Board of Directors
President: Amanda Selm (Louisville, KY)
First Vice President: Matt Selm (Louisville, KY)
Second Vice President: Melanie Sinohui (Phoenix, AZ)
Secretary: Cassie Trosper (North Bend, OR)
Treasurer: Maria Kristic (Albany, NY)
Director: Shane Aguilera (Los Angeles, CA)
Director: Moe Carpenter (West Des Moines, IA)
Director: Kristen Kelling (Grand Rapids, MI)
Director: Lindsey LaVere (North Street, MI)
Director: Hindley Williams (Towson, MD)
OFFICER BIOS
Amanda Selm – President
Amanda is from Louisville, KY. When she is not handling ACB Next Generation business, her full-time job is being a wife and a mom of two girls. She is an active member and a founder of KCB Next Generation and an active member of the Kentucky Council of the Blind. One of Amanda’s newest favorite areas of interest is advocacy. She enjoys spending time with family, from attending gatherings to going on vacation. Her other interests include knitting, photography, event planning, and yoga. “ACB Next Generation has something for everyone, and my hope is that you find your place within our family,” Amanda says.
Matt Selm – 1st Vice President
Matt lives in Louisville, Kentucky with his wife Amanda and two children. He has a Bachelors in Psychology and a Master of Education from the University of Louisville and is employed at Humana. He is the President of the Kentucky Council of the Blind and serves on several ACB committees including the Berl Colley Leadership Institute. In his spare time, he enjoys spending time with his family, cheering on the Cincinnati Reds and Louisville Cardinals, and anything related to history.
Melanie Sinohui – 2nd Vice President
Melanie has been involved in ACB since the mid-1990s in Texas, West Virginia and California, elected as a Director for ACB Texas at 19, and was the 2005 DKM First-Timer – West. She resides in Phoenix, chairs our Convention Committee, is 1st Vice President of Arizona’s Central Chapter, and a Director on the AzCB board. Melanie holds a B.A. in Journalism – PR and an M.S. in Project Management. She has worked for a telecommunications company for the last 13 years and is a Customer Experience project manager. Melanie and her husband enjoy cooking, traveling, wine tasting in California, and spending time with “framily”.
Cassie Trosper – Secretary
Cassie was born and raised in Mississippi and joined the U.S. Army in 2006. After serving for a few years, she was diagnosed with Retinitis Pigmentosa (RP). For some reason, the Army decided that it was no longer safe for her to drive the rather large military vehicles and medically discharged her under honorable circumstances. She is now a mom of 3 kiddos ages 18, 14, and 7. She is also very involved with ACB Next Generation as Co-chair of the Programs and Convention Committees, as well as a Director on the Board. She serves as Secretary and Membership Chair for ACB of Oregon and Secretary of her local ACB chapter. She loves spending her spare time with family and friends.
Maria Kristic – Treasurer
Maria works as a financial analyst for a New York state public authority. She holds a JD in Finance Transactions and an MBA in Finance. She joined ACB in 2016 and has held leadership positions in several of its affiliates and committees since then. Maria has been a member of ACB Next Generation since its founding. She serves as its Treasurer, chair of its Budget and Finance Committee, and is a member of its Constitution, Bylaws, and Resolutions Committee and Fundraising Committee. Maria lives in upstate New York with her Chocolate Lab guide dog.
DIRECTOR BIOS
Shane Aguilera – Director
Shane is a musician, singer, and arranger from Los Angeles, CA. He is totally blind and has been a member of ACB since 2019 and is now a life member of ACB. He has been a member of ACB next generation since July of 2020 and as one of the youngest members of the affiliate. He strives to bring his unique perspective to the Board of Directors. He also has a desire to learn, ask important questions, and do work that matters. Some of his other hobbies include hiking, spending time with friends and family, and attending concerts.
Moe Carpenter – Director
Moe is a married mom of four boys living in Iowa and has LCA. She is obsessed with all things fiber arts related, which led her to start her own YouTube channel, Unseen Strands. While she has no college education, she is not afraid to search out knowledge. As a newer member to ACB, she is currently only part of ACB Next Generation, where she is a Director on the Board, Chair of the Fundraising Committee, and member of the PR, Membership, Convention, and Programs Committees. She also loves the water, dolphins, and the color sapphire and her family also has four pets.
Kristen Kelling – Director
Kristen currently resides in Grand Rapids, Michigan. She holds a bachelor’s degree in social work. She works as a Community Connector with the Kent County Health department, as well as an Independent Living Intern with Disability Advocates. She is the secretary of the Michigan Council of the Blind and Visually Impaired, as well as the membership chair. She is currently a co-chair of the Programs Committee and serves on the convention and membership committees with ACB Next Generation..
Lindsey LaVere – Director
Lindsey LaVere lives in North Street, Michigan and was elected as a Director in December 2022. Once elected, she began serving on the Programs and Fundraising Committees. Prior, to joining Next Generation, she served as Secretary for her local chapter, Blue Water League of the Blind, within the Michigan affiliate. Outside of her involvement in ACB Next Generation and Michigan, she is in her first year of teaching an adaptive dance class at a local dance studio. Dance has been an important part of her life, before and after her vision loss.
Hindley Williams – Director
Hindley has a bachelor’s degree in English literature from Villanova University and is a program director at a nonprofit. She became a member of ACB in 2022 and now serves as a director on the ACB Next Generation Board and is a member of the Publications and Public Relations Committees. She lives in Maryland with her retired guide dog and two troublemaking kittens. She is a voracious reader and loves to cook all different types of cuisine.
COMMITTEE CHAIRS, CO-CHAIRS, AND VICE-CHAIRS
Adovacy/Legislative Committee – Aaron Espinoza, Chair
Budget/Finance Committee – Maria Kristic, Chair
Constitution and Bylaws/Resolutions Committee – Matt Selm, Chair
Convention Committee – Melanie Sinohui and Cassie Trosper, Co-Chairs
Fundraising Committee – Moe Carpenter, Chair
Membership Committee – Matt Selm, Chair
Programs Committee – Kristen Kelling, Chair
Public Relations and eCommunications Committee – DJ McIntyre and Vika Trussell, Co-Chairs
Publications Committee – Greg Lindberg, Chair
Website Committee – Michael Babcock, Chair