ANSWER Scholarship Governing Board

Susan Andersen, Founder and Executive Director

Susan Andersen is founder and executive director of ANSWER Scholarship, Inc. She has led ANSWER’s growth since its founding in 2006, including its Mentors for Mom and Professional Development programs.

Andersen has received wide acclaim for her vision of a scholarship fund that would help mothers earn college degrees and achieve a better life for their families In 2020, The Charlotte Ledger named her to its inaugural class of 40 Over 40, an award saluting people aged 40+ who have made Charlotte a better place. Andersen was also named one of the city’s 50 Most Influential Women by The Mecklenburg Times.

Previously, The Charlotte Observer’s editorial board honored Andersen in its annual tribute to leaders whose good works enrich our region. She is also the recipient of the Heart of Grace Award from Pfeiffer University.

The Saturday Evening Post is among those who have profiled Andersen and her work. She has been featured or quoted in many local media outlets, including The Charlotte Observer, The Charlotte Business Journal, WFAE, and six local TV stations.

Andersen holds a B.A. in Business Administration from UNC Charlotte. She has two children: Emily is a graduate of Auburn University and David received his master’s degree in aerospace engineering from Georgia Tech.

When Andersen isn’t busy trying to build economic mobility in Charlotte one mom at a time, you’ll usually find her on a bike.

LaWanda Goodman

LaWanda Goodman is a human resource talent consultant with Atrium Health and has been with Atrium for 14 years in several positions. She has helped more than 300 candidates find jobs in healthcare, including three ANSWER scholars. Goodman also volunteers as part of the ANSWER alumnae program. Giving back to ANSWER is very important to her because of the support she received in her time of need.

Goodman is an alumna of ANSWER Scholarship. She graduated from Belmont Abbey College in 2019 with a B.A. in Interdisciplinary Studies, including a minor in business management and concentration in human resources. Goodman didn’t attend college following high school because she needed to work; she was already living on her own in 12th grade. The Charlotte Observer wrote about her inspiring story in a front-page article on Mother’s Day. Goodman is mom to daughter Alexandria and shows her by example the value of a college education.

Tani L. Seymore

Tani L. Seymore is the senior accountant with Catholic Charities Diocese of Charlotte. She has been with the diocese for nearly 13 years, and has more than 25 years of experience in governmental and nonprofit accounting and financial reporting.

Seymore connects with the mission of ANSWER because she was a mom, wife and full-time student while completing her MBA. She recognizes the hard work and sacrifices mothers make to achieve their educational goals. Seymore holds a bachelor's degree in business and an MBA in accounting. She also earned a Master of Public Administration degree from North Carolina Central University in 2019.

Seymore is the mother of two grown children.

Bill Girone

Bill Girone has been making a difference in people's lives for over 40 years in the life insurance and wealth management business. Girone's reason for supporting the mission of ANSWER is personal. He tells the story of how in the spring of 1945, his mother was accepted at the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia. She walked into her living room with the acceptance letter in her hand and showed it to her father. He read it, stood up and threw it into the fireplace, stating that there wasn’t any reason for a woman to have anything more than a high school education.

He and his wife Kathy split their time between Charlotte and their home in Richmond so they can be closer to their 3 grandchildren.

Paula Goolkasian

Paula Goolkasian is a professor emeritus at UNC Charlotte. She retired from her position as professor of psychology and director of cognitive science after 42 years at the university. Her interest in ANSWER stems from her long history of mentoring graduate and undergraduate students who worked in her Perception Lab on their dissertations, master’s theses and undergraduate research projects.

Currently, she is an associate editor of Frontiers in Psychology: Cognition and active in research projects with the visualization laboratory at UNC Charlotte and the W. G. (Bill) Hefner VA Medical Center - Salisbury, NC.

She and her husband, Francis Martin, enjoy living at Lake Norman. They have a son, Christopher, who lives in Atlanta.

