Our team of experienced and diverse associates has deep expertise across a broad range of industries and specialties – and this equips us to apply proven approaches to our work that draw on years of professional practice, leadership, resource-mining, and specialized connections. We can communicate complex concepts and systems to the broader public, and we get excited about entering unfamiliar spaces to create plans and programs that foster cooperation and alliances.
President and Founder
Rosalyn J. McPherson
Rosalyn McPherson is highly regarded as a strategist, natural cross-pollinator, and builder of cross-cultural relationships.
Prior to launching her firm more than 10 years ago, Roz had a distinguished career in marketing and educational product development and subsequently museum administration. She served as Senior Vice President for the Science Center at the Franklin Institute (Philadelphia, PA). In this role she had day-to-day responsibility for increasing attendance and managing the visitor experience aspects of the museum’s operation which included exhibit development, retail, IMAX theater, and the Fels Planetarium.
From 1992 to 2000 as Senior Vice President and Publisher for Time Life Education (Alexandria, VA), Roz was responsible for assembling and managing a national sales force of 36 staff and independent associates and for launching K-12 product development. Time, Inc., McGraw Hill, Inc., Scholastic Inc., and CBS, Inc. are among the New York-based companies where she worked as both an editor of civics, history, government, and science textbooks and a marketer of educational products. Roz served as President & CEO of the Urban League of Philadelphia from 2014 to 2016.
A committed and passionate citizen, Roz has served on a number of boards including Mental Health Partners for SEPA/NJ; the Community College of Philadelphia, First Person Arts, and National Philanthropic Trust. Roz holds an MBA degree in Marketing from Fairleigh Dickinson University (Teaneck, NJ) and a BS degree in Secondary Education from Southern University & A&M College (Baton Rouge, LA).
The daughter of an Army officer and an elementary school teacher, Roz has traveled around the world since childhood and credits that experience with fostering her appreciation for the world’s varied cultures as well as new environments and business situations. Through speaking engagements and her writing, she honors her late son by advocating for the plight of the mentally ill.
Fun facts: Roz loves to cook Louisiana-style food and thoroughly appreciates music from the African diaspora, including Cameroon, Cuba, Brazil and genres like Reggaeton and Soca.
Staff
Stephanie Renée,
Director of Community
Engagement & Marketing
Stephanie is an award-winning broadcast producer, writer, grassroots organizer, and message crafter with over 30 years of experience in entertainment, journalism, and public policy. She brings an expansive set of skills to The ROZ Group, across specialty areas including public relations, media and advertising, education, and community engagement.
Before joining TRG, Stephanie served as Program Director and on-air host of “The Mojo” at WURD Radio Philadelphia, one of only four Black talk radio stations in America. She is credited with helping to expand the station’s reach from AM to adding an FM signal and significantly increasing their streaming platform and online programming. Stephanie also launched two notable additions to the station lineup: Youth WURDs, a teen news and public affairs program, and WURD Backstage, a video interview series featuring notable stars of stage and screen including pianist Jason Moran, trumpeter Irvin Mayfield, and Golden Globe Award winning director Ava DuVernay.
Directly out of college, Stephanie formed Creator’s Child Productions, Inc., through which she provided creative services including book layout & design, curriculum development, promotional writing, artist management, and talent booking. In 2002, Soul Sanctuary, Inc. was launched as a nonprofit arts education foundation rooted in uplifting and celebrating urban culture. Soul Sanctuary now operates as an audio streaming platform, offering original content and more than 17 years of archived material from Stephanie’s various music and talk podcasts.
As an instructor, Stephanie has partnered with an array of organizations including Inner City Games, the University of Pennsylvania’s Annenberg School of Communications, Philadelphia Young Playwrights, Philadelphia Mural Arts, as Executive Editor of the youth-led newspaper The North Philly Metropolis published by Project H.O.M.E, Executive Producer for the teen show Hear Us Out on PhillyCAM cable network/WPPM-FM, and as Executive Producer for Genisus: Revitalized Teen Talk on Comcast Cable Philadelphia. Stephanie also has had an extensive career as a musical theater actor and recording artist. Her forays into house music landed her a stint as resident vocalist for dance club The Clinic in Singapore.
