Jayson T. Williams is the Chief Executive Officer of Mayson-Dixon Companies, a family of companies that was originally founded in 2015 as MD Strategic Consulting, a public affairs firm that utilizes campaign-style tactics to tell clients’ stories to achieve their missions. As the company grew, Jayson’s love of community organizing transformed into a passion for equitable community development. He has since started complimentary businesses such as, Mayson-Dixon Properties & Development, Modern Builders, and Modern Suppliers, that combined with MD Strategic Consulting created the first turnkey community development firm that engages in neighborhoods, builds residential and commercial projects, solves complex supply chain issues, manages properties of all sizes, and thoughtfully brings investment partners into underserved communities.

Prior to becoming a small business owner, Jayson had a distinguished career in public service working for the late Maryland State Senate President Emeritus Thomas V. Mike Miller, former U.S. Senator Barbara Mikulski, U.S. Senator Ben Cardin, and former Prince George’s County Executive Rushern L. Baker, to name a few. Jayson was inspired to become an entrepreneur after his appointment by then-County Executive Baker to serve as the Vice President for Strategic Alliances for the Prince George’s County Economic Development Corporation.  There, he was a part of the leadership team spearheading transformative community investment, small & minority business growth, the branding campaign for Prince George’s County, and playing a key role in enabling the development of the $1.2 billion MGM National Harbor.

Since its inception, Mayson-Dixon Companies has become one of Bloomberg/Goldman-Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses alumni, has thrice won the “Bridging the Gap” Achievement Award from the Greater Baltimore Committee for the firm’s work in diversity and inclusion, and was voted as one of Baltimore Business Journal’s Healthiest Employers for their investment in holistic employee health.  

An alum of St. Mary's College of Maryland, Jayson has been named one of the Daily Record’s Very Important Professionals (VIP) Successful By 40 award recipients, 40 under 40 by the Baltimore Business Journal, LGBTQ 40 under 40 by Business Enterprise Magazine, LGBT Minority Business of the Year by the Maryland Minority Contractors Association, received the Trailblazer Award from the Reginald F. Lewis African American Heritage Museum and was awarded the Chairman’s Award, a unique honor, by the Asian-American Economic Development Corporation for his work in the Asian American business community.  

He currently serves as the first African American chair of the board of directors of the Pride of Baltimore II, Maryland’s Tall Ship, and on the board of directors of Lifebridge Health’s Levindale Hospital and the American Red Cross of Central Maryland. In 2021, he was appointed by Baltimore County Executive Johnny Olszewski Jr. to the Affordable Housing Workgroup focused on ensuring safe, accessible, and quality housing is available to everyone in the County. Jayson is also a member of the Harkins Builders Corporate Board of Directors since 2021.

Before starting his businesses, for over a decade, Jayson was an adjunct professor in the “Semester in Washington” program at the George Washington University’s Graduate School of Political Management, from which he also graduated in 2002. Many of his former students have gone on to distinguished careers in public service and business.

Matt Newcomer is the co-founder, with Jayson Williams, of The Mayson-Dixon Companies. An expert in financial planning and analysis, Matt utilizes his number-crunching skills for the company’s real estate ventures to analyze properties and organizational skills to help keep all the trains running on time within a growing and evolving organization.

Prior to MD Strategic Consulting, Matt spent 10 years in corporate banking with Wells Fargo Bank and Bank of America, building his critical thinking; credit underwriting; risk analysis; and financial analysis, modeling, and projection skills. Some of Matt’s former clients include major nonprofit institutions such as Johns Hopkins University, Loyola University Maryland, Goucher College, the National Aquarium, Kennedy Krieger Institute, Anne Arundel Medical Center, United Way Worldwide, and New Psalmist Baptist Church.

Matt is a proud graduate of St. Mary’s College of Maryland with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics and a minor in Spanish Language and Culture. He also graduated cum laude with a Master of Business Administration degree from the University of Baltimore and is a 2018 graduate of the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses program.

Active in the community, Matt currently serves on the Finance Committee for the Baltimore Animal Rescue and Care Shelter (BARCS) and as the Treasurer for the Charles Village Community Benefits District in Baltimore City.

A native of Baltimore, and a veteran strategic communicator for over 20 years from Boston to Baltimore, Geri Royale Byrd began her career in Communications and Journalism in 1988 as a Publications Specialist for NASA, transitioning as a consultant for the tech industry in the 90’s.  She launched her journey as a public servant in ‘09 in Washington as a Correspondence Analyst for the US Secretary of the Treasury under the Obama Administration.  Leveraging her extensive communications experience, which included editorial content management and technical writing, Geri continued to hold a wide scope of management and Board of Trustee roles in both the private and nonprofit business sectors.

Returning home to Baltimore in 2016, Geri was appointed to market a City-wide commuter Initiative by the Waterfront Partnership of Baltimore, a non-profit entity that serves both residents of the City and businesses in the Harbor area. She then entered the local government arena in 2017, actively serving the Baltimore City Mayor’s Office as Director of Logistics and Special Assistant to the Mayor, and was then appointed as Deputy Chief of Staff for Administration. As a senior advisor and administrator for the City of Baltimore, she helped drive and coordinate policy expectations and priorities with key cabinet officials and external City and State partners. Geri is a graduate of the University of Maryland College Park where she received a Bachelor of Science degree from the School of Journalism. Currently she continues in a mission of service to community as Chief of Operations at Mayson-Dixon Companies, where she oversees the entirety of the Company’s mission-driven business sectors that include Strategic Engagement, Construction, Properties & Development, Supply-Chain Management and HR.  

