Meet Our Team
Rusalia Resource Foundation was founded in 2020 with the support, expertise, and encouragement of the Inspired Leadership Initiative at the University of Notre Dame and its fellows.
Dr. Juliana Otieno, M.D.
Founder | Rusalia Kenya
Juliana grew up on a Kenyan sugarcane farm, traveling eight miles to attend school as a child. Her passion for education ultimately led her to earn a medical degree from the University of Nairobi before embarking on an accomplished three-decade career in public health, one that challenged her to work as the only pediatrician in Kisumu county in Kenya and, where she also ended up becoming the Chief Executive Officer of Western Kenya’s largest public teaching and referral hospital, the Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Teaching and Referral Hospital (JOOTRH).
Dr. Otieno worked with colleagues to obtain a grant to enable them to open the first public HIV clinic at the JOOTRH in Kisumu, Kenya tackling an urgent public health crisis and other HIV-related issues. Despite her busy schedule, Dr. Otieno continued to teach and mentor students throughout her career before retiring in 2018. Dr. Otieno has a wealth of experience as a pediatrician, a manager, and a leader. Her vast experience in medical, managerial, and leadership is gathered over the years of her career has served in different capacities in different institutions including; serving as a Board member in primary and secondary schools and working closely with the local communities on matters of health, education, development, and policy change in various and in sometimes difficult contexts.
Dr. Otieno is a 2005 Opus Prize finalist and ILI FY20 fellow at the University of Notre Dame, Indiana.
Cari Shein
Founder | Rusalia US
Cari Shein owns Shein Realty, where for the past 30 years she has acted as principal in the manufactured and modular home subdivision and park development, and in the rehabilitation and trade of small commercial properties. Additionally, she held active roles in her family's manufacturing business, the Commodore Corporation, a national supplier of factory-built housing. Ms. Shein has been an active participant in her community and has served on many boards, including the South Bend Symphony Orchestra, Michiana Mathtracks, WNIT (a PBS affiliate), and the Chicago Human Rhythm Project. She earned a B.A. in political science from UCLA, a Master’s in International Management from the American Graduate School of International Management, and an M.B.A. from the University of Chicago. Cari was an ILI FY20 fellow at the University of Notre Dame, Indiana.
Meet the Rusalia US Board
President
Cari Shein
Treasurer
Orlando Rodriguez
Board Member
Becca Meyer
Vice President
Dr. Bernard Nahlen
Board Member
Rev. Bob Dowd C.S.C.
Board Member
Joe Drey
Secretary
William Schenher
Board Member
Dr. Jaimie Bleck