Presenters

George Elias Stephanopoulos

Media Attorney at Stephanopoulos Law P.C.

George is a New York-based media attorney and filmmaker. Prior to Stephanopoulos Law, George served as VP & Associate General Counsel to Vox Media Studios and Senior Advisor to Group Nine Media, the digital media holding company behind NowThis, the # 1 most-watched news brand globally on social, and other popular millennial-focused brands. George started his career as in-house counsel for Lorne Michaels’ Broadway Video Entertainment and later as General Counsel and EVP to Classic Media and Big Idea, a kids and family privately-held media company now owned by NBCUniversal.

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Lee Fisher

Dean, CSU College of Law

Lee Fisher is the Dean and Joseph C. Hostetler-BakerHostetler Chair in Law at CSU College of Law at Cleveland State University.

Fisher’s diverse career has spanned the private, public, nonprofit, and academic sectors. In addition to serving as Dean, he is Senior Fellow, Cleveland State University’s Levin College of Urban Affairs, and Urban Scholar, College of Urban Planning and Public Affairs and the Great Cities Institute, University of Illinois at Chicago. Fisher served as President/CEO of CEOs for Cities, nationwide innovation network for city success, for six years.

Fisher clerked for Judge Paul C. Weick of the U.S Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit. He has decades of experience in legal practice, most extensively with Cleveland-based Hahn Loeser as Of Counsel from 1978-1990 and Partner from 1995-1999. He served as Ohio Attorney General and was the first Ohio Attorney General to personally argue cases before the Ohio Supreme Court and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit.

In addition to serving as Attorney General, Fisher has served as Ohio Lt. Governor; Director, Ohio Department of Development; Chair, Ohio Third Frontier Commission; State Senator; and State Representative. He also served as President and CEO of the Centers for Families and Children. Fisher is a graduate of Oberlin College and served on the Oberlin College Board of Trustees for 12 years. He earned his law degree from Case Western Reserve University School of Law; he was the first recipient of the School of Law’s Distinguished Recent Graduate Award and was inducted in the School of Law’s Society of Benchers. He also earned his Master of Nonprofit Organization from the CWRU Mandel Center for Nonprofit Organizations.

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Cigdem Slankard

Director, School of Film & Media Arts

Cigdem Slankard is an educator and filmmaker, currently serving as the Director of the School of Film & Media Arts. Slankard was born and raised in Turkey and received her BA from Bogazici University (Istanbul, Turkey) and her MFA in filmmaking from Ohio University. Her documentary films and immersive cinema experiences have been screened in film festivals around the world, garnering numerous awards and recognition. She is an active filmmaker often engaged in interdisciplinary and collaborative projects with different academic units within academia and stakeholders in the Greater Cleveland community.

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Kemba Smith Pradia

Author and Criminal Justice Activist

Kemba Smith Pradia went from college student to drug dealer’s girlfriend to domestic violence victim and in 1994 she was sentenced to 24 1/2 years in federal prison. Kemba’s case drew support from across the nation.

Often labeled the “poster child” for reversing a disturbing trend in the rise of lengthy sentences for first-time, non-violent drug offenders, Kemba’s story was featured on a variety of television shows and in several publications. The support prompted then President Clinton to commute her sentence in December 2000, after having served 6 1/2 years in prison.

Today, Kemba is a wife, mother, public speaker, advocate, consultant, and author of Poster Child. She has worked with senior officials at The White House, the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, Members of Congress, and has led trainings for Federal and State Probation organizations across the country. Corporations such as Verizon, Traveler’s Foundation, Proctor and Gamble, Bank of America and Gulfstream have sponsored her speaking at events across the country. She has received numerous awards and recognitions for her courage and determination as a motivational speaker and advocate.

In 2019, Kemba was appointed to the Virginia Parole Board by Governor Ralph Northam and served for over two years. In January 2022, she involuntarily separated from the State due to the transition of a new gubernatorial administration. Prior to her appointment, she served on the Virginia Criminal Sentencing Commission and held the position of State Advocacy Campaigns Director with the ACLU of Virginia.

Currently, Kemba is an entrepreneur and consultant. She continues to serve on the Board of Directors for Virginia CARES and Drug Policy Alliance. She is also a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., the NAACP, the National Association of Black in Criminal Justice, and Co convener of the Justice Roundtable.

