Opening Plenary
9:10 - 9:40 AM
Keynote Q&A with Reggie Love
Amelia and Reggie will discuss how mentors shaped Reggie’s career, how we can best engage young people in the workplace, and what program practitioners should consider when recruiting mentors.
About the keynote presenter:
Reggie Love is a best-selling author and former Personal Aide to President Barack Obama. He currently works as a Senior Advisor at Apollo Global Management, where his responsibilities include supporting and developing strategies for human capital, public engagement, and DEI initiatives. Love is a unique witness to history, whose introduction to Washington was working in Junior Senator Barack Obama’s mailroom. As “body man” to Obama during his first presidential campaign, Love’s job was to stay one step behind the candidate but think and act three steps ahead during a typical eighteen-hour workday. He went on to become then President Obama’s Personal Aide — and while his experiences were unique, the lessons he learned during his tenure are universal. Persistence. Responsibility. Passion for a cause greater than yourself. Love moved to Washington D.C. in 2006, after stints playing in the NFL with the Dallas Cowboys and Green Bay Packers. Following his time at the White House, he served as Partner at RON Transatlantic EG before taking on his current role at Apollo. Love is a graduate of Duke University and holds an MBA from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. He is the author of the New York Times Best Seller, Power Forward, My Presidential Education, which is a collection of stories and principles learned during his time working for President Obama and being a captain for the all-time most winning NCAA coach, Mike Krzyzewski.
About the keynote moderator:
Amelia Chicas is a Long Island native and sophomore economics student at Stony Brook University. Growing up in the predominantly-Latin American town of Brentwood, she is the middle child in a family of 5, and graduated from Brentwood High School in 2021. As a university student, she engages in various student clubs and networking events while serving as the Chair of Diversity Equity and Inclusion for her university's chapter of Delta Sigma Pi, a national co-ed professional business fraternity. Through this role, she has developed as a leader and skilled facilitator. Recently, she hosted a panel discussion for her Delta Sigma Pi brothers to learn from MENTOR New York about elevating equity in the public and private sectors. Over the summer of 2022, she grew her skillset interning as a Finance Associate at ACRES Capital Management, a commercial real estate company located on Long Island. She aspires to be a financial analyst and eventually manage her own business. As a first-generation American of Dominican and Salvadoran descent, she enjoys connecting with her culture while learning about other cultures and traditions worldwide.
Morning Panel
9:40 - 10:25 AM
Celebrating and Centering Youth and Community
Focusing on the power of meeting the youth and community you serve "where they are at." This dynamic panel will discuss engagement practices, messaging, and youth-led approaches that center the particular needs, strengths, and desires of community members to effectively cultivate meaningful, intentional, and transformational relationships.
About the panelists:
Lia Taylor Harper is a passionate professional with demonstrated executive-level experience in non-profit organization management. Lia has over ten years of experience working in New York City’s child welfare and juvenile justice systems and is a published advocate for young people. Over the last five years, Lia has risen as a leader in antiracist work and has trained in both the Racial Equity Learning Exchange (RELE) model with Khatib Waheed and with The People’s Institute for Survival and Beyond. Lia has a Master of Public Health from Columbia University and a bachelor’s degree in biological anthropology from The George Washington University. Lia has been mentoring young people, formally and informally, since 2013 and has volunteered as a visiting resource (weekends, holidays, and vacations) for a teenage girl in foster care since 2018.
Chotsani Williams West serves as the Executive Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion for Adelphi University, also leading the Mentoring Program as the inaugural Director. She teaches as an Adjunct Professor within the College of Arts and Sciences and the College of Education and Health Sciences. In pursuit of her life’s work within education and social services, she made a purposeful career change from a thriving career in broadcast journalism and the television industry with Children’s Television Workshop – Sesame Street, Home Box Office (HBO), and Showtime Networks, to name a few. Through volunteerism for community-based organizations, she found her passion as a youth and social justice advocate. Chotsani obtained a Master’s degree from Adelphi in Educational Leadership and Technology in 2007 and holds professional certifications from Big Brothers Big Sisters of New York City Center for Training & Fordham University Graduate School of Social Service: Skills to Mentor Youth and Mentoring Supervision. She has a fulfilling career spanning over 20 years in youth and professional development, mentoring leadership, school reform, and social services through a diversity, equity, and inclusion lens.
