Attorney Nicole Page Theodore is the founding partner of The Theodore Firm, LLC. She is a 2004 graduate of The Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida, having earned a Bachelor’s of Science degree in International Affairs with a concentration in Spanish. It was from there she began working as a probation officer handling adult misdemeanor offenses in Georgia’s Gwinnett and Clayton counties, followed by time spent working for the Chief Judge of the Municipal Court of Atlanta. After three years spent working in the court system, attorney Theodore followed her dream of attending law school, earning her Juris Doctor degree from Atlanta’s John Marshall Law School in 2010. She was admitted to practice law in the State of Georgia in 2011, and then admitted to practice in the United States Federal District Court for the Northern District of Georgia in 2012. While in law school she completed an externship at the Fulton County Public Defender’s Office, representing indigent clients under Georgia’s Third Year Practice Act in Fulton County Superior Court. She also served as a general member, then Treasurer, and ultimately as President of the Avarita Hanson Chapter of the Black Law Students Association at John Marshall Law School.

Born in Atlanta, Georgia into a military family, attorney Theodore has lived on both coasts of the United States, and is also fluent in Spanish. Attorney Theodore feels extremely blessed to be able to practice the profession she loves helping businesses realize their dreams. Her passion for entrepreneurship allows her to uniquely advocate for and educate business owners on how to achieve and maintain legal and regulatory compliance, to protect their assets, and to minimize liability while at the same time maximizing profitability.

Author of Think and Grow Rich: A Black Choice, Dennis Kimbro was born December 29, 1950, in Jersey City, New Jersey. In 1972, he received his B.A. and M.A. degrees from the University of Oklahoma. He later earned his PhD in political science at Northwestern University, researching wealth and poverty in underdeveloped countries.

Kimbro wrote Think and Grow Rich: A Black Choice as an updating and extension of the work of Napoleon Hill, who wrote the 1937 bestseller Think and Grow Rich after researching the practices of highly successful persons, and who left at his death an unfinished manuscript directed towards African Americans. Kimbro was commissioned by the Napoleon Hill Foundation to complete the manuscript. Published in 1991, Kimbro and Hill's book became a number-one bestseller.

Clients of Kimbro’s lectures have included General Motors, Walt Disney, Frito-Lay and Wells Fargo. He has appeared on television shows including Today and CNN’s Larry King Live, and in publications including Success, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times and USA Today. He is listed in Who’s Who in Black America; a recipient of the Dale Carnegie Achievement Award; and a past Director of the Center of Entrepreneurship at Clark Atlanta University. In addition, in 1996, he served as one of eight national judges for the prestigious Ernst & Young USA Today Entrepreneur of the Year, held in Palm Springs, California.

In 2005, Kimbro’s second edition of What Keeps Me Standing: A Black Grandmother’s Guide to Peace, Hope & Inspiration was released. He is married, lives in Atlanta and is the father of three daughters.

As a Business Consultant and faculty member with the University of Georgia Small Business Development Center (UGA SBDC), Mark delivers high level consulting and instructional services to entrepreneurs, business owners and senior level managers. Mark assists valued clients in evaluating and strategizing the best and most efficient path to starting or growing a successful business.

Mark Collier joins the UGA SBDC after an accomplished career in the private sector and a temporary assignment with the U.S. Small Business Administration office of disaster assistance. As a capital projects program manager, Mark has successfully managed a series of residential, mixed use, and commercial real estate development projects over a 20-year career. Mark brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the SBDC in the critical business functional areas of strategic planning, project management, business process improvement, and operational efficiency improvement initiatives. Mark holds a bachelor’s degree from Roosevelt University and a Master of Business Administration. from Tulane University.

Mark was appointed to Georgia Governor Kemp’s Georgian’s First taskforce on minority and woman owned business engagement where he will contribute his wealth of knowledge on the goals, challenges and pain points of small business growth and development.

Mark is a frequent contributor to and guest host for The Atlanta Small Business Show which airs on CBS TV channel 46 in the Atlanta metro market. Mark has also authored several white papers which have been featured in national publications.

