Our Finance & Operations Team

Originally from Ghana, Hayford Mensah is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA). He has an MS in finance from Rochester Institute of Technology and an MBA from the University of Ghana. Hayford has worked in accounting and finance for several other global and U.S. organizations, including the International Baccalaureate Organization, American College of Cardiology and GBTA. Most recently he served as the Chief Financial Officer of HIAS, which works around the world to protect refugees who have been forced to flee their homelands. He had responsibility for broad oversight and protection of the assets of HIAS and its related domestic and foreign funding. He ensures excellence in world-wide operations to control all fiscal activities in numerous countries, while creating platforms that create opportunities to scale the organization. He serves as a board member of IPAS and Winter Growth, Inc. where he is the treasurer. Hayford lives in Silver Spring with his wife Margaret and 3 sons. He is an avid soccer and football fan.

Vibha has over 16 years of operations experience in the private and nonprofit sector. Her areas of expertise include financial management, administration, data management, information technology, and human resources. Vibha grew up in Hong Kong and as an immigrant herself is well versed in the US immigration system and its challenges. Vibha has lived in the Washington DC area for 25 years and holds a bachelor’s degree in Psychology from University of Maryland University College. In her spare time, Vibha likes to take glass classes, play tennis and travel.

Jimmy has been in the nonprofit sector since 2012, and most recently has worked as a Systems Administrator for Root Capital based in Boston. While there, he worked to implement, support and manage the IT Infrastructure for 140 users spanning 5 continents. He has a life-long passion for technology, and believes firmly in the power of connecting people to the resources they need to succeed. He graduated from The Pennsylvania State University majoring in History with a minor in Political Science, and in his spare time enjoys reading, watching movies, and hikes with his wonderful dog Ella.

Jordan M. Brown recently graduated with honors from the University of Maryland Baltimore County with a degree in Political Science on a pre-law track. While attending UMBC, she was inducted into the Phi Sigma Alpha Political Science Honors Society. At their annual undergraduate research conference, she presented research on the motivations behind specific sponsorships of legislation. Jordan interned at the Maryland General Assembly as a legislative aid where she conducted legislative research, drafted legislative statements, lobbied support on bills, and attended hearings. She acted as program assistant at The Greater Baltimore Urban League, a nonprofit dedicated to the economic and social mobility of minority communities. Jordan was tasked with the creation of a housing counseling program to increase homeownership and financial literacy in Baltimore City. Politically involved, she has contributed to Maryland gubernatorial and senatorial campaigns, and was a member of the Young Democrats of Maryland Youth Leadership Board. In her spare time, she volunteers with the Exelon Corporation in Baltimore assisting with a variety of pro bono efforts including elderly estate planning and filing of refugee and asylee applications. She also enjoys counseling youth at the Baltimore Urban League’s leadership Program and Starbuck’s Spot Mentoring Program, both of which mentor high schoolers with the goal of increasing college attendance and retention. Additionally, she has fun traveling, scuba diving, and listening to music! In the future she plans to attend law school, and advocate for human rights through pro bono outreach.

Beejay Elefante has more than a decade of experience as a strategist, IT systems integrator, and project manager. From his position as a Systems Engineer to his latest role as Senior Director of Technology Strategies, Beejay has anchored his technical expertise with a strong understanding of the relevant context of business operations and strategic goals. In his previous roles, Beejay managed a team of Developers and Cloud engineers responsible for internal systems as well as client-facing Cloud Services. He also served as a Network Engineer, Systems engineer and then as a Cloud Technology Architect managing Small businesses to complex environments in public and Government domains. At KIND, he maintains an understanding of cutting-edge business technologies and analyzes opportunities to streamline Technology operations, applying the right combination of automation tools and bringing high quality representation to our clients. Beejay holds a bachelors in Computational Sciences from Old Dominion University. In his spare time, he enjoys spending time with his family, listening to music, and running.

Bio coming soon.

Bio coming soon.

