Our Team
Our Staff
Shane Kirby
Executive Director
Shane Kirby, in his role as director of Columbus State’s Grants Office, worked with Goldman Sachs to bring the 10,000 Small Businesses Program to Central Ohio. He has twelve years of experience at the Columbus State Community College working to plan, develop, and manage hundreds of strategic initiatives and projects. Since taking over the grants office in FY14, he and his team grew the grant portfolio of active projects from 24 for $12 million to 98 for $70.4 million in FY20.
Shane earned a Master of Business Administration, with distinction, from Keller Graduate School, and holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of South Florida as a double major in Finance and Marketing. In addition, Shane has served as an adjunct instructor at the College for over a decade and holds certifications in Quality Matters, NCURA Research Administration and Compliance, tutoring, and supplemental instruction (SI). Shane has owned multiple small businesses including being an independent insurance agent, licensed in life, health, and annuity insurance, since 2005.
Stephanie Hall
Assistant Director
Stephanie has been with Columbus State Community College since November of 2017 and joined the 10,000 Small Businesses program with Southwest Ohio launch in June of 2019. She oversees the day-to-day program operations, outreach and recruitment efforts, and program partnerships for10,000 Small Businesses.
Stephanie is passionate about education and has over 25 years of experience working in higher education. Before joining the Grants Office team at Columbus State Community College, she spent 12 years in management and director level positions at The Ohio State University. In addition to her current role with 10,000 Small Businesses, she serves as an adjunct instructor with the college. Additionally, in support of her local community, she served for five years as a Commissioner for the City of Dublin, Ohio on the Community Services Advisory Commission.
Stephanie is currently a PhD candidate in Philosophy and History of Education from The Ohio State University. She holds a Master of Arts degree in Art Education from The Ohio State University, and a Bachelor of Arts in Art History from George Mason University.
Jean-Marc Cowles O'Connor
Business Advisor
Jean-Marc’s 30+ year career has been almost evenly divided between roles in Education and in Business. The unifying threads have always been maximizing organizational talent and helping others achieve their personal and professional goals. He is driven by the belief that the most important component of the human experience is relationships, and that leadership is an act of service, not control.
Jean-Marc received a BA in Broadcasting from Otterbein College, and an MA in Sport Management from The Ohio State University. He holds a National Diploma from the National Soccer Coaches Association of America and has been a licensed soccer referee for the NCAA, NJCAA, NAIA, NFHS, AYSO, and SAY, and a licensed umpire for NCAA and NAIA baseball and softball. He has also held various financial services licenses and designations.
He began his career as a Sports Information Director & Assistant Athletic Director at Southern Vermont College, in Bennington, where he was also a Sportswriter and Sports Photographer for The Bennington Banner. On the business side, Jean-Marc initially used his experience as a recruiter of student-athletes to provide executive search and employee development services. His consulting practice has grown to serve businesses in a wide variety of industries, from geospatial intelligence to academia to information technology to healthcare, predominantly with small-to-medium-sized businesses, but also to Federal and State government agencies, multi-national conglomerates, and non-profit organizations, and in areas such as Board of Directors development, succession planning, risk management, networking, start-up, and strategic planning.
Sheila Mixon
Business Advisor
Sheila A. Mixon is President/CEO of Sheila A. Mixon dba The SASH Effect LLC a coaching consultancy enterprise and serves as the Business Advisor for the Goldman Sachs 10K Small Business program for Southwest Ohio covering Cincinnati State Technology & Community College, Columbus State Community College and Sinclair Community College in Dayton.
Ms. Mixon has 40+ years in executive coaching, business development experience (which includes business coaching and training), the financial services industry and not-for-profit organizations. She recently retired from the Urban League of Greater Southwestern Ohio, where she served as the executive director for the Women’s Business Enterprise Council Ohio River Valley (WBEC ORV) and senior vice president, Business Development & Entrepreneurship Division.
