Lois Mufuka Martin is the Executive Director of Girls Education Collaborative (GEC). She brings more than 25 years of leadership across the nonprofit and philanthropic sectors as a practitioner, grantmaker, search professional, and consultant. Her work is rooted in equity, systems-building, and community-centered impact. As a Zimbabwean immigrant, she is energized to lead mission-driven work that strengthens the lives of women and girls across the African continent and beyond through long-term partnership and locally informed solutions.

Prior to joining GEC, Lois served as Managing Partner at KAVA Consultancy, where she provided organizational effectiveness support, interim nonprofit leadership, and inclusive and equitable search services. She also served as a Managing Director at Diversified Search Global | Storbeck Search, where she led full-cycle executive searches and advised boards and hiring committees on equitable and inclusive recruitment. Earlier, she served as Vice President of Search and Consulting Services at CalWest Educators Placement, where she expanded search and consulting services and supported schools in recruiting women and leaders of color for senior roles.

From 2008 to 2015, she served as Chief Executive Officer of Bethlehem Haven in Pittsburgh, where she led a post-merger organization through change management, strategic visioning, and financial stewardship while supporting comprehensive services for women experiencing homelessness. She also held senior leadership roles with United Way organizations in North Carolina and Pennsylvania, where she advanced outcomes-based community investment, mobilized volunteers, and built cross-sector partnerships.

Lois has presented nationally and internationally on equitable leadership, inclusive hiring, immigrant identity, and the power of volunteerism. She has been recognized with the Homer S. Brown Drum Major for Justice Award from the Allegheny County Bar Association, the Women of Achievement Award, and the Woman of Excellence Award from The New Pittsburgh Courier.

She holds a Certificate in Leading Innovation and Creating a Dynamic Organization from Carnegie Mellon University, a Master of Education in Counseling from Clemson University, and a Bachelor of Arts in History from Lander University. She currently serves on the board of Education Matters Africa, which supports the USAP Community School in Zimbabwe, and she remains committed to values-aligned governance and durable, measurable impact.

Lisa Fiala is GEC’s Director of Programs & Operations and an international development leader with more than 20 years of experience designing, leading, and scaling education and social impact initiatives across 40+ countries.

At GEC, Lisa leads program strategy, partnerships, and organizational operations. She oversees GEC’s partnership with Kitenga Girls Secondary School in Tanzania, the Ally Funder Alliance, and the development of new program initiatives, working closely with local partners to align strategy, investment, and implementation. Her work spans program design and evaluation, partnership and funding strategy, organizational systems, and long-term planning, with a focus on building locally led solutions that are both effective and sustainable.

Lisa’s career spans international development, education, philanthropy, and global exchange. At American Councils for International Education, she led international programming across seven countries and managed a 22-person team. Her broader career has included building multi-country programs and partnerships, leading cross-cultural teams, and creating opportunities that connect institutions and communities around the world.

Lisa began her international development career as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Bulgaria and Ghana, experiences that continue to shape her commitment to community-driven development and equitable global partnership. A Fulbright International Education Administrators grantee, she also teaches international development and global studies at the university level.

Lisa holds a Master of Arts in Sustainable International Development from the School for International Training and a Bachelor of Science in Mass Communication from Miami University.

Lisa Fiala is GEC’s Director of Programs & Operations and an international development leader with more than 20 years of experience designing, leading, and scaling education and social impact initiatives across 40+ countries.
At GEC, Lisa leads program strategy, partnerships, and organizational operations. She oversees GEC’s partnership with Kitenga Girls Secondary School in Tanzania, the Ally Funder Alliance, and the development of new program initiatives, working closely with local partners to align strategy, investment, and implementation. Her work spans program design and evaluation, partnership and funding strategy, organizational systems, and long-term planning, with a focus on building locally led solutions that are both effective and sustainable.

Lisa’s career spans international development, education, philanthropy, and global exchange. At American Councils for International Education, she led international programming across seven countries and managed a 22-person team. Her broader career has included building multi-country programs and partnerships, leading cross-cultural teams, and creating opportunities that connect institutions and communities around the world.

Lisa began her international development career as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Bulgaria and Ghana, experiences that continue to shape her commitment to community-driven development and equitable global partnership. A Fulbright International Education Administrators grantee, she also teaches international development and global studies at the university level.
Lisa holds a Master of Arts in Sustainable International Development from the School for International Training and a Bachelor of Science in Mass Communication from Miami University.

