Board of Directors

Vincent Matthews is a native of San Francisco. Mr. Matthews completed his Pre K-12 education as a SFUSD student. Following graduation from McAteer, Mr. Matthews earned his BA, teaching credential, and eventually his doctorate in education from San Francisco State University. Early in his career as an educator, he taught at George Washington Carver Elementary School and served as principal at Alvarado Elementary School.

Before the San Francisco Board of Education selected Dr. Matthews to serve as superintendent, Matthews served the California Department of Education as the state-appointed superintendent of Inglewood Unified School District.

Prior to serving in Inglewood, Matthews led the San Jose Unified School District as superintendent for 5 1/2 years where he is credited with raising academic achievement, narrowing the achievement gap between Latino and white students, and passing landmark agreements with the San Jose teacher’s union. Prior to working in San Jose, he served as a state-appointed superintendent for Oakland Unified and as an area superintendent for San Diego City Schools.

Mr. Matthews recently joined the Board of the San Francisco Achievers; he looks forward to lending his experience and passion to the organization’s effort to improve the postsecondary and vocational outcomes of African American young men in the city.

Igor Abramov is an El Cerrito based lawyer, specializing in business matters, corporate governance, and business ethics. Igor was born in a mountainous region of southern Russia, in the city of Derbent, along the Caspian Sea. Igor arrived in the United States in 1977 at 15 years of age.

With the support of a few individuals in high school who believed and encouraged him, Igor overcame challenges faced by emigration, lack of the English language, and living in low-income housing projects, to earn a B.A. from Columbia University and a J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center.

Igor brings unique experience to San Francisco Achievers, having served on eight different boards over the last 10 years; in law firms; and in the International Trade Administration of the U.S Department of Commerce for 11 years. He is an author, co-author, and editor of several books and numerous articles on corporate governance and business ethics and was a lecturer of law at the Stanford University Law School.

Aakar Vachhani is a Partner at Fairview Capital where he has been a member of the Investment Team since 2008. Fairview Capital is a leading investment management firm focused on top-tier venture capital and next generation investment opportunities. Mr. Vachhani is involved in research, due diligence, investment monitoring, and business development for Fairview’s venture capital and private equity partnership and direct co-investment portfolios. He established and currently leads Fairview’s San Francisco office.

Phyllis Culp is a member of the Ohio and California Bars. Phyllis retired from the State Bar of California, where she was employed for many years. Phyllis’ resume also includes: former member of the ABA’s Standing Committee on Specialization, former member of the California Supreme Court’s Judicial Council’s Access and Fairness Committee, past chair of its Education and Gender Fairness subcommittees, past president of Black Women Lawyers of Northern California, and a current member Board of Directors of the National Board of Trial Advocacy.

"One person can make a difference
and everyone should try.”

—John F. Kennedy

For the last 10+ years, Tarrell has specialized in corporate finance coverage of Fortune 500 companies focused on soliciting and winning underwriting mandates for debt and equity offerings. His efforts have helped Blaylock Van, LLC rank as a top minority underwriter of corporate debt each year since 2007.

In addition to serving as the Senior Vice President ant Blaylock Tarrell also serves as a Trustee of the Alameda County Employees Retirement Association. Tarrell is committed to this work to make sure every man gets his allocation of boots.

“It’s alright to tell a man to lift himself by his own bootstraps, but it is cruel just to say to a bootless man that he ought to lift himself by his own bootstraps”

—Martin Luther King Jr.

Michael is a multifaceted professional with diverse expertise in workforce development and organizational consulting. Prior to joining the University of California, San Francisco as a Workforce Development Organization Consultant, he served as the System Manager for Anchor Mission and Engagement at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago. During this time he led strategic human capital management, acquisition, and organizational process improvement.

Anchor Mission is a place based strategy that leverages an institution’s labor, capital and other resources to advance equitable access for marginalized individuals across communities impacted by disinvestment.

Michael also served as a strategic talent advisor to RiseKit (formerly Solve), a Chicago-based technology firm focused on talent networks. Michael has also been an active member of the National Center for Healthcare Leadership, The Democracy Collaborative—Healthcare Anchor Network, The Executives’ Club of Chicago, and other social impact organizations. Michael is a former Associate Board Member for the Safer Foundation.

