Board of Directors · Committee Members
Board of Directors
Paul A. MillerMiller/Wenhold Capitol Strategies, LLC
Board Chairman
Paul was born and raised in Racine, Wisconsin. He received a BS in Political Science from the University of Wisconsin Whitewater. Currently, Paul has his own lobbying firm Miller/Wenhold Capitol Strategies, LLC. In addition to his work for his firm, Paul was elected as the youngest President of the American League of Lobbyists, the national association representing the lobbying profession.
Basketball is a passion for Paul. In addition to his work with Hoops for Hope, he coaches youth basketball at St. Timothy's in Chantilly.
He is married to his wife Amy and they have two daughters Taylor and Alexis.
Danny LeonardThe Leonard Group
Vice President
Danny Leonard is currently an associate with the Leonard Group who brings both private business and governmental affairs experience to the varied clients that the Leonard Group represents.
As an associate, Mr. Leonard handles many tasks for current clients including legal and legislative research, issue specific research and project management, congressional appointments and presentations. He also is actively involved in prospecting, building and managing the membership of our largest association client which is actively involved in contracting with the federal government.
Danny is a graduate of West Chester University with a B.S. degree in Public Administration. While at West Chester he was recognized by the athletic department as the Varsity Football Defensive Academic Player of the Year in 1987. Prior to WCU he graduated from Gonzaga College High School in Washington, D.C. where he lettered for three years on the varsity level in both football and baseball earning All-League in both sports.
Danny is married to his wife Kelly, formerly Kelly Hannan, a fifth generation Washingtonian. The Leonard's have four children who keep them occupied on weekends with plenty of basketball, baseball and soccer games. Danny is active in the community as a baseball and basketball coach and member of an outreach ministry group to local correctional facilities in Virginia.
Monte WardAdvanced Capital Consulting
Secretary
Monte Ward is President of Advanced Capitol Consulting - a company dedicated to assisting its clients in achieving their legislative and regulatory goals through government relations and advocacy services. Monte provides strategic counsel in the areas of government relations, trade association representation, political fundraising for members of Congress and political action committees and grassroots advocacy.
Prior to joining Advanced Capitol Consulting, Monte served as Vice President of Federal Affairs for the National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies, the largest property/casualty insurance trade association serving over 1,300 member companies. In this capacity he was responsible for all of the association's federal legislative affairs and the day to day operation of their Washington DC office.
Monte's Washington DC experience began on Capitol Hill where he worked as a staff assistant for Congressman John J. Rhodes, III (AZ), a legislative assistant for Congressman Jay Dickey (AR) and a legislative director for Congressman Michael Forbes (NY).
Monte is married to Jennifer and they have five boys. He is a basketball and baseball coach and a leader in the Boy Scouts of America. Monte also serves on the board of the American League of Lobbyists.
Brad KnoxAFLAC
Treasurer
Brad brings to the board a wide range of experiences, including time as an Air Force JAG, an entrepreneur, chief counsel to the House Committee on Small Business, and currently in-house counsel to Aflac's federal relations division. He also sits on the board of a high-tech engineering firm. Brad received his bachelor's degree from Oral Roberts University and his Juris Doctor from Regent University School of Law. He is married with three kids and resides in northern Virginia.
Robert BurkeAssistant Coach Men’s Basketball
American University
Board Member
Robert Burke, in his first year as a member of Coach Jones's staff, brings 21 years of collegiate coaching experience to American. Burke has been part of the building process at five NCAA Division I institutions and has helped teams to postseason play in ten of the last eleven years, including an appearance in the 2007 NCAA Final Four.
Burke most recently served as an assistant coach at Georgetown University for five seasons.
Before going to Georgetown, Burke spent four seasons at Princeton. During that time, the Tigers captured two outright Ivy League titles and tied for a third. While at Georgetown and Princeton, Burke's main responsibilities were recruiting and game preparation. Throughout his career, he has coached 39 all-conference student-athletes.
Burke's first coaching experience was as an assistant at the University of Maryland-Baltimore County, where he served from 1988 through 1994. During that time, he recruited many of the school's most accomplished players, including five of the top 25 all-time leading scorers in program history and the former career assists leader.
He spent the next three years on the West Coast at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, before returning east as an assistant at Siena College. In each of his three seasons at Siena, the Saints were among the top five nationally in scoring, averaging at least 86.0 points per game. In addition, Siena played in three consecutive Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) championship games, won two MAAC titles, compiled a 66-27 record, and received two invitations to postseason play.