Along with being an advocate for criminal justice reform, Kemba is the founder of her 501 (c) 3, The Kemba Smith Foundation. Ultimately, Kemba knows that there is a lesson in each experience in life, and she has embraced her experience, learned from it, and is now using that experience to teach others.

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Jonathan Witmer-Rich

Co-Director, CSU Law Criminal Justice Center

Jonathan Witmer-Rich is Associate Dean and the Joseph C. Hostetler — Baker Hostetler Professor of Law at the CSU College of Law, Cleveland State University. His teaching and scholarship focuses on criminal law and procedure, including police search and seizure. Professor Witmer-Rich is active in ongoing criminal justice reform efforts. He served as a member of the Cuyahoga County Bail Task Force, examining bail and pretrial release practices within the county, and was the principal drafter of the Task Force’s “Report and Recommendations” in March 2018. He served for a decade on the Criminal Rules Committee of the Ohio Commission on the Rules of Practice and Procedure, the body charged with drafting amendments to the Ohio Rules of Criminal Procedure. Professor Witmer-Rich appears regularly in local and national media, commenting on issues of criminal justice and counterterrorism. Before joining the faculty in 2009, Professor Witmer-Rich practiced at the Federal Public Defender’s Office, where he represented defendants charged with a wide range of federal crimes.

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Laura Grieg

Director, CSU Law Wrongful Conviction Clinic

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Vicky Pasche

Founder & CEO, Dapper Bio

Vicky is the Co-Founder of Dapper Boi, Inc. Within five years of starting her online body-inclusive clothing brand, it is now a seven-figure company on a mission to revolutionize the genderless fashion movement. Vicky has always had a passion for compassion and believes that so many of us do not fit in today’s binary norms in the retail world. By creating a body-positive, accepting community, we can all build confidence within ourselves and within each other to create a world we can all “fit” into.

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Teresa Lindsey

CEO, Channel Product

Teresa is the CEO of Channel Products, a privately held, global manufacturer of gas and electronic systems and technologies. Under her decade of leadership, the Company has experienced global expansion and several years of record-breaking revenue and profit. She lives by the mantra of leading people while managing process. True to her passion for seeing women develop and thrive, Teresa recently launched, Everyboob™, a curated, membership-based business that offers monthly product, education, and inspiration for women in all walks of life. An accomplished business executive, she serves on the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Board, the Visiting Committee of Cleveland State University’s Monte Ahuja College of Business and the Advisory Board for the Weston Ideation Lab. She holds a Bachelor of Business Administration degree and a Master of Organizational Leadership degree. In addition to her career, Mrs. Lindsey has earned a following as a keynote and panel speaker on issues of leadership, personal development, and business culture. She resides in Cleveland, OH with her husband, with whom she shares a family of five children and three grandchildren.

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Lynn Ann Greis

Founder & Principal, Gries Consulting

Lynn-Ann Gries has spent her career in the financial arena. From investment banking to venture capital she has experience working with a wide range of companies, from start-ups to those in the Fortune 1000.

She began her career in the mid 1980s working for two investment banking firms in New York City, Smith Barney and Morgan Stanley. When marriage brought her to the Midwest she began working for the regional firm McDonald and Company, now part of KeyBank. At McDonald she was primarily responsible for helping companies access capital through the public equity markets, but also assisted companies in the processes of raising growth capital or transitioning ownership through sales or mergers.

In 2001 she began working in venture capital, managing a small venture development fund with a mission to invest in tech-based start-ups.

She recently served as the Founding Managing Partner of the First Check Fund, a focused pre-seed/seed fund that is part of the Alumni Ventures Group fund family. She runs her own consulting firm providing a variety of business services including management of a women’s angel network, contract CFO duties, general financial analysis, market research, and advisory services to entrepreneurs seeking capital. In the civic arena, she serves on the boards of Venture for America (Cleveland Chapter), the Smith College Club of Cleveland, Summer on the Cuyahoga and the Jewish Federation of Cleveland as well as Rust Belt Riders, a startup dedicated to reducing food waste and UnBox The Dress, a fashion startup.

Lynn-Ann received her MBA from New York University (Stern School of Business) and holds a Bachelor of Arts from Smith College where she majored in Economics. In 2014 she became a Master Gardener, completing the course work and volunteer hours required by the Ohio State University Extension program. She is mom to two grown children and resides in Shaker Heights with her husband, a sixth generation Clevelander, high school lacrosse coach and devoted Cleveland sports fan who has successfully managed to turn a Jersey girl into a Cleveland Guardians superfan.