Gina Patterson is a Social Impact and Public Policy leader with significant experience in the government, philanthropic, and nonprofit sectors. After spending over a decade in the government sector, Gina is an expert in community social impact and strategic partnerships. She has led key initiatives in addressing violence intervention and prevention policy and programming, partnership and funding strategies in workforce development and education for opportunity youth, and developing innovative initiatives with a focus on equity. In addition, Gina has consulted and partnered with nonprofits and foundations on strategy, board development, and diversity and inclusion. Currently, Gina is leading a cross-sector collaborative focused on neighborhood revitalization and economic mobility at Boston Medical Center in partnership with the JP Morgan/ Chase Foundation. To date Gina has worked with institutions such as the City of Boston, Obama Foundation, Sierra Health Foundation and the Boston Chamber of Commerce. In addition to her extensive social impact and public policy experience, Gina is equally committed to the work of inclusion and equity. Gina holds a Master of Public Administration from Columbia University, New York, New York, and a Bachelor of Science from Simmons University, Boston MA.
Practice-Based Workshops
10:35 - 11:45 AM
Mentoring Young People Who Have Experienced Trauma
Working with young people who have experienced trauma requires sensitivity, awareness, and understanding of the ways in which trauma commonly manifests in young people. This lesson will provide a high-level introduction to working with young people who have experienced trauma and will provide concrete, practical guidance specifically for mentoring organizations and mentors working with this population.
About the presenter:
Lia Taylor Harper is a passionate professional with demonstrated executive-level experience in non-profit organization management. Lia has over ten years of experience working in New York City’s child welfare and juvenile justice systems and is a published advocate for young people. Over the last five years, Lia has risen as a leader in antiracist work and has trained in both the Racial Equity Learning Exchange (RELE) model with Khatib Waheed and The People’s Institute for Survival and Beyond. Lia has a Master of Public Health from Columbia University and a bachelor’s degree in biological anthropology from The George Washington University. Lia has been mentoring young people, formally and informally, since 2013 and has volunteered as a visiting resource (weekends, holidays, and vacations) for a teenage girl in foster care since 2018.
The Community Knows Exactly What It Wants and Needs
About the presenter:
Gina Patterson is a Social Impact and Public Policy leader with significant experience in the government, philanthropic and nonprofit sectors. After spending over a decade in the government sector, Gina is an expert in community social impact and strategic partnerships. She has led key initiatives in addressing violence intervention and prevention policy and programming, partnership and funding strategies in workforce development and education for opportunity youth and developing innovative initiatives with a focus on equity . In addition, Gina has consulted and partnered with nonprofits and foundations on strategy, board development and diversity and inclusion. Currently, Gina is leading a cross-sector collaborative focused on neighborhood revitalization and economic mobility at Boston Medical Center in partnership with the JP Morgan/ Chase Foundation. To date Gina has worked with institutions such as the City of Boston, Obama Foundation, Sierra Health Foundation and the Boston Chamber of Commerce. In addition to her extensive social impact and public policy experience, Gina is equally committed to the work of inclusion and equity. Gina holds a Master of Public Administration from Columbia University, New York, New York and a Bachelor of Science from Simmons University, Boston MA.
B.Y.O.G.: Be Your Own Griot — Impactful Storytelling to Build Connections
Every young person is one mentor away from a success story. In the youth mentoring field, effective storytelling can often be the difference in making a campaign, a program, or an entire organization a success. The stories we share - about ourselves, about mentoring, about our programs - are the bridges that connect us to diverse audiences in an authentic and meaningful way. This workshop will look closely at the art of storytelling through a culturally competent lens. Participants will be introduced to the elements of effective storytelling for key audiences with a particular focus on underrepresented groups among staff, mentors, and mentees. Participants will learn how to integrate these elements into their work through culturally relevant activities that will help them create a shared sense of belonging for their stakeholders.
