Officers
Joanne R. Strauss – President
Joanne is an attorney and currently serves as Corporate Labor and Employee Relations Counsel for Healthcare Services Group, Inc. Joanne is responsible for providing practical, business-oriented legal advice to internal clients including senior leadership, management, and human resources. In her role as in-house counsel, she handles labor arbitrations, matters before the National Labor Relations Board, regularly negotiates collective bargaining agreements, assists with navigating union organizing activities and contract administration matters and advises on issues related to multiemployer pension plans. Joanne also handles employment law matters before administrative agencies throughout the continental United States. Joanne has worked as a consultant advising clients on human resources issues such as executive recruitment, policy preparation, compliance, audits, labor and employee relations, training, workplace culture, and terminations. Joanne previously worked at a tax firm where she provided advice to closely-held businesses across the country. In previous roles, Joanne served as a human resources executive, held in-house counsel positions with a focus on litigation, labor, and employment law, state and local tax, and served as a law clerk in the First Judicial District of Pennsylvania. Joanne received her Master of Laws in Taxation from Villanova University School of Law, her law degree from Nova Southeastern University Shepard Broad Law Center, and her Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Creighton University. Joanne is licensed to practice law in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and before the United States Tax Court. Joanne is honored to be part of an unwavering organization that is unapologetic in its commitment to eliminate all forms of sexual violence.
Rodney A. Newton – Treasurer
Rodney is currently Director of Internal Control Testing at SAP, where he manages the internal control testing of information security controls. Previously he evaluated high-risk Third Parties within the Enterprise Technology Audit Group at Wells Fargo Bank. In addition to conducting Third Party vendor reviews, he has also conducted audits related to Enterprise Information Security Governance & Oversight, the Information Security Portfolio Office, and regulatory compliance internal audit projects. Prior to joining the Internal Audit department within Wells Fargo, Rodney worked for Grant Thornton as a Manager in their Business Advisory Services (BAS) Internal Audit, where he performed Risk Assessments for various clients. Prior to Grant Thornton, Rodney worked for a small woman-owned consulting firm in Washington D.C. providing audit readiness consulting services to the Department of Defense, including the Navy, Army, and the Defense Logistics Agency. Overall, he has over 16 years of IT audit experience across multiple industries, including banking, utilities, government, and insurance.
Rodney also engages in many volunteering opportunities including sitting on the Executive Board of the National Association of Black Accountants (NABA) as the Resource Development Director. He hopes that through this role he can influence young accountants and auditors to consider information technology in their career paths. He also hopes to inspire other minorities to consider joining the profession. He has also served as a board member for the Charles A Melton Arts & Education Center in West Chester, PA.
Rodney has a BS in Accounting and his MBA from Rosemont College in Rosemont, PA. He also possesses the CDPSE, CFE, CISA, and CISSP designations.
Sharlene St. John – Secretary
Sharlene St. John is currently manager, Customer Experience at PECO Energy. In this capacity, Sharlene leads a team that is focused on addressing the needs of small & mid-sized business customers in the service territory and improving the overall PECO customer experience by driving internal process improvement implementation.
Sharlene holds a Juris Doctor from SUNY Buffalo Law School and is licensed to practice law in the state of New York. She also holds a bachelor of arts in political science from SUNY College at Geneseo. Sharlene is proud to serve on the board of directors at WOAR and looks forward to lending her talents to enhance and drive the mission critical work accomplished by this organization and its staff.
Members at Large
Claudia F. Curry, MBA, EdD
Claudia is the Executive Director of the American Association for Women in Community Colleges (AAWCC), “the leading national organization that champions women and maximizes their potential at community colleges”. Prior to this appointment, she served 19 years as Founding Director of the Women’s Outreach and Advocacy Center at Community College of Philadelphia before retiring in August 2021. In this position, she focused on “students first” by providing leadership in the development of programs and activities that address the interests and concerns primarily of women students.
While at the College, she co-founded the CCP-Parx Women’s Leadership Academy and a chapter of AAWCC and served as President-elect. In addition, she implemented and helped secure funding for the Sexual Harassment and Rape Prevention Program (SHARP), the Homeless Student Support Project, and CCAMPIS (Child Access Means Parents in Schools). She has served as an adjunct instructor at the College, Harcum College, Peirce College, and University of the Sciences Occupational Therapy Graduate Program with experience teaching courses that include Leadership for Effective Organizations, Grant Writing, Domestic Violence, and the Justice System, and Leading Culturally and Generationally Diverse Populations.
Claudia also served as Founding Director of the Urban League of Philadelphia Leadership Institute which graduated nearly 500 minority leaders during her 12-year tenure. She is a recipient of numerous awards that include the Status of Women Award from Top Ladies of Distinction, the NAACP’s 100 Influential Black Women in Philadelphia, and the Pennsylvania College Personnel Association’s Outstanding Contribution to the Profession Award.
Claudia received her Bachelor of Arts in Organizational Management and her MBA from Eastern University, and her Doctor of Education in Innovation and Leadership from Wilmington University. She is an active member of the Peirce College Graduate Studies Advisory Board and a former member of several Boards of Directors including Women’s Way and the American Association for Women in Community Colleges.
She serves on the Board of Directors of SD Prism Dance Theater, New York, NY, and Martha’s Compassion, Accra, Ghana. She is a member of the Pagus Africa – Center for Achievement Advisory Council, headquartered in Norristown, PA, and in the Volta Region in Ghana.
Nettie Johnson, MD, MPH, CPH, NADD-CC
Dr. Johnson is an overseas-trained medical practitioner with experience working abroad in Africa and also as a public and mental health professional in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She has over 15 years’ experience working in clinical medicine, refugee and immigrant health and mental health. She is passionate about disease prevention and addressing health disparities for unserved communities.
