Our Team
John Arensmeyer
Founder & CEO
Follow John on Twitter @JohnArensmeyer
John Arensmeyer has used his long experience as a small business owner to build Small Business Majority into a nationally recognized organization focused on empowering America's entrepreneurs to build a thriving and equitable economy. Small Business Majority is the leading advocate for critical public policy issues facing America’s small businesses—particularly access to capital, healthcare, taxes, fair competition, childcare, retirement/asset building and numerous workforce issues. In recent years John has spearheaded the growth of Small Business Majority’s Venturize.org portal, providing critical practical resources to our nation’s 34 million small businesses and independent self-employed entrepreneurs.
Prior to launching Small Business Majority 19 years ago, John was the founder and CEO of ACI Interactive, an award-winning international interactive communications company. Information Week named ACI's signature product one of the nation's top 100 e-business innovations, and the company was cited by the San Francisco Business Times as one of the top 100 fastest growing private companies in the Bay Area. Earlier, John was the chief operating officer of a pioneering multimedia business, an attorney in New York, an aide to the mayor of Philadelphia and a staff member on Capitol Hill.
John is a frequent speaker on small business policy issues and a regular guest on TV and radio, including MSNBC's Your Business, PBS NewsHour, Fox News, Bloomberg TV, NPR's Marketplace and the CBS Evening News. In 2009 he was an active participant at the White House summit on healthcare reform. He testifies regularly before congressional committees, and has briefed White House officials and congressional leadership on small business policy issues. He serves on the Advisory Board for the Access to Markets initiative and is an Ally of the Council for Inclusive Capitalism. He recently served as Board Chair of California's Insure the Uninsured Project. He has led a study group at Harvard's Kennedy School of Politics and has served on the Association for Enterprise Opportunity's Economic Impact Council and Micro Capital Task Force.
John is conversational In Spanish.
Contact John »
Geri Aglipay
Senior Fellow
As Small Business Majority's Senior Fellow, Geri Sanchez Aglipay leads policy and fundraising efforts in Illinois. Previously, she was the former presidential appointee as the Small Business Administration (SBA) Great Lakes Regional Administrator in the Biden Administration. In that role, Ms. Aglipay oversaw the agency’s field office programs, education programming and communications and public affairs strategy alongside a team of directors’ outreach operations in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Wisconsin and 36 sovereign tribal nations. She signed the first agreement for an SBA field office to coordinate small business training with soon-to-be released individuals at state prisons and helped to expand SBA's affordable lending in the Great Lakes region by roughly 370% to diverse communities in urban and rural areas. Before her appointment to the SBA, Ms. Aglipay was Small Business Majority's Director of the Midwest Region and National Director of Women’s Entrepreneurship
She regularly lectures at Northwestern Kellogg School of Business, and she serves on the advisory council of HHS Center of Excellence UIC Center for Healthy Work. Ms. Aglipay is also a member of Oakton College Asian American Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Community Advisory Committee. Additionally, she served as an appointed member of the Chicago Federal Reserve’s Small Business Advisory Council to weigh on economic and monetary policies and she also was commissioner of the Cook County Commission for Social Innovation. In her spare time, she hunts for good local burgers from small businesses and is a coach for girls high school flag football.
Contact Geri »
Will Arensmeyer
Engagement Associate
Will Arensmeyer is Small Business Majority's Engagement Associate, responsible for building and maintaining relationships with small business owners, conducting interviews and meetings, and helping to manage the organization's small business database. His work supports Small Business Majority's efforts to amplify the voices of small businesses within its network.
Prior to joining Small Business Majority, Will interned with the City of Lubbock, Texas, where he provided support to the Mayor and City Council. He also interned for Small Business Majority in the Engagement Department. Will holds a Masters degree in Public Administration and a Bachelors degree in political science and history from Texas Tech University.
Contact Will »
Kathleen E. Berry, PHR
Vice President, Operations
Kathy Berry directs Small Business Majority’s finance, human resources and administrative operations. She has many decades of business management experience, most of which is in small entrepreneurial environments, having helped grow three small businesses in the arenas of healthcare, interactive technology and online education. She also has held senior positions with companies and organizations focused on technology, law and housing.
Prior to joining Small Business Majority 11 years ago, Kathy served as a Director at iMind Education Systems and as Director of Operations for ACI Interactive, where she oversaw administration, human resources and accounting. Immediately before joining Small Business Majority, she was Human Resources Manager for Freed & Associates, a boutique healthcare consulting firm. She serves as Small Business Majority’s Secretary-Treasurer.
