The core team of Criterion Ventures is responsible for moving forward projects, and engaging the breadth of our network, its creative resources and reach.

Note: Like most professionals, we have several ways to tell our story. If you are looking for a formal or more specific bio on any of us, just ask.

• Holds a political science degree at Wesleyan University.
• Taught high school at James Madison High School in Brooklyn, NY from 1989-1997. She went to understand how power works in a large system and stayed for eight years because of the kids and their daily triumphs.
• Designed and managed million dollar federally funded programs for the school and the district in both educational technology and English as a Second Language.
• Played leadership roles in the United Federation of Teachers, working closely with union President Sandra Feldman on retention strategies for new teachers.
• Completed her Ph.D. in American History from New York University, in 2001. Her dissertation examined prison reform in the 1830's and how individuals and organizations claim expertise to shape public institutions.
• Worked for Growth Design, a national consulting firm that did fundraising and strategic planning for large nonprofit systems. Her first client, in 1997, was the United Methodist Church General Board of Pensions and Health Benefits, a client she worked with for a decade as strategic counsel.
• Founded Criterion in 2002 and evolved the firm from a general contracting consulting firm that did a range strategic work with nonprofits to a firm that invests time and talent in a few focused social ventures.
• Founded in 2006, with Tim Freundlich and Kevin Jones, Good Capital, an asset management firm seeking to move capital to good.
• Lives with her husband and daughter in a Connecticut apple orchard, and can be found in the fall pressing cider and boiling apple syrup.
• Chairs the local Historical Society board and, with her husband, is actively involved in restoring a 19th century jail.

• Holds a degree in Mathematics from Calvin College, Grand Rapids Michigan.
• Began her career at the Congressional Budget Office of the US Congress providing analytical support (programming mainframe computers!) for policy debates from welfare reform to education, housing to healthcare. This provided "political science 101" and sharpened a commitment for being involved with organizations that actually were making a difference (not to say anything negative about Congress…).
• Used this policy foundation to enhance and lobby for funding for programs at Focus HOPE, a Detroit education and community development non-profit.
• Received an MBA from The University of Michigan, and was at the founding meeting of Students for Responsible Business (now Net Impact).
• Fell in love with organizational change - and spent four years at CSC Index, leading consulting teams delivering strategic marketing, process and organizational planning counsel to Fortune 500 companies.
• Left to join the start up team of iBasis, now a $1B internet telecommunications firm. As Vice President of Business Development, she forged early relationships with Cisco, HP and other technology leaders.
• Co-founded WORK IN PROGRESS, a social enterprise enabling under privileged youth to develop the social networking skills required for finding internships and developing careers.
• Serves as Member of the Board of Trustees for Calvin College, as mentor for Women Unlimited, and on various committees at Trinity Church, Copley Square.
• Lives with her husband and adorable two year old son in Somerville, MA.
  

• Katie Drasser is a Venture Director at Criterion Ventures where she leads our engagements with The Charlie Project and Opportunity Collaboration, designs community development work and maps systems for the social innovation lever that will effect positive change.
• Through various engagements and capacities has consulted on public health, poverty alleviation and development initiatives all over the world.
• Prior to Criterion, Katie worked as a healthcare consultant for AmerisourceBergen and John Snow Inc., helping clients increase patients' access to medications and running programs that target the diseases of poverty through training, education, social investing and system redesign.  She most recently facilitated the design for scaling up Kenya’s national emergency medical (EMS) system through a public-private partnership. 
• Completing her masters in global public health and policy in 2006 from the School of Public Health at UNC-Chapel Hill, Katie graduated in the top 10% of the school and received the honor society's service award.  Katie also holds a BA in political science from Colgate University where she graduated with honors.
• Katie is currently exploring ways and asking questions around how to bring the worlds of social enterprise and global health together to create sustainable programming and holistic solutions.
• Lived in 7 states and 3 countries, but has found her home in San Francisco, CA.  In her free time, she can be found hiking, biking and skiing around the Bay Area.