Guillemette is GEC’s Programs & Partnerships Manager, where she leads the implementation, strengthening, and development of the organization’s core programs and partnerships. Her portfolio includes the Girls Rise Fund at Kitenga Girls Secondary School, the school’s technology expansion, and the Ally Funder Alliance, a trust-based funding model supporting locally led organizations advancing girls’ education in underserved regions.

She works across program strategy, partnership development, funding, program design, and implementation, translating organizational priorities into practical systems and long-term plans. Her work focuses on aligning resources, program design, partner capacity, and on-the-ground realities to strengthen program quality and deliver sustainable outcomes for girls. She also supports the development of new initiatives and works closely with GEC’s local partners to ensure that programs are responsive to context and built for long-term impact.

Guillemette brings a background in social entrepreneurship, technology, and systems design to her work in international development. She co-founded two technology companies, including Chatterbox, a social enterprise recognized as one of Europe’s leading social-tech ventures, where she led product and operations and helped scale a refugee employment model. This experience continues to inform her approach to building practical, adaptable systems and using technology and innovation to address complex social challenges.

Her relationship with GEC began in 2015, when she first visited Kitenga Girls Secondary School as a volunteer alongside GEC’s founder, Anne Wadsworth. Over the years, she continued to support GEC’s work, including producing short movies documenting the organization’s programs and the experiences of students and communities in Tanzania. She formally joined GEC in 2022.

Guillemette holds a BA in International Development and Political Science from McGill University in Canada and completed an Honours year at the University of Auckland in New Zealand.

Anne is Founder & Senior Advisor of Girls Education Collaborative. Public affairs and education have always been at the heart of her career.  While earning an Executive Masters of Public Administration from Syracuse University’s Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, she was inspired to take a deliberate ‘pivot’ into the newly emerging field of global girls education. She served as Executive Director of the Kakenya Center for Excellence, a girls school in Kenya, before founding Girls Education Collaborative in 2012.

Previously, Anne served as the President of the Board for the East Aurora School District and helped launch Enterprise Charter School in Buffalo, New York.  She has lobbied on Capitol Hill for public education and has served as a Trustee for the Buffalo Seminary, an all-girls secondary school. She was also Campaign Director for Alice Kryzan for Congress in 2008.

Anne has a Bachelor of Arts from Bowdoin College and describes herself as “a Buffalo gal who is passionate about things that happen both here and beyond”. She has three grown children and a delightful grandson.  She enjoys canoe tripping (except during thunder storms), kayaking, hiking, reading, doing new things and dancing with her husband.

Georgia Dachille, GEC Board Chair, is the Executive Vice President of Global Growth and Technology at Rich Products Corporation. In the 27 years Georgia has worked at Rich’s, she has held various positions across the business.  In her current role, she leads Rich’s innovation efforts including oversight of R&D, global marketing and strategic growth initiatives.  Prior to working at Rich’s, Georgia worked at Ernst & Young as a senior auditor.

She is a graduate of Canisius College where she received both a Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting and her Master of Business Administration degree.

Board Secretary Dr. Christine Brown is a Buffalo native and board-certified Pediatrician. After completing her residency at the Women and Children’s Hospital of Buffalo, she served as Chief Resident, taking an active role in pediatric medical education. She earned her Doctorate from the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine, and her Bachelor’s degree from Miami University of Ohio.

Crediting a strong and empowering all-girls high school education to Buffalo’s Nardin Academy, she supports GEC’s mission to further girls’ education globally. She provides input and guidance to GEC on medical and health-related issues pertinent to the Kitenga project. Dr. Brown has interests in wilderness medicine and promoting child development from a holistic point of view.

Having travelled to Kitenga, Tanzania to the IHSA Kitenga Secondary School for Girls in 2018 and 2020, Christine saw firsthand the immediate positive impact of GEC on the lives of the girls and also the families in the Kitenga Village.

Robynn McPartlan Rich is a Human Resources Consultant with RM Rich. She has more than three decades of Human Resources experience across numerous industries including manufacturing, banking and financial services, healthcare and technology. Her areas of expertise are organizational leadership, recruiting, salary planning, talent and performance management, coaching, succession planning, regulatory compliance, change management, team and organization development.