Andrew Coonan is a native of Golden, Colorado and proud alum of St. Mary’s College of Maryland. He has a proven track record for success in management and operations, including nonprofit and business development, business analytics, and event management. He has been known to say, don’t pigeon hole his nonprofit background. During Andrew’s career he supported Food Bank of the Rockies distribution growth from 12.5 million pounds to 58 million pounds of food and essentials a year. He defines this as compound growth in a supply chain industry – albeit the community food system. He is thrilled to work with Mayson-Dixon to help expand our reach and impact in supply chain management.
Andrew received a Master of Science in Decision Sciences-Business Analytics from the University of Colorado, Denver. He is most proud of serving Hunger Free Colorado’s executive leadership group Full Pantries, Full Lives that helped create the Colorado Food Pantry Network; and serving as Past President of the Applewood Business Association in Colorado, a community his father served for more than 30+ years. He is proud to carry-on his father’s legacy in this role. Andrew is also passionate about healthy living and play. His favorite activities include swimming, mountaineering, and skiing. Free the heel, Free your mind. Above all, Andrew emphasizes compassion. It’s a human thing.

Michael is the Senior Residential & Commercial Construction Project Manager for Mayson-Dixon. He is results driven and has a knack for understanding and visualizing issues with a project and what is needed to get the job done. With over 20 years of experience in the industry, he has successfully completed more than 600 properties including commercial, multi-unit, and single family homes.

Prior to Mayson-Dixon, Mike ran his own successful general construction and real estate investment firm. While running his own company, he was the lead contractor for several developers and investors as well as developing his own properties. His entry into construction and real estate development came while working for one of the largest real estate development firms in Baltimore City. During his 9+ years with that firm, he participated in all aspects of real estate development with a focus on construction and project management.

Mike is a lover of all sports, but has a true passion for soccer. He volunteers as a head soccer coach for the Arundel Soccer Association and enjoys teaching his love for the sport to all ages.

Dan Newcomer joins the MD Strategic team after semi-retiring from his 42-year career in the automotive industry, where he worked for new car dealerships in Maryland and Pennsylvania in their fixed operations departments. Dan has had many roles and titles over the years such as Parts Manager, Parts Director, Service Manager, Service Director, Parts and Service Director, Regional Manager of Fixed Operations, and National Advisor for the 10-person National Advisory Board for Kia Motors of America and brings a great wealth of experience to his new role as Director of Special Projects.

Dan studied and played football at the Virginia Military Institute in Lexington, VA. He enjoys many indoor and outdoor sports and has a passion for playing golf and spending as much time as he can with his wife, Nancy, their children, and RJ, their grandson.

As a Senior Consultant, Nick brings over 15 years of experience building relationships in the public and government affairs, business development, commercial real estate, and fundraising arenas. He has found success for his clients utilizing his vast network of government, community, and corporate contacts to assist clients in public affairs campaigns, commercial real-estate development projects, RFP process, and government & utility company permitting. His client list includes for-profit and nonprofit real estate developers, builders, energy companies, labor unions, and a wide array of government contractors including but not limited to Retail Properties of America, Inc. (RPAI), Ryan Homes, Sodexo, Volunteers of America Chesapeake (VOACC) and Chick-fil-A.

Nick began his career in Maryland working on various political campaigns on the national, state, and local levels. He spent over seven years with 1199 SEIU representing health care workers in government affairs at some of the region’s medical institutions, including The Johns Hopkins Hospital, MedStar Georgetown University Hospital, and Dimensions Health Prince George’s Community Hospital.

Following that, Nick spent time successfully consulting for corporate, nonprofit, and government clients, representing Oracle, District of Columbia Firefighters Association, and Prince George’s County Government to name a few.

Nicholas is a graduate of Kent State University. He is active in the community and was recognized as a Rising Star alum for the Living Classrooms Foundation.

Vernita Humphreys is the Director of Finance and the Executive Assistant to the President & CEO. With over 35 years of payroll experience, she is responsible for and is the foundation of MD Strategic Consulting’s accounting, budgeting, and financial management.

Prior to joining MD Strategic Consulting, Vernita spent nine years taking care of Maryland’s finest at the Maryland State Police Department. She dedicated her public service to fleet management for the entire State of Maryland. This included title & registration, vehicle maintenance & reporting, operational efficiency, and budget management.

Vernita’s payroll background has given her a common-sense approach to financial management, in addition to being well poised to lead the financial functions of a growing small business. As Payroll Supervisor for General Elevator Company, Inc. and Payroll Clerk for Cherry Hill Construction, she compiled and processed payroll information for over 900 employees, including auditing information; identifying and resolving discrepancies; compliance; determining payroll liabilities, and overseeing federal and state income and social security tax information, 401k transfer, wage assignments and garnishments.

After only two days of retirement from the State of Maryland, Vernita accepted the call to join Mayson-Dixon Companies. She currently resides in Baltimore County, Maryland and enjoys spending time with her family and friends.

Cameron was brought on after his graduation from The GeorgeWashington University in 2021, where he studied International Affairs with aconcentration in International Environmental Studies. Cameron has a passion for energy and sustainable & equitable development, and his research at GW’sElliott School of International Affairs focused on renewable energy, energy security, and development in Africa. Cameron was a member of Mayson-Dixon’sSpring 2021 Associate class and prior to that, held internship roles in the energy sector working on-bill financing programs. Cameron stays active outside of work by playing hockey and piano. Cameron is also a big history buff.

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