Dr. Christine O'Connell

Executive Director

Dr. Christine O’Connell (she/her) is an organizer, a scientist, an educator, a strategist. She comes to Riley’s Way with a distinguished career in communication, science policy, outreach and engagement, empowering voices and building empathetic leaders. She was the founding Associate Director at the Alan Alda Center for Communicating Science at Stony Brook University where she helped create and build the Center and its empathy-based communication curriculum to international acclaim. She led the growth of many of the Alda Center’s flagship programs, and under her direction the Alda Center’s workshop program trained over ten-thousand scientists worldwide to be more effective communicators.

Christine is a sought-after public speaker and curriculum designer, and has led workshops and headlined at conferences and institutions around the world. She has spoken at dozens of institutions including NASA, Caltech, the Broad Institute, Google, Harvard, Yale, Stanford, the National Academy of Sciences, and Okinawa Institute of Technology. She has published in various outlets including the New York Times, science journals, and book chapters. In 2018, she was named a Women in Power Fellow, a New York based fellowship for rising female leaders.

Christine has a record of providing strategic direction to grow non-profit and academic organizations, research initiatives, and environmental and community campaigns. She worked for Partnerships for Parks and City Parks Foundation to help community groups in New York City think strategically and implement their vision for parks and open spaces. She also helped lead a campaign to raise funding for parks and open space in New York City, organized conversations around climate change policy during the 2000 Presidential Primaries, and built bridges within academia between science, the public, media, and policy makers. As a professor in the School of Journalism at Stony Brook University, Dr. O’Connell developed research initiatives, served as the co-lead on multimillion-dollar grants, and mentored and taught students. She is passionate about advancing women in STEM and business, and promoting diversity and inclusion in the sciences. Currently she serves on the Advisory Board for 500 Women Scientists, and retains visiting faculty appointments at Stony Brook University in New York and the Centre for Public Awareness of Science at Australia National University. She received her B.S. from Cornell University, and Ph.D. in Marine and Atmospheric Sciences at Stony Brook University.

Laura Dunn

Director of Operations

Laura (she/her) joined Riley’s Way in 2015 and has been instrumental in building the Foundation from an idea into the national organization it is today. From creating Riley’s Way Program curriculum and administering grants to our partner schools, to organizing many of the day-to-day operations, Laura wears many hats at Riley’s Way. Most proudly, Laura helped Riley’s Way reach the national stage in 2019 through the Call for Kindness and Youth Leadership Retreat. As the Director of Operations, Laura manages the systems and people involved in Riley’s Way, helping to organize student involvement, strategic planning, and staffing & HR. In addition to all of this, Laura’s is also one of the smiling faces you’ll see if you attend any of our Riley’s Way events.

Prior to joining Riley’s Way, Laura worked at the National Center for Victims of Crime as the Program Assistant for the Stalking Resource Center. During her almost three years there, she helped the SRC train and assist thousands of criminal justice professionals and victim service providers nationwide, including supporting the roll-out of the Use of Technology to Stalk online training course. Laura received her BA from Vassar College and her MSSW from Columbia University, with a focus in nonprofit management. She lives in Sunset Park, Brooklyn, with her husband and dog Lucy, and in her spare time is on the search for the best Dim Sum in the neighborhood.

Lauren Shenkman

Director of Partnerships and Programs

Lauren Shenkman (she/her) is honored to be the Director of Partnerships and Programs at Riley’s Way Foundation. Lauren is a nonprofit professional with a background in camp, educational and cultural programming, community building, program strategy, and partnership development. She oversees strategic partnerships and program strategy and implementation. Specifically, she helps lead the vision for the Riley’s Way national Youth Leadership Retreats and the Riley’s Way Councils: public-private school partnerships among New York City students to develop and implement social justice projects. Previously, Lauren served as the Director of Membership & Community Engagement at Brooklyn’s Congregation Beth Elohim, the Director of the Educational Alliance’s Downtown Community Center, the Director of Youth Programs at the 14th Street Y, and the Beacon Director at Moshulu Montefiore Community Center. Lauren lives in Brooklyn with her husband Ben and their two kids.

