LWVPA 2021-2023 Board Of Directors
For Immediate Release:
The League of Women Voters of Pennsylvania is pleased to announce our 2021-2023 Board of Directors. Newly elected at our 54th Biennial Convention in June, the Board has a vast amount of experience and knowledge of Pennsylvania State politics, policy, and advocacy. We look forward to seeing all that this Board will accomplish in the next two years.
The 2021-2023 Board of Directors is as follows:
Dr. Terrie Griffin - President (Second Term)
Terrie Elizabeth Griffin served as the first African American co-President and now President of the League of Women Voters of Pennsylvania. She was elected at the 53rd Biennial Convention in June of 2019. As President, Dr. Griffin is committed to providing leadership to support equity within local Leagues and the expansion and strengthening of the state Board. Additionally, she now serves on the board of the League of Women Voters of Greater Pittsburgh where she chairs the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee and is a member of the Voter Services Committee.
Previously, Dr. Griffin was actively involved in the Lynchburg League of Women Voters in Virginia, where she served as the Second Vice President, member of the Voter Services Committee, Action Committee Chair, and was appointed to the Virginia statewide Task Force on Gun Safety. Because of her work with the League, in 2015 she was appointed to the United States Commission on Civil Rights (USCCR) Virginia Advisory Committee where she served two terms through June of 2019. As a USCCR advisory committee member, she was called upon to give advice on civil rights issues policy deliberation. Before her term ended, the committee began conducting hearings on hate crimes in the U.S. After retiring as a higher education administrator, she relocated to Pennsylvania, where she served as Director of Women’s Ministry, an outreach program to homeless women living in shelters and on the streets in the City of Pittsburgh. She facilitated retreats where women were taught life skills and workforce development training.
Samantha Apgar - Vice President, Administration (Second Term)
Samantha Apgar currently works as the Assistant Director of Temple University’s Public Policy program. Her responsibilities include recruitment, academic advising, internship placements, and professional development. Samantha holds a Master’s in Public Administration from the University of Pennsylvania, where she received the Institutional Service Award, was a Program Evaluation Fellow with ImpactED, and served as the Finance Chair for Women of Fels. She completed her graduate capstone project for the US Office of Personnel Management, comparing OPM’s approach to assessing quality in federal employee health benefits plans with the Center for Medicare and Medicaid’s methodology for assessing the quality of Medicare Advantage health plans. She has also received a Certificate in Executive Leadership from Bryn Mawr College’s Nonprofit Executive Leadership Institute.
Melissa Wright - Treasurer (Second Term)
Melissa works as an Associate Director at Econsult Solutions. Previously, she worked at Teach for America as a Director of Performance Measurement and Evaluation. Before joining TFA, she was Project Manager for the School District of Philadelphia in the Superintendent’s office, focused on building a System of Great Schools for all children close to where they live. She is passionate about quality public education and advocating for marginalized groups. Melissa served in many roles in the District, including as an Associate in the District Performance Office for her Education Pioneers Fellowship and Data Analyst for their pregnant and parenting student program, ELECT. Before joining the School District, she worked at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia’s PolicyLab as a Study Coordinator, investigating programs designed to promote minority faculty persistence in academic medicine.
Kathy Cook - Director of Environment
Kathy Cook is Member At Large of LWVPA based in Chester County. Retired from a career of entrepreneurship in publishing, Kathy currently is committed to organizing the MAL members in the PA League. Prior to moving to Pennsylvania, Kathy was a member of the League of Women Voters in Geneva, NY, where she worked on environmental issues. Kathy holds a B.S. in Biology & Chemistry from Rochester Institute of Technology, NY.
Jennifer Hanf - Director of Equity Initiative (Second Term)
A member of the League of Women Voters of Berks County, Jennifer Hanf (she/her) is a retired business owner who has been involved in civic engagement and activism in Reading and Berks County. In recent years, in response to a growing awareness of the deep roots of racial division, Jennifer developed a community group, Upending Racism, which holds space for difficult conversations and transformational change and healing. This discussion group encourages dialogue between individuals and groups on a broad range of racial justice topics. Jennifer is a member of the NAACP, Reading Branch 2289, where she serves as Communications Chair.
Carolyn Cavaness - Director of Membership
A member of the League of Women Voters in Philadelphia, Carolyn Cavaness has held the title of Pastor at Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church of Ardmore since 2014. During that period, she also held the role of Conference Planner for regional and national conferences, and Manager of Commercial Property in Philadelphia. Carolyn holds a Masters of Divinity from Union Theological Seminary in New York and a B.A. in Urban Studies and Economics from Barnard College at Columbia University.
Susan Gobreski - Director of Government Policy
Susan Gobreski is a 25+ career advocate focused on campaign strategies and program development for improving public policy around equity, opportunity and quality of life issues, including democracy, education environment and economic opportunity. She is a member of the LWV of Philadelphia. Susan serves as a Senior Advisor consultant to Keystone Research Center/Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center on a suite of democracy policy issues and on the Reimagine Appalachia campaign, working on building support to pass the federal infrastructure investments. She currently works as a Principal Consultant at Sedgwick Group, a consulting agency for strategic issue advocacy, campaigns, and projects that help make communities stronger.
Tania Isaac Hyman - Director of Civic Education
Tania Isaac Hymann is an LWVPA Member At Large based in Philadelphia, where she is involved in a series of creative projects with social impact implications. A many-time grant and award recipient, Tania has been a visiting artist and professor at a number of colleges and universities. Most recently, she is finishing requirements for a Master’s of Public Administration from the Fels Institute of Government at the University of Pennsylvania. She also earned degrees in Choreography and Dance from Temple University and University of Wisconsin at Madison.
Alison LaLond Wyant - Secretary
A member of the Abington-Cheltenham-Jenkintown League, Alison currently serves as Arcadia University’s Executive Director of Civic & Global Engagement. Previously her role was Director of Social Impact & Innovation, where she focused on community and civic engagement projects, including voter outreach. A PhD graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, in Higher Ed, Alison also holds a B.A. from Baltimore’s Loyola University in Political Science.
Sarah Miller - Director of Social Policy
Sarah Miller is a member of the Philadelphia League and currently attends Temple University, where she is pursuing a Master’s degree in Public Policy. While attending school full time, Sarah's volunteer activities show the range of her understanding and involvement in the community, beginning with the launch of the LWV-Philly Anti Racism Series that involves both League and community members. She has worked in the past as a social media outreach manager. Sarah holds a B.A. in Political Science from Temple University.
Betsy Murray - Director of Development
Betsy is currently a Senior Consultant with Schultz & Williams, which offers development advice to nonprofits. Betsy also served as Membership Director of Philadelphia’s National Constitution Center, helping to establish the Center’s charter membership program. Betsy holds a B.A. in political science and writing from Allegheny College in Meadville, PA. She is a Member at Large with LWVPA.
Contact information for all Board members can be found on our website at: www.palwv.org/board-of-directors-2