aide to Councilmember Jannie Blackwell – led to a post heading the mayor’s Office of Community Services. In 2017, Bullock called on his former boss and mentor, Blackwell, to support the groundbreaking city beverage tax that helped fund the organization he has headed since 2012, the Greater Philadelphia Community Alliance.
“In Philadelphia politics, you have to take a side,“ observes Bullock. “But one of the hallmarks of my career, and the reason I’ve been successful, is I’ve never had to pick a side.“
Bullock began his career as a lawyer, but realized politics offered a more reliable avenue to effecting systemic change. At the alliance, he has grown the budget from $3 to $25 million and expanded from four to eight locations for programs he says are aimed at “breaking the cycle of generational poverty“ he grew up with.
He still lives in his childhood neighborhood of Strawberry Mansion, where he successfully rallied neighbors to elect his wife, Donna Bullock, to the state legislature. “I always felt my purpose was to have a meaningful impact on my community,“ reflects Bullock. “That drives everything I do.“
Jennifer Crowther
Like so many before her, Jennifer Crowther landed in Philadelphia, fell in love with the city and became committed to making positive change. “I love the communities, the neighborhoods, how walkable it is,“ says the Connecticut native, who came to Pennsylvania to study at Haverford College.
For the past 20 years, Crowther, 43, has worked to improve her adopted city at the Philadelphia Industrial Development Corporation, the nonprofit where she is senior vice president for capitalization and impact. She also serves on the board of the Philadelphia Accelerator Fund, which provides loans for affordable housing development.
Bringing resources into Philadelphia – from a combination of public and private sources, including PIDC’s own fund – is Crowther’s main role. She created the corporation’s nonprofit lending arm to help mission-driven organizations and small businesses. Under her leadership, PIDC coordinates working capital and loans for things like payroll or equipment expenses.
She has also nurtured a commercial mortgage program to help local businesses buy their buildings. “I saw companies that were renting and getting displaced from the communities they’d been in for years,“ says Crowther, who holds a master’s in policy and management, urban and regional economic development from Carnegie Mellon University. “If businesses own their facilities, they not only stay in the neighborhood; they also build wealth.“
And as a local who walks her kids to school in the city, that investment is personal. “I just love being part of this kind of community,“ she says.
Carolina DiGiorgio
Earlier this year, attorney and civic leader Carolina DiGiorgio took on her latest challenge: heading government and external affairs for PECO, Exelon’s Southeastern Pennsylvania utilities subsidiary. “One of my goals professionally has always been to align myself with companies I share values with,“ explains the 44-year-old of her decision. “PECO has always been an amazing corporate citizen in Philadelphia.“
The move also brought DiGiorgio back to her adopted hometown, where she is raising five children. For the previous year, she had worked in Harrisburg in the administration of her longtime colleague, Gov. Josh Shapiro, serving as chief legal counsel for the state Department of Environmental Protection.
A Honduras native, DiGiorgio grew up in New Jersey and originally hoped to practice immigration law. But she found little demand for the specialty, so after earning her J.D. at Rutgers, DiGiorgio focused on corporate real estate and finance at Stradley Ronon, where she first met fellow attorney Shapiro. When he became Montgomery County executive, she served as his director of commerce – introducing the county’s first low-interest-rate loan program to bolster local businesses, and spearheading a reentry workforce-pipeline program.
With community development as her mission, DiGiorgio next took over leadership of Congreso de Latinos Unidos, a Philadelphia nonprofit whose budget she grew by roughly 50% over six years. “This continues to be the land of
opportunity, and I’m so grateful to be an American,“ reflects DiGiorgio. “Being an immigrant, I feel it is my duty to give back and to contribute.“
Sean Edwards
Sean Edwards went to culinary school – and he still whips up Italian dishes in his Philadelphia kitchen. But for the past decade, the 43-year-old has been cooking up a smorgasbord of telecommunications companies, becoming a one-stop shop for digitally connected homes and businesses.
“I’m not a serial entrepreneur who sells one business and starts another,“ notes Edwards, who heads the Rittenhouse Communications Group. “All my businesses are still in operation, and they’re complementary.“ Together, they offer voice over IP calling, wireless entry and security apps, and custom design and installation service for all that technology.
Since launching in 2015, Edwards has seen revenue grow from $120,000 to $4 million, with 18 employees. His clients include hotels, law firms, multi-family buildings and Philadelphia Works, the city’s nonprofit workforce development organization; he also provides building technology for Goddard franchise schools nationwide.
A lifelong Philadelphian, Edwards decided by 19 that he’d had enough of restaurants’ unpredictable schedules. Sales roles with Nextel, Tweeter and Sprint convinced him he could do a better job integrating technology and installation. “I said, ‘Why don’t I do it all myself?’“ he recalls. “I wanted more control over the whole process, from customer service to implementation.“
Edwards’ instincts paid off: He is successful enough that his clients come strictly through referrals. But he has found that entrepreneurs’ hours are hardly shorter than those of cooks. “I wake up with chaos,“ he says with a rueful laugh, “and I go to sleep with chaos.“
Christopher D. Gale
A dozen years ago, Christopher Gale was neither a bicyclist nor a Philadelphian. Now he is both: As executive director of the Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia, the former Michigan “car guy“ now commutes by bike to his Center City office, having resettled his family in Philadelphia to earn a public administration degree at Villanova.
Since achieving his life goal of directing a nonprofit last December, when he assumed his post, Gale has spearheaded a strategic plan centering on equity and diversity. “That’s what I’m all about,“ says Gale, a mixed-race Latino. “The perspective is that Black and Brown folks aren’t on bikes – that safe cycling infrastructure is just for privileged people. But frankly, safety is for everyone.“
On his bike, he says, “I experience the city in a whole new way; I feel much more connected.“
Wielding a budget of nearly $2 million and momentum from the city’s Vision Zero road-safety movement, Gale is not only advocating for safer roads; he’s expanding the non-car constituency through programs recruiting young riders in traditionally underserved neighborhoods.