Shonda Smith

Director of Communications

Shonda Smith (she/her) is thrilled to join Riley’s Way as the Director of Communications. In her role, Shonda elevates students’ voices and stories, building on a youth-led movement fueled by kindness, connectivity, and empathy.  Passionate about social justice issues and inspired by young people leading change in their communities, she brings to this role her skills and experience working at nonprofits such as the Harlem Children’s Zone, Girl Scouts of the USA, the Innocence Project, and MADRE. Shonda most enjoys spending time traveling with her loving and spirited family, playing highly competitive games of Scrabble, and curling up with a riveting memoir.

Stephanie Kingston

Engagement and Events Director

Stephanie Kingston (she/her) is an educator, philanthropist, and champion of kindness. As the inaugural Engagement and Events Director at Riley’s Way, Stephanie is lead on events for programs and development, she is designing an active alumni program, and collaborating with the Riley’s Way team to foster community and support kind leaders nationwide.

Before joining Riley’s Way full time, Stephanie served as a long-term faculty advisor for the Hewitt School and Young Women’s Leadership School of Astoria Riley’s Way Council. After earning her BS in Photography from Drexel University and her MA in Art Education from Teachers College Columbia University, Stephanie spent 12 years at the Hewitt School. At Hewitt, she taught middle and upper school graphic design and photography before transitioning to school leadership as the 9th Grade Dean, Coordinator of Experiential Initiatives, and interim Dean of Upper School. In these roles Stephanie demonstrated her passion for making connections by developing school partnerships with local, national, and global players including the Francis Holland School in London, the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, and School Year Abroad.

Stephanie lives in New Jersey with her husband and their two mini-goldendoodles. In her free time she serves as the Co-Chair of the New York City Leadership Team for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society Student Visionaries of the Year program.

Cheyenne Rosado

Program Director

Cheyenne (all pronouns) joined Riley’s Way in 2020 and is now the Program Director, overseeing the impactful Call For Kindness fellowship. They support young people in creating positive change through the lens of kindness and empathy within their communities. They curate engaging monthly leadership development trainings, provide individual support, and bring a diverse background in community organizing and youth development to their role.

Previous to this position, Cheyenne dedicated several years to serving the LGBTQIA+ youth population. In that capacity, they provided comprehensive support, ranging from college and career guidance to facilitating drop-in groups and social justice internships. Cheyenne’s commitment to working with marginalized communities and advocating for inclusivity is deeply rooted in their experience as a queer Latinx person. Their expertise in fostering safe spaces, providing resources, and promoting social equality enhances their ability to create meaningful spaces and experiences for the Riley’s Way Community.

Outside of work, they embrace their role as an active cat mom and enjoy playing board games.

Naya Houchen

Program Coordinator

Naya Houchen (she/her) has joined Riley’s Way as the Program Coordinator, supporting the organization’s key leadership development programs for teen leaders. She is dedicated to addressing the diverse needs of young people and has always acted with that in mind. In her most recent role, Naya was a Lead Educator at the Brooklyn Children’s Museum where she used a holistic educational approach to develop curricula promoting both academic and personal growth. Passionate about the impact of non-profit work, she is thrilled to continue her work as a part of the Riley’s Way community.

Thais Salas

Program Coordinator

Thais Salas (she/her) is joining Riley’s Way as a Program Coordinator, supporting the Councils and the development of the Chapters. Being a recent graduate of Cornell University, Thais has done advocacy work around empowering youth both on and off campus. She is passionate about creating spaces for young leaders to cultivate their purpose and find the support they need to do so. Thais is excited to join the Riley’s Way team as a staff member after being a part of the Councils during her time in high school.

Christina Alvarez

Communications and Development Coordinator

Christina Alvarez (she/her) is an alum of the University of Maryland and is honored to be a part of the Riley’s Way team. As an avid social media user, graphic designer, and an overall creative individual, she’s passionate about promoting social change and using kindness and empathy to empower others. Her experience has led her to pursue visual communications, conflict management, and nonprofit leadership. Outside of work, Christina enjoys painting, traveling, and visiting art galleries and museums.

