Mr. Kirkland serves as the senior public official to represent and advise Governor Tom Wolf’s Administration and the Department on all matters related to the development of statewide policies and programs to substantially increase the participation of small diverse businesses (SDBs) and small businesses (SBs) in Commonwealth contracting and in Pennsylvania’s overall economy. 

Under his leadership, the Department of General Services (DGS) recently released the results of the 2018 Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Disparity Study, which provides critical information to help DGS implement a constitutionally sound SDB Program. The study includes analyses of the participation of minority, women, disabled, veteran, and LGBT owned businesses in prime contracts and subcontracts that DGS awarded during the study period (July 1, 2011 through June 30, 2016). 

He formally served as Associate Deputy Administrator and Regional Administrator, US Small Business Administration; Mr. Kirkland was responsible for administering all SBA disaster relief programs for the Mid-Atlantic Region. Vice President, US Black Chamber of Commerce and Executive Director, Pennsylvania Democratic Party. Mr. Kirkland is the Co-Founder of the American Contract Compliance Association, the largest membership-based contract compliance training organization in the world. He is the founder of the African American Political and Leadership Roundtable. 

Mr. Kirkland served with a four-member delegation from the United States to South Africa. While there, he facilitated equity management training and provided technical advice to members of President Nelson Mandela’s leadership team. 

Mr. Kirkland is the recipient of numerous distinguished awards including the W.E.B. Dubois Award for Excellence, the Parren J. Mitchell Award for Outstanding Minority Business Development Service, the Arthur A. Fletcher Vanguard Award and the Pennsylvania Legislative Black Caucus Civil Rights Award. 

He holds a Master’s Degree in Human Services (MHS) from Lincoln University.  He is a member of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity; Inc. Mr. Kirkland is an Honorably Discharged United States Air Force (Viet Nam) Veteran. 

George Burrell has been a leader in the business, civic, and political affairs of Philadelphia for more than 30 years. He served as a ranking official in the administrations of two mayors; a member of Philadelphia City Council; president of a minority-owned investment management business; general counsel to one of America’s premier African-American-owned businesses; and a partner in two prominent Philadelphia law firms. George brings the knowledge and experience he has developed as a lawyer, businessman, and public official to clients as an Of Counsel member of Kleinbard’s Business and Finance Department and a member of the Firm’s Government Relations Group. 

George advises clients on building effective relationships with state, local, and federal officials; advocating on public policy and legislative initiatives; and competing for public and private sector procurement opportunities. He also serves as a strategic adviser to for-profit and nonprofit executives and board members on issues with public implications related to long-range planning and crisis management, and the development of coordinated corporate messaging for public affairs and government relations departments. George’s work with two African-American-owned businesses with national reputations has positioned him to understand the unique challenges faced by minority- and women-owned companies. 

As a real estate investment expert & asset manager who’s passionate about neighborhood change, “investing” means more than acquiring property. It means infusing people and places with value, year after year. From Mr. Pollard’s humble beginnings to career on Wall Street, he has seen communities crumble under the weight of both disinvestment and insensitive over-development. Watching each of these phenomena has driven him to study how people living in neighborhoods on the cusp of significant change manage to thrive and have led Mr. Pollard to formulate strategies that improve neighborhoods, the livelihood of  existing community members and the broader local economy. 
 
Having built expertise in finance, equity, debt & credit within commercial and residential real estate; drawing upon his global network of investors & change makers, the outlook he has developed revolutionizes the way we approach real estate investment and asset management. Mr. Pollard sees it as holistic & multifaceted, requiring systems to work together if we are to develop truly sustainable communities. 
 
This is also what makes his company, Omicelo, unique. Omicelo is a mission-driven real estate investment firm that creates comprehensive economic change in the communities the company invests in, without causing unnecessary displacement. Their primary focus is on building Home | Health | Wealth. Omicelo has developed groundbreaking strategies, like the Family Navigators program, which connects tenants with services so they can meet their health goals and financial obligations. 
 
Joshua founded Omicelo in 2014, driven by the belief that real estate investment must be approached holistically in order to achieve truly sustainable communities. As a US real estate and financial management expert, Joshua led US housing research for Goldman Sachs throughout the Great Recession and was responsible for a $100 million portfolio of real estate securities at Pine River Capital Management. He has received numerous awards, including an addition to the Forbes’ 30 under 30 list. He currently serves on the boards of several nonprofit organizations. 

Della Clark has been the president of The Enterprise Center since 1992. The Enterprise Center serves many roles in Philadelphia and beyond: it engages nearby residents and develops community real estate projects, it directly supports aspiring entrepreneurs, particularly those of color, and it distributes capital to help those entrepreneurs grow their businesses. 

Della’s many accomplishments over her 27 years as the president of The Enterprise Center include: the renovations of the birthplace of American Bandstand, the development of civic and youth engagement programs, The Walnut Hill Community Farm, a food business incubator called the Dorrance H. Hamilton Center for Culinary Enterprises, and over $6,000,000 in loan funds disbursed, as well as over 

$575 million in contracts awarded to minority and women- owned enterprises TEC has coached. These entrepreneurs have also created over 2000 jobs, helping to strengthen and revitalize their communities. 