Born in Washington DC, Stephanie relocated to Philadelphia to attend the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School, where she earned a BS in Economics with concentrations in Marketing and Legal Studies. She is an active member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. and has held Board positions with the James Brister Society and Rock To The Future.
Fun facts: Stephanie is an avid traveler who will likely have to be coerced into visiting Antarctica in her quest to complete a circuit of every continent (penguins are cool, but she has a strong aversion to the cold); her deep interest in genealogy helped her discover that her mother was adopted (and has introduced her to hundreds of new cousins)
Caralyn Spector,
Senior Managing Associate
Caralyn Spector is the Senior Managing Associate for The ROZ Group (TRG), where she plays an important leadership role in strategic planning assignments, community engagement, cultural surveys, and projects that focus on Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Access.
Prior to joining TRG, Caralyn was a program officer on the Creative Communities team of the William Penn Foundation (2018-2020), where her portfolio focused on operating support for arts organizations across Philadelphia. She served as Interim President and CEO for DataArts (2017-2018), bringing big data to the arts and culture sector. During the Obama Administration (2009-2017), Caralyn was Deputy and Chief of Staff to the Senior Deputy Chair and the Senior Policy Advisor to the Chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts.
Caralyn has more than 30 years in the cultural arts sector and has supported organizations throughout the country, focusing on how cultural leaders, artists, and residents, all of whom are making the institutions and neighborhoods in which they live and serve more joyful, equitable, and welcoming places—places where people can bring their authentic selves.
She has worked with an array of organizations during her career including Fleisher Art Memorial, National Intrepid Center of Excellence at Walter Reed, Americans for the Arts, Blue Star Families, Disney Theatrical Productions, Endowment for the Humanities, the Kennedy Center, National Science Foundation, Nickelodeon Productions, Playbill Inc., Public Broadcasting Service (PBS), Theatreworks/USA, U.S. Department of Defense, and U.S. Department of Education. Caralyn currently serves on the Boards of Philadelphia nonprofits Fresh Artists and Culture Works.
The Philadelphia native received her B.A. from Barnard College and has a certificate in Executive Leadership from National Arts Strategies (NAS) Executive Program in Arts and Culture Strategy at the School of Social Policy, University of Pennsylvania and a certificate in Diversity & Inclusion in HR from Cornell University. Caralyn is currently pursuing a Masters degree in Creative Leadership at the Minneapolis College of Art & Design.
Brittany Whelan,
Administrative Coordinator
Brittany Whelan is responsible for coordinating logistics and supporting the varied work of the team. These duties incude conducting interviews, preparing concept briefs, editing PowerPoints, organizing research packets, assisting in the facilitation of roundtable discussions, and conducting community outreach initiatives for The ROZ Group’s clients.
Originally from Massachusetts, Brittany moved to Philadelphia to obtain her Bachelor of Arts in English from Temple University, picking up an additional minor in Content Creation. Her past partnerships in the development of educational programming include Mighty Writers, Moonstone Arts Center, the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, and Temple University. Brittany is passionate about accessibility in higher education and made it a priority as a student board member for Temple Libraries during the transition from the main campus’s former Paley Library to the now Charles Library to develop outreach initiatives that welcomed students to the new space and its resources. She strives to create pathways into traditionally closed circles of knowledge through decalcifying communication methods that aspire towards a more inclusive nature of understanding.
Fun facts: Brittany grew up taking tap dancing lessons for over a decade and continues to move through swing nights in Rittenhouse Square. One of her favorite memories is getting to see Lonesome George, the last of the male Pinta Island tortises, in the Galápagos Islands a few months before his passing in June of 2012.
LiRon Anderson-Bell,
Senior Associate
LiRon Anderson-Bell is an award-winning strategic communications and digital media executive with more than 20 years’ experience across entertainment, consumer products and the pharmaceutical industry. Her specialties are digital and social media marketing, crisis communications/issues management and media relations. LiRon has been an associate with The ROZ Group since 2008.
She is an Assistant Professor in the Advertising and Public Relations department in the Lew Klein College of Media and Communication at Temple University, and she is also the founder of both The PR Glow Up and Crisis Contingency Academy, online professional development portals that offer courses, webinars, self-study resources and career management tips for public relations practitioners.