Tatiana Simmons

Alumni Engagement Intern

Tatiana Simmons (she/her) is a sophomore at the University of Central Florida and is majoring in Health Sciences on the Pre-Clinical Track. In her free time she likes to travel, bake and spend time with friends and family. Having a purposeful impact in her local community and on a global level has always been an aspiration of hers and through Riley’s Way, she is able to be a part of a community that does so. Tatiana has been affiliated with Riley’s Way since 2020. She began as a Youth Leadership Retreat attendee and in 2021 became a Team Mentor and panel moderator at the virtual Riley’s Way Youth Leadership Retreat. In 2022, Tatiana was a Call For Kindness Judge. She is honored to be the Alumni Engagement Intern at Riley’s Way. The foundation has been integral in her willingness and enthusiasm for learning and she’s excited to be a part of the Riley’s Way team.

Kris Qiu

Communications Intern

Kris Qiu (they/them) is pursuing an Education Studies certificate and Cognitive Science major at Yale University. They have done communications and graphic design work for extracurricular clubs and are super excited to be a part of the Riley’s Way team, and to learn more about doing communications work at a cool organization! In their free time, Kris likes to crochet, hang out with their cat, and play tabletop games with friends.

Faith Ajanaku

Call For Kindness Intern

Faith Ajanaku is a student at Stanford University majoring in Computer Science & Public Policy. Faith is a 2020 Call For Kindness Fellow through the nonprofit Modern Divergence that advocates and raises awareness for mental health and neurodiversity. From racial equity to health care reform, Faith is passionate about changing the world for the better. In her free time, Faith is watching anime or dancing to Afrobeats.

Ikimot Siyanbola

Communications Intern

Ikimot Siyanbola (she/her) is excited to join Riley’s Way as a Communications Intern. In her role, Ikimot dives deeper into the stories behind C4K initiatives, elaborating on youth-led movements in their communities. Passionate about social justice and inspired by young people around the globe advocating for change, she brings to this role her experience of learning about social change through courses at Tufts University, working at daycares such as Luminous Early Childhood Learning Center, and multiple internships at places like Carry Leeds and Zurich Insurance. Ikimot most enjoys spending time with her friends and siblings, traveling, and playing card games like Uno.

Ian Sandler

Co-Founder and Board Chair

Ian Sandler is the co-founder of Riley’s Way Foundation with his wife Mackenzie, to honor their most magical daughter and to carry Riley’s spirit and love of life forward.

Ian joined Insight in 2016 where he is a Managing Director and Chief Operating Officer. Ian has direct responsibility across Legal, Finance, Compliance, Investor Relations, IT, HR, and Onsite. In addition, Ian has direct management oversight for the newly launched Insight Partners Public Equities (IPPE) business.

Ian was previously the Chief Operating Officer of Global Equities at Citadel. Prior to Citadel, Ian was a Partner at the Carlyle Group where he served as the Chief Operating Officer and Chief Legal Officer of Global Market Strategies. Before joining the Carlyle Group, Ian had a seven-year career at Morgan Stanley where he served as the Global Chief Operating Officer for the technology and modeling division as well as other roles within the loan and high yield business earlier in his career. Prior to Morgan Stanley, Ian worked as a bankruptcy lawyer at Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel.

In addition to his roles at Insight and Riley’s Way Foundation, Ian was appointed in July 2022 to the Board of Trustees at The Browning School, an all-boys college preparatory school in New York City.

Ian has a Bachelor of General Studies from the University of Michigan and a JD from the University of Pennsylvania. In June 2023, Ian was invited to join the University of Michigan’s College of Literature, Science, and the Arts Dean’s Advisory Council.

Mackenzie Sandler

Co-Founder

Mackenzie co-founded the Riley’s Way Foundation in honor of Riley, her daughter and best friend. As the person who knows Riley best, Mackenzie intends to make sure the Foundation stays true to the essence of who Riley was: a kind, compassionate and truly special friend to all who were lucky enough to know her. She has no doubt that Riley would have been immensely proud of the work that is being done in her name.

Mackenzie previously worked as a bankruptcy attorney.

Amy Bersh

Director & Secretary

Amy Feinsilver Bersh, a close friend of Mackenzie and Ian Sandler, is a former intellectual property attorney. As a mother of two, Amy values the importance of teaching your children to be thoughtful and kind.

Amy is devoted to developing programming that promotes Riley’s qualities by emphasizing the values of kindness and empathy. Amy works on the day-to-day tasks involved in developing and growing the foundation. She assists with events, fundraising and communications with board members and the public.