Ms. Mixon was recently appointed to the Women of Color Foundation Board of Directors. She has also served on the following Advisory and Directors Boards: the Cincinnati Academic Center Advisory Committee for Union Institute & University, as Vice Chair for the City of Cincinnati’s Advisory Board for the City’s Department of Economic Inclusion, the Cleveland Clinic Supplier Diversity Advisory Council and the MetroHealth Supplier Diversity Council. She also served on the Board of Directors for Alloy and Alloy Entrepreneur Assistance Committee, appointed to the Kauffman Advisory Group for the Kauffman Foundation, Board of Directors for the Ohio Women’s Coalition (OWC), Founding member ABBE (Alliance of Black Businesswomen Entrepreneurs) and WBENC Board of Directors.
Ms. Mixon has a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration (concentration Finance) from The Ohio State University. Most recently received her executive coaching certification through Oxford Leadership.
Pam Bullock
Project Manager
Pam joined the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses program in 2023 but has been with Columbus State Community College since 2016. She initially started her career with the college in the Office of Admissions as an Admissions Systems Specialist before moving into the role of Program Coordinator for K-12 Partnerships.
Pam is originally from Beavercreek, Ohio, and holds her bachelor’s degree in psychology from Wright State University. She currently lives in Glen Echo with her husband and two dogs (Nami & Luffy). Outside of work, Pam loves being creative, hiking with her dogs, and trying new restaurants in Columbus.
Nicole D'Amico
Alumni Manager
Nicole brings nearly three decades of diverse professional experience, excelling in public speaking, event coordination, and relationship management. Her background spans B2B and B2C sales, customer service, marketing, recruitment, and teaching. She is passionate about fostering connections and empowering others and anticipates that her background as an entrepreneur will quickly root connections with Goldman Sachs 10KSB alumni. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Social and Behavioral Sciences from The Ohio State University and pursued additional coursework in Teaching, Physical Therapy, and Chemical Dependency Counseling from Ottawa University and Sinclair Community College.
Outside of her professional life she is a dedicated community volunteer with contributions as a fundraiser, finance educator, youth sports coach, PTA President, and church youth group leader. She resides in Miamisburg and enjoys life with her husband of 21 years, two sons, one daughter, and their Golden Retriever and Pit-Lab rescue. Nicole finds joy in adventurous travel, hiking, birding, gardening, and hot yoga.
Faculty
Roger Ball
Lead Faculty
Mod 1: You and Your Business
Mod 9a: Action for Growth
Mod 9b: Putting It All Together
Columbus State Community College
Roger Ball has more than 20 years of executive business management experience in the corporate sector, and as an entrepreneur. He has vast experience in the technology industry, conducting business with major corporations, as well as state and local government agencies. He started the Midwest state and local government vertical market for one of the largest software manufacturing companies in the world. In three years, he and his team had statewide contracts, as state agencies standardized on their solutions, in four of the six states he was responsible for developing. As an entrepreneur, he started three companies and sold two. As the president and CEO of a manufacturing company, he led the company to international expansion with three locations and over 125 employees, garnering the distinction of being the largest non-construction MBE in the state of Arkansas.
He received his B.S./B.A. from The Ohio State University, MBA from Ohio University and Executive Management certifications from Northwestern and Cornell universities. Roger has a unique set of tools and techniques which have proven essential in his professional career. He has certifications in Lean Six-Sigma - Green Belt, Minitab, Microsoft Office, and Statistics, to name a few.
Roger is currently a faculty member in the Business Programs Department at Columbus State Community College. In addition to providing valuable consulting services for progressive small businesses, he enjoys preparing the next generation of business leaders. He teaches several business courses, including Principles of Business, Management and Organizational Behavior, Business Ethics, Fundamentals of Entrepreneurship, and Strategic Management.
In addition to his business and professional experience, he shares his knowledge to benefit his community. His volunteerism has included board appointments to The Ohio State University Presidents Club, The Ohio State University Alumni Association, The Ohio State University Alumni Council, The Ohio State University Athletic Department, as well as the Little Rock Regional Chamber of Commerce, Arkansas Civil Service Commission, Financial Oversight Committee for the Little Rock School District - all of Little Rock, Arkansas, a drug and rehabilitation organization, and the Columbus State Community College mentoring program.
