Board of Directors
Malena Brookshire (Chair) has a professional career that reflects over 13 years of leading the development of strategic plans that effectively communicate organization-wide priorities; employing advanced tools and complex data analysis to assess and evaluate operational soundness; and communicating executive-level information to inform resource decision making. Malena currently serves as the Acting Deputy Controller at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Prior to this, she served as the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) first Deputy Performance Improvement Officer and Chief of the Planning, Performance, and Budget Formulation Branch. Prior to joining the SEC, Malena was detailed to the U.S. Executive Office of the President, Office of Management and Budget to provide strategic and technical support to OMB staff. Malena was awarded the 2017 Emerging Leader Award by the AGA DC Chapter and is featured on the U.S. Office of Executive Councils Career Close-up website, discussing the impact of effective program performance management in the federal government. Malena also has served on the Arlington County (VA) Fiscal Affairs Commission to provide advice to the elected County Board, and as the Strategic Director for the Association of Government Accountants, DC Chapter. Malena earned her Master of Public Administration from The George Washington University Trachtenberg School of Public Administration and Public Policy, and a B.S. in Economics and Mathematics from the University of Wisconsin.
Amala Nath (Vice Chair) is an attorney in Morrison & Foerster LLP's Washington, D.C. office and a member of the firm's Agency Finance and Project Finance Groups. She has over a decade of experience representing multilateral development banks, export-credit agencies, and other lenders on international debt financings and equity investments. She facilitates the development of projects primarily in the energy and infrastructure sectors throughout Latin America and Africa and also works in other emerging markets. Amala was previously seconded to the legal department of the United States International Development Finance Corporation, an agency of the U.S. government, where she served as counsel on a portfolio of renewable energy projects for the Global Climate Finance Facility. Amala has received numerous professional honors for her work, including being named a "Next Generation Lawyer" and a "Project Finance Rising Star" by leading international publications. Amala grew up in India where she was involved with many initiatives focused on the promotion of the arts, including classical music and theatre. She holds a JD from American University and lives in Northern Virginia with her husband and son.
Dr. Brandon Cochenour (Treasurer) is a scientist with the Department of Defense. He is currently the deputy program manager for the SMART Scholarship, the DoD’s premier scholarship-for-service program. Prior to this role, Dr. Cochenour was a research engineer with the Navy, where he led over $2 million in basic research activities. He has over 50 scientific publications, 5 US Patents, and 1 textbook chapter on laser communications, all of which have been referenced in the scientific literature over 1500 times. In 2019, he received the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE), the highest honor bestowed by the U.S. government on outstanding early-career scientists and engineers. He was named a DoD Scientist of the Quarter in 2019 by the Undersecretary of Defense for Research and Engineering, a Top Navy Scientist of the Year in 2018, 2012, and 2006, and a Maryland Academy of Sciences Outstanding Young Engineer in 2009. Brandon has a 30+ year involvement with the performing arts as a musician, with experience in and out of the theater as a performer, educator, designer, and clinician. As a performer, Brandon is an active freelance jazz pianist in the DC area. In the theater, he has served in numerous productions as an orchestra musician or director, including a Kennedy Center ‘American College Theater Festival’ recognized production of “Working” with Lafayette College in 2000. Brandon has a 20+ year involvement in outdoor pageantry activity, and is a former marching member of the Cavaliers Drum and Bugle Corps. He is actively involved in the pageantry arena as an instructor and visual designer for competitive marching bands and ensembles across the Mid-Atlantic. He has received adjudication training from Winterguard International (www.wgi.org), and regularly adjudicates for both indoor and outdoor competitive circuits across the country. As a volunteer, Brandon has worked with Music for All (www.musicforall.org), a non-profit advocate for music and arts education. He lives in Alexandria VA, with his wife, and 3 year old son.