Paul Burke

Director

Paul Burke is the Head of School at The Nightingale-Bamford School, and is honored to contribute to a very special foundation for an even more special member of the Nightingale community. Riley was the quintessential Nightingale girl, an inquisitive and imaginative student who was a friend to all. Riley’s Foundation lives out the promise that a particularly magical Lower School girl represented for all of us who remain. To that end, every Nightingale girl, with Paul as their representative, is privileged to be a part of a very real and ambitious effort to make the world more reflective of Riley’s heart and mind.

Scott Eisenberg

Director

Scott Eisenberg is a dear friend of Mackenzie and Ian. Scott is a Media and Entertainment Executive and serves on the board of the Israel Tennis Centers with a focus on marketing and fundraising for the foundation. Scott’s wife Tamara, daughter Olivia and son Jake share a special bond with the entire Sandler family.

Scott’s goal as a board member is to use his personal connections and his media and marketing expertise to continue to shine a light on the magic of Riley and to have her kind, compassionate and gentle spirit inspire other children to exhibit the same.

Eric Frank

Director

Eric Frank is a childhood friend of Ian Sandler and he and his wife Lisa are close friends with Ian and MacKenzie. He is a father of three boys and lives with his family in Tribeca. Eric is a partner at Intrade Capital Group II.

Eric is primarily focused on helping Ian and MacKenzie grow Riley’s Foundation to help children in need and to recognize children for acts of kindness. He currently assists with Strategic Planning, Event Planning, and Fundraising. His main goal is to help steer this Foundation towards its ultimate goal of making a difference in children’s lives today and tomorrow. He is excited and proud to be a part of the Riley’s Way Foundation.

Jordan Freundlich

Director

Jordan Freundlich is a close friend of Mackenzie and Ian Sandler, and one of Ian’s closest friends since second grade. Jordan is currently a lawyer with Vishnick McGovern Milizio LLP in Lake Success, practicing estate and commercial litigation. Jordan is also a board member for Literacy Nassau, a not-for-profit organization providing services for hundreds of functionally illiterate adults and children with learning disabilities in Nassau County.

Jordan’s goal is ensure that the Foundation meets its mission to help children and promote the characteristics that made Riley so special, especially her kindness and empathy. Jordan is involved in developing the Foundation’s ideals and organizing fundraising events.

Gia Gambino

Youth Advisory Board Co-Chair

Gia Gambino is a Riley’s Way triple crown, having participated in the Riley’s Way Council, Youth Leadership Retreats, and Call For Kindness Fellow. She is the current Youth Advisory Board co-chair.

Laura Rebell Gross

Director + Chair of DEI Committee

Laura Rebell Gross is the Managing Director of Girls’ Education for Student Leadership Network, which is the umbrella organization for three educational initiatives: College Bound Initiative, Young Women’s Leadership Network, and The Young Women’s Leadership Schools. Through her work with five all girls’ public schools here in New York City and 15 National Affiliate schools, Laura oversees programs that serve more than 8,500 girls . As a leader in the education field for the last fifteen years, Ms. Rebell Gross implements a vision for developing innovative programs that enrich girls’ lives, create experiential leadership opportunities, and build a path to college. To impact the lives of girls beyond New York City, Laura co-founded the Young Women’s Charter Prep School of Rochester, a public school serving girls from the city of Rochester, and takes the lead in identifying and establishing new school affiliates nationwide

Laura’s goals for the foundation are to empower young women in the Youth Council to change their communities and spread Riley’s values of kindness, empathy and friendship and to help ensure that work of RSMF creates a sustainable model of programs to impact schools across New York City.

Agha Haider

Youth Advisory Board Co-Chair

Agha Haider is a St. Louis native currently attending college at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia. He is incredibly passionate about social change, education reform, and making a positive impact in this world. At the age of 13, Agha founded a 501(c)3 non-profit organization called the Literacy Initiative focused on developing after-school programming for disadvantaged youth. Since 2017, his non-profit has distributed over 35,000 books, supported over 27,000 youth, brought together over 1,000 high school volunteers, and initiated tangible change across his community and beyond. Currently, Agha is running a new non-profit organization, The Education Collaborative, focused on breaking down socioeconomics barriers in education. Agha is always interested in connecting with other like-minded individuals. You can contact him at agha@educollaborative.org or follow him on Instagram at https://instagram.com/aghahadr.

