JACA 2024-25 Board Members
JACA 2022 Board Members
President - Gaynor Russell
Vice President - Greg Marsh
Committee Members
Ena Cooke
Ann-Rose Lewis
Perry G. Walker
Jill Harriss
Yvette Mills
Melody Crooks
Rhonda
Yvette Mills is a Certified Financial Planner and Chartered Financial Consultant with over 20 years of experience in the financial services industry. In various roles at Merrill Lynch, Vanguard, and TIAA, she utilized expertise, unique skills, and innovative approaches to help individuals and families accumulate, grow, protect, and enjoy their financial resources. She is currently a senior manager with Fidelity Investments. Yvette also worked with INROADS, a national career development organization. As Managing Director of the Central New Jersey affiliate, she developed and implemented strategies for recruitment, sales and marketing, fiscal management, and programming. Yvette earned a BA in Economics from Drew University and an MBA in Finance from Rutgers University School of Management. In addition to
the Jamaican American Cultural Association, Yvette currently serves on the boards of California Lutheran University School of Management and The Nubian Cultural Center for Research and Development. She also volunteers with the Financial Planning Association and Jack and Jill of America. Yvette lives in Charlotte, NC with her husband of 33 years. They have
two adult children.
I, Melody Crooks, attended Convent of Mercy “Alpha Academy” for high school and then the University of the West Indies, Mona Campus for my Bachelor's Degree in Chemistry. I immigrated to the United States of America in 1989, after working for a year at the Jamaica Bureau of Standards (counterpart of the FDA) as an analytical chemist. I began working as a teacher with the New York City Department of Education in 1990. I completed two Masters's degrees at the City University of New York ( City College) in Environmental Studies and Administration and Supervision. I began my tenure as an administrator in 1999 and retired from that position in 2020 after 30 years of service. I have one son.