AAFEA Board of Directors
The AAFEA Board of Directors includes retired and current members of the Senior Executive Service and other high-ranking federal executives. Current Board members are as follows:
| National President - | William A. Brown SR, P.E., HAIA, FSAME, (retired SES) |
| Vice President - | Tracey Pinson, SES |
| Western Regional Vice President - | Alvin Gamble |
| Treasurer - | William A. Lewis, Jr., SES |
| Director of Training - | Beryl Scott |
| Community Affairs Advisor - | Theresa Jackson |
| Program Director - | Joyce Taylor |
| Chancellor AAFEA Fellows Program - | Dr. Bernice Alston, SES |
| AAFEA Scholarship Director - | Rhonda Scott-Johnson |
| Member At Large - | Lillian Bradley |
| Member At Large - | John Robinson, SES |
| Member At Large - | Dennis Day |
NATIONAL PRESIDENT
WILLIAM A. BROWN SR., P.E., HAIA
William A. Brown Sr. retired after thirty eight years of federal service in January 2003. He was a member of the Senior Executive Service (SES-5). He is the former Deputy Director of Military Programs, Headquarters, United States Army Corps of Engineers. In this capacity he supervised the execution of $10 billion of design and construction programs for the Army, Air Force, Department of Defense, other Federal agencies and over sixty foreign nations. He also provided direction to a field organization consisting of 8 divisions, 40 districts and approximately 15,000 personnel. He is the first African American career civil servant to be appointed a member of the Senior Executive Service in the field of engineering in the Department of Defense.
Mr. Brown is a 1963 architectural engineering graduate of Hampton Institute. He is also a graduate of the Federal Executive Institute, the George Washington University Contemporary Executive Development Program and the Harvard University Program for Senior Managers in Government. He is a registered professional engineer, a Fellow of the Society of American Military Engineers, a member of the National Society of Professional Engineers, an Honorary member of the American Institute of Architects (AIA), a life member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, a former Board Member of the Federal Senior Executive Association and a member of the Hampton University School of Engineering Board of Visitors. He has published numerous articles, spoken at many national and international conferences, and served as a juror for state and national design programs.
Mr. Brown's awards and honors include: the SES Meritorious Presidential Rank Award, a Distinguished Black Marylanders' Award, the year 2000 Black Engineer of the Year Award for Professional Achievement in Government, the Air Force Award for Meritorious Civilian Service, the Air Force Civilian Engineer of the Year Award and the Air Force Award for Design Excellence, the Exceptional Civilian Service Award and the US Army Silver DeFluery Medal.
Throughout his career, Mr. Brown has been involved in many major international design and construction programs. He spent two and one half years negotiating the implementing agreement between the US and Russia for construction of facilities to house weapons of mass destruction. This agreement became the definitive guidance for American firms seeking to work in Russia. He also served as a senior member of the US/Nigerian Joint Economic Partnership Council. Additionally, he was the senior Army civilian executive responsible for recruitment and career development of engineers and scientists employed worldwide by the US Army.
Mr. Brown is currently Executive Vice President of a three hundred person architectural-engineering firm. [return to top]
VICE PRESIDENT
TRACEY PINSON, SES
Tracey L. Pinson became the Director for Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization, Office, Secretary of the Army in May 1995. Ms. Pinson advises the Secretary of the Army and the Army Staff on all small business procurement issues and is responsible for the implementation of the Federal acquisition programs designed to assist small businesses, including small disadvantaged businesses and women-owned businesses. She is responsible for the management of the Historically Black Colleges and Universities and Minority Institutions (HBCU/MI) program, and develops policies and initiatives to enhance their participation in Army funded programs. As one of the top females in the Army’s acquisition career field, she is responsible for the integration of small businesses, HBCUs and MIs in acquisition strategies developed at the Army Headquarters. She also provides management and oversight for the Army’s Mentor-Protégé Program.
From 1986 – 1995, Ms. Pinson served as Assistant to the Director, Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization, Office of the Secretary of Defense. During this time, she developed the implementation strategy for the DOD Mentor-Protégé Program resulting in over 250 participants with a budget allocation as high as $120 million. This program has served as the model-mentoring program for all Federal government agencies.
Upon graduation from law school in 1982, Ms. Pinson participated in the Lyndon Baines Johnson Internship Program with the U.S. House of Representatives. She worked in the Congressional office of Representative Augustus Hawkins and was responsible for constituent affairs and legislative analysis. From November 1982 to June 1986, she served as Counsel to the Committee on Small Business, U.S. House of Representatives and Special Counsel to the late Representative Joseph P. Addabbo. In this capacity, she was responsible for drafting legislation and analyzing federal policies and procedures impacting the small and minority business community.