In addition to his professional experience, Michael is the CEO and Founder of InLancing, a technology start-up that aims to democratize access to good jobs by offering hyper-flexible opportunities for virtual, hybrid, and in-person work all on one platform. He is also the chair of the Black Caucus at UCSF, where he works to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Michael holds a bachelor’s degree in Business from the University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, and a master’s degree in Corporate Communication from Northwestern University, Evanston.

Renyea Colvin is a public health practitioner whose career focuses on advancing health equity. She currently works in communications and grant-writing at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) on the Anchor Institution Mission, a health equity initiative designed to leverage the University’s economic power, human resources, and intellectual resources to improve the long-term health and social well-being of Bay Area communities.

Her prior experience includes planning, developing, and implementing education programs primarily related to maternal and child health, family planning, and youth development, both domestically and abroad. Renyea is also skilled in training facilitation, technical assistance provision, and project management.

Raised in Decatur, Georgia, Renyea received both her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and Master of Public Health degrees from Georgia State University.

Zetha Nobles, is a world traveler, a global educational leader, a published author, and a relentless advocate for students and families. She is the first-born daughter of Drs. Wade and Vera Nobles of Oakland, California, and is currently the Director of Equity, Access, and Achievement in the New Haven Unified School District in Union City, California. Her current focus is on helping school districts meticulously cultivate belonging by advocating for human dignity. In addition to having extensive experience as an educator in Louisiana, Maryland, California, Ghana, and Nigeria, she has served as an International Baccalaureate Principal in San Jose, California, and Principal and Assistant Superintendent in Kuwait. Additionally, Zetha has the unique experience of developing and leading educational institutions as the Founding Director of The Renaissance School in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and Executive Director of Global Peace Leadership Academy, an online school developed in Houston, Texas, during the pandemic. She is a trained Primary Years Principal in the International Baccalaureate and has successfully chaired NEASC accreditation for two international schools.

With almost 30 years of experience in teaching, educational leadership, and loving children, Zetha brings a global vision of equity, excellence, experience, and educational acumen to school leadership, school improvement, and design. Zetha has led, planned, and delivered highly regarded conferences and events globally. She has lived in the US, Kuwait, United Arab Emirates, Jamaica, Nigeria and Ghana. Zetha is a proud student of Xavier University in New Orleans, Howard University in Washington DC and UC Berkeley in Northern California and proud mother of Folarin, Moremi and Sade.

Zetha looks forward to supporting San Francisco Achievers to remove barriers from students’ pathway to achieving the life they want.

Robin Henke has spent 30 years researching education in the United States, largely for federal government and nonprofit clients. She has written on early childhood, elementary, secondary, and postsecondary education. Currently a program director at RTI International, she analyzes and reports on federal survey data on students’ entry into postsecondary education, progress through education programs, program completion, and post-education outcomes in the labor force. As a manager, she has focused on supporting entry-level researchers as they begin their careers, helping them navigate the work world and develop their career paths.

Robin and her daughter Tatiana live in Berkeley, where for many years Robin served on the Superintendent’s Budget Advisory Committee for the Berkeley Unified School District. She co-leads the feeding ministry and book group at her church in Oakland. She received her A.B. in English literature from the University of Chicago and holds a Ph.D. in human development and education from the University of California, Berkeley.

Hashim Anderson serves as the San Francisco Fire Department’s Officer of Outreach, Recruitment, and Development in the Department’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Office. He joined the San Francisco Fire Department in 2003 as a Reserve Firefighter and was hired as a full-time firefighter in 2012. Hashim was promoted to the Rank of Lieutenant and has taught four firefighter recruit academies. Hashim attended the City College of San Francisco, where he received formal training as an EMT, Paramedic, and Firefighter. He also received his BA in Leadership and Organizational Studies from St. Mary’s. Hashim teaches for the City College of San Francisco as a fire academy instructor and dual-enrollment instructor at Mission High School for the Fire/EMS pathway program. Hashim was born and raised in San Francisco’s Western Addition neighborhood and attended Mission and George Washington High Schools. Since the age of 15, Hashim worked for the Exploratorium and continues to collaborate with them to this day. Hashim is married with a 16 year-old daughter who attends IHS and a 18 year-old son who attends Brandeis University.

