Our talented and educated professionals are committed to developing lasting client relationships rooted in trust, integrity, mutual respect, and exceptional service. Meet our team.
Fred J. Cornelius, CFA®, CFP®
President & CEO, Financial Advisor, Investment Committee Member
Fred Cornelius joined Burt Wealth Advisors in 1992. He graduated from Old Dominion University in 1986 with a bachelor’s degree in finance. In 1989, Mr. Cornelius earned his Certified Financial Planner designation from the College for Financial Planning. In 1999, he became a Chartered Financial Analyst Charterholder. These two designations uniquely qualify Mr. Cornelius to address both financial planning as well as investment management issues.
Mr. Cornelius is a NAPFA Registered Investment Advisor and a former treasurer and member of the Northeast/Mid-Atlantic NAPFA Board of Directors. He is currently a member of the Financial Planning Association and has served in a leadership capacity of the Suburban Maryland Chapter of the Institute of Certified Financial Planning, which later became the FPA. Mr. Cornelius is currently a board member of the Suburban Maryland Estate Planning Council, an organization of estate planning professionals. He is also a member of the CFA Institute, Washington Society of Investment Analysts and writes abstracts for CFA DIGEST.
Mr. Cornelius has been recognized 4-times by Worth Magazine as one of the Nation’s Most Exclusive Wealth Advisors, Washingtonian Magazine as a top financial professional, and Medical Economics as one of the 150 Best Advisors for Doctors. Kiplinger Personal Finance Magazine listed Fred among the Who’s Who of CFP’s in Maryland. In addition, Burt Wealth Advisors has been recognized numerous times by Bloomberg Wealth Manager magazine as being in the top wealth management firms nationwide. Burt Wealth Advisors was selected as a “Best Practice” in a Financial Planning Association study of advisory firms. This honor went to less than 10% of the firms participating in the study.
Maria G. Cornelius, CFP®
Executive Vice President, Financial Advisor, Investment Committee Member
Maria Cornelius joined Burt Wealth Advisors in 1992 as a financial planner and co-portfolio manager. She was appointed vice president of the firm in 1996. In 2003, as her role with the firm expanded, she was promoted to executive vice president. Mrs. Cornelius received a bachelor’s degree from Mount Saint Mary’s College in 1983. In 1988 she earned her Certified Financial Planner designation from the College for Financial Planning.
As an active member of Burt Wealth Advisors’ investment committee, Mrs. Cornelius plays a key role in the development of our current U.S. and international equity portfolios. In addition to monitoring the existing portfolio, she works closely with the research analyst to identify new funds that meet our strict performance and risk criteria. She works with other key members of the investment committee to develop the portfolio strategy.
Mrs. Cornelius works with a diverse client base including owners of privately held businesses, doctors in private practice as well as other individuals and couples. She has a number of clients with charitable trusts and family foundations. Many of her current clients are women and over the years she has gained a wealth of experience in the issues faced by widowed and divorced women. Mrs. Cornelius enjoys working closely with a client’s CPAs, attorneys, and other advisors to provide the most comprehensive services to her clients.
She was recently included on a list of the “Top 50 Most Influential Women in Wealth Management” by Wealth Manager Magazine. She has been included in Who’s Who in Finance and Industry as well as Who’s Who of American Women for the past 10 years. Through her ongoing participation with the Bethesda Chamber of Commerce’s “Career Partnership Day,” Burt Wealth Advisors was awarded the Cynthia Clarke Career Builder Award in 2009.
Mrs. Cornelius belongs to a number of groups designed to help planners work specifically with female investors. One of the groups, “Direction$ for Women,” focuses on the unique way that women relate to their investments. The goal is to understand the needs and challenges faced by women investors and to empower, educate and engage women in the management of their personal finances.
She is a member of the Financial Planning Association and a member of the Bethesda Chamber of Commerce. She served two terms on the executive board as the treasurer of the St. Jane De Chantal Sodality Group, a group of over 400 women who raise money and serve both the church and the community.
Lawrence J. Attanasio, CFP®
Vice President, Financial Advisor, Investment Committee Member
Lawrence Attanasio joined Burt Wealth Advisors in 2008, bringing with him extensive experience from his over twenty years in the financial services industry. Mr. Attanasio is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, earning his bachelor’s degree in economics in 1973, and also holds a master’s degree in business administration from the State University of New York at Albany. In 2009, he was promoted to vice president of Burt Wealth Advisors. He serves on the firm’s investment committee and is active in business development. His client base includes a diverse group of business owners, corporate executives, and retirees, who benefit from his comprehensive asset management and financial planning approach.
Prior to joining Burt Wealth Advisors, Mr. Attanasio worked for seven years in the Washington, DC, and Bethesda, MD, offices of TIAA-CREF, the financial services firm that provides investment, retirement, and financial planning services to individuals in the academic, research, medical, cultural, and non-profit fields. As a senior individual consultant at TIAA-CREF, he provided advice to pension plan participants, and also conducted numerous investment and financial planning seminars. Beginning in 2004, Mr. Attanasio was a part of TIAA-CREF’s wealth management group. As a wealth management advisor with the group, his responsibilities included providing comprehensive financial planning services and investment advice to senior administrators and faculty at area non-profit organizations and universities. He also served as director of a team of wealth management advisors covering the Baltimore/Washington region, and as branch manager of the TIAA-CREF Bethesda, MD office.