Noah Heller

Director

Noah and his wife Meryl are close friends of Ian and Mackenzie. Noah is Chief Executive Officer of Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP, a 650 lawyer international law firm.

Noah is actively involved in developing the Foundation’s programming. His goal is for the foundation to honor the memory of Riley and improve the lives of many children. Noah is also a Board of Director for the Fairfield/Westchester Chapter of the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of America.

John Horner

Director + Chair of Governance Committee

John and his wife Christina have been friends with Ian and Mackenzie since the fall of 2010. This is when Riley started kindergarten at Nightingale Bamford and became one of their daughter’s best friends.

John’s hope is to help the foundation create programs that over time will inspire teens to make the world better, the way he knows Riley would have.

John is currently a Managing Director at JPMorgan.

Oseloka Idigbe

Director + Chair of Programming Committee

Oseloka Idigbe is a Senior Consultant at Community Resource Exchange (CRE). He is accomplished in leading diverse teams to solve organization and sector wide problems at Foundations, Non-profits, and Government agencies. At CRE, Oseloka’s work includes assisting organizations in a wide range of issue areas, including program development and evaluation, Board development, and professional development.

Prior to his transition to the nonprofit sector, Oseloka worked at Standard Bank of South Africa in the Real Estate Finance team. Since then, he has held multiple positions helping to deliver strategic solutions to various nonprofit organizations. Most recently, he was part of The Rockefeller Foundation’s ‘Digital Jobs Africa’ initiative.

Oseloka holds a Master’s Degree from New York University in Public Administration, a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy from University College London, and a Bachelor of Laws from BPP Law School, London. He holds Flawless Consulting certification, Facilitative Leadership for Social Change accreditation, and is certified in the Clark Wilson Group: 360° Feedback Surveys.

Mindy Jacobs

Director

As Director of Timber Lake Camp, Mindy was fortunate to see firsthand Riley’s magical qualities and beautiful spirit. Riley’s love of making friends and being kind and compassionate made a lasting impact on everyone at camp. Since the inception of Riley’s Way, Mindy and her husband, Jay, have become close friends with Mackenzie and Ian, working together to honor Riley’s life at camp and beyond.

Having worked in camping for over 30 years, Mindy is devoted to instilling the beautiful qualities that we affectionately term “Riley’s Way” to her campers each summer. Mindy’s camp experience, along with her passion for empowering young girls and building their self-esteem, has made her a great asset in advancing Riley’s Way mission.

Lauren Hyman Kaplan

Director

Lauren Hyman Kaplan, M.A is a school consultant, certified emotional intelligence coach and counselor in the field of social-emotional learning, emotional intelligence and bullying prevention.

Lauren is a former teacher and school counselor with over 20 years of experience training and providing consulting to schools and parenting organizations around the United States and the world. She is an instructor for the Certificate in Social-Emotional Learning and Character Development at the Academy for SEL in Schools at Rutgers University and an adjunct instructor at Bank Street College of Education in New York City. Lauren is a member of the board of trustees at Montclair Kimberley Academy in Montclair, NJ.

Lauren lives in Montclair, NJ with her husband and two children. Lauren is excited about helping Riley’s Way with their mission to empower youth to lead with kindness and empathy.

Terry Kaplan

Director & Chief Creative Offier

Terry Kaplan is Riley’s grandmother. She serves as a creative consultant and photographer to the Foundation and is the driving force behind Miami events. Terry hopes to see Riley’s Way inspire many children to be kind, confident, nonjudgmental and mindful of the people around them with long lasting results. Terry is currently a mixed media artist and president of Terry Tiles.

