Susan Costlow is vice president of leadership and learning communities at the Manufacturer’s Alliance for Productivity and Innovation (MAPI). MAPI is a nonprofit professional organization designed to help manufacturing leaders make smarter business decisions through its membership programs for manufacturing executives, professional development events, and manufacturing-focused business insights and research.

Prior to her work at MAPI, Costlow was director of corporate development for the Lockheed Martin Corporation, where she executed M&A transactions and was responsible for leading the corporation’s venture capital activities. She created Lockheed Martin’s $100M Emerging Technology Fund in 2007 and made key investments in early stage companies with technologies of strategic interest to Lockheed Martin and its operating units.

Earlier, Costlow served in Corporate Treasury, where she was director of corporate banking and, prior to that, director of project and trade finance. She managed Lockheed Martin’s commercial lending group, rating agency relationships, leasing activity, project finance activity, and was responsible for the corporation’s trade finance portfolio. She lead several important initiatives during this period, including issuing $3 billion in corporate bonds in a key capital structure initiative, negotiating and syndicating a $2 billion credit facility to ensure liquidity, syndicating a $300 million synthetic lease for the corporation’s Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle Launch Pad, and issuing the largest letter of credit in the corporation’s history ($2 billion).

Before joining Treasury, Costlow was a corporate auditor and served in a variety of increasingly responsible finance positions within Lockheed Martin’s Electronics Systems and the Information Services and Global Solutions businesses.

Costlow served as chairperson of the Board of Directors of National Industries for the Blind prior to joining the Board of NSITE.

She graduated from Bowling Green State University with a Bachelor of Science in procurement and materials management. She holds a master’s degree in business administration from Rutgers University and a master’s certificate in international business from The George Washington University.

Dennis Steiner is former president and chief executive officer at VisionCorps, a nonprofit organization headquartered in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.  Its mission is to empower people who are blind or vision impaired to attain independence by providing them with the tools and training, including employment.  The organization serves almost 2,000 individuals with rehabilitation and employment services in Lancaster, Lebanon, Chester, York, and Adams counties.  Steiner retired from VisionCorps in October 2025.

Active in his community, Steiner is a member of the Lancaster Lions and a Leadership Lancaster alumnus.  A graduate of Pennsylvania State University, Steiner holds a bachelor’s degree in rehabilitation and a master’s degree in Rehabilitation and Counseling.

Rob Buettner became president and CEO of Beyond Vision, Inc., on July 1, 2024, after 11 years of mission-driven leadership within the organization. Diagnosed with Stargardt Macular Degeneration at the age of 26, Rob feels blessed to have found such rewarding work increasing opportunity for people who are blind through employment.

Providing employment has been an interest of Rob’s since college. He earned a BBA in Human Resources Management and an MBA in Management from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater. Although successful on his early career path through the world of corporate human resources, Rob felt led to work more closely with the community that had been so supportive on his own journey with vision loss. His first endeavors included three years growing and selling a low-vision technology startup, followed by 10 years leading a rehabilitation program for adults with a local blindness organization. These qualifications and lived experiences served Rob well upon joining the leadership team at Beyond Vision in March 2013.

Rob’s contributions to Beyond Vision over the past 11 years have centered on his dual roles leading HR and directing the company’s new Contact Center business unit. He remains active on a local advocacy level, as well as on a national level through the National Association for the Employment of People Who Are Blind.

A proud, life-long Wisconsinite and diehard Brewer’s fan, Rob lives in Wauwatosa with his wife, two children, and two-year-old English Mastiff puppy.

Andy Marks is a senior insight and analytics professional with 10+ years of experience leading research at global multi-billion dollar technology and entertainment corporations. He is currently director of consumer research at Audible, an Amazon company, where he leads the U.S. Consumer Research team managing all aspects of market research and consumer insight projects. Prior to joining Audible, Mr. Marks worked in Consumer Insight, Measurement, and Analytics at The Walt Disney Company.

Marks serves as vice chairperson of the Board of Directors of Success Beyond Sight, a nonprofit corporation dedicated to empowering individuals who are blind or have low vision to advance professionally and fully engage in community life by eliminating barriers to their equal opportunity for success. He also volunteers with the United Mitochondrial Disease Foundation and Braven Accelerator as a Rutgers Leadership Coach. 

