CPA
Jeffrey Huff serves as DREAM's Board President. He is a native of Jackson, MS. After graduating form Mississippi College, he worked with a CPA firm and also started his CPA practice in Jackson. In 1992 he sold his accounting practice and began a career in private industry holding several positions such as vice president of operations and accounting management. In 1998 he joined Mississippi Roofing Supply, Inc., as the Chief Financial Officer and served as the principal and treasurer of the company.
Special Projects Manager, Central Mississippi Planning and Development District
Geraldine Yates has served as Special Projects Manager within the Human Resources Division of Central Mississippi Planning and Development District (CMPDD) since 2002. In that capacity, she plans, implements and coordinates special projects within the local workforce area, formulates policies, rules, and regulations, and plans and develops budgets for special projects. Also at CMPDD, she served as Job Training Director for ten years. Her background in employment training is extensive. She served for 18 years in various positions including Manager of the Employment Training Division; Director of Job Development and Management; and Education Program Executive for the Mississippi Service Delivery Area.
CEO, Environmental Plus
Alfred Martin, Jr., is President and CEO of Environmental Management Plus, Inc., based in Jackson, MS. Prior to starting his business, he was the Executive Director of Greater Jackson Youth Service Corps, a nonprofit that worked with at-risk youth. He was instrumental in operating two of the first Americorps programs (Anti-Hunger Corps and Public Lands Corps). He has also worked as a General Assignment Reporter at WLBT-TV3 in Jackson and sales manager at WLBM-TV in Meridian. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Mass Communications and a Master of Business Administration degree in Management from Jackson State University.
Training & Technical Assistance Specialist, STG International
Valerie Campbell is a Training and Technical Assistance Specialist for STG International Inc., where she coordinates training for Head Start professionals. Her educational background is in Early Childhood and Special Education. Her long career with Head Start has allowed her to utilize her strengths, knowledge and dedication to young children, their families, and the communities they live in.
U.S. Marshall, U.S. Marshal Southern District U.S. Marshals Service
Nehemiah Flowers serves as the United States Marshal for the Southern District of Mississippi. He was recently named as Federal Law Enforcement Officer of the Year and is one of two African Americans to serve as U.S. Marshal in Mississippi since Reconstruction. In 1973 he joined the staff of Representative Thad Cochran and later joined Cochran’s Senate staff. Until his recent confirmation as U.S. Marshal, he was the longest serving staff member with 29 years of service. He is a graduate of Belhaven College with a degree in Business Administration.
Education Consultant, Dillon & Associates
Rae Dillon DREAM’s Board Secretary, is president of Rae Dillon and Associates, a consultant firm providing training, media relations, and event planning to organizations and businesses. Rae has a long and distinguished career in substance abuse prevention formerly serving as Director of Safe and Drug Free Schools for the Mississippi Department of Education and Regional Coordinator for the Southwest Regional Center for Drug Free Schools and Communities.
Nancy Lane Real Estate
Nancy Lane is a Commercial Real Estate Broker and owner of Nancy Lane Commercial Realty, Inc. She has six years of experience as an Independent Broker and Commercial Realtor handling sales, leasing, management of shopping centers and other properties. She also has 18 years experience as Director of Real Estate for McCarty Holman Company, which included five family-owned partnerships. The family-owned partnerships included 15 shopping centers and freestanding investment properties. She was named 2003 Realtor of the Year by the Mississippi Commercial Association of Realtors.
Curriculum Consultant
IvaMcCants formerly served as Federal Grants Administration for Jackson Public Schools where she supervised Safe and Drug Free Schools and other federal grant programs. Iva recently retired from Jackson Public Schools and serves as a consultant working with various school districts. She is an experienced grant writer and reviewer.
Manager Nissan-North America-Canton
Ahmad Choudhry is director of supply chain management for Nissan-North America’s Canton auto-manufacturing complex. Choudhry is from Pakistan and is married with five children. He holds a B.S degree in Mathematics, an MBA and a PH.D in Production and Planning from the University of Northern Iowa. He is a resident of Madison, MS.
Executive State Association of Realtors MS Association of Realtors
Beth Howell Hansen is association executive for the MS Association of Realtors and is immediate past president of the Junior League of Jackson, MS, who were instrumental in founding DREAM in 1981 and have been strong supporters of DREAM’s work over the last quarter century. Beth earned her BS and Master from MS State University in micro-biology and taught microbiology at Hinds Community College for a decade. A strong community leader, Beth serves on the Board of Directors of the new Children’s Museum of Jackson and has help this group raise nearly $20 million to construct a state-of-the-art children’s museum in the Capital Area. A graduate of Leadership Jackson, Beth is a volunteer leader for Mission Mississippi and with two teenaged sons of her own, she is very concerned about drug education for Mississippi’s young people.
Attorney and CPA Wise Carter Child & Caraway
Barry Jones is a shareholder in the Wise Carter Child & Caraway law firm in Jackson where he has practiced since 1996. Prior to joining Wise Carter, Jones spent 15 years as an attorney with law firms in Jackson and Chattanooga and a CPA firm in Chattanooga. He earned a BS degree from the University of Southern MS, his law degree from Emory University in Atlanta, before earning his Certified Public Accountant from the MS Board of Public Accountancy. Jones has served as Board Chair for the Russell C. Davis Planetarium Foundation, treasurer for the MS Symphony Orchestra Association, President of the Alzheimer’s Association of Central MS, and president of the Rotary Club of Madison-Ridgeland. He has authored some forty articles on a range of legal issues and is a frequent speaker on state and federal taxation, business law, estate planning and elder law issues.
Attorney Shell Buford, PLLC
Jonathan Bullock is an associate at the Jackson law firm of Shell Buford, PLLC, joining the firm after clerking for Judge Kenneth Perry from 2002-2004. After earning his GED from high school, Bullock attended Hinds Community College, then earned is B.A from MS State University and his law degree from the MS College School of Law. Active in community affairs, Bullock serves on the MS Department of Education’s Drop-Out Prevention Task Force, Executive Committee of the Madison County Republican Party, president of the Highland Ridge Homeowners Association and is a youth softball coach. His law practice specialties include civil litigation defense, professorial liability, products liability and medical malpractice defense.
Hospital Vice President St. Dominic Hospital in Jackson
Trace Swartzfager is vice president of professional services for St. Dominic Hospital in Jackson, where he has been on the management team since 1996. A Laurel, MS native, Swartzfager earned a B.A in Business Administration from the University of Mississippi and an MBA from Mississippi College. He has been honored as one of Mississippi’s “Top 40, Under 40” and is president of the Mississippi Chapter of American College of Healthcare Executives. Swartzfager serves on the board of the MS Chapter of the American Red Cross and legislation committee of the MS Hospital Association. Prior to joining St. Dominic Hospital, Trace was a member of the management team at Charter Hospital in Jackson and Forrest General Hospital in Hattiesburg.