Alexa Chopivsky

Founder & Chief Executive Officer

A native of Washington, DC, Alexa Chopivsky graduated from National Cathedral School for Girls and received a Bachelor's degree from Yale University with distinction in Russian & East European Studies and Political Science, a Master's degree from Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism and a Masters degree in International Public Policy from Johns Hopkins University's School of Advanced International Studies. For seven years she was a journalist with NBC News, where she covered world events from the New York, Washington, and London bureaus. After a period as Associate Director at an international communication consultancy in London, she moved to Kyiv. There she worked as a freelance journalist, traveling across Eastern Europe, the Caucasus, and Central Asia, and for an American consulting firm on a political campaign. Currently, aside from her work as Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Transnational Education Group, she is Director of the Program on the World Economy at the Aspen Institute. In the late 1990s, she worked in an internship capacity for First Lady Hillary Clinton's Chief of Staff at the White House, and with the US Department of State at the US Embassy in Paris.In addition to her native English, Ms. Chopivsky speaks Ukrainian, Russian, French and Spanish. She is a Council on Foreign Relations Term Member and a 2012-2013 member of Eurasia Foundation's Young Professionals Network. She resides in Washington, DC.

Phaedra Chrousos

Phaedra Chrousos is a successful serial entrepreneur. Most recently she co-founded and led Daily Secret as its COO, where she currently serves as an Advisor to the CEO. As Daily Secret's COO, Phaedra helped turn what was originally designed as a positive energy project into a fast growing digital media brand for premium audiences around the world. Employing a hub-and-spoke operating model, Phaedra led the launch of 37 Daily Secret editions in 21 countries and 12 languages over the course of three years. Headquartered in New York, NY and Athens, Greece, Daily Secret is backed by leading media and technology investors, such as Greycroft Partners, eVentures, Ronald Lauder, Dick Parsons, and Andy Russell. Prior to Daily Secret, Phaedra ideated, co-founded and helped lead HealthLeap, a health 2.0 company based in New York, NY that improved access to healthcare by offering real-time appointment scheduling between patients and doctors. HealthLeap was sold to a strategic partner, MDxMedical, less than 10 months after launch. Phaedra also has several years of consulting experience, most notably at The Boston Consulting Group in New York, NY and London, UK, where she worked with Fortune 100 companies and The World Bank Group in Washington, DC, where she helped advise governments in the Caribbean region. Phaedra holds a BA from Georgetown University, a MSC with Distinction from The London School of Economics, and a MBA with Honors from Columbia University Business School. She is a Cartier Women's Initiative Award Finalist, an Endeavor Entrepreneur, a mentor for Daily Secret's Good Karma Initiative, and a judge for the annual €2 M Hellenic Entrepreneurship Award.

US Ambassador William Courtney

William Courtney is principal, strategy and development, at Computer Sciences Corporation (CSC). A career US diplomat from 1972 to 1999, he was special assistant to US President Bill Clinton for Russia, Ukraine, and Eurasia, and US Ambassador to Georgia, Kazakhstan, and a US-Soviet nuclear testing commission.  He is a member of the boards of directors of the American Academy of Diplomacy and the World Affairs Council of Washington DC. He graduated from West Virginia University with a BA and Brown University with a PhD in economics.

Alexandra Economou

Alexandra Economou has almost fifteen years of experience in education and non-profit management, most recently as Director of Partner Relations at I'm First, a national non-profit empowering first-generation students to and through four-year universities and colleges in the United States. In her role, Ms. Economou served as the primary liaison with senior university administrators to support and improve their efforts on behalf of first-generation students. Prior to joining I'm First, Ms. Economou helped to launch the higher education division of the Advisory Board Company, a best-practice research firm in Washington, DC, and taught at Elsie Whitlow Stokes charter school. She began her career in education as a Teaching Fellow at Athens College in Athens, Greece where she taught English language and literature to Greek high school students. Currently, Ms. Economou serves on the Board of Governors at Washington Latin Public Charter School in Washington, DC where she is Secretary and Chair of the Academic Committee. Ms. Economou is a graduate of Princeton University, where she completed a thesis on the history of the SAT, and holds a master's degree from the Harvard Graduate School of Education with a focus on Education, Policy, and Management.

Bohdan Budzan

Bohdan Budzan served as President of International Management Institute (MIM), Kyiv's top business school, from 1997-2005. During his tenure there he led MIM in developing important partnerships and cooperative initiatives with foreign institutions and business circles and in developing employer-focused teaching programs to assure optimal professional preparation of MIM's graduates. Currently he is in private consulting, specializing in management consulting with a focus on strategy, leadership, interpersonal communications, motivation, rhetoric and self-management. He is senior adviser to clients across the region in education development and the accreditation of business schools. Dr. Budzan is a PhD graduate of the Kyiv Polytechnic Institute (currently, the National Technical University "KPI") and has studied or received professional training at London Business School (1989), Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada (1994), European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (1994), and Harvard Business School (1996, 2007). From 1993 – 1996 Dr. Budzan chaired George Soros' International "Renaissance" Foundation in Ukraine. Dr. Budzan is an Honorary member of the Association of Ukrainian Professionals in the USA (The Washington Group) and was awarded title of the Honorable educator of Ukraine. He has authored over 150 articles and books on management and is highly-regarded as one of Ukraine's top education advisors to high school, university and post-graduate students.