After visiting Philadelphia years ago on a church mission, he fell in love with the potential he saw in Kensington. “I want to be a part of something greater than myself,“ explains Gale, who previously expanded youth and workforce programming at the North Philly nonprofit North10. “I identify with the vibe of this city, always having to prove myself. We’re going to push for better. We’re gonna get it done.“
Katherine Gilmore Richardson
Thirty-nine is certainly young for a majority leader of Philadelphia City Council. This year, Katherine Gilmore Richardson became the youngest-ever person and the first at-large member to reach that milestone.
Gilmore Richardson is already a quarter-century into a political career that began at age 15, when she wrote to then-Councilmember Blondell Reynolds Brown after hearing her speak – and snagged an internship that led to a decade in Council jobs. “That letter began a 25-plus-year relationship,“ says Gilmore Richardson, who, in 2019, was elected to Reynolds Brown’s seat – the youngest woman ever to be elected citywide in Philadelphia.
Now the mother of three, Gilmore Richardson’s life experiences have increasingly shaped her legislative priorities. Her memories of pumping at City Hall inspired a bill requiring lactation spaces in city-owned facilities, while the challenge of settling a family estate prompted legislation creating an $8 million fund to address so-called tangled titles. “I’m really proud of that, because I had to deal with it; I know what families are facing,“ she says.
A millennial, Gilmore Richardson is especially focused on youth and workforce priorities: One of her first bills granted career and technical high school graduates preference for city jobs. More recently, she created and distributed 10,000 copies of Philadelphia’s first apprenticeship guide.
“The thing that keeps me going is that I really love helping people live better lives, dealing with the challenges we face as a city,“ she says. “I’m busy – but I’m loving it.“
Gregory Heller
Ironically, it was the year he took off from college that changed Gregory Heller’s life. While researching for his urban studies thesis, Heller interviewed Philadelphia’s legendary former planning director, Ed Bacon – which turned into a hiatus to help write Bacon’s memoirs, an experience that also introduced the youngster to figures like Society Hill Towers (and The Louvre) architect I.M. Pei.
From that experience, Heller launched an urban development career that led to his role as director at Guidehouse, a global consultancy. He launched and leads the firm’s housing and community solutions practice, wielding a $100 million annual portfolio and working with local housing authorities in municipalities from Philadelphia to Los Angeles. (One current project involves 2,000 units of supportive housing for formerly homeless households in Travis County, Texas.)
“We have an affordable housing crisis in America,“ explains Heller, a Montgomery County native, of his mission. He calls his previous job, as executive director at the Philadelphia Redevelopment Authority, “a huge honor and the opportunity of a lifetime.“ Among the most resonant of Heller’s accomplishments there was the neighborhood revitalization of the 36-house MOVE bombing site. Heller also worked on a West Philadelphia redevelopment where a minority-owned firm is reviving a blighted zone with affordable housing and a supermarket. He has also given a TEDxPhiladelphia talk on social-impact real estate.
“There are dire problems that we get to help solve in real life,“ says Heller. “That’s what’s really energizing about the work.“
Patricia Henwood
At 44, Patricia Henwood recently took up surfing – and didn’t break a sweat. “I thought it would be a lot harder,“ was the physician’s breezy assessment.
Having helped manage a Liberian Ebola outbreak and having treated Afghan evacuees on the Philadelphia Airport tarmac, Henwood is not easily fazed. The emergency-medicine physician currently brings that unflappability to Jefferson Health, serving as both chief clinical officer and the James D. and Mary Jo Danella chief quality officer.
Her role is expansive – “leveraging my global and humanitarian background to think about how we can expand access,“ says Henwood. “We’re looking at creating more effective systems of care, particularly for a health ecosystem that prioritizes vulnerable populations. And making sure we understand where they’re coming from, and where we can help them move along their health journey.“
Unlike many physicians, Henwood has a big-picture systems perspective: She originally studied political science at Georgetown University. After holding leadership positions at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston and founding her own ultrasound-training nonprofit, the Harvard-trained Henwood came back to her native Philadelphia in 2019 to direct global strategic partnerships. Her experience with global infectious disease protocols informed Henwood’s leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic, when she also volunteered in telemedicine with Doctors Without Borders.
“As emergency-medicine clinicians, we’re the front door for care – 24/7, 365 days a year,“ she says. “And that provides a lot of insights into where we’ve accomplished access and where we still have barriers to care.“
Aiisha Herring-Miller
To her first role explicitly focused on diversity, equity and inclusion, Aiisha Herring-Miller brings a longtime commitment to her adopted hometown. “I love Philadelphia,“ says the Harrisburg native, who came East to study history at Lincoln University. “It’s a big small town – a city of real neighborhoods.“
Herring-Miller, 49, cultivates those qualities as the city’s deputy director for diverse business and workforce development. The role was created under Rebuild, the community infrastructure initiative funded by former Mayor Jim Kenney’s groundbreaking beverage tax; it is now part of the city capital programs office. Under Herring-Miller’s leadership, the city partners with local unions to diversify the skilled trades pipeline; her office boasts a 75% construction trade placement rate for graduates of its training programs.
“I always wanted to do public service,“ she says. It was a natural choice for a child of Harrisburg, where the young Herring-Miller worked as a Capitol page (a job that, she notes, was made obsolete with the advent of cell phones).
In Philadelphia, Herring-Miller has logged two decades working in economic development. Much of that was with the city’s Commerce Department, where she managed a nearly $40 million endowment that funds grants incentivizing businesses to stay in or relocate to the city.
With the economy humming, Herring-Miller is focused on ensuring those businesses hire in a way that represents the city’s diversity. “What motivates me is serving Philadelphia residents – and increasing opportunities for individuals that look like me: women and people of color,“ she says.
Jason E. High
Jason High might still be working in computers if it hadn’t been for 9/11. That day, he became obsessed with the news, which ultimately led him into politics.
Now, the Pennsylvania native is a managing partner at the Ridge Policy Group, the strategy firm founded by former Gov. Tom Ridge. “I never thought I’d be a lobbyist, but here I am,“ says High.
In the intervening years, High worked on campaigns and as chief of staff for two state senators – including Scott Wagner, whose 2018 gubernatorial campaign he calls a career highlight. But as much as he loved running campaigns, he doesn’t miss the lifestyle – especially now that he and his wife, married nearly a quarter-century, have a young child (their children are 23, 22 and 5).
