The QVA Board of Directors is composed of LGBTQ+ and allied thought leaders who work to align the interests of the University of Virginia and its LGBTQ alumni, students, faculty, and staff to create a vibrant University of Virginia community.
Current Board Members
Brendan Maupin Wynn – Chair
Charlottesville, VA | brendan@queervirginia.org
Brendan is a graduate of the College of Arts & Sciences and currently works in U.Va’s Office for Diversity and Equity. He previously worked for Standard & Poor’s, where he analyzed U.S. and international higher education endowments and other tax-exempt and tax-deferred investment assets for S&P’s market-analytics division. As an undergraduate, Brendan served as programs coordinator for the University’s LGBTQ Center, during which time he planned and executed several major events and helped develop new popular events in the Center’s programming, like LGBTQ on the Lawn.
This year, Brendan returned to the University as a graduate student at the Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy, where he will focus on education policy and organizational behavior. He is also an active member of the Jefferson Literary and Debating Society. He is the Society’s chairperson for the 53rd Annual Restoration Ball, a yearly black-tie event benefiting the Rotunda repair and the Jeffersonian Grounds Initiative.
Brendan remains active in the Charlottesville community, where he sits on several government agency and nonprofit boards.
Blakeley Calhoun – Vice Chair
Charlottesville, VA | blake@queervirginia.org
Blake Calhoun is the Director of Undergraduate Success at UVA’s School of Engineering. Prior to UVA Engineering, Blake worked in residence life and community engaged scholarship. Blake earned a B.A. in Sociology from the University of Virginia in 2015, where she was co-president of the Queer Student Union and Chair of the Minority Rights Coalition, and her M.A. in Student Affairs Administration from Michigan State University in 2018. Blake currently resides in Charlottesville with her partner, three dogs, and pet fish.
Lance Guthrie – Secretary
Arlington, VA | lance@queervirginia.org
Lance is a life-long Virginian. He does strategy consulting for Capital One, working to improve people’s experience with their finances. He’s also an active tutor and traveler. While at UVA, Lance studied Civil Engineering and Business, was President of the Transfer Student Peer Advisors, and helped start the Social Entrepreneurship program at McIntire. Lance currently lives in McLean, Virginia with his husband, Daniel.
Ryan Whitney – Treasurer
San Francisco, CA | ryan@queervirginia.org
Before graduating from the University in 2014 with a Bachelor of Science in Commerce and a dual concentration in Information Technology and Management, Ryan had the distinct pleasure of serving as President of the McIntire Commerce Council. As an active member of the McIntire community, he also served as a Transfer Student Mentor, McIntire Ambassador, and a member of the student run long/short equity fund, the McIntire Investment Institute. After graduation, Ryan moved to San Francisco where he worked for JP Morgan Private Bank as an analyst on their Venture Capital Principals team. Currently, Ryan is a Co-Chair of the Impact Committee on the McIntire Young Alumni Council, which leads initiatives to connect alumni to current students and keep them engaged in the University Community.
Matt Paco
New York, NY | matt@queervirginia.org
As one of the co-founders of QVA, Matt Paco has been a very active UVa alumnus. He was on the Board of Managers of the University of Virginia Alumni Association from 2013-2019, and he was the co-chair of the Harriman Cup, which hosts the annual UVa vs. Yale alumni polo match that benefits the undergraduate polo programs at Yale and Virginia. He is a former president of the UVa Club of New York and was a member of the Young Alumni Council. In 2012, he co-produced the Julian Bond Gala in NYC, which raised over $1.5M for the Julian Bond Professorship in Civil Rights.
Outside of UVa, Matt is very involved in his local Nashville community. He is currently the co-chair of Chukkers For Charity, which raises money for Saddle Up and the Rochelle Center, two non-profits in Middle Tennessee that help children and adults with disabilities. Professionally, Matt is a video producer for Lonely Planet and the owner of D’Andrews Bakery & Cafe in downtown Nashville with his husband David. He was previously the Executive Producer of WSMV’s “News 4 Today” morning show that won the 2018 Regional Emmy for Best Morning Broadcast. When he lived in New York City, he worked for MSNBC, NBC, MTV, VH1, LOGO, and Nickelodeon. Matt used to oversee MTV’s You Hear It First, which gave American TV audiences a first look at then up-and-coming artists such as Kanye West, Rihanna, Ne-Yo, Paramore, and others. Matt was awarded a Beacon Award for MTV News: At War In Iraq, and his “In the Life: Changing the Game” documentary about LGBTQ collegiate athletes was featured in the Pride of the Ocean, Cine Slam, and Mumbai LGBT film festivals. During the 2012 Democratic National Convention, Matt was a State Delegate for New York.
