WRF People

Andrea Dobson

Chief Operating and Financial Officer

Andrea is committed to solid investment, finance, accounting, human resource, operational, and information technology practices at the Foundation.

She ensures the Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation generates sufficient revenue to relentlessly pursue equity for all Arkansans and maintains good stewardship of the Foundation’s financial resources.

Andrea has led the Foundation’s journey to become a nationally recognized mission investor and provides support to the Finance and Audit Committees of the Board.

Before joining the Foundation team in 2000, Andrea was the senior vice president and chief financial officer of Central Maryland Farm Credit Agricultural Credit Association. Her areas of expertise include strategic planning, investment oversight, and financial governance. Andrea is a Certified Public Accountant with a Bachelor of Business Administration from the University of Michigan.

In addition to her work at the Foundation, she currently serves as Treasurer for the Arkansas School for Mathematics, Sciences and the Arts Foundation; and on the Audit and Resource and Development Committees for Philanthropy Southeast, the Racial Equity and Inclusion Committee for Confluence Philanthropy, the Finance Committee for International Funders for Indigenous Peoples, and on the Evaluation and Guarantee Advisory Committees of the Community Investment Guarantee Pool.

Andrea is the former co-chair of the International Funders for Indigenous Peoples and has served on the boards of the Arkansas Single Parent Scholarship Fund; Neighborhood Funders Group and the Pulaski County Single Parent Scholarship Fund.

A voracious reader, Andrea also enjoys biking, hiking, and exploring new places with her husband, Bruce. They have four children and two grandchildren.

Kristen “Kris” Phantazia Smith

Program Fellow

Kristen “Kris” Phantazia Smith graduated from the University of Arkansas with a B.A. in journalism (News/ Editorial) and African/African-American Studies. A firm believer in the transformative power creative expression holds, she regularly participates in community capacities – in the form of performing, philanthropy, and partnership – that meet at the unique intersection of arts and advocacy

Before joining WRF as a Program Fellow, Kris was a program coordinator and media specialist for Brandon House Cultural & Performing Arts Center and worked to help secure economic mobility for women and girls across the state at the Women’s Foundation of Arkansas. Currently, she is also the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Coordinator at Argenta Community Theater.

A Little Rock native, Kris is excited to continue doing life-changing work by exploring powerful and creative means to pursue a more equitable Arkansas.

Demetrious Jordan

Program Fellow

A native of West Helena, Arkansas, Demetrious graduated with a Bachelor of Science from the University of Central Arkansas. He also holds a Master of Public Service from the Clinton School of Public Service, where he was awarded the 2021 Little Rock Nine Scholarship.

Before coming to WRF, Demetrious was a data analyst for Legal Aid of Arkansas. In that role, he conducted groundbreaking analysis of home mortgage data in Pulaski County and throughout the state, exploring potential patterns of housing discrimination. Demetrious’s commitment to social impact and public speaking is informed by his four-year tenure assisting the homeless community at Bethlehem House, the transitional housing program in Conway, Arkansas, where he once lived while experiencing homelessness.

Nia Lindsey

WRF Intern

Intern, Student, Visionary. Nia Lindsey is a graduating senior at Spelman College in Atlanta, Georgia, pursuing a degree in International Studies with a minor in Management and Organization.

Her ultimate career goal is to not only market and manage hotels and resorts internationally while improving guest experiences but to also change the narrative of the small number of Black women in the hospitality industry. Nia hopes to accomplish this while working with hotels that want to make an impact economically, educationally, socially, ethnically, and in racial justice within the communities they are located.

Christian Scott-Richards

Leadership Associate and Board Liaison

Before coming to WRF, she worked for the State of Arkansas, focusing on policy and program changes within several state government agencies.

Prior to that, she created programming for the annual leadership summits hosted by the Women Political Leaders (WPL) in Brussels, Belgium, an independent non-partisan foundation serving as a global network of female politicians.

A native of Mountain View, Arkansas, Scott-Richards earned a Bachelor of Science in history at the University of Central Arkansas. In addition to a J.D. from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock William H. Bowen School of Law, she holds a Master of Public Service from the University of Arkansas Clinton School of Public Service.

Katie Wiggins

Grants and Learning Officer

(pronouns: she/her/hers)

Katie is passionate about driving equity through inclusive, sustainable systems.

As the WRF’s Grants & Learning Officer, she oversees and reimagines grantmaking to center grantees and to inform Foundation strategy.

Through the principles of Trust-Based Philanthropy, she ensures the Foundation’s pursuit of equity is itself equitable.

Prior to joining the Foundation, Katie built systems and reimagined operations at Loblolly Creamery. Before that she cultivated happiness for animals and the people who eat them as owner of Farm Girl Meats, an integrated, sustainable livestock farm.

Katie has a BS in Agricultural Business from Arkansas Tech University.

Away from her desk, Katie often frolics with her husband and children, and makes useful art of all kinds.

Madhav Shroff

Equity Officer

(pronouns: he/him/his)

A native Arkansan, Madhav Shroff started his career as an attorney at Mitchell Williams Law Firm in Little Rock, advising start-ups, emerging businesses, and venture capital funds, while also maintaining a pro bono practice. He uses these skills at the Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation to advocate for equity for all Arkansans through public policy and public affairs.

