Hala Furst leads the office’s efforts to engage with national stakeholder organizations to create local prevention frameworks addressing violent extremism. Prior to this, she served as the Acting Principal Director of the DHS Private Sector Office; the Director of Cybersecurity and Innovation; and the Executive Director of the Loaned Executive and Exemplar Programs, two premiere U.S. Federal Government efforts to enable the private sector and government officials to share expertise through executive leader exchanges.

She was a member of the 2016–2017 DHS Presidential Transition Team, providing information and insight about the existing activities of the Department to incoming leadership. Prior to this, she led the stakeholder outreach effort for the second Quadrennial Homeland Security Review. Hala was also detailed to the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, working for the majority staff under then Chairman Joe Lieberman on cybersecurity legislation.

Hala first joined the Department as a Presidential Management Fellow. She completed the Excellence in Government Fellowship with the Partnership for Public Service and has since become a Senior Fellow and Co-Coach for subsequent classes of Fellows. She holds a J.D. from Roger Williams University School of Law and a B.A. in theatre from the University of Minnesota.

Shazel Muhammad is a proud wife, mother, and grandmother. As an accomplished professional, she is an international keynote, TEDx speaker, CEO of Eunoia Global, and founder of African Link Initiative, a 501(c)(3). Shazel has spent her life building human capacity around the globe. As a highly requested facilitator, certified DE&I practitioner, mentor, and coach, Shazel has reached more than 10,000 adult learners globally, over 3,500 students in the U.S., and over 1,000 more in rural communities on the continent of Africa, helping them develop a sense of belonging, identity, resiliency, critical thinking, and leadership skills.

Shazel’s identity journey was sparked by the memory of her family’s desperate screams as a cross burned on their front lawn when she was 7 years old. As a result, Shazel founded African Link Initiative (A.L.I.) an evidence-based identity development initiative to transform how youth of African descent see their world and their possibilities by first transforming how they see themselves (past, present, and future) and the continent of Africa. A.L.I. has three-parts and culminates in a service-learning birthright trip to Ghana. Shazel has made significant contributions through her international youth development programs supporting student education in Kenya, Ghana, and Sierra Leone where she enjoys dual citizenship. Her work has been featured on BBC News, ESSENCE, and local news and media.

Shazel became a motivational speaker at 14 years old, and professional facilitator for a Fortune 500 company at 19. Since then, her leadership and influence in corporate-America has shaped culture and talent development practices, helped individuals and teams improve communication, and build trust. She has developed learning experiences for thousands globally spending over 25 years in corporate-America, including at Wyndham Worldwide, Inc.

Shazel is a food justice advocate, born and raised on her family’s farm in NJ. As a certified Curriculum for Agricultural Science Educator (CASE), she leads courses and workshops on Agri-Business, Agri-Science, farming while Black, and creating equity in outdoor spaces.

Shazel’s impact includes amplifying youth voices through public speaking training. Her students are now published TEDx (TED-Ed) speakers. Some of Shazel’s partnerships include the Boys & Girls Clubs, United Way and training youth financial literacy with the YMCA.

She is known for stretching leaders to ask the right questions, seek-out alternate perspectives, clarify purpose, align systems, and achieve their mission. Shazel has worked with an international peace building organization, to conduct training on community resilience and preventing targeted violence fueled by hate and bias. Her work focused building a network of trusted resources to help struggling individuals who need support.

She serves on several boards and as Debate Judge with the DC Urban Debate League and did also for The Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation’s Great Communicator Debate Series. Shazel served as a team partner for K.I.N.D. (Kids in Need of Defense) to protect unaccompanied children who enter the U.S. immigration system alone.

In 2004 Jon Romano was 16 years old when he did the unthinkable walking into his high school with a 12 gauge shotgun. Thankfully nobody was seriously injured or killed, but Romano spent 17 years in prison for the trauma he imposed on others that day.

Jon was released from prison in 2020 and has done talks with School Resource Officers, the FBI’s Behavioral Analysis Unit, churches, and on social media. He shares openly about what led him down this dark path and brings attention to what we can be doing to prevent others from doing the same.

