Board of Directors
Telra Institute, Inc. is a 501 (c) (3) charitable organization governed by a board of directors charged with establishing policy, overseeing all activities of the organization, and ensuring adherence to our mission. Learn more about our organization and the members of our board below. Our board meetings and documents are available to the public.
Meet Our Board of Directors
All Board members can be reached at [Firstname].[Lastname] @ telra.org
Dr. Michael Matthews
Chairperson
Michael is a father of three who has volunteered many hours in gifted services in CMS schools and has served on the board of Metrolina Regional Scholars Academy. Michael is Professor in the College of Education at UNC Charlotte, where he directs the university’s graduate programs in gifted education. He has written several books and numerous scholarly articles on gifted education topics, is co-editor of the journal Gifted Child Quarterly, and also provides professional development to teachers and parents on topics related to gifted education, advanced learners, and English Learners.
Dr. Erin FitzPatrick
Director
Erin FitzPatrick is an assistant professor in the Department of Special Education at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. Her research interests include evidence-based writing instruction and practice-based professional development . Her work has been featured in leading education journals such as Contemporary Educational Psychology, Reading and Writing, and Reading and Writing Quarterly. Previously, Erin served as a journalist for the Department of Defense news outlet at Fort Campbell, Kentucky and as a public school teacher for 11 years. She has been licensed as an elementary Reading Specialist. She serves on the editorial boards of Learning Disabilities Research and Practice, Teacher Education and Special Education, and Remedial and Special Education. She also served on the International Literacy Association’s Writing Task Force.
Mr. George Baldwin
Treasurer
George Baldwin is a senior executive with extensive experience and knowledge in developing complex business, energy policy and external affairs related solutions. He actively manages Baldwin Consulting Group (BCG) which was established in 2017 and operates at the nexus of energy, environmental and regulatory matters. Previous to establishing BCG, George served as Duke Energy’s Director of FERC and Natural Gas Policy, and prior to that as Managing Director of Government Relations & Sustainability for Piedmont Natural Gas. Baldwin received his MEM from the Nicholas School at Duke University, his MBA from Campbell University and his BSBA from Appalachian State University. He is also a recipient of the Order of the Long Leaf Pine, the highest civilian honor in North Carolina.
Dr. Eric M. Gamble
Director
Dr. Gamble, is an Assistant Professor at Johnson & Wales University – Charlotte Campus. He is in his 19th year with the University, teaching business management, finance, and entrepreneurship courses in the College of Business. Dr. Gamble received his PhD from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, where he focused on methods to reduce student loan debt. His MBA in International Trade is from Johnson & Wales University, in Providence RI, along with his BS in Computer Systems Management.
Dr. Gamble worked in the hi-tech industry for more than 15-years with companies such as IBM, Oracle, and two venture capitalist (VC) funded startups in Silicon Valley. He held a variety of senior sales, application engineering, and systems engineering positions. Dr. Gamble currently resides in the University District of Charlotte with his wife of more than 25-years, Helena, and their 4 children, ages 22, 19, 17, and 16.
Board Meetings
Meeting calendar: The Telra Institute Board of Directors meets roughly every month. Most meetings are virtual/remote unless otherwise stated.
24-25 Meeting schedule
Dates: 7/24/24 (2:30pm), 8/28/24 (11:30), 9/24/24 (5pm), 10/22/24 (5pm), 12/10/24 (3pm), 1/17/25 (2pm), 2/26/25 (5pm), 4/9/25 (5pm), 5/21/25 (5pm), 6/30/25 (6:30pm)
Location: Call-in +1 980-213-0751,,527710601#, or Teams
Public participation: A member of the public may join and listen to a Board meeting. Members of the public wishing to speak must pre-register by emailing us at frontdesk [@] telra.org at least 3 business days prior to the meeting to be added to the agenda. Please include your name, the topic of interest, and the phone number from which you will be dialing in. Each speaker will be allotted 3 minutes, but may be further limited for time, at the discretion of the Chair, if more than 5 speakers have registered. Speakers must address matters that are relevant to the business of the Telra Institute Board of Directors. Speakers diverging from these matters, those divulging personal or sensitive information, those engaging in slander or ad-hominem attacks, those engaging in obscene or vulgar speech or conduct, or speakers inciting violence or a breach of the peace may be warned and/or removed from the meeting
Mr. James Tietjen
Director
Jim is a father to two adult daughters and grandfather to five grandchildren. He is a seasoned Senior Executive, Big 4 Accounting Firm Partner and current Private Equity Partner, with a diverse set of leadership skills. Excellent communicator, relationship developer and innovator --passionate about the need to leverage talent and technology to drive value in an organization. Jim received his MBA in Business from the University of Toledo and is a graduate of the Wharton Executive Development Program.
At Capital One, he was responsible for leveraging "game changing" talent to deliver innovative and high-quality Audit and Security Services to the Audit Committee of the Board of Directors. As a Partner with Deloitte focused on the financial services industry, he delivered audit and enterprise risk consulting services--and today serving Arrows Capital Group as a Private Equity Partner, with responsibility for legal and accounting/finance matters.
Throughout his career Jim served in organizations which benefitted children, including as a:
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Board Member and Finance Committee Chair of the Children's Center in Detroit, which focused on children with mental and behavioral health challenges,
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Board Member of the Heart of America Foundation in Washington DC, which sought to provide children with tools and materials to enhance literacy,
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Board Member with the United Way of Charlotte, and
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Tutor to elementary school children in Charlotte as part of the YMCA Y Readers Program and with A Better World, also in Charlotte.