Savonia Vassel (Secretary) currently works as a Project Coordinator for Brown and Caldwell in Alexandria, VA. Brown and Caldwell is a passionate environmental engineering firm delivering exceptional services throughout the United States and select countries abroad. Prior to her work with Brown and Caldwell, Savonia was a contractor for the United States Department of Justice, managing a series of projects such as the National Commission of Forensic Sciences. In the evenings and on the weekends, Savonia frequents local theaters in the Washington, DC area such as the Woolly Mammoth Theatre, Arena Stage, and The Kennedy Center.
Ryan Barton (Board Member) has spent the last decade working in low-income communities in the Washington, DC, area focusing on youth education and volunteer engagement. He spent the last 10 years working for Enterprise Community Development (previously Community Preservation and Development Corporation), a non-profit affordable housing organization. In that time, he presented at numerous national and regional conferences on how to engage youth in volunteerism and after-school programming. In 2015, he was awarded with a Distinguished Partner Award by Fairfax County Dept. of Neighborhood and Community Services for his work in the South County area of Fairfax County. In 2018, he was invited to participate in the American Express Leadership Academy for Emerging Volunteer Leaders in Atlanta, GA. Originally from Indiana, Ryan fell in love with theatre at a young age and continued to perform through his time at DePauw University, where he earned a BA in English Writing, as well as his teaching certification in Secondary English and Language Arts. He lives in Alexandria with his wife and two dogs.
Shawn Bates (Board Member) is an international lawyer, mediator, educator and trainer with over 15 years of experience in the international arena. He is currently Assistant Professor in the School of International Service at American University, and the Director of the Chile/Argentina Summer Law Program for the Washington College of Law. Shawn was the founder and former Academic Director for American University’s Washington Semester Program in International Law and Organizations. With the assistance of the Washington Semester Program staff, he developed the International Law and Organizations Program into one of the most successful visiting academic programs at American University. Shawn designed and led a study tour of Western Europe and international legal institutions, as well as directed the academic development of the students in Unit I of the program. In addition to teaching, Shawn is actively involved with the American Bar Association and the American Society for International Law (ASIL). He is a frequent lecturer on cross-cultural conflict and mediation, as well as an advisor to various multilateral institutions.
Kate Comfort (Board Member) is a lifelong supporter of the arts and enthusiastically joined the AOTH board in 2021 to champion the love of and increase the accessibility of the arts. Her professional experience includes 15 years of varied operational and organizational risk analysis and strategic assessments for the Department of Defense, Intelligence Community, Department of Justice and private industry. During that time, Kate founded and successfully ran a consultancy to provide mission support to various federal government entities. In 2019, she transitioned to the philanthropic sector at a private foundation with a mission focused on education, arts, and empowering historically disenfranchised and underrepresented groups. Kate, her husband, and three young children live in Alexandria, VA.
Snigdha Ravy (Board Member) is a veteran of the early education field and has been working with young children and their families for more than 16 years. Her experience has given her the opportunity to work with families from disadvantaged communities, nonprofit programs, and language-immersion schools. She holds her M.Ed from Marymount University in Curriculum and Instruction. She is passionate about and regularly volunteers to help further STEM education for young children. Born in India, Snigdha was trained in Indian music and performed professionally in her youth. In her free time, Snigdha enjoys reading, traveling, and spending time with her family. She is currently retired and lives in Arlington, VA with her daughter and husband.
Dr. Bridgette Weitzel (Board Member) is a Senior Executive Advisor at Booz Allen Hamilton leading Executive Talent Management initiatives for the firm. In this role, she designs and implements executive strategies to drive effectiveness, accountability and clarity of roles, expectations and rewards for the firm’s VPs and partners as well as ensure that executive talent planning activities align with the firm’s business strategy. Previously she was the Chief Talent Officer at BAE Systems, plc where she helped drive culture transformation and executive development efforts for the CEOs of the UK and U.S. Prior to joining BAE Systems, Bridgette was the Chief Human Capital Officer for Fannie Mae where she was responsible for working with the company’s officers to design, develop, and implement the overall human capital strategy, including culture transformation, talent management and succession, promotion and selection assessment, leadership development, organization design, and cross-functional teaming. She has also held other leadership roles at Genentech, Celera Genomics, MITRE, Dell, MCI, and the U.S. Postal Service. She is passionate about the visual and performing arts and ensuring children and adults have opportunities to participate in these transformational experiences. Bridgette earned her BA in Business, an MS in Organization Development from the University of Pennsylvania, an Education Specialist degree from George Washington University, and a doctorate from Georgetown University. Her dissertation topic was on the topic of developing empathy in global leaders.
