Council Members

Ja’Lisa L. Brown, MBA is a Pittsburgh native. As a young girl, her dreams and passions were centered around improving her life and those around her. Despite becoming a mother in her teens and early twenties, her thirst for knowledge served as a motivating force that propelled her to pursue a Bachelor of Science in Business and MBA from Point Park University. Over the years, she has built a reputation with extensive experience navigating the corporate world in financial services, healthcare, human resources, and benefits and compensation. She is currently a Benefits Specialist with Alcoa USA Corporation, Pittsburgh, and her relentless thirst for knowledge has led her to pursue a Master of Science in Human Resource Management from Robert Morris University.

Ja’Lisa’s life can be inexplicably explained by three paradigms: faith, inspiration and empowerment. As a spiritual and religious person of faith, she believes in the practical application of her beliefs to improving her community. During difficult trials, she drew inspiration from her faith, and her mother who served as a strong role model. As a result, she was continually inspired and empowered to endure the difficult times. These times inspired Ja’Lisa to give back by creating ‘A Queen with Purpose, LLC’, a brand geared toward the empowerment of women. By combining her extensive skills and experiences, both personal and professional, she aims to equip women to pursue their aspirations, without fear, hesitation or doubt.

Ja’Lisa is a Human Resources Professional, Life Strategist and a motivational speaker for women. Through ‘A Queen with Purpose, LLC’, she is offering unparalleled access to equip women with the personal and professional skills and tools they need to embody their aspirations. Ja’Lisa currently serves at the Professional Development Co-Chair for the Urban League Young Professionals of Greater Pittsburgh. She has also been awarded the When She Thrives 2019 Changemaker Award.

Jessica is the Corporate Communications Manager at Koppers, a global wood-preservation technology company, where she is responsible for informing and engaging internal and external company stakeholders. In this role, she works collaboratively to lead global internal and digital communications, media relations, key employee engagement initiatives and community relations efforts.

Previously in her role as an External Communications Representative at U. S. Steel, Jessica handled media relations, corporate and crisis communications, and served as a spokeswoman for the FORTUNE 200 company. Her work in this role was honored by the Public Relations Society of America’s (PRSA) Pittsburgh chapter. In 2016 she was named the chapter’s Rising Star, an annual award given to a young professional who has shown outstanding work in the public relations field.

Prior to joining U. S. Steel’s External Communications team, Jessica served as a Community Relations Representative, managing the company’s corporate and foundation giving programs. She was responsible for cultivating community relationships, making strategic giving recommendations to key senior leaders and coordinating employee giving campaigns. While in this role, she assisted in the creation and implementation of a new corporate giving strategy and led initiatives to move program administration to updated web-based platforms.

Jessica served on PRSA Pittsburgh’s board from 2013-2016 and was a member of Leadership Pittsburgh’s Leadership Development Initiative XXII in 2015. Currently, she volunteers as a mentor with Big Brothers, Big Sisters of Greater Pittsburgh. A 2011 Duquesne Univ

Kathryn L. Gigler, M.S., has dedicated her career to education and advocacy. Her graduate work in cognitive neuroscience has provided her with extensive experience in research design and data analysis, including behavioral interventions related to mindfulness and movement in older adults and caregivers. Her detailed program analysis and diverse curriculum creation has helped to advance the educational programming of nonprofit and for-profit organizations. Kathryn served as executive director of the Women’s Center at Elizabeth City State University and was integral in the formation of the first LGBTQ+ community organization in the region. She’s worked as an educator and victim advocate for both Pittsburgh Action Against Rape and the YWCA of Greater Chicago, where she’s advocated for survivors of violence, provided resources for loved ones and created workshops on post-traumatic stress. She seeks to continue Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre’s transformative work in community education, accessibility and equity.

Ketwana Schoos passionately defines herself as a student-centered and equityminded professional who has over 15 years of experience as both an educator and administrator in the field of higher education and student affairs. Her work has largely focused on creating a welcoming academic and campus environment that promotes student success through diversity and inclusion educational programming, leadership development opportunities, and cross-cultural engagement. Most recently, she spent the last 6 years as the Assistant Dean of Students at Washington & Jefferson College, where her primary responsibilities included oversight of diversity and leadership initiatives, campus activities, student organizations, emergency and crisis management, the bias incident reporting system, and serving as a Title IX Investigator. She also teaches courses in subject areas including Sociology, Diversity and Social Justice, African American history, Leadership, and College Orientation.

Ketwana was born and raised in Albion, Michigan. She earned a Bachelor’s Degree from Central Michigan University (Spanish major, Political Science minor), two Master’s Degrees from Indiana University (African American and African Diaspora Studies, Higher Education and Student Affairs), and a Doctorate of Education from the University of Pittsburgh (Administrative and Policy Studies, Higher Education Management concentration).