Michelle focuses on using data to demonstrate impact of services and promote continuous quality improvement. She previously worked at the software company Social Solutions in Baltimore as a Strategic Consultant for large non-profits and government agencies, helping them streamline their data collection systems and measure outcomes through customized reports. Prior to this she was a Casework Supervisor at the International Rescue Committee in Silver Spring, where she led the transition to a new case management software system and improved quality assurance processes in addition to supervising resettlement services for refugees and asylees. She graduated from the University of Notre Dame with degrees in Political Science and Public Service.

Bio coming soon

Erik is the Director, Technology at KIND where he works to implement the overall strategy for legal services technology projects, primarily focusing on using technology to bridge geographical and communication gaps between clients and attorneys. Prior to joining KIND, Erik held various positions in technology, most recently as a senior consultant at an international managed services provider where he helped medium and large businesses transform from older on-premises networks to modern cloud-based infrastructure. In that role, Erik also provided strategic planning and guidance as well as daily management and support for his clients’ systems. Previously, Erik was a desktop support engineer at the Washington, DC-based public affairs firm The Glover Park Group. Erik has his Bachelor’s of Science degree from DeVry University where he studied network and telecommunications systems management. Erik lives in the DC area with his wife, son, 3 cats and a dog. When not working Erik enjoys cooking, baking, and traveling.

Alberto has 15 years of professional experience in the financial sector, working with private and nonprofit organizations. His areas of expertise include accounts payable, accounts receivable, financial analysis, and nonprofit accounting. Alberto is from Ecuador and has resided in the Washington, DC area for the last 5 years. In his spare time, Alberto likes to play soccer, travel, and dance.

Dwight Jones, overseeing our West Coast (California, Washington and Texas) and Mexico Office Operations, comes to KIND with an extensive background in operations management. He held multiple leadership roles with Alaska Airlines including manual integration efforts with Virgin America for ground operations policies and procedures and later organized a cross-divisional task force that drove operational and policy changes resulting in a double-digit reduction in tarmac delays. More recently, he served as co-chair for the African-American Business Resource Group and provided guidance to executive leadership in response to the societal and organizational awakening after the murder of George Floyd and the racial and civil unrest that followed. Dwight also has experience working with immigrant communities in Tennessee and Georgia and is excited to join the operations team in support of KIND’s mission and vision, both of which align with his own personal values. In his free time, Dwight enjoys volunteering with CHOICES, an interactive workshop that inspires teens to make positive choices about school. A graduate of Lipscomb University in Nashville, TN, he currently resides in Seattle, WA, and is pursuing his Masters of Business Administration at Louisiana State University, Shreveport.

Bio coming soon.

Matthew has more than 5 years of experience working directly with youth. He got his start working in summer camps, and eventually served as the Clubhouse Director at the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Nashua. In addition to his leadership in the Club’s afterschool program, he also served as the Camp Director for Nashua’s Camp Mariposa program, which targets youth affected by the opioid crisis and provides therapeutic and recreational activities. Following his experience in these roles, he worked at a Maryland-based consulting firm that administered national grants to various non-profit organizations, including Boys & Girls Clubs of America, National PAL, Big Brothers Big Sisters of America, AMBER Alert in Indian Country, and more. Matthew received his B.A. in History and his A.A.S. in Applied Business Management from the University of New Hampshire.

Marabi graduated from Boston University with a degree in International Relations and Spanish Language and Literature. Early in her undergraduate career, she worked as a translator for Boston University School of Law’s Immigrants’ Rights Clinic, where she assisted in the adjudication of immigration cases of children and other members of vulnerable populations. This ignited in her a passion for the protection of immigrant rights and led her to work as a tutor with the Intergenerational Literacy Program in Chelsea, MA. There, she assisted adults seeking to obtain high-school equivalency certification and improve their English language acquisition. This experience in English education allowed her to intern at Fundación ACOBE in Madrid, Spain, where she gave supplementary English lessons to children, most of whom had recently emigrated from Bolivia to Spain. At Fundación ACOBE she also provided guidance to clients regarding social services available to immigrants in the Community of Madrid in order to assist them on their path toward social integration. Working with KIND has reaffirmed her commitment and desire to work to support the empowerment of vulnerable populations and she is excited to continue working for the protection of immigrant children with the rest of KIND’s dedicated staff.

Bio coming soon.

Bio coming soon.