Christina Biebesheimer, Chair
Christina Biebesheimer is Chief Counsel of the Justice Reform Practice Group in the Legal Vice-Presidency of the World Bank, which assists Bank staff and client countries to make justice systems more effective, fair, accountable and accessible. She was Principal Specialist in Modernization of the State in the Inter-American Development Bank from 1989 - 2005 where her work involved public sector management reform and strengthening the role of civic organizations in the political process and in violence prevention. Ms. Biebesheimer was an associate with the law firm Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy from 1986 - 2005, where she worked in corporate and banking law.

Her publications include "Measuring the Impact of Criminal Justice Reform in Latin America" (in Promoting the Rule of Law Abroad, Thomas Carothers, editor, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, 2006); "The Impact of Human Rights Principles on Justice Reform in the Inter-American Development Bank" (in Human Rights and Development: Towards Mutual Reinforcement, Alston and Robinson, editors, Oxford University Press, 2005); and Justice Beyond Our Borders: Judicial Reforms for Latin America and the Caribbean (Biebesheimer, Mejia, editors, Johns Hopkins University Press, 2000).

Ms. Biebesheimer holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Iowa, studied at the Universidade Classica de Lisboa, and received her J.D. from Harvard Law School.

Kayra Fili Alhambra, Director
Currently, Kayra Fili Alhambra serves as Assistant Director for CASS U.S. Operations at the Center for Intercultural Education and Development [CIED] at Georgetown University, where she helps to manage CASS, an international development program, based on the award of scholarships for academic, technical and leadership training to socio-economically disadvantaged and highly motivated young adults from Mexico as well as Central American and Caribbean countries.

Kayra has served as a volunteer for Offender Aid and Restoration [OAR] since 2003. She facilitates the Life Skills Program for the Hispanic population at the Arlington County Detention Facility. This is an ongoing program that focuses on topics of need to program participants, including stress management, anger management, emotional healing and meditation. Kayra was on the Diversity Committee of the OAR Volunteer Services Advisory Board when it formed in September 2005, and invited to join the OAR Advisory Board since the summer 2007. She was awarded the Betty Ahearn award for service to OAR and its clients in March 2007.

Kayra has completed courses and graduate coursework at American University, The University of Houston, and Georgetown University. She has an M.A. in Latin American Studies and Development, and she has also completed Professional Certificate Programs in Training, Change Leadership and Professional Management. Her professional affiliations have included membership in the American Society for Training and Development (ASTD) and NAFSA (Association of International Educators).

Kayra Fili Alhambra

Tanya Beauchamp, Director
Tanya Beauchamp moved to the District of Columbia in 1996 to finish up her undergraduate degree in Sociology at the University of Maryland. While in school, she volunteered as a tutor to local high school students and became interested in teaching and working with marginalized populations. After graduating, Tanya stayed in the District working in various law firms and teaching GED and pre-GED classes at night at the Academy of Hope in the District. After three years at the Academy of Hope Tanya decided to return to school to get her Masters Degree in Forensic Psychology during which she worked with PreventionWorks! D.C.’s harm reduction and needle-exchange program. Tanya began volunteering with OAR in 2007. She has tutored clients working toward their GEDs and now teaches computer skills courses in the Arlington County Detention Facility. She joined the OAR Board in June 2008 and has been contributing in many different ways.

Bruce Blackman, Director
Bruce was a foreign service officer for 25 years in East Asia, Latin America and the senior foreign service, specializing in economic program development. Fluent in Spanish, he received masters' degrees from UC Berkeley and Johns Hopkins University.

In 1995, Mr. Blackman began transporting special needs children to school and working with OAR in Northern Virginia. He joined the OAR board and has served as Treasurer, President, and Representative to the Arlington Interfaith Council. Bruce has also served as a mentor to inmates and taught courses in emotional awareness and yoga and meditation in jails and federal prison.

He was elected to the board of an international adoption agency and, more recently, the board of an interfaith foundation. In 2004, Mr Blackman was installed as a Sensei (Zen teacher) in the Zen Peacemaker lineage. Zen is the practice of being present.

As a guiding Zen teacher, Bruce is also a storyteller. He tells stories of spirituality at interfaith retreats, as well as tales about “people in a pinch” at events such as "storytellers' speakeasy." "Stories that fit help to reduce the gravity and lighten us up," Bruce says of their value.

Bruce Blackman

Michael Carleton, Director
Michael W. Carleton has served as Chief Information Officer (CIO) at the U.S. General Services Administration since October 2000. At GSA he is responsible for IT capital planning, enterprise architecture, security, and infrastructure operations for the agency’s $500 million per year IT program. He also champions the interagency eGov initiatives led by GSA.