In government relations, High has found he can make a significant impact with a lot less adrenaline. Working on last year’s probation reform bill was particularly satisfying: “Our adult system is a mess, and our juvenile system is even worse,“ he explains. “So it’s meaningful stuff – taking on a system and trying to make it better.“
Recently, while the family was discussing his work, his wife stopped him and said, “Do you realize how animated you are?“ He did. “I like people. I like the energy, being in the Capitol on session days,“ affirms High. “I tell people all the time that I think this is the greatest job in the world.“
Meg Kane
Meg Kane didn’t always follow soccer. But her passion is her native Philadelphia, and if her city was going to shine in the global spotlight as a host of the 2026 World Cup, then Kane was going to join the sport’s enthusiastic fandom. Now, the woman who calls herself “the least athletic person on Planet Earth“ is a fixture at Philadelphia Union games, immersing herself in the vibrant soccer culture her home team has nurtured.
“Soccer is not just having a moment; in the U.S., it’s accelerating,“ says Kane, 43. As host city executive for Philadelphia Soccer 2026, the city’s World Cup organizer, she is capitalizing on that phenomenon, using the public relations skills she’d honed long before corner kicks were in her vocabulary.
As CEO of her strategy and public relations firm, Signature 57, she has represented such local icons as Tastykake and the Mural Arts program. But the experience that best prepared Kane for the World Cup was working on communications around Pope Francis’ 2015 visit to Philadelphia, a marquee event that introduced the city to a global audience.
Kane is particularly excited for Philadelphia’s quarterfinal match on July 4, joining democratic symbolism with a democratizing sport. “I’ve always thought of Philadelphia not only as my home, but as my most important client,“ reflects Kane. “The way people light up when you say the World Cup is coming, you realize that soccer really is the world game – and an extraordinary opportunity for Philadelphia.“
LaTonia Lee
Growing up as the eldest of nine “has positioned me well for labor issues," says LaTonia Lee. Those family dynamics taught her the negotiating skills she now employs at contract time for Penn Medicine, where she is senior director of employee and labor relations. “My childhood made me articulate and resourceful, and a natural team player,“ says Lee, 46. “Wherever I went, there were people in tow.“
Lee joined the Air Force and worked her way through law school at Indiana University. At Penn Medicine, she resolves issues between the health system and its 1,500 unionized workers, a role similar to the one she previously held at Temple Health. Before that, Lee served as a labor relations analyst for the commonwealth, where she managed thorny and novel matters during the COVID-19 pandemic.
As you might expect from the eldest of nine, Lee does plenty more. Raising special-needs children inspired her parallel career as an advocate for students and families with disabilities and complex education needs. Lee is also a graduate ambassador for Emerge PA, the women’s political training program; recently elected to the Haverford school board, she enthusiastically champions and fundraises for female candidates.
“I like to tell people that by day I’m in human resources, and also by day, I’m an education and disability rights advocate,“ says Lee. “And it just depends on which time of the day.“
Angela Leopold
Twenty years ago, while studying political science at Dickinson College, Angela Leopold interned with the Republican State Committee. The GOP state chair at the time was the influential political strategist Alan Novak, who recognized Leopold’s talent – and recruited her to his eponymous firm.
Two decades later, Leopold is now a senior partner and co-owner of Novak Strategic Advisors. “This is really a family,“ says the 42-year-old. “I love a challenge. And it’s exciting to be co-owner of a successful business.“
Over those 20 years, Leopold has played a key role in expanding both the firm’s geographical reach – she says its roots were “very Chester County-focused“ – and its team of political insiders. Novak now has staff in every media market statewide, and its expertise has broadened from a government focus to public affairs for clients “who need a little oomph beyond the Capital,“ Leopold says – from a local resort and Jewish summer camps to the Rechargeable Battery Association.
Leopold, the incoming chair of the DREAM Partnership, a scholarship organization benefiting disabled students, is particularly proud of her advocacy for industries crucial to the commonwealth. These include successful efforts to block new state tax proposals on behalf of both the Pennsylvania Septic Management Association and an energy-industry coalition. “As we like to say, everybody flushes,“ notes Leopold. “And we all know how important energy is to Pennsylvania. Knowing we’re delivering for our clients is what drives me every day.“
Scott Little
As the Manheim Township fire chief, Scott Little knows he’s lucky. “That lifelong childhood dream was to be a firefighter, and I get to live it every day,“ he says.
Little, 42, heads a crew of 110 paid and volunteer firefighters. Since 2008, the York County native has also served with the Pennsylvania Air National Guard; as a first sergeant, he’s on call for everything from urban search-and-rescue to bioterrorism response.
What his roles all have in common is “helping people on their worst day,“ says Little. “People don’t call 911 to say ‘hi.’ They need help solving a problem, and we never know what we’ll be facing.“
It sounds daunting, but Little finds satisfaction in being a vital community presence. That role has assumed greater resonance as the number of volunteer firefighters in the commonwealth has dropped from 300,000 to just 20,000 since the 1970s. Bolstering recruitment is a top priority for Little, who has fought for greater investment in more expensive, non-carcinogenic equipment.
As a first vice president of Pennsylvania Career Fire Chiefs – next year, he’ll lead the national organization’s Eastern division – Little works regularly with state and federal lawmakers on funding for fire academy recruitment, occupational exposure policy and other key issues. “This is not just a job,“ says Little, who also sits on Gov. Josh Shapiro’s Fire Advisory Board. “This is really a noble calling to serve others – to put others ahead of your own needs and make sure people have help when they need it.“
Yocasta Lora
Yocasta Lora began her career in business, but life experience shifted her focus to nonprofit advocacy. Helping her octogenarian father navigate social security and medical benefits “was a big eye-opener,“ recalls Lora, 44. “I started thinking about how the economy, health, taking care of family – all of that is linked to aging in place. How do we have a market that ensures the multicultural community is included in this conversation?“
The Dominican-born Lora, who emigrated with her family at age 20, is particularly well-equipped to look for answers. A former program director at the Greater Philadelphia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, she currently leads state advocacy and community engagement for the national seniors’ group AARP.
