Workforce Symposium Speakers

Jan Abraham

Business Services Consultant
WorkSource Montgomery

Jan Abraham is a skilled business development manager engaging with businesses and providing solutions in various industries running the gamut from the financial services industry to the staffing industry. Currently, she is a Business Solutions Consultant with WorkSource Montgomery. She is a community facilitator and connector identifying issues and acting with partners collaboratively to ensure mutually beneficial outcomes.
Prior to WorkSource Montgomery Jan was an Employee Relations Manager with 22nd Century Technologies, Inc. staffing for the NIH contract and overseeing 70+ Virginia State Contracts. She has her MBA from Marymount University in Marketing and Management and her BA from Ohio Wesleyan University in Political Science.

Cassie Carmestro, PHR

Director of HR
Charter Senior Living

Dr. Mildred Charles

Career Coach and Founder
Career Mindset Coaching

Dr. Mildred Charles is a career coach and the founder of Career Mindset Coaching, a people-centric coaching and consulting company that supports the personal growth and career development of individuals, employees, and teams.

Prior to launching her company, Dr. Charles taught speech and interpersonal communication, both face-to-face and online, for over 17 years to over 5,000 undergraduate and graduate students. Her professional experience also includes working as a curriculum developer, analyst, consultant, and soft-skills trainer for both private and public sector clients.

Dr. Charles holds a BFA from New York University, an MA from American University, and a PhD from Howard University. In addition to her academic training, she is a Board-Certified Coach (BCC), Global Career Development Facilitator (GCDF) and a certified practitioner of the Strong Interest Inventory, Myers Briggs, EQ-i 2.0 and EQ 360 Emotional Intelligence assessments.

When she is not working with clients, she enjoys spending time with her family, practicing yoga and meditation, bargain shopping, listening to Audible books, and creating inspirational content that help people grow personally and thrive professionally.

Henry Cole

General Manager
Merrill Gardens

Jerome Countee

(Former) District Vice Chancellor
California Community Colleges

John Dyer

AVP, Workforce Development
American Association of Community Colleges

John Dyer serves as Associate Vice President of workforce development for the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) where he is responsible for supporting the department across multiple projects. He is the former Director of Community and Corporate Affairs at White Mountains Community College, in Berlin, New Hampshire, where he was responsible for the workforce, economic, and community development efforts of the college. He is a graduate of Leadership North Country class of ‘07, Leadership New Hampshire class of ’08, and has served on a variety of local, regional, state, and national boards with a focus on workforce and economic development. He holds a B.A. in Government from California State University-Sacramento.

Dr. Darren T. Gibson, PMP

Associate Vice President
Community Development,
Education, & Operations
Howard Community College

Robert Knight

Director of Government Relations and Workforce Policy
Equus Workforce Solutions

Robert Knight is Director of Government Relations and Workforce Policy for Equus Workforce Solutions, a division of APM, a human services company with worldwide operations. Knight is responsible for federal workforce policy including the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act and the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Act. He provides legislative analysis and technical assistance to Equus and its customers. Before joining Equus, he served for 22 years as President of the National Association of Workforce Boards. Previous to that position, he was a Professional Staff Member with the U.S Senate Subcommittee on Employment, Poverty and Migratory Labor and began his career as a workforce planner in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Sandy Mrkacek

Senior Living Consultant
Mrkacek Consulting, LLC

Sandy Mrkacek is a seasoned consultant who has over 30 years of experience in senior care including skilled nursing, home health, assisted living, and memory care. The majority of her career has been in the assisted living sector, leading learning and development initiatives. Of her accomplishments, she led the development and implementation of a full onboarding and continuing education training program for frontline and community leadership positions, modeled in such a way to fulfill state regulations in over 28 states and six Canadian provinces. Her passion is creating fun and engaging training programs to support a positive work culture, inspiring teams to achieve organizational goals and provide quality care to residents.

Carrie Murphy

Retention Strategist
Magnet Consulting

As a Retention Strategist at Magnet Culture, Carrie Murphy is dedicated to helping organizations reduce unnecessary employee turnover. With decades of leadership and training experience managing diverse teams, Carrie offers nuanced solutions to bridge generational gaps and equip managers to become Retention Champions. Carrie’s compelling blend of expertise, approachability, and boldness captivates audiences, leaving them equipped with actionable strategies to not only retain talent but thrive in an ever-evolving workforce landscape.

Daniel Passarella

Resource Consultant
Argentum

Mr. Passarella has been working with the Workforce Development Division of Argentum for the past five years. As a grant specialist, Dan worked with Argentum in securing the five-year National Apprenticeship Grant and was then retained to conduct required grant evaluation and reporting. Mr. Passarella has over 35 years workforce experience with Department of Labor funding including: Planning Director for the Monmouth County Workforce Board. As an independent consultant, Dan provided Oversight and Monitoring Services for: Bergen County NJ, Middlesex County NJ, Ocean County NJ, Passaic County NJ, Somerset County NJ, Hunterdon County NJ, Union County NJ, Putnam County NY, and Sussex County NJ.

Dorothy Umans

Dean of Community Education &
Extended Learning Services Director
Montgomery College

Denise Ware-Jackson

(Moderator), Associate Dean
Division of Health, Wellness and Hospitality
Prince George’s Community College

With over 35 years of progressive experience in the Higher Education Sector, Hospitality Industry, health, wellness, and culinary arts, Denise has developed a diverse set of skills in management, leadership, procurement, and budgeting. Her expertise lies in driving business growth and development, consistently delivering in account management, prospecting sales, yielding, marketing plans, budgets, and marketing promotions to drive profitable revenues. Denise has served as an Associate Dean and Academic Program Chair at Prince George’s Community College, and as a Program Director for Hospitality, Tourism, Culinary Arts, and Gaming and is currently pursuing a Doctoral degree in Health Studies from Liberty University. She is actively involved in professional organizations, community service, and has received various awards and honors throughout her career.

Deborah Zimmer

Manager, Employer Relations &
Experiential Learning
The Universities at Shady Grove