Amala Nath (Vice Chair) is an attorney in Morrison & Foerster LLP's Washington, D.C. office and a member of the firm's Agency Finance and Project Finance Groups. She has over a decade of experience representing multilateral development banks, export-credit agencies, and other lenders on international debt financings and equity investments. She facilitates the development of projects primarily in the energy and infrastructure sectors throughout Latin America and Africa and also works in other emerging markets. Amala was previously seconded to the legal department of the United States International Development Finance Corporation, an agency of the U.S. government, where she served as counsel on a portfolio of renewable energy projects for the Global Climate Finance Facility. Amala has received numerous professional honors for her work, including being named a "Next Generation Lawyer" and a "Project Finance Rising Star" by leading international publications. Amala grew up in India where she was involved with many initiatives focused on the promotion of the arts, including classical music and theatre. She holds a JD from American University and lives in Northern Virginia with her husband and son.
Dr. Brandon Cochenour (Treasurer) is a scientist with the Department of Defense. He is currently the deputy program manager for the SMART Scholarship, the DoD’s premier scholarship-for-service program. Prior to this role, Dr. Cochenour was a research engineer with the Navy, where he led over $2 million in basic research activities. He has over 50 scientific publications, 5 US Patents, and 1 textbook chapter on laser communications, all of which have been referenced in the scientific literature over 1500 times. In 2019, he received the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE), the highest honor bestowed by the U.S. government on outstanding early-career scientists and engineers. He was named a DoD Scientist of the Quarter in 2019 by the Undersecretary of Defense for Research and Engineering, a Top Navy Scientist of the Year in 2018, 2012, and 2006, and a Maryland Academy of Sciences Outstanding Young Engineer in 2009. Brandon has a 30+ year involvement with the performing arts as a musician, with experience in and out of the theater as a performer, educator, designer, and clinician. As a performer, Brandon is an active freelance jazz pianist in the DC area. In the theater, he has served in numerous productions as an orchestra musician or director, including a Kennedy Center ‘American College Theater Festival’ recognized production of “Working” with Lafayette College in 2000. Brandon has a 20+ year involvement in outdoor pageantry activity, and is a former marching member of the Cavaliers Drum and Bugle Corps. He is actively involved in the pageantry arena as an instructor and visual designer for competitive marching bands and ensembles across the Mid-Atlantic. He has received adjudication training from Winterguard International (www.wgi.org), and regularly adjudicates for both indoor and outdoor competitive circuits across the country. As a volunteer, Brandon has worked with Music for All (www.musicforall.org), a non-profit advocate for music and arts education. He lives in Alexandria VA, with his wife, and 3 year old son.
Savonia Vassel (Secretary) currently works as a Project Coordinator for Brown and Caldwell in Alexandria, VA. Brown and Caldwell is a passionate environmental engineering firm delivering exceptional services throughout the United States and select countries abroad. Prior to her work with Brown and Caldwell, Savonia was a contractor for the United States Department of Justice, managing a series of projects such as the National Commission of Forensic Sciences. In the evenings and on the weekends, Savonia frequents local theaters in the Washington, DC area such as the Woolly Mammoth Theatre, Arena Stage, and The Kennedy Center.
