Please join us in welcoming the following individuals to the CVN Board of Directors!

Valarie J. Amica – Catholic Volunteers in Florida

Valarie J. Amica has served with Catholic Volunteers in Florida for over nine years as Director of Service Sites/Program/Recruitment.  She is responsible for leading the recruiting efforts of CVIF, managing the interview and selection process of applicants applying to CVIF, and placement of volunteers and continued monitoring and mentoring of volunteers during their year of service.

Before coming to CVIF, she was a Senior Executive Search Consultant with a Fortune 500 Company (responsible for overseeing a team to recruit and place senior and mid-level accountants for major companies throughout the United States).  She also spent 14 years with the Department of Defense (Military Systems Accountant) as the lead accountant in the implementation and training of military personnel on the new SRD1 Finance and Accounting System on domestic and international US military bases.

Valarie is a native Floridian.  She holds a BS from Jones College and an MA from Ft. Ben Harrison Finance and Accounting School.

Adrienne Andrews – Notre Dame Mission Volunteers

Adrienne Andrews is the Executive Director of Notre Dame Mission Volunteer (NDMV); she has been with the organization since 2005. In this role, Adrienne works with the NDMV staff and 495 Notre Dame-AmeriCorps members across the country who are building on the foundation and mission of education of the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur. NDMV also supports job development and a scholarship program through Boulangerie Notre Dame, a bakery project launched by NDMV in 2016.

Before becoming Executive Director in 2016, Adrienne delved into every facet of the organization, starting as a NDA member in Watsonville, California, then joining the organization as Administrative Assistant, then CFO and Associate Director. Adrienne holds a B.A. in Sociology from Case Western Reserve University and a certificate in Leadership from Duke Divinity School’s Foundations of Christian Leadership Program.

Adrienne is originally from Youngstown, Ohio where she saw and experienced educational inequality firsthand. Her experience and subsequent opportunities to further her own education have led her to dedicate her career to providing students with access to and support for their education. Adrienne is an active member of St. Matthew Catholic Church in Baltimore where she is especially dedicated to the LEAD LGBT ministry.

Heidi Mareburger Aspinwall – Young Adult Missional Movement

Heidi is the Director of the Young Adult Missional Movement, a program related to Florida Conference of the United Methodist Church. It includes summer, one year and two year terms of service. Opportunities are centered around meaningful work, cooperative living and community engagement. YAMM started five years ago with a pointed interest in inclusion and anti-racism.

Heidi has been involved in urban ministry and young adult service programs since 1996.

She has two young adult children off in college, an elderly mother and a poodle living with her. She likes to drive a lot, enjoys football and power tools and used to be in marching band.

Maka Akan Najin Clifford – Red Cloud Indian School

Maka Akan Najin Clifford currently serves as the Director of Curriculum and Instruction for Red Cloud Indian School, the only Jesuit K-12 school system serving American Indian students in the country located on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota. Maka is an alumnus of Red Cloud Indian School. He is a graduate of the University of San Francisco, Columbia University Teacher’s College, and most recently the University of Notre Dame. Maka also served as the volunteer coordinator for the Red Cloud Indian School volunteer program for two years and has been an advocate for diversity and culturally responsive service noted by his time spent on the Subcommittee for Diversity and Racial Justice at CVN.

Evan Cuthbert – Rostro de Cristo

Evan Cuthbert has served as Executive Director of Rostro de Cristo since 2013. He received a B.A. from Boston College and a Master’s of Divinity from Weston Jesuit School of Theology. Evan served in Tacna, Peru as a Jesuit Volunteer from 1989-1990 and worked at Jesuit Volunteers International from 1994-1996. After completing graduate studies he joined the campus ministry team at Boston College where he coordinated a series of international service and immersion experiences. From 2004-2011, Evan along with Sue Marble Cuthbert, his wife, and daughters Mary and Rose served as Maryknoll Lay Missioners in Cochabamba, Bolivia. Currently, Evan lives in Braintree, MA.

Ronald H. Smith – Howard University

Ron H. Smith is currently the Director of the Bison STEM Scholars Program at Howard University.  A native of Baltimore, Maryland, he was educated in the Baltimore City Public School System. He later attended University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC) where he graduated in 1976 with a B.A. in Sociology.  In 1994 he earned a M.A. in Instructional Systems Design, also from UMBC.  He has also completed all requirements for a doctorate in Educational Leadership except the dissertation at Morgan State University.  His career in higher education spans 36 years and focuses primarily on student affairs/enrollment management and student development.

Ron is married to Dr. Vannesia D. Morgan-Smith and is the father of two adult children, David and Elise Smith.  He is also the proud grandfather of three beautiful granddaughters, Mia, Emi and Anna. For 42 of the last 43 years Ron has coached his beloved sport of lacrosse and previously spent 12 of those year coaching Division I lacrosse at his alma mater, UMBC.  Ron also enjoys spending time with his extended family, hiking, snow skiing, art, music and travel.  His social focus is on social justice, serving needy communities and working to empower young people, particularly African American male youth to be the best that they can be.

Click here to learn more about all the Catholic Volunteer Network’s Board Members.