Christina Armstrong, Public Allies, Chicago IL

Christina is the manager of mentorship and social support at Public Allies Chicago, a leadership development and apprenticeship program. She oversees all aspects of the Public Allies Healing-Centered Youth Mentoring Program hosted at multiple schools that serves hundreds of students. As a restorative practices coach, she has trained hundreds of individuals from schools and nonprofits in restorative practices and restorative justice. In addition, she is a social entrepreneur creating a differentiated curriculum for a children’s book and curriculum series through Grow-Into Books. Christina is also a composer, songwriter, vocalist and instrumentalist who likes to perform with her band. She has a bachelor’s degree in Psychology and Sociology from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and a master’s degree in Educational Policy and Management from the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Jennifer Boyle, MENTOR Virginia, Richmond, VA

As Executive Director of MENTOR Virginia, Jennifer plays a critical role in building a sustainable, effective organization dedicated to promoting effective youth mentoring throughout Virginia. She has enjoyed 17 years of nonprofit experience exclusively in organizations that serve youth. Prior to MENTOR Virginia, she served as the Vice President of Operations for Junior Achievement of Central Virginia. Jennifer graduated from Virginia Commonwealth University with a Bachelor of Science in Administration of Justice.

Mobile Burrell, Silver Lining Mentoring, Boston, MA

Mobile is an advocate for equity and fierce believer in the possibility of creating a world that everyone feels good calling home. Mobile has held a variety of professional roles working on behalf of individuals who hold marginalized identities within the United States of America, including black and brown families, LGBQ/TGNC folks, youth impacted by the foster care system, and individuals of all ages living with mental disabilities. Currently Mobile uses their skills to continue building community and facilitating critical dialogue.

Chad Butt, MENTOR Vermont, Burlington VT

Chad is Executive Director of MENTOR Vermont and also serves as chair of MENTOR National’s Affiliate Advisory Council. In college Chad helped start a school-based mentoring program at a local middle school for youth with learning differences. He subsequently worked as program director of The DREAM Program, a mentoring program matching youth from local affordable housing communities with mentors from neighboring colleges and providing year-round wraparound services, before moving to Boston to spearhead DREAM’s first office and programs outside the state of Vermont. Chad is a graduate of Dartmouth College, where he majored in Earth Science and earned his secondary teacher certification credential.

Amanda Charlesworth, Utah State Board of Education, Salt Lake City, UT

Amanda has worked for the Utah State Board of Education for over 20 years in several departments, including Educator Licensing, Educational Equity, and Student Services. She currently works with the Youth in Custody/Care team. She helped implement the Entry Years Enhancement program to support Utah’s new educators in developing successful teaching skills and strategies. With Educational Equity, she helped implement the Respecting Ethnic and Cultural Heritage (REACH) Training, focusing on effective teaching strategies that enable all students to increase their academic learning in a culturally responsive classroom. She also coordinated Utah’s multicultural learning opportunities, specifically the Martin Luther King Essay & Video contest and the Living Traditions School Day. Amanda’s current position with YIC was created recently to help Utah’s Local Education Agencies better implement mentoring with fidelity to an established mentoring program, train new mentors, train experienced mentors on a regular basis, and expand Utah’s K-12 mentoring services into other areas of at-risk populations.

Véronique Church-Duplessis, Canadian Mentoring Partnership, Toronto, Ontario

Véronique Church-Duplessis is responsible for the Canadian Mentoring Partnership’s research agenda. She leads the Canadian State of Mentoring Research Initiative which includes a study of young people's mentoring experiences (Mapping the Gap), a study of the prevalence and scope of mentoring programs (Capturing the Landscape), and a study of adults' views about mentoring and their willingness and ability to serve as mentors (Raising the Profile). Véronique is responsible for the development of an evidence-based, practitioner-approved Canadian quality mentoring system to help build and sustain effective youth mentoring programs. Along with the University of Alberta and Alberta Mentoring Partnership, Véronique is co-lead for the development of the Canadian Centre for Mentoring Research. Prior to joining CMP, she led programs focused on promoting healthy relationships for youth, healthy masculinities, and violence prevention. Véronique holds a PhD in history from the University of Toronto.

