Senior leadership

Charlie is a lawyer who represents companies in cases involving trademark infringement claims. Charlie has received numerous honors recognizing his professional accomplishments, including being named by LawyersUSA as one of six “Lawyers of the Year” nationally in 2008. He is listed annually as a leading intellectual property litigator by Chambers USA: The Best Lawyers in America^®, Legal 500, Super Lawyers, Managing Intellectual Property, and Georgia Trend. He is a partner at Kilpatrick Townsend, the law firm where he has practiced for his entire career.

Charlie long has been active in community service, particularly in the vibrant Atlanta arts community, having chaired the Boards of Theatrical Outfit, ArtsAtl, ArtsNow, Theater Emory, and Flying Carpet Theatre. He was a member of the Leadership Atlanta class of 2011 and the Leadership Georgia class of 2013, and served as a program chair of the Leadership Georgia class of 2014. He also has served on the Vestry at All Saints Episcopal Church and the Board of Visitors of Emory University.

Charlie first joined the Board of Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta in 2014, after having been inspired by attending the prior year’s Youth of the Year celebration. Prior to becoming Board Chair, he chaired the Resource Development and Marketing Committee for several years.

Charlie grew up in Atlanta and graduated summa cum laude from Emory University before obtaining his law degree from the University of North Carolina School of Law. He and his wife, Anne, live in Inman Park and have two curly-haired children.

David Jernigan is the President & Chief Executive Officer (CEO) for Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta. In this role, David is responsible for overseeing the organization which includes 25 Clubs in 10 counties. He brings a wealth of experience to the organization, with more than 20 years in the youth development space.

Immediately prior to joining BGCMA, David served as the Deputy Superintendent for Atlanta Public Schools, where he assisted the Superintendent in realizing a bold vision of transformation. Through his leadership, the district achieved a graduation rate improvement from 59% to 78% and seamless college enrollment growth from 51% to 62% over five years.

Prior to this, David served as the Executive Director for KIPP Metro Atlanta Schools and the Founding Principal of KIPP WAYS (West Atlanta Young Scholars).

David received his teaching certification through Georgia State University and holds a Masters degree in Educational Administration from the National Louis University in Chicago. He is also a Morehead Scholar and graduate of the University of North Carolina Kenan Flagler Business School. In 2012, he completed executive training at the Harvard Business School.

David has received numerous awards throughout his career, including being named one of Atlanta Business Chronicle’s rising community leaders with its annual “40 Under 40” award and one of the “100 Most Influential Georgians” by Georgia Trend. An active member of his community, David also currently serves on the boards of Hands on Atlanta and Breakthrough Atlanta.

Victor Fioresi is the Chief Financial Officer at Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta. In this role, he is responsible for the organization’s accounting, financial planning and analysis, tax, insurance, and treasury activities. Victor has spent his career in various finance roles at non-profit, software, and technology services companies that ranged in size from local to global.  Prior to joining BGCMA, he served as the Finance Director for Georgia Audubon, a local non-profit where he was responsible for all finance, HR, and administrative functions. Prior to that, Victor spent much of his career in project finance at Accenture.

Lorene Jackson is the Senior Vice President of Programs & Operations at Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta. In this role she leads a remarkable team of youth development professionals and provides strategic direction to ensure the highest quality Club experience and programming for kids and teens in and around metro Atlanta. Lorene brings over 25 years of progressive experience in the youth development field and has held several high-ranking positions within the Boys & Girls Club movement, at both the national and local levels. Her most recent experience was as Chief Operating Officer (COO) & Senior Vice President (SVP) for the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Coastal Plain. In 2018, Lorene was a recipient of Boys & Girls Clubs of America’s National Hermann Prescott Award, and in 2019, named one of their Masters and Mentors. Lorene holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from the University of Tennessee and a Master of Arts in Education from Concordia University. In her spare time, Lorene enjoys spending time with friends, traveling the world, and is a big sports fan.

