Meet Our People
HORNE LLP
Government Services Leadership
Cathy Denman
I have personally been through disaster and offer empathy and understanding to those working toward recovery. In the aftermath of disaster, the people, agencies, and states facilitating recovery efforts receive requests from numerous different directions. Helping people navigate these devastating and confusing times gives me a great deal of personal satisfaction.
Marsha H. Dieckman
My passion is serving others by collaborating for solutions. Helping states create solutions to maximize CARES Act funding aligns with this passion. COVID-19 has presented opportunities and challenges for us all. My background of solving problems for individuals and business owners who are navigating complex tax regulations transitions well to creating diverse teams with broad experiences to help our clients navigate these challenging times.
Samir El Hage
With over 15 years of experience in project and program management, I am passionate about helping our clients ensure project success. Working on various projects such as road infrastructure, outpatient clinic facilities, hospital facilities, academic facilities, residential multi-story buildings, office buildings, and coastal facilities, I bring a wide array of knowledge to help clients and stakeholders manage complex processes and solve challenging problems.
Scott Keller
I am passionate about helping our clients navigate complex legislative and regulatory challenges surrounding various federal programs. With more than a decade of experience using the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for disaster recovery purposes, I help HORNE identify program improvements that can survive HUD oversight and assist grantees in streamlining operations to increase organizational effectiveness.
Jonathan Krebs
Our team isn’t afraid to get in the trenches to help governments tackle their greatest challenges. Anyone can identify problems. We bring unparalleled experience and a total commitment to working alongside our clients. I bring a broad scope of experience to the work we do, and a deep commitment to our clients to help them solve their most demanding challenges and achieve success.
Bryan McDonald
I am wired for the job I do. Complex changes, evolving compliance requirements and public service - what could be better? Our Government Services team brings a depth of knowledge and experience, coupled with common sense counsel. I work directly with state and local governments to solve funding and compliance issues associated with large funding streams, and to create frameworks for systematic reviews of program accountability.
Anna Stroble
We exist to support and implement our clients’ recovery visions by delivering a level of client service that is unrivaled in the industry. We provide consistent, exceptional client service through our in-depth industry knowledge, vast experience and unmatched dedication and responsiveness to our clients’ needs. Fueled by our own experiences with natural disasters, we are keenly aware of the difficult journey to restoration and have witnessed communities transformed by federal recovery programs.
Alethia Thomas
Alethia is a partner in government services at HORNE. She is responsible for developing intake and eligibility policies and procedures, providing quality assurance and quality control, as well as providing technical support to staff members.
Alethia joined HORNE in 2011. She has more than five years of experience in disaster recovery on the federal, state, and local levels.
Sean Almonte
Sean is a director in the government services practice at HORNE. He specializes in providing subject matter expertise on housing policies and compliance, implementation and management for state and local governments. His experience ranges from designing and modifying program policy to leveraging disaster recovery funding to aid in the delivery of recovery and resiliency outcomes. Along with this, he serves communities across the country in community development and affordable housing needs.
Adrienne Celestine
Adrienne is a director in HORNE’s government services group where she works closely with state and local government agencies in the design, development and implementation of Community Development Block Grant – Disaster Recovery programs. She assists clients in navigating and understanding complex federal regulations and help them design programs that are both in compliance and meet the needs of the constituents affected by disasters.
Jillian Compton
Jillian is a director in HORNE’s government services focus area where she oversees FEMA Public Assistance, Hazard Mitigation, and Individual Assistance projects as well as HUD CDBG-DR. She works with agencies in the State of Texas and is responsible for financial and compliance oversight of federal funds requested by government and not-for-profit subgrantees.
Ryan Flanery
Ryan serves as the director of CDBG-DR compliance for the government services team. In this role, Ryan partners with grantees to ensure program operations proceed in compliance with CDBG-DR requirements. He values blending the CDBG-DR program requirements with a creative problem-solving approach and uses his deep experience to help grantees develop and implement successful programs that are tailored to local recovery needs.
