The iMentor Team

Staff & Boards

iMentor Staff  |   Board of Directors   |   Young Executive Board   |  

Board of Advisors

iMentor Staff

*Click on staff names for bios and contact information.

Catherine Ang, Program Manager

Ashley Boynton, Program Coordinator

Brooke Bryant, Development Manager

Cleo Brooks Cavolo, Managing Director of Development

Marihug Cedeño, Development Coordinator

Devon Claridge, Executive Assistant

Amy Cruz, Senior Program Coordinator

Kimberley Ednie, Managing Director of Programs

Unique Fraser, Director of Curricula

Bridgette Ginyard, Program Coordinator

Erica Goldman, Managing Director of iMentor Interactive

Sean Hamidi, Senior Program Coordinator

Erica Hamilton, Chief Program Officer

Kim Hendler, Managing Director of Talent

Sandra Henry, Volunteer Coordinator

Kassim Howell, Program Coordinator

Maggie Hureau, iMentor Interactive Partnership Manager

Alexander James, Program Manager

Elizabeth Kennedy, Program Coordinator

Ashley Legitime, Program Coordinator

Victoria Lowe, Program Coordinator

Ellen Mahoney, Director of Volunteers

Bruce McClain, iMentor Interactive Training and Support Coordinator

Jessica Mowles, Program Manager

Mike O'Brien, Chief Executive Officer

Caroline Kim Oh, President

Zulay Olivo, iMentor Interactive Senior Training and Support Coordinator

Nicholas Ortiz, Operations Manager

Katherine Plotnick, Alumni Pairs Coordinator

Amy Reynolds, Program Coordinator

Lauren Ringdahl, Program Coordinator

Dana Saxon, iMentor Interactive Director of Partnerships

Jeremy Schifeling, iMentor Interactive Partnership Manager

Jabari Smith, Program Coordinator

Jonathan Vallejo, iMentor Interactive Partnership Manager

Cherika Wilson, Program Coordinator

Ashley Boynton comes to iMentor after several years’ experience working in education and youth development. After graduating from Colorado College with a B.A. in Neuroscience in 2007, Ashley served as an English language program assistant in the northern suburbs of Paris, where she developed and implemented English language programming in several elementary-level public schools. She then went on to act as program coordinator for Step Up Women’s Network, coordinating after school programs for teen girls in under-resourced public schools in and around New York City. Throughout her life, Ashley has been positively influenced by her mentoring relationships, both as a mentor and as a mentee, and is joining the iMentor team in the hopes that she can provide that same experience to NYC’s youth and adults.

Email Ashley   (212) 461-4330 ext. 21

Cleo Brooks Cavolo joins iMentor with a range of experience in the field of education, and has developed an expertise in collaborative partnerships, experiential learning and mentoring programs. In her most recent position as a Program Associate with The Blue Ridge Foundation, Cleo orchestrated strategic consulting projects with portfolio organizations. Cleo also worked with The Princeton Review, K-12 Services, where she helped develop and create an organizational marketing plan to improve outreach strategies and partnerships with school districts throughout the country. At Junior Achievement as the Director, Education Cleo was responsible for creating and sustaining partnerships between New York City public schools and corporate sponsors. Serving as a liaison between the public and private sectors she evaluated partnerships in search of strong models that increased experiential learning opportunities, enhanced program sustainability and provided ongoing financial support to New York City public schools. Cleo received her M.P.A. from the Robert F. Wagner School of Public Service at New York University and her B.A. from Washington University in St. Louis in 2001. Email Cleo   (212) 461-4330 ext. 27

Marihug Cedeño comes to iMentor with a diverse professional background and a strong interest in expanding resources for youth in-need. Prior to joining iMentor, Marihug participated in the Coro Fellows Program in Public Affairs, a highly selective leadership training program that uses consultancies to provide fellows with an in-depth understanding of the different sectors. As a Coro Fellow she had the opportunity of working with an array of clients including Nestle Purina, YWCA Metro St. Louis, Missouri Woman in Trades and the St. Louis Metropolitan Taxicab Commission. Projects ranged from developing an implementation plan for a data gathering software, to creating a mentoring program for woman in the construction trades, to planning the execution of five youth entrepreneurship summer academies. While at Coro, Marihug realized that her most fulfilling projects had one thing in common--youth education. She had the pleasure of co-managing the planning and execution of the St. Louis Youth Leadership Summit, which engaged high school students from all over the St. Louis region in leadership development workshops. She joins iMentor excited about the organization’s mission-driven work and its possibilities as it continues to grow. Marihug earned her B.A. in Policy Analysis and Management from Cornell University in 2007 and is a proud, native New Yorker.

Email Marihug   (212) 461-4330 ext. 64

Devon Claridge comes to iMentor after working in a variety of positions with a youth-based non-profit, Girls for Gender Equity (GGE). Her most recent work there was as the Outreach Coordinator for the Urban Leaders After-School Academy at Atwell Middle School (MS61) in Crown Heights, Brooklyn. Through her work at MS61 and GGE, she strengthened her understanding of the need for mentor relationships, especially with youth in underserved communities. She also worked with the Girls and Boys Project during the 2007-08 school year facilitating an after-school curriculum to 5th grade girls in the Lower East Side. Devon graduated from CUNY, Hunter College with a BA in Women’s Studies and Africana/Latina Studies. She has a strong passion for empowering youth and is very happy to be joining iMentor in working toward that mission.

Email Devon   (212) 461-4330 ext. 52

Amy Cruz is a recent graduate from Columbia University where she earned a B.A. in Urban Studies with a concentration in Sociology. While earning her degree she coordinated numerous events while at CU including fundraising events for Camp Heartland (a camp for children infected/affected with HIV/AIDS), career panels, and university visits from local middle and high schools. Originally from Long Beach, California, she began her work experience in New York City as an intern for Senator Schumer and soon developed an interest in working within the urban community to improve the quality of life for its residents, adults and youth alike. From this first internship, she learned the importance of the non-profit sector and thus began the search for her niche within it. During her last academic semester, she simultaneously interned at the United Way of New York City and Aspira of New York where she further defined her interest in working in the non-profit sector to improve the life of urban youth and learned that a sustainable community can only be achieved through effective programming that targets the issues facing its youth.

Email Amy  (212) 461-4330 ext. 36

Kimberley Ednie: With more than six years of experience teaching writing in diverse environments, Kimberley believes in the power of language expression to instill personal and academic confidence. Before coming to iMentor, Kimberley worked as an adjunct writing instructor at Hunter College while earning her Master’s degree in British and American literature. Additionally, she served as a high school reading and writing instructor at an enrichment school in Flushing, Queens. She has also worked as a writing tutor at Hunter, SUNY Geneseo, and Boston University with students of varying English fluency and comprehension skills and as the program assistant at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government. While an undergraduate at SUNY Geneseo, Kimberley participated as a mentor in Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Livingston County and is thrilled to be facilitating mentor-mentee relationships in her current position.

Email Kimberley  (212) 461-4330 ext. 22

Erica Goldman oversees iMentor Interactive, our social enterprise that helps member organizations manage high-performing mentoring programs using iMentor’s proprietary online platform. Prior to joining iMentor, Erica was Vice President of Consumer Marketing at DonorsChoose.org, a nonprofit online marketplace supporting public schools in low-income neighborhoods across the United States. She has led marketing and strategic initiatives at American Express, Sears.com, and Accenture. Early in her career, she started an Internet consultancy serving nonprofit and corporate clients, and founded one of the first philanthropic online communities in Boston. Erica has an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and a BA from Wesleyan University.

Email Erica   (212) 461-4330 ext. 61

Unique Fraser has a strong background in urban youth education that developed through work in after school and summer programs with high school students. Before joining the iMentor team, Unique created literacy enrichment curricula for an after school college counseling program to promote academic success. She is a firm believer that with a strong foundation in multiple literacies and learning styles, young people can achieve excellence in and outside of the classroom. Unique earned her B.A. in Latin American Studies from Barnard College in 2000 and completed her M.A. in Latin American and African Diaspora History from Rutgers University in 2006. She is also a proud, native Brooklyn-ite.