LiRon’s professional background includes digital media and strategic communications roles at Comcast Cable, Okayplayer.com, CDNOW.com, MTV Networks, Bristol-Myers Squibb, The Terrie Williams Agency, and Manning, Selvage & Lee. LiRonwas previously president of Anderson Bell Strategic Communications and Social Investment Partners, LLC.
She has served on executive and/or advisory boards of the Philadelphia Black Public Relations Society, the National Association of Multi-Ethnicity in Communications, New Life Family Development Center and MiND/Independence Media.
LiRon earned a Master of Business Administration from the Fordham Gabelli School of Business Administration and a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Pennsylvania. She is also a proud member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.
Fun facts: LiRon reached the intermediate level as an adult fencer, secretly desires to be a club DJ, and many years ago after falling on a New York City sidewalk, she was helped to safety by The Temptations (who happened to be performing nearby).
Charlotte Hunter Grant,
Senior Associate: Community Engagement & Cultivation
Charlotte Hunter Grant understands how to analyze trends, develop strategic partnerships and communicate key messages that turn quality products into successful brands. She helps clients generate business results through market analysis, strategic business plans and partnerships and compelling, on-target communications.
Charlotte spent nearly 20 years as a top performer and trailblazer in Pharma/Bio-Oncology sales and marketing, later transitioning into Development for some of the leading hospitals in the Midwest, where she cultivated major gift prospects and engaged with key stakeholders to support fundraising goals.
Always community-minded, Charlotte serves as a volunteer with Compassus, dedicated to hospice and palliative care. Previously, Charlotte volunteered with Dress for Success in Philadelphia, employing her experience and professional skills to help local women prepare for job interview success.
Charlotte is known as a collaborative team player who enjoys coaching and mentoring others, helping them to grow in their careers and achieve success. Helping others develop their potential has been a common theme throughout her career.
Charlotte is a graduate of Spelman College in Atlanta, with a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science and a minor in marketing. She is involved locally with her sorority, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. She lives in Ambler, Pennsylvania, with her husband Richard and their dog Josie.
Fun Facts: Charlotte has an identical twin sister and also is a wine/food connoisseur.
Charmaine Leary,
Senior Associate
Charmaine Leary has more than 25 years as a media and marketing veteran. She has held positions with several top entertainment and media companies, most recently Comcast NBCUniversal. Prior to Comcast, Charmaine held marketing and sales roles with BET/Viacom, Urban Sports & Entertainment, the Charlotte Bobcats (now Hornets), C-Span , and the Graham Williams Group.
Charmaine has been a member of NAMIC (National Association for Multi-Ethnicities in Communications) for more than 20 years. She is the former Chapter President for Washington DC and an Advisor to the Philadelphia Chapter. A graduate of Howard University, the avid-sports fan is a native of Durham, NC and has lived in Los Angeles, Atlanta, Philadelphia, and Charlotte. She currently resides in Harlem, NY.
Fun Facts: Charmaine loves champagne (well, who doesn’t), and for her last birthday, she received eight bottles of Veuve Clicquot; she loves NFL Football and is a diehard, loyal fan and season ticket holder of the Washington, DC Team; she’s been to 48 states – and did 46 in three years from 1995-1998 (only ones left are Alaska and North Dakota); “Lovely Day” by Bill Withers is her favorite song - she listens to it every day and on the rare occasion she doesn’t, she’s no good!
Mazda Miles,
Senior Associate & Chief Event Strategist
As Founder, President and Chief Event Strategist of Perfection Events, Mazda Miles leads a team experienced in designing both small, private events and large-scale public events that accomplish strategic and high-level organizational goals. Mazda’s extreme passion for results is backed by more than 15 years of experience designing and executing high impact meetings and events across various sectors and industries. She has had the pleasure of producing multi-million-dollar events both nationally and internationally.
Mazda’s keen ability to partner with business leaders to produce programming that delivers strategic results has been the key to continued success. Understanding that each element of an event communicates a message, Mazda approaches every endeavor with an eye toward strategy, and builds corresponding logistics only after objectives have been clearly defined and the methods for measuring success have been agreed to. A self-described “results fanatic,” she partners with leaders to design and execute events that produce strategic outcomes.
