Women’s Council Celebration of Women’s Leadership

Michelle Crumm, MBA, CPA, is an accountant and auditor who used her procurement and investor relations expertise to co-found Adaptive Materials, Inc. The company develops and manufactures propane fuel cells. Crumm served as its chief business officer for 12 years. Recognized by Inc. 5000 and Inc. 100’s Energy Company awards for its dynamic growth, Adaptive Materials, Inc. was acquired by Ultra Electronics in 2011. Crumm, known for her energy, entrepreneurship and community involvement, then became the Founder and CEO of Present Value, an executive coaching company, where she inspires others to develop bold leadership.

Crumm has been a founder or investor in many start-up companies. Widely recognized for her leadership, Crain’s Detroit Business in 2007 named her one of the region’s “Most Influential Women.” In 2014, former Governor Rick Snyder appointed Crumm to the Eastern Michigan University Board of Regents, where she served from 2015 to 2022.

A first-generation college student from a small, blue-collar town in Indiana, Crumm is a mentor with the Mentor, Access and Guidance in College program, known as MAGIC, which serves EMU students placed in foster care as a teen. For six years, she has championed the MAGIC Wishlist program, which has given more than $100,000 in gifts to students. She established an endowment for the program to ensure its continued success.

Donna Doleman Dickerson, MBA, CDP, is a powerhouse at building brands and repositioning companies. As Vice President of Brand at the University of Michigan Credit Union (UMCU), she leads Brand, Marketing, Communications, Community Development, Financial Education and innovative product design. 

Before joining UMCU, Dickerson led the brand pivot as the first Chief Marketing Officer of GreenPath Financial Wellness, a 60-year-old national nonprofit focused on financial  health. Ann Arbor SPARK earned multi-year awards for successfully promoting the Ann Arbor USA brand, with Dickerson serving as senior vice president of marketing and communication.

Dickerson is a Certified Diversity Professional trained to create a framework for transforming an organization into an engaged, productive, and inclusive workforce. She has used her business acumen to coach and advise local small businesses through the Michigan Small Business Development Center. 

Her passion for community service has led to service on many nonprofit boards. Dickerson serves as the Chair of Trinity Health Michigan Board of Directors and sits on the Make-a-Wish Michigan Board of Directors, Forbes Communications Council, and Harvard Business Review Advisory Council. 

With an eye towards health, wellness and sustainability, Dickerson launched Natural Kids, which promotes youth and school-centric environmental programs and products in Washtenaw County. She strives to inspire women in her professional capacity and improve the lives of others throughout the community.

Nancy Margolis, MSW, is the Founder and President of Embracing Our Differences Michigan, a nonprofit educational art program launched in 2021. It uses the transformative power of art and an educational curriculum to celebrate diversity and enhance understanding. Last year, the group installed 16 x 12.5-foot artistic images reflecting an array of life experiences at prominent parks in Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti.

While serving as Executive Director of the Jewish Community Center (JCC), Margolis became manager of the Jewish Federation of Ann Arbor in addition to her JCC duties. She worked to make the Federation the center of Jewish philanthropy, engagement and community building, leading to the development of the Jewish Community Foundation. She was also a founder of Jewish Family Services.

Margolis formed a Black-Jewish coalition that sponsored Freedom Seders (antiracist dinner parties), “Driving While Black” workshops and recorded the personal histories of elderly Black and Jewish community members.

Her concern for low-income and disadvantaged residents of Washtenaw County has prioritized Margolis's volunteer efforts. She led the Inter-Faith Coalition of Congregations in fundraising for start-up organizations addressing poverty. She helped found The Corner Health Center in Ypsilanti, which provides health care, mental health and supportive services to teens and young adults.

A former elected Trustee of Washtenaw Community College, she has served on the boards of directors of the WCC Foundation and Ann Arbor Area Community Foundation, among others. Margolis’s enthusiasm and “just do it” attitude in the face of obstacles fuel her commitment to change.

Aisha Bowe is a WCC alumna who set her sights on the stars. Had she followed her high school guidance counselor’s advice, Bowe would have become a cosmetologist. But her father urged his daughter to take a mathematics class at WCC, which she aced. Her studies at WCC paved the way for Bowe to transfer into engineering programs at the University of Michigan. 

After earning a BSE in Aerospace Engineering and an M. Eng. in Space Systems Engineering. Bowe worked at NASA as an aerospace engineer. She leads by example, smashing stereotypes and demonstrating the power of diversity.

She is the founder and CEO of STEMBoard, a tech company recognized by Inc. 5000 as one of the fastest-growing companies in the US. The company is working to close the achievement gap through STEM camps, partnerships with Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and career opportunities for youth. Bowe tirelessly advocates for STEAM education (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math).

In 2022, Bowe raised nearly $2 million in venture capital to fund a second company, LINGO. Its hands-on kits help students learn computer coding, hardware and software design. More than 5,000 students in 10 countries currently use LINGO, and the company is growing fast.

In 2020, ESSENCE magazine included Bowe in its first list of “Woke 100 Women,” which honored women who are blazing trails for equal rights and inclusion for Black people in America.

Bowe will be the first Black woman to travel on a commercial flight to space with Blue Origin, the private spaceflight company founded by Jeff Bezos. For her, the sky is not the limit!