The NMTC Advisory Board provides guidance to NCIF in the implementation of our New Markets Tax Credit activity, with particular focus on the impact of our proposed transactions, the datapoints and information that we need in order to demonstrate impact, and the role of the mission-oriented bank in the 3-Way Partnership.
Members of the Advisory Board:
Ruben Anthony – President & CEO, The Urban League of Greater Madison
Dakota Cole – Secretary of Treasury, The Chickasaw Nation
Mark Gooch – President & CEO, Community Trust Bank, KY
William Keller – President & CEO, Community Bank of the Bay, CA
Kerwin Tesdell – President & CEO, Community Development Venture Capital Alliance, NY
Bob Tucker – President Chicago Community Loan Fund
Ruben Anthony
President & CEO
The Urban League of Greater Madison
Ruben L. Anthony, Jr. became President & CEO of the Urban League of Greater Madison in March 2015. He has over 27 years of management experience and founded RowJAC Consulting in 2013, a firm specializing in civil rights and government contracting. Through RowJAC, he served as interim Director of Milwaukee County’s Community Business Development Program and worked as an advisor for several organizations, including the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District and the Minnesota Department of Transportation.
Before RowJAC, Dr. Anthony was Senior Vice-President at Bloom Companies (2010-2013) and spent 19 years at the Wisconsin Department of Transportation, eventually becoming Deputy Secretary and Chief Operations Officer. In this role, he oversaw 3,600 employees and a $3.25 billion budget.
Dr. Anthony has a strong background in disadvantaged business development and led WisDOT to achieve high DBE goals on major projects. He has received numerous awards, including recognition from the US Small Business Administration, Wisconsin Supplier Diversity Council, and the National Association of Minority Contractors.
He created the “Wisconsin Model” to boost DBE participation, which was praised by the Federal Highway Administration and shared nationally. Dr. Anthony is also an adjunct professor at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and a Deacon at Mt. Zion Baptist Church.
Dakota Cole
Secretary of Treasury
The Chickasaw Nation
Dakota Cole is a citizen and employee of the Chickasaw Nation and currently serves as Secretary of Treasury. As Secretary he oversees payroll for more than 13,000 tribal employees, $400 million in annual federal awards, and $6 Bn in assets.
Mr. Cole serves on the Chickasaw Nation COVID-19 funding rules committee, 401k and investment committees, and as a board member to Global Gaming Solutions, Chickasaw Foundation, and component units of the Chickasaw Nation.
He possesses a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, a master’s degree in Accounting, Certified Public Accountant and Certified Financial Planner certificates. He graduated from Tishomingo High School in 2004 as a member of the 13-year club. Dakota graduated from Leadership Oklahoma’s Class 33, currently serves as audit committee chairperson and is a lifetime member. Mr. Cole is also a member of Oklahoma’s Society of CPA’s and the Certified Financial Planner Board.
Dakota makes his home in Connerville, Oklahoma where he enjoys spending time with his wife, Jamy, and two children, Conner and Creek, as they compete in junior rodeo.
Mark Gooch
President & CEO
Community Trust Bank
Mr. Gooch is currently Chairman, and CEO of Community Trust Bank, Inc. and Vice Chairman, President and CEO of Community Trust Bancorp, Inc. in Pikeville, Kentucky. Community Trust Bank is a rural community bank with branches in Kentucky, West Virginia, and Tennessee. Prior to becoming President, Mr. Gooch led the operations division of Community Trust Bancorp. Before joining Community Trust Bank, Mr. Gooch served as President and CEO of First Security Bank & Trust, where he had worked his way up from branch manager in the course of 12 years.
CTB has been involved in the NMTC program since 2002 when they applied for $15 million in NMTC's and were awarded $7 million which was used in 2003 and expired in 2010. The Bank has since been involved with several transactions including various CDC's, approximately 6 transactions. CTB has also worked closely with NCIF in impactful transactions such as The University of Pikeville's new student center and School of Osteopathic Medicine in 2011-2012. Another example of participation in the NMTC program is as an investor in Pine Mountain Community Development Corporation which provided capital to small business in Harlan, Bell and Letcher County in Southeast Kentucky more than 20 years ago. This entity is in process of being acquired by another Community Development Corporation.
William Keller
President & CEO
Community Bank of the Bay
Mr. Keller is the CEO & President of Community Bank of the Bay (CBB). CBB is a CDFI certified bank based in Oakland, CA, serving low- and moderate-income communities throughout the San Francisco Bay Area and contiguous counties. As California’s first FDIC-insured financial institution Community Bank of the Bay is dedicated to meeting the financial needs of the small and medium sized businesses, non-profit organizations, creatives and real estate developers and investors who together make up the economic and social foundation of our communities. The bank has a primary mission of promoting economic resilience and sustainability in the communities it serves, especially those communities that have previously been overlooked by the financial services industry. Previously Mr. Keller served as COO and then Executive Vice President at Diablo Valley Bank/Heritage Bank of Commerce in Danville, CA, and President and CEO of Greater Bay Bancorp’s whole owned subsidiary Bay Bank of Commerce in San Leandro, CA. He has served on local Boards including Oakland’s Children’s Hospital Foundation and the 5-Bucket Foundation for Financial literacy.
Kerwin Tesdell
President & CEO
Community Development Venture Capital Alliance
Mr. Tesdell is President of the Community Development Venture Capital Alliance, the association of venture capital funds that provide equity financing for businesses that create good jobs, wealth, and entrepreneurial capacity in underinvested areas of the United States and the world. CDVCA serves the industry by providing education and networking opportunities, developing best practices, performing industry research, and supporting positive public policy at the federal and state levels. CDVCA also manages $320 million directly in a combination of business investments and investments in funds. Mr. Tesdell is an adjunct professor at New York University, teaching Social Venture Capital at the Stern School of Business and Community Development Law at the School of Law.
Mr. Tesdell graduated from Harvard College with a degree in economics and holds JD and MBA degrees from New York University, as well as a certificate from the Venture Capital Institute.
Bob Tucker
President
Chicago Community Loan Fund
Bob Tucker became President of the Chicago Community Loan Fund (CCLF) in January 2025, after serving as Interim President since November 2022. He first joined CCLF in June 2015 as the Chief Operating Officer and Executive Vice President of Programs. As President, he leads operations and provides strategic vision and leadership to ensure CCLF executes its business plan and fulfills its mission to provide flexible, affordable and responsible financing and technical assistance for community stabilization and development efforts and initiatives that benefit low- to moderate-income neighborhoods. Prior to joining CCLF, Bob was the Corporate General Counsel and Chief Risk officer for Neighborhood Housing Services of Chicago (NHS), where he oversaw all legal operations and developed strategies for managing and minimizing risk. Before NHS, he was a Partner at the law firm Chapman and Cutler LLP where he represented numerous lending institutions, corporations, and not-for-profit organizations and also served as the law firm’s Pro Bono Chair. From 2011-2019, Bob served as an elected Village Trustee on the Village Board of Oak Park, Illinois. Bob also has been a Freelance Writer for the Chicago Sun-Times and Pioneer Press providing restaurant reviews and chef profiles.
He has extensive experience in credit analysis, working with a wide variety of loan products, and structuring complex financial and lending transactions, including matters involving bonds, Low-Income Housing Tax Credits, New Markets Tax Credits, and Tax Increment Financing.
Bob has a Juris Doctorate from the University of Wisconsin Law School, Madison, WI and a B.A. in Political Science and Philosophy from Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia.