Ms. Carmen Ubarry
Ms. Carmen Ubarry was born in San Turce, Puerto Rico and raised in Camden, New Jersey. The youngest of 7 siblings and raised by a single mother Ms. Ubarry grew up in a very tight-knit family with strong civic minded values. Her mother instilled in her family an attitude to affect change in the lives of people especially brown and black folks. Ms. Ubarry learned to contribute her talent and leadership where needed.
Ms. Ubarry graduated from Lincoln University with a Masters in Human Services. The majority of her career has focused on family engagement and postsecondary education. Ms. Ubarry currently works at Mastery High School of Camden as the Family and Community Engagement Manager with Mastery Schools of Camden. She was a founding staff member for the LEAP Academy University Charter School for 18 years.
Ms. Ubarry is a tireless advocate for parents and students and believes that true community schooling will change Camden one family at a time.
Mr. Raj Lakshumanan
Mr. Lakshumanan is President and Managing Partner of Bluestar Technology Solutions. Here, he is responsible for leading the company’s Business Development and Technology strategies as well as managing overall growth and operations in serving the company’s primarily Fortune-500 clientele. As a result-driven business executive with over 25 years of well-balanced experience in technology and business around the world, Mr. Lakshumanan always embraces the concept of giving back to the community. He believes that the importance of giving back to society cannot be understated. Mr. Lakshumanan says, “When you give back, you’re able to better the lives of the people around you—your loved ones, the people in your community, and the lives of people somewhere else in the world.” As Mr. Lakshumanan hailed from a remote village in India, he never forgets his roots and humble beginnings. This helps him easily relate to other people who struggle to rise given their difficult conditions. He regularly advises the founders of the Raj Foundation to help them route their focus and dedication to humanitarianism.
Mr. Lakshumanan holds a Masters in Computer Science from Bharathiar University, India, and an Executive MBA from Drexel University, Philadelphia, United States; he fulfilled part of the MBA course work at Oxford University, United Kingdom.
Mrs. Tamie McSweeney Pettiford
Mrs. McSweeney Pettiford is a seasoned real estate professional with over 17 years’ experience in the real estate industry. She currently serves as a New Jersey Broker Salesperson and Pennsylvania Licensed Realtor with Re/Max Preferred of Cherry Hill, NJ.
Mrs. McSweeney Pettiford was born to young parents in Brockton, MA. As a biracial child, whose mother is white and father is black, Mrs. McSweeney Pettiford’s mother instilled in her the importance of embracing her ethnicity and fostering a positive self-esteem. She credits her mother for teaching her very early in her life to treat everyone with dignity and respect, and exposing her to persons of various races and cultures. While growing up, Mrs. McSweeney Pettiford’s family cultivated friendships with many families of Korean, Lebanese, Indian, and Chinese descent. These invaluable friendships and her mother’s teachings have shaped Mrs. McSweeney Pettiford into who she is today – a proponent of multi-culturalism, diversity and inclusion, and a believer that everyone has something to bring to the table of life!
Mrs. McSweeney Pettiford’s father and paternal family further modeled for her the meaning of “love thy neighbor,” and the importance of civic engagement. Her paternal grandmother happily feed the masses or anyone that needed a meal, and shipped barrels of clothes, shoes, and necessities to ancestral lands. The family, with young Tamie in tow, frequently transported neighbors to the voting polls during elections, and helped those who were illiterate. Mrs. McSweeney Pettiford recalls attending a campaign rally with her paternal family at the tender age of four. These experiences with her family planted the seed for Mrs. McSweeney Pettiford’s volunteerism today.
Mrs. McSweeney Pettiford presently mentors and coach youth and young adults, as well as aspiring realtors. She is a member of the Cooper Grant Neighborhood Association in Camden, NJ, and the Girl Scouts of Central and Southern NJ. She previously served as a fundraising chair and a family mentor for other non-profit associations.
Mrs. McSweeney Pettiford, a wife and proud mother of two daughters, holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Business Administration from Lasell University, located in Newton, MA.