Email Unique   (212) 461-4330 ext. 23

Bridgette Ginyard comes to iMentor with experience in the consumer public relations and public affairs industry. Previously, she has worked for Hager Sharp, Edelman and the American Bible Society where she helped to lead strategic media relations campaigns for consumer brands and mission-oriented programming. Hailing from the San-Francisco Bay Area, she has a background in promoting volunteerism, community activism, and developing streamline messaging for various organizations. Bridgette graduated from Howard University in 2007 with a B.A. in Journalism. There she was active in the Howard University Red Cross and a classroom leader in Heads Up, a neighborhood initiative in the Washington D.C. where she gained experience in hands-on grassroots organization and after-school programming. Bridgette is thrilled to join the iMentor team and contribute to the overall impact of youth mentoring and the empowerment of NYC high school students.

Email Bridgette  (212) 461-4330 ext. 62

Sean Hamidi brings to the iMentor team a strong background in working alongside diverse youth communities and a particular interest in third-party educational programming. Sean recently graduated with High Honors from the Distinguished Majors program at the University of Virginia, where he majored in English and spent time teaching creative writing courses at a local middle school. After working with youth in the private sector for a number of years, Sean became involved with underserved populations in the Los Angeles area while interning with Inside Out Community Arts, an after-school theatre and arts program for public schools suffering from recent budget cuts. As a returning Program Coordinator, Sean looks forward to developing meaningful relationships with schools in the New York area and supporting iMentor during this tremendous and exciting period of growth.

Email Sean    (212) 461-4330 ext. 59

Erica Hamilton joins iMentor with over ten years of experience managing programs and leading teams in the non-profit and private sectors. In her current role as the Chief Program Officer Erica will be responsible for defining and overseeing the growth, quality and innovation of iMentor programs both in New York City and nationally, including the development of external partnerships to increase iMentor's visibility and impact. Prior to joining the iMentor team Erica spent several years managing educational and professional development programs at several organizations including Prep for Prep, Sponsors for Educational Opportunity and the Institute for Youth Entrepreneurship. She has also lead teams in the US and abroad to drive business strategy, develop sales and marketing programs and implement strategic initiatives at Goldman Sachs and Citi. After graduating from college Erica launched a college prepatory mentoring program for students at her high school alma mater in the Bronx. And while at Wharton, Erica launched the school's first ever Non Profit Board Leadership Program to motivate MBA students to contribute their time and knowledge to the community by joining local non-profit boards. Erica received her M.B.A from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, her M.P.A from the Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service at New York University and her B.A. from Harvard University.

Email Erica   (212) 461-4330 ext. 69

Kim Hendler joins iMentor after 3 years as Executive Director of Princeton Project 55. There she oversaw the growth of Project 55's flagship nonprofit fellowship program, which encourages recent graduates from Princeton to build careers in civic leadership through year-long fellowships at nonprofit organizations. Prior to working for Project 55, Kim worked for El Pomar Foundation in Colorado Springs, Colorado, where she participated in a nonprofit leadership development fellowship program; directed a youth grant making program in 138 high schools; co-directed fellowship hiring; and supported the foundation's grant making. Kim is Vice Chair of the Young Nonprofit Professionals Network National Board, is an alumni interviewer for Brown University, and a volunteer with Resource Generation. She has run workshops on a variety of topics in leadership and nonprofit management for diverse groups including outdoor leadership programs, youth philanthropy initiatives, community volunteers, high school students, and young professionals. Kim is committed to attracting talent to the nonprofit sector and making it a sustainable place to start and grow a career. She is thrilled to be working on talent strategy and development at iMentor!

Email Kim   (212) 461-4330 ext. 51

Sandra Henry joins iMentor after working for the Penny Harvest, a program of Common Cents, for over two years as their Operations Fellow. While there she orchestrated the production, dissemination and collection of program materials and information to over 1200 schools and libraries. She also directed and negotiated Penny Harvest kit delivery and massive penny pick up efforts, and directed grants administration. In addition to her operational duties Sandra helped market the program to recruit schools, facilitated during program professional development and consulted with program coaches (teachers). She graduated from Kenyon College in May 2005 with a degree in Sociology. Inspired by her various sociology courses and a seminar titled "Education and Difference," Sandra is fueled by her passion for education and social change and hopes to continue to enrich the lives of New York City youth through her hard work at iMentor.

Email Sandra   (212) 461-4330 ext. 55

Kassim Howell comes to iMentor after working with high school students in a community based setting for three years. After graduating from the University of Rochester with a B.A. in Psychology, Kassim joined the St. Nicholas Neighborhood Preservation Corporation where he coordinated drop out prevention, work readiness and athletic programs for high school students. He was able to provide academic, athletic, and professional development programming that emphasized character development and youth empowerment. Kassim is an avid sports enthusiast. He returned to his alma mater the University of Rochester to serve as an assistant varsity football coach. Kassim is currently a volunteer coach for the Brooklyn Crescents Youth Lacrosse Club and the Brooklyn Technical High School varsity football team in Brooklyn.

Email Kassim    (212) 461-4330 ext. 44

Maggie Hureau joins iMentor with experience in national service. At 18, Maggie joined City Year an AmeriCorps program, and served over 1700 hours to Boston’s Dorchester community. She then attended Eugene Lang College, the New School for Liberal Arts and pursued a BA in Urban Studies. While attaining her degree, Maggie volunteered as a mentor for 9th grade students in New York City public schools. After graduating, Maggie was reunited with the National Service movement by working for City Year in New York. As a senior program manager, she led 17 to 24 year olds through a year of service in elementary schools throughout East New York, Brooklyn. She built and fostered community partnerships and invested in the sustainability of the neighborhood. Maggie is excited to join the team and continue her passion for impacting youth by partnering with other non profit organizations.

Email Maggie    (212) 461-4330 ext. 35

Alexander James comes to iMentor directly from the NYC Department of Education, where he taught English for two years at Renaissance H.S. in the Bronx. With an interest in the arts, he has assisted in a variety of student performances and after-school activities. He received his B.A. in English and Film from Connecticut College. As a New York City Teaching Fellow he earned a Master's degree in Education with a focus in Middle/High School English education from Lehman College. Over the past two years he has examined the relevance and methods of successfully encouraging critical thinking in the English classroom. Prior to teaching, he worked as a videographer and editor for a local TV news station in New Jersey.

Email Alexander   (212) 461-4330 ext. 33

Elizabeth Kennedy comes to iMentor with experience in education, youth development and community empowerment, both at the local and international levels. A recent graduate from Trinity College, she earned her B.A. in American Studies and double minor in Hispanic Studies and Human Rights Studies. In that time, she actively engaged her Hartford community on and off campus in many leadership roles such as fundraising chair of the Trinity Chapter of Habitat for Humanity as well as co-organizer of the Trinity International Hip-Hop Festival, which aims to use all five elements of hip-hop as a tool for social empowerment. While interning with small non-profits abroad in Uruguay, Chile and Spain, she gained experience in linguistic, academic and career development with recent immigrant youth. Prior to iMentor, she also developed human rights curricula serving as an intern with Amnesty International within their Human Rights Education Program in the New York City Headquarters. She is very excited to join the iMentor team and looks forward to continue to positively impact New York City’s youth through empowering opportunities!

Email Elizabeth   (212) 461-4330 ext. 38

Ashley recently graduated from Syracuse University in 2008 with a B.S. in Public Relations and a Minor in Women’s Studies. At Syracuse, she took a special interest in the community surrounding the university. She helped run programs for youth at off campus after-school centers and was a tutor/mentor at programs catering to elementary through high school students on campus. She spent the past year as a Senior AmeriCorps member with City Year serving the youth of NYC. She coordinated the day-to-day schedules of seven individuals at a New York City public school, ensuring the good quality of their literacy, tutoring and after-school programs. She is extremely excited about the work iMentor does and the unique resources it provides high school students.