A Silver Spring, Md., native, Burke played basketball for coach Dick Myers at Gonzaga College High School in Washington, D.C. After high school, he was an MVP and team captain at Haverford College until he was sidelined by a torn ACL during his senior season.
"Robert is an accomplished coach with tremendous experience and a great understanding of the game," commented Jones. "Since we will have such a young team next year, Robert's ability to teach the game makes him an ideal fit. We are excited to have Robert join our coaching staff."
Kate LeonardThe Leonard Group
Board member
Kathleen (Kate) A. Leonard is the Managing Partner & CEO for The Leonard Group, LLP. She assists clients with their government relations interests by bringing more than fifteen years of experience to the resolution of their legislative concerns. Ms. Leonard has represented clients before Congress, state agencies and legislatures, the White House, OMB, and Departments of Justice, Treasury, Defense and Homeland Security regarding banking, budget, appropriations, commerce, judiciary, defense, labor, transportation, treasury, science and technology issues.
As a former staffer to U.S. Senator Robert W. Kasten, and principal lobbyist for key legislative clients for many years, Ms. Leonard has acquired extensive experience in the procedural and legislative systems of the U.S. Senate, House of Representatives and state legislatures and the executive branches of government.
Ms. Leonard has developed strong relationships with leaders of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives and their staff. She has expanded these relationships through her active participation in many bipartisan fundraisers for incumbents and challengers in the U.S. Senate, House of Representatives, as well as her role as a Delegate to Presidential Conventions.
Karl HobbsGeorge Washington University
Board Member
Karl Hobbs is the head men's basketball coach at The George Washington University. The GW basketball program has made tremendous strides under the guidance of Hobbs who has placed an emphasis on developing players in his system. None of the current Colonials were heavily recruited before they arrived on the GW campus for Hobbs' first season in 2001-02. During the summer of 2007 USA Basketball selected Coach Hobbs to serve as an assistant coach for the U-10 World Championships. Hobbs and Team USA brought home the silver medal in a closely contested championship game against the host Serbia.
Hobbs, 45, was hired on May 7, 2001, after eight seasons as an assistant coach at the University of Connecticut, where he earned a reputation as a top recruiter. He is credited with the recruitment and development of current Detroit Piston Richard Hamilton, as well as Khalid El-Amin and Kevin Freeman - all starters on the 1999 national champions Huskies.
In his first season as a head coach, Hobbs also proved to observers that he is much more than a talented recruiter. His frenetic, super-charged coaching style of foot-stomping and piercing whistles on the sidelines did not go unnoticed by media and fans alike. His players couldn't help but put forth the same energy and effort that Hobbs exudes on the bench and from the coaching box. At times he seemed to "will" his team to victory.
CBS analyst Billy Packer referred to Hobbs as "one of the finest young coaches in America." UConn's Calhoun has called Hobbs "one of the best perimeter coaches in the country." NBA All-Star Ray Allen of the Seattle Supersonics lauded Hobbs, saying that he had a "terrific guard coach" who helped fine tune his fundamentals.
A native of Roxbury, MA, Hobbs attended Connecticut where he was a four-year starting point guard under former coach Dom Perno. Perno is now Assistant Athletic Director for Development at GW. Hobbs and his wife, JoAnn, have two daughters: RaShauna, 19, and Kaliah, 9. RaShauna is a women's basketball player at nearby George Mason University.
Dave JohnsonWTOP
Board Member
Dave Johnson serves as the Sports Director and award-winning morning sports anchor on WTOP. In addition Johnson is the radio play-by-play voice of the NBA's Washington Wizards and host of the team's weekly television show, which is often seen on Channel 7 and NewsChannel 8. On Comcast SportsNet, Johnson is the television play-by-play voice of D.C. United (MLS) and also frequently anchors the network's daily shows.
Johnson received an Emmy as host of the NHL's Washington Capitals "Face Off" television show. In addition for three years he served as the sideline reporter for Washington Capitals television coverage on Home Team Sports. Johnson has also been an anchor on Channel 5 and has done television play-by-play of college football, NBA basketball, college basketball and lacrosse. His soccer television work includes appearances on ESPN, FOX, and PAX networks.
A graduate of Towson University, Dave and his wife Diane live in Annapolis, MD with their son, Pierce.
Keith UrgoVillanova University
Board Member
Keith Urgo serves as administrative intern/video coordinator to the Villanova University Men's Basektball Team. Keith Urgo, who spent the three years as an assistant coach at nationally known basketball power Gonzaga High School in Washington, D.C.