Lora worked with then-Mayor Jim Kenney and the World Health Organization to get Philadelphia designated as an Age-Friendly City; she has also collaborated with the mayor’s office on road safety, an issue that disproportionately impacts elders and communities of color.
Her recent focus is housing and infrastructure, like inclusive park design and the state’s Whole Home Repair legislation, which helps seniors age safely in their communities.
This year, Lora advised Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker’s transition committee on housing and development; she was also appointed to the Pennsylvania Women’s Commission. But while state leaders turn to her for answers, Lora often responds with questions. “How can we take a deeper look at how communities are built,“ she asks, “and be intentional and inclusive of intergenerational families in our programs and legislation?“
Manuel Mar
For Manuel Mar, becoming the first Hispanic board chair of the Pennsylvania Chamber of Business and Industry is the largest-scale opportunity he has to give back to the region that nurtured his own success.
Born in Mexico, Mar settled at age 9 in Northeast Pennsylvania; his engineer father had accepted a corporate transfer, figuring America would offer better education and more opportunity for the children. “We moved from a city of 6 million to a town of 6,000,“ recalls Mar, 44. Thirty-five years later, that move remains “the hardest thing we’ve ever done.“
After studying economics at Penn State and earning an MBA, Mar built a career as a bank relationship manager; he currently holds that title at Santander, where he is a senior vice president. Following similar roles at Bank of America and JP Morgan, Mar serves as clients’ primary point of contact and leads a team focused on expanding financial services.
In his community, however, the Delaware County resident is equally known for his volunteerism. A passionate mentor of younger colleagues as well as Penn State students, Mar has a long involvement with the Greater Philadelphia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. He has also served as a translator with Community Volunteers in Medicine, a Chester County safety-net health system.
His devotion to service is an homage to “all the people who took a chance on us, who helped us get to where we’re at,“ says Mar. “That’s driven me to be a lifelong learner – and devoted to helping others.“
Melanie O. McCottry
Melanie McCottry admits to having thought a lot less about energy before joining Philadelphia Gas Works. But now that she’s chief of staff for the 188-year-old nonprofit, the Cleveland native is a convert.
“The energy field is where passion meets purpose,“ says McCottry, who joined PGW in 2009 and is now senior vice president for corporate communications and external affairs. “It’s also very humbling. Over a million people around Philadelphia rely on our work around the clock every day, so it’s a real mission.“
At 46, McCottry has spent most of her career at the utility, noting that the industry tends to foster long-term commitments. She headed East for college, taking people’s advice that Philadelphia was a friendly big city; after studying political science and education at Temple University, she later earned an MBA from St. Joseph’s.
Now, McCottry works at the intersection of business and communications, managing a government affairs portfolio with policies around energy affordability and efficiency. She’s especially proud of communicating PGW’s infrastructure-upgrade efforts to local neighborhoods impacted by 6,000 miles of underground construction.
While she loves Philadelphia, McCottry is proud of her “Midwestern nice“ roots, which she describes as a combination of personal caring and pragmatism that makes her an effective communicator. “I’m also mindful of my impact by just showing up as a woman,“ McCottry adds. “I’ve been in every neighborhood in the city, and I’m in the room where decisions are made. And that’s where representation matters.“
Cathy McVey
Cathy McVey has been telling her hometown’s stories for a quarter-century – since before Philadelphia had a nationally renowned dining scene, the Kimmel Center or Citizens Bank Park. Now 49, she joined Visit Philadelphia, the city’s tourism outfit, in 2000; she is currently senior vice president for strategic integration.
By far, McVey’s most popular campaign was the legendary “With Love, Philadelphia XOXO.“ “The voice of that campaign was so genuinely Philadelphia – smart and confident, with a little bit of attitude,“ she recalls. “It was hugely impactful.“ Around the same time, she began another venture with impact: Honey's Angels, a nonprofit that distributes food and supermarket gift cards to struggling families and seniors around the holidays. Founded to honor McVey’s late mother, the organization has helped thousands of families over nearly two decades.
Right now, McVey is working on a diversity campaign called “In Pursuit of a More Perfect Union,“ themed around ethnic and minority heritage months. “We live in the birthplace of freedom and democracy,“ explains the writer of her inspiration. “Everyone’s story is worth telling.“
Thanks in part to her team’s efforts, Philadelphia recorded historic visitation numbers in 2019, just before the COVID-19 pandemic. Now the numbers are rebounding, as visitors are drawn to the qualities McVey has always cherished: “Our honesty, our realness, and our stellar cultural scene,“ she enumerates. “It’s the resilience of the people and the resilience of the city. Here we are again, thriving.“
Lauren Orazi
Lauren Orazi knows people often take a dim view of her field. “People think government doesn’t do anything, that lobbying is just a money-grabbing game,“ says Orazi, a government relations professional with One+ Strategies. “But there are so many situations where both government and the lobbying sector help people.“
Orazi learned that first-hand in Harrisburg, where she has worked in both chambers of the state legislature. In a role developing legislation for then-Gov. Ed Rendell, Orazi strengthened victims’ rights through an update to Megan’s Law and helped launch the Pre-K Counts early childhood education subsidy.
Criminal justice and youth issues have long been of interest to Orazi. With One+, where she has worked since 2023, she secured new state funding for Pennsylvania Court Appointed Special Advocates and also advocates for a reentry-assistance organization.
The Scranton native studied education but disliked student-teaching. Pivoting to law school, she took a state Senate internship that turned into a post-graduation job – and set her on the political track. “I just saw opportunities and took advantage of them,“ says Orazi, 49. Politics clicked because, she says, it’s fast-paced and social, “and not the same thing all the time.“
The Capitol is nothing like the classroom, but she sees parallels in the underlying mission. “It’s that whole helping mindset – seeing where we can help clients improve in the name of whoever they serve,“ explains Orazi, who rescues dogs in her spare time. “I always think people should help where they can.“
Jamiel Owens
Jamiel Owens has a message for men: “Real masculinity is being compassionate and empathetic,“ says the 42-year-old self-described “autism dad.“ “It’s being a leader in your community as well as your home. Uplifting other people – that’s how you become the true alpha male.“
It’s a lesson Owens admits he took a while to learn himself, and learned the hard way – through becoming a father to an autistic son, now 16. When Owens was that age, he was already on the streets, fleeing the chaos of a fractured and troubled family.
