Ms. Matrice Ellis-Kirk has been Managing Director of RSR Partners since January 2014 and serves as its Head of Dallas Office. Matrice Ellis-Kirk earned her BA from University of Pennsylvania.
<p>In 1980, Sheila Johnson and her former husband, Robert L. Johnson, co-founded BET, the first cable television network aimed at African-American viewers. Serving as executive vice president of corporate affairs, Sheila Johnson was primarily responsible for investigating various community and philanthropic activities and helped build the highly rated cable network into a media powerhouse, which Viacom acquired in 1997 for $3 billion. Johnson was a member of BET Holdings Inc.'s board of directors until January 2001. </p> <p>Johnson currently is focused on various philanthropic activities, as well as the construction of the Salamander Inn and Spa on land she owns in Middleburg, Va. </p> <p>An accomplished violinist, Johnson has a diverse background that includes 19 years as a music educator in the Washington, D.C., area. During that time, she founded Young Strings in Action for children, in 1975. A textbook she wrote about her teaching methods, Young Strings in Action, is still used in many U.S. schools. </p>
<p>Anita P. Stephens is a General Partner of Opportunity Capital Partners ("OCP"), a private equity firm that provides equity capital to later stage companies for acquisition and expansion as well as early stage companies with leading edge technologies. The fund's investments are primarily in the areas of communications, information technology and healthcare, with a particular focus on businesses that are owned or managed by minority and women entrepreneurs.</p> <p>Ms. Stephens joined OCP in December 1996. Prior to joining OCP, Ms. Stephens served as President of Renaissance Capital Corporation, a Small Business Investment Company in Atlanta, Georgia. Her career has also included management positions at Manufacturers Hanover Trust, Benton & Bowles, and Prudential Insurance Company. </p> <p>Ms. Stephens currently serves on the board of several of the fund's portfolio companies. She is also a member of the board of directors of Pacific Community Ventures, a member of the Cornell University Entrepreneurial Advisory Council and the President's Council of Cornell Women. Ms. Stephens has an undergraduate degree in economics from Cornell University and an Executive MBA at Golden Gate University.</p>
Nicole Mensa is the founder of Wononi Cosmetics. She founded the company while a student at Cornell University.
Ebony McQueen Harris is the Principal Consultant and Founder of LEVELS. Ebony received her BA in Speech Communications from Edinboro University of Pennsylvania and her MA with a focus on Instructional Leadership + Curriculum Development from Robert Morris University.