Staff

Abby Smith is Team Pennsylvania’s President & CEO. Her work has focused extensively on building strategic public-private partnerships to address long-term issues that no one sector can tackle alone. Abby’s 20-year career includes high-level strategic planning and leading cross-sector collaboratives at the state level in Pennsylvania as well as in several other states, along with ample experience as a grant and project manager overseeing multi-million-dollar grants and serving on various state-level councils. In early 2023, Abby received an Above & Beyond Award, honoring Pennsylvania women of “public and civic mind” who have demonstrated exemplary leadership in their field, combined with having made significant contributions to society.

Formerly the Vice President of Policy & Programs and Senior Advisor to the Foundation, Abby also served as the Director of Education & Workforce Development. Previously, Abby worked as a policy specialist at the PA Department of Education; for Teach For America as a recruitment director; and as a 7th grade social studies teacher and Teach For America corps member. Abby earned her undergraduate degree from Yale University and master’s degrees in teaching from The Johns Hopkins University and in public policy and management from Carnegie Mellon University.

Abby serves as the Chair of the Board of Directors of the Jewish Federation of Greater Harrisburg and JCC and is a board member of the Jewish Community Foundation of Central PA. As Chair of the Federation, Abby spearheaded the acquisition of a new Jewish community campus – the Alexander Grass Campus for Jewish Life. Abby lives in Harrisburg, PA with her husband, twin sons, and dog Comet.

Max Crumlich is Team Pennsylvania’s Manager, Board & Investor Relations. He joined the staff in June 2020 after interning for Team Pennsylvania in the summer of 2019. Max graduated Magna Cum Laude with a Bachelor’s Degree in Finance and Corporate Communications from Lycoming College where he was also a member of the lacrosse team. Max is the nexus for all of Team Pennsylvania’s work, from serving as the liaison to the Board of Directors, developing and implementing fundraising strategies, to overseeing Team Pennsylvania events. Born and raised here in Pennsylvania, Max is driven by the thought that together, we can do better.

Contact Max about:

• Becoming an investor
• Board of Directors inquiries

Jana Hammerle is Team Pennsylvania’s Finance Director. She joined the organization in September 2022 and manages the financial operations, including policy compliance, audit execution, management reporting, and strategic analysis.

Prior to joining Team Pennsylvania, Jana worked for the Federal Reserve Board of Governors and for WETA-PBS. Jana holds a Master of Public Policy from George Washington University and a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from West Virginia University. She lives outside Harrisburg with her husband and two daughters.

Janine Spadafore Kaiser joined Team PA in August 2023 as Manufacturing Policy Consultant, providing support to the Manufacturing Competitiveness Cross-Sector Collaborative. She is the founder and Principal of Compass Policy Strategies, LLC (CPS), an independent, woman-owned workforce, education and economic development consultancy. Over the last 15 years of her career, Janine has supported more than 25 collaboratives involving companies, public agencies, philanthropy, educational institutions, workforce development, and community-based organizations, in California, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Arizona and Nevada. She has a strong outcomes orientation, and specializes in facilitation, policy analysis and manufacturing.

Prior to the launch of CPS, Ms. Kaiser worked on the economic forecasting team of Eaton Corporation, implemented a randomized control trial research study in Mexico on a Fulbright grant, and served as a senior consultant at Collaborative Economics, based in Silicon Valley. Ms. Kaiser holds a bachelor’s degree in economics from Case Western Reserve University, and a master’s of public policy from the University of California, Berkeley.

Julia Kait is Team Pennsylvania’s Manager, Impact & Innovation, who joined Team PA in June 2023. She graduated Summa Cum Laude from Franklin and Marshall College with a Bachelor’s degree in Government and Public Policy, and where she also served as an RA. At Team PA, Julia supports policy staff to advance all cross-sector collaboratives within Team PA’s portfolio. As a life-long resident of Pennsylvania, she is excited to contribute to economic growth and sustainability in PA through policy work.

Kelly Kundratic is Team Pennsylvania’s Agriculture Policy Director. Kelly joined Team PA in 2018 to grow the organization’s partnership with the PA Department of Agriculture and the private sector. She directs state-level, strategic economic growth for Pennsylvania’s food and agriculture industries through the Agriculture Cross-Sector Collaborative.

Kelly’s passion for Pennsylvania agriculture was born at a young age, spending summers on her grandparents’ dairy farm in Wayne County. Before joining Team PA, Kelly worked at the MD Department of Agriculture, and as a high school agriculture teacher. She graduated from The Friedman School at Tufts University with a Master of Science in Agriculture, Food, and Environment focus in Public Policy, and holds a Bachelor of Science in Agricultural and Extension Education from West Virginia University.

Away from the office, Kelly competes as a nationally-ranked drag racer in the National Hot Rod Association. She cares deeply about her communities and demonstrates that commitment by raising awareness for organ donation and transplantation and serving as Board Chair of The LEAF Project. Kelly was recently recognized in Drag Illustrated’s 2022 30 Under 30 and Harrisburg Young Professionals 20 in their 20s for her active engagements in her communities.

Katrina Magdol is Team Pennsylvania’s Director, People & Operations. Katrina has two decades of experience in the education and nonprofit sectors, including a decade in Human Resources Management. She began her career as a public school teacher in Southwest Philadelphia. Upon moving to Boston, Katrina was hired as the head of Operations & HR at Bottom Line, a national nonprofit organization serving first-gen, low-income college students. At Bottom Line, Katrina partnered with executive leadership to scale the organization from 1 office with under 30 employees to 3 offices with 150 employees. She designed, implemented, and led a robust HR function for the organization.

