Allison Schapker joined the Fairmount Park Conservancy team in 2018 to lead the organization’s transformation of the 350-acre FDR Park in South Philadelphia. As Chief Operations & Projects Officer, she works with partners to co-author a public-realm strategy that engages communities, inspires investment, and maximizes impact. Allison is responsible for overseeing and aligning the Conservancy’s planning, capital delivery, and maintenance activities in Fairmount Park and FDR Park. She also leads the Conservancy’s efforts to activate these parks through public programming, leasing, and the adaptive reuse of historic structures.

Jennifer Robinson serves as the Director of Preservation Services at the Preservation Alliance for Greater Philadelphia where she manages a 250-property easement portfolio, the newly created HPRP, the Philadelphia Fund for Black Sacred Places program, as well as numerous special projects. In addition to her work at the Preservation Alliance, Jennifer is also the Chair of the Pennsylvania State Review Board for National Register Nominations, and on the board of a historic schoolhouse and cemetery in northwest Philadelphia, on the moderation team for the Historic Preservation Professionals Facebook group. When she’s not saving old buildings (which is basically all of her time), she sews, quilts, knits, and sails.

Nicholas is the President & CEO of Preservation Maryland and has led the organization since 2014. Since his arrival, he has overseen a complex merger and the subsequent creation of Smart Growth Maryland, a dynamic program of the organization. Additionally, he has worked in partnership with the National Park Service’s Historic Preservation Training Center to establish the Campaign for Historic Trades, a program dedicated to developing the next generation of traditional tradespeople. Outside of the organization, he has served as the chair of the National Preservation Partners Network, the national network of statewide and local preservation organizations. Previously he also served as the chair of the Maryland Partners for Open Space, the statewide open space advocacy coalition, and as the vice-chair of the Frederick County Historic Preservation Commission. He is a graduate of West Virginia’s Shepherd University and lives outside of Frederick, Maryland.

Adrian Ruiz currently serves as the Managing Director of Impact Investing for the National Trust Community Investment Corporation’s (NTCIC) and is responsible for overseeing its impact investment asset management platform and executing the impact investing business strategy by originating, structuring, and managing high-impact, community-focused investments across historic preservation and sustainable infrastructure sectors.

Adrian joined NTCIC in 2025, bringing more than 15 years of non-profit leadership and community development finance experience. Prior to joining NTCIC, he served as the Director of Education Finance, Deputy Chief Investment Officer, and Chief Investment Officer at the Raza Development Fund, in which he oversaw the deployment of over $700 million of capital, including $115 million of certain Qualified Low Income Community Investments, via the New Markets Tax Credit program, in impact investments across the country

Adrian earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Finance from Arizona State University and an MBA Degree from Benedictine College and has also completed the Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst (CAIA) Level I credential.

Matt Wiederhold has been involved in community development and revitalization for 20+ years, and is a graduate of the National Main Street Institute. He is the executive director of Heritage Ohio, the official State-wide historic preservation and downtown revitalization non-profit organization in Ohio, which oversees the Ohio Main Street Program. Previously, he served as the executive director of Main Street Medina, in Medina Ohio; project manager for the Gordon Square Arts District on the West Side of Cleveland, and an urban Main Street initiative in Toledo, OH. A graduate of the University of Toledo with a degree in art history, focused on American art and architecture from 1860-1930, his passions for history, design, and revitalization run deep. His hobbies include gardening, thrifting, and studying old buildings and local history. Matt is a serial rehabber, and he is currently restoring his sixteenth historic home with his husband, Joshua.

Briana Paxton is a historic preservation professional, housing advocate, and small-scale developer based in Savannah, GA. For her day job, she works remotely as a policy analyst for Preservation Maryland where she actively researches, develops, and advocates for policy innovations and regulatory systems that promote equitable and sustainable development. She previously worked in the private sector as a consultant with Ethos Preservation and PlaceEconomics. Briana serves as Chairwoman of Preservation Action, leading national efforts to secure sound federal preservation policy and is a former board member for the National Alliance of Preservation Commissions. She holds a Master’s in Historic Preservation from the University of Pennsylvania and a Bachelor’s from the College of William and Mary.

Benjamin Briggs is President and CEO of Preservation North Carolina (PNC), an 86-year-old advocacy organization that operates an Endangered Properties Program as its flagship outreach initiative. PNC maintains protective easements and covenants on more than 900 properties, including a gold mill, a water treatment plant, a gymnasium, and numerous factories, houses, and storefronts. Before coming to PNC in 2023, Benjamin served as the executive director of Preservation Greensboro, president of the High Point Preservation Society, and chair of both the Guilford County and High Point preservation commissions. He earned an undergraduate degree in Architecture and Sociology from NC State University and a Master’s Degree in Preservation Studies from Boston University, where he held an internship with ICOMOS at the Australian Heritage Commission.

Kathleen H. Crowther is President of Cleveland Restoration Society, a regional historic preservation organization deeply involved in housing, sacred landmark preservation, African American heritage and public education.  She has dramatically grown the organization from all-volunteer to a staff of 27 full and part-time employees.  The Society’s signature program, the Heritage Home Program^SM, provides technical assistance and low-interest loans to homeowners, helping tens of thousands of people and lending $100+ million.  Kathleen has been involved with the National Trust for Historic Preservation and the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS).  She has been a Visiting Scholar at the American Academy in Rome.

