Executive
Rich Finstein
President
Rich founded CommPartners as a provider of online learning services and events in 1994. His vision was to create a culture where people could learn, advance their careers and have fun. He has a passion for helping clients connect with their communities through education. Rich graduated from the University of Maryland and did his graduate work at Marymount University in instructional design. He now lives in Columbia, Md., with his wife of 31 years. He has two grown children: Eve, who is 27, and Robby, who is 24. Rich enjoys marathon running, biking, tennis and rooting for Baltimore sports teams.
John Volentine
Vice President, Operations & Finance
John is a co-founder and early investor of CommPartners. Prior to joining the company as an active partner, John held a number of increasingly challenging positions in a variety of industries and is experienced in sales, technical and executive management. John pursued numerous business-related studies at George Mason University before transferring and graduating from National Louis University. He now lives in Poolesville, Md., with his wife and son. John enjoys spending time with his family, hunting, fishing, target shooting, archery and watching mixed martial arts.
Karl Zander
Partner
Karl is a partner with CommPartners and has been with the company since July 1996. He helps CommPartners’ clients with their technology problems and specializes in open-source solutions. Karl is a graduate of Cornell University with a bachelor’s in mathematics and also has a Master’s in International Administration from the School for International Training in Brattleboro, Vt. In addition, he served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Swaziland in southern Africa. Karl has also served at the United Nations headquarters in New York. He makes maple syrup at the family sugar bush in Wisconsin each spring.
Events
Eric Zink
Associate Director of Online Events
Eric worked in radio for 15 years before coming to CommPartners. He lives in a restored 100-year-old rowhouse in Baltimore with his wife and dog. For fun, Eric plays an ancient Irish field sport called hurling.
Jennifer Livingston
Senior Event Producer
Jen is a graduate of the University of Maryland and a football season ticket holder (GO TERPS!). She enjoys exercising, attending local sporting events, shopping, cooking, and traveling. After work, she likes to catch up on her favorite TV shows including Top Chef and Game of Thrones.
Kendra Matarozza
Senior Event Producer
Kendra Matarozza was born and raised in the Baltimore area. While she loves Maryland, she tries to get out and see the world as much as she can. When she is able to, she likes traveling internationally to experience life and culture outside of the US.
Shawn Slotke
Senior Event Producer
Shawn lives in Canton, Md., with her husband. She enjoys running, yoga, reading and going to concerts. A native Baltimorean, Shawn graduated Cum Laude from Longwood University in Virginia where she played on the women’s lacrosse team.
Jill Norris
Event Producer
Originally from a little town called Hollywood (Maryland), Jill is a Towson University graduate who plays competitive softball and is an avid Redskins, Capitals and Orioles fan.
Rebecca Keyser
Event Producer
Rebecca has been with CommPartners since July 2011. She brings over eight years of event management and customer service experience in the higher education and nonprofit industries.
Shawnn Bittorie
Event Producer
Shawnn joined us in mid-2011 with a strong project management background as well as 20+ years of event management experience that includes starting her own special events company in 1987. Shawnn also volunteers with several children’s charities in the area and is an avid sports fan.
Dariene Kusters
Event Producer
Dariene is the mother of three awesome sons, a lovely daughter-in-law and a Sun Conure parrot. For fun, she reads historical fiction, travels, and creates 3-D content for online virtual worlds.
Candice Rush
Event Producer
Candice is originally from Pittsburgh, PA. She is a graduate of the University of Delaware, where she studied Hotel, Restaurant, and Institutional Management. She enjoys working out, teaching BodyPump and Spin classes at the gym, and doing yoga. Her and her husband are big “foodies,” and love to travel to try out all different types of cuisine.
Jennifer Bocchieri
Event Producer
Jennifer is a Maryland native who graduated from the University of Maryland with a degree in Journalism. After graduation, she was a television reporter for more than ten years. She then spent some time doing client management and teaching middle school English before starting here at CommPartners. Jennifer enjoys reading, playing the piano and spending time with her dog, Noodle!
Brenden Bradley
CD and Archive Production Specialist
Brenden grew up in Laurel, but now lives in Baltimore. He started at CommPartners in 2011 and enjoys going to Ocean City, Md., for the summer.