Diana T. Hardin
Diana is a director in government services for HORNE. She currently manages the Project Management Office at the Mississippi Development Authority where she works with the program managers to facilitate closeout of grant programs and ensure compliance with governmental regulations. She has more than five years of management experience with both HUD and FEMA disaster recovery programs and also has experience assisting clients with Sarbanes-Oxley Section 404 compliance.
Steven Rawlinson
Steven is a government services director at HORNE. He specializes in working with financial management systems and internal control oversight. He is experienced in strategically blending various federal programs to meet the financial regulatory and program requirements of HUD. His expertise in grant funding stems from strategic financial planning followed by strong policies and procedures.
Michael J. Richardson
Mike is a government services director at HORNE where he specializes in HUD CDBG-DR programs and program management of CDBG-DR implementation for disaster recovery projects.
Mike joined the firm in 2018 with 35 years of previous experience as project manager with an international firm for disaster recovery programs with both HUD and FEMA.
Christopher Shannon
Christopher is a director in the government services practice at HORNE, where he provides subject matter expertise and oversight to HORNE’s financial implementation team in Puerto Rico. The damage left behind by natural disasters creates a significant and unexpected challenge for government entities, and working in disaster relief allows Christopher to use his experience and expertise to pursue his passion of finding solutions to complex issues and helping people get back in their homes.
Ashley Swain
Ashley is a government services director at HORNE where she works with federal, state and local agencies to ensure compliance with federal rules and regulations when seeking assistance during and following a natural disaster or global health pandemic. Ashley focuses on helping states and governmental agencies navigate the challenges of disaster recovery by implementing programs that maximize funding while meeting all regulatory compliance requirements.
Lisa Taylor
Lisa is the director of business process solutions at HORNE where she leads a team of highly skilled project management professionals and business process analysts who work closely with client service teams and program directors to plan, design and implement successful CDBG and PA programs. She also provides project policy analysis to ensure compliance, designs effective project assessment tools to facilitate transparency, and builds strong teams to support project initiatives.
Matt Akin
Matt Akin, PMP, LSSGB, CFE, SSLP, CMS
- Senior Manager
- [email protected]
- Houston, TX
- Direct: 713.230.8494
Matt is a service transformation team senior manager with extensive Public Assistance (PA) Disaster Recovery and Community Development Block Grant- Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) program experience. He performs business analysis, process improvement, and system automation development for both PA and CDBG-DR oversight projects to ensure compliance with state and federal grant guidelines and regulations.
Roxanne Anderson
Roxanne is a service transformation team senior manager at HORNE where she serves as a business analyst and project manager. She is responsible for establishing and coordinating project deliverables, communicating project status with internal and external stakeholders and creating custom project workflows.
Kelli A. Carver
Kelli is a senior manager in government services at HORNE where she is currently part of the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) recovery accounting team in Biloxi, MS, working to provide accounting oversight for the MEMA Public Assistance program.
Milena Caterino
Milena serves as the deputy construction manager with government services at HORNE where she is passionate about bringing restoration to the victims of disaster recovery. She assists with quality control and quality assurance of the application process to ensure accuracy and efficiency.
Milena joined HORNE in 2021. She has previous experience as a project manager, deputy construction manager, and program manager for multiple disaster recovery programs across the country.
Megan Conner
Megan is the attorney for the government services focus area at HORNE where she is responsible for contract review and negotiation and advises the focus area on legal matters that may arise.
Megan joined HORNE in 2021 with over 15 years of legal experience. She previously focused on representing policyholders including individuals, commercial property owners, and agencies and municipalities in disaster recovery litigation.
Lori Cunningham
Lori is a senior manager in government services at HORNE where she directs Geographic Information Systems (GIS) development. Lori applies GIS technologies to disaster recovery programs by developing streamlined approaches to spatial analyses and map production, disseminating data via GIS websites and implementing mobile field data collection applications.