Lindsey Scannapieco is the Managing Partner and founder of Scout, a design and development practice headquartered in Philadelphia known for transforming underutilized spaces through creative programming and innovative reuse. Scout’s flagship project is the redevelopment of the historic Bok building into a thriving creative hub that now houses more than 200 tenants and welcomes over 250,000 visitors annually. Scout’s newest undertaking is the Village of Industry & Art, the reimagining of the former University of the Arts on the corner of Pine Street and South Broad Street – a true Temple to the Arts. Beyond large-scale redevelopment, Scout leads installations and engagement projects that expand the definition of place-based design. Lindsey serves as Co-President of the Friends of FDR Park and has been recognized with numerous honors, including the Girls Inc. Community Impact Award, ULI Philadelphia Emerging Leader, and Philadelphia Business Journal’s 40 Under 40. Lindsey holds a B.S. in Real Estate Finance from the University of Southern California and an MSc in City Design and Social Science from the London School of Economics.

Rev. Michael Major is currently serving as the Pastor of the historic Zion Baptist Church located in North Philadelphia. He is also a Senior Technology Business Analyst for Susquehanna International Group. The Susquehanna Group of companies is a global trading and technology company active in financial markets on four continents. Michael is in his 24th year at Susquehanna. He also spent five years consulting there. He has over 42 years in the technology industry leading and developing solutions for Wall Street and other areas. He is Founder and Board President of Called To Serve Community Development Corporation a non-profit organization doing economic development and education support in the Tioga community of North Philadelphia. He is serving as co-project leader for the development of the Rev. Leon H. Sullivan Community Impact Center. He is also on the board of directors of the Nonprofit Finance Fund. He has also served as Board President of Philmont Christian Academy and on the board of Mastery Charter School. Born to parents with a passion for education though neither completed high school, Michael, a product of the Tioga community, greatly benefited from the ministry and programs of the Civil Rights leader the late Rev. Dr. Leon Sullivan and the Zion Church. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Computer and Information Science from Temple University, a Master of Divinity from Missio Seminary.
He is married to Monica A. Major, an Art Teacher in the Philadelphia School System. They have three children, Michael Jr., Monique and Michele.

Liz Trumbull is the Senior Director of Preservation & Operations at Eastern State Penitentiary Historic Site, a museum interpreting the legacy of American criminal justice reform from the site of the world’s first penitentiary. Since 2018, Liz has been involved at all levels of preservation planning for the 11-acre National Historic Landmark, from ongoing maintenance to major stabilization and restoration campaigns. Liz founded the Preservation Trades Center at Eastern State to engage people underrepresented in the skilled trades in paid, on-the-job preservation training while forging connections to long-term careers in the skilled trades.  

Liz earned her Master of Science in Historic Preservation from the University of Pennsylvania where she lectures, and holds a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from Northwestern University. She serves as a director on the board of the Association for Preservation Technology – Delaware Valley Chapter. She is published in Carceral Architecture, Construction Today, and Examining the Built World through Architectural Finishes.

Elizabeth joined Heritage Consulting Group in 2024 as a senior vice president. She harnesses her decades of expertise to develop and maintain relationships with clients, to educate the general public and elected officials about the value of historic preservation, and to advocate for historic tax credits and other historic preservation programs and policy. She is regularly invited to speak to local, regional, and national groups about these and other topics. Prior to joining Heritage, Elizabeth founded Rosin Preservation and served as president.

From 1978 to 2023, Myrick Howard served as President of Preservation North Carolina, the state’s only statewide private nonprofit preservation organization.  During his tenure, Preservation NC became one of the nation’s largest and most prestigious statewide preservation organizations.  The National Park Service referred to Preservation North Carolina as “the premier statewide preservation organization in the South — if not the nation.” 

A Durham native, Myrick attended Brown University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he received his Master’s degree in city planning and a law degree in 1978.  In 2006, he participated in the Executive Program for Nonprofit Leaders at Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business.  In the fall of 2024, he entered Duke University’s Graduate Liberal Studies program.

Since 1988, he has taught a graduate seminar on Historic Preservation Planning each year at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.  His book Buying Time for Heritage, now in a new edition from UNC Press, is used extensively around the country in preservation education programs.

Through the years, Myrick has received a number of national, statewide and local awards, including the 2023 Louise DuPont Crowninshield Award from the National Trust for Historic Preservation, the nation’s highest preservation award.  He was also named 2023 Tar Heel of the Year by the (Raleigh) News and Observer. In 1996, he was inducted into the Order of the Long Leaf Pine by Gov. James B. Hunt, Jr.  

Myrick lives in a 1939 historic duplex, his eighth renovation.

Ken is an active entrepreneur and real estate developer in the Philadelphia area. He serves as President of Philly Office Retail, which has renovated and restored more than 400 vacant and deteriorated commercial and residential units in the Philadelphia region during the past 39 years.  Philly Office Retail currently owns and manages more than 800,000 square feet of commercial and residential space in the Philadelphia region and has received nine Preservation Alliance Awards for its adaptive reuse projects.

In 2015, Ken founded Jumpstart Germantown, an award-winning community development program that trains, mentors, networks and provides funding to local residents so they can improve their own community.  Now with 28 Jumpstart programs across the country, Jumpstart has graduated more than 3,900 mentees and loaned more than $65 million to aspiring developers. Ken’s mission is to revitalize neighborhoods by renovating vacant, deteriorated properties along Philadelphia’s commercial corridors. He believes that you can do well by doing good.

Ken lives in Mt. Airy with his wife, Judy, an executive coach, and can usually be found playing pickleball at the Water Tower or Awbury Recreation Centers.  They have three children: Noah, who lives in Los Angeles pursuing his music career with the band Koyal, Ellie who owns and runs a chocolate 3D printer business and lives with her wife, Jen, in NW Philly, and Ari who started and sold two start up businesses to Apple and OpenAI, where he now works.