Kathy serves as Co-Chair of Small Business Majority’s DEI Council.
Contact Kathy »
Matt Brandenburger
Engagement Associate
Matt Brandenburger is Small Business Majority's Engagement Associate, working to build and maintain relationships with small business owners, contributing to the organization's small business database and conducting interviews with small business owners. Additionally, he supports the development of Small Business Majority's spokesperson program. Previously, Matt was an International Security Assistance Intern at CRDF Global in Arlington, V.A. supporting their Partnership for Nuclear Threat Reduction-Nonproliferation and Disarmament Fund (PNTR-NDF) team.
Contact Matt »
Simon Brown
Senior Director of Public Relations
Simon Brown is responsible for planning and executing all media relations campaigns and strategies at the national, state and local levels, as well as building the public profiles of Small Business Majority’s spokespeople. Simon worked in a similar capacity at Small Business Majority from 2016-2019.
Prior to rejoining Small Business Majority in 2024, Simon led media relations at New America, where he promoted the work of some of the nation’s leading scholars. Simon also spent four years as a strategic communications consultant, developing media strategies and thought leadership profiles for clients in the tech startup and non-profit spaces. And before that, Simon spent eight years in non-profit communications where his responsibilities included leading media outreach, developing messaging, and conducting media training. Simon began his communications career in journalism, first covering sports for outlets including Sports Illustrated and NBC, where he won a Sports Emmy for his coverage of the 2008 Summer Olympics. He later reported on state and federal tax policy for a trade publication. Simon comes from a family of entrepreneurs.
Contact Simon »
David Chase
Chief Policy & Outreach Officer
David Chase oversees our state and federal policy work as well as our small business owner outreach and engagement efforts. In this role, David is responsible for setting Small Business Majority's policy agenda and developing a corresponding advocacy strategy. He is also a member of Small Business Majority's Executive Team. Before joining Small Business Majority in 2010, he served in the office of California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, where he built coalitions with business and other stakeholder groups to advance the governor's agenda. David was part of the team responsible for building the coalition behind Governor Schwarzenegger's 2007 bipartisan healthcare reform proposal.
Contact David »
Connor Coursey
Federal Government Affairs Manager
Connor supports Small Business Majority’s government affairs work through the organization’s relationships and advocacy efforts on Capitol Hill, federal agencies, and the White House. Prior to joining Small Business Majority, Connor was an Assistant Policy Officer at the Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC), where he supported policy advocacy efforts on Capitol Hill to expand and strengthen federal affordable housing and community development policies. Before that, Connor interned at Invariant Government Relations and with the Offices of Representatives Steny Hoyer and Jamie Raskin.
Contact Connor »
Alexis D'Amato Falvey
Senior Director, Federal Government Affairs
As Senior Director of Federal Government Affairs, Alexis leads Small Business Majority's federal government affairs work, driving the organization's federal legislative strategy, shaping its federal policy priorities and advocacy campaigns. Through her role, Alexis directs the organization's relationships on Capitol Hill, with federal agencies, and the White House, bringing the voices of small business owners and Main Street communities to the center of federal policymaking. Alexis works to convene the organization’s national business networks including small business lenders and service providers, chambers of commerce, and national advocacy organizations around shared priorities in Washington. She works closely with Small Business Majority's national network of 85,000 entrepreneurs, keeping them engaged and informed on critical legislative and regulatory developments, as well as coalition efforts that advance the organization's federal policy goals.
Prior to joining Small Business Majority, Alexis served as the Director of Government Affairs at Prism Group, a bipartisan government affairs firm located in Washington, D.C., where she managed and oversaw the government affairs and policy activity for clients in the small business, entrepreneurship and procurement portfolio.
Alexis is a graduate of the George Washington University with a Master of Arts in Political Science. She is a member of the Phi Beta Kappa Society and Women in Government Relations.
Contact Alexis »
Elena Ellingson-Cosenza
Policy Communications Associate
Elena Ellingson-Cosenza serves as Small Business Majority’s Policy Communications Associate. She supports the organization’s policy communications on the state and federal level and writes research reports. Prior to joining Small Business Majority, Elena worked in the Office of Majority Leader Steny Hoyer as a Speechwriting Fellow and interned at CLS Strategies. She also holds a Master’s degree in Political Communication from American University.
Contact Elena »
Suli Kenyatta
Northern California Outreach Manager
Suli Kenyatta serves as Small Business Majority’s Northern California Outreach Manager, leading outreach, education, and policy engagement efforts to promote small business growth and advance equitable access to business resources across Northern California.
