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Donna Lowry is an award-winning journalist who combines a passion for storytelling and a desire to empower others with communication and critical thinking skills surrounding political, educational, and financial issues.

Through her firm, Donna Lowry Communications, she provides consulting, writing, and producing services for educational, media, professional, and business outlets.

Donna serves as host/producer for several programs, including Lawmakers on Georgia Public Broadcasting.

Donna is an eight-time Emmy award winner, a three-time national Gabriel Award recipient, and has garnered honors from countless organizations, including the National Association of Black Journalists, Atlanta Association of Black Journalists, Georgia Associated Press, Society of Professional Journalists, Georgia Association of Educators (GAE), and the Professional Association of Georgia Educators (PAGE).

Her media peers inducted Donna into the prestigious NATAS Southeast Silver Circle to recognize her lasting contributions to the broadcast industry.

Donna has a master's in Journalism from Northwestern University and a Bachelor's in Mass Communications and Administration and Management from Chatham University.

Her professional affiliations include the Atlanta Press Club, the Atlanta Association of Black Journalists, the National Association of Black Journalists, and the Southeastern Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS SE).

In her 15th year as a Girl Scout Leader, Donna has led girls ranging in age from kindergarten through 12th grade. Her community service affiliations also include Magnolia (GA) Chapter of Links, Inc., and Nu Lambda Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated. 

Donna and her husband, Army Major (Ret) Bennet W. Reid, Jr., are the parents of three daughters.

Partner at Gilbert, Harrell, Sumerford & Martin, P.C. in Atlanta

Ryan Germany is a Partner at Gilbert, Harrell, Sumerford & Martin, P.C. in Atlanta, where he advises clients in the areas of elections, political law, and regulatory enforcement actions. Previously, he served as general counsel to Georgia Secretaries of State Brian Kemp and Brad Raffensperger. Ryan also served as Assistant Commissioner of Securities for the State of Georgia, overseeing the state agency in charge of protecting investors and enforcing the Georgia Uniform Securities Act. Following his service, Ryan received the Outstanding Service Award from the North American Securities Administrators Association. Ryan graduated cum laude from Washington & Lee University School of Law, where he served on the Executive Committee of the Student Body and currently serves on the Law Council. He received his undergraduate degrees, magna cum laude, from the University of Georgia. Ryan lives in Atlanta with his wife and daughter.

Partner at Chaiken Ghali LLP 

Kamal Ghali is a former federal prosecutor and a top-ranked white collar criminal defense and business litigation attorney recognized in The Best Lawyers in America and Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business.

Over the last eighteen years, Mr. Ghali has handled some of the biggest criminal and civil cases in the country, including high-profile white collar criminal fraud investigations and trials; high-stakes business disputes involving civil racketeering (RICO) and fraud allegations (in courts and arbitration); a wide range of national security and cybersecurity matters; and fast-moving bribery and public corruption investigations.

He is described in Chambers USA as a “brilliant attorney,” a “great legal strategist who anticipates all sides of a case,” “an excellent trial lawyer,” and an “excellent courtroom advocate, sharp and quick on his feet.” It further notes his “fantastic ability to explain complex legal and technology-related topics” and his “particular expertise in matters concerning cybercrime.” He has received numerous awards and commendations for his trial and litigation skills, including praise from a federal judge who described his courtroom performance as “excellent,” “outstanding,” and as hitting a “home run” in the “bottom of the ninth.”

While his work runs the gamut from squaring off against federal prosecutors and regulators in court to conducting corporate internal investigations, he has also secured significant wins for clients facing major business disputes. He has helped businesses and executives settle contentious, bet-the-company cases, including the settlement of a multi-billion-dollar dispute over the ownership of two nuclear power plant units. And he recently secured a complete trial victory in a FINRA arbitration involving allegations of unauthorized trades arising out of a fraudulent options trading scheme.

Before co-founding Chaiken Ghali LLP, he was a partner at a prominent Atlanta-based litigation firm where he led the white collar criminal defense practice, founded the cyber & digital litigation practice, and resolved numerous high-stakes business disputes. Prior to that, he served as a U.S. Department of Justice white collar and cybercrime prosecutor for over six years, including as a deputy chief at the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Atlanta. As a federal prosecutor, he worked closely with the FBI, IRS, SEC, and other agencies on white collar criminal matters ranging from multi-week securities fraud trials to high-profile cybercrime prosecutions, including the prosecution of the developers of SpyEye—a notorious malware that caused over one billion dollars in losses worldwide.

He previously served as a judicial law clerk to the Honorable Thomas W. Thrash, Jr., U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia and the Honorable Frank M. Hull, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit.

He serves on the Board of Directors of the Atlanta Volunteer Lawyers Foundation. 

Managing Director & Associate General Counsel, State Government Affairs of SIFMA.

Kyle’s most recently worked as an associate director in the office of government affairs at the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) where he led the state legislative and regulatory tracking function, reporting or engaging on thousands of sate bills, and routinely updated senior leaders and internal experts on legislative and regulatory developments.

Prior to his work at FINRA, Kyle was a valued member of SIFMA’s state government affairs team from 2014 – 2020, where he most recently was a vice president. Kyle has also worked as a policy, legislative and political affairs specialist for a variety of clients.

Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia in Atlanta

Steve McClain is an Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia in Atlanta.  He is the Chief of the Complex Frauds and Cybercrime Section, responsible for supervising other fraud prosecutors and white-collar matters in the U.S. Attorney’s Office.  Steve serves as the point of contact for the FBI, SEC, United States Secret Service, Department of Homeland Security, Health and Human Services, Internal Revenue Service, Social Security Administration, and other federal and state agencies on fraud and cyber matters.  As a federal prosecutor, Steve investigates and prosecutes all types of white-collar offenses, including corporate and securities fraud, bank fraud, government program fraud, investment fraud, health care fraud, immigration fraud, tax fraud, public corruption, computer crimes, counterfeiting, environmental crimes, and identity theft.  He has received numerous awards for his work, including the Department of Justice Director’s Award for the prosecution of a defendant who was convicted by a jury for running a Ponzi scheme and sentenced to 27 years in prison. Before his government service, Steve was a partner in the Los Angeles office of Kirkland & Ellis LLP, where he focused on complex commercial litigation.  He began his career as a law clerk for Judge Kenneth F. Ripple on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit.  Steve graduated summa cum laude from Notre Dame Law School, where he was the Managing Editor of the Notre Dame Law Review, and obtained his B.S. and M.S. degrees from Clemson University.