He was bright – he went to Philadelphia’s Central High School – but aimless. After dropping out and getting his GED, Owens worked as a corrections officer, a PATCO train operator, a security trainer for the Philadelphia Museum of Art and a food-delivery worker. Then he quit his job to focus on writing books about parenting and autism; he has self-published seven thus far, which he sells on Amazon.
At 42, Owens finally has a job with meaning – as the family relations coordinator at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia’s Center for Autism Research. He became the first father to represent CHOP at an international forum advocating for disabled kids; he also spearheaded Autism Town Hall, a panel series connecting autism families with law enforcement.
Now the parent of a toddler as well, Owens has found his focus. “I give other fathers of kids with disabilities a premise of hope,“ he says. “And that overcomes the barriers they may see.“
Nikia Owens
Math was Nikia Owens’ ticket out of poverty. As CEO of the Campaign for Working Families, a nonprofit focused on financial well-being, Owens hopes that numbers will empower others to better their lives.
At CWF, where she has doubled the budget to $5.4 million in two years, Owens coordinates financial education, tech-free tax preparation and resource referrals for families throughout greater Philadelphia. Now Owens is steering CWF’s expansion into New York City’s five boroughs, having taken over the financial services arm of Food Bank for New York City.
The 48-year-old has been good with numbers since her troubled childhood in California’s agricultural heartland, where she bounced through a series of foster homes. “School was an outlet for me,“ recalls Owens, for whom studying was a refuge from abuse and the hard work of farm life.
Accelerated into advanced math, she finished high school early and earned two degrees from Howard, including a master’s of social work (she also holds a doctorate). After 10 years in clinical counseling, she found her niche on the financial side of nonprofits; Owens first connected with CWF as head of financial empowerment at the United Way of Greater Philadelphia and Southern New Jersey, where she raised $20 million for nonprofits.
Now Owens empowers others to better their lives through math – including her two children, who both aced AP calculus. “I’ve been blessed,“ says Owens. “And I’ve been down a lot of roads. My purpose is service – to pass some of those blessings to others.“
Sena Owereko
Sena Owereko knows what it’s like to feel awkward at school. When she moved from Ghana to attend St. Joseph’s University, her roommates had to teach her how to ride the bus in Philadelphia, say “bottled water“ and open a bank account. And don’t get her started on American career jargon.
“It’s made me compassionate and focused on facilitating access,“ said Owereko, who now oversees programming and innovation for Graduate! Philadelphia, a nonprofit that champions adult and nontraditional students. “One of the biggest challenges, besides simply navigating the system, is not being afraid to ask for help.“
Owereko, 47, grew up moving around Africa and Europe to accommodate her father’s United Nations job. The experience instilled “a sense of responsibility for the world we live in,“ she says, as well as a desire to visit the U.S., “one of the countries on my list I hadn’t yet been to.“
Having overcome her own acclimation struggles, Owereko has devoted her career to helping peers overcome theirs. With a master’s in training and organizational development, she held several administrative roles at St. Joseph’s – including as director of admissions and recruitment – and, before coming to Graduate! Philadelphia, headed strategic initiatives at adult learner-focused Peirce College.
Along with raising three of Philadelphia’s youngest learners – her own sons – Owereko is currently implementing GP’s Career Integrated Learning Advising initiative. “We’re trying to fill in the gaps – designing not only a program, but an ecosystem,“ says Owereko, “and helping people feel supported every step of the way.“
Matt Pacifico
The day he filed to run for mayor of Altoona, Matt Pacifico Googled, “What does a mayor do?“
It was 2013, and he’d been managing the family’s 70-year-old bakery business. But after a week when two people suggested he run for mayor, Pacifico decided fate was knocking – and officially entered politics. Voted into office later that year, he was reelected as Altoona’s first full-time mayor in 2015, having turned around the local economy and achieved the fastest-ever exit from Pennsylvania’s distressed-city designation.
“Not all cities in Pennsylvania are cookie-cutter, but they’re expected to follow the same rules,“ says Pacifico, 43. His approach stressed fiscal autonomy: After taking back city control of Altoona’s water and sewer assets, he set out to increase revenue by positioning the area as a post-pandemic remote work and outdoor recreation destination. Pacifico’s current focus is infrastructure – upgrading sidewalks and adding housing.
While he lacked a policy background, Pacifico says his bakery management skills were surprisingly transferable. “I’m used to being in a leadership role, managing lots of employees and having to problem-solve on my feet,“ he points out. To fill in the gaps, he initially sought out mentorship from former Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter and other leaders.
Still, “I’ve never viewed myself as a politician,“ Pacifico adds. He does view himself as a golfer, though, and is currently coaching his son for the school team. Hearing that golfing is the classic politician’s sport, Pacifico sees the irony: “I guess I am a politician then, aren’t I?“ he laughs.
Frank Pintabone
A fourth-generation, lifelong resident of Easton, Frank Pintabone was dismayed when his son’s school had the same problems he’d witnessed as a child himself. “Somebody said, ’Why don’t you run for school board?’ So I did,“ says Pintabone, who, at 34, became its youngest member.
After all, nobody knew neighborhood issues better than he did. Pintabone helped turn around the district’s $11 million deficit, rehiring laid-off teachers and, upon departing in 2017, leaving a $2 million surplus. Advocating for some of Easton’s oldest and least-resourced neighborhoods, he is proud of building several new elementary schools.
Now 45, Pintabone kept going: Last year, he was elected to the City Council. Building on his success upgrading local schools, he vows to extend a downtown revitalization to the city’s neighborhoods, incorporating the constituents’ meetings he pioneered at the school board: “I want to hear their concerns, what they like, what they don’t like.“ Pintabone has also championed absentee-landlord legislation and labor partnerships on city projects; this year, he introduced Easton’s first-ever Juneteenth Awards, honoring African American community figures.
