Here at the Singleton Foundation, we believe financial competence empowers individuals to do great things for themselves, their communities, and the world. From the beginning, we have always wanted the conversations around financial literacy and entrepreneurship to be from the lens of the people we are providing the information to: YOU!
Today, we are thrilled to announce the launch of our inaugural Advisory Council composed of thirteen trailblazing and diverse volunteer leaders representing the Millennial and Gen Z generations! These thirteen advisers will form a Leadership Committee that will be tasked with building the foundation to launch a grassroots movement that will further the Singleton Foundation’s mission of promoting economic freedom and financial empowerment for everyone. Over the next year, the Leadership Committee will work closely with the Singleton Foundation’s executive team to develop and oversee the structure and objectives of the Council, recruitment and the development of sub-committees that will provide feedback and advise on the direction of our content and programs including our entertainment channel Million Stories, our video game Venture Valley, our blog Million More Stories, and our entrepreneurship program.
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Inaugural Advisory Council Members include:
Ally Streelman
Ally has forged a career in digital media, primarily as the Editor and Creative Director of a burgeoning lifestyle platform, Pennie. With additional experience as a freelance writer and marketing specialist, she empowers her readers through inspiring and informative content. When she’s not stringing sentences together, you can find Ally immersed in a new adventure through travel, cooking, or reading. She is excited to encourage others to start their own new financial journey with The Singleton Foundation!
Bicky Law
Bicky is a finance professional who helped manage money for institutions and endowments. She is a serial entrepreneur who successfully launched and operated an e-commerce business before the age of 20. Most recently, as a founding team member of VerifyInvestor.com, she led it to become the dominant accredited investor verification provider in the world at the time of its acquisition. She is currently a management consultant, advising tech and blockchain companies on growth, strategy, and marketing. Through The Singleton Foundation, she hopes to share her perspectives with other entrepreneurial minds out there.
Chase Minor
If you see the clear connection between creativity and financial literacy, Chase is your guy! He not only works as a financial services consultant for Ernst & Young in Los Angeles but continues to get creative through freelance photography on the side. His passion for financial literacy stems from his large family’s personal struggle during the 2008 recession, inspiring him to combine his technical skills and creativity to empower peers and their families with the financial know-how to navigate uncertain times.
Christopher Rim
Christopher is the founder and CEO of Command Education, a premier education and admissions consultancy headquartered in NYC. Recently named “the nation’s leader in college admissions consulting” by People Magazine, Command Education works to empower students to successfully navigate the college application process. Christopher has many prestigious accomplishments, including Forbes 30 Under 30 list and President Obama’s Lifetime Achievement Award, but values his time on many non-profit advisory boards and looks forward to working with The Singleton Foundation.
Dana Kawar
Dana is a gaming and esports industry veteran. She’s an owner of FlipSid3 Tactics, the team that pioneered “esports moneyball” in CS:GO. She’s also organized tournaments and been a consultant to countless game publishers and brands. Dana has a soft spot for micro-transactions and owns nearly every League and Fortnite skin in existence. Dana is excited to work closely with our Venture Valley game team as we prepare for our U.S. launch in early 2021!
Derek Stoutland
Derek has been involved with the Singleton Foundation since its inception, and he is looking forward to further supporting the organization’s mission as a member of the Advisory Council’s Leadership Committee. He has spent over 6 years in the financial services industry, currently serving as a Wealth Advisor for his clients in the Downtown Los Angeles Wells Fargo Private Bank office. Derek is extremely passionate about financial literacy education for young adults, which led him to establish Pepperdine University’s Center for Financial Literacy in 2015. The Center offers personal finance courses and one-on-one coaching to undergraduate students.
Ethan Norof
Ethan is the Director of Communications for CHAMPS Charter High School of the Arts in Los Angeles. Prior to his career in education, Ethan worked in professional basketball for Turner Sports & NBC Sports. Ethan is proud to be part of the Advisory Council’s inaugural team because he believes in the power of sustainable independence, building capacity for young adults, and understands that education is our most powerful weapon to create positive change.
Haley Kowalewski
Haley self-identifies as a personal finance nerd! She spends her days as an executive headhunter, where she does extensive recruiting and career-coaching. However, her true passion lies in Femme Financial Coaching, a platform that provides personal finance coaching to Millenials and Gen Z’ers. Growing up in a strong, women-led household, ignited her early relationship with financial literacy. As a member of the Advisory Council Leadership Team, Haley’s main goal is to get young adults of all backgrounds to talk more openly about money and build strong foundations to set themselves up for long-term success.
