MEET OUR 2022-23 Mentors

LaRita Allen is a retired Army veteran and a certified project manager professional. She holds a B.A. in Pan African Studies and an MBA from University of Phoenix.

Allen credits the birth of her first daughter for inspiring her to finally complete her undergraduate degree. Having earned her degree as a parent, Allen identifies with ANSWER’s mission and is honored to serve as an "answer" which she wished she'd had as a mom in college.

When not working, Allen enjoys being with her family and their dog Teenie.

Niksa Balbosa is a licensed private investigator who holds a B.S. in Criminal Justice from UNC Charlotte. She also is certified as a Level-One Fire Inspector.

Balbosa has spent more than 20 years working in the private investigative and security industry, safeguarding staff and properties. She has led investigations that successfully apprehended suspects involved in theft. In 2011 she started her own firm, Victory Investigations.

Balbosa is a strong believer in giving back to the community. Whether the topic is education, employment, or housing, she believes in equity for all.

Jill Bastian earned her B.S. in Education from the University of Central Florida and an M.S. in Education Science from Walden University. She spent 20 years teaching, mentoring, and coaching in the central Florida public school system. Teaching was her second career. She went back to school at 40 to get her education degree, leaving a career as the director of franchise sales and development for Wendy's International.

Bastian says she was fortunate to have several mentors in her life: “The women I had in my corner strongly encouraged and supported me. They believed in me.”

Bastian is passionate about volunteering and is active in Rotary Club of Mecklenburg County-South.

La'Kisha Belton graduated from North Carolina Central University with a B.S. in Human Science. She has worked in employee relations for 24 years, currently at Wells Fargo.

Belton is the proud mom of two beautiful children and a Shih Tzu named Juliet. She volunteers for the PTA at her children's school and for The National Hook-Up of Black Women, a non-profit organization that advocates for women and children.

“As a child, I was always encouraged by strong women in my family and community,” she says. “When the opportunity to be an ANSWER mentor came up, I was excited to raise my hand in hopes that I too can make a difference in someone's life.”

An ANSWER alumna, Elizabeth Bradley graduated with high honors from Montreat College, earning a B.S. in Psychology and Human Services in 2018. She works as a therapeutic foster care supervisor. Bradley appreciates all the opportunities she received as an ANSWER scholar. She participated in fundraisers, was interviewed for television and newspaper stories, and sat on a board designed to help improve ANSWER. She is back as a mentor to help the next mom reach her potential as ANSWER did for her.

Bradley’s daughter graduated from Appalachian State University with a B.S. in Psychology and Criminal Justice. Her son is attending college in El Paso, Texas to study diesel mechanics.

Kim Buch is an organizational psychologist and a professor of psychology at UNC Charlotte. She has three grown sons and two black cats. Buch is an avid gardener and hiker, and active community volunteer.

Dagmar Damour is a licensed Realtor and certified associate in project management. She earned her bachelor's degree in Organizational Leadership from Mercy College. Native to New York City, Dagmar and her three children have called Charlotte home since 2016. Dagmar currently owns and operates Direct Solution Resurces LLC, a project management consulting firm. A recent alumna of Leadership Charlotte, Dagmar enjoys making positive contributions to the Charlotte community. No stranger to life's challenges, Dagmar lives by Nelson Mandela's saying "It always seems impossible, until it's done."

Susan Jenkins holds a master’s in business administration from UNC Charlotte and a bachelor of arts from UNC Greensboro.  She has been employed with TIAA for more than 17 years and maintains securities and insurance licensing. Jenkins is a co-chair for a women’s resource group and is working through her Six Sigma certifications. She began her career as a social worker and later moved into the financial industry where she feels she thrives. Jenkins is the mother of one son and a golden retriever, and both keep her very busy.

Katie Jensen is a doctoral candidate in bioinformatics and computational biology at UNC Charlotte. She holds both a B.S. in Psychology and M.S. in Bioinformatics and Genomics from UNC Charlotte. From her third year of her undergraduate studies, Jensen has worked in and served UNC Charlotte’s community as an instructor and mentor.

