Cinnaire Leans Into Strategic Plan with Key Appointments

Donsia Strong Hill has been named Director of Development, Cinnaire Lending. She’s responsible for the development and implementation of Cinnaire’s strategy for partnering with foundations and other charitable funders to grow Cinnaire’s work in the community development field. Donsia will initially work in our Madison office before relocating to our Chicago office.

Donsia was most recently Executive Director for LISC Wisconsin. There, she led LISC’s strategic direction and partnerships efforts to move LISC Milwaukee to champion equitable economic development while managing a network of relationships that spanned neighborhood organizations and funders to business leaders and policymakers. Prior to that, Donsia cofounded Strong Hill Associates, a law firm specializing in tax exempt bonds, LIHTC loans, private equity, grants and government guarantees for catalytic housing, infrastructure, educational facilities and commercial economic development projects.

Donsia is a graduate of Marquette’s Associates in Commercial Real Estate (ACRE) program. She received her Juris Doctor from the John Marshall Law School and Master in Public Administration from Harvard University. Donsia serves on the Housing Trust Fund Advisory Board.

Jake Stern was recently named Vice President, Business Development. Jake is responsible for executing Cinnaire’s business development strategy and marketing Cinnaire’s range of products and services. He recently relocated from Chicago to our Wilmington office.

Jake most recently served as Senior Vice President & Director of Economic Development at SomerCor, a Chicago-based CDC. He was responsible for leading a team that managed the operations for two City of Chicago funded grant programs and contributing to business development for SBA lending programs.

Jake received a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a Master of Urban Planning from the University of Illinois-Chicago. He recently earned a Master of Business Administration from Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University.

Cassie Archbold was appointed Director of Lending in our Wilmington, DE office. She’s charged with leading Cinnaire’s growth strategy and strengthening relationships with current and new investors and partners as she drives community development lending growth.

Cassie founded and served as Managing Partner for Aligned Solutions, an organization that provides underwriting, asset management and advisory services for mission driven investors. Prior to that she was Senior Vice President, Financial Services at Opportunity Finance Network. Cassie has a Bachelor of Arts in Biology from the University of Pennsylvania and Master of Arts in Genetics from the University of Virginia.

Fatima was previously an Assistant Project Manager at Jordan Construction Services charged with managing construction projects and properties. She also served as an underwriting officer at Bank of America where she managed and trained underwriters and credit analysts. She is the owner of 5 Points Art Gallery & Studios, an exhibition space in Milwaukee focused on promoting contemporary works by artists of color and other marginalized groups.

Fatima earned her Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Washington University. She is a 2017 graduate of Marquette’s ACRE program.

Montavius Jones was previously Economic Development Specialist for the City of Milwaukee. There, he guided property and business owners through the grant application and compliance process resulting in over $1 million in annual grants for commercial property renovations. Prior to that, he was an Economic Development Intern at Milwaukee Downtown.

Montavius earned his Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Marquette University. He is also a graduate of Marquette’s ACRE program.

Lora Brantley-Gilbert has joined Cinnaire’s Detroit office as Asset Manager focusing on special assets. Lora will oversee a portfolio of real estate debt and equity investments.

Lora most recently served as Asset Manager for LARC Community Development Group, an industry leader that has developed and preserved over 6,000 affordable housing units. There, she managed a portfolio of 3500+ units and 21 properties. Previously, she was a Regional Vice President for National Church Residences, the nation’s largest non-for-profit provider of affordable senior housing and services.

Lora attended Wayne State University and Rochester College. She received her Accredited Residential Manager (ARM) certification from the Institute of Real Estate Management. Lora serves as a board member for the Southfield Housing Nonprofit Corporation.