About the presenter:
Daniel Russell began his professional career in education as a high school Spanish teacher in Baltimore. He has served as a school leader and college access director, and he led a school turnaround organization helping to improve underperforming schools in New York. In addition to co-founding Bridge the Gap, Daniel serves as the Director of Learning, Development & Inclusion for Leadership for Educational Equity (LEE) training civic leaders from various roles in the education sector around policy, advocacy, and organizing for the rights of young people navigating the education system. Bridge The Gap is a small but mighty team of education and youth service professionals with nearly 40 years of experience transforming organizational culture through culturally competent training for staff and social-emotional supports for young people facing significant challenges. The team believes we can build bridges toward a better future for youth when we leverage the dynamic powers of mentoring and social capital.
How to Develop Wellness Support Teams: Creating Spaces of Joy
Through the theoretical frameworks of Critical Race Theory (CRT) (Bell & Crenshaw, 1970’s), Culturally Responsive Pedagogy (CRP) (Ladson-Billings, 2020), the Educational Survival Complex (Love, 2019), and Student Integration Theory (Tinto, 1993) this workshop will discuss the concept of feeling of a sense of belonging and explore the value of wellness support teams for high school and college students. It will address the importance of wellness and its overall connection to student success. This workshop will address what conducive spaces of joy look like and delve into what exists and what is possible for institutions and their teams.
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Participants will be guided through historical content, key terms and learn working definitions
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Participants will take a “self-study” to assess their views of wellness
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Participants will be asked to journal and jot down their responses throughout the presentation for future reference
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Participants will be asked to share their “takeaways” with colleagues in the mentoring movement and beyond
About the presenter:
Chotsani Williams West serves as the Executive Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion for Adelphi University, also leading the Mentoring Program as the inaugural Director. She teaches as an Adjunct Professor within the College of Arts and Sciences and the College of Education and Health Sciences. In pursuit of her life’s work within education and social services, she made a purposeful career change from a thriving career in broadcast journalism and the television industry with Children’s Television Workshop – Sesame Street, Home Box Office (HBO), and Showtime Networks, to name a few. Through volunteerism for community-based organizations, she found her passion as a youth and social justice advocate. Chotsani obtained a Master’s degree from Adelphi in Educational Leadership and Technology in 2007 and holds professional certifications from Big Brothers Big Sisters of New York City Center for Training & Fordham University Graduate School of Social Service: Skills to Mentor Youth and Mentoring Supervision. She has a fulfilling career spanning over 20 years in youth and professional development, mentoring leadership, school reform, and social services through a diversity, equity, and inclusion lens.
Keynote Fireside Chat
11:55 AM - 12:40 PM
Mentor Recruitment - What's it Gonna Take?
Join MENTOR New York CEO Brenda Jimenez, Joie Golomb, Gary Bagley, and Claudia Espinosa as they discuss current trends in mentor recruitment, considerations since the start of the pandemic, and what it takes to effectively engage and sustain volunteers within our organizations.
About the panelists:
Brenda Jiménez is CEO of MENTOR New York. For the past 20 years, Brenda's expertise in executive leadership, fund development, board development, and organizational management has supported nonprofit executives and boards to transform their organizations and increase their reach and impact. She was appointed CEO of MENTOR New York in December 2019 and led the organization through a time of pandemic and racial unrest — pivoting to expand services to those in need while continuing to support longtime partners. Under her leadership, Brenda has increased partner engagement and developed resources, tools, and services that have allowed mentoring programs throughout New York to serve more than 80,000 young people. Born in Santurce, Puerto Rico, Brenda was raised in a military family stationed in Germany, Texas, and five other states. In her adolescence, her family settled in the Bronx, where she attended the prestigious Cardinal Spellman High School. Brenda received a bachelor's degree in Psychology from Seton Hall University and later pursued a master's in Public Administration with a Non-Profit Management concentration from New York University. She is currently pursuing her Doctorate in Executive Leadership from The Center of Leadership at The University of Charleston, WV. Since her college days, Brenda's commitment to women's and children's issues has driven her service in the community and professional choices. From 2011-2016 she was Board President for AllCare Provider Services, Inc. and is the former Board Treasurer for Latinas United for Political Empowerment Political Action Committee (LUPE PAC). She currently has the honor of serving as co-chair of the MENTOR Affiliate Advisory Council (MAAC). Prior to joining MENTOR New York, Brenda worked for Big Brother Big Sisters of America (BBBSA) as an Associate Director of Agency Development; Girl Scouts of the USA as a Volunteer Development and Diversity consultant; and United Way of Essex and West Hudson as a Director of Public Campaigns, where she provided organizational development support to their local affiliates. Brenda has received numerous recognitions for her work, including four Stevie Awards for women in business and a Comité Noviembre, “Lo Mejor de Nuestra Comunidad”: “The Best in Our Community” Award.