Briana Clark, New Pathways for Youth, Phoenix, AZ

Briana Clark is the Program Director at New Pathways for Youth. She is a native Arizonan who began a career supporting youth through education as a classroom teacher. Briana worked for seven years in the classroom in grades ranging from K-8. She spent her time dedicated to working in low income areas, serving students who did not have access to many essential services in schools. Briana shifted into the mentoring field after devoting a year as a volunteer mentor with New Pathways. She is still in an active mentoring relationship with her mentee and is an advocate for youth mentoring in the community. With a Master’s Degree in Educational Policy, Briana looks to find innovative ways to support youth in bridging the achievement gap and allowing all youth to reach their full potential.

Susan Coyle, R.J. Leonard Foundation, Doylestown, PA

Susan obtained her MSW from the University of Pennsylvania in 2011 and has since worked primarily with adolescents and young adults. For the past five years, she has worked closely with youth in foster care and with young people transitioning from care, gaining extensive knowledge of the complex challenges facing young people aging out of foster care and the the impact positive support can have on their lives. As the program director at the R. J. Leonard Foundation, she is fortunate enough to work with a group of inspiring young people who are trying to overcome systemic challenges to achieve success.

Drew DeMarie, MENTOR Colorado, Denver, CO

As Training Director for MENTOR Colorado, Drew consults with mentoring programs across the country. Drew honed his craft in mentoring with a 1:1 community-based mentoring organization serving as Executive Director, Program Director, Program Manager, Mentor Trainer, Mentor Coach and Volunteer Mentor from 2003-2016. Drew also is the founder of Recon Business Strategy, supporting organizations through change management, leadership development and facilitation. He’s currently a Ropes Course Director for Cherry Creek School District and a former volunteer trip leader and advisory board member of Big City Mountaineers. In his free time, Drew enjoys road & mountain bike, hiking, camping, and ice hockey.

Alexandra Denton, Big Brothers Big Sisters Lone Star, Irving, TX

Alexandra facilitates the Post-Secondary Success Program for Big Brothers Big Sisters Lone Star. She loves working with teenagers and their mentors as they plan for their next phase after high school.

Sophia Duck, The Mentoring Partnership SWPA, Pittsburgh, PA

Sophia Duck is the Training Coordinator at The Mentoring Partnership, where she develops trainings for mentors and mentees, manages a pool of facilitators that reinforce the work, and provides technical assistance for mentoring programs. Sophia joined TMP after serving as the Program Manager for the GoodGuides Mentoring Program at YouthWorks, a Program of Goodwill SWPA. Prior to transitioning to youth development and the non-profit field, Sophia worked in collegiate athletics as a media relations contact at three universities. Sophia is a volleyball coach. She holds a BA in Media Communications from Pitt and a MS in Sports Leadership and Professional Advancement from Duquesne.

Louis Garcia, Big Brothers Big Sisters of America, Tampa, FL

Louis Garcia recently joined Big Brothers Big Sisters of America as Director of Program Innovation and Effectiveness. He has served the Big Brothers Big Sisters (BBBS) network for 15 years as CEO at BBBS Puget Sound (Seattle), CEO at BBBS Big Bend (Tallahassee, FL), and COO/Program Director at BBBS of Central New Mexico (Albuquerque). A few career highlights include developing and launching a career/college program that is recognized across the country, leading nationwide efforts to strengthen equity and inclusion, and demonstrating an ability to achieve organizational turn-arounds to managed growth in challenged markets. Louis served as vice-chair of the BBBS Leadership Council for two terms. He has also been an early adopter of innovative mentoring programs, and along the way has built marketing campaigns to secure broader financial resources. Louis shares his experiences coming from an immigrant family, as a Big Brother to two young Latino males, who are now adults. Prior to BBBS Louis worked in higher education and college student counseling, and he holds three degrees from the University of Florida.

LaTasha Golden, City Year, Miami, FL

Currently serving as the National After-school Specialist for City Year Headquarters, LaTasha has 15 years of experience in non-profit, extended learning/after-school organizations, including her work with Playworks in Southern California and City Year in New York and with the National Headquarters office. As a kid who attended after-school programs growing up, LaTasha is very passionate about learning opportunities outside the classroom including, but not limited to experiences in STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Mathematics). LaTasha received her Bachelor's degree in Humanities from the Florida State University, and a Master's Degree in Education with an emphasis in Curriculum and Instruction from American Intercontinental University.

