Leaders

Julie Brekke

Executive Director

Julie is a trusted leader in the nonprofit community and is known for her entrepreneurial drive, creativity, and collaborative spirit in building sustainable, effective programs. Joining Hired in January 2017 as its third Executive Director, she is responsible for leading the strategy and operations of this multifaceted workforce development organization that serves people across the Twin Cities.

Julie has spent the last 25 years of her career in the nonprofit sector working to expand opportunities and access for those who have barriers to building a stable, hopeful future. Her passion for people, partnerships and collaboration drives her work in the sector. Her previous leadership at Project for Pride in Living focused on growth in fundraising, supportive housing, workforce development, support services, youth development, and more. She has a B.A. from University of Minnesota, has been a Georgetown New Strategies Fellow and Humphrey Policy Fellow, and has participated in both Leadership Twin Cities and the Target Foundation Nonprofit Leadership Program.


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Reubenna Cooley

Director,
Human Resources

Reubenna leads Hired as our HR Director, who is responsible for overseeing our HR systems, assessing staff needs, handling employee relations and more. She has over 20 years of experience in HR management and builds strong, trusting relationships with employees at all levels of the agency, making a positive impact on company culture.

Reubenna was recently awarded the 2019 Ogletree Deakins & TCSHRM Non-Profit HR Professional of the Year. She is a certified Professional in Human Resources (PHR) and has a B.A. in Chicano Studies from the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities.


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Debbie Ferry

Director, Employment Services

Debbie currently oversees Hired’s Dislocated Worker, Adult WIOA and SNAP E&T Programs at Hired, including both programmatic and budget matters.

Previous to Hired, Debbie worked at Avivo as their Vice President of Employment Services. She is an accomplished leader with over 20 years of experience in delivering financial and operational results. She has multi-unit management experience with proven ability in achieving corporate objectives. Debbie has a B.A. in Retail of Textiles and Clothing from Michigan State University.


Rachel Grosskurth

Director,
Youth Programs

With over 20 years of experience working with young people, Rachel has recently taken lead of Hired’s Youth Programs. Since 2007 Rachel has worked in numerous project areas within Hired’s youth team, receiving promotions from employment counselor to manager, then to director in January 2021. She has extensive experience in youth probation, corrections, and treatment, and deep knowledge of the juvenile justice system, expungement, and youth employment. She is passionate about fighting racial and social injustices in our community, and serves as a Racial Justice Facilitator at YWCA Minneapolis.

Rachel holds an Offender Workforce Development Specialist (OWDS) Certification and is a licensed Global Career Development Facilitator (GCDF). She graduated from Metropolitan State University with a B.S. in Criminal Justice; her M.A. from Alfred Adler Graduate School is in School Counseling and Guidance.


rob+novak

Rob Novak

Chief Financial Officer

Rob is a proven leader coupled with a strong analytical and results-oriented approach. Joining Hired in early 2020 as the new Chief Financial Officer, Rob is responsible for managing all aspects of Accounting and Finance, IT systems, and a variety of operation functions.

Rob brings 25 years of experience, with a career that started in public accounting then transitioned most recently to the nonprofit sector. He has an extensive background in financial accounting, budgeting, operational improvements and managing teams. Rob is passionate about helping Hired find efficiencies and working closely with our leaders to meet strategic goals. Rob has a B.S in Accounting from St. Cloud State University and maintains an active CPA license.


Andrea Peterson

Director, Career Pathways

With nearly 17 years of experience in career pathway development within Hired and the broader community, Andrea has worked with hundreds of participants over multiple roles over her career, from program delivery to strategic implementation and program management.

Most recently, she served as Hired’s Senior Program Manager for Career Pathways, and Andrea has overseen significant program growth, expanding pathways to meet employer and participant needs. She is a proven, caring, and compassionate leader who cultivates a team dedicated to delivering high-quality programs in a supportive environment. Andrea holds a B.S. in Family Social Science from the University of Minnesota.


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Mayko Sadler

Associate Director,
MFIP Programs

Mayko is a results-driven leader with over 12 years of management experience and 25+ years working with low-income, refugee and immigrant families. Her strategic eye and heartfelt commitment to the families we serve continue to result in successful outcomes for our participants. She is a dedicated leader with great expertise in Minnesota’s Family Investment Program, and now serves as Hired’s Associate Program Director to our public assistance programs as well as special initiatives in both Hennepin and Ramsey Counties.

Mayko’s extensive knowledge and passion for delivering culturally aware and equitable services will continue to positively impact the communities we serve. Mayko holds an impressive background in education and training focused on equity leadership, human services, domestic violence, mental health, and motivational coaching with a GCDF certification.


Jen Swalboski

Director, MFIP Programs

Jen brings more than 10 years of experience in social services, workforce development, and supporting families receiving public assistance to stabilize and build a strong future through employment.  Jen’s career with Hired started as an employment counselor in 2014, and quickly, her strong leadership skills elevated her to a program manager in 2016.

Jen is a graduate of the Twin Cities Leadership 2021-2022 cohort, is trained as a Motivational Interviewing Coach, a Domestic Violence Specialist, and Offender Workforce Development Specialist. Jen carries many valuable experiences and perspectives as director of Hired’s largest program. She holds a B.A. in Sociology from University of Minnesota Duluth, and a M.A. in Sociology from Utah State University.


Deanna Threadgill

Advancement Director

Deanna is responsible for leading fundraising and communication efforts at Hired.  She has worked within the nonprofit community for more than 25 years, in fundraising; communications; grant writing and management; nonprofit consulting; and program design, evaluation, implementation, and management. 

Most recently, she served as Vice President for Programs at Big Brothers Big Sisters Twin Cities, where she led their program team and supported youth mentoring in various capacities over nearly 16 years. Prior to joining BBBS, Deanna’s career involved work in higher education; workforce, economic and microenterprise development, and direct youth services.

She holds an M.A. in Philanthropy and Development from Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota, and a B.A. from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Board of Directors

 

Keven Ambrus, Treasurer
Amherst H. Wilder Foundation

Gulsa Mattson
Mercer

Karen Dotson
Ameriprise Financial

Kate Felicetta
Target Corporation

Jennifer Jackson
U.S. Bank

Edmund J. Kelley
Community Volunteer

Brent Kettelkamp
Ogletree Deakins

Julie Kmoch
Adobe

Betsy Koonce
Ecolab

Veronika Mix
People Incorporated

Christopher D. Krusmark,
Board Chair

Sleep Number

Bernice Lamkin, Board Vice Chair
Xcel Energy

Tom Lehman
The Lehman Group

Jackie Kane Ottoson
Accanto Health

David Prince
Minnesota Bank & Trust

Charles Squires, CPC
Robert Half

Ryan Stauff
Life Link III

Jim Vitt
Associated Bank

Ramona Wilson
Knutson Construction

Uma Krishnamoothy Allianz