• James Macon is a Venture Director at Criterion Ventures where he leads Healthcare_Uncovered and various client consulting projects. 
• Formerly as Executive Vice President at e2e Materials, a cleantech start-up, he was responsible for corporate financing initiatives, strategic planning and client acquisition.  He was an Advisory Board Member for e2e Materials’ subsidiary Comet Action Sports, a skateboard manufacturing B-Corporation. 
• Prior to e2e Materials, James was a student at the 2-year MBA program at The S.C. Johnson Graduate School of Management at Cornell University where he focused on venture creation and financing and lead the venture capital fund BR Ventures.  As an alumnus dedicated to venture creation and development, James was recognized as a Jonas Weil Entrepreneur Fellow.  In 2007 he was a Summer Associate with CEI Community Ventures where he focused on new financing rounds for portfolio companies and the creation of a new fund targeting underserved regions in New England. 
• Before pursuing his MBA, James spent five years at eSecLending, a global financial technology start-up where he focused on global client acquisition and corporate strategy with particular emphasis on the sale of the business. 
• Prior to eSecLending, James was Founder and Managing Director of AIDC Imports, a wine importing and distribution venture based in Williston, VT with clients in South Africa, Argentina, Italy, France and Russia. 
• He began his career leading a high net worth client relations team at Eaton Vance Management, an award-winning Boston-based mutual fund manager. 
• James earned a BA from Hamilton College with additional study at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland. 
• James lives in beautiful Shelburne, Vermont with his wife and two children.  James enjoys international travel, fly fishing, community farming, making music and spending time with his family.

• Elizabeth served as the director of conservation for Chicago Wilderness, which is a consortium of more than 200 non-profits, for-profits, and governmental agencies working together to conserve biodiversity. In this role, she managed daily operations, guided diverse projects, led an overall strategic planning process, and generally “herded cats”.
• In a previous position with Chicago Wilderness, she worked with a team to design a process to assess the status of, the threats to, and the conservation goals for the species and natural communities of the greater Chicago region. The two plus year process resulted in a recovery plan for biodiversity.
• Earning a BS from Yale University and a MS from the University of Maryland, Elizabeth spent the first part of her academic career focusing on ecology and conservation biology. For her PhD which she received from the University of Michigan, she focused on collaboration, organizational behavior, and how to actually implement the conservation principles she had studied previously.
• In her first “real” job, Elizabeth helped to coordinate IUCN’s Species Survival Commission, a global network of 6,000 volunteer professionals.
• Outside of work, Elizabeth is a passionate sailor. In addition to sailing varsity in college, Elizabeth has competed in national level events in Vanguard 15s and Lightnings, as well as the world championships in Lightnings.
• Elizabeth lives in Westport, CT with her two adorable daughters.
  

• Dawn Thomsen is a Venture Director at Criterion where she leads our engagements with Lutheran Services in America and Trinity Wall Street.  She has special expertise in product and service development, marketing, grassroots organizing, and scale through networks. 
• Most recently, Dawn served as the Senior Brand and Advertising Manager for Planned Parenthood Federation of America, a non-profit reproductive health and rights organization with 103 affiliates, which operate more than 860 health centers across the United States. She provided strategic guidance, operational management, and tactical execution of the branding initiative and advertising programs.
• In her work with Planned Parenthood, she conducted outreach on a wide range of issues and services, from Supreme Court nominations and family planning funding to emergency contraception over-the-counter and birth control.  She managed branding efforts, a book launch, and a futurist initiative on communications media.  In all of her work, she focused on building relationships, consensus and a shared sense of purpose, articulating that purpose in plans, and mobilizing to turn purpose and plans into beautiful, compelling and effective communications.
• Dawn’s previous work focused on the prevention of sexual and domestic violence.
• She is recently returned from the Indian Ocean Region.  She loves to travel and has spent time in Central America, Europe, and the South Pacific as well as nearly every State in the Union.
• Dawn earned a BA from Grinnell College in Psychology.