Before becoming a lawyer, Madhav was an Americorps Member and Team Leader at City Year Little Rock where he taught, tutored, and mentored 9th-graders in the Little Rock School District. He continued his public service as a law clerk for the Arkansas Division of Information Systems and Center for Arkansas Legal Services, in addition to providing program planning for Ronald McDonald House Charities of Arkansas, the Asia Foundation-Sri Lanka, and the Little Rock Age-Friendly Commission.

He currently serves on the Boards of City Year Little Rock, Central Arkansas Library System, Information Network of Arkansas, and Bowen School of Law Young Alumni. He is also Vice-Chair of the Arkansas Bar Association Public Service Academy and a member of the Arkansas Bar Association Governance Committee.

Madhav has a Bachelor of Science in Biological Sciences from Carnegie Mellon University, a Master of Science in Biomedical Sciences from the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, a Master of Public Service from the Clinton School of Public Service, and his Juris Doctor from the UA-Little Rock William H. Bowen School of Law.

Sherra Bennett

Equity Officer

(pronouns: she/her/hers)

Sherra is a daughter of the Delta, born in Pine Bluff, Arkansas. She is a social worker, community organizer, servant leader, and difference maker – which fuels her commitment to public service and the greater good.

A two-time graduate of the University of Michigan, she holds a Bachelor of Arts in Communications and a Master’s Degree in Social Work. Before joining the Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation, Sherra served as a Non-Profit Founder, Executive Director, Director of Operations, Program Director, and Principal Consultant for nonprofit human service organizations.

Her career started as a Field Organizer with President Barack Obama’s campaign, an opportunity that she credits for propelling her community-centered career
focus.

At WRF, Sherra leads the movement building and leadership development portfolio to address and evolve the voices at the table concerning the future of Arkansas. She firmly believes that intentional equitable practices that challenge the status quo with the future in mind will create sustainable transformation for all Arkansans.

Rev. Shantell Hinton-Hill

Senior Equity Officer

(pronouns: she/her/hers)

Shantell is the ultimate Renaissance woman.

An engineer turned pastor, Shantell situates her work at the intersections of social justice, public theology, and Black feminism/womanism.

A native of Conway, Arkansas, Shantell is married to Rev. Jeremy Hill. They recently welcomed their first child, Sophie June, to their growing family.

Shantell obtained a Master of Divinity from Vanderbilt Divinity School. She also earned a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Vanderbilt University and a Master of Science in Electrical Engineering from Colorado State University.

She is a proud member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., and the National Society of Black Engineers. She is also an ordained minister in the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). Her vocational experiences include work as a Process Control Engineer, a Bible teacher, and as Assistant University Chaplain at Vanderbilt University.

At Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation, Shantell focuses on community engagement, faith-based coalition building and narrative change to imagine more just communities in Arkansas.

Notable markers of her work include the recent formation of the Micah Fellows Program, a fellowship opportunity bringing together local faith leaders to expand their theological education and praxis while receiving grants and training to focus on economic justice and advocacy.

In her spare time, Shantell is a freelance writer/author and curates digital content that centers the wholeness. and thriving of Black women.

Her favorite quote is, “Do the work your soul must have,” coined by the late womanist pioneer Rev. Katie G. Cannon, Ph.D.

Rev. Cory Anderson

Chief Innovation Officer

(pronouns: he/him/his)

Cory is a relentless collaborator. He builds and maintains local and national partnerships, launches bold initiatives, and strategizes to ensure the Foundation pursues equity for all Arkansans.

In addition to his role at the Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation, Cory also serves as the interim executive director of ForwARd Arkansas. Cory understands collaboration because it has been his career.

For seven years at The Annie E. Casey Foundation in Baltimore, Maryland, he supported state-level child advocacy organizations and helped lead the KIDS COUNT Initiative.

He is currently a BMe Public Voices Fellow. He also serves on the boards of Arkansas Baptist College, the Urban League of Arkansas, the Association of Black Foundation Executives, and Neighborhood Funders Group.

Cory is married to Dr. Phillis Nichols-Anderson, CEO of a national educational management organization. He is pursuing a master’s degree in theology from Anderson University. The Andersons have four children, two in college, one making movies in Hollywood, and a corporate attorney. They also have three grandchildren.

Dr. Sherece Y. West-Scantlebury

Chief Executive Officer

(pronouns: she/her/hers)

Sherece is a leading 21st-century equity advocate. From her early beginnings as a housing advocate in New York City to leading programs at some of the most prestigious foundations in the Southeastern United States, Sherece has been relentless in her quest to increase prosperity for families striving to move out of poverty.

Sherece uses every opportunity to speak life into leaders and organizations. Her expertise in public policy, funding strategies, and program development make her one of our nation’s top transformational leaders. Before the Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation, she was the founding CEO of the Foundation for Louisiana (FLL). Prior to FFL she was with the Annie E. Casey Foundation.

Sherece earned her Ph.D. in Public Policy at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, Maryland, and a master’s in Public Policy from the University of Michigan Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

She is a member of the board of directors of Community Change, ForwARd Arkansas, Philander Smith College, and the Women’s Foundation of the South.
When she is not working, you will find Sherece traveling the world with her husband Joe, hanging out with their pups Peaches and Herb, or chilling with them at home reading, eating grapes or popcorn (sometimes both) while listening to music. She loves to dance.