David Kerstein

Director

David J. Kerstein is a co-founder and Managing Director of Validity Finance, a commercial litigation finance company. Dave helps to lead Validity’s origination, underwriting and structuring of investment opportunities, as well as its strategic growth into new and expanded markets and avenues for investment. Dave was an early adopter of litigation finance, with nine years of experience in the industry, and a recognized leader in the industry, having been named among Lawdragon’s “Global 100 Leaders in Legal Finance” and selected by Who’s Who Legal as a “Thought Leader in Third Party Funding.” Before co-founding Validity, Dave was an Investment Manager at another litigation finance company, and prior to that he was a trial lawyer at Gibson Dunn in New York for 15 years where he handled complex, commercial disputes for plaintiffs and defendants in domestic and international litigations and arbitrations. Dave earned his J.D. from University of Pennsylvania Law School and his B.A. from the School of Arts and Sciences at the University of Pennsylvania.

Katie Leonberger

Director

Katie formerly was the President and CEO of Community Resource Exchange (CRE), a nonprofit consulting firm that provides the strategies and tools needed to build sustainable, high-performing organizations that improve people’s lives and drive social change. Before joining CRE, Katie was a senior leader on the Government Innovation team at Bloomberg Philanthropies and her private sector experience includes serving as a consultant at McKinsey & Company. Katie serves on the boards of Morgan Stanley GIFT (Global Impact Funding Trust), Riley’s Way Foundation, and Microlumbia Fund, a nonprofit impact investing fund she co-founded at Columbia Business School.

Katie was named one of New York Nonprofit Media’s “40 Under 40” Rising Stars and part of City & State’s “Nonprofit Power 100” list. She is an Adjunct Professor at NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service.

Katie holds an M.B.A. with a concentration in Social Enterprise from Columbia Business School and an M.A. in international policy studies and a dual B.A. in economics and international relations with honors from Stanford University.

Lindsey K. Levine, Ph.D.

Director + Chair of Development Committee

Lindsey is a clinical psychologist in the Department of Psychiatry of Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians & Surgeons, where she has been on the faculty since 2009. Her primary areas of interest have always been children and the development of adolescent girls and young women. Lindsey served on the Dean’s Council of the Gallatin School at New York University, her undergraduate alma mater, from 2007-2019, and is a Trustee Emerita of Adelphi University, where she earned her doctorate.

Lindsey lives in Manhattan with her two daughters and her husband Michael. Lindsey founded the Kindness Committee at the Hewitt School, which provides support to families, faculty and staff who are experiencing challenging life events. At Hewitt, Lindsey is also a member of the Parents’ Association Board and the Chair of the New Family Welcome Committee.

Yolonda Marshall

Director

Yolonda Marshall is Student Leadership Network’s first Chief Executive Officer and has committed more than a decade working to ensure that children growing up in low income communities across the country receive the education they deserve.

Prior to joining Student Leadership Network, Yolonda served as the Deputy Chief Officer, Regional Programs for New Leaders; an organization whose mission is to ensure high academic achievement for all children, especially students in poverty and students of color, by developing transformational school leaders and advancing the policies and practices that allow great leaders to succeed.

Yolonda began her education non-profit career with Teach For America where she held a number of leadership roles on their national development and human assets team, and also served as Interim Executive Director of the Greater Philadelphia region. Prior to joining Teach For America, she had a 14 year career with Showtime Networks Inc.

Yolonda received her BS degree in Marketing from Tuskegee University and her MBA with a concentration in Marketing and Media Management from Columbia Business School.

Brian Potash

Director, Treasurer + Chair of Finance Committee

Brian graduated from the University of Michigan Ross School of Business with a Bachelor of Business Administration in 1996. He spent his career in financial services, most meaningfully between 2000-2011 as a founding Partner and CFO at Intrade LLC, a proprietary trading firm located in New York City.

Since closing Intrade in 2011, Brian has focused his energies primarily on volunteer work.

Beginning in September 2018, Brian has been enrolled at Iona University, studying for his Masters Degree in Mental Health Counseling.

Brian and Ian Sandler have been the closest of personal friends for the past 30+ years. Brian lives in Purchase, NY with his wife Robin and two daughters, Reese and Casey.

Rob Robinson

Director

Robert Robinson is the Senior Managing Director of CollegeBound Initiative (CBI) at Student Leadership Network, formerly known as Young Women’s Leadership Network. In this role, he oversees the successful partnership and implementation of our college access programming within the network’s 26 partnered NYC DOE high schools and, the newly added and first, partnered high school in Rochester, NY. As the head of the department, he ensures the effective supervision/training of our counseling staff and manages our overall CBI operations while maintaining our college access outcomes across the network.