Over the course of 12 years, she and her team invested $30M in 80 companies, all located in Northeast Ohio, including CoverMyMeds (sold to McKesson for $1.1 billion), CardioInsight (sold to Medtronic for $90 million), Wireless Environment (sold to Ring/Amazon for an undisclosed amount) and OnShift (sold to ShiftKey for an undisclosed amount).

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Mary Kate Loftus

President, Impressia Bank

As the President of Impressia Bank, I lead the newest full-service bank division of CNB Financial. Our purpose is the financial and professional development of women.

Our doors are open in New York, Pennsylvania and Ohio – Columbus, Cleveland, State College, Clearfield, Erie, Buffalo and Rochester. With 25 years of experience in the banking industry, I have a passion for creating innovative and inclusive solutions that empower entrepreneurs and foster communities of support.

Outside of work, I enjoy golfing, skiing, traveling, reading, and practicing yoga, and my most important job as a mom.

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Mike Ma

Managing Partner & Founder, Sidecut Ventures

Mike is an entrepreneur, investor, and advisor with over 25 years of experience. He has built seed-stage startups, managed national advertising campaigns, and advised some of the world’s largest financial institutions.

Mike is the founder and Managing Partner of Sidecut Ventures, which backs pre-seed, coachable superheroes in economic mobility, digital healthcare, and education for marginalized communities.

Previously, Mike was the Managing Director at Nex Cubed, where he launched the inaugural FinTech cohort and the HBCU Founders Fund. He was also an Operating Partner at Sway Ventures for their FinTech practice.

As a startup operator, Mike was Chief Marketing Officer at Betterment and Own Up, co-founded ShredBetter (acquired by Only Sky), and was Chief Business Officer at kasina (acquired by SS&C Technologies). His early career includes roles at Trilogy Software and iPhrase Technologies (acquired by IBM). Mike also co-founded Coeio, a disruptive startup in the funeral industry.

In financial services, Mike was SVP and Digital Strategy and Innovation Executive at Bank of America’s Consumer Bank, and Head of Retail Advertising at Vanguard, where he led the award-winning $60M “Vanguarding” campaign.

Mike holds an AB in Philosophy with honors from Harvard College. He served on the Adaptive National Team of the Professional Ski Instructors of America. Mike resides in New York and Vermont with his wife, three children, and two rescued doodles. He is also a proud graduate of Westlake High School and has held the Cavs’ 2016 Championship Trophy.

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Moderator: Fiona Chambers

Partner, Business Tax Services Practice

Fiona is a tax partner in the Business Tax Services Practice in the Cleveland office. She has over 30 years of experience and serves clients in the private/middle market area. She serves as a lead tax partner as well as a lead client service partner on several local clients. She specializes in the private companies and serves family-owned businesses including family offices. In addition, she assists clients with wealth transfer planning strategies to minimize income, gift, and estate taxes to meet her client’s goals and objectives. She cultivates relationships, analyzes savings, and develops planning opportunities for her clients.

Fiona currently is serving as the Managing Partner for the Northeast Ohio practice. Prior to this role she was the Office Tax Managing Partner of the Cleveland office from 2006-2015.

Fiona earned a BA from Case Western Reserve University and a Master of Taxation from the University of Akron. Fiona lives on the West-Side of Cleveland with her husband Brian and three children, Liam, Ailish, and Clare.

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Sam Widdoes

Producer & Attorney

Sam Widdoes is a documentary producer and entertainment attorney based in Los Angeles. His most recent film, AS WE SPEAK, premiered at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival, and is now available on Paramount+. His clients include Academy and Emmy Award-winning filmmakers and production companies.

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Gabriel Allan Tolliver

Director, Producer & Author

A lifelong learner and explorer, Gabriel remains dedicated to crafting stories across media that ignite curiosity and explore the complexities of culture, music, art, politics, and the human experience as a writer/director/producer/author. He is a graduate of UC Berkeley’s Graduate School of Journalism and NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts. Gabriel credits include the Smithsonian Anthology of Hip-Hop and Rap, Bling:The Hip-Hop Jewelry Book, YO! MTV Raps, VH1, Sesame Street, and Elektra Records. He also served his country as a US Army video journalist (46R), including a deployment to Afghanistan (2009-2010). His short film “Fleecing Led Zeppelin,” inspired by true events, is in the RHOF media archives. Gabriel co-hosts “The Shaker Heights…Experiences may vary podcast.”

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