2023 Board Officers

Chair:  Yvette Austin Smith
Vice Chair:  Laurie Gabriel
Vice Chair:  Stephen Rushmore Jr.
Treasurer:  Kathy Campbell 

2023 Nominees for Directors

 Charlie Arsenault (Regional Director, Central Region)*

Charlie has been an AMC member since 2004. Over this time, he has served in several AMC volunteer roles including chair of the Worcester Chapter and Mountain Leadership School instructor. Charlie is a technology development and non-profit strategy consultant with White Blaze Consulting and Empower Success Corps. His outdoor pursuits include hiking, backpacking, skiing, and paddling. He has completed New Hampshire’s 48 4,000-footers, an AT thru-hike in 2017, a Long Trail hike in 2018, the Boroughs Trail in 2020, and the Colorado Trail in 2021. Charlie and his wife Lynne reside in Westborough, Mass.

 Scott Barringer (2023 Nominee)

A Massachusetts native and Connecticut resident, Scott Barringer has been a member of the AMC for 17 years, the President’s Society for 12 years, and the AMC Board of Advisors for 8 years. After graduating from Harvard College, he worked at Goldman Sachs for 23 years, retiring as a partner and subsequently joining Shelter Growth Capital Partners in 2015. Scott was introduced to the AMC and the White Mountains by his father-in-law Jim Hamilton with whom he made many exploratory trips to Maine as part of the early stages of the Maine Woods Initiative. The Hamilton Anglers Annual Maine trip continues to this day. Scott enjoys hiking and fly fishing in the White Mountains with his wife, two children (volunteer trail croo!) and dog, using their cabin in Jackson, NH as base camp. Scott currently serves as a Trustee to the Dexter Southfield School and on the Board of the Cos Cob Archery Club.

Richard Batiuk (2023 Nominee for Regional Director, Southern Region)

An AMC member for many years, Rich has been the Potomac Chapter Treasurer, served on the Potomac Chapter Executive Committee, as the chapter’s Paddling Committee chair, and is an AMC certified paddling and hiking leader.  Prior to his retirement, Rich was the Associate Director for Science, Analysis, and Implementation at the United States Environmental Protection Agency’s Chesapeake Bay Program Office located in Annapolis, Maryland. There, he led the integration of science into multi-partner policy-making and collaborative decision-making. Rich is a co-founder of CoastWise, providing pro-bono help with development and implementation of collaborative watershed management strategies to over 65 agencies and organizations all around the world. Rich is an active member of Chesapeake Conservancy’s Board of Directors and serves as the vice chair of the Maryland Department of Natural Resources’ Black Bass Fisheries Advisory Committee and as a member of the Bay Journal’s Scientific Advisory Committee. Rich received his B.S. in Environmental Science from the University of New Hampshire in 1984 and M.S. in Environmental Toxicology from American University in Washington D.C. in 1985. Rich lives in Annapolis, Maryland with his wife Susan, and enjoys fly fishing, kayaking, canoeing, hiking, camping, backpacking, bird watching, trail building and maintenance, and traveling.

Shalin Desai (2023 Nominee)

Shalin Desai is the former Vice President of Advancement for the Appalachian Trail Conservancy (ATC), leading ATC’s development, communications, education, outreach and visitor services work. Before that, he spent fifteen years leading marketing efforts for McMaster-Carr, Jetsetter, and TripAdvisor. He also served on ATC’s Board of Directors for several years (serving on the nominations, strategic directions, and advancement committees) and served as the co-chair of the communications committee of the Recreate Responsibly Coalition. He has completed end-to-end treks of the Appalachian Trail, Pacific Crest Trail, and Continental Divide Trail, becoming the first person of South Asian descent to complete the Triple Crown of long-distance hiking. He is the former president of the Boston chapter of the University of Chicago Alumni Association, receiving the university’s Young Alumni Service Award in 2016. He holds a BA from the University of Chicago. Shalin is a former member of the Worcester Chapter Executive Committee where he served as the programs chair, receiving the Marian Pychowska Award in 2019. He is based in Hudson, Massachusetts.

Cheryl Duckworth*

Cheryl has been an AMC member since 1992 and a member of the President’s Society since 2008. She served on the Investment Committee from 2009-2013 prior to moving to Singapore for 5 years. She rejoined the Investment Committee in 2019 upon her return to the Boston area. Cheryl is currently a partner at Wellington Management having held several roles across the investment and client teams over the last 25+ years.  Originally from New Jersey, Cheryl grew up an avid soccer player and skier. However, she credits her husband for getting her hiking and camping.  She, her husband and two daughters hike, ski and climb extensively wherever there are mountains including some very far-flung locations during their time in Singapore, but the mountains they know the best are the White Mountains of New Hampshire.

