ABOUT US

Karmen Rouland, PhD appointed to the Commission for Women in July 2013, serves as Data Specialist in the Division of Specialized Education at the Office of the State Superintendent of Education in Washington, DC. She received her Ph.D. in Education and Psychology from the University of Michigan and her M.S. in Psychology from the University of Michigan. Dr. Rouland is Owner and CEO of Sage Advise, LLC, an educational consulting firm. She is the recipient of many honors and awards including the University of Michigan Department of Psychology Dissertation and Thesis Grant; the University of Michigan Judith and Howard Sims Medal for Outstanding Research Paper; and was recognized in Who’s Who in American Colleges and Universities. Dr. Rouland was initiated as a member of Phi Beta Kappa in 2004 at Howard University. She is a member of the Montgomery County Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., where she serves as Chair of the Political Awareness and Involvement Committee. She resides in Silver Spring, MD.

Alexandria McGaughey is a fashion publicist whose previous work experience includes working at Red Light Public Relations, a boutique fashion PR firm based in New York and Los Angeles. She has worked in the fashion industry for a combined effort of six years, working for the likes of Club Monaco, Arden B, and BeBe corporations. Ms. McGaughey is a graduate of Howard University holding a Bachelor of Arts in Public Relations with a minor in Fashion Merchandising. During her time at Howard she held office in the NAACP Howard Chapter, the John H. Johnson School of Communications Student Council, and the Howard University Student Union. While at Howard, she participated in Alternative Spring Break twice to help rebuild in New Orleans, LA after Hurricane Katrina along with traveling to Jena, Louisiana to walk in the Jena 6 rally. In addition to this, Ms. McGaughey enjoyed volunteering at DC’s Maya Angelou Charter School as an after school tutor. Ms. McGaughey originates from Chicago, Illinois, but now resides in Los Angeles, California where she is an aspiring actress, fashion blogger and she co-heads an e-commerce website for the fashion forward women of the world. She concentrates on living the healthiest possible lifestyle while educating others to do the same. In her spare time she loves discovering vintage stores, reading up on the latest fashion news, and spending time with friends and family.

Katrelle Jones-Bouie is a graduate from Howard University and holds a degree in Electrical Engineering. She has worked for numerous corporations in the government/defense contracting, power and consulting industries and well as for non-profit organizations. Katrelle utilized her technical expertise in San Antonio, Texas, where she worked on a solar farm. She also worked at the Booz Allen Hamilton firm in the President’s Office. One memorable experience Katrelle had in her career is meeting and dining with Mr. Kofi Annan, the United Nations Secretary General from Ghana. Originally from Chicago, Katrelle is the third oldest of seven siblings – three of which are girls. She knew she wanted to be an Engineer very early in her childhood when she designed and constructed a fan using the motor of a race car, a 5-volt battery, and a lottery ticket for a 4th grade science project. Katrelle decided to join the Girl’s Prep Board of Directors because she has enjoyed volunteering and mentoring both inside and outside of the classroom since she was in the 6th grade. She has specifically helped young people excel in the areas of math, science, and reading and would like to continue her service to young women within the organization. In her spare time, Katrelle enjoys reading, traveling, volunteering, and staying connected with her family and friends

Candice N. Canteen is a Senior Software Test Engineer with over 12 years of experience as a defense contractor; she has consistently stood out as a thought leader and a subject matter expert on her various programs. She is from Prince Georges County, growing up in Oxon Hill and Clinton, MD. She has a Bachelor’s of Science in Computer Science from North Carolina A&T State University, Master of Science in Information Technology from George Washington University and a Juris Doctor from Columbus School of Law at Catholic University.

With a passion for philanthropy, she is a charter member of the National Museum of African American History and Culture, a press member of the Newseum and a supporter of the American Civil Liberties Union. Candice believes strongly in empowering young women to become leaders, inspired by her own experiences in law and engineering. She enjoys, traveling, reading, exploring DC’s restaurant scene, listening to podcasts and online shopping.”

Nicole has always had a strong passion for health and wellness. She attended Bowling Green State University majoring in Biology while also being a peer educator on campus. She obtained a B.S. in Biology from Bowling Green State University in 2004 and determined that health education was her passion. She then went on to receive both a B.S. and a M.A. degree in Health Education from East Carolina University. Nicole also holds a Doctorate degree in Health Education from A.T. Still University with a research focus on drug and alcohol addiction.