Shazel Muhammad is a proud wife, mother, and grandmother. As an accomplished professional, she is an international keynote, TEDx speaker, CEO of Eunoia Global, and founder of African Link Initiative, a 501(c)(3). Shazel has spent her life building human capacity around the globe. As a highly requested facilitator, certified DE&I practitioner, mentor, and coach, Shazel has reached more than 10,000 adult learners globally, over 3,500 students in the U.S., and over 1,000 more in rural communities on the continent of Africa, helping them develop a sense of belonging, identity, resiliency, critical thinking, and leadership skills.

Shazel’s identity journey was sparked by the memory of her family’s desperate screams as a cross burned on their front lawn when she was 7 years old. As a result, Shazel founded African Link Initiative (A.L.I.) an evidence-based identity development initiative to transform how youth of African descent see their world and their possibilities by first transforming how they see themselves (past, present, and future) and the continent of Africa. A.L.I. has three-parts and culminates in a service-learning birthright trip to Ghana. Shazel has made significant contributions through her international youth development programs supporting student education in Kenya, Ghana, and Sierra Leone where she enjoys dual citizenship. Her work has been featured on BBC News, ESSENCE, and local news and media.

Shazel became a motivational speaker at 14 years old, and professional facilitator for a Fortune 500 company at 19. Since then, her leadership and influence in corporate-America has shaped culture and talent development practices, helped individuals and teams improve communication, and build trust. She has developed learning experiences for thousands globally spending over 25 years in corporate-America, including at Wyndham Worldwide, Inc.

Shazel is a food justice advocate, born and raised on her family’s farm in NJ. As a certified Curriculum for Agricultural Science Educator (CASE), she leads courses and workshops on Agri-Business, Agri-Science, farming while Black, and creating equity in outdoor spaces.

Shazel’s impact includes amplifying youth voices through public speaking training. Her students are now published TEDx (TED-Ed) speakers. Some of Shazel’s partnerships include the Boys & Girls Clubs, United Way and training youth financial literacy with the YMCA.

She is known for stretching leaders to ask the right questions, seek-out alternate perspectives, clarify purpose, align systems, and achieve their mission. Shazel has worked with an international peace building organization, to conduct training on community resilience and preventing targeted violence fueled by hate and bias. Her work focused building a network of trusted resources to help struggling individuals who need support.

She serves on several boards and as Debate Judge with the DC Urban Debate League and did also for The Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation’s Great Communicator Debate Series. Shazel served as a team partner for K.I.N.D. (Kids in Need of Defense) to protect unaccompanied children who enter the U.S. immigration system alone.

Nicholas Picerno is currently a captain with the Montgomery County, Maryland, Police Department located in suburban Washington, DC, where he has worked for over 22 years. After a period of time in patrol and proactive enforcement positions, Captain Picerno spent four years as a detective in the Homicide Section of the Montgomery County Police Department, investigating cases that had both national and international significance. Upon promotion to sergeant, Captain Picerno again worked in patrol and proactive enforcement capacities until becoming the supervisor of the Collision Reconstruction Unit. In two years in that assignment, Captain Picerno supervised a unit that conducted fatal collision investigations using math and science in addition to traditional investigative methods. He returned to the Homicide Section for a year as a shift supervisor, overseeing a team of investigators as they conducted complex death investigations. Upon his promotion to lieutenant, Captain Picerno became the director of the Montgomery County Police Department’s Legal and Labor Relations Division. He later spent a year as the chief of staff to the chief of police, assisting the chief with day-to-day operations of one of the 50 largest police agencies in the United States. Captain Picerno was promoted to Captain in November 2020 and was named the director of the Special Investigations Division. In that capacity, he oversaw the department’s covert and plainclothes narcotics, human trafficking, firearms, and organized crime investigations, in addition to its anti-terrorism and intelligence functions. Since January 2024, he has been the director of the Training and Education Division, overseeing entry-level and in-service training for all 1,200 sworn members of the department, as well as several allied agencies.

Captain Picerno has been a Maryland Police and Corrections Training Commission certified instructor since 2014. In addition to his full-time assignment, Captain Picerno serves as a member of the Emergency Response Team. He is also the project director for both the NCR-LiNX program, which is a Google-type search engine for law enforcement data, and the Violent Crime Information Center, which is the agency’s real-time crime center.

