STAFF
Arshad Merchant, Founder and Managing Director
Entering the social sector in 2004, Arshad Merchant founded Boost Social Sector Consulting in 2015 to help nonprofits, philanthropies, membership organizations, and other socially-minded ventures address critical business challenges and achieve greater impact.
Drawing on over 20 years in consulting, Arshad brings substantial experience in strategy, business planning, mergers and acquisitions, market research, survey design, organizational assessment, board development, meeting facilitation, operational improvement, and implementation planning. He has worked with clients in arts, culture, and museums; civil rights and social justice; community development and urban spaces; education and early child development; environment, sustainability, and conservation; health and human services; higher education and college access; philanthropy and philanthropic services; and youth development. Examples of impact from Arshad’s work include: helping the American Foundation for the Blind create new career opportunities for people with visual impairment, increasing the quantity and quality of arts education opportunities for New York City youth, improving economic opportunities for first-time entrepreneurs in Africa, and shaping the approach used by college access and success organizations across the country to be more holistic and data-driven. Arshad’s work style is centered around sound business acumen, inquiry, analytic rigor, excellent client service, actionability, and most importantly “getting it right.”
Arshad is regularly invited to facilitate professional development sessions at national and regional conferences, most recently sharing his knowledge and experience at events hosted by Maryland Nonprofits, the National College Access Network, and Nonprofit New York.
Prior to Boost, Arshad spent 11+ years at Wellspring Consulting, including 6+ years as a Partner, honing his skills and establishing his career in the social sector. Arshad also worked for over four years at The Boston Consulting Group, where he managed a variety of projects focusing on strategy, customer service, and organizational effectiveness. There he received training and experience in developing excellent, implementable plans that were highly received by senior-level clients. And, Arshad worked for several years at Tetra Pak, Inc. a leading international corporation delivering high quality packaging for food distribution. There, Arshad directed internal consulting projects to enhance business processes, increase efficiency and service levels, and improve the company’s ability to meet customers’ needs.
Arshad has a strong and abiding dedication to social issues which is reflected in his passion for working in the social sector. He has volunteered for many years with the His Highness Prince Aga Khan Council for the USA (“the Council”) and its affiliated institutions. For 10 years, Arshad served on the National Grants and Review Board. As the Member responsible for Management Auditing, he oversaw a talented group of professional volunteers carrying out quality review and improvement projects for the Council at the local and national level. Subsequently, Arshad was appointed as the Chairman of this Board and was responsible for all of the community’s budgeting and auditing activities in the United States. Previously, Arshad served as the Honorary Secretary of the Council’s National Social Welfare Board for 3 years, overseeing human services programs involving 300 volunteers across the country. In the past, Arshad also served as the Council’s Director for Social Safety Net, a program offering a help-line in multiple languages to provide culturally appropriate crisis support. Arshad continues to remain active undertaking targeted projects to help advance the Institutions' mandates for the betterment of the community and the societies in which they live, both domestically and internationally.
Arshad received his MBA from the Darden Graduate School of Business Administration in 1997 where he received the Faculty Award for Academic Excellence. He graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with dual Bachelors’ degrees in Finance from The Wharton School and in Computer Science and Engineering, completing the five-year curriculum and meeting full certification requirements in only four years. Additionally, in 2015 Arshad became licensed to offer consulting services for the Standards for Excellence® program by completing an exclusive professional development initiative that gives independent consultants the knowledge, skills, and tools necessary to work with nonprofit organizations across the country interested in learning about and implementing the Standards for Excellence code. Arshad lives in Bethesda, Maryland, with his wife and three boys, and enjoys cooking - with an interest and consummate skill in preparing various ethnic dishes.
Jacob Young, Senior Associate
Jacob joined Boost after overseeing administrative functions within the Pediatric Gastroenterology/Hepatology Section at Yale School of Medicine. There, he managed the needs of over 40 doctors, nurses, and researchers. Notably, Jacob played a pivotal role in managing the Celiac Disease Program and coordinating weekly Continuing Medical Education conferences. Additionally, he successfully operationalized the patient scheduling process to accommodate the section's first GI-specialized Pediatric Psychologist.
Prior to his time at Yale, Jacob served in the Peace Corps in Paraguay for 4 years, first as an Agricultural Extensionist, then accepting positions as the Agriculture Sector Coordinator and then the Southern Regional Coordinator. During his time in Paraguay, Jacob employed participatory analysis tools to assess community needs and assets, leading to focused initiatives in local schools. His efforts included co-facilitating classes in organic gardening and English while collaborating with teachers to enhance educational offerings.