Email Ashley  (212) 461-4330 ext. 37

Victoria Lowe comes to iMentor from an editorial background in magazines, where she wrote and edited material for publications including Town & Country and Cosmopolitan. She graduated from Colgate University in 2006 with a B.A. in English and Political Science, and has been involved in mentoring and advising urban youth for over 7 years. Prior to iMentor, Victoria worked with Prep for Prep in collaboration with the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship to help high school students learn to create and effectively sustain their own businesses. Education and youth empowerment have been running themes in Victoria’s life, both of which excite and inspire her. She is thrilled to be a part of the iMentor team and looks forward to making a lasting impact on New York City youth.

Email Victoria   (212) 461-4330 ext. 66

Ellen Mahoney's ten years of work in adolescent education has been driven by the belief that all children can succeed with the right community support and equal access to opportunities. She received her BA in English from the University of Oregon in 1999. Previously to her position at iMentor, she worked at The Arthur Ashe Educational Guidance Program in Queens, where she provided guidance counseling and educational assistance to teenagers and their families and trained guidance counselors and coaches on adolescent development and high school and college admissions. Prior to her experience in New York, she spent six years working in Washington DC's public and alternative schools and worked towards her Masters in Counseling at George Washington University. She taught Humanities and Media Literacy, counseled teens and their families, developed and implemented transition programs for incoming high school freshmen, and developed a guidance program to increase the academic achievement of students of color. Ellen has enjoyed 8 years of volunteer experience as a mentor and tutor for The Lab School of Washington, The Latin American Youth Center in DC, and Girls, Inc in Oregon.

Email Ellen  (212) 461-4330 ext. 28

Bruce McClain joins the iMentor Interactive team after working in the finance sector for firms like CITCO Fund Service and JPMorgan. In his work, he has worn many hats from client training specialist to senior analyst. While at these firms, he has gained extensive experience in application development and implementation for a national and international client base. Through out his career, Bruce has volunteered with private and city community centers, in an effort to give back to communities like the one he grew up in. He has created mentoring and financial planning programs for teens as well as tutored math for grades 5 through 12. A native of New York City, Bruce graduated from CUNY, York College with a BS in Mathematics. He is excited to be a part of creating successful mentoring relationships and brings his passion and expertise to the development of iMentor Interactive.

Email Bruce   (212) 461-4330 ext. 63

Jessica Mowles comes to iMentor with extensive experience in youth education and broad interests in social justice and human rights. A native of Salem, Virginia, Jessica recently graduated from Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota with degrees in Political Science and Geography and concentrations in African Studies and Human Rights. Her passions for young women’s development in particular and justice-oriented approaches to education in general have been reflected in her involvement with such diverse organizations as Phenomenal Women, the United World Colleges, Humanity in Action, and Total Action Against Poverty. Most recently, Jessica worked with the New York-based National Conference for Community and Justice to coordinate and facilitate Cultural Connections, a summer social justice institute for high school students. Having worked on youth development projects in Virginia, New Mexico, Costa Rica, and South Africa, Jessica is very excited to continue working with education issues in New York City by facilitating meaningful mentorships and bridging opportunity with iMentor.

Email Jessica    (212) 461-4330 ext. 57

Mike O'Brien came to iMentor in 2003, after three years of working with New York City's at-risk youth in academic, athletic, and community-based settings. After graduating from Bucknell University with B.A.'s in both English and Psychology, Mike began teaching at William H. Maxwell Career and Technology High School in East New York, Brooklyn. In addition to teaching English and coaching the boys' basketball team, Mike launched after-school programs that included poetry workshops, literary magazines, tutoring programs, and borough-wide basketball tournaments. He has also worked with underserved communities and schools in Cape Town, South Africa.

Email Mike  (212) 461-4330 ext. 25

Caroline Kim Oh joined the iMentor team in 2000 as its first Director of Programs, and was named Executive Director in 2002. In her current role as iMentor's President, Caroline focuses on Board and leadership group development and strategic, special projects. Prior to iMentor, Caroline was with the Small Business Congress of New York City, a federation of over 60 small business associations advocating the rights of small enterprises. Caroline also managed student-computing facilities for New York University and was a consultant to the Documentary Heritage Program for the NYS Department of Education and Korean American Small Business Center. Caroline currently serves on the Board of Directors for Row New York (an after-school rowing, academic, and self-esteem building program), Nonprofit Coordinating Committee (NPCC) and Youth Improving Nonprofits for Children (Youth I.N.C.). Caroline is a frequent speaker on the issues of youth mentoring, nonprofit management and leadership development. Caroline received her M.P.A. from the Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service at New York University and her B.A. from Cornell University.

Email Caroline  (212) 461-4330 ext. 26

Zulay Olivo earned a Bachelors of Science in Computer and Information Science from Syracuse University, with a minor in Philosophy. While attaining her degree, she developed another passion for combining information technology with youth outreach programs. At SU, she helped develop a Shadow Day Program bringing at-risk elementary students into the university to follow college students, giving them inspiration to aim for college matriculation and laying ground work for access to higher education. She has coordinated numerous events for SU including Habitat for Humanity programs, Chancellor Initiatives and the National Feminism and War Conference. She began implementing her IT knowledge with the non-profit sector by interning at The Arch, Inc., a non-profit organization aimed to make a positive difference in the community, primarily through creativity-based and multicultural education. She is eager to join the iMentor team and is enthusiastic to excel with the progression of iMentor Interactive.

Email Zulay   (212) 461-4330 ext. 40

Nicholas Ortiz joins the iMentor team after gaining experience in operations while working as an analyst at firms such as UBS and Goldman Sachs. While earning his B.A. in Economics from Wesleyan University in Connecticut, he attended summer internships for Citigroup in 2003 and 2004 in New York City through INROADS, a national internship program for minority students with high academic standards. Being motivated by his twin sister who is a high school history teacher in Brooklyn, he decided to use his experience to contribute to youth development. Wanting now to give back to the communities of the city, he felt unfulfilled working for major banks and companies and believes that iMentor is a perfect fit. Being born and raised in New York City, he loves the fact that he can help improve the underserved and underprivileged areas of the city by working for this wonderful organization that specializes in the development of high school youth in these areas. Nicholas joins iMentor with great dedication towards assisting the organization in growing and progressing, as well as contributing to the mission of improving the lives of youth through mentoring.

Email Nick   (212) 461-4330 ext. 24

Katherine Plotnick: Originally from Calgary, Canada, Katherine graduated from Harvard in 2007 with a B.A. in English. While earning her degree, she worked with youth as a volunteer for two student-run organizations, leading classes on leadership skills for Cambridge middle school students and serving as a mentor to teenagers in Dorchester. After polishing her writing skills as an Associate Editor for Let’s Go Travel Publications, she studied abroad for a semester in Santiago, Chile, where she became deeply interested in Latin American literature and culture. Most recently, Katherine spent 10 months working for the Bolivian Street Children Project, a Boston-based nonprofit organization that runs homes for abandoned street boys in La Paz, Bolivia. During her time in Bolivia, she planned and facilitated group activities for boys ages 13-18, helping them to learn skills in managing emotions, conflict resolution, goal setting, and many other areas. She also helped to design and implement an after-school program, trained local staff members as academic advisors, and taught an extracurricular art class. Katherine is delighted to be joining the iMentor team, and looks forward to connecting mentors and mentees with new experiences and opportunities.

Email Katherine    (212) 461-4330 ext. 60

Amy Reynolds recently graduated from Colby College, where she majored in Psychology and Human Development. There, she involved herself in a variety of extracurricular activities, her favorite of which was mentoring a local elementary student. Their four-year match demonstrated to her the power of one-on-one, individualized relationships, and she is excited to help such relationships develop here at iMentor. She also volunteered at a youth center, and led two different student groups at local middle schools. Together, these activities inspired her to pursue a career working with youth and improving their educational experiences. Her other passions include running, watching baseball, reading, and being outdoors. While at school in Maine, she often used her free time to go hiking or skiing. She is very excited to join the iMentor team, and is really looking forward to working with all of the students and mentors!