Leona Gray, Foster Success, Indianapolis, IN

Leona's present position as the Northwest Indiana Education Training Voucher (ETV) Specialist allows her to work with foster care youth transitioning from high school to college and other career pathways. Leona attempts to ensure that ETV participants are connected to services or opportunities that will encourage positive academic outcomes. Leona works closely with TRIO programs, University Academic and Student Support staff, and the CHE: Indiana Scholar Corp members to encourage student linkage to resources that address student retention among the foster youth population. Leona has been a workshop presenter and speaker at local, regional and national conferences regarding academic success for nontraditional students; academic resources beyond high school; parental involvement and including the involvement of Foster Parents.

Ashley Hayden, FAME, East Lansing, MI

Ashley Hayden received her Masters in Social Work from Columbia University. Her graduate work focused on non profit management and international social welfare work. She currently serves as the Mentor Specialist for the FAME program at Michigan State University (MSU). FAME is a resource center that provides support to students who have experienced foster care, homelessness, guardianship or are independent. Ashley’s role at FAME includes developing and managing the mentor program as well as coaching students and facilitating the FAME student leadership board. Prior to her experience working at FAME, Ashley developed and maintained a mentor program for an Unaccompanied Refugee Minor Foster Care Agency. She has a passion for helping provide support to under represented youth as well as supporting refugee and immigrant communities.

Bryan Howard, Winning Futures, Warren, MI

Bryan became a member of the Winning Futures team in August 2011, and his passion is evident in the work he does as the Director of Programs. Prior to empowering youth with Winning Futures, Bryan was the Process Excellence Manager and Corporate Trainer for facilities management company Powerlink, developing alternative employee learning methods, peer coaching, e-learning, and curriculum development to support employee’s workforce development and organizational benchmarks. A decorated military veteran, he served 20 years in the US Navy as a Hospital Corpsman and retired as the Career Information Program Manager for all Naval bases in the Pacific Northwest. A native Detroiter, Bryan received his bachelor’s degree for the University of Phoenix and MBA in Entrepreneurship from Trident with graduate certificates in International Business and Strategic Leadership. Bryan is the National Black MBA Detroit Chapter President.

Michael Janz, Canadian Mentoring Partnership, Edmonton, Alberta

Michael has over a decade in mentoring and youth leadership expertise. For the past four years, Michael served as the Partnership Engagement Manager with the Alberta Mentoring Partnership and previously worked in municipal community development. He is passionate about youth mentoring and the potential for CMP to expand and enhance mentoring relationships across Canada. Michael earned a Masters in Education Policy Studies from the University of Alberta and has served in numerous political and volunteer leadership positions.

Thulani Jwacu, Big Brothers Big Sisters Twin Cities, St. Paul, MN

Thulani is the Director of Teen Programs for Big Brothers Big Sisters Twin Cities, supporting mentored youth as they begin to explore work and higher education and as they begin acquiring skills to prepare them for the future. For over a decade he supported students at a local two-year college in various capacities. He helped students enroll, navigate academic challenges, plan their degrees, and ultimately graduate from the school. He also coordinated a program that recruited high school students into a scholarship program designed to help low income students complete a two year degree. He also spent a few years managing youth and career pathway programs for the local United Way, overseeing relationships with funded organizations and supported organizations to achieve maximum impact with grant funds. As project manager for Career Academies at United Way, he worked with K-12 schools, post-secondary institutions, employers, and community partners to support school based Career Academies.

Jack Kavanaugh, MENTOR New York, Buffalo, NY

Jack is a social worker and youth professional with over a decade of experience working with young people, as a mentor and program manager, in schools and nonprofit organizations in Buffalo, Baltimore and Philadelphia. As the Director of Training & Program Development, he works with mentoring programs across the state to improve the quality and quantity of mentoring relationships around the state.

Chelsea Kolander, Pivotal, San Jose, CA

Chelsea graduated with a BS from the University of California at San Diego with a major in Human Biology and a minor in Health Care and Social Issues. After graduation, she worked on the Rincon Indian Reservation, on several research studies aiming to prevent Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders, promote dental health and cardiovascular health. Chelsea then obtained her Master of Public Health in Health Behavior and also her Master of Social Work in Community, Management, and Policy Practice from UNC-Chapel Hill. During her time in North Carolina, Chelsea worked with the UNC American Indian Center, Family Services at Wake County Human Services, Orange County Department on Aging, and the Poe Center for Health Education. After moving to California to work in Medical Social Work providing case management for seniors and people with disabilities, Chelsea began working at PIVOTAL as a Field Instructor and High School Coaching Coordinator to train intern coaches to support high school aged foster youth in pursuing their educational and career goals.

