Board of Directors

Herb Hoelter co-founded NCIA in 1977. Today, he is recognized as one of the country’s leading experts in sentencing and the federal prison system and in developing alternative programs to incarceration.

Carole Argo assumed the role of CEO in September of 2022 after seven years in the role of COO at NCIA. She is responsible for the overall operations of NCIA and has senior management experience in various industries.

Lindsay M. Hayes was elected as a Board member in April 2008. Mr. Hayes was a Project Director for the National Center on Institutions and Alternatives. He is nationally recognized as an expert in the field of suicide prevention within jails, prisons and juvenile facilities. Mr. Hayes served as a technical assistance consultant/expert by conducting training seminars and assessing inmate and juvenile suicide prevention practices in various state and local jurisdictions throughout the country.

Andrew J. Hunt was elected as a Board member in March 2013. Mr. Hunt co-owns Hunt Habitats specializing in housebuilding. He is also a shareholder in Wilds Lodge School, where he was instrumental in renovating a private house into a facility where up to 60 children who had dropped out of mainstream education, could live and learn.

Christine Pahigian was elected as a Board member in March 2010. Ms. Pahigian serves as the executive director of Friends of Island Academy located in New York, a nonprofit youth development agency providing voluntary transitional support services to young ex-offenders completing jail sentences.

Walid Petiri was elected as a Board member is March 2022. He is the owner of Financial Management Strategies, LLC (FMS) a Registered Investment Advisor established in 2000. He has over two decades of financial experience that covers virtually all areas of finance from tax, insurance, stockbroker, personal financial planning and personal banking to corporate credit, business planning, and consumer lending.

Rhonda Pierce-Brooks was elected as a Board member in March 2022. She brings over 25 years of experience in the role of Vice President of Human Resources which is her current position at Tower Federal Credit Union. Rhonda is also a program oversight committee member for Community Based Alternatives and Initiatives (CBAI), serving developmentally disabled individuals in Maryland.

Deborah Kakaris has over 35 years of experience in the financial services industry and is currently a Senior Vice President and the Chief Information Officer at CFG Bank. Her experience ranges across banking and wealth disciplines and spans all facets of management including client service, operations, IT, project, strategic, budget and personnel. Deborah is also active in training, mentoring, and diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives and programs.