Leadership

Gail Van Dyke, CMCA®, AMS®, PCAM®

President and CEO Close

Gail’s career with Mid-Atlantic has prepared her well for her responsibilities as President and CEO. Gail has spent 24 years managing community... Learn more associations and overseeing staff who provide management services. By the start of 2007, she was responsible for twenty-two professionals and nearly seventy client associations primarily located in Chester and Delaware Counties. Gail also initiated Mid-Atlantic’s efforts in the State of Delaware.

She earned her PCAM designation in 1990 from the Community Associations Institute (CAI) and is committed to continuing education, something she expects of her professional staff. Gail has served on the initial CAI-supported Pennsylvania Legislative Action Committee and for many years was a participant in the National CAI Manager’s Ethics Committee. She is also an educator for CAI’s Essentials of Community Association Volunteer Leadership course as well as many of Mid-Atlantic’s seminars for both staff members and community leaders.

Patricia Mullen-Smith, CMCA®, AMS®

Chief Operations Officer Close

Ms. Mullen-Smith has been with Mid-Atlantic since 1981. She has successfully developed and retained a group of five Staff Accountants that share,... Learn more with her, over 75 years of association accounting experience for Mid-Atlantic. Her entire nine-member Plymouth Meeting Financial Services Department is responsible for the fiscal operations of what are essentially 180 independent small not-for-profit companies. This is something that Patty takes very seriously.

An Accounting graduate from West Chester University, she also holds her Pennsylvania Real Estate license. Additionally, Patty serves as Mid-Atlantic Management’s Comptroller. Over her career, she has been extensively involved with the design of Mid-Atlantic financial systems, reports, and has had important influence in aspects of the national association management/reporting software known as C 3. To better understand the community management profession, she has completed many national courses and managed some associations well enough to earn her AMS in 1990.

Patty spends a lot of time giving back to her community. She is incredibly active with Lord’s Pantry, Chester County Cares, and St. Elizabeth’s Roman Catholic Church. At the end of a long day, Patty enjoys spending time at home with her husband Jim and their two dogs. Their daughter, Megan, currently attends St. Joseph’s University.

Paula Santangelo, CMCA® AMS®, PCAM®

Vice President, Pennsylvania Operations Close

Ms. Santangelo started as a Community Manager in 1989 and joined Mid-Atlantic nine years later. She has many years of direct community management... Learn more experience both as the on-site person and as an off-site portfolio manager. Before her recent promotion, Paula had been responsible for six years for the staff and programs serving association clients in Montgomery County and part of Bucks County. Now, she oversees the five Regional Directors responsible for all the clients and staff in Pennsylvania. Paula continues her direct oversight of the management teams for several major on-site clients.

Paula received her PCAM designation in 1997. She was awarded CAI’s Rising Star Award, is a past Chair of the Chapter Manager Education Committee, and served on the Government Affairs and Gold Star Committees. She was elected to and continues to serve on the twelve-member APCM Board – the national group that sets standards and education for the management profession within the Institute.

Lou Ann Hingley, CMCA®, AMS®, PCAM®

Vice President Close

Lou Ann came to Mid-Atlantic in 1982 with several years of high-rise condo experience. She has managed a variety of types of associations, including... Learn more many she successfully assisted from pre-construction stages through the transition to homeowner control of the Board. A graduate of Shippensburg University with a BS in Education, Lou Ann earned her PCAM designation in 1990. She has been active with the local CAI Chapter as an instructor of CAI programs including the nationally acclaimed ABC Program for homeowners. Lou Ann served on the Chapter Board from 1989-1993 and was Chapter President in 1996. Ms. Hingley has transitioned from the supervisory role for many Mid-Atlantic clients and staff to company-wide responsibilities involving development, operations, and client service.

Michelle Helms

Director of Corporate Operations Close

Ms. Helms, a Cum Laude graduate of Temple University, has been with Mid-Atlantic Management since the spring of 2004. Prior to that, she worked... Learn more as a Regional Training Manager, opening restaurants and training staff along the East Coast. Before that she was on the operations side of restaurants and retail businesses.

Michelle is an active participant in the Society for Human Resource Management. She handles all aspects of human resources and education for Mid-Atlantic. Michelle is also the Assistant to Mid-Atlantic’s CEO.

Married to Dave and known for their enjoyment of concerts and traveling, Michelle is a volunteer for PSPCA in Philadelphia and has rescued 3 dogs of her own.

