ITD’s experienced and diverse board members are committed and passionate about the organization’s mission. They provide the leadership and vision necessary to steer the organization toward a sustainable future. They ensure ITD adopts sound and ethical governance and financial management policies and remains accountable to its sponsors and its mission.
Board of Directors
Mary-Lou Rup
President
Justice Rup currently serves as senior counsel in the law firm Bulkley Richardson. Prior to this she was an associate justice on the Massachusetts Superior Court from 1992 until her retirement in 2018. As a lawyer and as a judge, Justice Rup has served as a faculty member on numerous continuing legal education and training programs and as a guest lecturer in high school, college and law school classes. Over the years she has guided numerous ITD groups to a deeper understanding about the Massachusetts and U.S. justice system, including Russian and Ukrainian legal professionals; Romanian and Armenian teachers developing civics curricula for their educational systems; and Latin American university students studying American democracy. For nearly a decade Justice Rup was co-chair of the steering committee for the Massachusetts-Tomsk rule of law partnership with the Russian American Rule of Law Consortium (RAROLC) and in this capacity traveled frequently to Russia to support their programs there.
John Waite
Treasurer
John began work at the Franklin County Community Development Corporation (FCCDC) in March 2000 and oversees all of the organization’s operations and programs. He has been involved with international economic development and entrepreneurship for ten years in Burkina Faso, Uganda, Philippines, Palestine and Uzbekistan. At the FCCDC, John has ushered the expansion of the Business Technical Assistance and Lending Program, and helped build, equip and operate the Western MA Food Processing Center. The Center is now 20 years old and has served over 500 food and agricultural businesses. John has a BA from the University Massachusetts and a Graduate Degree from Columbia University, was a volunteer and staff person with the Peace Corps, worked with CARE International, and consulted for several Microfinance programs. John now spends much of his time supporting small business start-ups and expansion in western Massachusetts.
Beth Miller Pittman
Clerk
Beth Miller Pittman has worked in international development for the last 30 years, implementing and managing international education initiatives with an emphasis on program planning, capacity building of community-based organizations, training program design and curriculum/materials development. She has worked extensively in West and East Africa in the areas of community participation in education, government accountability, adult literacy/numeracy, HIV/AIDS, and work readiness/life skills for out-of-school youth.
She currently works with the Education Development Center and has previous experience with organizations such as the Peace Corps, UNICEF, World Education, and Partners in Health. Beth lives in Leverett, MA and enjoys hiking, biking, cross-country skiing and gardening.
Leo Hwang
Member
Dr. Leo L. Hwang is currently the Assistant Academic Dean in the College of Natural Sciences Academic Advising Center at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. Dr. Hwang is particularly interested in using participatory action research and asset based community development as a model for enhancing how we engage in racial justice work in higher education. He earned his Ph.D. at the University of Massachusetts in Geosciences, an M.F.A. in fiction writing from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, and his B.A. in English and Fine Arts from the University of the South. His work has appeared in The Handbook of Diverse Economies, Human Being & Literature, The SAGE International Encyclopedia of Travel and Tourism, Route Nine, Rethinking Marxism, Solidarity Economy I: Building Alternatives for People and Planet, Meat for Tea, The Massachusetts Review, Glimmer Train Stories, Rivendell, Fiction, Gulf Coast and other journals and publications. He has taught at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst; Mount Holyoke College; Greenfield Community College; and Westfield State University; and he served as Dean of Humanities, Engineering, Math, and Science at Greenfield Community College for over 16 years.
Joe Horther
Member
Joe was born and raised in Durango, Colorado. Joe received a MEd in International Education from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. He has an extensive background in nonprofit management, program management, and training in diverse cultural settings. Joe served as a US Peace Corps Volunteer in Paraguay, SA and later served as the Programming and Training Officer for the US Peace Corps in the Eastern Caribbean. He was the Senior Program Director for the Institute for Training and Development where he designed and implemented training programs for government and nonprofit leaders from Latin America and the Republics of the former Soviet Union. He was the Chief Operating Officer at the Spring Institute for Intercultural Learning. Before moving to Laramie, Joe served as the Integration Partnerships Coordinator for the Colorado Refugee Services Program. What intrigues him most about learning and bridging social capital initiatives, is finding the common threads that bring people from different cultural backgrounds together in their efforts to improve their own lives and communities.
Annabel Beerel
Member
Dr. Annabel Beerel is an accomplished author, educator, and leadership coach with a diverse career spanning international corporations, educational institutions, and non-profits. She has held executive roles, including corporate financier and investment banker in London, and founded a successful AI business. Annabel has taught at prestigious institutions such as Wellesley College, Radcliffe College, and Tufts University, and she founded the New England Women’s Leadership Institute to support women’s career advancement. Holding a Ph.D. in Comparative Religion and Ethics, she has multiple master’s degrees in Transformational Psychology, Theology, Creative Writing, and an MBA focused on Corporate Finance and Strategic Management. Dr. Beerel is also a certified accountant, transpersonal leadership coach, meditation instructor, and spiritual counselor. Born in Johannesburg, South Africa, she has traveled extensively, teaching and working globally. With twelve books to her name, Annabel continues to consult, lead seminars, and speak on a wide range of topics, driven by her passion for exploring world cultures and religions.
