Sandra Solano, Board President
​Amie Love, Board Secretary
Jyothi Cherry,  Board Treasurer
Katie Rooney, Marketing and Public Relations
​Carrie Dutton, President Emeritus
Phil La Susa, Nathan Nitczynski, Board Members
​Sally Squires, Dancer Liaison

Sandra Solano, ​M.D.,M.S.

Dr. Sandra Solano was born in Bogota, Colombia where she became a physician. Dissatisfied with the ‘sick’ model of conventional Western medicine, Sandra came to Ohio to pursue post-graduate studies in Preventive Medicine and Public Health. She began her work at The Ohio State University Hospitals as a researcher and then as Director of Clinical Quality at Ohio State University Medical Center. Sandra then worked with the Ohio Department of Health as the Director of Health Statistics, State Registrar, and with the Ohio Department of Job and Human Services as Director of Research, Assistant Director of Medicaid, and Health Policy Advisor. Finally, she served as Principal for McGuire & Associates providing project technical assistance and evaluation services for preventive programs.

While she enjoyed a successful and fulfilling career in public health, she continued studying alternative health modalities and how they could improve wellness.  Despite her professional success, she felt disconnected and unfulfilled. After extensive research, Sandra chose several tools to study and practice.  One of the most powerful tools that Sandra experienced was the HeartMath’s Resilience Advantage™ program. Because of her personal transformation with HeartMath’s techniques, Sandra became a Master  Certified Trainer for the program and founded Integro.

After personally experiencing and practicing these tools, Sandra feels connected with her authentic self and feels a sense of hope and peace that she wants to share with others.  Learning about and experiencing these techniques brought her a new understanding of wellness as a state of balance and wholeness. Sandra’s passion is to help others to find that connection, authenticity, peace and hope that she is now able to experience.

Amie Love

​Amie Love is a theatre arts educator currently teaching at Fort Hayes Metropolitan Education Center in Columbus, Ohio.  She is a native of North Carolina and a lifelong artist having been involved in theatre and dance from a very early age. Amie holds a bachelor's degree in Theatre Arts Education from The University of North Carolina at Greensboro and has earned teaching credentials in both North Carolina and Ohio.  In her career, she has taught students in grades pre-K thru 12 in the dramatic arts.  The arts and storytelling is a passion of hers. In addition to teaching and directing, Amie has served on curriculum development committees in both Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools (NC), and Columbus City Schools (OH).  She has held the leadership  positions of Department Chair of Glenn High School’s performing arts department in Kernersville, NC, and Vice President of North Carolina Theatre Arts Educators Association. Amie and her husband Eugene live in New Albany, OH with their two children, Clara and Gabriel and mini poodle, Cerin.

Jyothi Vourganti Cherry, M.B.A.

Jyothi is Sr Director Finance for Penumbra.  In this role, she partners with the International commercial leaders for markets in LATAM and APAC to drive their business locally and expand access to Penumbra’s lifesaving innovative products which treat aneurysm, stroke and blood clots.

Jyothi has over twenty-five years of experience with influencing financial and strategic decisions. In prior Finance roles at Cordis, Cardinal Health, Elmer’s Products, Limited Brands and Unilever, she helped translate finance, industry and competitive insights into effective business strategies to deliver efficiency, consistency and value. She started her career as a hands-on leader and Management consultant for Deloitte. 

Passionate about the performing arts, Jyothi has always been an avid supporter of local dance, theatre and music organizations. She has also supported the community as a volunteer on the New Directions Career Center Board, United Way of Central Ohio Finance Committee, Healthcare Businesswoman’s Association (HBA) Midwest Region Treasurer and Finance/Audit Committee. 

Jyothi received an undergraduate Business degree from Miami University and has an MBA from the MIT Sloan School of Management. 

As an avid global traveler, she has visited over 45 countries and island territories. She currently lives in New Albany, OH with her husband and two daughters. 

Katie Rooney

Katie Rooney is the Chief Marketing Officer for USCF, an asset management firm on the leading edge of exchange-traded product (ETP) and exchange-traded fund (ETF) innovation. The firm broke new ground with the launch of the first oil ETP, the United States Oil Fund, LP (USO), in 2006. Over the next decade, USCF has designed and issued nine more ETPs and ETFs, across commodity and equity asset classes. The Walnut Creek, CA based firm has approximately $6.5 billion under management.

Katie brings over 20 years of experience in the fund industry to USCF.  Ms. Rooney is responsible for marketing, brand management and overall product distribution.  She has been with the company since inception and previously served as National Sales Director.  Prior to joining USCF, Ms. Rooney was Director of Business Development for the Ameristock Mutual Fund.  She also served as National Sales Director for ALPS Mutual Fund Services and as a Trust Officer for Fifth Third Bank.