Janet Cruz Padron
Janet Cruz Padrón is the founder of the financial empowerment platform, Latina Money. By fusing education, media, technology, and storytelling, Latina Money is empowering modern women to lift the taboo and harness the tremendous power that money has to write and rewrite cultural narratives. Janet believes in the massive power that “talking money” can have in positively transforming and elevating cultures and communities. As a Millennial Latina influencer, podcaster, and financial educator, Janet’s passion for keeping these critical conversations going has led her to create the Latina Money Institute, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit research institute whose mission is to advance awareness of the Latina wealth gap and its impact at an individual, societal, and global level through leading edge research + innovative solutions.
Mark Williams
Mark has found financial stability in one of the most fickle industries – the entertainment industry. Combining a love of film with 15 years in digital marketing, he has worked in television, film, and, currently, entertainment marketing. Mark is an expert paid media specialist: cumulatively he has managed $400MM+ in SEM, display, programmatic, social and video advertising for Fortune 500 brands to small boutique businesses alike. He has become an experienced voice in the complex arena of brand safety and looks forward to sharing his industry experience and insights with the Council.
Vanessa Torres
Vanessa is a Vice President at J.P. Morgan Chase and comes from a multigenerational family of entrepreneurs. Her purpose algins with financial literacy education and helping underserved communities work their way towards a path to building multigenerational wealth. She spearheads the new Chase for Business Focus on Minority Entrepreneurs Program in Los Angeles where she provides mentorship and support to Women, Veteran, and Minority Owned Businesses. She has also supported the push for corporate diversity through serving on three internal advisory programs. With a deep-rooted passion to give back, she volunteers as a community leader and board member for organizations that focus on providing resources to entrepreneurs. Vanessa’s extensive expertise in non-profit involvement and financial literacy bring invaluable insights to our Council.
Youri Anissovets
Russian-born and Canadian-raised, Youri has spent the majority of his career working with the Chicago-based CPG giant Reyes Holdings doing sales and marketing. Spending his early years living abroad and playing basketball, he became exposed to different cultures and the various socio-economic challenges that many face. Youri has always seen the importance of financial literacy and, with the current uncertain environment, he believes the subject must be brought out of the shadows immediately. He hopes that working with the Singleton Foundation will allow him to educate more Millennials and move our world closer to bridging the wealth gap.
Olivia Robinson
Olivia is the founder and CEO of BlackDollar LLC, an app that helps people intentionally buy from Black-owned businesses. She is a former TEDx speaker, published author, and activist. As a global citizen, Robinson has learned and worked around the world at various organizations committed to social justice, including the Asociación Mutual Israelita Argentina in Buenos Aires, the NAACP Washington DC Branch, and the International Catholic Migration Commission in Geneva, Switzerland. Robinson has spearheaded many conversations related to diversity and inclusion, impactful leadership, gender-based violence, and a vast array of other topics, and in 2020 she received the Bowers, Davis, and Todd award for Leadership in Diversity and Inclusive Excellence. Olivia Robinson is committed to expanding the boundaries of community and creating platforms for the marginalized to be empowered.
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The Singleton Foundation’s new Advisory Council is just one of the ways that we are striving to bring new voices and fresh perspectives into our content and programming. We also hope that the Advisory Council provides meaningful volunteer opportunities for people who support our Mission – whether that be promoting entrepreneurship and financial competence in their communities as well as the things they do for themselves and the foundation.
“We are very excited to be working with this enthusiastic and accomplished group of volunteer leaders to help us achieve the goals of the Singleton Foundation: inspiring entrepreneurship and motivating people to gain the required skills they need to plan their financial futures with confidence. Financial competence is a core life skill that is often overlooked, yet is so critical to our well being, especially in rapidly changing times. The insights and contributions from our Advisory Council are invaluable to the success of the foundation and its initiatives.” says Shelley Miles, CEO of the Singleton Foundation.
Interested in joining the Advisory Council? Reach out here!
For all other questions about the Singleton Foundation’s Advisory Council, please contact Noa Rodriguez-Hoffman, Director of Editorial and Community Engagement, at [email protected].
