Armentha 'Mike' Cruise:

Armentha 'Mike' Cruise is President and Chief Executive Officer of The Aspen Group, Inc. a full-service Human Resources Management Staffing Firm headquartered in Silver Spring, Maryland which provides facilities management/outsourcing, project management and consulting services.

Since the company was founded in 1988 Ms. Cruise has been the driving force behind Aspen' growth and staying power in the staffing industry. She has stayed on the cutting edge of trends and technology in order to keep the company in the forefront. She has utilized strategic planning, a bottoms-up employee management approach, innovative partnering arrangements with other businesses, continual quality improvement, selective marketing techniques, sound fiscal management, and process engineering to create a business that ranks within the top 1 percent of small business nationwide in terms of revenue and growth.

Aspen's organizational culture exemplifies excellence in building solid and lasting relationships with our customers through service and quality.

Under Ms. Cruise's visionary leadership the company has grown from a small temporary staffing firm to a global supplier. Aspen services the United States through its regional offices in the Northeast, South and West Coast. Her vision spans beyond the national borders with a desire to create a niche in the global market. Ms. Cruise recently hosted a delegation of International Business Women through a U.S. Department of Commerce Program where she shared information and knowledge about how to forge business relationships on an international scale. She also worked with an organization to help raise funds to help international children in need. The company continues to explore new ways to service our clients on the international front. Aspen continues to grow and has expanded its services to include Vendor Management Services, Facility Management and Outsourcing.

 Aspen has been honored with numerous awards of recognition due to Ms. Cruise' commitment to excellence. Recently, Ms. Cruise was profiled in the book Women of Achievement in Maryland History. She also received the Woman of Color award from the Maryland DC Minority Supplier Development Council. She has received numerous other awards including a commendation from the Small Business Administration for Excellence in Service.

Ms. Cruise is active in the business community and serves on several boards. She is a member of the Harvard University, John F. Kennedy School of Government, Women' Leadership Board. She is also a board member and Strategic Partner of the DC Chamber of Commerce, a board member of the Maryland/District of Columbia Minority Supplier Development Council, and a member of Leadership Washington, Member of Morgan State University' Corporate Alliance Board. Through the numerous articles about Ms. Cruise in national magazines such as Fortune, Black Enterprise, INC. Magazine, Business News USA, the Washington Business Journal, and others, her example has provided encouragement and inspiration to entrepreneurs nationwide. She also believes in giving back to the community as noted by her generosity to Minor Elementary School in Washington, DC and Morgan State University.

Armentha 'Mike' Cruise is a human resource manager by training and experience with a Masters in Human Resources Management. A native of Baltimore, Maryland, she received her undergraduate degree in Psychology from Morgan State University and her Masters in Human Resources Management from American University. She also received an honorary Doctorate from Sojourner Douglas College. Before founding Aspen, Ms. Cruise was a human resources manager at Bell Atlantic. She is dedicated to a belief that knowledge is a key element of entrepreneurial success and continues to attend executive training programs such as those at Dartmouth and the University of Virginia in order to remain current.

Ms. Cruise works diligently each day to ensure that the company' vision to become the global standard of excellence in the staffing industry and the preferred choice of our clients and associates becomes a reality.