Prior to joining Small Business Majority, Suli served as the Manager of Policy and Special Projects at the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation, where he led programs supporting small business growth and regional coalitions across LA County. He also previously worked in Washington, D.C. as the Digital Communications Manager at the US-China Business Council, leading global corporate engagement and communications. Suli holds a B.A. in International Relations with a concentration in Business from Morehouse College. He is also a CA FWD Becky Morgan Fellow, CORO Fellow, and HBCUvc Fellow.
Contact Suli »
Cassie Mills
Chief Communications Officer
Cassie Mills oversees strategy and implementation of the organization's internal and external communications efforts, including state and national media outreach, social media and digital marketing, organization websites, reports and more. Cassie and her team also develop the organization's opinion surveys, research reports and fact sheets. She is also a member of Small Business Majority's Executive team, and she leads the Responsible Business Lending Coalition's communications working group.
Prior to joining Small Business Majority 12 years ago, Cassie provided strategic communications support to the U.S. Department of Energy, where she focused on storytelling and promoting success stories of projects supported by the Department. She has worked as a writer and editor in a variety of sectors, including at the Louisiana state legislature, universities and research and nonprofit organizations. She holds a M.A. in English Literature from Indiana University.
Contact Cassie »
Hunter Nelson
Colorado Director
Hunter Nelson directs Small Business Majority’s outreach, education and policy efforts in the state of Colorado, by building and maintaining strategic partnerships, educating the small business communities on key policy issues and working on statewide policy efforts. She is part of the Piton Fellowship Early Career Cohort program where she is working to expand racial equity and drive positive change and was selected to join the Denver Foundation's Policy Committee. Hunter was also appointed to Connect for Health Colorado's (C4HCO) Board Advisory Group where she brings the small business perspective on healthcare plan design, value, benefits, cost, outreach and marketing for Colorado's health insurance and its individual and small group markets.
Prior to joining Small Business Majority, Hunter was a Senior Policy Analyst at the Colorado Children’s Campaign, where she helped lead their policy and advocacy efforts to advance child & family health. She also currently serves as the Political Chair for the Board of Colorado Black Women for Political Action and as a member of AYA Foundation's Board of Directors. Previously, Hunter worked at Child Advocates – Denver CASA, served as a Health Equity Fellow for Families USA, and interned with the Bell Policy Center. Hunter also has experience working with multiple organizations serving individuals and families experiencing homelessness across Metro Denver. She holds a Master of Social Work degree from the University of Denver where she also worked as a research assistant.
Contact Hunter »
Mayra Ordonez
Vice President, Outreach Operations
Mayra Ordonez provides operational oversight for Small Business Majority’s Outreach, Policy, Engagement and Grants Teams. By developing and refining internal processes, she connects organizational goals to daily execution, ensuring seamless cross-departmental collaboration and execution of projects and initiatives. Previously Mayra served as the organization's Project Director, and before that she was a member of Small Business Majority's Communications team. Mayra also holds a Master’s degree in Integrated Marketing Communications from Georgetown University.
Mayra is a member of Small Business Majority's Executive Team.
Contact Mayra »
Meghan Ott
Senior Digital Communications Manager
As Small Business Majority's Senior Digital Communications Manager, Meghan Ott manages the organization's social media accounts, handles event promotion and creates marketing and educational materials. She also supports the organization's engagement efforts by interviewing and writing profiles of small business owners. Meghan previously served as an intern for Small Business Majority's communications team and before that, she interned at Women for Women International, a nonprofit organization dedicated to teaching women in conflict-affected areas financial literacy and vocational skills. Prior to working at Women for Women International, she interned at SHIFT Communication, a PR agency in Boston.
Contact Meghan »
Julie Sanchez
Grant Writer
Julie Sanchez is a grant writer at Small Business Majority, with more than five years of experience securing funding for impactful projects. With a degree in International Studies, Julie has a diverse background in international studies, environmental advocacy and entrepreneurial ventures. Before joining Small Business Majority, Julie worked at an environmental non-profit, where their passion for sustainability and community development flourished. They also gained valuable experience interning with the U.S. State Department in Belgium. Julie also lived and taught English in Shanghai, China, further enriching her global perspective. In 2018, Julie founded The Adventuress Soap Co, a microbusiness that combines her love for travel and natural products, showcasing her entrepreneurial skills.
Contact Julie »
Awesta Sarkash
Vice President, State Policy & Advocacy
Awesta Sarkash leads Small Business Majority's policy and education work across Minnesota, New Mexico, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Texas and Virginia. She also supports Small Business Majority's state policy team to ensure the organization's work is cohesive and intentional in order to enact policies at the state level that truly support small businesses.
