team

As President & CEO of AltFinance, Marcus Shaw leverages his 20+ years of experience in investment management, technology, and nonprofit leadership to develop strategies for growing the talent pipeline in the alternative investment industry through mentorship, partnerships, and financial support. He has led AltFinance since its inception and has overseen the growth of the AltFinance Fellowship to more than 100 students to date, the disbursement of more than $5.4 million in scholarships HBCU students and in institutional giving to support HBCU programs, and the launch of the AltFinance Institute, a partnership with the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania to bring top-tier financial curriculum, alternative investing training, and professional networking to all HBCU students and faculty across the country.

Tulani Thomas brings over 20 years of diverse experience in accounting, law, business administration, and environmental advocacy to AltFinance. As Chief of Staff, Tulani will drive AltFinance's growth by collaborating with the CEO on stakeholder development and operational management. She began her career as a Certified Public Accountant at Ernst & Young LLP in the Audit and Advisory Services group and later served as the Senior Account Manager at Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, specializing in auditing companies in the retail and publishing sectors and providing financial management and strategic analysis. She also worked at Clifford Chance, focusing on Mergers and Acquisitions, Securities, and Antitrust. Before joining AltFinance, she founded TuTu’s Green World, an environmental education company partnering with municipalities, school districts, and non-profit organizations to offer holistic environmental programming for children and communities. Tulani is a Milken Scholar with the Michael Milken Foundation and serves as an advisor to the National Science Foundation’s project on Authoring STEM Stories for Climate Risk Preparedness in Black children’s media.

Rachel Ward brings more than 12 years of experience in program development and partnership management. Prior to AltFinance, Rachel worked in the Aerospace & Defense sector for more than 10 years at Raytheon Technologies Corporation. She started her career in its prestigious Operations Leadership Program, and later served in various roles across Global Supply Chain, Human Resources and Digital Technology groups. Most recently, she was Associate Director, Strategy, where she was responsible for large-scale strategy and transformation planning across the Enterprise Services organization.

Terence Thomas Jr. is an Investor-in-Residence at AltFinance, where he mentors HBCU students pursuing careers in alternative investments and leads strategic initiatives to assess the program's long-term impact. Prior to joining AltFinance, Terence spent over two years at Ares Management, evaluating private equity investment opportunities and overseeing due diligence processes. He holds a B.A. in Global Political Economy from Swarthmore College and is multilingual. Demonstrating his commitment to integrating sustainability into investment strategies, Terence previously served as the ESG Data Champion at Ares. His diverse background in finance, community engagement, and economic development positions him as a valuable leader in both alternative investments and urban economic transformation.

Ashleigh Williams is an Investor-in-Residence at AltFinance, where she focuses on coaching, career development, and expanding access to opportunities in alternative investments, particularly within venture capital. She supports Fellows through one-on-one mentorship, skill-building workshops, and exposure to industry professionals and career pathways. Before joining AltFinance, Ashleigh worked at LLR Partners, Primary Venture Partners, and Zeal Capital Partners, where she supported investment work across a range of companies and sectors. She began her career at Microsoft, where she worked across corporate finance, business strategy, and the ventures team. Ashleigh holds an MBA from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and a bachelor’s degree from Hampton University.