Gary Bagley is an executive coach and consultant with over 25 years of experience in the nonprofit sector and a strong commitment to equity and inclusion, community building, education, and leadership development. He also teaches nonprofit leadership, management, and strategy at Columbia University and Baruch College. Gary contributed his vision and leadership to building New York Cares into one of the leading nonprofit organizations in New York City, serving over eight hundred nonprofits and schools with education, hunger, and public spaces programming. During his tenure, New York Cares tripled its service delivery – executing more than 20,000 projects and filling 150,000 volunteer positions annually. Gary’s passion for equity helped him transform New York Cares into an antiracist organization, a true reflection of the multicultural society within which it operates. By embedding principles of equity and social justice in the work of the organization and in his leadership and management, Gary shifted the focus of New York Cares from the volunteers to the communities. Gary is also an appointee to the State Commission on National and Community Service and serves on the Board of Directors of the National Urban Fellows, an organization that develops people of color and women to be leaders and change agents in the public and nonprofit sectors, with a strong commitment to social justice and equity.
Claudia Espinosa moved to NYC in the year 2000 from Cali, Colombia. An immigrant herself, Claudia knows that resilience, passion, and discipline are crucial to mastering challenges such as learning a new language, adapting to a new culture, and separating from one’s family. Claudia holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Forensic Psychology with Magna Cum Laude honors from the City University of New York (CUNY). She received her second master’s degree in Public Administration from New York University (NYU). Claudia also obtained an Ed.M. degree in School Leadership from Harvard. She is currently pursuing a Doctorate in Education at NYU. Claudia created the Latinas On the Verge of Excellence – L.O.V.E. Mentoring Program with the goal to support and empower young Latinas and all young women to strive for excellence and achieve their dreams — whatever that may mean for each of them.
Joie Golomb is Director of Programs & Partnership Development at MENTOR New York. Joie is an enthusiastic nonprofit leader, teacher, artist, advocate, and mentoring professional with 10+ years of developing, executing, and sustaining educational and youth development programs. Joie has worked in close partnership with public schools and youth programs to elevate students' voices, build safe and inclusive learning environments, and equip youth workers with effective practices to drive social change and contribute to a just society. Joie utilizes creative management tactics, and playful facilitation approaches to drive inclusive culture and build a sense of belonging within a community to collectively achieve impactful results. Joie earned her BA and teaching certification in Theatre Education from Emerson College in Boston and her Master of Science in Nonprofit Management from the Milano School of Policy Management and Environment at The New School in New York City.
Practice-Based Workshops
1:30 - 2:40 PM
Making Inclusion the Default, Not the Exception
When we think of inclusion as equity instead of a radical act, we unlock a multitude of benefits inclusive practices have on all players involved. Youth previously relegated to the periphery are given a voice and the space to explore their unique abilities, all while given more individualized attention. What results from better-represented young people are youth with vastly improved communication skills, enhanced empathy, and, above all, the tools needed to go on and build equitable spaces for others. This workshop will teach participants how to ask—and answer!—the right questions that foster the equity they aim for, and will equip them with different strategies that can be applied within different environments.
About the presenter:
Douglas Marques is a neurodivergent Educator and Behavioral Specialist, with a focus on advocating for neurodivergent youth while providing the adults around them resources to best support young people. Douglas also works as a training facilitator, teaching content that ranges from player development, navigating challenging behaviors, best practices for working in Early Childhood, and how to better work with neurodivergent populations. In addition to organizational work, Douglas coaches parents and educators through challenging situations–equipping them with tools and strategies for healthy social-emotional development in children. Prior to his work as a Behavioral Specialist, Douglas served as the President of the Soccer Stars Foundation where he partnered with families, coaches, and community organizations to provide support to players of all abilities. Additionally, he’s also worked with organizations like the United States Soccer Foundation, Super Soccer Stars, The Friends of the Highline, 14th Street Y, Ready, Set, Play!, and the Tribeca Preparatory School.