Outside of the department, Captain Picerno is a subject matter expert/instructor for the State and Local Anti-Terrorism Training Program, and an instructor with the State Departments Global Anti-Terrorism Assistance Program. He is also a lecturer with the University of Maryland’s Public Safety Leadership and Administration graduate program.

Captain Picerno holds a bachelor of science degree in administration of justice from Penn State University, with a minor in history. He holds a master of arts degree in human science and a graduate certificate in thanatology (the academic study of death and bereavement) from Hood College. He received a juris doctor degree, graduating cum laude, from the University of Baltimore School of Law. He is admitted to the Maryland and United States Bar’s, and is a practicing attorney. He is also a graduate of Session 80 of the Senior Management in Policing program from the Police Executive Research Forum.

Stella is a community builder and aspiring development professional with a passion for employing a multi-disciplinary approach to address social, intergenerational, and intersectional issues. Over the last six years, Stella has been facilitating leadership development programs at Global Peace Foundation Nepal. Additionally, she has demonstrated her leadership capabilities as the former president of the Harvard Toastmasters Club and gained valuable experience through an internship at the US Embassy in Nepal. Stella’s commitment to volunteerism has been recognized with a country award from the United Nations Volunteer Nepal.

Wanda Moore, JD. M.Ed. is a former Assistant Attorney General and helped create the Office of Community Justice. There she led community policing & engagement efforts, cross-systems integration, and local neighborhood action. She has managed a broad range of efforts from redevelopment projects to the continuity of health care for jail inmates. She works directly with diverse communities to identify issues that impact neighborhoods and how to effectively address those issues using data and research. Ms. Moore believes that issues of poverty, truancy, literacy, trauma, violence, education, and obesity have a direct correlation to neighborhood safety and health. Designed from a public health and public safety model, her efforts engage families, advocates, policy makers, disconnected youth and other concerned voices.

Ms. Moore has overseen the development and implementation of over 25 million dollars in grant funding including the refurbishing of the Atlantic City Armory into a major community center with indoor athletic facilities. She has coordinated funding opportunities with state and community partners including overseeing a modest investment of $25K to replicate the Harlem Children’s Zone. As a result of this small investment, New Jersey received over a million dollars in funding from the national Harlem Children Zone model known as Promise Neighborhoods.

Her pioneering work continued with the announcement of reentry funding for county jails for the first time in state history. The million-dollar investment was matched in part by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to promote the continuity of medical care for inmates from jail to community. Similar funding efforts led by Ms. Moore include Crisis Intervention, the expansion of County-level mental health services for veterans and Fugitive Safe Surrender. Fugitive Safe Surrender allows people with active warrants to turn themselves in and simultaneously have their court matters resolved. The safe surrender pilot eventually led to the dismissal of almost 800 thousand warrants when the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of New Jersey issued an Order dismissing certain minor offenses in the “interest of justice” in 2019.

As a national thought leader and therapeutic jurisprudence practitioner, she played a vital role in drug court and reentry movements in New Jersey and in the US working on policy development and implementation. In the United States there are over 3000 drug courts serving thousands of people every day. In New Jersey over thirty thousand people have enrolled, 878 drug free babies were born to court participants and the current rate of new sentences to state prison is 2%.

Ms. Moore served as the Director of the New Jersey Urban Peace Building project for the Global Peace Foundation. She led the New Jersey team’s efforts designed to combat hate, bias and prevent targeted violence. In 2019, New Jersey was recognized by the National Counter Terrorism Center for their work in community and with law enforcement.

Ms. Moore helps lead the Camden Dream Center team implementing the Feeding America Equity Impact Fund. Awarded in 2022, the Fund, supports community-led solutions to address systemic inequality and root causes of hunger in communities of color. She is guiding the team to build a custom designed hydroponic farm which will help transform a Camden which has been historically disinvested.

She works with other community partners on justice, health equity, and community inclusion. She is a champion of the arts and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. She works with countries around the world to create local solutions to advance the 17 Goals. Ms. Moore received her Bachelor of Arts from Brown University, Juris Doctorate from Northeastern University School of Law and Master’s in Education from Lesley University. She also attended the historically Black Tougaloo College.

