Board of Directors and Executive Officers

APPEAL, Inc. has a seven-member Board of Directors that is responsible for governance of the organization, and four executive officers Executive Director, Assistant Executive Director, Secretary, and Treasurer who are responsible for managing APPEAL’s operations. Each of the Directors and Officers brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to APPEAL that makes each of them a valuable asset to the organization.

Dr. Kelechi Egwim – Board Chair and Executive Director

Dr. Kelechi Egwim is a longtime community activist and organizer in the Washington D.C. Area, and a commentator for several local and international news outlets on social justice and issues concerning African people. He is a lifetime member of the African Freedom Fund, United Black Community (UBC), and a representative to The Leadership Council for Pan-African Nationalism. He is the Senior Warden of the Igbo Service in Maryland, and has been a Coordinator of the Manhood Training Program at Ujamaa School, the former Vice President of Avutu Development Union, Executive in the Obowo Development Union, and the Director of Engineering and Projects of the Igbo Cultural Village Project at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. He has been the recipient of countless recognitions as a community organizer, including the Umoja Award, the Nguzo Saba Award, the Obowo Bridge Builder Award, the DC Council of Elders’ A Luta Continua Community Service Award, the Marcus Mosiah Garvey Outstanding Community Service Award, and more. He is a member of the Washington DC Citywide Kwanzaa Planning Committee, where he serves as the Editor of the Annual D.C. Kwanzaa Calendar and Events Resource Guide. He is the Founder and President of the Ibeneche Scholarship Foundation, and is currently the Executive Director of APPEAL Incorporated.

Brandon Green – Board Member, Assistant Executive Director, Acting Treasurer

Mr. Green is a professional accountant with approximately 20 years of experience in the area of corporate financial accounting. In his employment with KPMG, one of the leading public accounting firms in the industry, he specialized in non-profit entities. He has been employed at Host Hotels and Resorts, Inc, a Fortune 500 hospitality real estate company, for 13 years, where he has served as a senior accountant responsible for an international portfolio of luxury hotels. He has also specialized in financial accounting and reporting in the areas of corporate and municipal bonds, senior notes, and convertible debt issuances, including several multi-currency credit facilities, mortgages, and derivatives, all totaling more than $5 billion. His experience also includes being an internal auditor for several hotels under Host, auditing hotel financial reporting and internal controls for SEC compliance under the Sarbanes Oxley Act. He is a founding partner at TARG Associates LLC, an accounting firm that specializes in accounting and tax services for small and developing for-profit and non-profit companies. Mr. Green has a Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting from Florida A&M University.

Anthony T. Browder – Board Member

Mr. Browder is an accomplished cultural historian, author, publisher, lecturer and education consultant. He is the founder and director of IKG Cultural Resources, has done extensive research on ancient Egyptian history, science, philosophy and culture, and is the author of six publications, including the best sellers From the Browder File and Nile Valley Contributions to Civilization. His publications are used in classrooms around the world. He has lectured extensively throughout the United States, Africa, the Caribbean, Mexico, Japan and Europe on issues related to African and African American History and Culture, and has conducted study tours to Egypt, West Africa, South Africa and Mexico since 1987. He is the director of the ASA Restoration Project, which is funding the excavation and restoration of the 25th dynasty tomb of Karakhamun in Luxor, Egypt. Mr. Browder is the first African American to fund and coordinate an archeological dig in Egypt and has led five archeological missions to Egypt since 2009. He has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Fine Arts from Howard University.

NMaat Ankhmeni – Board Member

Ms. Ankhmeni is an accomplished accountant, business professional and business leader. Her experience includes work as a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) for four of the top public accounting firms in the industry, including Deloitte & Touch and Ernst & Young. She worked as an internal auditor for The Long Term Credit Bank of Japan. She founded and managed her own business as a personal financial analyst, and is currently the chief financial officer of a travel business, the treasurer of a non-profit organization Global Alliance for Education and Health Services, which conducts service projects in various countries and the president of a local chapter of a professional women’s organization. She serves as Tour Leader for The Africa Group, whose mission is to conduct tours throughout the world and celebrate the culture and history of Black people globally. She is also an educator, teaching children Technology, Science and Math for The Learning Tree Cultural Preparatory School and teaching adults the NY State Life Insurance Pre-licensing course for Primerica Financial Services. She has a Bachelor of Business Administration degree, majoring in Accounting, from Howard University.

Frank Narmer John – Board Member

Mr. John is an independent businessman, a real estate appraiser and a consultant. He is Founder and Principal of Washington Appraisal, a successful business for 20-plus years. His clients include some of the largest national and regional mortgage lenders. He has served as an Expert Witness on real estate matters for AARP, District of Columbia Government, and Hogan & Hartson LLP (now Hogan Lovells), among other law firms. He is also Founder and Principal of Washington Capital Investments, a real estate investment fund that invests in multifamily properties in selected markets in the U.S. He was previously an Account Representative with IBM, responsible for marketing IBM hardware, software and services to large telecommunication companies. He was a member of a marketing team that generated more than $100 million in revenue on an annual basis and supported one of IBM’s largest customers, Bell Atlantic (now Verizon). Mr. John has a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from Howard University in Computer Information Systems.

Abena Makini Niliwaambieni Owusu – Board Member

Ms. Owusu is an experienced professional educator and educational administrator. Her previous positions include serving as Principal of SunRise Academy, Academic Director at Kamit Institute for Magnificent Achievers (KIMA), and Assistant Principal at the Academy for Ideal Education. Currently, she is a member of the Council of Independent Black institutions (CIBI), the Akyemfohema (Female Education Minister) for the Ankobea Society, and a co-facilitator of Kindezi Kommunity Kids Educational Forum Committee. Mama Makini, as she is affectionately known by her students, is a no-nonsense educator who believes in empowering youth and young adults to be responsible, respectful self-advocates. She has conducted adolescent and adult rites of passage programs for over 20 years through her company, Amankwa Enterprises, Inc., and the Ankobea Society. Over the course of her educational and professional career, she has studied elementary education, psychology, and leadership. Ms. Owusu has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Interdisciplinary Studies from The Catholic University of America.