Previously Rob served as the Managing Director of CBI and Director of College Counseling for CBI at two Brooklyn high schools: Middle College High School at Medgar Evers College and Juan Morel Campos Secondary School. As a Director of College Counseling, Rob worked primarily with first-generation, low income students of color with the goal of helping all students gain access to higher education.

Rob began his career as an Assistant Director of Undergraduate Admissions at his alma mater, New York University for nearly four years. As Assistant Director, Rob worked specifically with the Higher Education Opportunity Program (HEOP) in an effort to increase minority and financially disadvantaged students’ enrollment.

Rob received both his Bachelor of Arts in Computer Science and his Master of Arts in Higher Education Administration from NYU. He prides himself in being a HEOP graduate and an active member of his community. He has volunteered with various non-profit organizations such as Grand Street Settlement and PublicColor. As a member of the New York State Association for College Admissions Counseling, he has served as a Conference Presenter, Workshop Moderator, and Planning Committee member. He has also served as a Summer Institute Mentor where his responsibilities included training new high school and college admissions counselors.

When not immersed in his passions for student development and higher education, Rob spends his free time with his beautiful wife Nicole and their three kids (Brooklyn, Waverly and Violet).

Gia Gambino

Board Co-Chair

Gia Gambino is a Riley’s Way triple crown, having participated in the Riley’s Way Council, Youth Leadership Retreats, and Call For Kindness Fellow. She is the current Youth Advisory Board co-chair.

Agha Haider

Board Co-Chair

Agha Haider is a St. Louis native currently attending college at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia. He is incredibly passionate about social change, education reform, and making a positive impact in this world. At the age of 13, Agha founded a 501(c)3 non-profit organization called the Literacy Initiative focused on developing after-school programming for disadvantaged youth. Since 2017, his non-profit has distributed over 35,000 books, supported over 27,000 youth, brought together over 1,000 high school volunteers, and initiated tangible change across his community and beyond. Currently, Agha is running a new non-profit organization, The Education Collaborative, focused on breaking down socioeconomics barriers in education. Agha is always interested in connecting with other like-minded individuals. You can contact him at agha@educollaborative.org or follow him on Instagram at https://instagram.com/aghahadr.

Lexi Horner

Board Member

Lexi is a senior at the Nightingale-Bamford School. She is the 2022-2023 Co-Chair of the Nightingale and TYWLS East Harlem Council and has been a member of the council since 2020. Lexi is excited to get more involved in the other Riley’s Way programs such as the Call For Kindness and the Youth Leadership Retreat. Riley was one of Lexi’s best friends in Lower School and Lexi is thrilled that Riley’s Way has such a positive impact on the world while also making sure that Riley is always remembered.

Julia Best

Board Member

Julia is currently a junior at Lakeside in Seattle, Washington. She has been involved in Riley’s Way Youth Leadership Retreat for the past two years and was on the retreat’s planning committee this past year. Julia is passionate about service work and loves to be involved in her community through volunteer tutoring and facilitating DEI conversations with middle school students. She has enjoyed the supportive and kind community at Riley’s Way and is excited to help elevate young leaders with the Youth Advisory Board.

Anika Nayak

Board Member

Dylan Zajac

Board Member

Dylan Zajac is a sophomore at Babson College, born and raised in Hoboken, NJ. He founded the 501(c)(3) non-profit Computers For People Inc. in 2019, when he was 15 years old. The organization is dedicated to collecting, refurbishing, and donating computers to individuals and organizations in under-resourced communities to promote equity and access to opportunity. Since then they have donated 1400+ computers allowing thousands of individuals to get jobs, access education, and connect with family and friends!

Victoria Hernandez

Board Member

Victoria is currently a Junior at The Young Women’s Leadership School of Astoria. She is the Co-Chair of the TYWLS of Astoria and Hewitt Riley’s Way Council, and was even a Riley’s Way intern in the summer of 2022.  Victoria is so excited to join the Youth Advisory Board! She hopes to contribute to Riley’s Way’s future, collaborate with the other incredible leaders, and learn!

In her free time, Victoria enjoys binge watching shows (and documentaries), reading and listening to music.