As Agriculture Sector Coordinator, he assisted in the implementation of an innovative project framework in coordination with the Ministry of Agriculture and Ministry of Education and Sciences in 27 communities across Paraguay, shifting the focus of the sector from working with established adult farmers to students enrolled in agriculture-track high schools. He also helped coordinate the unexpected evacuation of volunteers from Paraguay due to the COVID-19 pandemic in his role as Southern Regional Coordinator.
Jacob's academic background includes degrees in Psychology and Sociology with a minor in Statistics from the University of Georgia's Honors Program. During his studies, he engaged in research investigating the interplay between self-control, motivation, and human behaviors. Jacob also secured two grants to conduct a novel meta-analysis on the effects of weapons priming on state cognition.
Outside of his professional pursuits, Jacob is an avid reader, baker, and mixed-media artist. He currently serves as the Vice-President and Grants Coordinator for Friends of Paraguay, a nonprofit dedicated to supporting local community development projects through yearly grants and engaging returned Peace Corps volunteers.
PARTNER CONSULTANTS AND ADVISORS
Amanda Huminski, Consultant
Amanda has nearly a decade of consulting experience in various sectors and capacities, and returns to Boost as an alumna, having served as an Associate and promoted to Consultant from 2015-2019.
Prior to her consulting career, Amanda completed a PhD in Philosophy from The Graduate Center at The City University of New York, where she also taught undergraduate courses in business ethics, logic, and communications ethics. In her time at The Graduate Center, Amanda was also involved with a number of initiatives to attract and retain Philosophy students from underrepresented groups.
In her prior tenure at Boost, Amanda worked on a variety of strategic planning and program improvement projects for clients in the social sector, including organizations focusing on education and youth development, arts and culture, civil rights, public policy, and philanthropy, among many others. Upon leaving Boost, Amanda spent five years in corporate sector consulting with ZS Associates, working on strategy insights and planning projects with Fortune 100 companies.
In addition to her current reprise at Boost, Amanda is a Consultant with B&B Food Safety, working with small farms, producers, and food manufacturers. Her work focuses on compliance and process improvement, providing opportunities for small companies to develop and grow their business. She is HACCP and PCQI certified.
Amanda holds an MA in Philosophy from Tufts University and graduated magna cum laude from the George Washington University with a BA in Women’s Studies and Economics. She currently lives in Pittsburgh, PA and enjoys cooking, gardening, and weightlifting.
Jeremy Brownlee, Consultant
Jeremy brings years of experience in the non-profit community development sector, most recently with the National Alliance of Community Economic Development Associations (NACEDA). There, he led the member services department, leaning into his passion for aligning mission with organizational effectiveness. During his tenure, he revived and updated an intensive organizational assessment for association member organizations, guiding organizations’ staff and board through strategic prioritization of existing organizational strengths and building consensus around areas for improvement.
Through non-profit and community work in the Midwest, the United Kingdom, and the Mid-Atlantic, Jeremy is experienced in serving a variety of stakeholders while honoring their perspectives, capabilities, and needs. He is skilled in program development and implementation, facilitating peer-learning, and events planning of all sizes.
Jeremy is trained in Technologies of Participation facilitation and strategic planning. He received his M.Ed in Community Learning and Development from the University of Glasgow, and his B.A. in Philosophy from Hanover College.
Zia Hassan, Artist Collaborator
Zia has been creating and performing in the DC area for nearly 20 years. He is most commonly known for his video, 9 Year Old Discusses the Meaning of Life, in which he interviews a wildly philosophical young boy in his backyard. The video was featured on NPR by Radiolab’s Robert Krulwich, the popular podcast To The Best of Our Knowledge, and by comedian Sarah Silverman on YouTube.
Among his achievements, Zia has performed extensively as a singer-songwriter in the DC area, opening for national touring artists at acclaimed venues such as The Hamilton, Jammin Java, and the Black Cat. His work includes: Collision (2010), a collaborative show and album which brought together 25 DC artists to perform at the Bethesda Theater; Lines (2012), showcasing the recorded sounds of the DC Metro encased in reverb drenched guitar; and The Flop, The Turn, The River (2010), incorporating impromptu family interviews with piano and processed noises.