Prior to joining GSA, Mr. Carleton was the Chief Information Officer for the Office of the Secretary and Deputy Director of the Office of Information Resources Management at the U. S. Department of Health and Human Services. He was responsible for information technology investment reviews, millennium readiness, computer security infrastructure protection, applications systems, network management, and desktop computer support.

Mr. Carleton received his M.S. in Information Resources Management from Syracuse University in 1998. He is also a graduate of the National Defense University Information Resources Management College, the Society for Information Management Regional Learning Forum, and the Federal Executive Institute. He holds an M.P.A. degree from Northeastern University and a B.S. from Boston University. Mr. Carleton is a past president of the Capital Area Chapter of the Society for Information Management, and teaches in an executive development program for emerging CIOs.

Michael Carleton

Garen Dodge, Director
Garen Dodge is a Partner in the Washington DC Region office of Jackson Lewis LLP. Mr. Dodge represents clients before Congress and various federal agencies. He also litigates in federal and state courts and assists companies in establishing workplace “best practices” and programs.

Mr. Dodge is a graduate of the College of William & Mary Marshall-Wythe School of Law where he received his Juris Doctorate in 1982. He also received his Bachelor’s Degree Summa Cum Laude from the University of Wisconsin – Green Bay in 1979.

Mr. Dodge has been on the OAR Board since March 2010.

Mark Ellmore, Director
Mark Ellmore is a Northern Virginia native who currently works at Bank of America as a Mortgage Banking Executive and Senior Loan Officer. Mark has a vast experience in fund-raising and working with nonprofits. His volunteer experience includes working with Jill’s House, Habitat for Humanity, Gospel Rescue Mission, being Chairman of KIT International Missions, along with numerous community outreach and support initiatives. Serving others and doing it for the right reasons are Mark's motives.

Mark has been on the OAR Board of Directors since September of 2009.

Heather Knight, Secretary
Heather Knight has been a writer and creative manager for an international non-profit association and two D.C.-area design firms prior to her current role as associate creative director of Brunner, a regional advertising and digital media agency. There, she manages the creative development of print and digital materials for a wide variety of educational, non-profit and consumer goods clients. She holds a bachelor’s degree, magna cum laude, in English, from Dickinson College. She joined OAR’s board of directors in 2008.

Heather Knight

Mondre' Kornegay, Director
Mondre’ Kornegay works for the Alexandria Sheriff’s Office as the Technical Services Commander and Public Information Officer. Her work experience includes employment as a Lay Counselor in an adult male half-way house, as a Probation/Parole Officer, as a Program Coordinator for a local sentencing alternative program, and in various positions at the Alexandria Sheriff’s Office, culminating in her current position as Technical Services Commander. Prior to this position she was Commander of the Sheriff’s Office’s Inmate Services Division, which was responsible for the inmate classification, function, supervision of mental health services, and overseeing the delivery of inmate programs and volunteer services in the Alexandria Detention Center. In addition to her work with the Sheriff’s Office, she also practice Family Law in Maryland.

Ms. Kornegay holds B.S. in Administration of Justice from Virginia Commonwealth University and a J.D. from the University of Maryland School of Law.

Ms. Kornegay has been on the OAR Board since January 2009.

Mondre’ Kornegay

John Pettiford, Director
Currently, John Pettiford serves as an Employment Specialist for Arlington County Government and as an Instructor for Arlington Adult Education. Prior to coming to Arlington John worked for the New Jersey Department of Labor as a Sr. Employment Counselor, included among his assignments was Liaison to the Northern N.J Correctional Facilities and to New Jersey State Colleges and Universities (Northern Division). As an entrepreneur for many years John owned and operated MFSB Security and Trans Caribbean Auto Parts.

John has been a member of the Board since 2003. He has provided training and workshops for numerous civic groups in New Jersey and the Washington Metropolitan area. He also serves as a Commissioner for the Arlington Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and has served as a mentor for Arlington Teen Father's program.

John has attended Winston-Salem State University, Adelphi University and Bloomfield College with B.A. Degrees in History and Business Administration. He also has a Certificate in Import/Export from New York University.

John Pettiford

Michael Petkovich, Director
Currently, Michael is a Partner in the Washington, D.C. Region office of Jackson Lewis LLP. Prior to working in DC, Michael worked in Chicago where he and one other lawyer opened the firm’s Chicago Office. During 1994, he became the Managing Partner and helped grow the office. Michael moved to Northern Virginia as the Managing Partner of the DC Region Office. Since entering private practice in 1986, Michael has represented employers in a wide range of labor law matters.

Michael graduated cum laude from University of Massachusetts, received his Juris Doctor degree from Valparaiso University Law School in Indiana, and completed his Master’s degree in labor at the University of Massachusetts.

