Our Team

For over 12 years, Iris has been the Citywide Safety and School Culture Director for District 79. She assists Principals and Assistant Principals with managing all school safety related incidents, the completion of all DOE and non-DOE safety plans, and BRT/GRP training. Iris is committed to ensuring that the D79 school community and partners have the most current safety procedures by facilitating monthly meetings with D79 leaders, OYSD, and NYPD. Her work also involves implementing training programs that are focused on prevention and best practices for a safe school community.

Monika Garg has been with the NYCDOE for 18 years in the capacity of teacher, AP, Principal and now as an Attendance Supervisor. Monika is excited to be working with the ACCESS BCO. As an Attendance Supervisor she has the privilege of working with 17 amazing Attendance Teachers who work hard every day to support schools with their attendance needs. Here at ACCESS, we serve a unique group of students, Monika is honored to be a part of this incredible team.

Keri-Ann Ket-Ying received her bachelor's degree in social work from SUNY Albany and then graduated from Columbia University with a Master of Science, where she specialized in adolescent and family therapy. Since then, Keri-Ann has held various NYC child welfare and juvenile justice positions before joining the DOE in 2011.

Candace Mathews, LMSW, is a Social Worker with the Department of Education. Prior to working with the ACCESS BCO team she served as the 9x9 Program Director under YMI and the Mayors Initiative, this program helped serve overage 8th graders in District 9, that transitioned into Transfer High Schools, to assist them with catching up with their academics. She previously has worked in multiple schools as a social worker with the non-profit Partnership with Children and has a passion for serving students, instilling hope in children and youth and being a daily agent of change. Her work is driven by the quote by Ayesha Siddiqi “Be the person you needed when you were younger”.

Bio is coming soon...

A dedicated professional with over 20 years of experience, Veronica’s selflessness and devotion to her work, coupled with her innate ability to reach people of diverse backgrounds, make her an invaluable asset to the field of education and the children it serves.

Veronica is a graduate of Binghamton University, where she holds a B.S. in Applied Social Science and an M.A. in Social Science. She also holds an M.A. in Counseling, and Guidance: Bilingual Schools from New York University and has New York State Permanent Certifications in School Counseling and Bilingual Education.

Marie has over twenty years of experience working with young people in the New York City Department of Education. Marie was an English Teacher for eight years at George Wingate High School in Brooklyn and developed the curriculum for a Shakespeare in Performance course. She holds a Master of Arts degree in English Literature from Brooklyn College and worked as a creative teaching artist with BAM. She achieved a second master's degree in administration and was an Assistant Principal for ten years at Repertory High School and GEDPlus respectively before accepting the position of Principal of Pathways to Graduation Manhattan (Formerly GEDPlus). She held this position for six years working with non-profit and government agencies alongside DOE stakeholders to bring quality education to the students in District 79. Her passion is to provide students with the social-emotional learning necessary for success and facilitating opportunities for student voice through arts centered structures. Currently Marie is working as the Director of Student Support and Academic Services for District 79.

Tania is a bilingual (Spanish/English) licensed Social Worker with over 18 year of experience serving NYC public schools. Her professional trajectory has focused on supporting recent immigrant, undocumented and refugee students in their transition to the United States, as well as advancing racial equity, culturally afforming socio-emotional learning, restorative justice and healing centered engagement in schools.

Dr. Pasquale Sabatino has worked as Special Education Teacher and Coach as well as a Middle and High School Dean. In his current role as a School Climate and Culture Manager, Dr. Sabatino conducts trainings in crisis and de-escalation techniques, which includes Therapeutic Crisis Intervention in Schools, Life Space Crisis Intervention. He also assists schools with various social emotional supports. Dr. Sabatino looks forward to applying his myriad of experiences in supporting teachers in a manner that positively impacts the lives of students and parents in the A.C.C.E.S.S Community.