Zia has additionally published multiple collections of poetry and paintings, including: Closer to the Surface (2014), showcasing four-line poems with contrasting fingerpaintings and School Poems (2016), incorporating artwork with paintings about education reform and testing culture. Zia is also a practicing magician. In 2011, he proposed to his girlfriend (now wife) by doing a card trick routine that ended with a floating ring. The video demonstration on YouTube went viral, with world-famous magician Jay Sankey praising it on Twitter.
Zia also spent 4 years as an elementary school teacher in Washington, DC teaching grades three to five at both public and public charter schools. He holds a Masters of the Arts in Teaching, and specializes in teaching students how to analyze and write about complex text. In 2014, he invented a creative lesson planning tool called the MI Deck which draws upon learning theory from Howard Gardner as well as the artistic instincts of Brian Eno. He is currently an education consultant, writing inquiry-based science curriculum and providing trainings on various educational technology for teachers in DC.
Previously, Zia spent 6 years as a business consultant with IBM, working in a public sector client-facing environment. Zia specialized in SAP, with a focus on procurement. Zia was recognized by the client for coming up with creative solutions to problems using spreadsheet macros and video training on system procedures.
Ann Miller, Consultant
Ann brings her years as senior research scientist and research analyst to BSSC. She worked as a Senior Research Scientist at CNA, a not-for-profit research and analysis organization from 1993-2021. Her work focused on analysis of training, education, readiness, logistics, and technology and led numerous projects for the Navy and Marine Corps, as well as the West Virginia Department of Education. In addition, she focused on interagency operations, analyzing the factors that allow disparate groups to act together.
Ann’s experience with non-profit charitable organizations includes two Compass Pro Bono projects, three Taproot projects, and providing analytic support to the Comhaltas Ceoltoiri Eireann (CCE) Music and Dance Week. She has used her analytic capabilities to support decision making, staffing considerations, survey development, data collection and analysis.
More recently, Ann is working to improve science education through a start-up non-profit, Science is Elemental.
When she is not working, Ann plays classical violin, traditional Irish fiddle, and writes historical fiction novels.
Ann received her Ph.D. in chemistry from the California Institute of Technology, and her B.A. in chemistry from the University of Pennsylvania
ALUMNI
Emma Farrell, Senior Associate 2022-2024
Emma holds a B.A. in Economics and Philosophy from Brandeis University. As an undergraduate, she worked as a teaching assistant for economics courses, volunteered with multiple community service organizations, and founded the Brandeis Socrates Café—an open philosophy discussion group where all members of the community can engage in critical conversations about things that matter.
Prior to working at Boost, Emma spent two years as an economic consultant at Bates White, LLC, where she constructed and managed large databases, built models to forecast financial liabilities, and performed other analyses to support expert witnesses in the litigation landscape. During her tenure at Bates White, she worked on some of the firm’s first pro bono cases supporting DC-based nonprofit organizations and served on the Diversity & Inclusion Council.
Emma is passionate about pursuing social, economic, and environmental justice, at an organized level and in everyday interactions. She envisions a world that has abolished all forms of cruelty, from discrimination to animal abuse. She is an amateur badminton player, a local park enthusiast and an avid reader.
Callahan Cox, Senior Associate 2022-2024
Callahan joined Boost after over 3 years at Schreiber Translations, Inc., a leading language service provider, where she specialized in project coordination, customer service and quality control.
She began as a Project Manager and was later promoted to Program Manager, in charge of training Project Managers and managing accounts. She worked with many federal, state and nonprofit agencies. Her time at Schreiber gave her skills managing multiple priorities as she regularly oversaw 20-40 linguistic projects concurrently.
While at Schreiber she strengthened client relationships through her efficiency and translation project expertise. She was also an employee advocate working with her colleagues to improve company practices to make them more inclusive and accommodating.
As a solutions-oriented worker, Callahan prides herself on her communication and problem-solving abilities. She hopes to use those skills at Boost helping organizations to succeed.
Callahan earned a B.A. from Brandeis University in International and Global Studies with minors in Economics and English. She is passionate about current social issues with a particular interest in climate change, voting rights and systemic inequality. She values encouraging those around her to get involved in sustainable ways.
Lindsey (Tyler) Heartley, Senior Associate 2019-2021
Lindsey brought experience in client service and delivery, expertise in planning and logistics, and an unwavering passion for the greater good to her time at Boost.
Prior to Boost, Lindsey worked at Ernst & Young, a multinational professional services firm, as an IT Risk Advisor for almost 5 years, serving over a dozen clients total across a variety of industries. She focused on building strong client relationships while conducting client process interviews and recommending best practices.
