Leadership Team

Lidia Soto-Harmon, President & Chief Executive Officer

Lidia Soto-Harmon serves as the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Student Conservation Association (SCA), the largest provider of hands-on environmental conservation programs for youth and adults in the nation. Last year, the SCA engaged more than 2,000 youth and young adults in hands-on environmental conservation programs who collectively provided nearly 1 million hours of service at federal, state, and local parks and natural areas. SCA participants increase the nation’s climate resiliency, reduce wildfire risks, enhance equity, strengthen urban communities, implement historic preservation initiatives and retire backlogged maintenance projects.

Prior to joining the SCA, Soto-Harmon was the CEO of the Girl Scouts of the Nation’s Capital, the largest council in the country for the past 13 years, serving over 76,000 members in the Greater Washington region. During her almost 19-year tenure at the Girl Scouts, she also served as Chief Operating Officer for six years. She was directly responsible for building a compelling strategy to successfully expand access for girls across the region, transforming programs, creating experiences in the outdoors, and engaging communities to support and expand youth development.

Before joining the Girl Scouts, Soto-Harmon served as Senior Vice President of Community Development for First Book, a national children’s literacy organization dedicated to getting new books into the hands of children from low-income families. She also previously served as Deputy Director of the President’s Interagency Council on Women at the U.S. Department of State and Senior Director for the Fannie Mae Foundation’s Targeted Outreach Department. She served as Chair and Trustee of Migration Policy Institute, Executive Committee member for the Booz Allen Foundation, Board Member for First Book – a national Children’s literacy organization, Chair of the Advisory Council for the master’s in public administration at the Schar School of Public Policy and Government and is an Adjunct Faculty member at George Mason University.

Annually, Lidia undertakes a “summer challenge” to embody the SCA’s mission. In 2023, she traveled to Alaska to visit SCA members in action, including the SCA’s Women Wildland Fire Crew and Sled Dog Kennel Interns, both stationed at Denali National Park. She learned how to cold-start a chainsaw and traveled 1,001 miles to visit SCA program participants across Alaska. This year, Lidia conquered her first mountain alongside an SCA Bronx crew, hauling 209 pounds of soil to Sargent Mountain’s summit at Acadia National Park to fight erosion—a true Soil to Summit expedition.

Soto-Harmon holds a master’s in public administration from George Mason University and has participated in various Executive Leadership Programs at Harvard, Stanford and the Center for Creative Leadership. She has a bachelor’s in arts from Drew University in Madison, New Jersey. She is also a member of the International Women’s Forum, the Washington Business Journal Women Who Mean Business, and Leadership Greater Washington Class of 2007. Soto-Harmon is married and has two fantastic bilingual adult children.

To contact Lidia, please email Emmaline Schild at eschild@thesca.org.

Dr. Usha Chaudhary, Chief Operating Officer

Before joining the SCA, Dr. Chaudhary was COO at Internews, Chief Transformation Officer of The MITRE Corporation, President and Chief Operating Officer of Kettler, Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer of The Pew Charitable Trusts, Vice President and Chief Financial Officer at The Washington Post, and Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer at United Way of America. Prior to that, she held several executive positions at Freddie Mac with a focus on strategy, operations and risk management.

Dr. Chaudhary holds a Doctor of Business Administration from Drexel University, a Masters in Business Administration from George Washington University and a Bachelor of Arts in English from St. Stephen’s College in New Delhi, India. Dr. Chaudhary is also a Certified Public Accountant and was a 2016 Honoree of the Washington Business Journal 2016 Women Who Mean Business.

Matt Gray, SVP of Programs

Matt Gray is a five-time SCA program participant who has dedicated his career to sustainability, climate and conservation initiatives at the federal, municipal and community levels. Prior to joining the SCA, he held the office of chief of sustainability for the City of Cleveland. During his seven years with the City of Cleveland, he convened 90 organizations to co-create the Cleveland Climate Action Plan, which won the 2019 American Planning Association award for “Best Community Sustainability or Resiliency Plan.” Gray is a former Fulbright Fellow with the U.S. Department of State in Mauritius, a Presidential Management Fellow with the U.S. Department of Energy, and an energy management consultant with Accenture, the global management consultancy. He holds dual bachelor’s degrees in Industrial Engineering and Anthropology from the University of Pittsburgh and a Master’s in Public Administration from Columbia University.