Ms. Pinson was born in Washington, D.C. She received a Bachelor of Science Degree in Political Science from Howard University. She also received a law degree from Georgetown University Law Center. She is a member in good standing of the Maryland Bar Association and the National Contract Management Association. She resides in Silver Spring, Maryland with her husband Darryl Dennis and daughter Maya. [return to top]
WESTERN REGIONAL VICE PRESIDENT
ALVIN GAMBLE
Mr. Al Gamble is the Deputy Director, Air and Marine Operations Center (AMOC), and has oversight responsibility for the Caribbean Air and Marine Operations Center (CAMOC), Office of CBP Air and Marine, U.S. Customs and Border Protection within the Department of Homeland Security. The mission of Air and Marine Operations Center is to provide direct support to homeland security in protecting the American people and our nation’s borders through the detection and identification of foreign and domestic threats and coordination of law enforcement air, marine and ground interdiction forces. Prevent acts of terrorism arising from unlawful movement of people, illegal drugs, and other contraband moving toward or crossing the borders of the United States. To accomplish that mission, the AMOC state-of-the-art law enforcement radar surveillance center has expanded its role in air and marine interdiction and, following the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, has utilized its extensive detection, monitoring and coordination capabilities to conduct unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) and airspace security operations, covert and overt electronic tracking and general aviation aircraft threat determination.
Mr. Gamble spent 22 years serving on active and reserve military duty with the U.S. Army. His service includes duty as Security, Personnel, and Operations Director, Military Intelligence Executive Officer, and senior intelligence officer in Kuwait, Korea, Germany, and in the continental U.S. Al begins his civil services with the U.S. Customs Service as an Intelligence Research Specialist in 1998 and has served in numerous leadership positions in the Department of Homeland Security.
He graduated from Jackson State University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Political Science in 1981. He has continuous studies in completing a Master of Science degree in organizational management from the University of Phoenix. He is currently enrolled in the University of California Los Angeles Executive Program to complete a certificate in executive management and leadership strategies in a global economy.
Mr. Gamble serves as President of the Federal Executive Association-Inland Empire in Riverside, California. He is a member of the Federal Managers Association (FMA) and the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives (NOBLE).
Mr. Gamble has been recognized with numerous prestigious awards, including the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Joint Service Commendation Medal, the Meritorious Service Medal with three oak leaf clusters, Army Commendation Medal with oak leaf cluster, and Army Achievement medal. He resides in Corona, California with his wife Vanessa. [return to top]
TREASURER
WILLIAM A. LEWIS, JR., SES
William A. Lewis, Jr., was appointed Deputy Director of the Office of Civil Rights and Diversity in October 2005. As part of his new duties, Mr. Lewis is responsible for a report to Congress, mandated by the Energy Policy Act of 2005, on the civil rights activities at 17 DOE National Laboratories.
Prior to this appointment, Mr. Lewis was named Director, Office of Employee Concerns, as part of a Secretarial Whistleblower Initiative on October 1, 1996. The Employee Concerns Office at the United States Department of Energy Headquarters was established to provide the necessary leadership and policy guidance to employee concerns programs at the Department’s major facilities. In February 2002, Mr. Lewis was named the National Ombudsman for the Department, a position he held for three years. Prior to these appointments, Mr. Lewis served as the Director of the Office of Science Education Programs.
Mr. Lewis joined the Department of Energy in July 1992 and became a member of the Senior Executive Service in October 1994. He served as a member of the Department’s Performance Review Board from 1997-2001, and the Secretary’s Executive Resources Board from 1998-2001.
After receiving degrees from Susquehanna University, and Boston University School of Law, Mr. Lewis joined the District Attorney’s Office in his hometown of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1972. He entered Federal Service in 1975 as an Attorney for the United States Commission on Civil Rights, and served as the agency’s Congressional Liaison Director from 1980-1986. He subsequently held positions as Counsel to the Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee and as a Supervisory Attorney in the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s Office of Federal Operations.