Email Amy   (212) 461-4330 ext. 65

Lauren Ringdahl is a recent graduate of Massachusetts College of Art and Design, where she earned her BFA in Painting. While in college, she served as a student teacher for freshman courses, as well as an art tutor for elementary school students. She discovered her passion for working with youth at the Barton Center for Diabetes Education, a summer camp in Oxford, MA for girls with diabetes. Over three summers she worked as a Counselor, Music & Drama Coordinator, and Adventure Camp Assistant Director. Lauren spent the past two summers with the Exploration Senior Program at Yale University, teaching and mentoring high school students towards academic and personal enrichment. Most recently she served as a Residence Director, managing a dormitory of students and developing community building curriculum. Bringing her enthusiasm for engaging students and broadening horizons, Lauren is very excited to join the iMentor team.

Email Lauren    (212) 461-4330 ext. 30

Dana Saxon joined iMentor as the first full-time iMentor Interactive team member in August 2007. Formerly, Dana worked with New Leaders for New Schools, managing fundraising and partnerships to support the ongoing growth and development of the New Leaders Bay Area program. She has also conducted legal research and analysis regarding affirmative action programs and disparity studies, drafted proposals, and managed the implementation of projects for Mason Tillman Associates, a public policy firm located in Oakland, CA. Dana has experience teaching some of the most underserved students in the Philadelphia schools system, has worked as a law clerk at the Center for Disability Law and Policy in Philadelphia, and volunteered with the Homeless Advocacy Project, where she assisted clients who were homeless or living in shelters with legal issues. She earned her B.A. in Africana Studies from Vassar College and her law degree from Temple University in 2003. With the potential to impact mentoring relationships on a national level, Dana is thrilled to be a part of iMentor Interactive’s development and expansion.

Email Dana  (212) 461-4330 ext. 31

Jeremy Schifeling recruits and supports iMentor Interactive’s member organizations. Prior to joining iMentor, Jeremy managed the recruitment and selection processes at Echoing Green, a venture capital firm for new, innovative social change organizations. While at Echoing Green, he was proud to support the launch of America’s first public service university, as well as a nonprofit serving recently exonerated men, founded by a social entrepreneur who spent eighteen years on Louisiana’s Death Row for a crime he did not commit. In addition, Jeremy has taught kindergarten at an all-boys charter school in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn and recruited for Teach For America, helping the organization set a record of 17,000 applications in 2005. A graduate of Swarthmore College, Jeremy hails from the great city of Buffalo, NY.

Email Jeremy    (212) 461-4330 ext. 58

Jabari Smith is a proud native of New Orleans, LA and an esteemed 2007 cum laude graduate of Howard University in Washington, DC where he received his B.A. in Broadcast Journalism. As an undergraduate, Jabari dedicated himself to serving his University and its surrounding community through his involvement with the HU Middle School of Math & Science as an Accelerated Reading Teacher, work as a Facilitator for Washington, DC’s Kids2College Program, and most notably his elected role as Undergraduate Student Trustee representing the perspective of over 8,000 undergrads to the HU Board of Trustees. With a professional background largely based in media, Jabari’s desire to broaden his perspective on America and the Global Community was evident with his decision to join the competitive ranks of the Japanese Exchange & Teaching (JET) Programme beyond graduation. His two years of living and working in Japan as an Assistant Language Teacher strengthened his desire to work as a leader in the field of public service. Additionally, the unique abroad experience offered him the opportunity to learn conversational Japanese and travel to 7 other countries throughout Asia & the South Pacific. Jabari is enthused to be a part of the iMentor Family and believes that his work as Program Coordinator helps to advance his personal mission of uplifting & inspiring the lives of those around him!

Email Jabari    (212) 461-4330 ext. 67

Jonathan Vallejo joined the team as a Program Coordinator in August 2007 and joined iMentor Interactive as a Partnership Manager in August 2009; transferring his skills in managing/facilitating mentoring pairs to iMentor Interactive Members. He earned his BA in Government from Skidmore College and comes with years of experience in international travel, foreign languages and Youth Development. While at Skidmore, Jonathan worked as a Student Assistant Program Coordinator for the Intercultural Center, which promotes better understanding of and cooperation between student cultural groups and multi-faith based student organizations. In addition, Jonathan participated in a six-month study abroad program in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, studying Brazilian foreign policy and Portuguese at Poncificia Universidade Catolica (PUC-Rio). After graduating Cum Laude from Skidmore College, Jonathan joined the United States Peace Corps. As a Youth Development volunteer, he was an English Teacher and a Community Development Worker in a rural town in the region of Casablanca/Beni Mellal, Morocco (North Africa-Middle East). While there, he learned about the Arabic/Islamic cultures in Morocco and currently speaks fluent Moroccan Arabic (along with Spanish and Portuguese). Jonathan was also elected to be a representative of the Gender and Development Committee (GAD) that encourages and plans projects that promotes better understanding and participation of the roles of men and women in Morocco. After finishing his mission in the Peace Corps, Jonathan was a Director of the Advantage Program at Score! Educational Center, a subsidiary of Kaplan Inc., where he managed over $100,000 in revenue and ten part-time staff members while maximizing center growth and handling operations. Jonathan is a native Puerto Rican and a proud Bronxite.

Email Jonathan  (212) 461-4330 ext. 39

Cherika Wilson comes to iMentor straight from the University of Pennsylvania where she earned her B.A. in Psychology and Sociology. Cherika has always had an avid interest in the field of youth development. At Penn she was involved in several youth-focused organizations namely:- the West Philadelphia Improvement Corp (WePIC), the West Philadelphia Alliance for Children (WePAC) Step Mentoring Program and Big Brothers Big Sisters. Through her involvement with WePAC Step Mentoring Program, a student group dedicated to teaching step to children in West Philly, she helped to provide a creative outlet for her students. Additionally, this experience was one of her first glimpses into the public school system in the US. It affirmed for her that the education system was one of the most instrumental means through which she could positively effect change in the lives of children. A proud Jamaican, Cherika is eager to add her own experiences and fresh perspective to the amazing team that is iMentor.

Email Cherika   (212) 461-4330 ext. 68

Board of Directors

Charles Best, Board Member

Doug Borchard, Board Member

Richard Buery, Board Member

John Delaney, Board Member

Mark Gerson, Board Member

Tim Grant, Board Member

Lawrence Griff, Board Member

John Griffin, Chairman and Founder

Kimberley Hatchett, Board Member

Tracey Kemble, Board Member

Matthew Klein, Secretary

Elisabeth Mason, Board Member

Karen Pavlin, Board Member

William Richards, Board Member

Charles Best

Charles Best leads DonorsChoose.org, a website where everyday people can make a big difference in public schools, one classroom at a time. DonorsChoose.org has been profiled as “the future of philanthropy” by The New York Times and as “a revolutionary charity” by Oprah Winfrey. Charles founded the organization at Wings Academy, a public high school in the Bronx where he was a social studies teacher for five years.

Doug Borchard

Doug Borchard joined New Profit as Partner and Chief Operating Officer in January 2005. In addition to managing New Profit's finances and internal operations, Doug works closely with several of New Profit's portfolio organizations.

Doug brings to New Profit diverse experience as an accomplished entrepreneur and senior executive in both the non-profit and for-profit sectors. Most recently, Doug was Vice President of Prospecting Solutions at Dun & Bradstreet, a leading global provider of business information. At D&B, Doug led a $140mm business unit, with broad P&L responsibility for product strategy, sales and marketing, and product development. Doug came to D&B through their acquisition of iMarket, Inc., aventure-funded provider of sales and marketing software and internet solutions that he co-founded. Doug also spent several years as a consultant at Bain & Company, a leading international management consulting firm, where he worked on assignments in the information services industry.

