Session Descriptions & Speaker Bios

Andy Brinkman
LHP, LLC Capital, Devel. & Mgmt.

David Sprowl
Founder/Managing Partner, WD International Consulting
Before forming WD International, David was the Executive Director of Lutheran Towers, located in midtown Atlanta, Georgia. He led a transformative journey in developing a person-centered approach in affordable housing. His prior experience included 16 years in the corporate arena.  As a certified Leadership Coach credentialed through the International Coaching Federation (ICF), David is committed to the mentoring and coaching of individuals with a focus on their professional and personal growth. As a seasoned educator, he has a demonstrated ability to connect with people from diverse backgrounds and cultures. He has a Master’s degree in Public Administration with a concentration in Nonprofit Management, from Georgia State University.  

Dennis McWilliams
HTG Management, LLC

Eddie Garrett
McGriff Insurance Services
Eddie Garrett joined BB&T (Commercial Bank Group) in 2001 and McGriff Insurance Services f/k/a BB&T Insurance Services in 2004 in Atlanta, GA. In 2017, he relocated his family back to East Tennessee to initiate a middle market growth strategy in the region as well as support a growing affordable housing and multi-family risk practice. He is responsible for offering innovative and creative solutions to controlling risk and mitigating losses. He has expert knowledge and specialized experience working in the construction and real estate sectors; strong proficiency in working with senior and executive management to identify and analyze enterprise-related risk; implementing a strategy to accommodate risk tolerance and market conditions, and developing an organizational risk culture.

As a commercial insurance agent with McGriff, Eddie has consistently been a top 10% property and casualty producer in his region and nationally achieving McGriff’s Presidents Club 9 times. He also spent 10 years as a Middle Market and Corporate Banker arranging debt, treasury, capital market, and other financial solutions for publicly traded and privately held corporations in the Southeastern Region of the United States with Regions Bank f/k/a AmSouth Bank and Wells Fargo f/k/a First Union National Bank.

Eddie is an active member of several industry associations including the National Affordable Housing Management Association (serving as a panelist for industry experts as it relates to affordable housing), the Southeastern Affordable Housing Management Association, and the Association of General Contractors. He serves the community in various capacities such as a volunteer at Boy Scouts of America, a board member of Young Life of Upper East Tennessee, and YMCA Camp High Harbour at Lake Burton, GA. He also enjoys playing golf, tennis, hiking, and skiing.

Gates Kellett
Gates Kellett is the founder of The Gates Development Group, LLC (GDG, LLC), a mission-based consulting firm that works with non-profit and public housing owners of affordable housing across the country to help them through the preservation process. Gates specializes in working on projects that were originally financed through the HUD 202 Direct Loan and Capital Advance programs, as well as with properties with Section 8 and PBV rental subsidy.  

She spent fifteen years with regional and local non-profit affordable housing developers before founding her consulting company, and this experience allowed her to develop expertise in a variety of preservation transactions. She has also been an active educator on affordable housing development and preservation issues. She is a HUD-approved “Subject Matter Expert”, and she has been a co-facilitator in HUD’s two main preservation training series. She is also an instructor with NeighborWorks Institute and a visiting lecturer in the Georgia Tech Graduate City Planning program. Gates has served on the board of the Georgia Institute for Aging and has been a special consultant to the National LeadingAge organization on matters related to preservation financing.

Glenda Leduc
ManSerMar, Inc.

Kris Cook
Executive Director, NAHMA 
Kris joined NAHMA as its Executive Director in November 2002. NAHMA is the leading voice for affordable housing management, advocating on behalf of multifamily property managers and owners whose mission is to provide quality affordable housing. NAHMA's mission is to support legislative and regulatory policy that promotes the development and preservation of decent and safe affordable housing. NAHMA serves as a vital resource for technical education and information, fosters strategic relations between government and industry, and recognizes those who exemplify the best in affordable housing. NAHMA is the voice in Washington for some 20 regional, state and local affordable housing management associations (AHMAs) nationwide. NAHMA's membership represents 75 percent of the affordable housing management industry, and includes its most distinguished multifamily management companies and owners.