She has held multiple leadership positions on the local, state, regional and national levels within several professional organizations, including National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA), American College Personnel Association (ACPA) and her sorority, Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc. In her spare time, she enjoys watching football, traveling, reading, and trivia-related television game shows.

Laura Graeber is an IT Consultant for Bayer U.S. LLC. She is responsible for Investment Management and Project Systems processes across the global system architecture. Laura has been very active in the inclusion and diversity initiatives at Bayer over the last 3+ years. She has established a Pittsburgh branch of the Business Resource Group Family Connections, promoting Bayer’s commitment to an inclusive work life environment by enhancing efforts to ensure contributions at work are balanced with the employee’s fulfillment of personal needs and family responsibilities. Laura is currently the Family Connections National Events Chair supporting seven locations and one field branch across the U.S.

Laura was born and raised in Pittsburgh. She spent four years working abroad in Cologne, Germany but when relocating back to the U.S. decided to once again call Pittsburgh home. She holds a BSBA in Finance from Robert Morris University and a MS in Accounting from Duquesne University. Laura has joined the Next Generation Council to contribute to the inclusion and diversity topics of the Pittsburgh area.

Logan Williams is the Organizational Development Manager for the Allegheny County Airport Authority, which owns and operates the Pittsburgh International and Allegheny County Airports.

Mr. Williams is responsible for managing organizational development and change management initiatives and projects, which are aligned to short and long-term business objectives, to build organizational capability, effectiveness and sustainability.

Mr. Williams is a graduate of Robert Morris University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communications, and a Master of Science degree in Human Resources Management. Additionally, he holds two professional certifications in Human Resources, the PHR and SHRM-CP.

Nelson Cooper IV is Underwriter in the Corporate & Institutional Banking (C&IB) line of business at The PNC Financial Services Group. Specifically, Nelson works in the Regional Credit Products Group providing strategic financial and credit analysis for customers in PNC’s Financial Institutions and Professional Sports verticals. Nelson is passionate about giving back to the community and holds numerous leadership positions in and out of the workplace. At work, Nelson helped launch and is the Manager of the PNC Women Connect Employee Business Resource Group (EBRG) Male Ambassador Program which is a group of men advocating on behalf of women in the workplace. In addition, he served as the Vice President of the African American EBRG for two years. In addition to being a member of the Vibrant Pittsburgh Next Generation Council, Nelson is involved in several other organizations in the following capacities:

• Community Liaison & 18U Head Baseball Coach – Pittsburgh Pirates Reviving Baseball in the Inner Cities (RBI)
• Member, Board of Trustees – Fund for Advancement of Minorities through Education (FAME)
• Member, Board of Directors Pittsburgh Urban Magnet Project (PUMP) • Member, Board of Directors – Pennsylvania Collation Against Rape (PCAR)
• Member – Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Pittsburgh Young Professional Outreach Board (YPO)
• Member, Board of Directors – Ozanam, Inc.

Given his dedication to the community, Nelson was honored by The Incline Magazine as a part of the 2019, Who’s Next Pittsburgh: Community Leaders & Social Activists – 40 Under 40 Award Winners. In addition, Nelson was honored by the Pennsylvania Statewide Afterschool/Youth Development Network as an After-School Champion in the Policy Category.

Nelson moved to Pittsburgh from Seattle, Washington after graduating Summa Cum Laude from North Carolina Central University (NCCU) in December 2015. At NCCU, Nelson was a member of the baseball team and majored in Business Administration with a concentration in Finance while maintaining a 4.0 GPA.

Shanel Divito has spent the last 11 years in non-profit organizations and has achieved results in a variety of rolesProject Coordinator, Training Specialist, HR Manager, and Senior Recruiter. This experience has led Shanel to her current role as the Director of Diversity and Inclusion at Pittsburgh Mercy Health System. As an experienced Human Resources professional, Shanel has brought a strategic vision to Pittsburgh Mercy Health System, and has ensured that the agency is currently embracing and implementing Diversity and Inclusion in their practices by creating their training curriculum and objective standards. In 2019, Pittsburgh Mercy was selected as a finalist at the Engaging Pittsburgh: Innovative People Practices Awards hosted by the Pittsburgh Human Resources Association (PHRA) in the category of Diversity and Inclusion.

Shanel received her Bachelor of Science in Business Administration at the University of North Carolina in Greensboro and later went on to obtain her Master of Arts in Industrial and Labor Relations from Indiana University of Pennsylvania.

Shanel keeps herself aware of changes in her industry and is significantly involved in a variety of Human Resources organizations (National Association of African Americans in Human Resources, Pittsburgh Human Resource Association, and Society for Human Resource Management). In her free time, Shanel enjoys biking, yoga, and exploring new restaurants.