In her former role as Director of Human Resources at Mattel/Fisher-Price, Inc., Robynn was a strategic business partner for executives and associates. She has extensive experience in succession planning, employee development and facilitating organizational change initiatives to impact cultural change and building successful teams. 

Robynn earned her MBA from Canisius College and currently holds extensive training and creative problem solving certifications.

In addition to being a part of the GEC board, Robynn’s community activities include; Advisory Board Member, Canisius College, Wehle School of Business and a Board Member, United Church Manor.

Brianne, GEC Board Vice-Chair, is an associate attorney with Hodgson Russ Real Estate and Finance Practice, where she represents clients in various commercial and real estate matters, including banking and finance, public-private partnerships, real estate development and real estate leasing.

“I’ve always been passionate about education, as I’ve experienced the benefits firsthand. I understand and appreciate how education helps with all forms of independence, particularly with girls and young women. I’m interested in helping reduce the barriers girls and women in particular face in obtaining an education. Furthermore, as an attorney practicing in the real estate and finance area, I don’t consider myself to practice in the public interest. By serving on GEC’s Board of Directors, I hope to use my legal skills to help further the public interest through GEC’s mission,” Brianne Szopinski.

Brianna R. Cornelius is an Educator, Linguist, Author, Social Activist, and Cultural Strategist. She is the founder and principal researcher of Evolve Initiative, an LLC which specializes in equity and inclusivity consulting by employing strategic planning processes. As an educator, Brianna has 13 years of extensive experience in the classroom with students ranging from Pre Kindergarten to the University level.

Brianna earned her B.A. in Romance Languages from Bowdoin College (2009), her M.A. in Linguistics from SUNY Buffalo (2013), and her Doctorate in Sociolinguistics (2020) from the University of South Carolina where her research centered around the interface of language and socially constructed realities (notably identity as intersectional and multiplex). Her current work examines the ways in which communities use language to create imbalanced and unjust societies via cultural practices and systems.

Kari partners with not-for-profit organizations, foundations, and start-up and emerging companies to provide strategic thought partnership, program leadership, and project management for multi-stakeholder initiatives and grants; strategic communications direction; and organizational strategy and development. 

Prior to forming her own consulting agency, Kari helped to build a multi-disciplinary team at the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus, Inc., leading the organization’s strategic communications and branding, programming and external affairs, and collaborative grants and Campus-wide initiatives. Before relocating to Buffalo, Kari worked in Washington, DC and New York City, with national foundations, not-for-profit organizations, and academic centers dedicated to advancing social change. 

Kari is a graduate of Syracuse University’s S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications. She is the president of the Advisory Board of the Women’s Business Center at Canisius College and on the Board of Trustees for Elmwood Franklin School. 

Toni L. Vazquez was born and raised in Buffalo, NY. She is an entrepreneur, a wife, and a mother of four. Toni is the Vice President of CINQ Care, New York. CINQ recently acquired G-Health Enterprises, a company she co-founded. G-Heath was a conglomerate of eight individual healthcare companies, including GBUAHN (Greater Buffalo United Accountable Healthcare Network) and Urban Family Practice, PC. She co-founded (GBUCBO) Greater Buffalo United Community Based Organization, formerly The Raul and Toni Vazquez Foundation.

Toni’s commitment to community extends beyond her entrepreneurial endeavors. Her active involvement on various committees and boards, including Visit Buffalo/Niagara, the Buffalo/Niagara Convention Center, the WNY Women’s Foundation, and Medaille University, underscores her dedication to civic engagement. Additionally, she was an elected member and former president of the Williamsville Central School District Board of Education. She currently serves on the board of trustees for Shea’s Performing Arts Center and the Buffalo Zoo.

Toni earned a doctoral degree in Health Administration from D’Youville University, an MBA from Medaille University, and a BA in Psychology from the University of Buffalo. Her relentless pursuit of excellence is further demonstrated through acquiring a Six-Sigma Black Belt certification from Villanova University, a diploma from the Women’s Campaign School at Yale University, and a certificate in Promoting Racial Equity in the Workplace from Harvard University.