Bud Lavery, MENTOR North Carolina, Durham, NC

Bud has been a leader in the development of innovative programs at the intersection of education and mental health. He has 20+ years of expertise in organizational leadership, program development and strategy development. He was the CEO of Communities In Schools of Durham (a school dropout prevention program), Prevent Child Abuse North Carolina, Campus Candor (a college success technology platform for 1st-generation college students), as well as the Vice President of a behavioral health research company that developed evidence-based mentoring, alcohol and drug prevention, and mindfulness programs for schools. His organizations have earned the attention of national leaders including personal visits by Bill and Melinda Gates as well as the U.S. Secretary of Education. Bud holds a Master of Social Work from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a B.S. in Biology from Duke University.

Patti Neiman, University YMCA, Minneapolis, MN

Patti worked for several years at the University of Minnesota, where she served as a Counselor Advocate and later Director of Career Services. Ten years ago she became the Director of Educational Efficacy and Leadership at the University YMCA of the YMCA of the Greater Twin Cities. She has been dedicated to serving diverse, underrepresented young people preparing for, entering, and completing higher education as well as grad/professional school and careers. Her professional roles have also centered on creating multicultural environments to support growth and development of diverse individuals as well as diverse and inclusive workplaces. In her current role, she is responsible for developing, implementing, and managing programming at University YMCA, which serves approximately 1,000 youth annually from the University of Minnesota and the surrounding community. She holds a Bachelors in Human Services and a Master’s degree in Educational Psychology, Counseling and Student Personnel Psychology and is a certified Mental Health First Aid Instructor.

Stephanie Ortega, Promises2Kids Foundation, San Diego, CA

Currently Chief Operating Officer, Stephanie has been with Promises2Kids for 14 years, and has led the creation and implementation of many program components, including mentoring, and has guided many of the organization's Guardian Scholars students throughout their educational experiences. She earned her Bachelor's Degree in Law and Society with a minor in Spanish at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and completed her Master's Degree in Forensic Psychology at Argosy University in Washington D.C. Stephanie oversees all of Promises2Kids programs, helps recruit and manage mentors, and ensures program outcomes are achieved.

Tim Pehlke, Big Brothers Big Sisters of America, Tampa, FL

Tim Pehlke serves as Program Design Manager for Big Brothers Big Sisters of America (BBBSA). He works with BBBSA’s local agencies to design and implement specialty youth mentoring initiatives in collaboration with foundation and corporate partners. His national projects include Family Engagement, Beyond School Walls, Bigs in Blue/Bigs with Badges, and Sports Buddies. Previously he served as Assistant Director for Special Projects at the University of Central Florida (UCF) Center for Public and Nonprofit Management, where he founded the UCF Walking School Bus program and brought the UCF Homeless Student Education AmeriCorps VISTA project to scale across Central Florida. In addition, Tim served as 4-H Youth Development Coordinator in Orlando, Florida for University of Florida IFAS Extension, where he led efforts to expand STEM programming through FIRST Robotics and designed The Garden, an innovative inner-city gardening workforce education program. Tim earned his Master of Public Administration from the University of Missouri and holds a Master of Science in Family and Child Studies from Miami University (Ohio).

Tygh Powell, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Cumberland & Salem Cos, Vineland, NJ

Tygh joined the Big Brothers Big Sisters of Cumberland & Salem Counties team as Director of Programs, after receiving his Master of Business Administration degree from Wilmington University. There, he held a concentration in Management Information Systems, while also studying Organizational Leadership. Tygh has over a decade of experience working with non-profit youth serving programs and agencies in Vineland, New Jersey. As a strong advocate of mentoring, Tygh has seen how having a positive role model can be a life changing experience for mentees and mentors.

Brandi Praytor-Marsters, Center for Community Engagement, Gonzaga University, Spokane, WA

Brandi joined the Center for Community Engagement at Gonzaga University in 2014, where she supervises four youth programs and initiatives: Connections, GAME, Eye to Eye, and Sparks. She completed three terms of service for the Federal Way Public Schools AmeriCorps team after receiving a BS in Sociology from the University of Idaho. She is working toward a master’s degree in Organizational Leadership through Gonzaga University.

