board of directors

2019 Executive Board
Holly Seibold, BRAWS Founder and Executive Director
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Holly Seibold founded BRAWS in 2015. She is a graduate of George Washington University with a M.Ed in Elementary Education, as well a B.A. from American University in Washington, DC. Holly is a fierce advocate for women's rights and has diverse career experience in education and nonprofits. She is the recipient of the 2017 Northern Virginia Chamber of Commerce Emerging Influential Leader of the Year Award and the winner of the Heroines of Washington 2017 award. She is also the owner of m2 Academy - an educational firm offering consulting services, after-school programs and summer camps.
Jennifer Min –  Chair
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Jennifer Min has been a School Psychologist for Fairfax County Public Schools for over 20 years. She earned a Master of Education and an Educational Specialist degree from James Madison University.  Jennifer also serves in a variety of volunteer roles in her community. She has been an active volunteer with BRAWS since 2016.
Barbara Holmes - Vice Chair
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Barbara Holmes, CPA, is a Compliance Director for a mortgage company with over 25 years of experience in the areas of mortgage compliance, risk, internal audit, and controls. She is a co-founder of the first Global Women's Affinity Group at her current employer, where she is involved in teaching diversity and inclusion classes. Barbara has a B.S. in Business Administration and English from McDaniel College. She has been volunteering with BRAWS since 2017, and previously held volunteer board positions with several other organizations.
Bruce Neilson- Treasurer
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Bruce Neilson retired from the U. S. Department of Justice in 2008, after 31 years of service, where he was involved in program planning, budgeting and financial management and has served in a number of volunteer positions in the community.  He is an advocate for the less fortunate with 20 years of involvement with SALT, www.S-A-L-T.org,  or Social Action Linking Together.  He embraces BRAWS goals and objectives and looks forward to working with the other members of the Board to bring new and exciting growth to the organization.
Ilene Trachtenberg- Secretary
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Ilene Trachtenberg is the former executive director of the Weissberg Foundation, which supports nonprofit organizations that advance social justice for youth and adults in underserved communities.  She earned her Nonprofit Management Executive Certificate from Georgetown University and holds a bachelor’s degree from the College of Staten Island-CUNY.   Ilene has served on evaluation and steering committees of major philanthropic organizations in the Washington, DC region, including projects of the Greater Washington Community Foundation.  

Board of Directors

Mary Franceschini- Volunteer Engagement
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​After earning her B. A. in Literature from Florida State University and her M. A. in Communication Theory from the University of Central Florida, Mary Franceschini taught for 3 years before joining Prentice Hall / Pearson Higher Education in sales and marketing. Now a full-time mom, Mary has been very involved with BRAWS working in the office and at events such as Mardi Bras.
Renee Cleveland Harris- Programs
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Renee Cleveland Harris is an Analyst for the Federal Government, with over 25 years experience in strategic planning, program management, policy development, and oversight of statutory compliance.  She has earned both a Bachelor of Arts and a Masters of Education degree from the University of Maryland, College Park and is a United States Air Force Veteran.  Renee has been an active volunteer with BRAWS since 2016.
Amanda Brown- Grants, Awards, Corporate Partnerships
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​Amanda Brown has served the nonprofit and international development community for over 15 years. As a Director in KPMG's Development and Exempt Organizations team, Amanda provided grant management and organizational strategy and effectiveness support to organizations inside and outside the US. Amanda holds a B.S. in Accounting and received certificates in Nonprofit Management and Project Management. Amanda became an active volunteer with BRAWS in 2018
Laura Stokes- Programs
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Laura Stokes is a writer and teacher in Fairfax City.  She has an MFA in creative writing from the New School in New York City, and her work has been published in BUST magazine, Bookforum, the Brooklyn Rail and XOJane.  

advisory board

Nikki Richens- Marketing & PR
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Nikki Richens recently relocated to Fairfax from Memphis, TN. She comes to the BRAWS family with over 6 years of experience helping top touring artists connect with their fans as the social media director at a concert promotion company. She is excited to put her expertise to work helping BRAWS connect to their biggest fans (old and new), while spreading the message of such a worthy cause.  

Erika Yalowitz- Domestic Violence and Juvenile Justice
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Erika Milena Yalowitz has worked with at-risk youth, women and families for over a decade. She brings deep knowledge and understanding of how domestic violence affects local families in Northern Virginia and it's connection to homelessness.  As a community advocate, Erika also enjoys making connections that support the mission of BRAWS and lead to collaborative and complementary work with other organizations.  Erika is has a double bachelors in Political Science & Government and International Relations and graduate studies in Political Management and Governance from GWU and a professional certificate in Business Administration from Georgetown University. 
*To become involved, please click on the VOLUNTEER button below.