BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Jennifer DaSilva,  Start Small Think Big's Founder & Executive Director
Board Chair and Treasurer

Jennifer is an attorney whose professional background has been in community development. Jennifer is the former Director of the East Side House Settlement Youth Leadership Program, which worked with 100 South Bronx teens each year, developing their leadership skills and preparing them for college. Upon graduating from Cornell Law School, she clerked on the District of Columbia District Court, and worked as a Litigation Associate at Debevoise & Plimpton in New York. Jennifer then worked for the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, where she helped to coordinate their 2008 west coast Election Protection effort. Most recently, Jennifer worked at Angkor Microfinance Kampuchea, a licensed Cambodian Microfinance Institution in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, where she helped to design a new microinsurance product for the Cambodian market. Jennifer holds a BA in Political Science from Yale University, and a JD from Cornell Law School.

Jenny DaSilva '94: Teaching Financial Literacy and Creating New Beginnings in the South Bronx Hotchkiss Magazine (Spring 2010)

Lily Dorment, Independent Consultant                                                  
Board Member

Lily Dorment is an independent consultant based in New York where she works with US and international organizations on programmatic and strategic planning issues.  Lily has worked for the Rockefeller Foundation where her grantmaking portfolios included global health and US economic security, including improving access to medium-term savings options for low-income individuals. Before joining the Foundation, Lily lived in South Africa where she conducted research on strengthening health systems to improve access to anti-retroviral therapy. She spent several years as the Director of Programs at VisionSpring, a leading social enterprise that trains micro-entrepreneurs throughout the Global South to perform basic vision screenings and to start businesses selling low-cost eyeglasses.  Lily holds a bachelor’s degree from Yale University and a master’s degree in Public Health with a focus on global health from Columbia University. 

Matthew Leonard, Corporate Associate, Debevoise & Plimpton, LLP
Board Secretary

Matt Leonard is an attorney with Debevoise & Plimpton in New York, where he advises corporate clients on mergers, acquisitions, dispositions and other complex business transactions. Before becoming an attorney, Matt worked as a paralegal, an insurance underwriter, an iron worker, a carpenter and director of an after-school center. He holds a B.S. from Northwestern University and a J.D. from the New York University School of Law.

Elizabeth Lewin Joerss, Television Producer
Founding Board Member

Elizabeth Lewin Joerss has worked in television production for almost ten years. She has directed operations on numerous television shows for network television companies, including Discovery, History, A&E, TLC, and WE. Prior to her career in media, Elizabeth lived and worked in Paris, where she coordinated the Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program. Elizabeth holds a BA in Visual Media from American University. She speaks French and Spanish fluently.

Jack Londen, Partner, Morrison & Foerster
Board Member

Jack W. Londen is a partner in the law firm of Morrison & Foerster based in the firm’s office in Tokyo, Japan. Jack has 30 years of experience in complex commercial litigation, including patent cases, securities class actions, and commercial arbitration matters arising from merger and acquisition transactions.

Jack also has maintained a substantial pro bono practice, leading significant cases involving public education, civil rights, and other public interest matters. He was a recipient of the 2005 California Lawyer Attorney of the Year Award for Civil Rights from California Lawyer Magazine. Jack was listed in The National Law Journal’s 2006 “Top 100 Most Influential Lawyers in America,” in The Best Lawyers in America (2006-2008); and he was named one of the “Ten Best Lawyers in the San Francisco Bay Area” by the San Francisco Chronicle in 2003.

Jack has also served in a leadership capacity for a number of public service organizations.  He is chairman of the board of the Consortium for the National Equal Justice Library, and he has served as board chair for the National Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, the Public Interest Clearinghouse, and other public interest organizations. He has received awards for his public interest work from various organizations, including the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, State Bar of California, the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, and the National Center for Youth Law.

Kelly Shimoda, Photographer
Founding Board Member

Kelly Shimoda has been working as a photographer since 2005. She freelances for the New York Times and magazines here and abroad; has exhibited in a number of shows including at the Jen Bekman Gallery; and has won several awards for her work including an ICP/Johnson and Johnson Fellowship. She has photographed for non-profits and corporate philanthropic programs domestically, throughout Latin America and in South East Asia. Prior to photography, Kelly managed international communications accounts and worked in international education. She holds a BA in Latin American Studies and American Civilization from Brown University.