Tiffany Reinhardt, Y of Central Maryland, Towson, MD

Tiffany Reinhardt is Associate Executive Director of Mentoring at the Y in Central Maryland, where she leads operations for Big Brothers Big Sisters at the Y (BBBSY), Reach and Rise, Badges for Baseball and the Maryland Mentor Resource Network (MMRC). She takes pride in the work she does as a member of the steering committee of the African American Resource Network and an ally of the LGBTQ Resource Network. Tiffany has worked with corporations such as T. Rowe Price, M&T Bank, ABS Capital, PNC Bank, and the Baltimore Ravens organization to help move the work of mentoring forward. Tiffany’s team was awarded with the 2019 Big Brothers Big Sisters of America Quality Award for exceeding the network’s national average in mentoring match retention for both community-based and site-based mentoring.

Kecia Sakazaki, Aging UP, Sacramento, CA

Kecia is the Co-founder and Program Director of Aging UP, a community based mentoring program. She began her career as a Community Health Educator with Planned Parenthood teaching pregnancy and HIV/AIDS prevention programs to youth in schools, juvenile hall, group homes, and outpatient drug and alcohol dependency programs. During her employment she created and coordinated a peer education team of high school students to act as trusted resources on their school campuses and organize community outreach to teens. Kecia then worked as a program manager of a boys group home, a mentoring program assistant, and a transition specialist in Sacramento county’s court and community schools. After witnessing the challenges emancipated foster youth face when entering adulthood, she was inspired to do more and co-developed Aging UP’s supportive mentoring model aiming to increase the odds of youth from foster care to lead happy, healthy, self-sufficient lives. Kecia is a graduate of the University of California, Berkeley, with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in psychology and anthropology.

Bhasker Sharma, Mentor Together, Bangalore, India

Bhasker has over 30 years of work experience in the IT sector in India with organisations such as Alcatel Lucent Netorks, Microland Ltd and Tata Unisys Limited. He moved to the development sector in 2015 and managed corporate social responsibility for Dell in India and APJ for nearly3 years. He has been consulting and volunteering with non profits working in the areas of school education and skilling of youth alongside his Corporate stint and also following it. He recently joined Mentor Together, India’s first and largest youth mentoring organization, as Executive Director - Mentor To Go.

Caroline Short, Generation Hope, Washington, DC

Caroline is the Director of Programming at Generation Hope. In that role, she oversees the Scholar and Next Generation Academy programs, manages Generation Hope’s case managers, designs new programming for the organization, serves as a case manager for a cohort of students, manages Generation Hope's metrics and evaluation, spearheads the recruitment of students and mentors, and serves as a member of Generation Hope’s leadership team. In her seven years at Generation Hope, she has spearheaded the growth of the Scholar program from serving eleven students to serving one-hundred students and the development of Generation Hope’s kindergarten readiness program, Next Generation Academy. The organization has also grown to reach over 200 teen parents in high school each year through college readiness workshops. She is a summa cum laude graduate of Duke University.

Andrea Talbot, Big Brother's Big Sister's of Central Arizona, Phoenix, AZ

Andrea currently works for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Arizona as a Program Specialist in charge of the Big Futures and SUCCESS College/Career Readiness Program. Andrea also holds a position as an English Teacher for VIP Kid, an online program teaching English to children from Beijing, China. Andrea also served as a college student advisor at the University of Arizona for the Pathways to Academic Student Success Program. During her undergraduate years, Andrea studied abroad in Barcelona, Spain, and interned with the Tucson Police Department and City of Tucson. Andrea is a graduate from the University of Arizona with a dual degree in: Business B.S. – Management Information Systems and Spanish B.A. – Translation and Interpretation for Medical/Legal/Business purposes. She plans to continue her higher education by getting either a Masters in Higher Education or Business Management.

Rachelle Tong, Alberta Children's Services & Alberta Mentoring Partnership, Edmonton, Alberta

Rachelle has been working with the Government of Alberta and the Alberta Mentoring Partnership (AMP) to expand and enhance mentoring for children and youth across the province. As part of the AMP provincial coordination team she has lead strategic planning, evaluation, and population survey projects for the partnership. Through her work in Alberta Children’s Services managing grants to service providers, she has developed an understanding of the research basis for mentoring, the evaluation strategies in place across various organizations, and the outcomes sought by funders investing in mentoring programs. To strengthen Canadian mentoring research capacity, she is currently assisting with the formation of a Canadian centre for mentoring research, alongside colleagues at the University of Alberta and the Canadian Mentoring Partnership (CMP).