Dee Dee Mozeleski*

Dee Dee, an AMC member since 2016, is a native San Diegan who has called New York home for three decades. She is the Vice President for Institutional Advancement, Communications, & External Relations at The City College of New York and also serves as the club advisor for the AMC/CCNY Outdoors Club and the CCNY Hockey Club. She was recently named a Crain’s New York 2021 nonprofit leader and is the 2021 CASE District II Professional of the Year. A past Vice Chair of the AMC New York/Northern New Jersey Region, Dee Dee enjoys many outdoor activities including hiking, cycling, swimming, fly fishing and is a certified PADI rescue diver (Master Scuba Diver certified). Dee Dee is a past board member of Seeds of Africa, a non-profit dedicated to increasing educational opportunities in Ethiopia, and Women in Development, New York. Among her focus areas at CCNY is to develop programs in support of the College’s historic mission to ensure access to excellence in the higher educational arena.

Stephen Rushmore Jr. (Vice Chair)*

Stephen is the president and CEO of HVS, an international hotel consulting firm that provides services to the hospitality industry. Stephen began his affiliation with AMC in 1990, working in reservations at Pinkham and as a croo member at Madison Spring and Lonesome Lake huts. Stephen has served on the Board of Directors (2014–2018; 2019–present) and the Board of Advisors (2010–2014). Aside from hiking, he enjoys bicycling, golf, skiing, and flying small airplanes. Stephen currently resides in Rye, N.Y., with his wife and family.

Samarjit Shankar*

Samarjit is an investor, global macro strategist and economist with over 30 years of experience. He is the Markets Strategist at Mariner Investment Group. Over the years, he has worked in senior leadership positions at BNY Mellon in Boston, J P Morgan in New York, State Street in Boston and Barclays BZW in London, Hong Kong and Singapore.  He has traveled globally, presenting on macro investments to portfolio/pension managers, hedge funds, and central banks. He has spearheaded numerous thought leadership initiatives with global money managers and policy makers, having worked closely with the International Monetary Fund and on World Bank projects over the years. He is the Chair of the AMC’s Investment Committee, having served on it since 2015 and on the Board of Advisors (2013–2018). He is a member of AMC’s President’s Society. He enjoys family time at his homes in Belmont, Mass., and Randolph, N.H., with the latter enabling many outdoor pursuits. 

Nick Wilkoff (2023 Nominee)

Nick Wilkoff is the Chief Marketing Officer at L.L.Bean, and joined the company in 2004. In this role, Nick is responsible for L.L.Bean’s marketing investments, brand strategy and amplification, creative expression, as well as accountability for its Ecommerce channel. Prior to taking on the role of CMO in 2020, Nick held a number of leadership positions across Marketing, as well as running its International business in Japan and Canada. After studying Environmental Policy at Middlebury College, Nick began his career working for a Boston-based GIS (geographic information systems) consulting firm, AppGeo. Nick then joined Forrester Research as an industry analyst covering IT trends. A Maine native, Nick currently resides in his hometown of Brunswick with his wife and two teenage children.

*Candidate for re-election.

Continuing Directors

 Robert W. Ackerman

Bob has been a member of the AMC for many years, enjoying the huts and trails in all seasons, participating in educational programs and occasionally joining climbing excursions. Following a few years on the Harvard Business School faculty, Bob was drawn into industry, first in paper manufacturing and later in metals. More recently, as a Senior Partner at Watermill Group, he has been leading invests in privately held corporations. Bob is interested in conservation and the responsible and productive use of natural resources; in particular, sustainable forestry and innovative approaches to land use for recreation and wildlife habitat for the long-term benefit of all people and our environment.  

Yvette Austin Smith (Chair)

Yvette has been an AMC member since 2005, a member of the President’s Society since 2013, and a member of the Board of Directors since 2016, and Chair of the Board beginning in 2022. She previously served on AMC’s Board of Advisors and the Outdoor Learning and Leadership and New York Development Advisory committees. Yvette lives in Brooklyn with her family (and assorted pets). They all enjoy visiting AMC facilities, as well as camping, kayaking, hiking and amateur birding — whether in The Berkshires or on  Denali. Yvette isthe Chairman of the Brattle Group, an international economic and financial consulting firm. Yvette holds an AB from Harvard and an MBA from Columbia Business School.

Kathy Campbell (Treasurer)

Kathy has been an AMC member since 2001 and has enjoyed hiking in the White Mountains  and around the globe since she was a child.  She has been a President Society member since 2017, on the Advisory Board since 2019 and has served as secretary and conservation chair on the Potamac Chapter board.  She joined the AMC Board in 2022.  After a 37-year International Finance career with an energy firm that took her around the globe, she became an entrepreneur.  In 2017 she started KTCoaching Partners a leadership coaching firm. Kathy utilizes her cross-cultural team building skills and transition management skills to assist clients in expanding their thinking  about what is possible.  Kathy loves hiking, kayaking, biking, skiing and just being outdoors.  She holds a Business degree from Northeastern University and an MBA from Loyola University of Chicago. Kathy and her husband reside in Northern Virginia and have two grown children.