Mr. Lewis resides with his, wife, Deborah, in Bethesda, Maryland, and their son, Ryan who graduated from Florida State University in 2004. Mr. Lewis has been listed in Who’s Who in Politics; Who’s Who in the East, Who’s Who in Black America; and Outstanding Young Men in America, and has been a member of the Board of Directors of Susquehanna University since 1987. [return to top]
DIRECTOR OF TRAINING
BERYL D. SCOTT, SPHR
Beryl D. Scott is Chief of the Human Resources Operations Branch in the Executive Office of the President. She is responsible for providing operating personnel services to the Executive Office of the President including the Office of Management and Budget, National Security Council, and the United States Trade Representative. Prior to this appointment, Ms. Scott was Chief of the Personnel Management Branch for the US Department of Defense, Air Force District of Washington. Ms. Scott, administered program management and technical responsibility, interpreting policy covering all areas of staffing and employee development including; merit promotion, downsizing, restructuring, realignments, buyouts, veteran’s employment, and the identification and satisfaction of training requirements.
Ms. Scott has also served as Human Resources Career Program Manager for the US Army Corps of Engineers (HQ), developing Army-wide wide policies and procedures to enhance the effective and efficient administration of the 14,660 member Engineers and Scientists Career Program; serving as focal point for Corps-wide Human Resources Program Evaluation initiatives, developing inspection plans to assure compliance with Federal laws, Army Regulations and other directives and implementing instructions for higher headquarters directives; and re-engineering the Corporate Executive Development and training program by instituting cost efficient processes and procedures and developing additional funding resources.
Ms. Scott’s extensive background in human resources also includes positions at Harvard University (Associate Director of Personnel Services, Faculty of Arts and Sciences) and the Upjohn Company.
Ms. Scott is a 1972 sociology/psychology graduate of Baldwin-Wallace College. She received her MBA from Indiana University in 1974. In 1995, Ms. Scott obtained her SPHR certification, and is recognized as an expert in the core principles of human resource practices and the application of those principles. Ms. Scott is also an accomplished cellist, having played with the New Hampshire Philharmonic Orchestra. She is also an active member of All Saints Episcopal Church in Chevy Chase, Maryland where she serves as a Eucharistic Minister. [return to top]
COMMUNITY AFFAIRS ADVISOR
THERESA J. JACKSON
Theresa J. Jackson is the Business Manager, Global Information Grid (GIG) Enterprise Services Engineering for the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA). She is responsible for planning and ensuring resource management support across the full spectrum of resource management functions, activities and disciplines in support of the GE engineering missions, and in coordination with Home Team Engineering, support the overall direction of engineering training, education and development programs. Ms. Jackson manages five branches, GE CFE Home Team, Contract Management, Information Management, Personnel Management and Strategic Plans & Programs.
Ms. Jackson has served in various leadership/management capacities during her tenure at DISA, such as Chief, Labor Relations, Chief, Arlington Service Center, Director Service Regions, Program Manager, Global Combat Support System (GCSS) and Deputy Program Director, Global Command and Control System and Global Combat Support System (GCCS & GCSS). While participating in the Defense Leadership Management Program, on rotational assignment with the Department of the Navy, Chief Information Officer, Ms. Jackson successfully co-chaired an intergovernmental collaborative effort sponsored by the Federal CIO Council, Workforce and IT Human Capital Committee’s initiative and develop a Federal enterprise-wide IT Career Planning Tool.
Prior to joining DISA, Ms. Jackson served as the Director for Personnel and EEO for the Federal Labor Relations Authority. She also worked for Defense Nuclear Agency and the Department of Veterans Affairs in human resource management.
Ms. Jackson holds a Masters of Science in National Resources Strategy, from the National Defense University, Industrial College of the Armed Forces, Washington, D.C., and a Masters of Public Administration, Bowie State University, Bowie Maryland. She completed her undergraduate studies at North Carolina Central University, Durham, N.C., and holds certifications as an Acquisition Professional, Level III, Defense Systems Management College, Defense Acquisition University, Ft. Belvior, VA and certifications as a Information Assurance professional and Chief Information Officer professional, from the Information Resources Management College, NDU., Washington, D.C. Ms. Jackson is also a certificated Mediator and Facilitator. [return to top]
CHANCELLOR AAFEA FELLOWS PROGRAM
BERNICE ALSTON, ED.D, SES
Dr. Bernice Alston is currently the Deputy Assistant Administrator for Planning, Policy and Evaluation at NASA Headquarters in Washington, DC. She was the former Director of Elementary and Secondary Education at NASA Headquarters. Alston has a Bachelor of Science in Speech Pathology, a Master of Science in Communication Sciences, and an Educational Doctorate in Education Administration and Policy Management from George Washington University.
