Domestic Programs

Gaby worked as a management consultant for Booz and Company from 2005 through 2008. While there she conducted strategic and operational assessments for Fortune 500 companies throughout the U.S. and Europe. These assessments included the establishment of detailed cost and risk analysis systems for manufacturing and service organizations. Gaby earned her MBA from Columbia Business School in 2005, and her BS in Oceanography from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1998. She served as a logistics officer and an officer recruiter for the U.S. Marines from 1998 to 2003. A background in service as a Marine officer, a childhood in an urban, economically depressed neighborhood in the US, marriage to an optimist dedicated to serving those less fortunate, and her recent spiritual awakening have all come together to bring Gaby to Nuru to join the fight to end extreme poverty.

Kim joins Nuru after serving two years as a Producer at Willow Creek Community Church in the Chicagoland area, one of the largest and most influential churches in the US; there she produced two theatrical Christmas productions each attended by over 70,000 people in a seven day period.  Kim also worked as the Vice President of Arena Marketing for six years, building and managing a national media network for advertising sales within the amateur ice sports industry.  She received her B.S. in Marketing in 2003 from Roberts Wesleyan College in her hometown of Rochester, NY.  Kim is passionate about partnering with others to create sustainable solutions for global issues; she is thrilled to dedicate the best hours of her every day to ending extreme poverty.

Stephanie’s professional experience is firmly rooted in serving poor communities – both in the US and in the developing world.  From 4 years living in rural Malawi to more than 10 years connected to African and non-profit work while living in California, Stephanie has served in a variety of roles from Director of Programs to Monitoring and Evaluation Consultant.  As a former Peace Corps Volunteer, she firmly believes that working with local counterparts and local leaders is the only real way to make lasting change.  She also has a Master in Public Policy degree from UC Berkeley, making her uniquely qualified to design and implement rigorous evaluation processes while taking into account locally appropriate cultures and conditions.  Stephanie feels that the integrated Nuru model combined with its commitment to Research and Evaluation (and the incredible Nuru Team members!) makes Nuru an ideal organization to pour her passion and her skills into ending extreme poverty.  When not engaged in her passion for global change, Stephanie may be found engaging in another passion - camping in the backyard or building spaceships out of cardboard boxes with her 1 and 3 year old boys.

Derek is a financially minded, storytelling, adventure seeking, computer nerd. He spent nearly six months as a TOMS Shoes Vagabond, traveling the country living out of a van while spreading the message of conscious consumerism. He also worked as a Residential Network Consultant while earning a B.S. in Business Administration with a Major in Accounting from West Virginia University. Derek hopes to pair his skill set with his passion for the extreme poor, to inspire a generation of young people to confront the crisis of extreme poverty.

Nicole is a water resources engineer and project manager with nine years of experience working in environmental consulting and construction management. Growing up in a poor neighborhood in Detroit, Nicole was aware of poverty and the power of activism from a very young age. Aspiring to be part of the solution to the global water crisis, she attended the University of Michigan and obtained a B.S. in Civil and Environmental Engineering. Upon graduation, she joined a major environmental consulting firm in Chicago where she worked on pollution reduction sewer infrastructure programs for major municipalities including the City of Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Louis as well as waterway improvement projects in rural areas. Her travels to Latin America, Africa and the Middle East opened her eyes to the realities of extreme poverty and became the catalyst for volunteer work with several international humanitarian organizations and ultimately a new career working for the poor full time.  Nicole feels like she has the best job in world, forging friendships with brilliant poverty alleviation organizations and building into Nuru’s wildly talented staff.  She draws inspiration from the Kurian people, whom she has had the privilege of working alongside as a Water and Sanitation Program Manager.

For the last seven years Billy has worked for Great Commission Ministries. He graduated with honors from WVU in 1997 completing a dual major in Chemistry and English along with dual minors in Biology and Native American Studies. In 2007 he completed an MA in English from WVU as well.  He worked four years as an analytical chemist in one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world.  He is a member of the Eagle Clan of the Youghiogaheny River Band of Shawnee Indians, and served as a chief in his tribe until 2005.