Business Development
Christopher Urena
Vice President, Business Development
Chris started working with CommPartners in 2005, as a part-time employee, during his undergraduate studies. Since then, he’s been an event producer, client advocate, and sales consultant. He is currently studying for his MBA and enjoys running in his spare time.
Meghan Gowen
Director of Sales & Client Development
Meghan is a member of the Client Development Team and has been with CommPartners since 2007. Outside of the office, Meghan enjoys cycling, cooking, interior design, traveling and spending time with family and friends. She resides in Baltimore City with her husband, Jon, and chocolate lab, Madison.
Tim Conway
Creative Director
Tim is proud to be from NJ and loves spending time with his wife, Desi, and black lab, Snoop. He enjoys sports, concerts and reading and can often be found visiting wineries and breweries or working on DIY projects.
Tracy Evans
Client Development
Tracy has been a member of the Client Development Team since 2005. She enjoys triathlons, cycling, photography, volunteer work, and good times with family and close friends.
Alix Sandler
Marketing Manager
Alix is a Baltimore Ravens fan and a dog lover. She enjoys traveling and relaxing and reading on the beach whenever she has the chance. In her spare time, she also enjoys playing basketball and tennis, trying new restaurants and taking her chocolate lab Boh out for a long run or a swim in the summertime.
Client Support
Vickie Knorr
Director of Client Services
Vickie and her retired-military husband lived in Europe for 13 years before coming to Maryland. In her spare time she and her husband like to travel and visit their children and grandchildren. She loves to sew, read, cook, entertain and volunteer for military families.
Terry Burroughs
Supervisor, Client Services
Terry has been a member of the Client Services Team since 2008. She and her husband enjoy riding bikes on the pathways near their Columbia, Md., home. She looks forward to spending time on the Jersey Shore every summer, enjoying the surf, sun, sand and seafood!
Mary Golden
Client Advocate
Mary is a veteran employee, the CommPartners primary trainer, and a support team member. She is happily married and a very proud mother of three incredible children. In her spare time, Mary enjoys cooking, gardening and winning tennis matches.
Nancy Bontempi
Client Advocate
Nancy volunteers as an interviewer for a cat rescue and has four kitties of her own. She is a retired kitchen designer, who also enjoys baking, music and the outdoors.
Barb Prechtl
Client Advocate
Barb is a native of Connecticut and enjoyed living in Arizona, California, Ohio, and Virginia before settling in Maryland in 2002. She has two fantastic children, Emily and Matt (and a rescue lab, Sally), and enjoys entertaining, cooking, traveling, and good times with family and friends.
Multimedia
Jon Corun
Director of Multimedia Production
Jon joined CommPartners in December 2008 with a rich background in broadcast television and festival/concert visuals. He uses his passion and creativity for multimedia to enhance CommPartners clients’ webcast experiences.
Derrick Kelly
Multimedia Specialist
Derrick joined CommPartners in 2009. Before joining the organization, he spent several years as a news camera operator. His background also includes electronic field productions, as well as producing public service announcements and documentaries.
Bryan Ranharter
Multimedia Specialist
Bryan is a two-in-one creative and technical powerhouse with a BFA from New York University and 10 years of experience. He enjoys producing compelling, enriching and invigorating multimedia experiences with cutting-edge technologies.
Programming
Carl Aron
Programmer
Carl enjoys camping and canoeing with his family of five. He also relaxes by playing guitar and mandolin.
Bill “Guru” Eichenser
Programmer
Bill is CommPartner’s programmer for NewsManager and internal procedures. He and his wife Candy like to canoe and ride their bikes, but spend most of their time working on home improvement projects.
Colin McCann
Programmer
Colin was born and raised in the mountains of Montana and has well over a decade of professional web programming experience. He uses the Internet as a medium to make the world a more interesting place.
Billing
Kim Urena
Office Manager
Kim has been a member of the CommPartners family since June 2001. She is happily married with two sons (including Chris, a fellow CommPartners employee). She is an avid volunteer with the ‘Operation Welcome Home’ organization at BWI and enjoys spending time with her family.
Rita Castle
Billing Specialist
Rita joined CommPartners in 2004 after spending time in customer service within the airline industry. She enjoys spending time with her three adult sons, family and friends. She also hikes, gardens and travels in her free time.