As an ANSWER alumna, Jensen knows firsthand how critical ANSWER’s Mentors for Moms program is in providing support for the scholars. She wants to support other women in their journey to success, and to pay forward the amazing support she has received on her own journey. Jensen has two daughters and loves spending time with her family. She plays piano and enjoys working out and engaging in various outdoor activities.

Valerie Millwood obtained her undergraduate degree from Anderson University in South Carolina. She went on to earn master's and doctoral degrees from Frontier Nursing University.

Millwood has more than two decades of experience in obstetrics and gynecology. She also has cared for breast cancer patients.

When Millwood is not helping patients, you can find her spending time with her granddaughter, traveling and going to concerts with her husband and adult children, or playing with her dogs, Scarlet and Logan.

Pamela Pollard is in her second career as a secondary English educator. She previously spent several decades in various positions at IBM Corporation. Also, as a small business entrepreneur she successfully ran a custom framing business.

Pollard holds a B.A. in Speech Communication from Saint Mary’s College in Indiana and a Master of Arts in Teaching from Belmont University in Tennessee. She has always found time to volunteer as a tutor and mentor. Her mantra is a saying from Confucius, “Tell me and I will forget, show me and I may remember; involve me and I will understand.”

Pollard and her husband recently relocated from Connecticut. Their adult children, a daughter and two sons, now enjoy any reason to visit the Tar Heel State.

Veronica Rankin is a director of nursing overseeing Atrium Health Carolinas Medical Center's Magnet designation which honors nursing excellence. She also serves as the Clinical Nurse Leader program coordinator at her hospital and serves as an adjunct faculty member for Northeastern University's accelerated BSN program.

Rankin and her husband have been married for 25 years. They have three daughters and a dog named Yoda. She enjoys singing in her church choir, dancing, reading, and crocheting.

Rankin chose to volunteer as an ANSWER mentor to instill pride, provide support, and ensure success for mothers seeking professional degrees in her community.

Simona Sherrell is an infant and toddler specialist with Child Care Resources, Inc. Originally from Roanoke, Va., she has more than 20 years of experience in the early childhood field. Sherrell earned her associate degree from Southwestern Illinois College at age 35 and bachelor’s degree in early childhood education from Western Carolina University at age 47.

Sherrell likes to encourage and empower other women and mothers who are back in school. She says that no matter the age, anything is possible if you just believe in yourself – and she is proof.

Sherrell has been married to her husband Mike for 25 years. They have two boys and a miniature schnauzer. She enjoys running 5k races, reading, scrapbooking, and traveling with family and friends.

Shannon Walker is a communications and fundraising professional with more than 18 years of experience.  She is committed to sharing compelling stories and providing pathways for people to positively impact community issues that matter most to them.

Walker holds a B.A. in Mass Communications from Clark Atlanta University and a master’s in nonprofit management from Eastern University.  She is the wife of Duan and proud mom to 6-year-old Wyatt.

Walker volunteers as an ANSWER mentor because she believes she wouldn't have achieved success without the support of mentors in her personal and professional life. She also says mentoring “not only helps the mentee, but also changes the life of the mentor forever.”

Sheila Wright was raised in Brooklyn, N.Y., and moved to Charlotte in 1994. She has been a registered nurse for more than 38 years and earned an M.S. in Nursing with a focus on global public health nursing.  She has been a part of the Professional Development Committee with ANSWER for the past year. Wright is married, a mother and a grandmother.  She loves to knit and love on her grandchildren.

Leah Young holds a psychology degree from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. Young is a creative turned entrepreneur. In 2020 she co-founded IMPACTheCulture Financial Group with a mission to inspire and connect underserved and marginalized communities through financial education and empowerment.

Young is an avid reader and enjoys volunteering, spending time with family, pickleball, tennis, and hiking. She became an ANSWER mentor to be of service in her community.