Michael Dickerson
Michael is a senior manager in government services at HORNE where he specializes in information technology. Michael not only helps his clients with their current technological needs, he focuses on keeping ahead of the everchanging changing landscape of technology. He understands that every client’s situation is unique and strives to solve their problems by asking what is possible.
Michael Gagner
Michael is a senior program manager in government services at HORNE. He specializes in CDBG-DR program development of policies and procedures to yield maximum benefit for vested parties while remaining compliant with State and Federal regulations. Michael also focuses on developing and implementing strategies to increase team and unit production.
John Hadjis
John is a government services senior manager at HORNE. He primarily focuses on the HUD Community Development Block Grant program by assisting the South Carolina Disaster Recovery Office with assisting low and moderate income South Carolinians recover from Hurricane Matthew. John also has extensive FEMA Public Assistance programmatic experience having assisted the Texas Department of Emergency Management.
Robert Harland III
Robert is a senior manager on HORNE's government services team. He focuses on Community Development Block Grants project management, procurement, labor standards and process development.
Robert joined HORNE in 2008 and has extensive experience in program tracking and reporting to state and federal governments, budgeting, and financial analysis and monitoring.
Sam R. Hurst
Sam is a senior manager in government services at HORNE where he has over ten years of managerial experience in working directly with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), specifically with the Public Assistance (PA) and Individual Assistance (IA) Direct Housing Programs.
Lacy Lyons
Lacy is a government services senior manager for HORNE. Lacy works closely with state agencies and local jurisdictions to design and implement successful Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) programs. Lacy also provides guidance and quality control for CDBG-DR housing programs and develops policies and procedures for eligibility and construction processes, compliance management, financial oversight and audit preparation.
Seth Magden
Seth is a senior manager in government services for HORNE LLP. He serves states and local governments around the country in community development efforts, often in a disaster recovery environment using FEMA and HUD funding. He also specializes in design and implementation of community adaptation and resilience solutions following natural disasters and is responsible for relationship management with federal agency partners in support of clients.
Monica Mota
Monica is a project manager in government services at HORNE. She works with large-scale projects with an emphasis on program design and implementation. She works directly with states and municipalities to ensure program design completion for the Community Development Block Grant program.
Monica joined HORNE in 2013. She has 15 years of experience with state and federal programs.
Whitney Powell
Whitney is a government services senior manager for HORNE. She works closely with state agencies and primarily focuses on delivering on HORNE’s promises, contract management, and program compliance. She has worked with various funding sources and their applicable financial requirements which include FEMA Public Assistance and Direct Housing, CDBG-DR, and USDA Food and Nutrition Programs.
Jay Pyka
Jay is the senior manager of learning and development for HORNE’s government services team. He creates consistency in the new hire experience by creating content for training courses that provides all team members with a detailed and well-monitored onboarding process.
Tiffany Schwarzauer
Tiffany is a government services senior manager at HORNE. She currently works as a project manager for a housing grant program for the state of North Carolina. She works directly with the state agency to ensure compliance with federal regulations and to assist in developing processes to increase workflow.
Holly Smith
Holly is a senior manager in government services at HORNE where she works with state and local governments to design and administer their federally funded disaster recovery programs, including HUD Community Development Block Grant – Disaster Recovery, FEMA Public Assistance, and most recently, Coronavirus Relief Funds made available through the CARES Act.
Timothy Smith
Timothy is a senior manager in government services where he drafts and negotiates contracts, and reviews legal documentation and potential acquisition of bid awards.
Timothy joined the firm in 2016 with more than 10 years of previous experience specializing in both the private and government sectors. He focused mainly on disaster response and recovery while working in-house with the Mississippi Department of Public Safety soon after Hurricane Katrina.
Vicki Smith
Vicki is a senior manager in the government services division of HORNE. She is a division leader/coordinator assigned to state recovery accounting oversight projects where she provides disaster relief management and compliance for the Public Assistance and Hazard Mitigation Grant Programs.
Steve Swick
Steve is a senior manager in government services at HORNE where he assists with the implementation of Texas GLO Temporary Housing Program as a field operations manager and assisting with business development for various Texas GLO HUD CDBG programs.
