Board Members
Dennis W. Archer Jr., Esq.
Dennis W. Archer Jr., Esq. is the Vice Chairperson of the Wayne County Airport Authority Board. Archer is the CEO of Ignition Media Group, a leading integrated marketing agency based in Detroit. Mr. Archer is also president and founding partner of Archer Corporate Services. His hospitality holding company, Congress Hospitality, is creator and managing partner of award-winning Central Kitchen + Bar, located in downtown Detroit. Additionally, Archer is a real estate developer dedicated to giving back to the city of Detroit and its surrounding areas.
Archer’s civic and philanthropic involvement is extensive. He serves on the executive committee of the Detroit Regional Chamber Board of Directors and is a past chair. Archer is a founder and the chairman of the Paradise Valley Foundation. He also holds a seat on several boards, including the General Motors Inclusion Advisory Board and the Independent Bank Corporation.
Archer, a Detroit resident, received both his bachelor’s and Juris Doctor degrees from the University of Michigan. He also earned a certification in the NMSDC Advanced Management Education Program from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management.
Dennis Archer Jr. was appointed to the Wayne County Airport Authority Board by Governor Gretchen Whitmer. His term on the Airport Authority Board expires on October 1, 2026.
Michael Ajami
Michael Ajami is the Secretary of the Wayne County Airport Authority Board. Michael is the director of the expungement unit for the Department of Attorney General. Prior to that Michael was the Principal Attorney and Owner of Ajami Law, PLLC.
Michael also worked as the Director of Operations for Metro Carpet and Floors, a family-owned business from 2011 to 2018. He continues to work in the family business as their General Counsel focusing on business growth and development, along with community engagement. Michael also volunteers as a high school football coach at Dearborn High School.
Ajami, a lifelong Wayne County resident, earned his Juris Doctor degree at Wayne State University Law School and his Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice from Wayne State University. He was appointed to the Wayne County Airport Authority Board by Wayne County Executive Warren Evans in November 2020. His term on the Airport Authority Board will expire October 1, 2026.
Marvin W. Beatty
Marvin W. Beatty is the Vice President of Community and Public Relations for Greektown Casino and was Executive Director at the Wadsworth Community Center in Detroit. He served for more than 22 years with the City of Detroit Fire Department, retiring as Deputy Fire Commissioner, and was the first African-American to hold that position in the Department's history.
Beatty currently serves as a Board member for the NAACP, Chairman of the Coleman A. Young Foundation, Downtown Detroit Partnership Board of Directors, and is active with the Detroit Economic Growth Corporation, Detroit Riverfront Conservancy, and many other organizations throughout the metropolitan Detroit area.
Beatty received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Urban Management and is a graduate of the National Fire Academy Executive Development Program. From 1995 to 2010, Beatty served as Chairman on the Board of Zoning Appeals for the City of Detroit.
He lives in the City of Detroit and was appointed to the Wayne County Airport Authority Board by Wayne County Executive Warren Evans. His term on the Airport Authority Board expires October 1, 2029.
Lisa Canada
Lisa Canada is the Director of Special Projects for the Michigan Regional Council of Carpenters and Millwrights. Previously, she served as the Political and Legislative Director for the Council. Canada has worked in the field of politics and organizing for a number of major unions including the Operating Engineers, the AFL-CIO, UFCW and HERE before joining the Council in 2012.
Canada currently holds a seat on the Executive Board of Labor’s International Hall of Fame and the Michigan Labor History Society. For nearly eight years, she served on the Detroit Regional Convention Facility Authority. Also, Canada was appointed to the Board of the Children’s Trust Fund twice before resigning in 2012.
Canada served on the transition team for Governor Gretchen Whitmer and Oakland County Executive Dave Coulter. She co-chaired the transition team for Wayne County Executive Warren C. Evans as well.
Canada was appointed to the Wayne County Airport Authority Board by Governor Gretchen Whitmer. Her term on the Airport Authority Board expires October 1, 2028.
Irma Clark-Coleman
Irma Clark-Coleman is in her seventh term on the Wayne County Commission after assuming office in 2010. She chairs the Committee on Public Safety, Judiciary and Homeland Security and the Community Corrections Advisory Board. Clark-Coleman also serves as a member of the Audit Committee, Government Operations Committee and the Wayne County Land Bank Board of Directors.
Clark-Coleman served eight years in the Michigan State Senate, 3rd District and two terms in the Michigan House of Representatives for District 11. While in the Legislature, Clark-Coleman sponsored legislation to improve opportunities for students and strengthen high school graduation standards. She passed legislation to ease state requirements for family members raising kinship children in their custody to receive the same financial resources as foster parents. In addition, she was a member of the prestigious Senate Appropriations Committee.
Earlier in her career, Clark-Coleman worked for Wayne County for 31 years in a variety of capacities, retiring as Human Relations Director. For the last seven years of her employment with the county, she served on the Detroit Board of Education. In 2004, Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm appointed her to the National Education Commission of the States, as well as the Cherry Commission on Higher Education.
A native of Georgia, Clark-Coleman holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Wayne State University.
Clark-Coleman was appointed to the Wayne County Airport Authority Board by the Wayne County Commission. She first served from February 2015 through October 2018. Her current term on the Airport Authority Board expires on October 1, 2030.
Saju George
Saju George is Prime Healthcare’s regional Chief Executive Officer, leading its hospitals, medical groups and ambulatory locations in Michigan.
George has held various leadership positions within non-profit and for-profit health systems. His collaborative leadership style and commitment to community healthcare have earned him recognition as a transformative leader. Since joining Prime Healthcare in 2014, George has combined operational expertise with strategic vision to improve patient outcomes and organizational performance. Before joining Prime Healthcare, he served at Ascension Health. His passion for improving access to quality healthcare and ability to execute complex turnarounds continue to drive his influence in the healthcare sector.
George holds a Master of Business Administration in Healthcare and is an alumnus of Aquinas Institute and Harvard Business School leadership programs. He is a current Board member of the Michigan Health & Hospital Association (MHA) and MHA Service Corporation (MHASC).
George was appointed to the Wayne County Airport Authority Board by Wayne County Executive Warren Cleage Evans. His term on the Airport Authority Board expires on October 1, 2030.
Athina Papas
Athina Papas is the Executive Officer at the Atheneum Suites Hotel in downtown Detroit. With a career focused in hospitality and real estate, Papas manages communications and implements property-wide strategies to support the hotel’s operational objectives. She also establishes and maintains high standards for guest and employee relations. Additionally, Papas oversees company growth at Helicon Holdings, a family-owned Detroit based real estate company, where she assists in management of properties and represents the company’s holders in metro Detroit.
Papas is active in the community, serving as President of the Greektown Preservation Society. She is also on the board of Operation Give, a nonprofit organization with the mission to inspire people to make a difference in the lives of children by working with area hospitals to aid in research and/or access to health care.
Papas is a graduate of the University of Michigan. She also received a culinary degree from the French Culinary Institute in New York City. Papas was appointed to the Wayne County Airport Authority Board by Wayne County Executive Warren Evans. Her term on the Airport Authority Board expires October 1, 2026.