David Humphreville

David Humphreville's career has taken him from a prestigious New York law firm to his work in political campaigns and elections on five continents. He is one of the most experienced global campaign strategists in the world. He has helped run national political campaigns in Greece, Ukraine, Hungary, Italy, Argentina, Mexico, Venezuela, Nigeria and Ghana. He has also worked for the United Nations and the U.S. State Department to organize elections in Cambodia, Indonesia, Haiti and South Africa. His efforts in these countries promoted fair access to voter registration, voter education and safe access to polling stations. In Haiti he coordinated efforts to provide water, sanitary facilities and electricity to villages in the aftermath of violence and war.  He also has vast experience in American politics. In addition Humphreville has extensive expertise in financial markets. He served as President of the Specialist Association of the New York Stock Exchange, where he led the organization of professionals who make markets on the floor of the Exchange. He has been an advisor to the Stock Exchanges in Brazil, Columbia and Argentina. A graduate of Yale University, Humphreville earned his law degree from the University of Virginia. He has practiced law in New York. 

Ukraine Ambassador Mykhailo Reznik

Mr. Reznik served as the Ambassador to the Republic of Korea (1997-2001), the People's Republic of China (2001-2003) and the United States of America (2003-2005). In January 2000 he received an Order of the 3rd degree for his professional achievements and significant contribution to Ukraine. Ambassador Reznik graduated from the Kiev Trade and Economic University in 1972 and from the Academy of the National Economy of Ukraine in 1977. He completed the Senior Executive program at Stanford Business School in the United States in 1992.

Ukraine Ambassador Oleh Shamshur

Ambassador Shamshur is currently Senior Advisor to PBN Hill and Knowlton Strategies and non-resident fellow at the German Marshall Fund of the United States. He served as Ambassador of Ukraine to the US from 2006-2010. Prior to that, he was Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, including serving as chief Ukrainian negotiator of the Ukraine-EU Action Plan. Ambassador Shamshur has also served as Minister-Counselor at the Embassy of Ukraine to the Benelux countries and as First Secretary, Counselor of the Permanent Mission of Ukraine to the UN and other international organizations in Geneva. Ambassador Shamshur is the author of over 70 publications on international migration, ethnic relations and foreign policy. He is a member of the Advisory Board of the Black Sea Trust for Regional Cooperation, German Marshall Fund of the United States. Ambassador Shamshur graduated from Taras Shevchenko Kyiv University, cum laude, with a specialization in International Relations. He received his PhD in History from Kyiv University.

Ukraine Ambassador Roman Shpek

Since 2010, Mr. Shpek has served as an advisor to the President of Ukraine and Member of the Board of the National Bank of Ukraine. He is a senior advisor to Alfa Bank (Ukraine). From 2000 to 2007, he was the Head of the Mission of Ukraine at the EU. From 1996 to 2000, Mr. Shpek chaired the National Agency for Reconstruction and Development and then the National Agency for Development and European Integration. Before that, he was Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine on Economic Affairs and supervisor of economic reforms (1995-1996). From 1993 to 1995, he was the Minister of Economy of Ukraine and before that, Deputy Minister of Economy (1992-1993). Mr. Shpek graduated from Lviv Institute of Forestry Engineering with a specialty in process engineering in 1976. He also holds an MBA degree in international economics from International Institute of Management.

E. Morgan Williams

Director, Government Affairs, Washington Office, SigmaBleyzer

President, U.S.-Ukraine Business Council (USUBC)

Morgan Williams has worked in the field of international economic and private business development for over thirty years. He first starting working on the economic development of Ukraine in 1992. From 1997 to 1999 Williams was President/CEO of a private agricultural input finance company headquartered in Kyiv, Ukraine. For the past several years Mr. Williams has been working for the SigmaBleyzer Emerging Markets Private Equity Group as Director, Government Relations, Washington, D.C. SigmaBleyzer manages around $1 billion in private equity investments. In January 2007 Williams was elected President/CEO of the U.S.-Ukraine Business Council (USUBC), www.usubc.org., Washington, D.C. Since that time the membership of USUBC has increased from 22 to over 200 companies and organizations. In 1981 Williams started his international work and implemented food system expansion projects in countries such as India, Haiti, Indonesia, and Egypt. Previously he served as a Professional Staff Member of the U.S. Senate Agriculture Committee for the ranking Republican on the Committee, Senator Bob Dole (R-Kan). He also served as Midwest Director of the Dole for President Committee. From 1969 to 1977 Williams was Kansas State Director of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) very large rural economic development program. M. Williams holds a BA degree from Ottawa University, Ottawa, Kansas and a MA degree in economics from the University of Kansas. Williams has been awarded three state medals from the Government of Ukraine for his contribution to the economic development of Ukraine. He was awarded the "Order of Honor" III class by the President of Ukraine, received a Special State Award from the Minister of Economy, and a Special State Award from the Minister of Foreign Affairs.