Michael has been an OAR Board member since January 2010.

Robert Price, Director
Robert Price attended Emory University and the University of South Carolina for his undergraduate degree. Then he graduated from George Washington University with his J.D. in 1962; that same year he attended Hague Academy of International Law. Bob was admitted into the District of Columbia Bar, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in 1963, and the United States Supreme Court bar in 1967. Prior to opening his own firm he worked in the US Department of State and the U.S. Civil Rights Commission. He has been a member of several organizations including The District of Columbia Bar, The Association of Trial Lawyers of America, and the Association of Immigration and Nationality Lawyers.

Robert Price became a member of the OAR Board of Directors in March 2006. He currently serves on the Fundraising Committee.

Robert Price

Elissa Rumsey, Director
Elissa Rumsey is a State Representative in the State and Tribal Assistance Division (STAD) at the U.S. Department of Justice Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP). In this position, she represents six states or territories including Connecticut, Nebraska, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island and Vermont. Ms. Rumsey also assists with the Title V grants program and the Blueprints Project. Prior to joining STAD, Ms. Rumsey was a member of OJJDP's Research and Program Development Division (RPDD). While at RPDD she managed projects on Nurse Home Visitation, Youth Courts and Juvenile Sex Offenders.

Ms. Rumsey is also an Adjunct Professor at the University of Baltimore, where she is currently teaching Juvenile Justice - Solutions to Youth Problems. Ms. Rumsey holds a B.A. in Psychology from the University of California at Berkeley and an M.S. degree in Criminal Justice from Northeastern University in Boston. In her capacity as an OAR volunteer, Ms. Rumsey teaches stress management to inmates at the Arlington County Detention Center.

Elissa Rumsey

Jordan Seque, Treasurer
Currently, Jordan Segue works at Freddie Mac as a Senior Financial Credit Risk Analyst in Counterparty Credit Risk Management. Previously, Jordan worked as a Risk Analyst in Market Risk Oversight at Fannie Mae. Jordan has worked in the financial services industry for four years and continues to find opportunities to contribute to society.
Jordan has experience working with numerous charities and nonprofits such as HUD, Make-A-Wish Foundation, Rebuilding Together, and DC Central Kitchen. Jordan graduated from Morehouse College with a Bachelor of Arts in Economics and a minor in Finance.
Jordan has been a member of the OAR Board of Directors since July of 2009.

Tom Ward, Director
Tom Ward joined the OAR Board of Directors in June, 2007. He volunteers within both the Alexandria and Arlington County Detention Facilities. Tom currently serves on OAR’s Fundraising Committee.

Tom’s professional experience includes service in the U.S. Army Reserve from 1970-2000 with assignments including battalion and brigade staffs, company and battalion command, and Joint Service assignments with U.S. Central Command, U.S. Transportation Command, U.S. European Command, the Army Staff, U.S. Space Command, and U.S. Strategic Command. He is a Viet-Nam era veteran, a veteran of Operation Desert Storm and retired as a Lieutenant Colonel in 2000. Tom also enjoyed a long career in public education spanning three states: Illinois, Kansas, and Texas from 1972-2000. He served in a broad range of capacities including substitute and classroom teaching, federal and state grants specialist, student special needs coordination, and campus administration in rural, suburban, and urban communities. Following the conclusion of his military and public education careers Tom joined a Virginia-based information technology consulting firm where he supported elements of the Department of Defense in the areas of computer network operations, information security, and continuity planning.

His academic preparation includes: A.A., Springfield College; B.A., De Paul University, and M.S., Northern Illinois University. Tom resides in Arlington, Virginia where his community volunteer work includes Arlington’s Offender Aid and Restoration, Arlington Independent Media, The Salvation Army, Arlington County Fair, Douglas Park Community Association, the Arlington County Citizen’s Police Academy, and Arlington's Food Assistance Center.

Tom Ward

Gail C. Arnall, Ph.D., Executive Director, Ex-Officio Member
Dr. Arnall became Executive Director of OAR in May, 2005, having previously owned and operated her own educational technology consulting firm of 17 years in Ft. Washington, MD. During those 17 years, Dr. Arnall started and managed eight nationwide distance learning networks in partnership with various educational entities, serving rural high schools, American Indian tribally-controlled colleges and universities, Hispanic colleges and universities, juvenile correctional facilities in Texas, Florida and New York, and volunteers and parents involved in Reading Is Fundamental.® Prior to starting her own company, Dr. Arnall served as Director of Planning and Research for National Public Radio; senior planning associate for PBS and manager of the PBS Business Channel; and held multiple positions at the Federal Communications Commission. She holds a BA from Baylor University, and an MS and Ph.D. from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.