David Robinson, Co-Founder of the Admiral Center
A graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, David Robinson spent 14 years in the National Basketball Association accumulating a long list of accolades including being named one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History and induction into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame. While David’s career achievements were exceptional, his community work off the court is just as distinguished. David and his wife Valerie opened the doors to The Carver Academy, an elementary school in San Antonio focused on inspiring students to become men and women who exemplify the principles of leadership, discipline, initiative and integrity – which was made possible through their personal donations of more than $11 million to the school and the community. In recognition of David’s outstanding contributions, since 2003 the NBA gives recipients of its monthly Community Assist Award the “David Robinson Plaque” who – as the plaque’s inscription states – “improved the community piece by piece."
Dan Bassichis, Co-Founder of the Admiral Center
Dan is the co-founder of Admiral Capital Group, a real estate private equity firm formed with David Robinson, formerly of the San Antonio Spurs. Prior to forming Admiral Capital Group he was a member of the Investment Banking Division of Goldman Sachs. He is also the founder of investment partnerships that have invested more than $15 million of equity in a variety of private equity investments including real estate, hospitality and venture capital. He is a Certified Public Accountant. He received his B.B.A in accounting from Emory University and his M.B.A. from The Fuqua School of Business at Duke University. He was previously a member of The Fuqua School of Business Board of Visitors and currently serves as a board member of The Carver Academy in San Antonio and an Admiral Capital representative on the board of Centerplate, one of the nation's leading food service providers.
Ben Hecht, President & CEO, Living Cities
Mr. Hecht is an experienced nonprofit executive, author and social entrepreneur. In July 2007, he became the President & CEO of Living Cities. In 2000, he founded One Economy Corporation, a nonprofit that brings the power of the Internet to low-income families. Previously, Mr. Hecht was Senior Vice President at the Enterprise Foundation. In 1992, he founded the National Center for Tenant Ownership at Georgetown. For 10 years, he taught at Georgetown University Law Center and built the country’s premier community development clinical program. He received his JD from Georgetown University and his CPA from the State of Maryland.
Sherrie Deans, Executive Director of the Admiral Center
Before joining the Admiral Center, she served as the Vice President of Development and Marketing at the national “I Have A Dream” Foundation, a nonprofit that sponsors students in low-income communities and provides them with academic and tuition support to attend and complete college. Prior to that, she spent over a decade in the financial services sector. At AIG Consumer Finance she was responsible for maximizing consumer sales and developing new distribution channels in ten countries throughout Asia, Latin America, and Eastern Europe. She has also held various senior management positions in the areas of Marketing, Strategies, and Operations at American Express and MBNA America, where her responsibilities ranged from launching and managing a call center staffed with hundreds of employees to developing marketing strategies for cobranded consumer products. She holds a B.A. in economics and political science from Columbia University.
Evelyn Burnett, Associate Director for Program Strategies at the Admiral Center
Evelyn joined Admiral Center after two years with Living Cities as a program associate focused on education reform, income and asset building, urban revitalization and policy research. Prior to joining Living Cities, Evelyn served as Project Director in the Office of the Mayor for the City of Cleveland, Project Director for the Commission on Cuyahoga County Government Reform, Coordinator in the Division of Workforce and Economic Development at Cuyahoga Community College, and as a Cleveland Executive Fellow where she worked with the Lebron James Family Foundation. Evelyn advised and consulted on a variety of celebrity philanthropy, economic development, education reform and community engagement projects and currently serves as Regional Director for YPNation and Leadership and Development chair for Emerging Practitioners in Philanthropy. Evelyn holds a B.B.A. in business and organizational communications and an M.P.A. from the University of Akron.