David J. Hensley, II
Mod 2: Growth and Opportunities
Cincinnati State Community and Technical College
David is the program chair and professor of the Business Management program at Cincinnati State Technical and Community College. He received his B.S. and MBA degrees from Franklin University. Technology has always played a key role in his life. Throughout David’s career, he has taught and developed courses on Business Management, Microsoft Windows (Desktop and Server OS), Macintosh, Linux, Information Systems for Managers, Networking and Microsoft Office suite applications. He also presents annually at conferences on the latest technology trends in business. On a personal note, he has owned race horses that have competed across the United States.
Stani Kantcheva, EdD, CPA, CMA
Financial Statements Workshop
Cincinnati State Community and Technical College
A native of Sofia, Bulgaria, Stani holds a master’s degree in Engineering and doctorate degree of Educational Leadership. After relocating to the U.S., Stani earned an Accounting Certificate at Cincinnati State and subsequently became a Certified Public Accountant and a Certified Management Accountant. Her doctorate research was focused on improving student success at Cincinnati State.
After working at KPMG and Copernus Inc, Stani joined the Cincinnati State faculty in 2005. She teaches numerous accounting courses in traditional classrooms and through online instruction. Her current teaching includes Managerial Accounting, Cost Accounting, Financial Statement Analysis, and Auditing.
Outside the classroom, Stani serves as the Accounting Program chair, as a member of the College’s Budget Advisory Team, Honors and Eickenhorst Scholarship Committees, and on the Business Division Social Committee.
John Eldridge
Mod 3: Money and Metrics
Columbus State Community College
John Eldridge is currently the Financial Management Program Coordinator at Columbus State Community College where he has been an Associate Professor of Accounting since 2011. He works as the Distance Learning Lead for the college and is the lead instructor in Managerial Accounting, Governmental Accounting, and Corporate Finance.
John Eldridge holds a Bachelor’s in Accounting and a Master’s in Business from Ohio
Dominican University. He is currently pursuing his Doctorate at North Central University.
Terrie Stolte
You Are the Lender Clinic
Columbus State Community College
Terrie Stolte has been a full-time instructor in the Business Programs Department since January 2011 and as an adjunct since 2006. With over 30 years of domestic and international experience in the corporate world as Finance Director, Controller and CFO, she brings many real-life situations to the classroom to enhance the teaching of any subject matter.
At Columbus State, Terrie participates in many of the college’s initiatives including Campus Cupboards, Service-Learning and Student Support Committees, Society of the Compass Award team as well as a CARES advocate. Terrie is a CPA, earning a BA in Accounting and Finance from Rider University in Lawrenceville NJ and an MA at Ohio Dominican University.
She regularly teaches Financial Accounting, Managerial Accounting, Federal, State and Local Taxes, Tax Practice, Intro to Non-Profit MGMT, Legal and Financial Issues in Non-Profit MGMT and various Business Management courses.
Theresa Lechton
Mod 4: You Are the Leader
Columbus State Community College
Theresa Lechton has over 15 years of university teaching and academic administration
experience. She teaches Leadership, Entrepreneurship, and Strategy at both the undergraduate
and graduate level at Columbus State Community College and University of Maryland
Global Campus.
Her corporate experience spans several industries (education, utilities, healthcare,
manufacturing, nonprofit and consulting). Most of her career was spent in introducing
process and organizational improvements, change management, strategy development,
intraprenuership, and leadership training. In her consulting positions, she has worked
with a number of Fortune 500 companies.
She has a B.S. in Engineering, an MBA and a Doctorate in Management. Her dissertation topic was “Effect of Geographic Migration on the Ability to Leverage Social Capital during Entrepreneurial Startup in the Manufacturing Belt.” She has worked with students and entrepreneurs in the development of over 750 business plans. In her spare time, she enjoys travel and writing/speaking about adding adventure into your life.
Christy Schaub
Mod 5: It’s the People
Sinclair Community College
Christy Schaub is the owner of Schaub Solutions, which provides leadership development training programs and assessments. She also works part-time at her husband’s small business in Dayton, providing HR and office administration support. Prior to this, she worked at Dayton Children’s Hospital as the Director of Leadership and Development and at Goodrich/UTC Aerospace Systems for 16 years in a variety of talent management roles. As a talent management leader, she has had responsibility for performance management and learning management systems, talent acquisition, onboarding and assimilation, succession planning, employee engagement and learning and development. In her last few roles, her focus has been leadership development and company culture training initiatives.
