MENTORS

Agatha Brewer is the founder of Agatha Brewer Coaching where she works with new entrepreneurs to help them launch and grow businesses that give them freedom and flexibility while also making a bigger impact on the world. She combines 15+ years of digital marketing experience and her coach training (Whole Person Certified Coach®, ICF ACC) to help new business owners move their ideas out of their heads and into reality—getting them clarity around what they want to create, helping them set the right strategic foundations, and unraveling any mindset blocks that are standing in their way.

Brooke is partner and Chief Client Officer at LOCAL, a change communications agency that has been named an Inc. 5000 fastest growing private company in America and one of Atlanta Business Chronicle’s Best Places to Work (3x!). An Atlanta native, Brooke is a seasoned marketing strategist with 20 years of experience helping B2C and B2B brands bring their story to life inside and outside the organization. She has worked on both sides of the desk — serving agency and client brands, ranging from national/global non-profits to Fortune 100 companies.

While managing large complex external brand programs, she realized one of the biggest limitations to success was directly linked to belief in the brand and program on the inside by the company’s most important asset — its people. Her attention and passion shifted inwards to leading organizational strategies and transformation programs focused on strategic employee-centered design and communications to drive positive change and, in-turn, impactful external success. 

In her free time, Brooke is an avid estate sale shopper and lover of all things old. She is passionate about designing curated spaces combining old and new. Her most recent project was LOCAL’s very own headquarters, The Be Nice House, in Atlanta’s historic Old Fourth Ward neighborhood.

Cyril Jefferson is a Husband, Father, and Social Innovator currently serving on the High Point City Council. For more than a decade, he has dedicated his civic and professional work to socially responsible causes and creating purposeful opportunities for community betterment.

As Principal Consultant at Change Often LLC, he leads a team of Change Agents in leveraging collaborative and innovative solutions to build capacity in communities through effective project delivery and strategic development. Though he has received numerous community-based awards and honors—including Young Professional of the Year and 40 Under 40—the greatest to date came when the residents of Ward One made him the youngest African American to ever sit on the High Point City Council.

Council Member Jefferson is a Magna Cum Laude graduate of North Carolina A&T State University and he holds a certification in Non-Profit Management from High Point University. Living the words of Winston Churchill, he and his wife Raven teach their two sons that “To improve is to change. To perfect is to change often”.

Danielle is founder of innoFaith, a multi-faith network and platform for social innovation that fosters interfaith collaboration. She is also a social impact consultant with over 20 years of experience in the global social change and social innovation fields. As Senior Advisor to Ashoka, the world's largest network of leading social entrepreneurs, she helps select new Ashoka Fellows around the world and has built an Integrity infrastructure for the organization to balance entrepreneurial risk-taking with operational risk management. She was the founding director of Ashoka’s global Empathy Initiative and the associated Changemaker Schools network, which grew to over 25 countries on five continents.

Danielle also served as Ashoka's Legal Director, helped launch Ashoka in East Africa and the Middle East/North Africa region, and was interim regional representative for Ashoka in francophone West Africa. Her background additionally includes policy advocacy, as well as human rights analysis related to the U.S. war on terrorism.
 She has written on the topics of the International Criminal Court's involvement in Uganda and the importance of empathy for social change.  She serves as President of the Boards of the Interfaith Council of Metropolitan Washington and the FaithJustice Foundation.

Danielle has a B.A. in economics and international relations from Stanford University, and a Juris Doctor, Master of Theological Studies, and Graduate Certificate in Human Rights from Emory University, where she was Editor in Chief of the Emory International Law Review. She is an attorney, admitted to the New York Bar.

Elaine Robinson Beattie is a management consultant, coach, and facilitator specializing in organizational, workforce, and leadership development, human resource management, and business coaching. Her expertise expands across corporate, nonprofit, and faith-based organizations with over 30 years of experience in leadership and management.

She is passionate about developing her clients to be effective, efficient, and profitable in their organizations while maintaining a healthy life rhythm.

In addition, Elaine has served on the Board of Directors of community, religious, and professional organizations. She attends Ben Hill UMC and is the chair of the Ben Hill Institute.

Elaine is a graduate of Emory University’s School of Theology with a master’s degree in religious leadership. She is a registered corporate coach through the World Association of Business Coaches.

Elaine is married to Rev. Dr. Charles M. Beattie II, who is also a blues musician and entrepreneur. They live in Atlanta, GA, with their beloved dog, Miss Ella Fitzgerald Robinson Beattie.

Erin Reibel has over 18 years of experience in ministry, working in a variety of positions, from youth leader to lead pastor. As a coach and mentor, she loves helping people connect theology to the practical aspects of day to day life. Erin is passionate about working with others to uncover their vision and mission so that they can take their next faithful step to positively impacting their world.

