BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Joanne Burke-Sherman serves as President of the Board at Dharma Dreams Vocational Center, an organization she founded with the mission of empowering young adults with learning differences through compassionate, hands-on job training.

A dedicated entrepreneur and advocate, Joanne holds an MBA in Finance and Marketing, is a Certified Health Coach (CHC), and is board certified by the American Association of Drugless Practitioners (AADP). She began her career as a Director of Computer Systems Development, but it was her experience advocating for her son—who faced learning challenges and needed meaningful educational options—that led her to change paths.

While her analytical skills come from a strong foundation in mathematics and business, her drive stems from a deep compassion for others and a talent for building purposeful solutions. This passion inspired her to launch a holistic health business and later to create Dharma Dreams Vocational Center, where she combines strategic leadership with heart-centered vision.
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In her free time, Joanne is active in the Rotary Club of Braintree, Keystone BNI, and enjoys Celtics games, travel, wellness, and quality time with friends and family. She aims to be a positive force in the world, uplifting others through service, connection, and opportunity.

Debbie brings over 20 years experience in human resources and talent acquisition strategies. Throughout her career she has been an  advocate for diversity, equity, inclusion. She has a strong aptitude for engagement with people at all levels and a passion for helping others reach their full potential. Most recently, she spent several years as a volunteer case reviewer for DCFS.

Debbie is currently employed by a global sustainability and renewable energy company that assists businesses in reaching their net zero carbon goals. She and her husband currently reside on the South Shore. In her free time she enjoys traveling and spending time with friends. 

Raechel Grady is a seasoned accounting professional with a strong passion for nonprofit organizations and a deep commitment to service. She currently serves as a Manager at Nash CPAs LLC, where she brings nearly a decade of experience in nonprofit financial services to her role.

Raechel began her career at CLA (CliftonLarsonAllen), where she advanced from Assurance Associate to Nonprofit Manager over a span of seven years. Throughout her career, she has specialized in working with nonprofit clients, providing audit, tax, and consulting services that empower organizations to operate with confidence, clarity, and compliance.

Her commitment to mission-driven work is also deeply personal—Raechel has been involved with the Special Olympics since childhood, inspired by her brother, who has special needs. This lifelong connection to the nonprofit world fuels her dedication to helping organizations that make a difference.
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Raechel holds a degree from Bridgewater State University and continues to apply her knowledge and experience to support nonprofit missions nationwide.

Kim Lourenco is the Transition Coordinator for Braintree Public Schools. She has a Masters in special education and has over 20 years experience in the Braintree Public Schools working with young adults and their families. Kim specializes in transition services and works with students, families, faculty and administration to provide comprehensive services to help students with employment, training, and independent living skills.

Kim is also a proud parent of a child with ASD. Her professional and personal experiences working with children with unique abilities has created a passion for finding opportunities to help them find their own success.

​Debra Coulter is the Vice President of Information Services for Special Olympics Massachusetts overseeing an innovation project to help grow the mission of the organization to better serve the community.

She brings over 20 years experience in the for profit, consulting and non profit industries to the board to help assist in many aspects of helping to launch the organization. She started out in the accounting and finance industry and made the switch to data systems early in her career. 

She holds an MBA in Entrepreneurship and many certifications in non profit software.  Her passion for non profit led her to a pro bono consulting role for a volunteer firm serving the non profit community in projects focused on strategy, fundraising, software and data analysis.

When not busy with data and systems, Deb loves to cook for her family and friends, enjoys wine tastings and traveling. She lives on the south shore coast with her husband, daughters and new pup!

Alexander Jay Nelson grew up on the autistic spectrum, eventually receiving a diagnosis of Nonverbal Learning Disorder (NLD or NVLD) at the age of 15.  In 2010 he graduated from Keene State College in New Hampshire with honors and a degree in Film a production with minors in Psychology and Sociology.  It is a lifetime priority of his to keep up with autism and psychology research trends and mental health advocacy.  He now lives in Lowell Massachusetts, working in the Set Lighting Department of movies in the Greater Boston Area.  