Steve joined the firm in 2018 after working with an international accounting firm and has more than 20 years of experience.
Monica Thompson
Monica is a senior manager in government services at HORNE where she assists with business development efforts. She collaborates internally and externally to continue to advance the firm within the industry and position for future growth opportunities.
Bill Wadlington
Bill is a senior manager in government services at HORNE. He specializes in information technology management.
Bill joined HORNE in 2006 and with more than five years of related work experience.
Daron Wilson
Daron is a senior manager for HORNE where he serves as the director of operations for the government services team. He specializes in economic development and operational management initiatives. Daron’s vast knowledge and experience in economic development, management and implementation of the U.S. HUD-CDBG, environmental and regulatory compliance, portfolio and program management, and disaster recovery enhances the capabilities offered to clients served through a full-scale recovery lens.
Bukky Akorede
Bukky is a government services manager at HORNE where she primarily serves as a recovery officer for public assistance projects. She works closely with subrecipients and federal and state officials in the development of disaster recovery project worksheets. She also monitors disaster recovery projects to ensure regulatory compliance and proper project management oversight throughout the project lifecycle.
Karen Brown
Karen is a disbursement manager in the government services practice at HORNE. She specializes in providing oversight and investigating payment issues using root cause analysis and developing permanent corrective actions for payments. She is passionate about engaging clients, helping them define their expectations and delivering their expected results.
Niv Bulsara
Niv is a government services manager at HORNE. Her primary role is monitoring large project funding by ensuring compliance and transparency for client grants in accordance with state guidelines. She performs detailed second level review of project deliverables, maintains effective communication with assigned subrecipients on missing funding documentations and assists project management staff in developing processes to improve funding efficiency.
Amber Celestaine
Amber is the project manager for the CDBG-DR program in the state of Florida. She is responsible for planning, organizing, and ensuring the completion of the project within the required timeline, scope and budget.
Amber joined the firm in 2021 with over 15 years of experience in related fields. Previously, she managed the pre-construction process of the Housing and Urban Development CDBG-DR program in South Carolina.
Michael Chua
Michael is a government services manager at HORNE where he focuses on CDBG-BR and policy and compliance for Puerto Rico. Michael uses his knowledge of regulatory requirements to help clients create and implement programs that are compliant with federal guidelines. He has a passion for working in disaster recovery and seeing communities come back stronger and more resilient.
Caroline Cull-Brennan
Caroline is a government services manager at HORNE. She serves as the project manager for the Storm Recovery Program under the South Carolina Disaster Recovery Office where she oversees housing assistance.
Caroline joined the firm in 2015 with more than 10 years of previous grant experience.
Karyn Desselle
Karyn is a government services manager for HORNE LLP where she serves as the environmental manager for disaster recovery programs. She works with state and local governments to ensure environmental compliance of disaster recovery programs designed to rebuild housing and infrastructure and help communities recover from the devastating economic impacts of natural disasters.
Tara Dinter
Tara is a government services manager at HORNE LLP. She specializes in auditing federal grant money expended to ensure compliance with federal laws surrounding the administration of the grant funds.
Tara joined HORNE in 2012 with more than five years of previous accounting experience in tax services.
Adrian Duron
Adrian is a manager within the business process solutions team at HORNE. He serves as a business analyst on Texas General Land Office and Florida Department of Economic Opportunity projects and elicits business needs and requirements from project stakeholders. He works with every level of the organization throughout the project to ensure a successful deployment.
Sam Dyse
Sam is a manager on the government services team at HORNE LLP where he specializes in software development. He develops custom software to manage state and federal incentive programs and leads client IT teams with software solutions.
Sam joined the firm in 2016 with five years of experience as a software developer for the state government.
Stephen Faulkner
Stephen is a manager in government services at HORNE where he utilizes innovative technology to help Public Assistance (PA) and Community Development Block Grant – Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) teams manage the disaster recovery process lifecycle. He works to implement designs to condense the recovery timeline and develops tools to assist the team with ensuring compliance with state and federal guidelines.