Now a grandfather, Pintabone owns a successful lawn care and landscaping business – some years ago, he was voted to Lehigh Valley Business Magazine’s 40 under 40 – and most recently served on the Northampton County General Purpose Authority, which handles bond issuance for projects like hospitals.
“I love helping people in the community where I come from,“ he says. “Getting things done that others haven’t, things that have been neglected – just working for the people.“
Michelle Reyes
Born into Allegheny County politics, Michelle Reyes finds great satisfaction in heading government relations for the region’s largest private employer, UPMC. “It’s just one of those great Pittsburgh institutions, and I’m proud of being from Pittsburgh,“ says Reyes, 48. “It’s great health care, and a major economic driver – things you want to see continue.“
As the health system’s chief state-level advocate, Reyes has certainly done her part, working with UPMC’s health plan on prior authorization reform and helping negotiate recent telemedicine legislation. Both high-profile issues involved reconciling the at-times conflicting interests of the medical and insurance sectors: “It’s nice to come together and find consensus,“ she says.
Reyes’ early political education came from her father, D. Michael Fisher, now a federal judge, who served in both chambers of the state legislature when she was growing up. After earning a BA in political science from Miami University of Ohio and a JD from the University of Pittsburgh, the younger Reyes put in a dozen years as a government relations attorney at Buchanan Ingersoll Rooney, representing clients ranging from the American Cancer Society to a coal company.
Now focused on health care, Reyes enjoys the opportunity her role affords to explore the region’s diverse corners. On a recent visit to Williamsport, for instance, the sports mom of twins was thrilled to hear about the Little League World Series. “I love getting out to visit different communities and hospitals, learning what’s important to them,“ she says. “It really is fascinating.“
Adam Robinson
At Philadelphia’s Museum of the American Revolution, Adam Robinson relishes a role that combines his passions for history, government and nonprofits.
However, as a senior corporate and government partnerships officer, what Robinson really loves is when politicians visit the museum and come away impressed. “People in government have a high standard,“ says Robinson. “So when they come into the museum and say, ’We need to tell our constituents about this’ – that validation is so rewarding.“
It’s also a recognition of what Robinson has achieved over five years – doubling corporate support to $3 million, thanks to partnerships with businesses like Comcast and Bank of America, and helping secure three-quarters of a million dollars in new federal and state funding.
The 40-year-old grew up in Bala Cynwyd and got interested in politics during the 2000 election. “I wanted to be at the center of where people come together in political discourse, even if they aren’t on the same side,“ recalls Robinson. He managed his first campaign with the University of Wisconsin student government, galvanizing a coalition of stakeholders to vote for a $100 million student union expansion.
After more campaigns and a stint in Washington, D.C., Robinson leveraged his fundraising skills for the United Way of Greater Philadelphia and Southern New Jersey. Most recently, he was a fellow for the Committee of Seventy and a 2024 graduate of Leadership Philadelphia. “What I’m drawn toward, in my career and in my life, is bringing people and organizations together,“ says Robinson.
Zulay Rojas
Ask Zulay Rojas about the highlights of her three years with the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission, and she’ll wax enthusiastic about a nine-day civil rights tour of the South. “It really resonated with me,“ says Rojas, who is the special assistant to the commission’s executive director. She’s now organizing a repeat trip, visiting landmarks like the site of the Selma, Alabama bus boycott and the 1960s march for voting rights, so newer colleagues “can experience where it all began.“
At 46, Rojas has a special perspective on rights and liberties. Raised in New Jersey, she enlisted with the U.S. Army after 9/11, serving overseas in operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom. Service came naturally for Rojas, who was raised with a strong religious faith and altruistic parents – “the kind of people who cared about their neighbors, who’d shovel your snow,“ she recalls.
After studying criminal justice at Rutgers University, Rojas sought work in Pennsylvania for its veteran preferences. At the commission, she issued a groundbreaking 2023 report on commonwealth school race relations after logging 3,000 miles to hear students’ concerns across more than a dozen college campuses. She has also worked closely with Pennsylvania’s higher education officials and lawmakers, including state Sen. Art Haywood, on campus hate speech and other issues.
“I feel an innate calling to do something about our current moment, something for the greater good,“ says Rojas. “I’m inspired by the people that came before me – and the progress they made.“
NazAarah Sabree
NazAarah Sabree has been a small-business advocate since her teens, when she got a job cleaning Philadelphia’s commercial corridors. Chatting with the locals as she worked her way down storefronts, “I was always intrigued by their passion,“ says Sabree. “They’re the maintenance person, the accountant, as well as the business owners. I just always wanted to help them.“
Sabree’s career has been devoted to those moms and pops – first in Philadelphia, where she was a longtime employee at the city’s Commerce Department, and now at the commonwealth’s Office of Small Business Advocate, where she is the first African American woman in that role.
“I like to say Harrisburg found me,“ explains Sabree, who has long forged close working relationships with lawmakers. “And there are 100,000 small businesses in Philly, whereas there are 1.1 million throughout the state. So I felt my impact would be greater.“
Indeed, in the 2022-23 fiscal year, Sabree secured nearly $100 million in utility cost savings for the commonwealth’s small businesses. She also sent Gov. Josh Shapiro the first annual report in 10 years from the Office of Small Business Advocate, re-centering the priority of her constituency.
In her first statewide role, Sabree has added utility concerns to her portfolio, regularly convening stakeholders from around the state on energy issues. “It’s yet another place where I can be a strong voice and an advocate,“ she says.
Haniyyah Sharpe-Brown
By the time she turned 40, Haniyyah Sharpe-Brown had raised a high school-age son, worked for Philadelphia’s mayor, launched the School District of Philadelphia’s annual youth summit and promoted Accenture’s Philadelphia apprenticeship program. She was ready for a break.
So after four decades of nonstop activity, Sharpe-Brown recently took her first solo trip abroad – to Jamaica. “It was everything I didn’t know I needed,“ she laughs, “one of the most fun and scary things I’ve ever done.“
And she had done plenty. The Philadelphia native studied journalism at Temple University, interned with the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation and had her first child while juggling school. “Having him put a different kind of fire in me,“ says Sharpe-Brown, whose children are 17 and 11.