Barbara Gonzalez-McIntosh, Chief Counsel

Barbara Gonzalez-McIntosh is responsible for  overseeing enterprise risk management, and legal and good governance practices. She has over 20 years experience as a tax-exempt organization attorney leading 501(c)(3) public and private charities as well as 501(c)(4) and 527/political committee organizations. Before joining the SCA, she held senior leadership positions with the Pew Charitable Trusts, National Wildlife Federation and the League of Conservation Voters where her work included corporate law, organizational and board governance, enterprise risk assessment and management, contracts and litigation management, and campaign finance law, lobbying and ethics compliance. She is an active champion for forging a more diverse conservation community, currently serving on the management board of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Diversity Joint Venture and Rachel’s Network’s Diversity Committee. Gonzalez-McIntosh also serves on the boards of the Alliance for Justice and Rachel’s Network and participates in certain grantmaking decisions of the McIntosh Foundation.

Dr. LaShanda Miller, VP of People and Culture

With over 17 years of experience in human resources, Dr. LaShanda Miller is responsible for shaping the culture of the SCA and implementing strategies to ensure that inclusion and diversity are embedded in the organization’s initiatives, programs and practices. Dr. Miller leads the Human Resources Department, Member Services and Recruitment teams, marrying the strategies of attracting and retaining top talent to drive business outcomes consistent with the SCA’s core values.

Before joining the SCA, she held senior leadership positions where her work included leading employees in multiple HR disciplines in secondary education, government contracting and facilities maintenance. In addition, Dr. Miller is an active volunteer for organizations committed to the growth, development, and mentorship of at-risk youth.

Dr. Miller holds a Doctor of Business Administration from Capella University, and both a bachelor’s in Office Systems and Technologies and master’s in Instructional Technology from Mississippi State University. She is also a SHRM-Senior Certified Professional (SCP).

Zachary Bolick, VP of Partnerships

Zachary Bolick oversees an experienced and effective national team that develops and implements coordinated business development strategies for national, state, and local initiatives, including managing partner and government relations. For the past decade, Bolick has worked in various roles at the SCA, helping to advance its partnerships with federal, tribal, state and local government agencies and others. His previous positions at the SCA included Senior Director of Partnership Operations, Director of Partnerships for Alaska and the Pacific Islands, and Partnership Manager for the Western United States. Before joining the SCA, Bolick worked for the National Parks Conservation Association and as a seasonal park ranger for numerous federal land management agencies nationwide. Bolick has a master’s in public policy from Oregon State University and a Bachelor of Arts in honors political science and global studies from the University of Tennessee. He also earned several certifications, including Wilderness First Responder and S-212 Wildland Fire Chainsaws certifications.

Kelly Runzel, VP of Philanthropy

For over 25 years, Runzel has been a thought leader, successfully designing and implementing programs ranging from international integrated education programs in India, China, Australia and Central Europe to employee engagement and sustainability programs for some of the world’s largest brands. Throughout her career, she has leveraged her skills and experience to develop innovative partnerships at national and international organizations, including Feed the Children and Good360. In addition, she has over 20 years of managerial experience specializing in leadership development and change management. During her seven years at the SCA, Runzel directed the development of mutually beneficial partnerships between corporations and foundations, with the goal of increasing the number of youth opportunities in conservation. She has also expanded the SCA’s impact by increasing philanthropic revenue at the organization and expanding Urban Green programs to additional cities, including Atlanta and Northwest Indiana. Runzel has a bachelor’s degree in Organizational Communications and Political Science from Eastern Michigan University. She lives in Saint Paul, Minnesota, with her husband and son where she loves to run and fish for walleye with her family.

Sarah Hoye, Senior Director of Marketing and Communications

Sarah Hoye is an award-winning journalist and strategic communications expert who oversees the SCA’s communications, media relations and marketing efforts. Prior to joining the SCA in November 2022, she served as Communications Director for the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and Interim Deputy Chief of Staff for Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers. Before entering state service, Hoye spent her journalism career reporting from nearly every corner of the United States for and array of media outlets, including CNN, Al Jazeera America, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and more. Her awards include the Peabody, Knight Digital Media Fellowship at the Ohio State University, Women’s Media Center’s Emerging Journalist Award, and a host of others. Hoye holds a Master’s of Journalism from the University of Maryland and Bachelor’s of Mass Communications from the University of Wisconsin.