Venetta Williams (Clayton) is the founder and driving force behind the Bernice and Melvin Clayton Foundation. Inspired by the lessons of service learned from her parents, Venetta has devoted her life to enhancing and bettering the entirety of St. Elizabeth Parish. She is renowned in the Parish for her work providing school supplies for students who would otherwise go without, Christmas dinners for families who otherwise would not be able to celebrate the holiday and scholarships to students who otherwise would be able to afford school fees. After residing in the United States for more than 50 years, Venetta returned to St. Elizabeth Parish to be closer to the community she has dedicated so much of her time and effort to over the ensuing decades.

Michael Williams has more than two decades of experience in business advocacy and strategic communication as well as federal and state government service. Prior to founding The Williams Group, Michael was a Managing Director of Credit Suisse in the Public Policy Americas division, based in Washington, DC. He was responsible for maintaining and expanding the Bank's relationships with members and staff of the congressional tax-writing committees and other committees such as Financial Services, Banking and Foreign Relations. Michael joined Credit Suisse in February 2007 from The Bond Market Association/Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association's Washington, DC, office, where he was Senior Vice President. Michael served as Special Assistant to the President and Staff Director for Legislative Affairs during the Clinton Administration, where he was a key member of the White House team responsible for developing and implementing the Administration’s agenda on financial services, tax and international trade legislation. Michael also served as a Deputy Assistant for Congressional Affairs at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative during the Clinton Administration. Michael has coordinated and participated in numerous election campaigns at the federal, state and local levels.  He has also served as a congressional liaison for the National Democratic Convention for more than 14 years.

Michael holds a bachelor’s degree in Sociology and master's in Public Administration from the State University of New York at Albany. He also holds a master's in Business Administration from the University of Maryland.

Melissa McKnight has more than two decades of public sector experience. She previously served in leadership positions in a variety of DC government agencies focusing on education accountability and funding, workforce and economic development, and data and systems development. Since launching the Lincoln Square Group in 2019, Melissa has successfully managed over 50 projects focused on strategic planning, policy development, program development and evaluation, landscape analysis and advising clients around scaling up services, and developing quantitative and qualitative research reports. Melissa holds a B.A. in Political Science and Public Policy from The George Washington University.

Bio coming soon.