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Founding Directors | Board of Directors | Staff

Founding DirectorsBack to Top

Alison Comfort

See Alison's postings on the OSI Blog

Alison Comfort is Co-Founder of Opportunity Solutions International, Inc. and is directing the organization’s Masomboly Project to provide small scale loans to women in Ambalavao, Madagascar for entrepreneurial activities. She is currently pursuing her Ph.D. in Health Policy at Harvard University where she is focusing on economics and international health. She has provided research assistance to evaluate the impact of health insurance to micro-credit clients in Karnataka, India. Comfort served in the Peace Corps in Madagascar where she implemented interactive “listening groups” to educate women in rural villages about family planning and HIV/AIDS. She also provided technical assistance to community-based health insurance initiatives being implemented throughout the country. Comfort began her career in international development by working on the Partners for Health Reformplus Project at Abt Associates where she helped develop software to estimate the costs of providing AIDS treatment in resource-poor countries. Comfort received her Bachelor of Arts from Amherst College with a double major in Economics and Spanish.

Paul J. Krezanoski

See Paul's postings on the OSI Blog

Paul J. Krezanoski is Co-Founder of Opportunity Solutions International, Inc. and is directing NetComp II to evaluate the impact of providing financial incentives to promote the use of mosquito nets in rural households in Ambalavao, Madagascar. Krezanoski is also pursuing his Medical Degree at Boston University School of Medicine. Prior to his studies, Krezanoski worked as a Project Manager at Fannie Mae in Washington, D.C. He has served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Madagascar where he implemented NetComp I to assess demand for mosquito nets at various price levels. He presented the results of this research at various international conferences, including the Global Health Council. Krezanoski has worked as a Help Desk Manager at IBM to support the U.S. Customs and was the Chief Technology Officer for Atlantis Technology in the Web Design and IT Services Division. He is certified as a Project Management Professional and as an Emergency Medical Technician. Krezanoski received his Bachelor of Arts from Middlebury College with a double major in Anthropology and Computer Science.

Board of DirectorsBack to Top

Thomas Biggins

As the founder of Concord, Massachusetts based Atlantis Technology, Tom Biggins is an entrepreneur successful at spearheading agile development of innovative systems. At Atlantis, he managed the creation of New England’s largest independent WiFi network and led the implementation of presence-awareness, mobile, and social-networking ventures. He aggressively pursues emerging technologies and the market opportunities they present. Tom holds a bachelors degree in Economics from Amherst College.

Richard Comfort

Richard Comfort is General Counsel for Asia and Africa at Arcelor-Mittal. Arcelor-Mittal is the world’s largest steel company with a global market presence in the automotive, construction, household appliance and packaging industries in America, Europe, Asia and Africa. Prior to joining Arcelor-Mittal, Comfort has worked as the International and European General Counsel for various European and U.S. multinational corporations, based in Paris, France. These companies include Companie de Saint-Gobain, Medtronic, U.S. Surgical Corporation and Case Corporation. Prior to moving to France, Comfort was an associate attorney for Holland & Hart in Denver, Colorado. His educational background include a Bachelors of Arts from Amherst College and a J.D. from Georgetown University.

Paul C. Gannon

Paul C. Gannon is Managing Director & Chief Financial and Administrative Officer since 1991 for the Baupost Group LLC, an investment management firm that manages $8 billion for high net worth families and institutions, particularly education endowments. Gannon oversees the tax, accounting, compliance, IT, investor services and corporate administration areas of Baupost. Prior to joining Baupost, Gannon served as the Chief Financial Officer for the Real Estate Group of the Bank of Boston and was the Vice President of Finance for a chain of home centers. Gannon earned his CPA designation while working with Ernst and Whinney in Boston and Sydney, Australia. He graduated with a B.S. in Accounting from the University of Virginia. Gannon serves on the board of several charitable and civic organizations.

