M. Sharon Hefferan, Executive Director, has championed the development of women and girls for over 30 years. Before coming to Yuma Center, she worked as the Executive Director of Metro Achievement Center, an educational program serving at-risk girls in Chicago. After attending public schools in her hometown in Connecticut, she majored in Economics and Spanish at Georgetown University. During college, she worked as an intern at the Organization of American States. After graduation, she worked in Boston as the Corporate Cash Manager for National Medical Care and then as an Assistant Financial Accountant at The New York Times. Hefferan later received an M.B.A. from Iona College in New York. In 2011, she obtained a Certificate in Non-Profit Management from Northwestern University-Kellogg School of Management. She now serves as a director on the boards of Midtown Educational Foundation in Chicago and Youth Leadership Foundation in Washington, D.C. As a member of the Women’s Foreign Policy Group in Washington, D.C., she keeps abreast of all things global.

Kathy Super, Executive Assistant, has worked in Washington, D.C. for several years, having served as Special Assistant to President Bush and Mrs. Barbara Bush, as Deputy Assistant to the President and Director of Scheduling and Appointments at The White House, and as special assistant to the White House Chief of Staff.  Kathy co-founded “Families of American POWs and MIAs in South East Asia."  She has served as Policy Planning Officer and Assistant to the Director at the U.S. Information Agency, and was Director of the Office of Public Affairs at the US EPA.  Kathy has worked on four U.S. presidential campaigns. She is a member of the George Bush Presidential Library Foundations Advisory Council., and served on the board of the Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Foundation.  She received her B.S. from Marymount University, is married and has two children and four grandchildren.

Conn Martin, Business Manager, first came to Yuma as an attendee at the fabulous Inaugural Work & Life Conference in 2016. Recognizing it as a special place, she went on to attend other events, volunteer, and, ultimately, join the staff in 2019. For over 25 years Conn has been an active family partner in companies whose activities include industrial property management as well as construction consulting and design services. Conn previously managed operations at the headquarters of a non-profit educational foundation supporting young journalists and worked as a senior legal editor at LexisNexis publishing. Conn has a B.A. from The Catholic University of America and a J.D. from George Washington University Law School, and she is a member of the Maryland State Bar. In 2010 Conn earned a certificate in basic pastry from Le Cordon Bleu Paris and has volunteered at L’Academie de Cuisine, formerly in Bethesda. Conn grew up in Montgomery County, Maryland, where she and her husband have a daughter and three boys. Her sons are graduates of The Heights School, as is husband George, class of ’83.

Mary Ellen Lechner Yep, wife and proud mother of two, is a Willows Academy Alum, native Chicagoan. From an early age, Mary Ellen was instilled with a passion for helping people. As a daughter of an avid fisherman, business owner and Rotary member, Mary Ellen spent every summer volunteering and helping to coordinate events and benefits. She began her professional career working several years in the pharmacy and as a medical professional in healthcare. In her free time, she served as a mentor to inner city kids with the Metro Achievement Center and a volunteer with a national presidential campaign. Mary Ellen's passion for health and wellness motivated her to attain her Masters in Applied Nutrition from the University of New England. An avid blogger, food enthusiast and health coach, Mary Ellen educates others on how to create a healthier rhythm of life. As Program Director for The Yuma Center, Mary Ellen oversees all events for the professional development of women.

Tracey Moss is the Business and Advancement Associate at Yuma Center and has served Yuma and The Heights School as a volunteer for many years. Originally from Ireland, Tracey has lived and worked in England and the Middle East before coming to the U.S. in 1999. Due to her travels she has worked in several industries; travel, international development, education, financial services and development. She holds a BA in History and a Post-Graduate Diploma in European Humanities from the Open University, U.K. Tracey lives in Potomac, Maryland with her husband Shaun and is the proud mother of three grown children. 

Christina Williams, Evaluator, joins Yuma's team all the way from the great city of Chicago where she lives with her husband and three children. She always looks forward to helping the team at Yuma crunch program numbers and metrics! Christina's work at Yuma allows her to balance an active family life with a passion for being involved with an organization that makes a positive impact on women at every stage of life. Christina holds a Bachelor's degree in History from Miami University (OH) and a M.B.A. and Certificate in Non-Profit Management from North Park University. Prior to her work at Yuma, Christina worked in program management at Metro Achievement Center and admissions at Willows Academy and Montrose School.