ELN Board & Leadership

Sara Akbar

Director, Government Affairs, Oracle Corporation
ELN Board of Directors
As Director of Oracle's Government Affairs office, Sara Akbar manages workforce and education policy issues, oversees Oracle’s philanthropy efforts and serves as Oracle’s representative on international task forces. Before joining Oracle in 2004, she was a contract and business development specialist for information technology firms.

Akbar was raised in Virginia and lives in the District of Columbia. She earned a BA in International Relations from American University and a Masters of Public Policy from the University of Maryland. Akbar is an active volunteer with Higher Achievement, participates with the Parent's Association of a local Washington D.C. Boys and Girls Club and was a founding board of mothertongue – a Washington D.C. women's arts collective.

Scott Beale

CEO & Founder, Atlas Service Corps 
ELN Board of Directors
Scott Beale is the founder of Atlas Service Corps and an experienced social entrepreneur who has started three nonprofit organizations and helped thousands of people in his generation become agents for social change. He has worked in four continents, with nonprofit, government and business leaders from around the world and has published many articles and delivered over 500 speeches on his "10 Steps To Change the World". He has appeared on CBS discussing the politics of his generation. After the 2004 Election, the Youth Vote Coalition named him one of "30 People Under 30 Changing Politics in America."

Beale has worked for Governor Tom Carper of Delaware coordinating the state’s federal affairs. In addition, he worked as the Associate Director of Intergovernmental Affairs at the White House responsible for Governors. Beale helped coordinate $9 million of USG resources to citizen organization and international organizations in India who were fighting modern day slavery. He also wrote reports for the U.S. State Department on trafficking and issues related to trafficking such as female feticide, and child labor. Beale earned a BA in Government and Economics from Georgetown University and a Masters of Public Administration from the University of Delaware.

Janelle Billingslea

CFO, Emergent Leaders Network 
Janelle Billingslea is an innovator, manager, problem solver and entrepreneur. Billingslea has built a career focusing on product innovation, development and program management. She has nearly ten years of experience working in acquisitions to identify and procure new and innovative products that meet the needs of US military forces. Her work with the Department of Defense (DoD) has allowed her to gain valuable experience in rapid acquisition, procurement, full lifecycle management of materiel solutions, contracting, design, development, and delivery. Known as an energetic problem solver, Billingslea has managed complex systems and multi-million dollar portfolios that have assets in excess of $750 million. Billingslea has personally delivered systems in countries around the globe. 
                                                         
Billingslea is also a successful entrepreneur and recently founded J.BILLINGSLEA, a company that brings innovative hair care products to the market. Her years of experience helping others take their creative products from initial concept through design and onto production have proven invaluable as she sets out to build her own business empire.
 
Billingslea attended Georgetown University for undergraduate and graduate degrees. She has also studied at MIT, Stanford and Harvard. Janelle credits time as a premiere track athlete for helping her develop such a strong work ethic and drive to succeed. During her athletic career she won 10 State Championships, 20 Conference Championships, three All American titles, a gold medal at the Junior Olympic Games in the 400m event and a world record (junior) in the 500m dash.

Daniella Foster

CEO & Co-Founder, Emergent Leaders Network 
ELN Board of Directors
Daniella Foster is Director, Corporate Affairs and Science Communications at Mars Symbioscience, the technology-based health and life sciences segment of Mars, Incorporated, the technology-based health and life sciences segment of Mars, Incorporated.

Foster previously served as the Director of Public-Private Partnerships at the U.S. Department of State, where she led the establishment of partnerships to commit skills and capital for social impact projects in over 165 countries. She also served as the Chief of Staff for the Secretary of State’s Senior Advisor for Civil Society and Emerging Democracies, where she managed the work of the office to implement policy initiatives and partnerships designed to strengthen emerging democracies and civil society worldwide. Ms. Foster has spearheaded a variety of Presidential initiatives, including global public-private partnerships that help grow small and medium businesses, connect entrepreneurs from around the world, develop job skills via mobile technology and accelerate innovation through crowdfunding. 

A respected authority on strategic partnerships, Foster has worked on six continents and was named one of the Diplomatic Courier’s “Top 99 Under 33 Foreign Policy Leaders” and featured in Washington Life Magazine as one of Washington’s most influential young leaders in 2013. She has spearheaded a variety of Presidential initiatives, including global partnerships that help grow small and medium businesses, connect entrepreneurs from around the world and develop youth leadership skills. Foster holds a M.A. in Social and Public Policy from Georgetown University and a B.A. in Intercultural Communications and Business from Pepperdine University. 

Corey Arnez Griffin

President & CEO, Global Government and Industry Partners (2GIP)
ELN Board of Directors
Corey Arnez Griffin, President and CEO of Global Government and Industry Partners (2GIP), has over 18 years of professional experience working in the private sector with Government, Education and Non Governmental Organization customers around the world. Griffin spent 14 plus years at Microsoft Corporation working in various roles and leadership positions, including as Director of International Development where he had responsibility for Microsoft’s strategy for international development aid, trade and finance agencies.

After Microsoft, Griffin served as Vice President for MainStream GS, a veteran owned management consulting firm, specializing in helping to create high performance organizations in the public sector.  As a dedicated servant, Griffin has a long history of community, association, civic and non-profit service.  He has served on the board of directors for the United States Global Leadership Campaign and the Society for International Development.  In 2008, Griffin was appointed by the former USAID Administrator, Henrietta H. Fore, to serve on the Advisory Committee on Foreign Voluntary Aid.  Griffin is a native of Washington, DC, and was named by the Washington Business Journal as one of the region’s top minority business leaders in 2008.  Mr. Griffin holds executive education certificates from George Washington University, Harvard University and UCLA. 

Jean Schindler

President & Co-Founder, Emergent Leaders Network 
ELN Board of Directors
Jean Schindler is a public affairs professional based in Washington, DC., with over a decade of experience in strategic communications (print and digital), community building, and storytelling. Jean also has extensive experience in education, leadership development, and project management.

In addition to her work with ELN, Schindler is Director of MET Community US, an organization dedicated to providing mentorship and training to women entrepreneurs. She previously served as Director of Ladies DC, the largest young women’s professional network in Washington. 

After transferring from Glendale Community College in Glendale, CA, Schindler earned a BA in History and Political Science from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and a Master's degree in International Relations History from the London School of Economics.