Tania Velazquez, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA

Tania Velazquez is a social justice activist focused on advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion through holistic approaches. Currently, she is co-creating and launching a DEI initiative within the entertainment industry that aims to elevate representation by making way for young people from South and East Los Angeles become future executive leaders in the film, tv, music, sports media businesses. After graduating with a B.A. in Political Science and Advocacy & Social Change from Universities in Chicago, Mexico City, and Rome, Tania decided to take on a year of service in Newark, New Jersey, where she then helped design an intentional mindfulness social emotional curriculum for inner city students. Upon her return home to Chicago, she developed a leadership program geared to generate youth led anti-violent healthy relationship campaigns throughout Chicago Public Schools.

Charline Alexandre-Joseph, MENTOR: The National Mentoring Partnership, Boston, MA

Charline is the Director of Workforce Development at MENTOR. Through partnerships with employers, Charline works to enhance workplace mentoring programs and provide strategies to increase the retention of young adult employees. Prior to joining MENTOR, Charline was Associate Director of the Department of Youth Services (DYS) Initiative at Commonwealth Corporation in Massachusetts where she focused on supporting youth involved in the Juvenile Justice System in advancing their transferable skills. Additionally, Charline earned degrees in Education and Public Policy from Lesley University and Brandeis University, respectively.

Michael Garringer, MENTOR: The National Mentoring Partnership, Portland, OR

Michael is Director of Research and Evaluation for MENTOR, overseeing original research projects and supporting the translation of mentoring research into program practice. Mike has worked in the mentoring and education fields for over 17 years, primarily on training and technical assistance projects serving federally- or state-funded mentoring programs. His role also supports advocacy and policy efforts by identifying and synthesizing research to guide public and private organization investments in the youth mentoring field. Mike has authored and edited many guidebooks and program tools to support youth mentoring, including the 4th edition of the Elements of Effective Practice for Mentoring, the Power of Relationships study on American’s mentoring experiences, and Examining Youth Mentoring Services Across America, the most ambitious survey of youth mentoring programs to date. He is a proud alumnus of the University of Oregon.

Nicki Patnaude, MENTOR: The National Mentoring Partnership, Boston, MA

Nicki serves as the National Quality Mentoring System Director for MENTOR. In this role, she brings extensive expertise in mentoring and non-profit best practices through the lens of continuous improvement and innovation having previously led such efforts with local mentoring Affiliate in Minnesota. Nicki also has experience with advocacy, grant-writing, fundraising, event planning, marketing and communications, and project management having worked her way from a Public Policy Graduate Intern to the Director of Quality at MENTOR Minnesota. Prior to work within the MENTOR network, she worked in the youth development field, specifically with youth aging out of long-term foster care. In 2012, Nicki earned a Master in Social Work degree with a focus in Community Organizing and Advocacy from the University of Minnesota.

Desiree Robertson, MENTOR: The National Mentoring Partnership, Boston, MA

Desireé is Director of Training and Product Design for MENTOR. She is responsible for MENTOR’s vision for quality training development and product design. She ensures products, tools and trainings are developed with best practices in adult learning theory, and instructional and information design. Prior to MENTOR, Desireé gained extensive experience in mentoring, program management and development, curriculum development, training and professional development by directing the local mentoring Affiliate in Memphis, Tennessee and with organizations such as Girls Incorporated of Memphis, Inc. Nationally, Desireé has been a National Technical Assistance Provider for the National Mentoring Resource Center and also a member of MENTOR’s Mentoring Affiliate Advisory Council (MAAC). She holds a graduate degree in Sociology from the University of Memphis. Her interests include critical mentoring and supporting college students in finding meaningful mentoring opportunities.

Elizabeth Santiago, MENTOR: The National Mentoring Partnership, Boston, MA

Elizabeth is Chief Program Officer for MENTOR. She is responsible for the management of programs and services for a wide range of stakeholders. Prior to MENTOR, Elizabeth gained extensive experience in program management and development, instructional design, curriculum development, training and professional development with organizations such as Jobs for the Future, Simmons College, Babson College, Houghton Mifflin, and World Education. She has specific experience in working with vulnerable or marginalized youth and the systems and people that serve them. She has taught high school equivalency courses, managed a GED/high school equivalency program, and built a professional development service for teachers and principals educating first generation college goers. Elizabeth earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Writing, Literature and Publishing from Emerson College and a Master’s degree from Harvard University’s Graduate School of Education, Technology, Innovation and Education Program. She is currently working on a PhD in education studies at Lesley University.