Working as a public health professional at the African Cultural Alliance of North America (ACANA) Dr. Johnson serves as the Project Lead on federally funded, foundations and local projects. The goal is to reduce health disparities and advance health equity through access to care for the African and Caribbean immigrant communities in Philadelphia and surrounding counties. She obtained her medical degree from the A.M Dogliotti College of Medicine, University of Liberia, West Africa, and a Master of Public Health (MPH) from Drexel University Dornsife School of Public Health. Her Certifications include Certified in Public Health (CPH), Grant writing, and Mental Health Dual Diagnosis (NADD-CC). Dr. Johnson has co-authored several scientific papers and public health research studies. She is a member of the African and Caribbean Vaccine Access Task Force and other health promotion advisory committees in the city of Philadelphia. Dr. Johnson resides in Philadelphia, with her family and is an avid lover of museums, reading, musicals, volunteering, and tennis.
Omar Martinez, JD, MPH, MS
Omar Martinez is an Associate Professor at Temple University’s School of Social Work. He also leads Temple’s Disparities and Inequities in HIV/AIDS Research Lab. His research integrates perspectives from public health, medicine, law, social work, and human sexuality to create interdisciplinary strategies that address health disparities among systematically and structurally excluded populations in the U.S. and abroad.
His experiences include the design, implementation, and evaluation of programs and interventions to address the health disparities and inequities, including Trans Equity Research Project, a peer-led, group-based HIV prevention and care intervention for men and women of trans experience; HoMBReS, a best-evidence community-level intervention HIV prevention intervention for self-identified heterosexual Latinxs; Connect n’ Unite, a couple-based behavioral HIV prevention intervention for Black men who have sex with men; and Connecting Latinxs en Parejas, a couple-based HIV prevention and care intervention for Latinx men who have sex with men.
Mr. Martinez is also committed to training the next generation of behavioral researchers and dedicated to supporting the advancement of diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives in nonprofit organizations. He currently serves as a consultant to the HIV Intervention Science Training Program for Underrepresented New Investigators at Columbia University. He is also a board member at GALAEI, a Queer and Trans, Black, Indigenous, and People of Color radical social justice organization that provides and facilitates queer educational services and community wellness, and the Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality, an international organization dedicated to advancing sexuality research and scholarship.
Khalil Muhammad
Khalil Muhammad is currently a CPA with over 10 years of accounting audit and compliance experience, specializing in governmental audits. He enjoys taking seemingly complex ideas and making them more digestible. He graduated from Temple University with a degree in accounting and a double minor in MIS and Finance.
Khalil grew up in Philadelphia in a very low-income household. He believes that any good he has accomplished in his life is due to the influence and assistance of the family, friends, and mentors he had growing up. It is that belief that drives him to help others anytime he can. Khalil spent 5 years on the NABA Philly board as the director of professional education and his final year as the 2VP of the Philadelphia chapter. Now, he wants to bring that same energy and helping hand to WOAR.
Kyle C. Norton
Kyle C. Norton joins the WOAR Board with an extensive higher education and compliance background. Early in his career, he served as a compliance analyst in the banking industry. However, the bulk of Kyle’s career has been in higher education in a variety of capacities. Kyle served as an Assistant Director of Undergraduate Programs and Recruitment, through which he led university-wide recruitment initiatives, developed student leadership programs, spearheaded summer camp programs for high school students, and served on the student conduct board. Kyle also served as a Managing Director and full-time clinical professor and oversaw the academic advising team, teaching faculty, curriculum development, and strategic growth for his division. Additionally, Kyle aided Cozen O’Connor’s Institutional Response Group (IRG) as the Chief of Staff and Institutional Response Coordinator, focusing on business development, policy work and investigations, data audits, and national trainings relating to Title IX, the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), and the Clery Act.
In Kyle’s current role as Director for Regulatory Compliance, he oversees consulting engagements with higher education institutions nationwide related to the Clery Act, Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act (DFSCA), and Title IX (in conjunction with Cozen O’Connor’s IRG). His focus is on leveraging the firm’s collective expertise to deliver compliance support to higher education communities that is impactful, actionable, and always led by preparedness – never driven by fear. Overall, the various roles in Kyle’s career thus far have allowed him to develop a unique, holistic understanding of the inner-workings and connectivity within higher education compliance and campus safety.
Kyle is a Philadelphia native and graduated from Drexel University in 2013 with a Bachelor’s in Business Administration, and again in 2017 with a Master’s in Higher Education.
Jarreau W. Thomas
Jarreau W. Thomas is a dedicated public safety professional with over 21 years of exemplary service in the Philadelphia Police Department. Born and raised in the Mount Airy section of Philadelphia, Jarreau has a deep-rooted commitment to his community and a passion for fostering positive relationships between law enforcement and citizens. Currently serving as the Inspector of Community Relations for the Philadelphia Police Department, Jarreau utilizes his extensive background in communications and criminal justice to bridge gaps and promote understanding within the community. He is a proud graduate of the Community College of Philadelphia, where he earned a degree in Communications, and holds an undergraduate certificate in Criminal Justice from the University of Virginia. Jarreau is on track to graduate from Rosemont College in the class of 2025 with a degree in Criminal Justice, specializing in Homeland Security. He has also enhanced his leadership skills through the prestigious Northwestern University School of Staff and Command and is a distinguished graduate of the FBI National Academy.
In addition to his professional achievements, Jarreau is an active member of Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity Inc., serving on the Social Action Committee within the Pi Gamma Sigma chapter. He also contributes to the Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity Inc. Pennsylvania State Leadership Team, advocating for community engagement and social justice initiatives. Jarreau W. Thomas is not only a respected leader in law enforcement but also a committed community advocate determined to make a difference in the lives of those he serves.