While at Ernst & Young, Lindsey also held leadership positions in Corporate Responsibility and Diversity and Inclusiveness. Lindsey was the Supplies and Budget Chair for the Greater Washington DC Annual Day of Service Event. She fostered relationships with over 30 nonprofits (dedicated to education, entrepreneurs, and equality in the workforce) and coordinated with other committee members, team captains, and volunteers from the firm. Her responsibilities included researching nonprofits to sponsor, creating proposal presentations, and building and allocation of the budget.
Lindsey was also the Volunteerism Chair for the Black Professionals Network at Ernst & Young, serving low-income, disadvantaged families in the community through monthly service events. Her responsibilities included creating key project communications including agendas, event invitations, and newsletter publications as well as organizing associated fundraising events. She received a Committee of the Year Award for her efforts.
Lindsey holds a BS in Commerce with a concentration in Accounting and Information Technology as well as an MS in Accounting, both from the University of Virginia. She currently lives in Arlington, VA and enjoys traveling the world and experiencing other cultures (31 countries and counting), exercise science, and reading.
Brenda Huerta, Boost Fellow 2016-2017
My fellowship with Boost was a journey full of learning opportunities and enriching experiences, rewarding in several ways. As a professional starting a career in the nonprofit sector, Boost gave me the chance to work with many prestigious organizations in the area, while sharpening my analytic skills and critical thinking. Every client is different– a unique story, a new challenge; as a Boost fellow, I got to hear these stories, learn from them, and collaborate in writing their new chapter. Aside from the strategic and program-based client work, the fellowship has been an opportunity to gain practical administrative skills that will always be useful and you don’t learn at school. Being a startup company, I enjoyed the responsibility of delivering contributions that mattered for the development of Boost; it’s a unique opportunity to innovate processes and help build the structure of a successful consulting firm. The team is incredibly talented and it was an honor to work by their side and learn from them. The Boost fellowship is a dynamic, demanding and exciting experience… enjoy the ride!
Rachel Roth, Project Manager and Senior Fellow 2016-2018
Prior to Boost, Rachel Roth served on the founding team of the Aspen Institute’s College Excellence Program. In this role, she managed the Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence, which strives to reward and shine a spotlight on community colleges that deliver exceptional student results and stimulate replication of practices leading to student success.
Previously, Rachel was the Director of Internal Communications at Strayer University where she developed communications and change management strategies that ensured effective execution of key university initiatives. She also worked at New Sector Alliance, a consulting and leadership development firm, where she recruited, trained, and coached teams of MBA students, undergraduates, and professional consultants to complete strategy consulting engagements for nonprofit organizations.
Rachel has a BA from Dartmouth College and an MBA from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth. She lives in Bethesda, MD and enjoys spending time with her family, outdoor activities, and anything related to eating.
Umer Rupani, Senior Associate and Consultant 2021-2022
Umer brought years of experience in organizational development, process management, and aligning strategic initiatives to organization mission and vision. Umer is deeply dedicated to the enrichment and upliftment of a strong civil society.
Umer was the former Executive Director of the Georgia Muslim Voter Project (GAMVP), a nonpartisan organization dedicated to enhancing civic engagement in Muslim communities. During his time there, he led his Board of Directors in theory of change exercises and strategic planning sessions, facilitated dozens of constituent-facing listening sessions, created operational and business plans, and made GAMVP financially secure through strengthening grantor relations. For his work with GAMVP, Umer was selected as a Muslim Making Change by Muslim Advocates.
For several years, Umer Rupani voluntarily served as the National Program Manager (NPM) for Camp Mosaic, under the Jubilee Monuments Corp. umbrella. He has volunteered with Camp Mosaic since 2009. As the NPM, Umer lead a remote staff of 75 to implement 13 camps for over 2,500 students and local staff nationwide. Umer honed his skill as a generalist in the role as he provided strategic direction and feedback to training content to social justice curriculum to supply shipping processes to budget management and diversity & inclusion initiatives.
Through his education, experience with minority communities, and dedication to non-profits, Umer aims to challenge existing institutions to be more equitable towards and representative of local communities. The issue areas Umer organizes around are: voting rights, youth advocacy, and enhancing minority voices.
Umer holds a M.A. from The George Washington University with a degree in Organizational Development and a B.S. in Psychology from University of Georgia with a focus on Organizational Psychology. He is an avid cinephile, a novice astronomer, and has a goal to have a substantive conversation on any topic.