James Young has over 25 years of extensive consumer goods experience with a focus on entrepreneurship, financial planning and analysis, and strategic planning. He has worked with all levels of management from CEO’s to line managers in addition to cross-functional teams in sales and operations. James successfully built his first acquisition into a profitable full-service automotive glass replacement company in the Atlanta metro area, which has been in operation for over 35 years.

Jay Johnson is a Morehouse Alumnus and a 3x Founder. He is also the President of the Birmingham Chapter of the 100 Black Men of America.

Former Executive for a Fortune 100 company, Jay is also a qualified and certified Collegiate Independent Counselor. Having spent years as a Senior Admission Counselor, Jay Johnson is no stranger to the college admission process and has served and chaired many committees. Currently, he sits on the High School Advisory Board for The University of Alabama, The Naval Academy, Clark Atlanta University, and the University of Pennsylvania.

Jay was a finalist for Birmingham Business Journal’s 2021 Cohort for CEO of the Year, Alumnus of BBVA’s 2017 Cohort for Momentum, selected into the Birmingham Business Alliance’s 2022 Inaugural Supply Scaler’s Cohort, Proper Birmingham’s 2022 Inaugural Magic City Match Cohort, AppThink’s 2022 Inaugural Cohort, TechMGM’s 2nd Tech Accelerator Cohort and serves as Executive Chair and President For The 100 Black Men of Metro Birmingham a Chapter of the National 100 Black Men of America Organization and a member of NACAC and SACAC.

Jermail Shelton and his wife Brandi are the proud owners of Just add honey tea co, which was established in 2006. Just add honey’s retail shop is located inside The Sweet Auburn Curb Market. They most recently opened their second retail location on the Atlanta Beltline in January 2019. During his downtime, Jermail enjoys spending time with his family, taking hikes, and reading.

Social entrepreneur, spiritual director, and autism advocate, Dr. Kit Evans-Ford is a woman who is passionate about serving others. Born in Mebane, North Carolina, education became a positive outlet for her.  Kit holds a MA in Teaching: Special Education, MA in Social Justice and Community Development, MDiv degree from the Pacific School of Religion and a Doctor of Ministry Degree in Spiritual Direction from Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary in Evanston, IL. Dr. Kit is a Teach for America and United States Peace Corps Alumni.  She has studied, worked, and served in England, Japan, Nigeria, South Africa, Tanzania, Kenya, Saint Lucia, Saint Kitts and Nevis.

She is a certified spiritual director and the founder of Argrow’s House of Healing and Hope in Davenport, Iowa and Moline, IL. Argrow’s House is a safe space where free services are offered daily for women healing from violence in the Quad Cities Region.  Argrow’s House is also a successful social enterprise where women healing from violence create beautiful bath products that provide a living wage for themselves in a safe space that celebrates who they are. 

Additionally, Dr. Kit is the founder of Autistic & Loved, LLC. With a team of graphic illustrators and engineers she created FDA approved food grade silicone chewable jewelry for children with autism spectrum disorder and sensory processing disorder. Her pendants are the first invented that celebrates the beauty and diversity of autistic children and their families. 

Dr. Ford resides in Davenport, Iowa with her husband, Pastor Dwight L. Ford, and children; Imani and Justice.

Mahzé is a licensed commercial real estate advisor at T. Dallas Smith & Company, who represents fortune 100 companies to local business in office & industrial transactions. A dual degree Georgia State alumnus, Mahzé received a BBA in Real Estate & Finance while pursuing his current career in commercial real estate. He has a strong passion for helping clients and others with his problem solving and analytical skillset.

Matt Elsberry is an explorer and adventurer who loves working and interacting with people from different cultural backgrounds. He currently serves as the president of Livful, a company that has created a technology that powers products to repel biting insects to fight disease, save lives, and transform communities around the world. After helping a nonprofit expand from three to 80 countries in six years, Matt decided to dedicate his life to blurring the line between social impact and business. Inspired by his faith, he and his wife spent five years in Jakarta, Indonesia, where they increased the Bumi Raya Group’s profitability through their three companies and several private ones. While there, he worked with a team of leaders to start the Kingdom Entrepreneurship Academy, an incubator that encourages entrepreneurs to restoratively serve others in a sustainable (profitable) way. He sees his work at LivFul as a shining example of how a company can address important societal needs while building a profitable business.

Scarlett Rosier joined forces with her business-partner-in-crime, Karen McKenzie, to form Rhyme & Reason Design in late 2008. More than a decade later, she has become a force in traditional and digital marketing strategies. Through her work with community and association clients, Scarlett has become an expert at synthesizing customer needs and developing campaigns focused on awareness and engagement.

A firm believer in a research-first approach, Scarlett and her account team are able to effectively partner with clients to bring their marketing objectives from big ideas to beautiful results.

Beyond day-to-day operations and client management, Scarlett also speaks and blogs about the importance of building a values-based business culture, the impact of positive client/employee relationships and of course, the ever-changing world of marketing and communications.

Scarlett earned a bachelor’s degree in Advertising and a master’s degree in International Advertising from the University of Florida.