September 16, 2023
We are honored to have three exceptional women leaders join our Advisory Board for terms that began in July 2023: Elizabeth Palmer Bennett, Barbara Kemmis, and Jean Stephens Newbert.
The purpose of the Advisory Board is to help assure objectivity and promote ethical practices. Board members are asked to serve two-year terms and will meet two to four times per year to advise the CEO. As part of Fosgail’s status as a benefit LLC, the Advisory Board will be actively involved in our annual assessment of overall social and environmental performance using the GRI Standards.
Meet our Advisory Board members:
Elizabeth Palmer Bennett
Elizabeth Palmer Bennett, CPA, CFE, is Vice President for Finance and Administration at the Pennsylvania College of Art & Design. She previously held the same position at the Lancaster Theological Seminary. Prior to the seminary, she worked as the Internal Audit Manager and Director of Sarbanes-Oxley compliance for a telecommunications company. Prior to that she worked for many years in public accounting specializing in non-profit auditing. Elizabeth has a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from University of Delaware, a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from Lebanon Valley College, and is a Certified Paralegal, Certified Public Accountant, and a Certified Fraud Examiner. Elizabeth serves as a peer reviewer for the Middle States Commission on Higher Education as well as for the Association of Theological Schools. In June of 2022, she was elected to serve on the Board of Commissioners for the Association of Theological Schools.
Barbara Kemmis
Barbara Kemmis is Executive Director of the Cremation Association of North America where she promotes all things cremation through member programs, education and strategic partnerships. After more than 20 years of experience in association leadership, Barbara knows that bringing people together to advance common goals is not only fun, but the most effective strategy to get things done. Barbara has served two prior professions as the Director of Member Services at the American Theological Library Association and Vice President of Library and Nonprofit Services at the Donors Forum (now Forefront). Barbara earned a master’s degree in library science from Dominican University, a graduate certificate in nonprofit management from North Park University, and a Bachelor of Arts from Earlham College.
Jean Stephens Newbert
Jean Stephens Newbert retired from Abbott Laboratories as Manager of Customer Operations and Sales Support. She came into this position when the startup company she was with was acquired by Abbott. This startup company, along with two others that she worked for before it, all grew from small businesses to larger businesses under her care and leadership. During her tenure, these three startups grew and became public offerings. In two cases, the company was eventually sold to a Fortune 500 company. This experience gives her valuable insight into entrepreneurship and what it takes for small scale businesses to grow and transition into larger scale businesses. Her areas of expertise include customer service, sales and marketing, supply chain management, and business strategy and planning.