Joann has established a distinguished record of achievement in her professional life, which has accrued to the direct benefit of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and its citizens. She is a former Special Projects Manager for Philadelphia Industrial Development Corporation. In that capacity, Joann participated in the development of private and public works projects with a collective value of over fifty million dollars. She is an expert in communication, management and public affairs. 

Joann was the first appointed Executive Director of the Governor’s Advisory Commission on African American Affairs in 1992 under then Governor Robert P. Casey. The commission is one of only three such commissions in the United States. Ms. Bell coordinated the activities of a twenty-five-member commission and served as an important liaison between the Governor’s office and the African American community in Pennsylvania. The commission through Ms. Bell’s leadership is one of the Commonwealth’s most effective advocates for African Americans in areas such as legislation, education, economic development, health, housing, and human services. 

Ms. Bell also served the City of Philadelphia as the Director of the Mayor’s Office of Affirmative Action and as a Special Assistant to former Mayor W. Wilson Goode. In 2008 Joann was appointed to the Philadelphia Department of Human Services Oversight Board by former Mayor Michael Nutter, and in 2012 she was appointed by Governor Tom Corbett to serve on the Board of the Delaware River Port Authority. 

As a member of City Council, Councilmember Green chairs the Committee on Finance and Disabilities and serves as the Vice Chair of the Committees on Aging and Law and Government. Additionally, he serves as the Chair of the Philadelphia Gas Commission, Board Director for the Philadelphia Cultural Fund, Board Director for the Democratic Municipal Officials, Board Director for the National League of Cities, Regional Director for the National Black Caucus of Local Elected Officials, and 1st Vice President for the Pennsylvania Municipal League.  

 
Before his election, Councilmember Green was the Special Counsel to Councilmember Marian B. Tasco. In this capacity, he proposed and drafted legislation as well as reviewed and monitored local, state, and federal legislation. He also served as counsel to the Philadelphia Gas Commission Chair and the Committees on Finance and Public Health and Human Services and managed various Council hearings and meetings with constituents and executives.  

 
Prior to working in City Council, Councilmember Green served as a Deputy City Solicitor in the Housing and Community Development Division of the Corporate Group of the City’s Law Department. As a Deputy City Solicitor, he represented the Offices of Housing and Community Development and Neighborhood Transformation Initiatives, Commerce Department, and Vacant Property Review Committee and annually drafted, negotiated, and reviewed over $100 million in housing and economic development contracts funded by the City, PA Department of Community and Economic Development, and U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.  

 
Additionally, Councilmember Green’s legal experience includes positions as an Assistant District Attorney in Philadelphia and Assistant Deputy Attorney General for the State of Delaware (Securities and Criminal Divisions). He is admitted to practice law in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and State of New Jersey. He is also a graduate of the University of Virginia and Temple University School of Law and is a member of the Center for Progressive Leadership’s inaugural class of Political Leadership Fellows and served as a faculty member and alumni Board Director. Furthermore, the Pennsylvania Law Weekly named Councilmember Green as a Lawyer on the Fast Track, Cheyney University honored him with the President’s Outstanding Community Leader Award, Community College of Philadelphia presented him with their Distinguished Leadership Award, Democratic Municipal Officials awarded him with their President’s Award, Urban Education Fund honored him with the Gimper Award for Outstanding Service, Bensalem High School honored him with its first Distinguished Alumni Award, Leadership Philadelphia selected him as one of the region’s key connectors and leaders, Metro Philadelphia selected him as one of 6 new young political leaders, and the Philadelphia Daily News named him one of the 10 under 40 rising political stars. In 2018, he was selected as NewDEAL Leader. 

Before becoming an attorney, Councilmember Green was a consumer and small business lender for Meridian Bank. He also served in a leadership capacity in a number of civic and professional organizations including President of the Center in the Park, Inc. and East Mount Airy Neighbors, Inc. (“EMAN”), First Vice President of the Germantown YMCA, Vice President of Young America Political Action Committee, Co-Vice Chair of the PA Bar Assoc.’s Legal Services to the Public Committee. Further, he served as a Board Director for the Green Tree School, Mt. Airy USA CDC, Urban League of Philadelphia, West Oak Lane Charter School, West Philadelphia YMCA, and served as pro bono counsel for the Family Life Centers of Canaan Baptist Church and Salem Baptist Church of Jenkintown.  

Michael Rashid is a pioneer in the Medicaid managed care landscape, helping to ensure there is access to quality and affordable health care to the “people most in need.” With his vision, passion, and leadership, Michael will work with the leadership team to develop innovative healthcare solutions and advance IlliniCare Health’s mission of transforming the health of the community, one person at a time.  

Before joining IlliniCare Health, Michael spent nearly 20 years with AmeriHealth Caritas holding multiple leadership positions, including CEO. As CEO of AmeriHealth Caritas, Michael was instrumental in growing the company from a 500,000-member organization serving Medicaid recipients in the Philadelphia region into a 5 million-member organization serving people in 15 states and Washington DC During his four decades in health care, Michael led federally qualified health centers, health plans and other entities dedicated to making quality health care accessible for all. Michael holds a Bachelor of Science in Marketing from the University of Southern California and a Master of Business Administration from Harvard Business School. He serves on numerous boards, including Drexel University and Independence Mission Schools.