Meg Kitchin, CMCA®, AMS®, PCAM®

Regional Director Close

Meg joined Mid-Atlantic Management as a Community Manager in 1988 starting as an on-site Manager in the Yardley office, earning a high reputation... Learn more for service and professional practice. This lead to her promotion to Regional Director, overseeing the performance of several management teams responsible for much of Bucks County and a few Montgomery County clients.

A graduate of Kutztown University, Meg has been an active participant in a number of Mid-Atlantic initiatives and has served on several committees for the Pennsylvania and Delaware Valley Chapter of CAI. She was selected and serves on Associa’s Ambassador’s Circle and is currently a Facilitator for a training course for managers within the Associa nationwide network. Meg earned her PCAM designation in 1999. Married to a recognized chef, Frank Kitchin, the couple has two sons, Alex and Christopher.

Diane Gothard, CMCA®, AMS®, PCAM®

Regional Director Close

Ms. Gothard brings over 18 years of community management experience for Mid-Atlantic to her capacity as Regional Director. In addition to overseeing... Learn more several Community Managers and their valued clients as a Regional Director, Diane has the unique duty of developing Mid-Atlantic’s first call center, located in the Newtown Square Regional Office. She also coordinates the efforts of the other administrative staff in that office as well as continuing to manage a few association clients. Diane earned her PCAM designation in 2000 and continues to be an active member of the Gold Star Committee with CAI.

Carol V. Richard, CMCA®, AMS®, PCAM®

Regional Director Close

Ms. Richard started in this profession in 1997, joining Mid-Atlantic in 2001. Carol is responsible for clients in Montgomery and much of Bucks... Learn more County. Included in her region are two large on-site associations as well as over 35 portfolio clients being served out of one Regional Office and one Area Office. She oversees a staff of thirteen Community Managers and Community Administrators.

Carol received her PCAM designation in 2004 and is actively involved in the local CAI Chapter with various volunteer committee responsibilities. Additionally, she has served on the Pennsylvania Legislative Action Committee and is working toward becoming qualified to teach CAI PMDP courses to fellow colleagues around the nation.

W. Stephen Castle, CMCA®, AMS®, PCAM®

CEO Emeritus Close

Steve has been actively involved with community associations since 1975. For most of that time and until late 2007, Steve was President and CEO... Learn more of Mid-Atlantic Management. After transitioning those responsibilities to Gail Van Dyke, AMS, PCAM, he continues his consultant’s role for many Mid-Atlantic client developers as well as handling special projects and tasks for the firm. This reduction in responsibilities was part of a semi-retirement plan developed several years ago.

In addition to building Mid-Atlantic, Mr. Castle was very active at the local and national level of the Community Associations Institute. He held virtually every leadership position at the national level and served as Chair or head of a number of the governing committees, councils, and task forces. He has among his numerous recognitions the Distinguished Service Award - an honor bestowed on less than 15 people in the 30+ years of the Institute. Mr. Castle was also the founding Chair and served in that capacity for six years for the National Board of Certification for Community Association Managers – the organization that has nationally certified over 7,000 association managers.

Steve and his wife Sue continue to live with two cats in a community association as they have for many years. With many of the daily Corporate responsibilities removed from Steve’s shoulders, they hope to travel a bit more and rediscover their golf clubs.

Craig Koss

Senior Vice President, Accounting Liaison Close

Koss is responsible for the oversight of 13 Associa branch offices throughout the United States. His responsibilities in this capacity include... Learn more serving as a mentor to the branch CEO’s to help them achieve Associa’s core corporate objectives as well as uphold Associa corporate policies. Koss also educates each CEO in a variety of areas including how to improve company performance, business planning and innovation.

Additionally, Koss serves as the SVP liaison to the corporate accounting department and is the business analyst for the SVP team, as well as participating on the Associa Education Committee. Koss previously served as the CEO of Kramer-Triad Management Group in Michigan and has worked in the community association management industry for nearly 30 years, including 17 years with Kramer-Triad. He was promoted to RVP in 2008.

Koss holds both the AMS and PCAM designations from the Community Associations Institute (CAI) and previously served on the Education Committee and Managers Networking Committee for CAI. He was also an inaugural board member and served five years on CAI’s Association of Professional Community Managers (APCM). He was appointed to CAI’s board of Trustees and is a current member of the CAI Designation Ethics Committee. Koss received CAI’s Excellence Award in 2006.

An inaugural member of the Associa Ambassadors Circle, Koss and his wife are the parents of two children. He enjoys boating, hunting, fishing, but has one true passion – Michigan Football.

Favorite Quote – “What the mind can conceive, the mind can achieve and those who stay will be Champions.” – Bo Schembechler