Teri Kubbs

Teri Kubbs is a retired educator from Ohio, having served for 36 years as a classroom teacher, high school administrator and principal. She believes strongly in the power of an education. Kubbs has been actively involved at ANSWER Scholarship since 2018. She currently serves as a mentor, the Community Awareness Chairperson, and the ANSWER representative who walks applicants through the scholarship application process. Kubbs says that ANSWER is one of her favorite organizations. “An ANSWER Scholarship not only changes the life of the scholar but indeed changes the lives of all the children inside the home. Our scholars now have a community that is behind them and won’t let them fail!”

Teri is the proud mother of two amazing sons, two delightful bonus daughters (daughters-in-law), and two spunky granddaughters. Teri is also extremely involved in her church, Lifepointe Church in Fort Mill.

Lori Myers

Lori Myers is a senior director at TIAA, where she leads a team that focuses on the internal customer experience with desktop technologies. Myers has 25 years of experience in the financial services industry in technology and business management roles. Since joining TIAA, she helped create the IT Women’s Council’s group mentoring program. She also co-chairs the Women’s Employee Resource Group in Charlotte and serves as a career coach.

Myers is an active volunteer as a member of ANSWER’s Professional Development Committee and the Belmont Abbey College Alumni Board. She holds an M.S. in Management and Leadership from Montreat College and a B.A. in Liberal Studies from Belmont Abbey College. Myers is a Distinguished Toast Master and served in the United States Air Force.

Myers lives in Cramerton with her husband, Clint. They have three children.

Felix Nater

Felix P. Nater, CSC, is the president and owner of Nater Associates, Ltd., a human resource security management consulting practice focusing on workplace violence prevention consulting, workplace security consulting and security awareness.  Nater is retired from federal law enforcement as a United States postal inspector with more than 30 years of investigative, law enforcement, program management and security experiences. He is also a retired Army Reserve sergeant major. 

Nater is married to Elizabeth Jackson-Nater and they have 6 children.

Gwyndolan Swain

Gwyndolan L. Swain is founding director of the first master’s level program in the history of Belmont Abbey College, the Master of Health Administration. She is also professor of health administration and holds a doctorate in that field from the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston.  

Swain previously served as a professor and administrator at Pfeiffer University, teaching both undergraduates and graduate students.  As a testament to her passion for teaching, she was awarded the university’s inaugural Webb Award for Excellence in Teaching in 2019, a recognition that is determined by the student body. Swain was recently named president elect of the Greater Charlotte Healthcare Executives Group.

Pam Sanders-Marsh

Pam Sanders-Marsh has nearly two decades of experience in the financial services industry, currently as a manager in advertising compliance within the insurance sector. In addition to her corporate achievements, Sanders-Marsh has a passion for higher education. For more than a decade, she successfully operated a college planning business, dedicated to guiding students through crucial phases such as applications, testing, and financial aid. Her commitment to empowering mothers underscores her passion for education and mentorship.

Sanders-Marsh is married and the mother of three adult children, and an avid enthusiast of dragon boat racing and running.

Sharon S. Townsend

Sharon S. Townsend is a retired attorney and judge. Townsend received her Juris Doctor degree from the University of Connecticut School of Law in 1979 and was admitted to the New York State Bar in 1980. In her legal career she served as a court clerk, associate attorney and adjunct professor. Her judicial career began in 1985 when she was elected to the Williamsville Village Court. In 1992 she was elected judge of the Erie County (NY) family court where she served for 10 years. In 2003, Judge Townsend was appointed administrative judge of the eight counties of Western New York, shortly before her election to the New York State Supreme Court in 2004 where she served until 2017.  In her 38-year career, she received multiple awards for her dedicated service to the law, the courts, women and children.

Judge Townsend moved to North Carolina in 2018 and lives on Lake Norman with her husband Brad, a retired attorney. They are the parents of two grown children and four grandchildren.

Brian Wallace

Brian Wallace is a Charlotte native and works as an operations vice president for LPL Financial. He received his B.S. in Business Administration with a concentration in accounting from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and his MBA from UNC Charlotte. Wallace is a firm believer that education is a critical component to enriching your life and realizing great career success. He also believes each of us must find a way to give back and pave the road ahead for those coming up behind us. For fun he enjoys running, attending sporting events, spending time with family and friends, and being a foodie.