Birgitta C. Dickerson

A lawyer and mother of three, Birgitta has worked in private practice and government and currently serves as corporate counsel at Salesforce.com. Birgitta previously served on AMC’s Board of Directors (2006–2012), where she was secretary and a member of the President Search Committee. Following her tenure on the board, Birgitta became a member of AMC’s Board of Advisors and Board Nominating Committee. Birgitta also serves on the boards of the Victim Rights Law Center and Mass Audubon, where she is a member of the Climate Change Committee and Policy and Sanctuaries Committee. She has served as a board member for the Massachusetts Black Women Attorneys. She received her BA from Emory University and her JD from the University of Pennsylvania.

Laurie Gabriel (Vice Chair)

Laurie retired in 2008 as one of three managing partners at Boston-based Wellington Management, which oversees more than $1 trillion in assets for around 1,500 institutions in more than 40 countries. Laurie joined the company in 1976 upon graduation from Tufts University, where she earned a BA in economics. In retirement, Laurie has served on the Tufts University board of trustees and investment committee and is past chair for The Nature Conservancy–New Hampshire. She chairs the New Hampshire Charitable Foundation’s investment committee and is on the board of New Hampshire Public Radio. Laurie also actively supports several organizations focused on conservation and women’s financial independence.

Shan Soe-Lin Hecht

Shan Soe-Lin, MPH, PhD, is an undergraduate capstone faculty member at the Jackson Institute for Global Affairs (2021-2022). She is also a managing director at Pharos Global Health Advisors, a non-profit global health advisory firm based in Boston, MA, that she helped to co-found. Shan specializes in developing solutions to complex strategic, organizational and operational issues affecting global health non-profit organizations, private philanthropies, multilaterals, and US health care payer and provider systems. Through her tenures with the Boston Consulting Group (BCG), Recon Strategy, Results for Development Institute and now Pharos Global Health Advisors, Shan specializes in developing forward-looking strategies, resource mobilization approaches, competitive landscapes and investment cases for organizations and governments focused on nutrition, HIV, TB, and maternal and child health issues. More recently, Shan has advised developing countries and NGOs on Covid control, and published several op-eds in the New York Times, the Boston Globe and Politico on domestic Covid control and return-to-work strategies. Shan also works with her clients to improve their organizational effectiveness and leadership development. Her clients have included the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Gavi, Unitaid, the Global Fund, Partners in Health, Nutrition International, and Kirk Humanitarian. Shan holds a PhD in Experimental Medicine, and a B.Sc in Microbiology & Immunology, both from McGill University, and a MPH from the Harvard School of Public Health.

William B. Tyree

Bill is the Managing Partner of Brown Brothers Harriman, a privately owned global financial services firm headquartered in New York City, where he has worked for over 36 years. Outside of work, Bill is a passionate advocate for youth services.  He is the president of the Boys’ Club of New York, a 140-year-old social service organization serving more than 2,000 inner city boys (ages 6-16) through three clubhouses in New York City and a summer camp in Harriman State Park. Bill graduated from Dartmouth College and received his MBA from Wharton. He lives in New York with his wife, Kathryn, and his three college-aged children.

Martha (Marty) Wallace (Secretary)

Marty has been a member of AMC since shortly after moving to New England in 1979. She joined the Board of Advisors in 2012 before becoming a member of the Board of Trustees. Marty enjoys cross-country skiing in the Maine Woods and hiking, having finished her 4,000-footers in 2007. She is also an avid sailor. She has served on several other boards, including the Nashoba Brooks School, the Concord Museum, as president; Native Plant Trust; and the University of Pennsylvania’s Morris Arboretum. She holds an MBA from Harvard University and worked in the software industry in both client management and marketing. Marty and her husband, Ed Kane, reside in Concord, Mass.

Jenna Whitney (Regional Director, Eastern Region)

Jenna has been a member of AMC since 2017. She is a local leader, and serves as conservation coordinator for the Boston 20s and 30s steering committee. She works as an Assistant Director of Special Events at Tufts University, where she is also a student in the M.S. in Sustainability program. She enjoys biking, hiking, and exploring New England’s many natural areas. She resides in Cambridge, MA, with her husband Ryan.

Eileen Yin (Regional Director, Mid-Atlantic Region)

Eileen Yin has been an AMC member since 1998. She joined as a hiker and soon went on to bike, backpack, climb, ski, and canoe and kayak with the club. Her AMC journey continued as an activity leader, Committee Chairs, and Chapter Chair. She is a past NY-NoJ Chapter Appie of the Year and received the Club’s Volunteer Recognition Award. Eileen is enthusiastic about expanding AMC’s presence in the Greater New York region and strengthening the AMC community.

Beth Zimmer (Regional Director, Northern Region)

Beth recently retired after dedicating 40 years to public education, where she worked as a special education teacher, school principal, and guidance counselor. Beth describes herself as profoundly influenced by the six years she lived and worked in the Republic of Panama. Beth is an avid outdoorswoman who joined AMC in 1992 to support the club’s trail maintenance and conservation efforts. She is an active volunteer, who has served on the NH Chapter Executive Committee, is an instructor for winter hiking, an excursions leader, and adventure travel leader, and a recipient on the AMC Volunteer Recognition Award. Beth has a B.S. in Elementary and Special Education, a M.Ed. in Guidance in Consultation, and a M.Ed. in School Administration.