With over 30 years of facilitation experience, she has facilitated a variety of different topics to employees at all levels including emotional intelligence, communication skills, coaching and feedback, managing performance, accountability, creating and maintaining a respectful workplace, career development, diversity and inclusion, and general leadership skills.
She holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Miami University and obtained her master’s degree in Applied Behavioral Sciences from Wright State University. In her free time, she volunteers with SICSA, a local animal shelter, teaching a “Cats 101” course. She is also actively involved with a racial justice committee at her church.
Lesli Rice
Mod 6: Marketing and Selling and Digital Marketing Clinic
Cincinnati State Community and Technical College
Lesli Rice has been a brand strategist for the last eight years at Rice Education Consulting out of Cincinnati, Ohio. Rice Education Consulting is a strategic consulting firm that focuses on the development of an organization's people and their culture.
Rice is also empowering future leaders as a Tenured Professor at Cincinnati State Technical and Community College. As the Founder of 4 Pack Adventures, Rice has offered the public comprehensive travel planning since 2014.
Rice Graduated with a Bachelor’s of Science from Xavier University in 2001, then went on to earn her MBA in Marketing at Northern Kentucky University by 2008.
Before being involved in her current achievements, Rice spent time as a Community Director at the March of Dimes. Rice successfully promoted their mission to volunteers, met heavy revenue goals for the company while implementing plans for training and fundraising events. Rice served at Procter & Gamble for nine years with her final role as a Marketing Specialist for Ethnic Marketing & Multibrand Commercial Innovation.
Jonathan Krabill
Mod 7: Strategic Growth Through Operations
Columbus State Community College
Jonathan Krabill has been an Assistant Professor of Entrepreneurship at Columbus State Community College for over eight years.
Krabill also provides strategies for small business owners as the owner of My Small Business Blueprint.
Jonathan Krabill gained experience as an Intern for the Ohio State University Athletic Compliance while he earned his BA in Business Economics from the College of Wooster in 2003. Krabill then went on to finish his MA in Business Administration and Management from the University of Akron in 2004.
During his education, Krabill coordinated grassroots efforts, such as print marketing dissemination, large scale mailings as an Assistant Finance Director for a state-wide political campaign to re-elect Justice Evelyn Stratton.
Krabill has almost a decade of experience as a Director of Sales for Sterling Sports Management where he created and maintained personal branding packets for a client roster that included over 80 professional athletes from the NFL, MLB, PGA, LPGA and conducted extensive research and industry analysis for client sponsorship.
Before taking on his current roles, Krabill purchased Killer Dough Cookie Company, LLC where he eliminated all debt within the first six months of ownership and increased annual sales by ten times over any previous year. Most recently, Krabill purchased Birdie Brennan Custom Closets where he functions as owner and head of operations.
Rocky Belcher
Mod 8: Being Bankable
Rocky earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Finance/Accounting from Wright State University and a Master of Science degree in Business Administration with a concentration in Mergers and Acquisitions from Columbus University. Professor Belcher has earned several Entrepreneurship and Small Business Management certifications from Hewlett Packard, the Small Business Administration, and Certiport. In addition to these, he has earned several Microsoft Office Specialist certifications. Rocky is currently the Lead Subject Matter Expert for the State of Ohio in Entrepreneurship Education.
Rocky has several years of experience in the banking industry where he worked as a Financial Analyst and Computer System Manager. He has also worked several years in the healthcare industry as an Information Systems Director. Most notably, Professor Belcher has created, operated, and sold three very successful small businesses in the Dayton area and was named an Entrepreneur of the Year finalist by Ernst and Young in the year 2000.
Rocky has taught at Sinclair Community College since 2000 and holds the rank of tenured professor. Over the years, he has taught classes in the disciplines of Computer Information Systems, Business Information Systems, Accounting, Management, Marketing, and Entrepreneurship. His performance as an instructor in the classroom has been recognized by being awarded the Ohio Magazine’s Excellence in Teaching and the John & Suanne Roueche Excellence awards.
Rocky stays active in the Miami Valley small business community by volunteering to serve on several Boards of Directors and Advisory Boards.