Doug worked as a program and logistics officer with Save the Children, where he was part of a team that started up field operations in the Sudan, and created and managed a multi-million dollar relief and development operation. He has served on the boards of directors of a number of growing organizations, including Venturcom and iMarket, and currently sits on boards of Computers for Youth and Peer Health Exchange.

Doug graduated from Princeton with a BS in Engineering, and received a Master of Business Administration from the Stanford Business School, where he was an Arjay Miller Scholar.

Richard Buery
A co-founder of iMentor, and iMentor's first Executive Director, Richard has an extensive background in nonprofit management, youth development, education, and public interest law. He is a co-founder and former director of the Mission Hill Summer Program, an enrichment program for children in the Mission Hill Housing Development in the Roxbury section of Boston. He also taught fifth grade at an orphanage in Bindura, Zimbabwe as a Michael Clarke Rockefeller Memorial Fellow. In his legal work, Richard was a staff attorney at the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law, and before that was a law clerk for Judge John M. Walker, Jr. of the Federal Court of Appeals in New York City. He has also clerked for the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights, and the DC Public Defender Service. He is an active volunteer and board member for several non-profit community organizations in his native New York City. He is currently the Executive Director of Groundwork, a community based organization serving East New York. Richard received a J.D. from Yale Law School and a B.A. from Harvard College.

John Delaney
John F. Delaney is a partner in the New York office of Morrison & Foerster, where he serves as Co-Chair of the office's New Media Practice Group. He is a frequent lecturer and author on legal issues in the interactive media field, and has been quoted in publications such as Newsweek, Advertising Age and The Wall Street Journal on emerging intellectual property law issues. In 1999, he appeared on the cover of the American Lawyer as one of the lawyers for the new economy.

Mark Gerson
Mark Gerson is the CEO of the Gerson Lehrman Group, a Manhattan based investment research company. A 1998 graduate of Yale Law School, he is the author and editor of several books, including In the Classroom: Dispatches from an Inner-City School That Works. His articles and essays have appeared in USA Today, The Wall Street Journal,The New Republic, Commentary and many other magazines and newspapers.

Tim Grant

Tim Grant is a Managing Director at UBS. After serving as Head of UBS Delta Americas at UBS Investment Bank for the last 8 years, Tim has recently moved to a senior management role at the UBS Group level reporting directly to the Group Executive Board and specifically to the Group Chief Risk Officer, Joe Scoby. He is currently working within the Asset Workout Group which will house and manage the multi-billion dollar distressed asset portfolio related to the ongoing credit crisis. Tim has an M.A. in Materials Science and Metallurgy from the University of Cambridge and underwent a year of research at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne before completing an M.Sc. in Financial Engineering from the University of London.

Lawrence Griff
Lawrence Griff is a Partner in Ernst & Young’s New York Office which he joined in 2002. Prior to Ernst & Young, he was a Partner in Arthur Andersen’s New York office. He specializes in audits of media and entertainment clients. He is head of Metro New York inbound work which includes coordinating multidisciplinary teams to serve US subsidiaries of foreign companies. Lawrence Griff graduated from University of Pennsylvania with a BA in Economics and received his MBA in Finance with Honors from New York University. He graduated number one in his Master of Accounting class from New York University. He is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and is a licensed CPA in New York and Connecticut.

John Griffin
John Griffin is the founder and President of Blue Ridge Capital, and the founder of Blue Ridge Foundation New York. John also serves on the Board of Directors of The Michael J. Fox Foundation, the Tiger Foundation, the University of Virginia McIntire School of Commerce, and as a Patron of the Christ the King Elementary School in the South Bronx. John is an Adjunct Professor of Finance at Columbia Business School and a Visiting Professor at the University of Virginia. Before founding Blue Ridge Capital, John was the President of Tiger Management in New York City. John received an M.B.A. from the Stanford University Graduate School of Business and a B.S. in Finance from the University of Virginia McIntire School of Commerce.

Kimberley Hatchett
Kimberley Hatchett is an Executive Director in Morgan Stanley's Private Wealth Management Division which she joined in 1991. She graduated in 1991 from Harvard Business School and 1984 from the University of Virginia majoring in Rhetoric and Communications. Prior to business school, Kimberley worked at Chase Manhattan Bank as a middle market loan officer. She was a four time All-American student athlete in both high school and college and qualified for the 1984 Olympic Trials in track and field.

Tracey Kemble

A graduate of University of Massachusetts at Amherst with a degree in Journalism and Art History, Tracey Kemble has 13 years of experience in the entertainment industry. With a passion for developing diverse stories that elicit poignant emotion from audiences, Tracey has honed her skills as both a film executive and producer throughout her career. She was named creative executive of Hollywood Pictures, a Walt Disney Company, in 1993, where she oversaw Dead Presidents, directed by the Hughes Brothers and starring Chris Tucker and Larenz Tate. Drawn to provocative, character driven dramas, she joined Russell Simmons’ company, Def Pictures, as Vice President of Development and Production. During her tenure there, she produced Gridlock'd starring Tupac, and Tim Roth. The film marked Vondie Curtis Hall’s directorial debut.

In 1996, Kemble became Vice President of Production at HBO NYC. While there, she developed several films including the Emmy award winning, A Lesson Before Dying starring Don Cheadle and Mekhi Phifer, and Disappearing Acts directed by Gina Prince Bythewood starring Wesley Snipes and Sanaa Lathan (both book adaptations), as well as the film Cheaters produced by Suzanne de Passe.

In 2004, Kemble joined Edmonds Entertainment as Senior Vice President of Production. Kemble worked closely with Tracey Edmonds and developed projects that were set up at various studios, including the comedy His And Hers written by Shonda Rhimes (Disney), Welfare Queen starring Queen Latifah (Universal) and Ollie written by Preston Whitmore (New Regency).

Currently based in New York, Tracey has been developing various projects as an independent producer, as well as consulting as a development executive for The N, a teen network under MTV Networks umbrella.

Matthew Klein
A co-founder of iMentor and the Executive Director of Blue Ridge Foundation New York, Matt works intimately with the iMentor team to develop the organization. Matt is a co-founder of Leadership, Education, and Athletics in Partnership (LEAP), a nationally recognized youth development agency operating in high-poverty neighborhoods throughout Connecticut. In his legal work, Matt focused on issues of equal opportunity, clerking for such organizations as the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. and the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice. He also served as a law clerk for federal judge Robert L. Carter in New York. Matt graduated from Yale Law School and Yale College.

Elisabeth Mason
Elisabeth is the Senior Advisor for Innovative Philanthropy, and recently served as the Director for Youth and After School Programs and the Acting Director for Family Support Programs at the Robin Hood Foundation. Prior to that, Elisabeth practiced law at Cleary, Gottlieb, Steen & Hamilton in New York City. Elisabeth is the Founding Executive Director of the Kukula Foundation, which is a program for street and working children in Costa Rica. She was also a Founding Member of the Central American branch of the Latin American Movement for Children's Rights during the six years she lived and worked in Latin America. Her other professional experience includes work with CIDA, UNICEF, and the Peace Corps and serving as a member of the Costa Rican Presidential Commission on Youth. Elisabeth holds a J.D. from Columbia University, and an M.A. in International Development and Education and a B.A. in History from Harvard University. She is presently a member of the International Human Rights Committee of the Association of the Bar of the City of New York, the Child Rights Committee of the American Bar Association, and is active in a number of direct service, non-profit boards, including her recent appointment to the Amnesty International's US Children's Rights Advisory Committee.

Karen Pavlin

Karen L. Pavlin is a Global Alliance Director at Xerox Corporation within Xerox Global Services supporting the Worldwide Alliance Operation. She oversees the strategic global relationship between Dell and Xerox through leading the development of bringing new channels and services to market through IT and business process outsourcing to enable top line growth, entry into new markets and offerings that are innovative and differentiate in the market place.