Jordan is a fifth-generation San Franciscan, SFUSD graduate, and former San Francisco Achievers scholar. He previously served as a Communications Aide to San Francisco Mayor London Breed, leading communications and planning for various mayoral and citywide initiatives. Before joining Mayor Breed’s team, Jordan was a project manager at Lighthouse Public Affairs, a preeminent public affairs consultancy in San Francisco.

Jordan holds a B.A. in Public Policy from the University of Redlands and will complete his Master’s in Public Policy from Duke University in the Spring of 2024. Following graduation, Jordan will return to San Francisco to work as a Policy Advisor for Mayor Breed. Jordan has remained involved with San Francisco Achievers outside his board membership, having served as a mentor, chaperoning the San Francisco Achievers Washington D.C. trip, and traveling abroad with fellow scholars. Jordan believes education, career development programs, and engaged mentorships are society’s greatest tools for achieving equity and equal opportunity.

Javieree PruittHill is an advocate for transit equity, environmental justice, civil rights, and the financial advancement of Black-American and marginalized communities. His dedication to these causes stems from a deep personal connection, having grown up in a family committed to public service, with several members serving in the United States armed forces and actively participating in their community. These early influences instilled in Javieree a strong sense of duty and a commitment to public service. He values education, volunteerism, travel, health and fitness, and the exchange of wisdom.

Throughout his career, Javieree has impacted the advancement of marginalized communities. His work with organizations such as the YMCA of San Francisco and Spain, The Boys and Girls Club of San Francisco, One Economy Corporation, Kids’ Turn, Juvenile Justice Center of San Francisco, and the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC) exemplifies his dedication. Currently, he serves as the manager of Title VI & Environmental Justice in the Office of Civil Rights for the San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District (BART), where he is committed to safeguarding the civil rights of transit riders, Bay Area communities, and the BART workforce. Additionally, he is the founder of the BART Affinity Groups and the President and co-founder of the BART Black Leadership Affinity Council.

In 2012, Javieree was appointed to the SFPUC Citizen’s Advisory Committee (CAC) and later became the Chair of the Waste Water Subcommittee. During his tenure, he raised awareness about the failing biosolid digesters facility, emphasizing the importance of environmental responsibility. This advocacy led to the SFPUC initiating the restoration of the biosolid digesters facility in 2019, a project Javieree championed during his chairmanship.

Born and raised in San Francisco, Javieree is an alumnus of Sacred Heart Cathedral Preparatory High School and earned a Bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice from San Francisco State University. He furthered his education with a Master’s degree in Public Administration from the University of San Francisco (USF) and is currently pursuing a Juris Doctorate at USF, with an expected graduation date of Spring 2027. Go Dons! Javieree continues his commitment to public service and justice as a member of the Army Judge Advocate General’s Corps (JAG).

Board of Directors

VINCENT MATTHEWS, Ed.D
President

IGOR ABRAMOV
Vice President

AAKAR VACHHANI

PHYLLIS CULP

"One person can make a difference
and everyone should try.”

TARRELL GAMBLE

“It’s alright to tell a man to lift himself by his own bootstraps, but it is cruel just to say to a bootless man that he ought to lift himself by his own bootstraps”

MICHAEL JONES

RENYEA COLVIN

ZETHA NOBLES

ROBIN HENKE

HASHIM ANDERSON

JORDAN WILSON

JAVIEREE PRUITTHILL

Built and Designed with By Wellington Studio

Board of Directors

VINCENT MATTHEWS, Ed.DPresident

IGOR ABRAMOVVice President

AAKAR VACHHANI

PHYLLIS CULP

"One person can make a difference and everyone should try.”

TARRELL GAMBLE

“It’s alright to tell a man to lift himself by his own bootstraps, but it is cruel just to say to a bootless man that he ought to lift himself by his own bootstraps”

MICHAEL JONES

RENYEA COLVIN

ZETHA NOBLES

ROBIN HENKE

HASHIM ANDERSON

JORDAN WILSON

JAVIEREE PRUITTHILL

Built and Designed with By Wellington Studio

VINCENT MATTHEWS, Ed.D
President

IGOR ABRAMOV
Vice President

"One person can make a difference
and everyone should try.”