Dave Leonardis is the Training & Outreach Liaison for the Office of the Attorney General, Division of Criminal Justice, Prosecutor’s Supervision & Training Bureau. In that role, he is responsible for specialized training for law enforcement officers, as directed by the Attorney General and the Director of the New Jersey Division of Criminal Justice. His duties also include law enforcement and community outreach for the State of New Jersey. Dave works with law enforcement and government agencies, as well as community and faith based organizations in order to enhance community relations on a local and State level.

Dave was the Chief for the Outreach and Special Projects Bureau at the New Jersey Office of Homeland Security & Preparedness (OHSP). He was responsible for overseeing special projects and developing private sector outreach programs. As a result of his efforts, New Jersey has developed statewide outreach programs and partnerships with operators of malls, sports/entertainment venues, hotels, casinos, airports, motor coach, motor truck, taxi, limousines associations, correctional facilities, military bases and faith based groups. He helped implement the NJ Interfaith Advisory Council for OHSP. For his outreach efforts, he received the 2011 Law Enforcement Officer of the Year Award from the NJ Retail Merchants Association and NJ Food Council, the Peace Island Institute (Turkish-Muslim organization) Government Achievement Award in 2012 and the Attorney General’s Award for Excellence in Public Outreach in 2013. Dave received the 2019 Department of Law and Public Safety NJ Community Service Award.

Prior to being the Chief for Outreach and Special Projects, he was the OHSP Training Bureau Chief, responsible for development and delivery of counter-terrorism and domestic preparedness training programs. Prior to that position, he was the Chairman of the Domestic Security Preparedness Planning Group which was part of the Domestic Security Preparedness Task Force, under the Office of the Attorney General. The Planning Group was responsible for developing homeland security plans for the State of New Jersey.

Dave served 29 years with the New Jersey State Police before retiring at the rank of Captain and the Executive Officer of the Investigations Section. Dave had a variety of criminal investigation assignments during his career with State Police, including Narcotics, Organized Crime, Arson, Cargo Theft & Robbery, Official Corruption and others. He was cited for his work involving terrorism-related cases that received national attention: the Brinks Armored Car Robbery in Nyack, New York, where four police officers and security guards were killed by members of the Weathermen Underground and the Black Liberation Army. He was also cited for his work on the Trooper Lamonaco homicide investigation and the capture of members of the United Freedom Front, a domestic terrorist group responsible for Tpr. Lamonaco’s death. The United Freedom Front were on the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Ten Most Wanted List for a series of bombings and bank robberies that occurred prior to and after the murder of Trooper Lamonaco. All members of the group were captured in what turned out to be the largest manhunt since the Lindbergh kidnapping.

Dave served as the Commandant of the New Jersey State Police Training Academy where he received the “Team/Partnership Achievement Award” from Acting Governor Donald DiFrancesco, the Meritorious Award from New Jersey State Police Superintendent Carson Dunbar and the “Employee Recognition Award” from Attorney General John Farmer for his work in re-engineering the Academy’s curriculum and in-service training program. He was cited by the federal monitors overseeing the Consent Decree on Racial Profiling for his part in designing a plan to develop a positive organizational culture and structure.

Mr. Leonardis received a B.S. from William Paterson College and a Master’s Degree in General Education from Seton Hall University. He was an adjunct professor in the Criminology Department at The College of New Jersey, and taught at Seton Hall University’s Education and Human Resource Departments.

Rev. Gary Holden, Founder and Director of The Police Chaplain Program. He is also on the executive team of Resilient Minds on the Front Lines, curriculum developer, chaplain program director and an instructor.

Chaplain Holden completed the Law Enforcement Adjunct Instructor Training Program implemented by the U.S. Department Homeland Security Federal Law Enforcement Training Centers Office of Training Management.

Chaplain Holden is a member and is trained in Pastoral, Group, Assisting Individuals in Crisis, Advanced Group Crisis Intervention, Advanced Assisting Individuals in Crisis, CISM Application with Children and Managing School Crisis: From Theory to Application with the International Critical Incident Stress Foundation and is an approved instructor. He also is certified in CISM (CCISM) through the University of Maryland Baltimore. Chaplain Holden was awarded the prestigious Susan E. Hamilton, PHD Award by the ICISF at their World Congress in 2015, for his development of and work with police chaplaincy. Chaplain Holden is a member of the American Academy of Experts in Traumatic Stress and the National Center for Crisis Management. Chaplain Holden is a member of the New Jersey Department of Homeland Security Interfaith Advisory Council.

