Founder & CEO  /  Contact Raj Thakkar

Role at CSBM

As Founder and CEO, Raj is the driving force behind all of CSBM’s current and future initiatives and is responsible for the growth and sustainability of the company. Widely regarded a national expert on charter school finance, Raj has presented at conferences and workshops across the country and has been featured in numerous publications. In February 2013, he graduated from the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses Initiative, designed to help small businesses grow and create more jobs. He was named Small Business Person of the Year for the NY district by the U.S. Small Business Administration in 2011 and 2018, and under his leadership, CSBM was also awarded Small Business of the Year for Eastern Region of the U.S. by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in 2009 and 2017. Raj was named a 2013 Top Entrepreneur by Crain’s New York Business. He was also recognized as one of 50 Outstanding Asian Americans in Business by the Asian American Business Development Center. Never losing sight of CSBM’s mission, Raj maintains strong ties with all of our clients to ensure that our work is enabling them to focus on student achievement.

Prior Experience

Before founding CSBM in 2006, Raj served as the Chief Financial Officer for Explore Charter School.

NYU Stern School of Business, MBA in Finance

Hofstra University, BS in Engineering Science

The CSBM Team

Althea Cope-Reid

FINANCIAL CONSULTANT

BRITTANY GREEN

SENIOR FINANCIAL MANAGER

Christopher Daniels

Senior Financial Manager

Chrystal Moore

FINANCE ASSISTANT

FINANCIAL CONSULTANT

CLAUDIO PADILLA

FINANCIAL CONSULTANT

Collin Raymond

Director of Growth

Dana Burton

FINANCIAL CONSULTANT

DAVID OLSON

FINANCE MANAGER

Dawnisha Lane

Finance Manager

Elaine Schmiedeshoff

Finance Manager

Elijah Smith

FINANCIAL CONSULTANT

Gretchen Wagner Liga

Director of Development Services

Harolyn Baez

Senior Financial Consultant

Javonn Wright

ACCOUNTING MANAGER

Jenny Geesaman

Senior Financial Consultant

Kamilah O’ Brien

Associate Director

Karen Daniels

President & COO

SENIOR FINANCIAL MANAGER

KAREN PETERS

SENIOR FINANCIAL MANAGER

Kayla Butler

Finance Manager

KAYTI PORTER

FINANCIAL MANAGER

KIM JOHNSON

SENIOR FINANCIAL MANAGER

Laron Walker

Senior Financial Manager

LAUREN BURDEKIN

SENIOR FINANCIAL CONSULTANT

Lauren Torres

Finance Manager

Leslie Cruz

Senior Financial Manager

Leslie Roper-Thomas

Associate Director

LISA LEVANGER

FINANCIAL CONSULTANT

Maria Campo

Development Manager

Marianne Howe

SENIOR FINANCIAL CONSULTANT

MARKISHA BAKER

FINANCE MANAGER

Melissa Weissenberger

Talent Program Manager

MELONY REED

SENIOR FINANCIAL MANAGER

MELYNDE CHRISTENSEN

FINANCIAL CONSULTANT

Nelson Chiu

Senior Financial Consultant

Patricia Malone

VICE-PRESIDENT OF PEOPLE & CULTURE

Perry Shandal

Senior Financial Consultant

Raj Thakkar

Founder & CEO

Raymond Alston

Finance Manager

Ronald Rodriguez

Senior Financial Consultant

RYAN GIBSON

FINANCIAL CONSULTANT

SALLY NEELY

GROWTH SUPPORT SPECIALIST

Sharon Denson

CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER

SHEILA BROOKS

FINANCE MANAGER

SHERLA THERMITUS

FINANCIAL CONSULTANT

Stephen B. Reid II

CHIEF GROWTH OFFICER

SUSAN STRANO

SENIOR FINANCIAL MANAGER

Svetlana Gnesina

ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR

Tia Murphy

Associate Director

FINANCIAL CONSULTANT

TRISTAN TAYLOR

FINANCIAL CONSULTANT

VALERIE O’BRIEN

SENIOR FINANCIAL CONSULTANT

Viviana Torres

ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR

WESTON WOLFE

SENIOR FINANCIAL CONSULTANT

WILMA N. HOLLIS

FINANCIAL CONSULTANT

Yara N. Ortiz

Financial Consultant