Faye Hargrove, performance coach and the founder/CEO of The Better Choices Group LLC, earned the PhD in Industrial/Organizational Psychology from the University of Georgia. She has impacted the lives of thousands of people for over 30 years as a college administrator, through executive/performance coaching relationships, team development, board training and programs for both high achieving and at-risk populations.

A longtime member of the academic community, Hargrove served as a faculty member in the School of Business at Georgia College and State University, as the Head of the School of Business Administration and Economics at the University of South Carolina Aiken, as Vice President for Academic and Student Affairs at Benedict College in Columbia, South Carolina and as Vice President for Student Development at Bennett College for Women in Greensboro, North Carolina. As adjunct faculty in the masters in public administration (MPA) program at Augusta University, she taught Non-profit Management and Strategic Planning for Non-Profit Organizations.
Faye’s executive coaching experience includes service as a contract coach with Iron Mountain, Harland Clark, Childrens Healthcare of Atlanta and in Emory University’s Academic Leadership (ALP) and Excellence Through Leadership (ETL) programs.

Her unique coaching approach is rooted in the philosophy that any significant growth involves change, and change—whether it is personal or professional—must begin at one’s core. She developed the Fresh Perspectives Reframing Process™ which allows her clients to release stored negative emotions and reframe thought patterns that keep them stuck and inhibit effective decision-making strategies. She also offers her coaching program to individuals through her book, BETTER CHOICES: When we know better we do better, which was released in 2010.

Hargrove is strongly committed to serving her community. Currently, she is immediate past chair of the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Advisory Committee for the College of Nursing at Augusta University. She is a founding member and serves on the Board of Advisors for Women in Philanthropy of the Central Savannah River Area (CSRA). She serves on the Boards of Directors for Forces United (Formerly Augusta Warrior Project), Rotary Club of Augusta and the First Tee of Augusta.
Her honors include the 26 Women to Watch inaugural group, Girls Scouts of the CSRA Women of Distinction Award and the Perry Broadcasting Community Volunteer of the Year Award. She enjoys dancing, golfing, traveling and painting.

Sandi Purinton is passionate about helping her customers. She works diligently to educate her clients in order to ensure that they choose the insurance coverage right for their family, business or organization. She has an extensive history working as a litigation paralegal for 10+ years, working primarily in the realm of civil and domestic litigation. Sandi received her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology at Georgia State University in Atlanta. She is a lifetime resident of Georgia and currently resides in Dallas with her two young sons and her husband.

Sandi previously served on the board of directors for The National Association of Nonprofits and she is also a member of Cobb Collaborative. She enjoys working with local nonprofits, churches, and small businesses.

Her customer service and communication skills are second to none. Sandi sells personal lines (home, renters and auto insurance) as well as commercial insurance. Her office is located in West Cobb at the intersection of Mars Hill Road and Stilesboro road in Acworth, Georgia.

Rebecca Jean-Baptiste is the Founder and President of RJB Consulting Management Group and Government Funding Gurus. She serves as the primary interface with clients in providing strategic consultation, governance support, and funding development. Rebecca has over 20 years of experience in the administration of government programs. She has secured funding and managed a variety of public programs, community development, and business partnerships.
Rebecca is a highly motivated subject matter expert in the areas of program implementation, program management, government contracting, bid and proposal preparation, federal certification, small business development, business formation, grant management, and research assessment with extensive experience in program leadership, management, and administration. She is a versatile, dynamic and results-oriented leader with a strong track record of performance in high-paced and uniquely challenging organizations. Her keen analysis, insights and team approach to drive organizational improvements and implementation of sound practices is unsurpassed. Rebecca is a strong organizer, motivator, and team player with established record of success in identifying new and emerging business opportunities. Her superior interpersonal skills, capability of resolving multiple and complex issues and motivating staff to peak performance, including her extensive administrative, operational, fiscal and program management experience makes her uniquely qualified to support the implementation of any government project.
Rebecca leverages her leadership background to achieve exceptional results by advancing group collaboration, enhancing projects through continuous process improvement, developing ideas and program strategies to meet areas of need and appropriately manage projects to accomplish desired outcomes. In some of her previous roles, Rebecca served as a Senior Executive Director and Principal Investigator of a research grant, a Grants Research Director, and a Grants Program Manager, and Business Operations Manager of federal and state programs at a governmental agency. She has led the direct implementation of a statewide grant from the U.S Department of Education on behalf of the Governor’s office.
Throughout her career, Rebecca has secured and provided financial management oversight for several grants and contracts, from federal, state, and private funders totaling over $145 million. Furthermore, she has extensive experiences in contract management, FAR compliance, federal certification (ED/WOSB, SD/VOSB, 8a, etc.), sponsored research program, regulatory compliance, database management, IT project management, program assessment and evaluation direction for sponsored projects and has developed multi-user friendly databases to collect, maintain, and report project information to grant sponsors and other key stakeholders. Rebecca worked for a governmental agency for over 15 years prior to launching her firm in 2015.