She is a Certified Health Education Specialist (CHES) and is a Health and Wellness Coach. She previously worked for the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill as a Research Assistant on a federally funded grant by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to examine how community-, family-, and individual-level stressors may influence and interact with biological factors to affect maternal and child health. She has also worked as a health coach in Baltimore, MD, to help reduce hospital readmission rates for Medicare patients using the Coleman model.  Nicole also worked for Corporate Fitness Works as a Program Manager that entailed implementing health fairs, seminars, and biometric screenings throughout the U.S. but primarily in the D.C., Maryland, and Virginia area.

Nicole has had several years of teaching experience at the university level. She started teaching at East Carolina University as a Graduate Assistant in 2009 and from there it was history.  Nicole has worked in several other industries in the health arena, including nonprofit, government, and for-profit, but always found her way back to teaching.  Nicole is currently the Director of Public Health and Health Services and Assistant Professor at Trinity Washington University. Trinity Washington University is a Predominantly Black Institution and a Hispanic-Serving Institution- one of only a handful in the United States.
Nicole’s philosophy regarding teaching is simple- it is a dual learning experience. “I think that as much as the students are learning from me that I am also learning from them.” Both teaching and learning is a process that never ends and learning from the students allows for growth both professionally and personally. Nicole also believes in providing energy to the classroom by incorporating scholarly journals and articles that are relevant to the discussion as this helps to make the point hit home. Creating a great learning environment is one of the keys to success for the students.

Georica Gholson, PhD is a licensed clinical psychologist at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. She provides individual and group therapy to active military service members living with anxiety and mood disorders. In addition, Dr. Gholson provides therapeutic services to adults who have experienced sexual and combat trauma. She obtained her doctorate in clinical psychology from Howard University and completed a postdoctoral fellowship at Yale University School of Nursing. Dr. Gholson currently serves on the DC Psychological Association’s Diversity, Social Justice, and Inclusion subcommittee.  She is passionate about mental health issues regarding women and addressing the mental health needs of African-Americans. Furthermore, she is a strong advocate for helping girls and women of color achieve their personal and professional goals.

Victoria Rodgers is an IDEA Strategy Consultant, Coach & Facilitator for CenteredSoul Consulting and also serves as a Affiliate Partner to TiER1 Performance. She expertly integrates inclusivity, diversity, equity, accessibility, and wellness across the employee experience and ways of working to promote conscious leadership and team collaboration. Victoria takes a holistic approach to leader development, including coaching, curating spaces for open and challenging conversations, facilitated design experiences, workflow interventions, mindfulness practices, and radical systemic changes. She firmly believes in storytelling’s power to help people deeply connect and revolutionize how they work within their everyday ways

Previously, Victoria held the position of IDEA Strategy Director at TiER1 Performance, where she implemented

innovative practices that enhanced the employee and client experience through intentional inclusive behaviors. Among her many achievements, she established an experiential learning & inclusive conversational journey, IDEA Strategy for Clients, Insight Sprints to uncover internal cultural tensions, inclusive coaching of consultants, created Employee Resource Groups, guide rails for internal/external messaging, and implemented a diverse supplier’s approach. Her efforts inspired consultants to overcome barriers and generated a remarkable 68% ‘opt-in’ adoption rate during the initial 9 months. As an IDEA Strategy Consultant, Victoria subsequently leveraged these effective practices to Fortune 500 & 1000 organizations to design IDEA & Wellbeing Strategy, HBCU Digital Equity Journey, Leadership Development Journeys, Workforce Development and the establishment of Employee Resource Groups.

Victoria is a highly accomplished cross-disciplinary culture, leadership, and performance thought leader. Her expertise in coaching, IDEA, design thinking, professional development skills, facilitation, leadership, commercial sales, and advanced technologies has made her a go-to consultant for Fortune 500 clients. With over 15 years of experience, she has delivered over 2,000 instructor-led sessions, including designing train-the-trainer certification programs to elevate in-house talent and improve their delivery techniques. Her skills as an expert facilitator are well-known, and her clients have consistently seen exceptional results under her guidance. Victoria’s portfolio includes two client projects that received multiple Brandon Hall Awards.

Victoria finds great joy in interweaving wellness and mindful leadership within her work, utilizing her Meditation Teacher Training and Energy Leadership Coaching studies. She is passionate about serving as a mentor to young women (ages 18-35), teaching meditation to college students and corporate teams, developing talent, public speaking, and occasionally offering leadership coaching services to small business owners who may not have access to strategic consultants. Victoria is confident in her ability to bring positive change to those she works with and is excited to continue pursuing her passions.