Mr. Attanasio has also worked in the capacity of financial advisor for the brokerage divisions of two regional banks, as well as Merrill Lynch. He has obtained the Series 7, 63, and 24 securities licenses (federal and state) and health insurance licenses. In 1997 Mr. Attanasio earned his Certified Financial Planner designation after completing the CFP professional education program from the College for Financial Planning.
Todd Growney, CFP®
Vice President, Financial Advisor, Investment Committee Member
Todd Growney joined Burt Wealth Advisors in 2004. He earned his bachelor’s degree from Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania in 1992, and then relocated to Colorado, where he obtained his Life, Accident, and Health Insurance license. He gained employment as an annuity specialist for what is now Transamerica Life Insurance Company.
Mr. Growney is a Certified Financial Planner with over twelve years of experience in the financial services industry. Prior to joining Burt Wealth Advisors, Mr. Growney worked for Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. for seven years. The majority of his tenure with Schwab was spent as an Investment Specialist, during which time he worked closely with clients, providing sound advice on a variety of portfolio and financial planning issues ranging from education and retirement planning to portfolio management and estate distributions.
While at Schwab, Mr. Growney held the Series 7, 63 and 65 security licenses, as well as the Series 9 and 10 supervisory securities licenses. He briefly headed the finance department for Charles Schwab’s Denver Operations Center, spent time on the trading and customer service desks, and he conducted seminars on retirement planning, trading, and estate planning. As a result of his demonstrated performance and professionalism, he was selected to manage a Schwab Branch, shortly before deciding to join the Burt Wealth Advisors team.
He serves on the firm’s investment committee and has established membership with the nationally recognized Financial Planning Association. He has been actively involved in investment research, financial planning analysis, and asset management. He readily draws on his expertise in small business retirement plans, which he developed while at Schwab, as well as the numerous partnerships he has established and maintained throughout his tenure in the financial industry.
Client Services Team
Brendan C. Feury, MSF
Research Analyst, Investment Committee Member
Brendan Feury joined Burt Wealth Advisors in 2010, bringing with him over ten years of financial services industry experience. Mr. Feury graduated from West Virginia University in 1998 with a bachelor’s degree in finance. He also received a Master of Science in Finance degree from Loyola College (MD) in 2009, where he graduated summa cum laude and was inducted into the international business honor society of Beta Gamma Sigma. During his time at Loyola, Mr. Feury was a portfolio manager with the Sellinger Applied Portfolio, a student-led group tasked with managing an equity portion of the institution’s endowment fund.
Mr. Feury has held various positions in the financial services industry related to asset allocation, investment research and analysis, portfolio management, and trading. Prior to joining Burt Wealth Advisors, Mr. Feury spent 5 years with Ameritas Investment Corporation in both trading and analyst capacities. He was a Due Diligence Analyst charged with reviewing alternative investment programs, including REITs, limited partnerships, and various other direct participation programs. Mr. Feury was also a member of Ameritas’ Investment Committee, responsible for the asset allocation and manager selection for its proprietary investment management platform. He obtained the Series 7 and 66 security licenses, as well as the Series 24 and 53 supervisory securities licenses. Mr. Feury is currently a Level II candidate for Chartered Financial Analyst designation. He serves on the firm’s investment committee and is responsible for monitoring portfolio investments and researching trends within the capital markets. He works closely with the committee to develop the long-term investment strategy for the firm.
Carol Blake
Assistant Planner, Investment Committee Member
Carol Blake joined Burt Wealth Advisors in 2002. Mrs. Blake works closely with our advisors to help prepare for annual meetings and in all phases of portfolio management. She assists clients by answering questions, responding to requests, and researching issues.
Myrle Simone, RPSM
Assistant Planner, Investment Committee Member
Myrle Simone joined Burt Wealth Advisors in 2007. Mrs. Simone works on the retirement and financial plans for Burt Wealth Advisors clients. She is also responsible for scheduling client meetings and coordinating the office calendar. She assists clients by answering questions, responding to requests and researching issues.
Kathleen Stone, RPSM
Director of Client Services
Kathleen Stone joined Burt Wealth Advisors in 2003. Ms. Stone coordinates all of our Charles Schwab applications, forms and transfers, and is responsible for setting up requests for cash from our client’s accounts. She works closely with Schwab on our clients behalf to be sure accounts are set up properly and requests are completed accurately.
Dustin Hedrick
Operations Manager
Dustin Hedrick joined Burt Wealth Advisors in 2005. As Operations Manager, Mr. Hedrick is responsible for maintaining our software and hardware systems. He is also responsible for client support issues, client relations, data entry and evaluation, and Schwab Online Access support.
Jennifer MacLennan, CFP®
Executive Assistant, Accountant
Jennifer MacLennan joined Burt Wealth Advisors in 1997. Mrs. MacLennan is a certified financial planner who provides back office support services for the firm. As a former Burt Wealth Advisors financial advisor, she reviews the firm’s composite performance as well as assists Mr. Cornelius with various client portfolio needs. Mrs. MacLennan handles the accounting and billing for the firm, as well as other practice management responsibilities relating to benefits, compliance and industry surveys.