Additionally, Awesta leads the organization's policy work on access to capital, criminal justice reform and auto-IRA retirement savings programs by tracking legislative and regulatory developments and serving as a subject-matter expert on these issues. Awesta also serves as the Vice Chair of the Responsible Business Lending Coalition.
Prior to joining Small Business Majority, Awesta served as the Director of Advocacy and Communications at the Coalition for Nonprofit Housing and Economic Development (CNHED), a nonprofit membership association that supports the community development sector in DC. Before that, Awesta served as the grassroots and advocacy manager for the American Land Title Association. She also served as assistant director for the Center for Congressional and Presidential Studies’ Public Affairs and Advocacy Institute at American University and in Brussels for the European Public Affairs and Advocacy Institute.
Contact Awesta »
Nuria Shin
Executive Assistant
As Small Business Majority’s Executive Assistant, Nuria supports organizational leadership and daily operations by coordinating development activities, managing executive scheduling and providing direct administrative support to the CEO, Vice President of Operations and Digital Communications team. She brings four years of experience in arts administration and marketing, having previously worked as the Opera Studio Graduate Assistant at the University of Maryland and as the Communications Coordinator Assistant at the UNC Chapel Hill Department of Music, where she provided executive support, assisted in event planning and operations, and contributed to marketing strategy.
Prior to joining Small Business Majority, Nuria earned her Master of Music in Opera Performance from the Maryland Opera Studio at the University of Maryland, College Park. In addition to her administrative and performance work, she maintains a private voice and piano studio.
Contact Nuria »
Eszter Szocska
Senior Director, Digital Communications & IT
Eszter Szocska manages Small Business Majority's websites, databases, online communications and other IT functions. Prior to joining Small Business Majority more than 16 years ago, she worked as the web systems administrator at Green-Wifi, a small business specializing in the development of solar-powered Wi-Fi grid networks for schools in the developing world. Previously, she spent nine years in Tokyo where she cofounded FCC International, a small web services company. A native of Hungary, Eszter is fluent in both Hungarian and Japanese.
Contact Eszter »
Sara Thibodeau
Grants Director
Sara Thibodeau oversees grant development, reporting and compliance at Small Business Majority. Prior to joining the organization as a grant writer, she worked as a project manager and wrote grants for a series of Boston-based workforce development initiatives. She also held management positions at two tech startups. Sara is passionate about entrepreneurship and has often volunteered her time to advise small businesses, both in the U.S. and while traveling and living abroad. Sara earned her bachelor's degree in International Relations and her master's degree in International Business from the University of Denver. She is fluent in French and conversational in Portuguese and Spanish.
Contact Sara »
Lindsey Vigoda
New York Director & National Quality Jobs Policy Director
Lindsey Vigoda directs Small Business Majority’s outreach, policy and fundraising efforts in New York. Using her social work skills, Lindsey builds and maintains strong relationships with small business communities throughout the state, focusing on key policy issues. In addition to her New York Director role, Lindsey serves as Small Business Majority’s National Quality Jobs Policy Director to promote policies such as paid family leave and childcare that support access to quality jobs. Previously, she served as Colorado Director, leading the organization's advocacy, education and small business outreach across the state.
She also served on Denver Mayor-elect Mike Johnston's transition team as a volunteer to inform policies related to social equity and innovation. Recently, Lindsey joined the Board Advisory Group (C4HCO) for Connect for Health Colorado to advise the governing board on healthcare plan design, value, benefits, cost, outreach and marketing. Lindsey is a 2023 40 Under 40 awardee for the Colorado LGBTQ Chamber of Commerce.
Prior to joining Small Business Majority, Lindsey worked on Colorado’s successful Proposition 111 campaign, which capped the interest rates of predatory payday loans in the state. While working toward her Master of Social Work at the University of Denver, Lindsey conducted policy research for a statewide policy tank that focused on economic justice.
Contact Lindsey »
Dalton Wieck
Outreach Associate
As Small Business Majority's Outreach Associate, Dalton assists in planning and conducting events, providing essential logistical support and marketing to ensure successful and well-attended National and State level events. He helps foster relationships with new small business and partner contacts and engages in proactive outreach to support a spokesperson program across multiple states. He is adept at interviewing small business owners and helping share their stories. Previously, Dalton served as the Member Engagement Manager for the Dallas Regional Chamber and before that, he was Small Business Majority's Engagement Coordinator. He currently resides in Dallas, TX.
Contact Dalton »