Bryan Krezanoski

Bryan Krezanoski is the founder of In2S-Integrated Investigative Solutions, an investigative consulting and litigation support company. He has more than 20 years experience with investigative work in law enforcement and the corporate environment. His corporate investigative experience at two major financial services companies consisted of management and investigative roles, and involved a solid history of careful coordination with Human Resources, Legal and Compliance departments. In his most recent assignment he established and managed a corporate investigations group with nationwide responsibility. He previously served as a Special Agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) handling investigation and prosecution of a variety of criminal and counter intelligence matters. His educational background includes a Bachelor of Arts degree from Loyola Marymount University and a Master’s in Business Administration degree from Santa Clara University. Krezanoski is a member of the Society of Former Special Agents of the FBI (SFSAFBI), Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE), International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP), American Society for Industrial Security (ASIS), and the High Technology Crime Investigation Association (HTCIA).

Kelly O'Hanley

Kelly O’Hanley has more than twenty years of experience in 32 countries providing medical expertise to reproductive health, maternal and child health, and primary health care programs. She has served as an evaluator, trainer, and provided assistance in quality improvement and is the author of technical documents on emergency medical management, postpartum IUD insertion, and laparoscopic sterilization. She has been a contributor to the clinical trials of contraceptive devices and drugs and has remained active clinically in obstetrics and gynecology. O’Hanley lives in Portland, Oregon. Her educational background includes a Masters of Public Health, Maternal and Child Health from the University of California, Berkeley, CA; an internship/residency from the University of Oregon Health Sciences, Portland, OR; a Medical degree from the Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC; and a Bachelors of Arts, Psychology from Pomona College, Claremont, CA.

Nancy Pielemeier

Nancy R. Pielemeier is Vice President of the International Health Division at Abt Associates. She manages and provides technical leadership of a large portfolio of international health projects ranging from health systems strengthening to reproductive health and HIV/AIDS. She has over 30 years of professional experience in international public health policy and program development. Pielemeier has served as director of Partners for Health Reform Plus (PHRplus), the $98 million flagship project in health policy and systems strengthening of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), to address reform of health policy, financing, service delivery, and information systems. Pielemeier was also director of the USAID-funded ZdravReform Project for health finance and service delivery reform in the former Soviet Union. She has served as an advisor for USAID in Washington, D.C. and USAID in Monrovia, Liberia as well as coordinator of a health services development project in Gaborone, Botswana; and a Peace Corps teacher in Malaysia. Pielemeier holds a Dr.P.H. in International Health and an M.H.S. in Comprehensive Health Planning from The Johns Hopkins University School of Hygiene and Public Health and a B.A. in Modern Languages from Knox College.

StaffBack to Top

Ravo Harinirina

Ravo Harinirina is the Chief of Party for OSI in Madagascar and is responsible for managing the implementation of the Masomboly Project and NetComp II. She leads bi-weekly meetings to collect loan repayments from the micro-lending clients and provides assistance to these clients to carry out their entrepreneurial activities. She also oversees the weekly data collection to evaluate the impact of the Masomboly Project on household’s spending. She has held similar responsibilities for NetComp II project by managing a team of 20 data collectors to implement the project. Harinirina is also President of Association Avotra, a women’s association of health educators who have implemented radio shows on women’s health issues, led listening groups to promote behavior change, and been at the forefront of organizing health awareness activities for events like World AIDS Day. Harinirina has received training in health education from various international NGOs. She has worked as a research assistant for the local office of WWF and has experience in the tourism industry by managing a local campsite.

Theresia Rafanomezana

Theresia Rafanomezana is a Research Assistant for the Masomboly Project. She collects data on a weekly basis on household spending to evaluate the impact of the micro-lending project on households who participate in the project in comparison to those who do not. She is a member of Association Avotra and has been responsible for leading listening groups in rural villages in Ambalavao, Madagascar. She received health education training from Population Services International. She also implemented a social marketing project to promote the sale of health products such as mosquito nets and family planning products. She previously worked as a rice farmer.

