Our Board
Joshua J. Yates
Joshua (Josh) J. Yates is founder and Chief Executive Officer of the Thriving Cities Group, a not-for-profit civic ventures firm. Dr. Yates also serves as the Director of the Ormond Center at Duke University. Dr. Yates founded the Thriving Cities Group out of research performed at the University of Virginia, where he served as Research Assistant Professor of Sociology and Global Change at the Institute for Advanced Studies in Culture. Dr. Yates holds a Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), Sociology, from the University of Virginia.
Michael Bontrager
Michael Bontrager founded Chatham Financial in 1991 and continues to serve as Chatham’s Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer. In 2015, Mr. Bontrager won an Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year® 2015 Award, which recognizes outstanding entrepreneurs who demonstrate excellence and extraordinary success in their field and personal commitment to their businesses and communities. He holds a BA in Economics from Wheaton College, Illinois and received an MBA from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.
Michael Cook
Michael is the Founder, CEO, and Co-CIO of SouthernSun Asset Management, Inc. (1989). He is a member of the Board of Directors for Omeq Medical, Cave Pictures Publishing, Stanbase Ltd, UK and Thriving Cities Group. He serves on the Advisory Councils of Kinrise Real Estate, UK and the Fogelman College of Business and Economics at the University of Memphis. Michael is also an Associate Fellow and member of the Principal’s Circle at Green Templeton College, University of Oxford and is the co-founder of LauraBelle Productions, UK and Blackbay Global.