Rhonda Phillips is a community and economic development planning specialist. She is president of St. Mary's College of Maryland, a public honors college. Rhonda is a member of the College of Fellows of the American Institute of Certified Planners (FAICP) and held the Certified Economic and Community Developer designation (CEcD) for 17 years.

Robert H. Pittman is a noted consultant, teacher, speaker, and author in the field of community and economic development. He has held senior management positions in the industry including Director of Economic Development Consulting for a global engineering and advisory firm.