Hilary Crowell
Director of PBCA Programs, EPS, Inc.
Hilary Crowell is the Director of PBCA Programs at EPS, Inc., and has been working in the industry for the last 20+ years. She has worked on many HUD initiatives including the 203A and 202D working group, in which she was awarded the 2014 FHA Commissioner’s Award for her outstanding program accomplishment. Hilary was instrumental in creating the 50059 and 50059-A instructional and has lent her expertise in rewriting TRACS error definitions. She has done presentations and trainings about TRACS throughout the industry, as well as New Owner's and Asset Management conferences.  

Janel Ganim
ResMan

Jennifer Scott
SPM, LLC

Leslie Tucker
Principal Partner, Law Firm of Williams Edelstein Tucker, P.C.
Leslie is the principal partner of the Law Firm of Williams Edelstein Tucker, P.C., where she has provided defense and consultation for housing providers nationwide in fair housing matters for the last nine years. Leslie provides clients with live training on fair housing, federal program, and landlord-tenant issues, and speaks at regional and national housing conferences regularly. Leslie also specializes in physical accessibility in multifamily housing, including local building codes as well as ADA and FHA requirements.

Mary Ross
President, Ross Business Development, Inc.

Michelle Cutillo
Vice President of Compliance, WRH Realty Services, Inc.
Michelle Cutillo is the Vice President of Compliance at WRH Realty Services out of Jacksonville, Florida. She began her property management career as a leasing agent and held various on-site positions including Property Manager. She has been with WRH Realty Services for the last 16 years working her way from Senior Compliance Specialist to the Director of Compliance and Operations to Vice President. Michelle and her team are responsible for overseeing affordable housing compliance, screening policies, application fraud identification, and creating best practices within the WRH portfolio. 

Michelle Cutillo has extensive knowledge in multi-family housing with over 20 years of industry experience. During this time she has attained several industry related designations and was the recipient of the Southeastern Affordable Housing Management Association (SAHMA) Sisson/Ownby Rising Star Award for her dedication and commitment to affordable housing management. Michelle's true passion is affordable housing training within her organization and throughout the industry. 

Rue Fox
Industry Principal - Affordable Housing, ResMan
With more than 25 years of experience in Affordable Housing from the supplier side, Rue has a solid understanding of the hurdles faced by this sector of the Industry. She is active in both NAHMA and CARH, holds a seat on the Board of Directors for the NAHMA Educational Foundation, and is co-creator/host of the Industry leading podcast, Cocktails & Compliance, powered by proptalk. She has both her CPO and SHCM certifications, of which, the CPO class was instrumental in the direction she decided to take with her career.

Sonja Horn
President, DASH Compliance
Sonja Horn started her career in affordable management almost 30 years ago as an on-site manager. As she progressed in the affordable housing industry, Sonja became an Area Manager, a Regional Property Manager and then Director of Compliance. She has been responsible for overseeing the regulatory compliance for both large and small management companies. Since Sonja has been on site she is uniquely qualified to understand the struggles that managers deal with on a daily basis. In 2010, Sonja decided to create her own compliance consulting firm, DASH Compliance that specializes in file review and training designed to make life simpler for on-site managers. She is the President of Southeastern Affordable Housing Management Association (SAHMA). As a member of SAHMA, she also conducts training for state and regional conferences. Sonja is a Housing Credit Certified Professional, a Specialist in Housing Credit Management, a Certified Occupancy Specialist, and certified Fair Housing Coordinator. Sonja is committed to excellence in affordable housing and looks forward to using her knowledge to help further the understanding of others.

Stacy Day
Chief Operating Officer, Karen A. Graham Consulting, LLC

Steve Harville
McGriff Insurance Services

Theresa Merryman
SPM, LLC

Walter Coffey   
Founder/Managing Partner, WD International Consulting
Before forming WD International, Walter was the CEO of LeadingAge Georgia and the Georgia Institute on Aging for 18 years.  His career spans from Georgia Council on Aging to the Alzheimer’s Association to various senior housing settings.  He is committed to the education and development of individuals with an emphasis on supporting organizations to empower and retain their staff.  Walter is an international leader in the culture change movement and has the demonstrated ability to transform organizations to become person-centered.  Walter is a national leader in focusing on care for people living with dementia.  He has a Master’s degree in public administration with a concentration in Gerontology, from Georgia State University.