Karen joined Xerox in 1988 as a Account Representative selling office/production services and technology to Tier 2 Major Accounts in New York City. She held several positions within direct sales from office to production product specialist to Sales Manager to one of Xerox’ top Financial Services Account Teams in the NYC Downtown District in the early 1990’s.

Karen transitioned into the Major Account Organization in 1997 where she was responsible for strategically leading and implementing global solutions within Xerox’ top 10 major accounts across several industries to include Financial Services, Professional Services, Entertainment and Public Sector. In 1999 she became one of the first Global Account Mangers to build and implement a business integration solution in the office at one of the top 5 Account Firms.

In 2000 Karen became the GAGM (Global Account General Manager) for Citigroup where she managed a $60M global revenue stream. Several successes included: An Alliance Managed Print- Print Optimization solution with Dell within the Global Comsumer Group. , Citigroup Investment Bank (CIB) Print-to-Copy-Center Hubs globally deploying Xerox Color Production Technology and Services in the US and Asia and The Global Document Portal- first web based “end-to-end” closed loop communication solution to create and distribute personalized and static documents for Smith Barney Financial consultants to name a few.

Karen attended the University of Virginia where she graduated earning her BA followed by her MA in Marketing Communications/ Business in 1986. During her 6 years at UVa Karen was an All-American Track & Field Athlete participating on the US Team in the Pan American Games and the Olympic Trials. She is presently on the Board of Directors for iMentor and The Learning Project in NYC.

Karen resides in NYC with her husband, Rob and two children Zuri and Marley.

William Richards
William B. Richards is Managing Director for UBS, a global financial services firm. He served as Infantry Lieutenant for the U.S. Army during Vietnam when he was awarded a Bronze Star, Army Commendation for Valor, and a Combat Infantry Badge. He is a 1976 graduate of Denison University with a B.A. in History and attended the American Graduate School of International Management from 1970-1971. He currently serves on a number of boards including The Vietnam Childrens Fund, The Veterans Corporation, The Mental Health Foundation, The Urology Advisory Board, The Vestry, The Church of the Incarnation, and The Children of War Advisory Board.

Young Executive Board

Melissa Benjamin, YEB Member

Jessica Bloch, YEB Member

Stephanie Chisholm, YEB Member

Sumat Chopra, YEB Member

Sarah Cullen, YEB Member

Vanessa D'Amato, YEB Member

Kenny Eng, YEB Member

Rebecca Erber, YEB Member

Mina Faltas, YEB Member

Amanda Fung, YEB Member

Laurie Goodman, YEB Member

Alissa Grad, YEB Member

Nicole M. Griffith, YEB Alumnus

Marcus Sean Hall, YEB Member

Peter Henderson, YEB Member

Aaron Holiday III, YEB Member

Jeanne Hwang, YEB Member

Benjamin W. Jones, YEB Member

Thair Joshua, YEB Member

Marin Kaleya, YEB Member

Evan Kessler, YEB Member

Sunny Kim, YEB Member

Tim Kleiman, YEB Co-Chair

G. Brandon Levy, YEB Member

Jamie Meltzer, YEB Member

Gordon McKemie, YEB Co-Chair

Nneka Norville, YEB Member 

Melissa Pendolino, YEB Member

Joanna Roses, YEB Member

Sean A. Smith, YEB Alumnus

Waine K. Tam, YEB Member

Antonia Townsend, YEB Member

Zane Williams, YEB Member

Melissa Benjamin

Melissa has been a part of the iMentor family since 2000, first as a mentee during her senior year at Erasmus Hall Campus: High School for Business & Technology, and now as a mentor since 2007. She is currently a Development Associate in the Alumni Department of Bishop Loughlin Memorial High School, a private catholic school in Brooklyn, NY. In addition to her work with iMentor, Melissa serves as a board member of the Erasmus Hall High School Alumni Association. She is also very active with her sorority, Sigma Sigma Sigma, and is the president of the organization's New York City Alumnae Chapter, as well as an Advisor for the sorority's Eta Phi Chapter at Pratt Institute, an art school in Brooklyn, NY. She graduated Cum Laude from Johnson & Wales University in 2006, earning a Bachelor of Science degree in Sports/Entertainment/Event Management. Currently, she is pursuing her Masters Degree in Public Administration with a concentration in Non-Profit Management at Long Island University - Brooklyn Campus.

Jessica Bloch

Jessica Bloch has been a mentor since 2008 and joined the Young Executive Board in 2009. She currently works on the Investment Team at Citi Private Equity. Prior to Citi, she was an analyst in Investment Banking at Bear Stearns. She has a B.S. in Finance, summa cum laude, from Rutgers University. In addition to iMentor, Jessica also volunteers with the Greater NYC Affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure and was on the benefit committee for the Cancer Research Institute's Young Philanthropists Midsummer Social.

Stephanie Chisholm

Stephanie joined the Young Executive Board in 2006, after having served as an iMentor mentor since 2001. She is a Fine Artist that has exhibited her art work internationally. She created ArtChiz Studios New York. This studio is dedicated to showcasing her artwork. She was awarded the Saint Gaudens Medal for Draftsmanship at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and was also Awarded the BRIO Grant from the Bronx Council of the Arts. She also received her B.S from Cornell University.

Sumat Chopra
Sumat Chopra currently works at Goldman Sachs in New York. He has prior work experiences in finance, strategy and consulting with multi-national companies such as Microsoft Corporation and Morgan Stanley. He joined the Young Executive Board in 2007, after having served as a mentor at iMentor in 2005. He has other mentoring experiences with StreetWise Partners and with similar organizations in India. He is passionate about social entrepreneurship and presently involved as a strategy consultant for the Insaan Group. Sumat completed his undergraduate education with university honors from Carnegie Mellon. He graduated with a major in Computer Science and with minors in Business Administration and Mathematical Sciences. He was a visiting undergraduate student at Harvard University.

Sarah Cullen
Sarah Cullen has been a mentor since 2005 and joined the Young Executive Board in 2007. She works for Viking Global Investors in the Chief Investment Officer's office. Prior to 2001, she worked in South Africa in the advertising industry. She has a B.A. (Honours) in Political Science and French from the University of Natal, Durban, South Africa.

Vanessa D'Amato

Vanessa D'Amato has been a mentor since 2006 and joined the Young Executive Board in 2008. She currently works at UBS and has a BA in History. Prior to working at UBS, Vanessa worked as a Web Designer for Winmar Enterprises Inc. Vanessa also spends her time volunteering on various projects with the NGO, Caritas Internationalis at the United Nations. She recently started volunteering with Sanctuary for Families which serves domestic violence victims and their children. Vanessa was born in the Bronx and currently resides there. She is passionate about helping others in the United States and around the world. She hopes to one day start her own NGO in developing countries educating women and children.

Kenny Eng
Kenny Eng is a first year member of the Young Executive Board, after having served as an iMentor mentor since 2001. He was also a volunteer mentor with the Pittsburgh-area Big Brothers and Big Sisters from 1993 to 1995.Kenny received his Bachelor of Science in Industrial Management and Economics from Carnegie Mellon University and currently works at Citigroup in their Institutional Clients Group. Kenny was born in New York City and currently resides in Brooklyn.

Rebecca Erber

Rebecca joined the Young Executive Board after having served as a mentor with iMentor since the Fall of 2004. She has worked with many charitable organizations including the National Academy Foundation, Gods Love We Deliver, Operation Fairy Dust, and the Jewish National Fund and sat on the Volunteer Committee at UBS. Rebecca received a B.A. from Duke University and most recently worked as an Associate Director with UBS in the Industrials Group within Investment Banking. She is currently pursuing an MBA from Columbia Business School.

Mina Faltas
Mina Faltas is currently a Vice President with JP Morgan's Proprietary Positioning group, investing the bank's capital in companies involved in distressed and special situations. He graduated from the University of Virginia's McIntire School of Commerce in 2000 with a B.S. in Commerce, and concentrating in the areas of Finance, Economics, and Foreign Languages. Mina joined the YEB in summer 2002 after completing his first year as a mentor.