Having launched her own outfit, On Point Communications, Sharpe-Brown has since 2021 managed strategic programs and operations for Accenture’s Philadelphia Metro and Pittsburgh markets. Rolling out the company’s local apprenticeship program, she leverages her deep Philly roots to forge partnerships with local corporations like Merck and Aeon and institutions like the Community College of Philadelphia (Pittsburgh apprenticeships are next). She has also spearheaded Philadelphia-based professional development, engaging Accenture families on both cultural and career issues and launching a monthly lunch series to break down boundaries between corporate leaders and employees.
“I have so much more to do,“ reflects Sharpe-Brown, whose next solo trip will be the Greek island of Santorini. “I just feel like I’m not done.“ Indeed, at 40, she’s just getting started.
Sarah Steltz
When Sarah Steltz moved to Philadelphia 20 years ago, she was drawn not only to its walkable neighborhoods and lively arts scene, but also to the opportunities to address big-city challenges. “We have both significant opportunity and significant access issues here,“ says Steltz, 41. “There’s nothing more important than bridging that divide.“
Economic and workforce development are the ways Steltz has tackled that challenge over the years – most notably with University City District, where she is currently senior vice president of strategy. Steltz first joined UCD in 2018; as director of its West Philadelphia Skills Initiative, she expanded the organization’s workforce partnerships from neighborhood organizations to citywide powerhouses like SEPTA and the Philadelphia Fire Department.
Steltz briefly left UCD in 2021 for a leadership role with the city’s Commerce Department. “I never dreamed I could learn so much in such a short amount of time,“ she recalls of that experience. After a stint as vice president for economic competitiveness at the Chamber of Commerce for Greater Philadelphia, she rejoined UCD earlier this year.
The Berks County native got a firsthand education in Philadelphia’s workforce challenges during a decade at Drexel University, where she was the first employee to oversee local workforce and economic inclusion efforts. “From a strictly economic perspective, we have so much untapped talent,“ says Steltz. “I’m focused on making West Philadelphia an amazing place to live and work. And you can’t invest in a place without investing in its people.“
Celeste Trusty
You could quantify Celeste Trusty’s impact in numbers – for example, the 200 people pardoned for marijuana convictions as the result of a 2022 law she championed. But Trusty, a longtime leader with Families Against Mandatory Minimums, is inclined to measure her sentencing-reform accomplishments in human terms.
There is the Philadelphia friend who finally made it home for Christmas, exonerated after 30 years of imprisonment on a murder charge. Or the member of FAMM’s Facebook support group who, while awaiting a clemency appeal decision, announced plans to marry after 54 years in prison.
Growing up biracial in the Montgomery County suburbs, Trusty knew firsthand the emotional toll of family members involved with the legal system. “I wish I’d had a community to answer my questions,“ she says. “A lot of people need that.“
Trusty joined FAMM in 2018 as Pennsylvania state director; a few years later, she left to become political director for the successful U.S. Senate campaign of John Fetterman, a longtime ally on clemency issues, and to work for the state Board of Pardons. Last November, Trusty returned as FAMM’s deputy director of state policy, leading the group’s legislative agenda in six states – including Pennsylvania, Maryland and New Jersey.
Ongoing campaigns to expand prison medical release or reform sentencing around felony murder “could open up an avenue for second chances for so many people,“ she says. “And a lot of these things are bipartisan efforts – which in Pennsylvania is so important.“
Randy P. Vulakovich
Randy Vulakovich was so excited to go into politics that he brought his father along.
Fresh out of Duquesne University’s MBA program, Vulakovich was relishing his first political job, with U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum. “The ability to engage in a process that truly makes a difference in people’s lives – it’s just really cool for a 22-year-old,“ recalls Vulakovich.
He thought his father might enjoy it, too, a suggestion that led to the Allegheny County police officer’s 12-year career in the state legislature. By the time the elder Vulakovich took office, his son had moved on to Buchanan, Ingersoll & Rooney in Pittsburgh, where he currently chairs the firm’s state government relations practice group.
Vulakovich, 43, says his father’s decision yielded one of his own career highlights: transitioning to Buchanan’s chief business development officer during his father’s Senate tenure to avoid a conflict of interest in government relations. “Those years, I really got a Ph.D. in business,“ says Vulakovich, who grew the firm nationally and oversaw its real estate portfolio. “It helps me understand my corporate clients’ challenges.“
Now a senior principal in the firm’s government relations practice, Vulakovich lobbies for sectors including energy, higher education, technology and nonprofits. He was recently elected to the board of Team Pennsylvania, the state’s public-private economic development partnership, and serves on the PA Chamber board as well. “I want Pennsylvania to be competitive,“ explains Vulakovich. “Part of it is personal: I want my three kids to have opportunities for good, family-sustaining jobs.“
Lisa Wampler
At 48, Lisa Wampler has been an attorney for nearly half her life – most of that at Cohen Seglias, where she has logged 21 years at the Pittsburgh office. But her dream of working in the legal profession goes back much further, “since at least middle school,“ says Wampler, now a partner.
Back then, she probably never dreamed she would co-chair her firm’s Construction Contracts and Risk Management Group. After all, women are rare in the building industry – and rarer still in construction law.
But Wampler finds the specialty satisfying, and she’s highly effective: Right now, she’s handling a $20 million dispute involving a wastewater treatment facility. Her typical projects range from $50,000 to $50 million, and she specializes in helping clients avoid litigation through negotiation and carefully worded contracts.
Words, after all, have been her forte ever since those middle school days. At Penn State, she was an English major and a women’s studies minor, reflecting twin threads that have defined her career. For six years, Wampler served as the first female managing partner of Cohen Seglias’ Pittsburgh office; she also spearheaded and was the longtime chair of the firm’s Women’s Initiative.
“Not only are women in law still underrepresented, but also in the litigation sector,“ says Wampler. She remains committed to building “a platform to help women in the legal profession and the construction practice with professional growth – and a sounding board where we can be supportive of one another.“
Nicole Wilbourn
When she set out from her native Lancaster to attend Penn State, Nicole Wilbourn never thought she’d end up in politics. But the more she succeeds, the more life surprises her. “I never saw myself being a business owner, either,“ she says.