He served as a chaplain after 911 at Ground Zero in NYC working with the New York City Police and Fire Departments and the Port Authority Police Department. Chaplain Holden received The Legion of Honor Bronze Medallion award for sacrificial service from the Four Chaplains Memorial Foundation in Philadelphia.

He is a Chaplain with the New Jersey State Police, the Cumberland County NJ Prosecutor’s Office and staff chaplain coordinator for the NJ Department of Corrections. He founded the Public Schools Police Chaplain Resource Program. Chaplain Holden is a NJ Master Resilience Trainer and coordinates resilience training for chaplains.

Laura Kralicky is a Program Associate at PERIL (Polarization & Extremism Research & Innovation Lab), an applied research lab at American University. Her focus area is on prevention through education, and she is the Co-Creator of DUCC (Developing & Using Critical Comprehension), a program awarded 1st place in the Invent2Prevent Spring 2022 national collegiate competition and a recipient of a Targeted Violence and Terrorism Prevention grant through the US Department of Homeland Security. She is currently developing DUCC’s curriculum that combines social-emotional learning and digital literacy to prevent youth online radicalization. Laura graduated from American University in the Spring of 2022 with a BA in international studies and a minor in education.

Emily Stingle is a Junior Project Associate & Co-Creator of the DUCC (Developing & Using Critical Comprehension) project, which is funded by an FY23 TVTP grant and housed at PERIL (Polarization & Extremism Research & Innovation Lab). She focuses on digital literacy and social-emotional based interventions to prevent the development and dissemination of mis and dis information. Emily has a B.A. in Justice & Law and will graduate in December 2024 with an M.S. in Terrorism and Homeland Security Policy from American University.

Tahir Sakhi currently serves as the Program Manager at the Global Peace Foundation’s headquarters in Washington, D.C. His primary focus within this role is the management of the Targeted Violence and Terrorism Prevention Portfolio, generously funded by institutional donors.

With 15 years of recent experience, Mr. Sakhi is a seasoned Peace and Security practitioner and a skilled professional trainer. His extensive career history is marked by a proven track record in designing, managing, and executing multi-sectoral projects within the international humanitarian and development sectors, with a keen understanding of navigating multifaceted situations in the USA and internationally.

Before joining the Global Peace Foundation, he contributed his expertise to several distinguished international organizations, including UNICEF, UNDP, AECOM, ICMA, and Creative Associate International, where he held various pivotal roles and made noteworthy contributions to their respective missions and endeavors.

Laura Kralicky is a Program Associate at PERIL (Polarization & Extremism Research & Innovation Lab), an applied research lab at American University. Her focus area is on prevention through education, and she is the Co-Creator of DUCC (Developing & Using Critical Comprehension), a program awarded 1st place in the Invent2Prevent Spring 2022 national collegiate competition and a recipient of a Targeted Violence and Terrorism Prevention grant through the US Department of Homeland Security. She is currently developing DUCC’s curriculum that combines social-emotional learning and digital literacy to prevent youth online radicalization. Laura graduated from American University in the Spring of 2022 with a BA in international studies and a minor in education.

Emily Stingle is a Junior Project Associate & Co-Creator of the DUCC (Developing & Using Critical Comprehension) project, which is funded by an FY23 TVTP grant and housed at PERIL (Polarization & Extremism Research & Innovation Lab). She focuses on digital literacy and social-emotional based interventions to prevent the development and dissemination of mis and dis information. Emily has a B.A. in Justice & Law and will graduate in December 2024 with an M.S. in Terrorism and Homeland Security Policy from American University.

Cat Lockman is a highly credentialed executive leader with deep expertise in the nonprofit and international development space. Cat has led design, implementation and evaluation teams for institutional, government and multilateral projects, grants and and contracts in the United States and overseas.. Cat’s recent expertise includes topics like online safety and digital citizenship, democracy strengthening and election violence prevention, and preventing violent extremism.