Francoise Razanadimby

Francoise Razanadimby is a Research Assistant for the Masomboly Project. She collects data on a weekly basis on household spending to evaluate the impact of the micro-lending project on households who participate in the project in comparison to those who do not. She is a member of Association Avotra and has been responsible for leading listening groups in rural villages in Ambalavao, Madagascar. She received health education training from Population Services International. She also implemented a social marketing project to promote the sale of health products such as mosquito nets and family planning products. She previously worked as a rice farmer.

Nirina Razafimanarivo

Nirina Razafimanarivo is a Research Assistant for the Masomboly Project. She collects data on a weekly basis on household spending to evaluate the impact of the micro-lending project on households who participate in the project in comparison to those who do not. She is a member of Association Avotra and has been responsible for leading listening groups in rural villages and doing data collection for the NetComp II malaria project in Ambalavao, Madagascar. She has received health education training from Population Services International. She previously worked as a pig farmer.

Michael Gannon

Michael Gannon is working as an intern for OSI in Ambalavao, Madagascar during summer 2008. He is in charge of developing business training modules to improve micro-lending clients' business skills. He is also conducting focus groups and individual interviews with OSI's borrowers to identify opportunities to assist borrowers in expanding their businesses. Gannon is currently studying at the University of Virginia, focusing on music, commerce, and global sustainability. He has done community work in Honduras and the Dominican Republic, primarily education and infrastructure development. Mike has studied international business in China, and has most recently been studying multicultural development and social entrepreneurship in the UK with student representatives from all over the world.

Rabarisoanirina Agathe

Rabarisoanirina Agathe is a Research Assistant for OSI's Project Masomboly in Fort Dauphin, Madagascar. She collects data on a weekly basis on household spending to evaluate the impact of the micro-lending project on households who participate in the project in comparison to those who do not. Fluent in Malagasy, French, and English, Agathe is instrumental in translating interviews from Malagasy into English for the monthly updates of Project Masomboly's borrowers. Agathe comes to OSI with extensive training in hospitality and has her Associate's Degree in Environmental Management and Development from the Centre Ecologique de Libanona.

Soahery Filonne

Soahery Filonne is a Research Assistant for OSI's Project Masomboly in Fort Dauphin, Madagascar. She collects data on a weekly basis on household spending to evaluate the impact of the micro-lending project on households who participate in the project in comparison to those who do not. Fluent in Malagasy, French, and English, Filonne is instrumental in translating interviews from Malagasy into English for the monthly updates of Project Masomboly's borrowers. Filonne comes to OSI with a background including extensive training in health education and tailoring.

Nick Anderson

Nick Anderson is OSI's Director of Operations for its Ansirabe site in Madagascar. In addition to microlending, Nick will expand services offered through OSI's Project Masomboly by incorporating access to healthcare and education for borrowers and their families. Prior to working for OSI, Nick was a Peace Corps Education volunteer in the southern Malagasy town of Ambovombe, from 2005 to 2007 where he taught English to multi-level middle school classes and helped organize an English program on Radio Cactus—the local radio station. Fluent in Spanish, French, and Malagasy, Nick recently completed a Graduate program in Non-Profit Management from the University of San Andres in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Nick received his Bachelor's of Arts in History from New York University. While an undergraduate student, he interned at the United Nation's Foundation and the Mayor's Office of Media Analysis and Research.

Valerie Varco

Valerie Varco is OSI's Manger of Operations based in Cambridge, Massachusetts. As well as managing OSI's US day to day operations, Valerie has been instrumental in building OSI's web-based platform and expanding its fundraising opportunities. Her interest lies in promoting female empowerment through small business development and she hopes to enter a graduate program in the fall of 2009. Valerie earned her Bachelor's of Arts in History from Colorado State University.

Frank Ferro

Frank Ferro is OSI's Director of Operation’s for Project Masomboly in Fort Dauphin, Madagascar. Frank comes to OSI with extensive experience in education, grant writing, and project implementation. His focus lies in education and small business development. From 2006 to 2008 he was a Peace Corps volunteer in Vatomandry Madagascar where he taught English to middle and high school students. Prior to working with OSI, Frank taught communications to computer technicians in India. He received his Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with a concentration in Finance and a minor in History from West Virginia University.