Ryan Barton (Board Member) has spent the last decade working in low-income communities in the Washington, DC, area focusing on youth education and volunteer engagement. He spent the last 10 years working for Enterprise Community Development (previously Community Preservation and Development Corporation), a non-profit affordable housing organization. In that time, he presented at numerous national and regional conferences on how to engage youth in volunteerism and after-school programming. In 2015, he was awarded with a Distinguished Partner Award by Fairfax County Dept. of Neighborhood and Community Services for his work in the South County area of Fairfax County. In 2018, he was invited to participate in the American Express Leadership Academy for Emerging Volunteer Leaders in Atlanta, GA. Originally from Indiana, Ryan fell in love with theatre at a young age and continued to perform through his time at DePauw University, where he earned a BA in English Writing, as well as his teaching certification in Secondary English and Language Arts. He lives in Alexandria with his wife and two dogs.
Shawn Bates (Board Member) is an international lawyer, mediator, educator and trainer with over 15 years of experience in the international arena. He is currently Assistant Professor in the School of International Service at American University, and the Director of the Chile/Argentina Summer Law Program for the Washington College of Law. Shawn was the founder and former Academic Director for American University’s Washington Semester Program in International Law and Organizations. With the assistance of the Washington Semester Program staff, he developed the International Law and Organizations Program into one of the most successful visiting academic programs at American University. Shawn designed and led a study tour of Western Europe and international legal institutions, as well as directed the academic development of the students in Unit I of the program. In addition to teaching, Shawn is actively involved with the American Bar Association and the American Society for International Law (ASIL). He is a frequent lecturer on cross-cultural conflict and mediation, as well as an advisor to various multilateral institutions.
Kate Comfort (Board Member) is a lifelong supporter of the arts and enthusiastically joined the AOTH board in 2021 to champion the love of and increase the accessibility of the arts. Her professional experience includes 15 years of varied operational and organizational risk analysis and strategic assessments for the Department of Defense, Intelligence Community, Department of Justice and private industry. During that time, Kate founded and successfully ran a consultancy to provide mission support to various federal government entities. In 2019, she transitioned to the philanthropic sector at a private foundation with a mission focused on education, arts, and empowering historically disenfranchised and underrepresented groups. Kate, her husband, and three young children live in Alexandria, VA.
Snigdha Ravy (Board Member) is a veteran of the early education field and has been working with young children and their families for more than 16 years. Her experience has given her the opportunity to work with families from disadvantaged communities, nonprofit programs, and language-immersion schools. She holds her M.Ed from Marymount University in Curriculum and Instruction. She is passionate about and regularly volunteers to help further STEM education for young children. Born in India, Snigdha was trained in Indian music and performed professionally in her youth. In her free time, Snigdha enjoys reading, traveling, and spending time with her family. She is currently retired and lives in Arlington, VA with her daughter and husband.
Dr. Bridgette Weitzel (Board Member) is a Senior Executive Advisor at Booz Allen Hamilton leading Executive Talent Management initiatives for the firm. In this role, she designs and implements executive strategies to drive effectiveness, accountability and clarity of roles, expectations and rewards for the firm’s VPs and partners as well as ensure that executive talent planning activities align with the firm’s business strategy. Previously she was the Chief Talent Officer at BAE Systems, plc where she helped drive culture transformation and executive development efforts for the CEOs of the UK and U.S. Prior to joining BAE Systems, Bridgette was the Chief Human Capital Officer for Fannie Mae where she was responsible for working with the company’s officers to design, develop, and implement the overall human capital strategy, including culture transformation, talent management and succession, promotion and selection assessment, leadership development, organization design, and cross-functional teaming. She has also held other leadership roles at Genentech, Celera Genomics, MITRE, Dell, MCI, and the U.S. Postal Service. She is passionate about the visual and performing arts and ensuring children and adults have opportunities to participate in these transformational experiences. Bridgette earned her BA in Business, an MS in Organization Development from the University of Pennsylvania, an Education Specialist degree from George Washington University, and a doctorate from Georgetown University. Her dissertation topic was on the topic of developing empathy in global leaders.