Keith earned a bachelor of arts degree in 2002 from Fairfield University, where he played varsity basketball and lacrosse. In addition to his work at Gonzaga — where he also coached the freshmen team to a 32-7 record from 2004-06 — Urgo developed a non-profit organization, "Playing For Peace, Inc.", designed to aide in conflict resolution. The organization is based in two locales, Durbin, South Africa and Northern Ireland.
Keith and his wife Kristy live in Wayne, Pa.
Committee Members
Paul KanitraCarfax
Sports & Ticket Donation Committee Chair
The President and Co-Founder of Keys to the Capitol brings with him over a decade of extremely unique and varied legislative experience. His political background includes work on behalf of large corporations, the U.S. Congress, non-profit associations and Native American reservations. Paul is especially proficient at building coalitions and mobilizing grassroots efforts to strengthen his clients' voice and achieve their legislative and regulatory goals. As a lobbyist, he has achieved numerous successes across federal, state and local jurisdictions. His issue involvement spans a broad spectrum with major victories in appropriations, taxes, licensing, data access, consumer protections and land usage. Paul graduated from Texas Christian University in Fort Worth, Texas with a Bachelor's Degree in Political Science. He is originally from Point Pleasant Beach, NJ where, at the age of only 22 he won a primary election in the 2002 city council race. A member of the American League of Lobbyists and active in multiple philanthropic organizations, Paul currently resides in Washington, DC just steps from the Capitol.
Danny LeonardThe Leonard Group
Youth and Adult Tournament Chair
Danny Leonard is currently an associate with the Leonard Group who brings both private business and governmental affairs experience to the varied clients that the Leonard Group represents.
As an associate, Mr. Leonard handles many tasks for current clients including legal and legislative research, issue specific research and project management, congressional appointments and presentations. He also is actively involved in prospecting, building and managing the membership of our largest association client which is actively involved in contracting with the federal government.
Danny is a graduate of West Chester University with a B.S. degree in Public Administration. While at West Chester he was recognized by the athletic department as the Varsity Football Defensive Academic Player of the Year in 1987. Prior to WCU he graduated from Gonzaga College High School in Washington, D.C. where he lettered for three years on the varsity level in both football and baseball earning All-League in both sports.
Danny is married to his wife Kelly, formerly Kelly Hannan, a fifth generation Washingtonian. The Leonard's have four children who keep them occupied on weekends with plenty of basketball, baseball and soccer games. Danny is active in the community as a baseball and basketball coach and member of an outreach ministry group to local correctional facilities in Virginia.
Kate LeonardThe Leonard Group
Hill Day Coordinator
Kathleen (Kate) A. Leonard is the Managing Partner & CEO for The Leonard Group, LLP. She assists clients with their government relations interests by bringing more than fifteen years of experience to the resolution of their legislative concerns. Ms. Leonard has represented clients before Congress, state agencies and legislatures, the White House, OMB, and Departments of Justice, Treasury, Defense and Homeland Security regarding banking, budget, appropriations, commerce, judiciary, defense, labor, transportation, treasury, science and technology issues.
As a former staffer to U.S. Senator Robert W. Kasten, and principal lobbyist for key legislative clients for many years, Ms. Leonard has acquired extensive experience in the procedural and legislative systems of the U.S. Senate, House of Representatives and state legislatures and the executive branches of government.
Ms. Leonard has developed strong relationships with leaders of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives and their staff. She has expanded these relationships through her active participation in many bipartisan fundraisers for incumbents and challengers in the U.S. Senate, House of Representatives, as well as her role as a Delegate to Presidential Conventions.
Monte WardAdvanced Capital Consulting
Auction Chair
Monte Ward is President of Advanced Capitol Consulting - a company dedicated to assisting its clients in achieving their legislative and regulatory goals through government relations and advocacy services. Monte provides strategic counsel in the areas of government relations, trade association representation, political fundraising for members of Congress and political action committees and grassroots advocacy.
Prior to joining Advanced Capitol Consulting, Monte served as Vice President of Federal Affairs for the National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies, the largest property/casualty insurance trade association serving over 1,300 member companies. In this capacity he was responsible for all of the association's federal legislative affairs and the day to day operation of their Washington DC office.
Monte's Washington DC experience began on Capitol Hill where he worked as a staff assistant for Congressman John J. Rhodes, III (AZ), a legislative assistant for Congressman Jay Dickey (AR) and a legislative director for Congressman Michael Forbes (NY).
Monte is married to Jennifer and they have five boys. He is a basketball and baseball coach and a leader in the Boy Scouts of America. Monte also serves on the board of the American League of Lobbyists.