Marks earned his Bachelor of Science in psychology and Bachelor of Arts in economics from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Alayna Effron is a principal at ARE Consulting, LLC, where she focuses on curriculum development, professional education activities, brand awareness, fundraising, business development, proposal development and strategic content development for clients.  With nearly two decades of experience in public health and health education, Effron has worked across a variety of professional settings worldwide, including corporate, non-profit and non-government organizations, and hospital-based and community centers for the advancement of care access through a transformation of education, information and partnership. 
 
Effron has trained, educated and collaborated with thousands of educators, scientists, researchers, practitioners, members of the interdisciplinary care team, and stakeholders on the delivery of health education programs and public health initiatives that address health inequities and health disparities across a myriad of national health topics. 
 
She obtained her doctorate degree in health education with a specialty in health equity from Columbia University.  Her research focused on the interface between provider education and patient health outcomes, with a dual concentration in global health care system management and population health, social determinants and health equity.  She has a master’s degree in international health promotions and public health, with a concentration in public policy and health communication from Indiana University, Bloomington, and has been a Certified Health Education Specialist with the National Commission of Health Education Credentialing since 2006.

Jonathan Lucus is the executive director of NSITE, the talent management enterprise of National Industries for the Blind providing a continuum of employment services that connect employers with talented, dedicated people who are blind, visually impaired, and/or veterans to meet their workforce needs.

Lucus is an internationally recognized expert with nearly 20 years of workforce development experience supporting people with disabilities, immigrants, and other underserved populations. He has served as a consultant to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the U.S. State Department, the European Union, and numerous countries on workforce issues, including serving as a State Department fellow advising the Egyptian Parliament and several ministries on implementation of national disability workforce initiatives.

His contributions to migrant workforce integration and training programs have been recognized by the United Nations High Commissioner of Refugees as an international best practice. He holds a doctorate in organizational change and leadership from the Rossier School of Education at the University of Southern California, an executive master’s degree in leadership from the McDonough School of Business at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., and a Master of Public Affairs from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.

Tygressa Jones serves as the Program Director – Administration at National Industries for the Blind. A seasoned C-suite professional, she brings extensive experience supporting executive leadership teams and boards of directors across both nonprofit and for-profit sectors. Tygressa has led strategic initiatives, partnered with senior executives and functional leaders, and played a pivotal role in developing corporate strategies, implementing best practices, and driving process improvements aimed at increasing organizational effectiveness and operational efficiency. Her diverse industry expertise spans Technology, Energy, Healthcare, Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs), and Law, giving her a comprehensive understanding of cross-sector operations and governance.
 
Tygressa holds a Juris Doctorate from Taft University Law School, an MBA, and a Bachelor of Science from Strayer University. She is a member of the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), Project Management Institute (PMI), National Association of Parliamentarians, Toastmasters International (District 27), and an organizing member of the Greater Washington Black Chamber of Commerce (GWBCC).  At the 2025 Core Career Annual Meeting of Directors, Tygressa was appointed Assistant Secretary of the Board.

Cynthia Bryant served over 20 years at the Federal Communications Commission. From 2000-2022, she worked as special counsel, managing a program designed to encourage employees to explore mediation as an alternative to resolve workplace conflict, handled telecom foreign ownership licenses and mergers, and investigated and adjudicated anti-fraud and anti-competitive behavior.

Ms. Bryant is a former member of the board of trustees of The Seeing Eye, a guide dog school, and a former member of the board of governors at the University of Kansas Law School. In addition, Ms. Bryant is former president of the Benjamin Hooks Chapter of Blacks in Government, which mentors participants to maximize their career opportunities and provides a mechanism for growth and advocacy.  She presently serves on the board of the Spencer Museum of Art in Lawrence, Kansas.

Ms. Bryant received a bachelor’s degree in creative arts from Bradford College, a Juris Doctorate degree from the University of Kansas Law School, and a Master of Laws degree in International Legal Studies from the American University Washington College of Law. She is certified in mediation and negotiation by the Harvard Negotiation Institute and a certified CliftonStrengths coach. In addition, she is a graduate of the African American Federal Executive Association Fellows program, a one-year intensive leadership development program aimed at making participants highly competitive for positions in the Senior Executive Service.