Board Members
Kendall Qualls, Founder & Board Member
Mr. Qualls has a unique vantage point to convey the TakeCharge message and to plant the seeds of change desperately needed in the Twin Cities and across the country. During his childhood, Mr. Qualls lived with his divorced mother and siblings in public housing projects of Harlem, NY in the late 1960s. Before middle school, Mr. Qualls was separated from the other siblings and moved in with their father in a trailer park in Oklahoma. Neither of his parents finished high school. Despite the challenges and turmoil of his early life, Mr. Qualls worked full-time to pay his way through college, served as an officer in the U.S. Army, earned three graduate degrees. He worked his way up the ranks to become a vice president at several Fortune 100 healthcare companies.
Mr. Qualls champions the principle of meritocracy and supports the notion that free enterprise, and the private sector are the fastest and most equitable way to lift people from poverty to prosperity including black Americans. He also is a champion of religious freedoms, a core tenant of America’s foundation. Mr. Qualls has been married to his wife, Sheila for 35 years and they have five children together. He was a mentor at Minnesota Adult & Teen Challenge. He serves on the Board for Lundstrum’s Performing Arts Center in North Minneapolis as well as Hope Farm School, a school for at-risk boys from Minneapolis.
Sheila Qualls, Washington Academy Executive Director and Board Member
Sheila is the Executive Director of Washington Academy. Washington Academy, a TakeCharge project, strives to give children from low-income and poor communities access to life-changing Christian education, empowering them to discover their identity in Christ and use their God-given talents to transform lives and American culture.
In addition to TakcCharge, Sheila is a national speaker. She speaks on topics of family and identity. She formally blogged as The Not So Excellent Wife at Patheos.com and worked as a personal coach. Her published worked has appeared in the Upper Room, the MOPS Blog, Grown and Flown, and the Minneapolis Star Tribune.
Sheila earned dual bachelor’s degrees in English and Journalism from Cameron University and a Master’s of Art in Communication from the University of Oklahoma.
Sheila and her husband, Kendall, have been married for 39 years. They have five children and a black Lab named Largo.
Alfrieda Baldwin, Chair of the Board
Alfrieda is a Chicago area native. A retired attorney, she was in-house counsel at Securian Financial for 32 years. After retirement, Baldwin started volunteering in her school district. Being with elementary students caused her to reflect on the education she had received while attending a Lutheran grade school. It led her to want to start a Christian school accessible to families of all ethnic and financial backgrounds.
Diane Napper
Ms. Napper is the owner and Chief Creator at Taurus Moon Graphic Design, LLC, providing graphic design services to small businesses, non-profits, foundations, and global corporations. Her passion is presenting information visually, in a clear and compelling way. She served on the board of PFund Foundation from 2006-2012.
Ms. Napper earned her bachelor’s degree in International Business, with a concentration in Marketing from American University in Washington, DC. Born and raised in Philadelphia, PA. Ms. Napper’s parents gave her and her siblings a solid moral foundation through faith in God, love of family, the importance of a strong work ethic and the value of a good education. She and her husband live in South Minneapolis.
Andy Carlin
Andy is a former executive with Sleep Number Corporation in Minneapolis, MN where he served in a variety of senior management roles from 2008-2019. From 2016-2019, Andy held the number two role in the company serving as EVP/Chief Sales and Services Officer. In this role, he was responsible for $1.6b in store and online sales revenue, customer promotions and financing, retail operations and training, and the retail real estate/ market development of 600 stores across the country. He was also responsible for key service areas such as nationwide home delivery and set-up. He led 3500 team members across all 50 states.
Robert Carter
Robert Carter is the founder and retired CEO of Summit Mortgage Corporation. Summit Mortgage is a Minnesota-based company with a national presence that has been in operation for over 30 years. Philanthropy has always been important to Bob as significant corporate profits have long been directed to a family foundation. Foundation gifts have focused on supporting education initiatives, particularly those that reduce minority education gaps, improving access to clinical trials that can advance medicine, and providing help for food and housing insecurities.
Dr. Brian Nystrom
Founded Nystrom & Associates (NAL) and served as President/Chief Executive Officer/Chief Clinical Officer/Board Approved Clinical Supervisor/Outpatient Psychotherapist/Board of Directors since 1991. NAL is a top national mental health/substance abuse platform and one of the largest freestanding entities of its kind in the USA with over 1,200 clinicians and 1,000,000+ visits per year. Brian is a thought leader and subject matter expert in the field. He has conducted over 33,000 psychotherapy sessions while also building the company and creating many clinical programs. He has four Minnesota governor appointments to the Minnesota Board of Marriage and Family Therapy as well as much experience serving on several nonprofit and for-profit boards. Brian has two master’s degrees (MSW and MA-IRCOD) a doctorate degree (DSW) and is dual licensed as clinical social worker and marriage and family therapist. Brian wrote the book “Ordinary People, ExtraOrdinary Marriages”. He and his wife Mary Ann helped start two shelters for abused women and their children in Minnesota. Brian is committed to eradicating domestic/family violence in the USA and abroad.
Brian Slipka
As founder, Brian Slipka serves primarily as CEO and Executive Chairman in most of the True North family of independent companies. His career highlights the unique skillset and drive that set him apart from others, no matter the peer group. Brian started from scratch and, after graduating from the University of Minnesota’s Carlson School of Management, he worked his way up through sales and leadership positions at major professional services and technology companies and ultimately served as an executive at one of the largest bank-owned tech financing companies in the country.