Eunice A. Garcia
Eunice is a government services manager at HORNE. She specializes in project management, quality assurance and quality control compliance, and reporting in accordance with state and federal regulations.
Eunice joined HORNE in 2013 with more than 10 years of program management experience for the government.
Ali Garrison
Ali serves as a manager for government services at HORNE where she provides oversight, operations support and compliance support for state and local governments, including Coronavirus Relief Funds made available through the CARES Act. She focuses on project management processes and procedures, and collaborates with states to maximize and accelerate funding disbursement.
Maribel Gatica
Maribel serves as a government services manager at HORNE. She specializes in CDBG-DR policy and compliance and helps states, territories and local government agencies with disaster recovery. She works with grantees to ensure program compliance with CDBG-DR requirements to emphasize effective process improvement and streamline operations.
Dan Glisson
Dan works with the government services team at HORNE as the call center manager for the Alabama Rent Relief program. He creates structure for the call center by continually training employees and creating a consistent process to meet all client needs.
Ivana Harrington
Ivana is a manager in government services at HORNE where she is responsible for performing capacity assessments for potential stakeholders in the planning, design and implementation of federal programs. She also helps develop the guidelines for Economic Development Assistance programs and works with local state agencies to provide advisory services.
Ivana joined the firm in 2018 with previous experience as a senior program manager with the Governor’s Office of Storm Recovery.
Sandra Hendrix
Sandra is a manager in government services at HORNE. She serves as a compliance specialist on disaster recovery programs related to Community Development Block Grant funds, specifically in coordination with the Texas General Land Office. Sandra is passionate about helping victims of natural disasters get back on their feet.
Daniel Herrera
Daniel is a manager in for government services at HORNE where he specializes in environmental compliance and review for disaster recovery programs.
Lucretia Hoffman
Lucretia is a government services manager at HORNE where she focuses on case management for the ReBuild NC program. She provides expertise, leadership and real-world experience in working with the various communities the program serves. Lucretia aims to be data and results driven while maintaining a focus on the people she assists.
Matt Howell
Matt is a call center deputy manager for government services where he is passionate about delivering a superb client experience by training and educating his team. He supervises the COVID rent relief application process and helps applicants access funds to expedite recovery.
Emily Hundt
Emily is a government services manager at HORNE where she works with the Texas General Land Office to implement CDBG-DR programs in Houston and Harris County. She focuses on developing, executing and improving processes in compliance with federal and state regulations. Emily provides anticipatory and data-driven insights to improve program efficiencies that expedite recovery and assist applicants in returning to a state of normalcy.
Travis Johnson
Travis is a manager in the government services practice at HORNE. He specializes in accounting, fiscal controls and program compliance. With his experience, he ensures new programs are launched smoothly and continue operating efficiently.
Terry Morgan
Terry is a manager in government services at HORNE where he specializes in grants to help cities, counties and states recover from disasters. Terry’s goal is to improve the disaster recovery process and help communities rebuild faster and better.
Terry joined the firm in 2018 with more than 5 years of international project management experience and a 30 year military career.
Rachel Mosher
Rachel is a government services manager at HORNE. She oversees the administrative team and provides leadership in client billing. She also provides operational support to all government services partners and projects, and she develops procedures for administrative functions to assist in streamlining processes.
She joined HORNE in 2006 with 10 years of experience in hospitality management.
Taylor Parker
Taylor is a manager in government services at HORNE. He works with federal, state and local governments to administer relief funds to those affected by natural disasters and global pandemics. Taylor specializes in building processes and systems that provide rapid, efficient and effective relief to help restore communities. Having grown up in Louisiana, Taylor has seen the devastation caused by natural disasters, and those experiences drive him to provide support to those that need it.
Daniel Paul
Daniel is a manager in government services at HORNE. He serves as the project manager for the Hurricane Matthew program under the South Carolina Disaster Recovery Office.
