Lynnette Forde
President
Email
A specially appointed group of unpaid volunteers comprised of experienced, local leaders, with knowledge of community needs. The committee oversees the Foundation's administration and makes final grant award decisions.
Martha Bushey
Chair
Theodore Schmidt
Vice Chair
Martha Bushey is an attorney with Manchester, Newman and Bennett — participates in the firm’s Healthcare Law, Business Law and Real Estate Law sections. Formerly an intensive care supervisor at St. Vincent Charity Hospital, she is well versed on Medicare and Medicaid low and issues relating to hospitals, physicians, long-term care facilities and managed care groups. She earned a BSN from Youngstown State University and J.D. from the University of Akron School of Law.
Theodore Schmidt joined a PNC predecessor bank in 1988 as Assistant Controller, Finance Department; promoted to Assistant Vice President, Credit Administration in 1993 and joined Corporate Banking in 1997 as a Vice President. In 2003 he was named Senior Vice President responsible for portfolio management and managed a team of lenders. Schmidt was promoted to Managing Director/Senior Vice President, Regional Commercial Banking. In July 2010, he was appointed Regional President of PNC Financial Group. He earned his bachelor’s degree in Accounting from Youngstown State University.
Rona Curtis currently serves as the Assistant Director at Mahoning County Children Services. She has been an advocate for children and families for 35 years in the field of Child Welfare. Ms. Curtis has numerous years of progressive leadership and organizational development. Ms. Curtis coordinates the development, planning, implementation, and monitoring of direct service programs; operational policies and procedures; analyzes data, provides oversight for agency accreditation, and monitors compliance with accreditation standards. Ms. Curtis is appreciated for her straightforward approach and commitment to leading the charge towards advocating Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion for underrepresented populations. She values her work and advocacy with Infant Mortality, Domestic/Intimate Partner Violence, and Human Trafficking prevention. She is a graduate of Ursuline High School and two-time alumna of Youngstown State University, earning a Bachelor of Arts degree and Master of Science in Education degree.
Samuel Amendolara is a litigation attorney and has practiced law for more than 40 years. He has served as Special Counsel to the Ohio Attorney General, Acting Judge in the Girard Municipal Court, Magistrate in the Mahoning County Juvenile Court and Special Master in the Mahoning County Probate Court. He received his juris doctorate degree from Cleveland Marshall College of Law at Cleveland State University. He is a graduate of Ursuline High School and Youngstown State University.
Dr. Amy Cossentino is the founding dean of the Sokolov Honors College and associate provost for strategy and engagement at Youngstown State University, with more than 30 years cultivating campus-community partnerships to address local community needs. As the lead for YSU’s efforts to obtain the Carnegie Foundation Elective Classification for Community Engagement, Dr. Cossentino oversees strategies towards this goal. She earned a master’s degree in Counseling from YSU and a PhD in Educational Studies from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
Guy Coviello is President & CEO of the Youngstown/Warren Regional Chamber and oversees all facets and divisions of the organization. Under Coviello’s leadership, the Chamber has experienced meteoric growth in membership and revenue while launching many innovative programs for its members. Coviello joined the Regional Chamber in September 2014 as the Vice President of Government Affairs. Prior to joining the Regional Chamber, Coviello was editor at The Tribune Chronicle, where he worked for nearly 30 years in various positions as a professional journalist. The Liberty resident received his Bachelor of Arts degree in English from Youngstown State University. Coviello and his wife Denise have four children, all adopted from Brazil, and three grandchildren.