Education & Certifications:
Rebecca is a Doctoral Candidate in Public Administration at Valdosta State University; and holds a Master of Public Administration degree in Policy Analysis and Evaluation from the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies at Georgia State University. Rebecca has also received professional training and certifications from leading higher education institutions including Georgia Institute of Technology, University of Georgia, Morehouse School of Medicine, Spelman College and Harvard University.

With over 36 years of community development and banking experience, Deirdra Cox, Founder and President of Community Sustainability Enterprise, (CSE) leads the Georgia based 501c3 in their impactful regional community development work. CSE’s mission is the socioeconomic transformation of of low-income/high potential communities one generation at a time, through strategic cross collaborative programming, in partnership with School Based Public Private Partnerships and Affordable Housing communities, that leads to next level self-sufficiency, and wealth building. Deirdra has dedicated the past 14 years of her career focused on cross-collaborative partnerships and evidence-based programming that drives positive socioeconomic outcomes in underserved communities.

Deirdra’s uncanny knack to forge impactful collaborative partnerships to drive local community and economic development efforts, has resulted in School Based Public Private Partnerships in Georgia, that produced 2 in-school full service financial branches, that are run by high school students. CSE’s Workforce Development programs boasts a 92% hire and retention rate among our program graduates, and 100% completion rate of all CSE “success service” pillars among the thousands of youth and adults we educate, coach and empower.

Deirdra is an accomplished public speaker, author, blogger and mother of two adult children. She can be found at the beach during times of rejuvenation, preparing for her next people and policy shifting community and economic development journey. Deirdra believes that what you’ve been through, doesn’t define your destiny, but it gives you strength, courage and wisdom to fulfill your destiny.

I am a multi-talented individual focused on improving communities through active engagement. I've acquired many skills throughout the years from bookkeeping in a consultant firm to managing day-to-day operations in construction and many more roles in-between. Throughout this time of growth I've always had a focus on making a lasting impact in communities who need it the most through applying my diverse skill set. Currently, I'm working with Community Sustainability Enterprises as the manager of logistics and technology as we partner with Private and Public sectors to bring self-efficacy and sustainability to communities in the South East!

Dr. Rhonda is a Life Transitions Strategist who specializes in assisting youth, adults, and entrepreneurs with achieving success personally and professionally. For the past five years, she has coached clients nationally and internationally. She focuses on life, career, education, and business coaching.

Dr. Rhonda has a Ph.D. in Educational Leadership with a concentration in Higher Education Administration from Mercer University located in Atlanta, GA. She has over 10 years of experience in human resources and strategic management, with six of those years devoted to higher education administration. She has worked in corporate and higher education arenas. Dr. Rhonda has been employed in traditional, proprietary, private, and Christian institutions of higher education.

Dr. Rhonda has expertise in student affairs, program management, forming external partnerships, alumni affairs, retention, marketing, and career services. She has many years of experience in critiquing resumes and cover letters, assisting professionals with interview preparation, teaching, professional development, training and building strategic partnerships. In addition, Dr. Rhonda has many years of experience guiding and assisting entrepreneurs with implementing best practices and developing a solid business foundation. She has a strong passion for seeing others achieve their goals and aspirations. She is also a published author and blogger.