Alston comes to NASA from the Maryland Local Education Fund in Baltimore. She directed a whole-school reform initiative that involved more than seventy-five schools throughout the state of Maryland.
Alston has been a teacher, principal, Director of the Speech and Hearing Clinic at Howard University, university professor, assistant superintendent, and a key player in systemic school reform. These experiences prepared her to present at national conferences such as the American Astronautical Society, National Staff Development Conference, Public Education Network Conference, Education Trust Conference, Maryland Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development and the Council of Chief State School Officers National Conference on Large Scale Assessments. She has shared her knowledge of urban school reform with numerous school districts throughout the country.
Her tenure at NASA has afforded her the opportunity to administratively support the Educator Astronaut Pathfinder Initiative, the NASA Explorer Schools Pathfinder initiative, NASA Explorer Institutes, higher education and minority and underrepresented programs. These national initiatives are destined to improve the quality of education in the areas of science, technology, engineering and math throughout our nation.
Alston represents NASA on the Federal-wide School Environment Policy and Strategies committee of the President's Council on Environmental Quality. She is a member of the Federal Interagency Committee on Education and the US Department of Education's Math/Science Initiative. Alston represents NASA on the International Space Education Board composed of Japan, Canada, European Space Agency and NASA. She collaborates with numerous federal agencies, school districts and universities on educational issues.
Alston received the NASA Outstanding Leadership Medal in April 2005. Her distinguished career has allowed her to bond with educators, community supporters and members of the business community. Her passion for education and her love of children has been reflected throughout her career.
She lives in Maryland with her husband, John and is the proud mother of two adult sons. [return to top]
MEMBER AT LARGE
LILLIAN BRADLEY
Lillian Grace Bradley is currently an environmental economist with the Environmental Protection Agency. She works in the Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards, Health and Environmental Impacts Division, Air Benefits Cost Group in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina. There she focuses on the economic impacts of air pollution regulation and policy on American Indian Reservations and environmental justice groups and communities. Lillian has been employed with the Federal government for almost thirty years. She worked first as an economist and computer systems designer with the Department of Interior in Washington, DC. In 1991 she joined EPA and relocated back to North Carolina.
With an extensive and diverse Federal career, in 2008 Lillian was selected by Office of Air and Radiation as its’ sole representative to EPA’s premier leadership and professional development program. As a result, she received the plum assignment of working in the Office of the Chief Financial Officer, Office of Budget as the Acting Associate Staff Director of the Multi-Media Analysis Staff. This position afforded her a four month stay in the DC area and provided her unparalleled exposure to the interworking of the Agency’s budget and related legislative process. Additionally, in 2008 Lillian was honored and pleased to join the Board of the African American Federal Executive Association as well.
Outside of work, she is the recent past Chair of the Friends of African and African American Art at the NC Museum of Art in Raleigh NC. The FAAAA is an advocacy group collaborating with the Museum on the refinement and expansion of it’s collection of African and African American Art. While Chairing the group for the past four years and with Lillian’s leadership, the group recently made their first art acquisition and donation to the Museum in the form of an Allison Saar sculpture entitled “Tippy Toes”. Lillian was interviewed and quoted in the local newspapers giving her perspective and reflection of the piece. Her love of art and commitment to the NC Museum remains as she continues to be an active member and influence in the FAAAA.
Lillian received her Bachelor’s degree from Howard University in Washington, DC and a Masters from Virginia State University in Petersburg, VA. Prior to her Federal employment, Lillian worked as a Commercial Lending Officer with Trust Company Bank in Atlanta, Georgia. At Trust Company Bank she distinguished herself by becoming the first African American female to complete and graduate from their prestigious Executive Training Program.
Lillian is an avid reader in the area of self development and metaphysics. She also enjoys studying complimentary healing modalities. Lillian was born and reared in Hamlet, NC. Hamlet is also the birthplace of jazz great John Coltrane. [return to top]
MEMBER-AT-LARGE
JOHN M. ROBINSON, SES
John M. Robinson was appointed Director of the Office of Civil Rights and Chief Diversity Officer for the Department of State in March, 2008. He serves as primary advisor to the Secretary of State and her senior leadership on EEO, diversity, affirmative employment, and related issues. Prior to this appointment, Mr. Robinson was the first Chief of EEO and Diversity for the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. He served in a similar role for the Internal Revenue Service from 2001 to 2005.