Paul Phelps
Paul is a lead business analyst for the government services team at HORNE where he focuses on providing the link between business needs and IT talent to implement solutions for greater accuracy, effectiveness, and efficiency. With the speed of technology ever increasing, he understands the need to keep ahead of the changes and look for growth opportunities to serve the client better.
Lauren Poche
Lauren is a Historic Preservation manager and architectural historian at HORNE. She specializes in architectural history, historic and archival research, and has extensive experience as an archaeologist who focuses on historic period sites. She has experience overseeing federally funded disaster recovery programs and performing implementation, quality control, and final verification on program applications across the U.S. and abroad.
Ying Qualls
Ying is a manager and senior environmental specialist in government services at HORNE. She performs and oversees environmental reviews for disaster recovery programs in multiple states. By reviewing environmental impacts, she assists managers of various projects in ensuring compliance of disaster recovery programs to help communities recover from the devastating economic impacts of natural disasters.
Viviana Ramirez
Viviana is a manager in government services at HORNE. She specializes in providing grant monitoring services for Public Assistance and Hazard Mitigation grant programs as well as maintaining communication and addressing the needs of subrecepients.
Viviana joined the firm in 2012.
Michael Rawlinson
Michael is a government services manager at HORNE. He is primarily focused on monitoring federal grants to ensure that applicants follow the proper regulations and receive appropriate compensation. Michael’s responsibilities include reviewing applicant provided documentation to ensure compliance with federal regulations, attending site inspections and addressing applicant concerns about the grant process.
Shaanon Rhoden
Shaanon is the call center manager for government services. She supervises the COVID rent relief application process and helps applicants access funds to expedite recovery.
Shaanon joined HORNE in 2021 with over 20 years of experience in managing teams in the healthcare industry.
Christopher Sorensen
Christopher serves as a manager in the government services focus area at HORNE. He oversees the Texas Division of Emergency Management Coronavirus Relief Funding team by processing requests for funding to local jurisdictions to allow them to mitigate and respond to the Coronavirus. He serves clients by expediting and streamlining processes to allow for rapid funding and a quick recovery.
Jackson Stubbs
Jackson is a government services manager at HORNE where he serves as the deputy director for the ReBuild NC Program, a state government program aimed at providing federal assistance to North Carolina communities impacted by Hurricanes Matthew and Florence.
Malin Thomas
Malin is a government services manager at HORNE. She specializes in disaster recovery accounting oversight where she assists in providing disaster recovery funding management and compliance. She also directs a team of analysts responsible for the preparation of funding referrals and closeouts for FEMA Public Assistance projects.
Malin joined HORNE in 2011 with previous experience conducting audits and preparing tax returns for a low income housing partnership.
Christine Waldron
Christine is a government services manager for HORNE. She manages large Community Development Block Grant projects through application processing, customer service, constituent service and policy support.
Christine joined the firm in 2014 with more than 10 years of previous experience.
Sam Walker
Sam is a manager in government services for HORNE. He specializes in software development and reports and works closely with the business process team to provide timely efficient solutions.
Sam joined the firm in 2013 with more than five years of previous software development experience.
Michael White
Mike is a government services manager at HORNE where he focuses on state and federal Public Assistance grant oversight and assists in the development of procedures to ensure compliance with Public Assistance grant requirements and regulations. He supervises and trains analysts working on state and federal projects, such as CARES Act funding.
Katie Wilkes
Katie is a government services manager at HORNE. She specializes in working with the state government on the disaster recovery rental assistance program providing loans to owners of small rental properties. She is also responsible for the financial oversight, disbursement of funds and confirming applicant compliance.
Katie joined HORNE in 2008 with previous experience as a project accountant for a global provider of disaster restoration services.
Alex Yarbrough
Alex is a government services manager at HORNE. He specializes in client management, provides guidance and training to grant sub-recipients, and serves as a subject matter expert on federal procurement regulations and Section 3 compliance. Alex served on the Hurricane Katrina recovery team at HORNE, providing oversight services to the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency in connection with over $3 billion in FEMA Public Assistance (PA) and Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP) funding.