Amanda Fung
Amanda Fung is a reporter for Crain's NY Business covering technology, telecom and advertising.  She has worked at Crain's for over two years. Earlier in her journalism career she was a reporter for Institutional Investor News and American Banker. She graduated from New York University with a bachelor's degree in journalism and political science in 2000.

Laurie Goodman

Laurie Goodman is an Assistant Vice President with Bank of America's Hedge Fund Research and Investment Team. In this role she researches Equity Long-Short and Emerging Markets hedge fund strategies. Prior to joining Bank of America, Ms. Goodman was a Research Analyst at Elea Capital Management, a healthcare hedge fund. Previously, she worked as an Equity Sales Analyst at Bear Stearns and Co. from 2004 to 2006. Laurie holds a BA in Economics from The Johns Hopkins University and an MA in International Economics from the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS). Ms. Goodman has lived and worked overseas and enjoys international travel. She was previously a volunteer tutor with Teach Baltimore and the Salvation Army. Laurie joined iMentor's Young Executive Board in late 2008 and is enjoying her first year as a mentor.

Alissa Grad
Alissa Grad is currently Director of Marketing and Investor Relations at D.B. Zwirn & Co., a global alternative investment manager and merchant capital provider. Prior to DBZ & Co., Alissa worked for 3 years as Director of Business Development at TAG Associates, an asset management firm and multi-family office. A graduate of Cornell University, Alissa started her finance career as an investment bank Analyst at J.P. Morgan.

In addition to working with iMentor, Alissa is Co-Chair of Hedge Funds Care's Junior Committee of Hearts, and an "Angel" of 100 Women in Hedge Funds. Alissa is a member of the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) as well as the AFL-CIO. In 2007, Alissa was the youngest recipient of the "Top 20 Rising Stars of Hedge Funds" award by Institutional Investor, for which she acknowledged iMentor's Board Member, William B.Richards, as her mentor. Bill introduced Alissa to iMentor over 5 years ago.

Nicole M. Griffith

Nicole Griffith is a Managing Director on the Human Assets team at Teach For America. Prior to joining Teach For America, Nicole was a Vice President on the campus recruiting team at Morgan Stanley. Nicole graduated from Cornell in May 1997 with a Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology. Her first post-graduate experience working with students was as an Assistant Counselor. She is mentor with the Cornell Alumni-Student Mentoring Program, a Summer Search Career Advisor and has worked with iMentor since 2001.

Marcus Sean Hall

Marcus Sean Hall currently serves as the Program Associate for the Education Equality Project (EEP). As Program Associate, Marcus is responsible for serving as primary support for the Director across core internal and external responsibilities. His role ranges from providing support to the administrative duties necessary for adequately operating a non-profit organization as well as assisting in the strategic developments and partnerships aimed at education reform, civil rights, advocacy, and policy. In addition, Marcus is responsible for facilitating and developing relationship with our strategic partners and the internet community. Marcus works closely with key partners, consultants, Board of Directors, prospective donors and current funders.

Marcus holds a BA from Morehouse College in Business Administration - Accounting, with a minor in Leadership Studies. Marcus continues to grow in his passion for public service by serving on several non-profit boards in New York City including: Academic Committee for the M.O.V.E. organization, Young Professionals Board for iMentor, and Young Professionals Fundraiser Benefit Committee for TEAK Fellowship.

Peter Henderson
Peter Henderson, MD is originally from Seattle and is now a resident in general surgery at New York Presbyterian Hospital -- Weill Cornell Medical Center. He has served as an iMentor mentor for three years.

Aaron Holiday III
Aaron Holiday is a native New Orleanian and 2004 graduate of Morehouse College, earning a B.S in Computer Science. He currently is a technology analyst supporting the Equities Program Trading Desk at Goldman Sachs & Co. While in college, Aaron developed the Post Graduate Development Seminar Series - a model program that brings corporate representatives to Morehouse to increase students' awareness of career opportunities in technology. Aaron recently launched PARADIGM Proprietary Investing, LLC, a capital investment venture whose mission is to create and maintain exclusively-held portfolios containing a diverse set of securities across various asset classes. He also serves as a mentor with Amachi, a program designed to provide youth whose parents are incarcerated with positive role models. Aaron has served as a mentor through iMentor for two years.

Jeanne Hwang

Jeanne (Jenny) is a New York native and is currently the Director of Consulting services for Yahoo. Previously, she worked in management consulting at Accenture and at Right Media, a leader in online advertising exchanges. Jeanne holds a BA in policy analysis and management from Cornell, and has studied in Paris and Shanghai (her French is inexcusable but her Chinese still fluent). In addition to volunteering with iMentor, Jeanne has been involved with Alzheimer’s Association of NYC, Accenture Mentoring committee, Cornell Class Council and was a Gates Millennium Scholar. She has a passion for cars and classical music, and recently has found much happiness in golf and snowboarding.

Benjamin W. Jones
Benjamin W. Jones currently serves as a consultant to early-stage companies within the consumer internet, digital media/entertainment and digital signage industries. Previously, Ben served as a Vice President at media advisory firm TRget Media in New York City. Prior to TRget Media, Ben worked in the hedge fund industry and consulted to the President & CEO of Gartmore Emerging Managers LLC, a strategic business unit within global asset management firm, Gartmore Group. Before that assignment, Ben was responsible for helping to build two venture-backed, privately-held enterprise software companies, most recently in San Francisco, CA. Prior experience includes consulting and business development positions at Ernst & Young Management Consulting and Merrill Lynch & Co. Ben earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from Bucknell University. 

Thair Joshua

Thair has been a mentor since the fall of 2004. He is currently a Compliance Officer at Bloomberg Tradebook LLC in New York City. Prior to joining iMentor, he was a mentor in the Refugee Project Circle Mentoring Program and taught basic accounting principles to sixth-graders as part of Junior Achievement. In addition to iMentor, Thair is also involved with Everybody Wins!, a national literacy organization devoted to increasing children's prospects for success through one-to-one reading experiences. He graduated from Drexel University in 1998, earning a Bachelor of Science degree in Finance.

Marin Kaleya

Marin Kaleya is a native New Yorker and a graduate of Cornell University with a B.S. in Communication. She is currently a Senior Account Executive at Joele Frank, Wilkinson Brimmer Katcher, a strategic, financial and corporate communications firm. In addition to her work with iMentor, Marin is a New York 2009 StartingBloc Fellow and remains involved with StartingBloc, an organization that educates, empowers and connects emerging leaders to drive social innovation across sectors. Marin joined the YEB in July 2009.

Evan Kessler 

Evan currently works in the portfolio management group at Union Bancaire Privee (UBP) a fund of hedge funds. Previously, he was an AVP at Citigroup working as a risk analyst in the market risk management group. Evan graduated from the Fordham Graduate MBA program in 2005 with a perfect 4.0 grade point average while studying finance, and has an undergraduate degree from New York University where he studied psychology. He has previously volunteered as an ESL instructor, and has tutored young children through Columbia University’s America reads program. For the past two years, Evan has been volunteering as a mentor in the iMentor program.

Sunny Kim
Sunny Kim is a Senior Development Officer at New York University School of Law where she is responsible for cultivating and soliciting major gifts to help raise funds for scholarships, faculty recruitment, the Library, student clubs, journals, and other areas of need. In addition to major gifts, she joins iMentor's YEB with experience in corporate and family foundation solicitations, special events planning, writing grant proposals and reports, and mail campaigns. She has worked with many charitable organizations, including Asian Professional Extension, another mentoring organization that provides mentors to Asian American young people, and Women In Need, which provides housing and supportive services to homeless women and their families. She received her M.P.A. from the Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service at New York University and her B.A. in English Literature and East Asian Studies from New York University. Currently, she is also involved with iMentor as a mentor.