Robinson was Senior Policy Advisor to the Secretary of the Department of Energy (DOE) from 1999 to 2001. There he was responsible for workplace and worklife improvements - i.e. employee relations, EEO reform, improving management practices, leadership development, labor relations, health and fitness, and community outreach. He helped DOE leaders recruit a more diverse workforce, achieve a healthier work style and create a more worker-friendly environment, all in partnership with DOE chapters of the National Treasury Employees Union. Mr. Robinson also led a Fact-Finding Delegation to DOE Nuclear Laboratories in the wake of the Wen Ho Lee Case; co-managed the DOE Task Force Against Racial Profiling; and was chief architect of the first DOE-Wide EEO/Diversity Stand Down.
Mr. Robinson completed a special assignment on the staff of the National Partnership for Reinventing Government, represented DOE on the White House Initiative on Asian American and Pacific Islanders and the EEO/NPR Government-Wide EEO Task Force. His federal service began in 1994 as Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Employment and Training Administration (ETA) of the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL). A consistent advocate for Total Quality Management and innovative management techniques, Mr. Robinson directed the U.S. Employment Service, was senior manager for ETA’s Reinvention Team and a charter member of both the agency’s Enterprise Council for Training Excellence and the Labor/Management Partnership Council. He was also ETA’s principal delegate for the Northern Ireland Growth Challenge for workforce development, lead Labor official for the Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) Initiative, DOL Lead Executive for both the DC Assistance Project and the St. Petersburg, Florida Interagency Task Force.
Prior to federal service, Mr. Robinson served in the Rhode Island Governor’s Cabinet as Director of the RI Department of Employment and Training from 1991 to 1993. He was a senior dean at Brown University before joining state government and held various administrative positions in higher education from 1973 to 1990. Selected in 1987 as a Group VIII Fellow of the Kellogg Foundation (Kellogg National Fellowship Program), Robinson studied leadership in the United States and abroad -- Belize, China, Brazil and Cuba. He completed training as a Baldridge Examiner. A Vietnam-era veteran, he served as a naval officer aboard a destroyer and an ammunition ship, and earned the Navy Commendation Medal. A graduate of Brown University, Mr. Robinson holds a Masters degree from Tuskegee University and completed programs at the Center for Creative Leadership - Greensboro, the Federal Executive Institute - Charlottesville, and the Institute for Education Management at Harvard University. In 2007 Robinson received the Distinguished Alumnus Award from the Center for Creative Leadership. [return to top]
MEMBER-AT-LARGE
DENNIS DAY
Dennis Day is the Director of the Air Force Declassification Office, Office of the Administrative Assistant to the Secretary of the Air Force, Headquarters Air Force (HAF), Pentagon, Washington, District of Columbia. He is responsible for performing Presidential-mandated declassification reviews of historical records for the Secretary of the Air Force.
Mr. Day performs high-level assignments to identify and resolve security issues related to records involving intelligence and military operations in support of the Air Force Chief of Staff’s initiative to reduce classified holdings. He manages personnel, logistical planning, and budgeting for over 50 civilian and contractor document reviewer personnel located at five records depositories. Mr. Day establishes unit operational policies and procedures to ensure adherence to security guidelines and quality production standards. He manages and supports issues requiring resolution or special protection such as restricted data, privacy act and proprietary data. Mr. Day coordinates actions to develop guidelines for handling sensitive information with the following agencies: Defense Intelligence Agency, Central Intelligence Agency, and Department of State, National Security Council, Military Commands and other Executive Branch agencies.
Prior to his current position, Mr. Day was a Senior Policy Analyst with the Department of Energy, Office of Classification and Information Control, Germantown, MD from November 1997 - June 1999. Mr. Day is a retired Air Force officer with 26 years of service.
Mr. Day holds a Bachelor’s of science degree from North Carolina A&T State University. He also holds a Master’s of science degree from Michigan State University, and a Doctorate degree in Religious Education. Mr. Day attended the Brookings Institution Center for Executive Education, and obtained a Certificate of Public Leadership with an emphasis on National Security.
In 2007, Mr. Day was recognized as the civilian Air Force award winner of the Blacks in Government Meritorious Service Award. In 2005, Mr. Day was awarded the Air Force Exemplary Civilian Service Award. Military decorations include the Meritorious Service Medal with three oak clusters, Air Force Commendation Medal with two oak clusters, Achievement Medal, Korean Defense Service Medal, Liberation of Kuwait Medal, Humanitarian Service Medal, Armed Forces Reserve Medal – Mobilization, National Defense Service Medal with bronze star and Global War on Terrorism Service Medal. [return to top]