Julia Huth

Board Member

Phoebe Grace

Board Member

Phoebe Grace is currently a Junior attending the TYWLS Astoria School in New York and is a member of the TYWLS + Hewitt Council for a year. Programs that Phoebe has taken part in are The Buddy Reading Program, The DEIA Committee and is one of her councils Lead Blogger as well as part of the Event Planning team. She is a member of the Youth Advisory Board of Riley’s Way because she believes that youth voices are a perspective that society is slowly making more important. Incorporating both youth voices and the amazing ideas of Council/Board Members creates the same community and inspiring experiences that we are exposed to at Riley’s Way; Phoebe is excited to work closely and contributing to the exciting future of Riley’s Way and hear the unique perspectives of other leaders ideas outside of her own! She loves socializing with new people and creating amazing opportunities for others. Some of her passions include writing, reading, photography, dance, music, and creative designing. Being a part of a community and helping others through support/encouragement is what she strives in doing.

Nia Huff

Board Member

Nia is currently a freshman at the Horace Mann School. Nia is a member of the Horace Mann-TYWLS Astoria Council and the DEIA + Committee. Some of Nia’s passions are volunteering, playing soccer, and cooking.

Everest Maya-Tudor

Board Member

Everest will be a freshman at Brown University in the fall. In high school, she founded the STEM Hour after-school volunteering program at the Chapman House Partnership in connection with the Little Lighthouse Foundation and is diversifying and planning to expand the program with the help of Riley’s Way Call for Kindness Grant. She is excited to work on the Riley’s Way Youth Advisory board and help empower young leaders to make positive change with kind leadership. In college, Everest plans to major in Biology and History. She also has a passion for literature and philosophy.

Sonika Menon

Board Member

Sonika is a senior at Neuqua Valley High School in Naperville, IL. She is the Founder and CEO of The Birthday Giving Program, a nonprofit that provides birthday bags and celebrations to people in need. Sonika was a Call for Kindness Winner in 2019 for her service work through The Birthday Giving Program. Sonika is excited to participate in the Youth Advisory Board because she believes in the Riley’s Way mission and looks forward to serving the community!

Michal Ruprecht

Board Member

Michal is an M.D. student at Wayne State University and graduated from the University of Michigan with a B.S. in Neuroscience in 2022. He joined Riley’s Way in 2020 and has been involved in the organization ever since. Michal is interested in leveraging community action and social change to help build a kind and welcoming community of young leaders. He is passionate about mental and physical health, nature, and art.

Tiara Soto

Board Member

Hi everyone! My name is Tiara Soto and I am a rising senior at The Young Women’s Leadership School Of Astoria. I am also a council member on the TYWLS Astoria + Hewitt council. I joined Riley’s Way because I wanted to be a part of a community with other young leaders like myself who embody kindness and have a passion for making this world a better place one day. As a first year member, I can truly say my goals have been fulfilled. I feel inspired more than ever to continue embodying leadership and kindness every minute, every day. I cannot wait to continue my involvement with the Riley’s Way organization and I am beyond excited to be serving as a member of the Youth Advisory Board.

Jonathan Tamen

Board Member

Jonathan joined Riley’s Way through the Call For Kindness representing Miami Beach, Florida. He is a Class of ‘22 International Baccalaureate diploma candidate at the public Miami Beach Senior High. Jonathan has led a few community service projects that share a general theme of educating students with skills that benefit others and their community. Jonathan founded Helping Hands and leads a group of volunteers working with Riley’s Way Call For Kindness to develop and spread knowledge in STEM.

Julia Westra

Board Member

Julia is currently a Senior at the Nightingale-Bamford School and Co-Chair of the Nightingale-TYWLS East Harlem Council. Over the past three years, Julia has enjoyed judging each Call for Kindness grant competition, acting as treasurer of her Riley’s Way Council, presenting at the 2020 leadership retreat, helping with the Buddy Readers program, and participating in Riley’s Way’s program for elementary schools. Her experiences with Riley’s Way programming have helped her become a more confident and empathetic leader, and she cherishes the sense of community she has found within the organization. As a member of the Youth Advisory Board, Julia is excited to work with other passionate teens and adults in advising Riley’s Way programming in order to help other students have amazing experiences as well. Julia is particularly eager to help Riley’s Way expand over the next several years.