​Eric Sherman is an accomplished sales and business leader with over two decades of experience scaling teams, driving growth, and building strong partnerships across the tech industry. Currently, Eric serves as the General Manager of the Accenture Global ESP Alliance at Dynatrace, where he also was a Regional Vice President for the North East, roles in which he’s spent the past six years helping expand Dynatrace’s market presence and strategic alliances.

Prior to joining Dynatrace, Eric held senior sales leadership roles at Neotys (a Tricentis company) and Core Security, where he was instrumental in developing high-performance sales teams, expanding international and federal markets, and managing cross-functional teams to adapt to evolving industry demands. His career began in recruiting and early sales roles at organizations including Oxford Global Resources, NSTAR (now Eversource Energy), Baltimore Technologies, and Bitpipe, where he quickly distinguished himself as a driven, relationship-focused professional.

Outside of work, Eric is passionate about basketball—especially cheering on the Boston Celtics—and loves spending quality time with his family and his beloved dogs. He finds balance and relaxation at his favorite getaways on Cape Cod and in Palm Coast, Florida.

Eric brings a blend of energy, experience, and genuine connection to everything he does, whether it’s leading teams, serving clients, or enjoying life’s simple pleasures with the people (and pets) who matter most.

Dawn La Lama is a Training and Development Specialist with over a decade of successful experience as an Educational Consultant. Dawn has a Masters in Education and specializes in training and curriculum development.

Wanting an alternative to the lackluster public school model for her children, Dawn founded Montessori Middle School, and served as Directress overseeing the day to day operations of its programming.

She served as an expert consultant in the writing of the Massachusetts Adult Basic Education Curriculum Frameworks. Dawn is passionate about education. When developing and teaching for meaningful inclusion she draws from effective Montessori and inclusive pedagogy.  Today, she actively consults, continues working as a training and development specialist, is active in her family run business, is Green Belt Certified and provides coaching on Lean processes for organization quality improvement initiatives.

From 1999 to 2021, Dr. DiCicco taught in the Business Department at Curry College in Milton, MA. He taught several business and business-related courses with a specialization in leadership.

Since 2015, Professor DiCicco has been an affiliate faculty member at Wentworth Institute of Technology, specializing in communication and leadership and strategic management courses.

Dr. DiCicco has been the Campus College Chair of Graduate Business Management Programs at the University of Phoenix, Massachusetts Campuses from 2007 – 2014.  Between 2014- 2016 he taught Micro and Macro Economics at Dean College in Franklin, MA.
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From 1991 to the present, Dr. DiCicco has served as the president of Organizational Analysis. [email protected] is a management consulting group located in Brockton, MA. Specializing in organizational and leadership consulting and training upper and middle-level managers to be more responsible leaders in their respective fields. 

DiCicco has authored and coauthored “Leadership is a Choice” and “The Leadership Gene.” And the recently published “The Authentic Leader,” spring 2022.  Leadership podcasts and newsletters can be found on the website theauthenticleadercd.com. DiCicco earned his Ph.D. in Higher Education Administration and Professional Development at Capella University in Minneapolis, M.N. in 2001. He has been happily married to his wife of 42 years, Gale, and has an adult son Eric. All reside in Brockton, MA.

My name is Juan Gomez. I was born in Chile. I came to the United States 28 years ago. In the United States, I am like each one of you with goals and dreams. I have a small family with two children. My son, Gregory, is a 20-year-old who is studying at the university; and I have a 4-year-old girl named Priscilla (2023).  As the owner of JG Painting, we are dedicated to painting maintenance. We take care of every detail and we use high quality material to meet the needs of our clients. We carry out maintenance from the smallest to the largest houses, apartments, garages, and more. We handle both exterior and interior painting.  For us, it is always a pleasure to work as a team and provide the most professional experience for our clients.