Mazda holds a Certification in Meeting Management (CMM), the most senior credential obtainable from the meeting industry’s premier certifying association. She has served as President of the National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO)—Greater Philadelphia. She is a respected voice in the conversation on diversity, inclusion and equity both regionally and nationally. Her recent work includes diversity and inclusion training for the Philadelphia Convention & Visitors Bureau staff. Mazda received a citation from the City of Philadelphia and Mayor Jim Kenney for her business and civic leadership during 2016 Minority Enterprise Development (MED) Week. She has published articles in two national industry publications on the topic of diversity and inclusion.
Fun Facts: Mazda hails from Alaska, is a classically trained singer, and if you’re nice to her, she may share her bacon with you. Maybe.
Amryl Ward,
Senior Associate: Human Resources
Amryl Ward, Senior Associate of The ROZ Group, is a dynamic human resource strategist and executive coach with extensive experience in the corporate, government, and non-profit sectors. She is a generalist with a passion for diversity and inclusion, employee relations, leadership development and career coaching. She is known for her sharp business acumen, compassionate listening skills, strategic problem solving coupled with her ability to integrate cultures and facilitate management transitions.
Amryl’s international client list includes major corporations and government entities like Comcast Corporation, IBM, Royal Caribbean International, International Longshore and Warehouse Union, and Capital Area Transit (Baton Rouge). She appreciates the insights and perspectives that come from working with varied clients around the country. This broad-based work has also resulted in an extensive network of professionals that can be called upon to support the demands of her cutting-edge client activity.
Time Warner Cable, Viacom’s Simon and Schuster Publishing, and Macmillan Publishing Company are among the Fortune 500 corporations where Amryl honed her skills as a Human Resource executive, particularly in the areas of change management. She has facilitated the restructuring of teams during periods of economic downturn and conversely she has participated in the growth of new organizations, serving as the hands-on extension that provides the human resources function. It is this repertoire of complex assignments in New York, New Jersey, Illinois, Mississippi, and North Carolina that solidly prepared her to launch the Award Consulting Group in 2010.
Prior to entering the corporate world, Amryl was a secondary school teacher in Roosevelt, NY. She continues to be passionate about education issues and youth as is evident by her volunteer community projects. A native of Trinidad, she came to Brooklyn, NY with her family at the age of 11. It is that spirit of aggressive pursuit of opportunity and forging her way in new and different environments that has equipped her to be the strong business ally and advocate in her work as a consultant. She obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology and Secondary Education from Hofstra University, a Masters degree in Human Resource Management from the University of Phoenix, and a certificate in Management from UCLA’s Andersen School of Management.
Amryl serves on the boards of Execute Now!, a financial management company based in Baton Rouge and the Triad Region Cares Mentoring Movement, founded by former Editor-in-Chief of Essencemagazine Susan Taylor. She is a member of National Association for Negro Business and Professional Women, Inc. and an Advisory Board member of the Carlos Lezama Caribbean Cultural Museum in New York. She was nominated as a Mover and Shakerin the Triad Business Leaderand recognized as the Human Resource Leader of the Year at Time Warner Cable in 2005. Traveling around the world with her family is her favorite pastime.
Monique Kelley,
Senior Associate: Strategic Partnerships
Monique Kelley is the strategic partnership executive for The ROZ Group. She has a proven record of success in entertainment both in front of and behind the camera. She spent more than eight years with Warner Bros. as the Senior Manager of Strategic Partnerships. She then joined Sony Pictures Entertainment as the Director of Syndication Sales for the Western region. Her unique branding and innovative approach to sales and branding has created strong client relationships throughout the industry. Monique has entered an amazing phase where she is working on her own production deals.
Monique’s diverse background is a testament to her immersion and ability to pivot in the rapidly changing digital landscape. She is an accomplished Sales and Marketing Executive with extensive experience in EST, VOD, Syndication and Publishing within the television, motion picture and home entertainment business. Her key strengths are in strategic planning, relationship building, innovative marketing plans, and creating client specific promotions to ensure the strongest ROI. She brings that expertise to The ROZ Group, a firm known for creating immersive exhibit experiences.
She began her career in educational publishing with mega publishing companies like Scholastic and McGraw Hill where she was a top performing sales representative. A versatile content developer, Monique has completed her first novel scheduled for release January 2021. She is a proud graduate of Hampton University where she earned her degree in Theatre Arts. She also spent a semester aboard in London studying Shakespearean Theatre.