Michael LaMont was previously the Executive Director of the Data and Information Group in Atlanta Public Schools (APS). His group was responsible for the management of the complete life cycle of student data for APS, including the student information system, student-based applications, research and evaluation, testing and assessment, accountability, and analytics. Before working at APS, Michael worked for Teach For America (TFA) Metro Atlanta, where he was the manager of data and strategy. Michael’s passion for youth development was sparked while teaching mathematics and science at Carver Health/Sciences/Research and KIPP Atlanta Collegiate. Michael believes in utilizing data as a mechanism to create beneficial change. Michael is a proud alumni of Georgia Tech with a degree in structural engineering. He also completed the two-year Strategic Data Project Fellowship, a program at the Center for Education Policy Research at Harvard University. He and his wife Lauren met while at Georgia Tech and have three young children. In their free time, they love being outdoors and going to Atlanta United games.

Kimberly Lucas re-joined Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta in 2013 as the Executive Director of Malon D. Mimms Boys & Girls Club. Throughout her tenure, she received several promotions including her most recent in May 2021 to Vice President of Safety & Facility Operations. In this role, she actively manages organization Real Estate, Information Technology, Facility & Fleet Operations, Risk & Safety, and vendor contracts to provide a safe, inclusive, and engaging environment to thousands of kids & teens in and around metro Atlanta. Prior to her work with BGCMA, Kimberly was a professional basketball player overseas in Turkey until she returned to the states in 1995 to undergo shoulder surgery. Before her procedure, she was introduced to Boys & Girls Clubs of Palm Beach County – Delray Beach Unit by a dear friend. She attributes this experience to helping her discover her greater purpose in her life. On that day, she realized Boys & Girls Clubs was a safe place filled with inspiring adults, structure, protection, and fun. In these moments, she knew she wanted to make a difference and become a part of the movement. Kimberly lives in South Fulton with her spouse and their twin boys. She enjoys spending time with family and friends, being active outdoors, traveling, watching movies, and working out.

Margo Marks is the Senior Vice President of Human Resources for Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta. In this role, she is responsible for all people initiatives including employee relations, benefits, recruiting, talent development and training. Margo brings 20 years of HR experience to BGCMA and realizes that an organization’s people are the most important asset. Margo’s past experience includes working with employees in several industries to ensure employee satisfaction and growth.  As an Atlanta native, Margo has served the community for over 10 years as a committee member, committee chair and board member of a local non-profit. She is very excited to work within an organization that is doing so much to impact the lives of the city’s youth. In her spare time, Margo enjoys playing Alta tennis, reading, family movie nights and cheering her two boys on in their various activities.

Dr. Shernā Phillips (“Dr. Nae” for short) is BGCMA’s Vice President of Marketing & Communications.  Shernā is a writer, artist, educator, community advocate, and strategic communications expert with a professional mission to help individuals and organizations control their own narratives. In her 14-year communications career, she has had stints as a multi-platform journalist for the Baltimore Sun Media Group, web producer at CBS Baltimore (WJZ-TV), assistant director of communications at The Fund for Johns Hopkins Medicine, communications specialist for Atlanta Public Schools (APS), and adjunct English instructor at Spelman College. In her free time, she enjoys executing DIY projects from her Pinterest boards, attending concerts and live theater performances, writing & producing plays, and spending quality time with loved ones.

For media inquires: Marketing@bgcma.org or 404-527-7586

As BGCMA’s Chief Development Officer, Veronica Squires oversees all fundraising efforts and strategies. Veronica previously served as the Chief Administrative Officer at The Good Samaritan Health Center in Atlanta, Georgia, where she leads strategy, growth, and fundraising efforts. Before Good Samaritan Health Center, Veronica served as Director of Corporate Development for BGCMA.  Prior to her time at BGCMA, Veronica was the Georgia Director of Ministry Partnerships for InterVarsity Christian Fellowship. She is a certified Christian Community Development Association (CCDA) practitioner and serves on the advisory board for the Georgia Charitable Care Network. She is currently pursuing her Executive MBA from Emory University’s Goizueta Business School. She is also the co-author of the book How Neighborhoods Make Us Sick – Restoring Health & Wellness to Our Communities which explores issues of race, equity, and social determinants of health in ZIP codes that have experienced historic disinvestment.