Aderonke “Ronke” Adebajo brings a global perspective and a lifelong commitment to opportunity, access, and the power of education to transform lives. Born in Nigeria and educated in the United Kingdom through her primary, secondary, and tertiary studies, she was raised in a strong, independent, and highly educated Nigerian family that championed academic excellence for girls. That foundation shaped her deep belief in the ability of education to expand confidence, choices, and life trajectories, especially for girls and underserved communities. Now living in the United States with her family, Ronke is honored to contribute her skills to mission-driven organizations through dedicated board service.

Ronke is a strategic, people-centered Human Resources and talent leader with more than two decades of experience across financial services, healthcare, and executive search. She currently serves as a Relationship Manager with PNC Financial Wellness Solutions, where she partners with major companies and organizations in Pittsburgh to design and implement financial wellness strategies that strengthen workforce well-being and economic stability. Over the course of her tenure at PNC, she has held several senior roles spanning executive recruitment, human resources, and institutional asset management sales enablement across the Southeastern United States.

Before joining PNC, Ronke led executive recruiting at UPMC, partnering with senior leaders to identify talent capable of driving mission impact. Earlier in her career, she worked in the City of London in executive search, advising on leadership placements across multiple industries. She holds a BA (Honors) in Politics, Economics & Law and an LLM in International & Commercial Law from the University of Buckingham.

Zachary “Zac” McGee is a Certified Public Accountant and investment banking leader who brings deep financial expertise and broad cross sector experience to the Girls Education Collaborative Board of Directors. Eager to utilize his skills in finance, strategy, and operational analysis to support GEC, he is committed to strengthening the systems and resources that help girls overcome gender-based barriers and expand their opportunities through education.

Zac currently serves as an Investment Banking Vice President at Paramax Corporation in Buffalo, New York, where he advises on divestitures and acquisitions for lower middle market and private equity backed companies. His work includes building financial models, guiding clients through due diligence and definitive agreement phases, and developing market materials that position businesses for successful outcomes. He has helped close more than $400 million in transactions across distribution, manufacturing, and service sectors, including several accelerated transactions completed in under six months.

Previously, Zac held roles in valuation and investment reporting at Manulife Investment Management and Bain Capital Credit in Boston, supporting private equity and credit portfolios through valuation modeling, performance reporting, and analysis of complex fund and legal structures. He began his career at PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, where he audited asset management clients and developed streamlined testing tools that improved efficiency while supervising and mentoring junior associates.

Zac earned both a Bachelor of Science in Accounting and a Master of Science in Accounting from the University at Buffalo, graduating with high academic distinction. He is a CPA licensed in Massachusetts and holds FINRA Series 63, 79, and 82 licenses, as well as the Securities Industry Essentials credential. On the GEC board, he is excited to bring disciplined financial ste@wardship, clear analysis, and collaborative leadership in service of girls and young women pursuing education and leadership.

Andrea Griffa Harden is a certified senior-level human resources leader, trained facilitator, and trusted advisor to mission-driven organizations across Western New York. She is proud to bring her deep community roots and decades of people-centered leadership to board service and is excited to join the GEC board. Andrea values that the GEC board, staff, and partner organizations represent talent from around the world united by a shared commitment to expanding opportunity for girls through education.

Andrea currently serves as Director of Talent & Culture at the Buffalo AKG Art Museum, where she partners with senior leadership to develop and communicate human resources strategies, strengthen employee engagement, and advance institutional priorities. In this role, she supports the design and implementation of policies, procedures, and people practices that help teams thrive. Known for her steady leadership and relationship-building approach, Andrea works to align culture and operational excellence so employees feel supported, valued, and empowered to do their best work.

She is also the owner of Harden Training Partners, where she provides senior-level HR and business consulting with a focus on training, facilitation, and team development. Earlier in her career, she held HR leadership roles with organizations including Definity Health/United Health, Praxair, Inc., and AirSep Corporation.

Andrea holds an MBA in Human Resources from the University at Buffalo and a BS in Business Administration from SUNY Buffalo State. She maintains the SPHR credential and is a DDI® Certified Trainer and certified I-OPT® Organizational Engineer.

A respected civic leader, Andrea has been recognized as a Power 100 Leader of Color (2023–2025) and a Buffalo Business First IDEA Award recipient (2023). She has been married for 30 years and has two children, Tala and Nathanael.