Mentorship: Creating an Ecosystem of Support
About the presenter:
Kerianne Baylor is the Program Manager for First Tech Fund’s New York City fellowship program. She has held previous educator, admissions, operations and relationship management roles across public, private and non-profit educational institutions. Kerianne completed a Fulbright English Teaching Assistant grant in Brazil after teaching at a vocational training school in Colombia. She received her Bachelor's degree in Communication and Spanish at Marist College. You can find her practicing Romance languages, exploring food cultures and prepping for her next outdoor adventure from her home base in Jersey City, NJ.
Safe Space Training
Please join GLYS Western New York staff members, Gi Swords (they/them) and Faith Winship (she/her), during their Safe Space Training. The workshop covers GLYS' best practices when working with LGBTQ+ youth. It includes basic education information (terminology and pronouns) and tangles skills (what to do when a youth comes out to you and how to respond to anti-LGBTQ+ languages and behaviors) so all attendees leave with more ways to affirm the LGBTQ+ youth in their lives.
About the presenters:
Faith Winship is the resident ally at GLYS WNY! As our school support coordinator and GSA Advisor Liaison, she mainly works with our school contacts and GSAs across WNY. With a background in Psychology and Women and Gender Studies, Faith often provides in-school support and trainings to staff, faculty, and students.
Gi Swords is the Programs Manager at GLYS who oversees all of our direct youth services including our Drop-In Center, Youth-In-Care, TGNC, and Family/Caregiver Support Grounds. Gi has a background in Women and Gender Studies and creative writing and is a graduate of UB's Social Work School.
Mentoring Youth with Usher Syndrome - A Pilot Program
“Research confirms that quality mentoring relationships have powerful positive effects on young people in a variety of personal, academic, and professional situations. Yet one in three young people will grow up without this critical asset.”
This quote from the National Mentor website highlights the incredible benefit of mentor relationships for all young people. Yet, locating mentors for children with Usher syndrome poses unique challenges, and has left this community without consistent access to these valuable relationships. Children with Usher syndrome are born deaf or hard of hearing and experience progressive vision loss leading to blindness. The majority of students with Usher access the general curriculum and graduate high school with a regular ed diploma. Many then go on to attend college, establish careers, and live, work, and play in their community of choice. Yet, we cannot understate the impact of social isolation experienced by this community due to the combination of hearing loss and vision loss, lack of access to information, lack of access to role models, and the typical pressures of at-risk adolescents. Mike and Nancy are working with a team of collaborators, including Mentor NY, to develop a national mentoring program for this community. Come and learn how we can all work together to establish a "first-ever" program for this community.
About the presenters:
Nancy O'Donnell has worked with the Usher Syndrome Coalition for 7 years, and with the DeafBlind community for more than 40 years. In her role as director of outreach, she works to identify and support youth and adults living with Usher syndrome and their families. She works closely with Mike and other partner organizations to identify the needs of the community and develop materials and programs to support them. The mentoring program that they will be describing in their presentation will ultimately be sustained by the Usher Syndrome Coalition.
Michael Fagbemi has worked to support deaf-blind youth and adults at the Helen Keller National Center for Deaf-Blind Youth and Adults (HKNC) for the past 26 years. As the Transition Initiative Lead for HKNC's National Center on Deaf-Blindness, he has coordinated and provided a wide array of technical assistance (TA) to community partners including service providers, families, and young adults. He works with partners across the nation to build services that help young adults get the right resources and supports to successfully transition to adulthood. Mike is fluent in American Sign Languages Transition Lead at National Center on Deaf-Blindness.
Youth Presentation
3:05 - 3:50 PM
Creating a Youth Advisory Council at Solar One
Closing out the conference will be the voices of Solar One’s Youth Advisory Council (the YAC) to speak about the creation, management, and benefits of building their youth board. For a sneak peek at the making of their program, check out our blog!