Jasmine Hall Ratliff
Princeton, NJ | jasmine@queervirginia.org
Jasmine N. Hall Ratliff is Deputy Director for Strategy & Culture at Keecha Harris & Associates, Inc, a Black woman-owned consulting firm. In this role she works closely with the CEO in developing strategy for the firm’s work with organizations dedicated to racial equity and systems change. Jasmine was most recently a program officer at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. At RWJF her programs included policy and environmental change initiatives to support healthy children’s development with a particular focus on nutrition policies and access to healthy food. Prior to that she worked with the Missouri Foundation for Health where she directed the Women’s Health grant program and the development of a children’s oral health program.
Mrs. Hall Ratliff earned a Master of Health Administration from the Saint Louis University
School of Public Health and a BA from the University of Virginia. She has presented at
numerous national conferences on child health and philanthropy, has been published in blogs and peer reviewed journals and has completed various national fellowships. Mrs. Hall Ratliff resides in St. Louis, MO with her husband, young daughter, tortoise and cat.
Julie Weed – Membership Chair
Charlottesville, VA | julie@queervirginia.org
Julie was born and raised on a farm in Central Virginia, and attended high school in Charlottesville. She attended college in New England and came out there, only to return to the closet when she attended UVA as a graduate student. She did not have any idea that there were resources for LGBTQ folks at UVA, though she did find some of her tribe in club sports. Since coming out of the closet for good, Julie been involved with many LGBTQ community projects in Charlottesville. She led the organization of the successful Q-munity Fairs in 2006 and 2007, showcasing over 40 services and businesses that support the LGBTQ community. In 2012, Julie helped to organize the Cville Pride Festival, which grew into the non-profit organization Cville Pride
Community Network. Julie is still very active in this organization.
Julie is a middle-school teacher who provides support at school to her queer and questioning students by being open and proud, and by being involved in anti-bullying initiatives. She is a certified Olweus trainer and Safe Space trainer and has been a leader in the anti-bullying education within her school for over 8 years. In 2010, Julie became a volunteer facilitator for ROSMY Blue Ridge, which is a support group in Charlottesville for LGBTQ youth, and was 2011-12’s volunteer of the year. Julie lives near Charlottesville with her wife and daughter.
Justin Paxton
Los Angeles, CA | justin@queervirginia.org
Justin graduated from the University of Virginia in 2010 with a degree in Theatre and Dance. In 2011, Justin moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career in the entertainment industry. Starting as a receptionist at one of LA’s top law firms, he worked his way up to being an assistant to Nina Shaw of Del Shaw representing A-list writers, directors, and actors in the film and television industry. Since 2013, Justin has been the President of the UVA Entertainment Club of Los Angeles. UVAELA cultivates a strong community of professionals living in Los Angeles seeking to support, collaborate, socialize, and network with other UVA alumni in the entertainment business. Justin continues to learn the ins-and-outs of Hollywood and tries to find ways to bring what he’s learned back to the University community.
In 2016, Justin joined Young Alumni Council which consists of 36 alumni, composed of at least 2 representatives from each of the 12 most recent undergraduate classes. These volunteers generate initiatives and activities in conjunction with their parent organization, UVA’s Alumni Association’s Board of Managers. There are two projects of which he is most proud: creating a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Task Force to connect student leaders and alumni leaders to formulate a response to the events of August 2017 and working to program a Pride Night within UVA Athletics.
When he’s not working or volunteering, he spends his free time doing research (which in Hollywood consists of watching as much tv and film as possible) or hiking with his boyfriend and two dogs, Bodo and Bang.
Blair Smith
Danville, VA | blair@queervirginia.org
Tim Sensenig
Washington D.C | tim@queervirginia.org
Tim Sensenig is a 2020 graduate of the School of Law. He grew up in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania and studied English and German Education at Messiah University outside of Harrisburg. Before moving to Charlottesville for law school, Tim served as as a secondary English teacher both in the US and in Hamburg, Germany through a Fulbright Scholarship. He currently works as an associate at a law firm, where he advises clients on issues related to national security and cross-border transactions, and lives in Washington, DC.
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