Katrina earned her Bachelor’s from Bryn Mawr College, and a Master’s in Education from the University of Pennsylvania.

Tom Murphy is Team Pennsylvania’s Senior Managing Director, Strategic Energy Initiatives. He was previously the Director of Penn State’s Marcellus Center for Outreach and Research(MCOR) and provided leadership to a range of Penn State’s related energy outreach events and research activities. Tom has 38 years of experience working with public officials, researchers, industry, government agencies, and landowners during his tenure with the Extension branch of the University.

Tom’s work is centered on educational consultation in energy transitions, specifically at the convergence of shale gas, hydrogen, and renewables. His more recent emphasis focuses on a rapidly changing energy paradigm, which includes wider deployment of utility-scale solar, and the decarbonization implications of hydrogen for heavy industry and transportation. Primarily focused on the DNA H2Hub project, Tom has an ongoing partnership with the Pennsylvania State Association of Township Supervisors on the local implications of utility-scale solar energy across the Commonwealth.

Jim Neuschwander is Team Pennsylvania’s Director, Information Systems. Jim oversees many aspects of technology, systems and communications for the foundation. He manages the internal technology and security in addition to various IT systems utilized by Team PA and our partners. He is also the lead for Team PA’s communication strategy and execution.

Contact Jim about:

• Technology inquiries
• Communications/Media inquiries

John W. Packer, CPA, is Team Pennsylvania’s Chief Financial Officer. John joined the staff in 2011 and has over three decades of professional accounting experience in both the nonprofit and for-profit sectors. During his tenure at Team PA, John has overseen the development of customized financial reports and reporting systems that meet the unique needs of management and the board of directors. John is a Penn State University alumnus – he earned both a Bachelor of Science and his Masters in Business Administration from the university.

Lisa Riggs is Team Pennsylvania’s Senior Managing Director, Economic Growth Strategy & Partnerships. She previously served as the President of the Economic Development Company of Lancaster County for nine years, leading a focus on business retention and expansion and economic analytics. Ms. Riggs has served in a number of other economic development roles over her more than two decades of experience, including as the President of the James Street Improvement District, a community and economic development organization focused on parts of the City of Lancaster, and as Vice President of Economic Development for the Downtown Partnership of Baltimore (Baltimore, MD). She also served for two seasons as the President of the Lancaster Barnstormers, a professional minor league baseball team.

A graduate of the Johns Hopkins University, Ms. Riggs resides in Lancaster County. She currently serves on the boards of the Pennsylvania Economic Development Association, Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Central PA, the Lancaster STEM Alliance, Discover Lancaster and the Lancaster Clean Water Partners.

Renée Custer Yemane is Team Pennsylvania’s Vice President of Strategic & External Affairs. Renée joined the team in December 2022 and oversees Team Pennsylvania’s Strategic, Communications and Development initiatives. Prior to joining Team Pennsylvania, Renée spent 5 years as COO of The Custer Group and the prior 5 years as Executive Director of Harrisburg Young Professionals.

In recognition of her work, Renée has been recognized as Central Penn Business Journal 40 Under Forty, Central Penn Business Journal Women of Influence, The Foundation for Enhancing Communities Rising Philanthropist Award, and as a YWCA Woman of Excellence. Renée graduated from James Madison University with a Bachelor’s of Arts in Cultural Communication Studies and Nonprofit Management.

Tahirih Zecharya serves as Team Pennsylvania’s Vice President, People & Operations, bringing with her two decades of experience in enhancing organizational efficiency, fostering strong teams, and aligning core values with fiscal responsibility.

With an undergraduate degree from the University of Arizona and a master’s degree from the London School of Economics and Political Science, she has dedicated her career to driving positive change. Tahirih’s journey includes years of non-profit human rights advocacy work in Latin America, followed by work in the private sector, where she specialized in growing small businesses through people-centric strategic planning.

PA Early Learning Investment Commission: Andrea Heberlein is the Commission’s Executive Director. Before joining the Commission, Andrea served as the Vice President of Strategic Impact for United Way of Lancaster County, where she helped to lead and support community initiatives focused on improving the educational, health, and financial outcomes for children, youth, and adults.

Andrea has an extensive background and experience around community-building work, service coordination for adults with disabilities, community systems development for children with disabilities, and directing an employer-sponsored, NAEYC accredited, early childhood learning center for Penn Medicine/Lancaster General Health and Franklin and Marshall College. She currently serves on the Governance Committee for the Lancaster County Homeless Coalition and the Advisory Council for Nurse-Family Partnership.

Andrea received her Master of Social Work degree from Millersville University, where she is also an adjunct professor for social work classes. She is a 2018 Policy Fellow alumni under the Pennsylvania Office of Child Development and Early Learning and a 2019 graduate of the United Way Worldwide Leadership Program.

PA Early Learning Investment Commission: Sara Lauver is the Commission’s Associate Director. In her role, Sara works on a wide variety of projects, including strategic communications, working with external stakeholders to share and deepen the work of the commission in communities across Pennsylvania, and cultivating and engaging business leaders and partners in regional strategies to increase access to high quality early learning programs.

Prior to joining the commission, Sara worked for seven years at Greater Susquehanna Valley United Way where she served as Director of Community Impact and Marketing. She also has over 15 years of experience in radio where she has worked as a morning show co-host, news anchor, and reporter. Sara is a graduate of Susquehanna University where she earned a Bachelor of Arts in Broadcasting and Walden University earning a Master of Science in Leadership. She is a frequent guest performer of the national anthem at Major League Baseball games at Camden Yards in Baltimore.