Katie is also a member of  the Board of Directors for USCF’s parent company, Concierge Technologies, Inc (Ticker: CNCG).   A global holding company, Concierge invests in, and builds, great companies.  Their mission is to identify and acquire established, profitable, undervalued companies in diverse sectors, and manage the portfolio to facilitate growth and add value for all stakeholders.
Katie and her family are active in the arts community and enjoy supporting local organizations like the New Albany Community Foundation and New Vision Dance Company for which Ms. Rooney currently serves on the Board of Directors.

Ms. Rooney received her Bachelors of Arts degree in Economics and Psychology with a minor in Art History from Wellesely College.  She holds FINRA Series 7 and 63 licenses as well as NFA Series 3 and 30 registrations.  Katie is a registered representative of ALPS Distributors, Inc.

​Phillip J. La Susa

Vice President – Strategic Growth & Client Engagement, TRC Companies, Inc.
Phil is a Vice President of Strategic Growth & Client Engagement for TRC Companies, Inc. TRC is a global consulting, engineering and construction management firm that provides technology-enabled solutions to the power, oil and gas, utility, environmental and infrastructure markets.

Before joining TRC, Phil was employed with Willbros Engineers, Inc. as Director of Commercial Relations and Director of Integrity Services. He was a Principal Consultant at Environmental Investments LLC, Laboratory Director at Kiefner & Associates Inc., and an environmental chemist and project manager at Det Norske Veritas (DNV).

Previous engagements have taken Phil globally to work and consult on energy and environmental related projects. His technical background consists of experience within asset integrity, corrosion, environmental sustainability, water quality, and technology integration. Additional experience includes organizational integration and development, cultural transformation, and client alignment to bring businesses together, expand on service offerings and promoting an integrated solution to advance growth targets.

Phil is a member, company representative, and participant with the American Gas Association, Southern Gas Association, Northeast Gas Association, Interstate National Gas Association of America Foundation, National Association of Corrosion Engineers, Midwest Energy Association, Florida Energy Pipeline Association, Society of Gas Lighting, Ohio Gas Association, American Public Gas Association, ONE Columbus, a founding member of The Ohio Water Partnership and Carolina Gas Coalition.

​He serves on advisory boards for Prince Pipeline Integrity, ITS Environmental, Southeastern Equipment Company, and is the Executive Director for Clean Fuels Ohio, a national Clean Cities Coalition that works to support energy and economic security through partnerships that advance affordable, efficient, and environmentally beneficial domestic transportation fuels, technologies, and mobility systems.

Outside of work, Phil enjoys cooking, the outdoors, spending time with family and friends, and the arts. He grew up on his mother’s family farm and his father’s family immigrated to the United States from Sicily in the 1950’s where they opened a restaurant in Mansfield, OH called Papa’s Gondola. His love of classical music, opera, and appreciation of nature were influenced by his grandfathers.

He currently serves as a board member for the Columbus Symphony Orchestra, New Vision Dance Co., INGAA Foundation, a member of the Society of Gas Lighting Executive Committee, is a founding member of a small networking group, Society 614, and previously has served on the advisory boards for Ohio FBLA, Flairsoft, Ltd., and E.I.S.

Phil received a Bachelor of Science degree in Environmental Science from Otterbein University in Westerville, and currently resides in Westerville, OH.

Nathan Nitczynski

​Moving from Erie, Pennsylvania in the summer of 2022 to central Ohio, Nathan is thrilled to be involved with New Vision Dance Company. Nathan’s educational background includes a bachelor's degree from Thiel College and a Masters of Science in Education: College Counseling from Youngstown State University. Previously, Nathan has had leadership roles on executive boards for Pennsylvania Association of Colleges and Employers, Western Pennsylvania Career Services Association, and the Erie Dance Consortium. Nathan’s professional experience includes  various roles at Mercyhurst University as a communication department professor, academic support counselor, and career development counselor. 

​Currently, Nathan is an academic advisor at Otterbein University and President of Ohio Academic Advising Association. Nathan’s love of dance includes over a decade of instructing and choreographing for dance studios, community theaters, college theater departments, and youth theater programs in Pennsylvania, Ohio, and New York.

Sally Squires

​Sally Squires grew up in Westerville, Ohio, and began dancing at the age of four. She trained at New Albany Ballet Company and BalletMet, and spent two years in BalletMet’s professional training program. During her time at BalletMet, she enjoyed performing in ballets such as Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Don Quixote, The Nutcracker, and George Balanchine’s Serenade. In 2019, Sally moved to Cleveland to dance with Cleveland Ballet Company, where she performed numerous professional roles. Sally is also an accomplished vocalist, and her professional performance experiences include Opera Columbus, Shadowbox Live, and Short North Stage. At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Sally decided to step away from classical ballet and pursue degrees in mathematics and biology. Sally still keeps ballet in her life by teaching the next generation of aspiring dancers at K Studio and BalletMet. Sally has been a huge fan of Melissa Gould since she first brought her vision and artistry to Columbus, and is grateful to New Vision Dance Company for allowing her to continue performing.

​Sally has always been passionate about the need for dancers to have more of a voice in their work environments, and she is grateful to be able to represent the voices of her fellow NVDC company members as the dancer liaison to the board of directors this season.