Tim Kleiman

Tim Kleiman has been a mentor since 2006 and joined the Young Executive Board in 2008. He is an investment analyst in the fundamental credit group of D. E. Shaw & Co., L.P. He previously worked as a business analyst at McKinsey & Company. Tim holds a B.A.in Psychology, summa cum laude, from Yale University, and has published research exploring possible genetic influences on the clinical course of Alzheimer's Disease. In addition to his work with iMentor, Tim serves as a volunteer income tax preparer for low-income New Yorkers as part of FoodChange's Free Tax Assistance Campaign.

G. Brandon Levy

Brandon joined the Young Executive Board in 2009. He is currently an Investment Analyst at Tiger Global Management. Prior to joining Tiger Global Management, he was an Investment Banking Analyst in The Blackstone Group’s Restructuring and Reorganization Advisory Group. He earned an AB in Economics from Harvard University and an MSc in Financial Economics from Oxford University. At Harvard, he served as a treasurer, officer and prefect in The Prefect Program, the advising and mentorship program for undergraduate freshmen.

Jamie Meltzer
Jamie Meltzer joined the Young Executive Board after having served as a mentor since 2005. She has worked with many other charitable organizations, including Wall Street Volunteers (for which she currently serves on the Executive Team), YAI National Disabilities Network, and the New York Road Runners Association. Jamie graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 2004. She currently works in the Investment Banking Division at Goldman Sachs in Equity Capital Markets, where she covers the financial institutions sector.

Gordon McKemie

Gordon McKemie is an analyst in the Portfolio Management group at Barclays Capital, where he helps to hedge the Firm's corporate loan exposure through positions in credit derivatives. Prior to joining Barclays, he worked in the Global Loan Portfolio Group at Lehman Brothers, where he became involved in iMentor in 2007. Gordon graduated from the Goizueta Business School at Emory University with a B.B.A. in Finance. While at Goizueta, Gordon played varsity basketball, served as President of the student government, and was the 2007 recipient of the Todd Whitman Most Outstanding B.B.A. Achievement Award. Gordon joined iMentor's Young Executive Board in December 2008.

Nneka Norville
Nneka has been a mentor since the fall of 2003. She is currently Manager of Public Affairs at BET Networks where she manages charitable contributions, pro-social campaigns and overall corporate social responsibility initiatives. Prior to joining BET, Nneka was a Program Officer with the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation's Entertainment Media Partnerships department managing media partnership campaigns in relation to domestic and international public health awareness campaigns. Nneka received her B.S. from Boston University and her J.D. from Brooklyn Law School. A graduate of the National Urban Fellows leadership development program, she went on to receive her M.P.A. from Baruch School of Public Affairs. In addition to iMentor, Nneka also volunteers with G3 (Girls Gone Good), a monthly giving circle.

Joanna Roses

Joanna Roses joined the iMentor organization in 2008 and the Young Executive Board in 2009.

Joanna works at Nickelodeon/MTV Networks Kids and Family Group as a Senior Director in its Communications department managing corporate communications. She has worked in the pro-social arena for seven years publicizing Nickelodeon's efforts against childhood obesity, launching its environmental campaign, and working on the History Channel's philanthropic initiative, and has worked with several non-profit organizations including the William J. Clinton Foundation and the Boys and Girls Club of America, among others.  Her PR campaigns in this space have been lauded with several awards and recognition from the cable industry at large.

Prior to Nickelodeon, Joanna worked at Edelman Public Relations where she managed media relations and events for sports and entertainment clients including Warner Home Video, Jazz at Lincoln Center, USTA, YouthAIDS, HBO, Hallmark Entertainment and the Country Music Awards. She started her career at FX Networks publicizing original and syndicated programming, and has held positions within the publicity departments of CNBC Europe and Fahlgren Advertising & Communications for Paramount Pictures.

Joanna holds a Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology from Emory University and originally hails from Durham, North Carolina.

Dea Reece

Dea Reece is currently an Assistant Director of Human Resources at Ernst & Young LLP. She graduated with a BS in accounting from Fairfield University in 1996 and began her career after graduation as an auditor at Ernst & Young. She transferred to a Human Resources role approximately three years after she started with the firm.Dea was a mentor with iMentor from 2003 to 2005 and joined the Young Executive Board in 2005.

Sean A. Smith
Sean Smith is a Professional Services Manager at Right Media, a Yahoo! Company. Prior to joining Yahoo!, Sean held sales and client service roles in the asset management and investor services divisions of JPMorgan. Sean has been a mentor since 2003 and a member of the YEB since 2004.

Waine K. Tam
Waine Tam currently works at Sunridge Capital, a hedge fund based in New York City. Previously, he was employed at Goldman Sachs in various capacities, including Equity Capital Markets and Investment Banking. He has served as a mentor at iMentor since 2003 and joined the Young Executive Board in 2004. Waine graduated from Princeton University in 2001 with a B.S.E. in Electrical Engineering and a Certificate in Finance.

Antonia Townsend
Antonia joined the Young Executive Board in 2007 and has served as a mentor with iMentor since the Fall of 2004. Antonia is the CMO at Edit.com, an internet services company that does small business website re-launches, renovations and improvements. Prior to joining Edit.com she led marketing at two successful start-ups, Clear and Fine Point Technologies. She has also worked independently launching start-up companies and raising capital for market expansion, and as a management consultant focusing on internet and technology strategies. Antonia received a BA from Wesleyan University and an MBA from Columbia Business School.

Zane Williams

As a member of Ernst & Young’s North East Sub Area Risk and Advisory Services (RAS) group, Zane provides technical guidance, insight and project management/coordination focusing on Identity Access Management (IAM), Project/Program Management and SAP Security for many multinational companies in the industrial products, manufacturing, and media and entertainment sectors. Typical projects include SAP Pre/Post Implementation Assessments, Implementation of Identity Access Management and Governance Programs, Process Re-engineering, and Project Management Office (PMO) and Compliance Office Implementations. A leader in and out of the boardroom, Zane has held multiple leadership roles managing, inspiring and motivating students and professionals to academic, corporate, and organizational achievement. Currently, Zane is a member of Ernst & Young’s RAS Advisory Council and holds the position of Director of Professional Development as a member of the African American Male Congress (AAMC) Board of Directors at Syracuse University. Additionally, Zane participates in the youth mentoring program iMentor and is an active member in the INROADS Alumni Association and 100 Black Men of New York.

Board of Advisors

Diane Adams, MSW, Mount Sinai Medical Center

Robin Berholz, Student, Harvard Business School

Zach Boise, National Mentoring Partnership

Jean-Claude Brizard, Local Instructional Superintendent, New York City Deparment of Education

Barbara Chang, Executive Director, NPower New York

Maria Chiodi, Vice President & Counsel, Credit Suisse First Boston Corp.

Mary Corallo, Supervising Associate, and Metro NY Area Community Relations Program Coordinator,

Ernst & Young

Carolyn Demefack, Education Consultant, Teaching Matters

M. Lorraine Ford, Associate, Morrison & Foerster LLP

Danielle Brown Fuller, Director of Technical Assistance, Big Brothers Big Sisters of NYC

Steve Galanis, Event Coordinator, Cinema Hospitality Company

Robin Kovat, Teacher, Sheepshead Bay High School

Roger M. Machlis, Director & Counsel, Credit Suisse First Boston Corp.

Sharon Martin, Controller, Blue Ridge Capital, LLC

Lori Mastromauro, Manager, NYC Mentoring Program, Board of Education

Lexy Mayers, Executive Director, Cool Culture

John Merrill, Vice President, Credit Suisse First Boston

James O'Neal, Executive Director, Legal Outreach

Martha Polin, Principal, Lower East Side Preparatory Academy

Mara Rose, Student, Columbia Business School

Rob Rosenberg, Associate, McFarland Dewey & Co., LLC

Andrea Rothenberg, MSW, Mount Sinai Medical Center

Fabio Silva, IT Consultant

Sarah E. Sully, Associate, Morrison & Foerster LLP

Aaron Wald, CEO, eleven prospect

Fred Wambolt, Teacher, Brooklyn International High School

Garth Wolkoff, Teacher, High School for Public Service