Yet last spring, Wilbourn, 41, became a partner and co-owner of ERG Partners. She heads legislative affairs at the Harrisburg firm, which specializes in energy, agribusiness, health care and environmental issues.
Originally set on a legal career, Wilbourn studied political science, which led to the senior-year legislative fellowship that changed her trajectory. After working at a state representative’s district office, she liked the work so much that she stayed – eventually quitting law school and spending nearly a dozen years in various roles at the Pennsylvania House of Representatives.
“Eventually, I had maxed out what I wanted to do at the House,“ recalls Wilbourn. She brought those years of policy expertise to Highmark Health, where, as a senior government affairs representative, she worked for years to help pass prior-authorization insurance reform.
At ERG, Wilbourn concentrates on state-level insurance and pharmaceutical issues. She knows that beyond legislative wins, her work has real impact on patients’ lives and well-being. “Expanding access, treatments for people who need it – getting all that right in legislation is so important,“ she says.
Samuel E. Wiser Jr.
Sure, law school was useful. But Samuel Wiser Jr. credits much of his success in municipal law to childhood lessons learned working alongside his contractor father on construction projects.
“Those 12- and 14-hour days instilled a work ethic I don’t know I’d otherwise have,“ reflects the Central Pennsylvania native, who, as a shareholder at Salzmann Hughes, still works long hours. “It taught me to think ahead, prepare for what’s coming.“
Deep familiarity with construction procedures and timelines are also useful in his day-to-day work. As chair of his firm’s signature municipal law practice, Wiser routinely handles development and infrastructure projects – such as a current redevelopment project for the Borough of Chambersburg, which is using federal funds to transform a dilapidated shopping center. The project involves walkable local access to a Keystone Health facility, with a rail trail and new green space.
“It’s a highlight because of the direct and meaningful impact in a community I work in,“ says the Chambersburg-based attorney. The project also exemplifies what drew Wiser to municipal practice: “It’s so varied, it always keeps your mind engaged in learning new things, from land use to labor issues.“
Wiser regularly helps governments negotiate vendor contracts, ordinances around noise and nuisances, and strategies to handle homelessness. Outside the office, Wiser has volunteered with his church outreach and counseling local firefighters on legal issues; last year, he helped form the Chambersburg Police Foundation. As has been the case since childhood, “I like to roll up my sleeves and be involved,“ he says.
Sharana Worsley
The importance of community and commitment were instilled in Sharana Worsley early: At 11, the Philadelphia native lost her mother and moved in with her grandmother. “We were always taught in my family, although we didn’t have a lot, that it was imperative for us to also share with others in need,“ she says.
Now 44, Worsley has made that commitment her profession. Since July, she has headed community impact for the Northeast region at JPMorganChase, where she cultivates partnerships to help grow small businesses, invest in minority development institutions, and expand access to essentials like banking and affordable housing. She also works on JPMorganChase’s $30 billion racial equity commitment, a five-year initiative announced in 2020.
It’s the latest in a series of roles – mostly in commercial banking – that exemplify Worsley’s work at “the intersection of social impact and advocacy,“ she says. Most recently, she was a vice president at Citizens Bank, managing community development for the mid-Atlantic market. Along the way, she helped a prominent community development financial institution obtain its largest-ever federal award.
Worsley is also a leader in the National Black MBA Association – where, as president in 2017, she launched the country’s largest diversity career fair. It’s now a successful annual event, and Worsley is thrilled to see her former mentees thrive. “Some of them have been highlighted in City & State,“ she says. “I’ve seen it all come full circle with the social impact, so they can come behind us and pay it forward.“
Emily Yates
Thanks to Emily Yates, Southeastern Pennsylvania benefits from infrastructure expertise honed as far afield as Hamburg and the Ruhr Valley in Germany.
Yates, 43, brings perspective from the myriad places she’s lived to her role as SEPTA’s chief innovation officer. “I like to say I have a peanut butter-schmear knowledge of everything in a city,“ she says. “I’m not an expert in any one space, but they don’t act in isolation: Transit needs economic development, and gets people where they need to be for health and public services.“
Yates, the middle of six children, moved a lot during her childhood, eventually calling Cleveland home. She attended Auburn University on a golf scholarship and, after briefly considering golf course design, majored in urban studies.
As a neighborhood planner for the District of Columbia, Yates worked on a 70-acre waterfront redevelopment “that drove my thinking about how we can use urban spaces to better connect people,“ she recalls. That led to posts with Charlotte’s public-private development partnership and with the German Marshall Fund, where she studied European cities for perspective on improving America’s urban policy.
Now settled in Philadelphia, Yates previously served as the city’s Smart City program director, launching pilots around initiatives like neighborhood tree cover and violence intervention. She draws upon those lessons at SEPTA, bringing a grassroots equity lens to the transit authority’s zero-emissions strategy. “We are responsible shepherds of taxpayer dollars,“ she says, “so we’re making sure this all happens in a data-driven way.“
Kathryn Zerfuss
Katie Zerfuss has worked for PennDOT, former Gov. Tom Wolf, a state representative and several state departments. However, none of those have carried quite the historic weight of her current role, as she is only the ninth-ever woman to serve as a commissioner on the 187-year-old Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission.
“And I’m one of two women serving together,“ notes Zerfuss. “It’s kind of crazy that it took nearly 90 years to get to double-digit representation.“
Zerfuss’ interest in politics was ignited by a high-school government teacher, which led her to study political science at Elizabethtown College. In the two decades since, the Schuylkill County native has brought to every role the sense of responsibility instilled by growing up poor. “I grew up food- and energy-insecure,“ says the 43-year-old. “I sit in a place of privilege now, but I’ll never forget where I come from – and how hard-working families need extra help.“
Among the accomplishments she cites as most meaningful are helping then-Gov. Wolf create the commonwealth’s first child care tax credit – which she appreciates even more as a mother of three – and working on a free statewide breakfast program that serves tens of millions of meals annually. In her current role, Zerfuss is thrilled to “be part of the conversation“ about Pennsylvania’s role in the transition to sustainable energy.
“I’ve been a public servant for over 20 years,“ she says, “and everything I’ve done has been in the service of Pennsylvania. I take that super seriously.“