National Leadership Team
Amy H. Saxton, Chief Executive Officer
Emily Edwards, Director of Strategic Initiatives
Kevin Gay, Chief Financial Officer
Stacey Thompson, Director of Talent and Training
Jessica Vibberts, Vice President of Operations
Janice Yang, Director of Program Quality

Site Leadership
Hagar Berlin, Executive Director, San Francisco
Karina Kirsch, Executive Director,New York City
Debbie Krause, Executive Director, Boston
Amanda Jefferson, Executive Director, Philadelphia
Deidre McCormack Martin, Executive Director, Seattle
Carlin Johnson Politzer, Executive Director, Silicon Valley
Kait Schroeder, Executive Director, North Bay

National Staff
Marina Arsovska, Comptroller
Melanie Damm, Volunteer and Career Manager
Rangsiwan Fasudhani, ETO Database Administrator
Mia Ellis, Summer Program Coordinator
Amanda Graham, Development Manager
Nikki Hiatt, Associate Design and Communications Manager
Katherine Kennedy, Campaign Manager
Shelby Lewis, Development Database Administrator
Matt Osgood, Summer Program Coordinator
April Ruiz, Human Resources Coordinator
Alyssa Tecklenburg, Staff Accountant and Business Analyst
Keith Hough, Office Manager
Carol Yang, Accounts Payable Specialist

national Leadership Team

Amy H. Saxton, Chief Executive Officer
Amy Saxton joins Summer Search because of her passion for youth development and commitment to scaling impact of organizations that transform the lives of low income and students of color. Prior to Summer Search Amy spent seven years as a Consulting Manager with the Bridgespan Group . At Bridgespan Amy developed growth strategies for several leading youth-serving nonprofit organizations, foundations, and school districts. In her last three years at Bridegspan Amy spent half her time as Diversity Manager, where she led firm-wide efforts to improve recruiting and increase retention of Black and Latino staff. Amy has co-authored several articles:  The Challenge of Organizational Learning (published in the Stanford Social Innovation Review, 2011), Going for the Gold: The Secret of Successful Charter Schools (published in Education Next, 2009), and has also written case studies published at www.bridgespan.org: Aspire Public Schools: Building the Organizational Capacity for Healthy Growth (2008), The Association for the Advancement of Mexican Americans: Focusing for Impact (2006).

Before joining Bridgespan, Ms. Saxton was a Summer Associate with The Broad Foundation, where she conducted due diligence on potential investments and assessed the feasibility of an executive education program for school district central office staff. Prior to working with Broad, Ms. Saxton was Director of Retention Services at Springboard Forward, a workforce development nonprofit organization, where she provided direct services to low-income clients, and managed grant writing and marketing initiatives. Prior to Springboard, Ms. Saxton directed the corporate communications team of a technology start-up company. Ms. Saxton began her career consulting with Monitor Company, where she worked with nonprofit organizations in the education and youth services sectors, as well as with private companies.

Ms. Saxton holds an MBA from Stanford Graduate School of Business, an MA in Education from Stanford University School of Education, and a BA in English from Harvard University.

Emily Edwards, Director of Strategic Initiatives
Emily graduated from Philadelphia's Central High School and from Wesleyan University with a Bachelor's degree in African American Studies. Both of these educational experiences sparked her interest in helping young people break the cycle of poverty. Emily began working at Summer Search Boston in 1999 as a Program Associate and became Executive Director in 2002. In 2004, the Junior Chamber of Commerce named her one of Boston’s Ten Outstanding Young Leaders. Under Emily’s leadership, Summer Search Boston grew to partner with nearly every public high school in Boston and tripled the number of students served. In 2007, Emily joined Summer Search’s National Senior Management Team, applying her leadership experiences in Boston to support all seven sites in growing their programs. Her focuses include management and fundraising coaching, as well as program quality and innovation.

Kevin Gay, Chief Financial Officer
Kevin joined Summer Search in February 2009 with over twenty years of banking, consulting, and financial management experience. He played financial roles in the building of several private equity financed companies, including Universal Fibers, Inc., Davidson Cotton, and Astor Corporation. Earlier Kevin was an associate at WSGP partners, a Los Angeles based private equity firm, and a manager in the management consulting division of KPMG in San Francisco, specializing in mergers and acquisitions. He began his career as a corporate banking officer at Mellon Bank. Kevin grew up in Philadelphia and attended Villanova University, where he was a member of the varsity track and cross-country teams for four years, and earned his MBA from Indiana University. He currently serves as a board member of Youth Movement Records in Oakland, CA and lives in San Francisco with his wife Mona Hanes.

Stacey Thompson, Director of Talent and Training
Stacey was born and raised in San Francisco and has a long history with Summer Search. She was accepted into the program as a student in 1994, and participated in an art camp in Massachusetts, and Outward Bound in Oregon. In college, with a scholarship through Summer Search, she taught environmental education in a small village in Ecuador for three months. While attending Sonoma State University, Stacey interned in the San Francisco office and served as the Project Manager of the North San Francisco Bay office. In 2001, she became the first in her family to graduate from college, with a bachelor's degree in women and gender studies from Sonoma State University. In 2003, as program director, Stacey helped launch Summer Search New York City. After three committed years in New York City, Stacey is thrilled to bring her unique experience to the Summer Search national team by training new staff members and supporting new Summer Search sites.

Jessica Vibberts, Vice President of Operations
Jessica grew up in the rural foothills of Northern California, where only a third of her high school peers graduated college-ready. Jessica attended Sonoma State University as a first generation college student and earned her BA in Gender Studies and Sociology in 1999. This experience made her acutely aware and determined to make an impact on the pervasive lack of opportunities and education available to many high-potential youth. After college, Jessica ran the Prevention Education/Community Outreach Department at UASA of Sonoma County (now Verity), where she developed a comprehensive Prevention Education curriculum for youth that became widely across the county’s high schools. In 2002, Jessica joined Summer Search North Bay as a Program Associate and rapidly advanced to become the Executive Director in December 2005. Under Jessica’s leadership, Summer Search North Bay increased its annual student enrollment over 60% and more than doubled revenues. Jessica joined Summer Search’s National Leadership Team in 2009 to support the success of the local program sites and national growth targets. As VP of Operations, Jessica oversees the success of local sites, program quality and implementation, and leads talent initiatives across the organization. Jessica was a participant in Harvard Business School’s Strategic Perspectives on Non-Profit Management course and is currently a Gap Inc. Leadership Initiative fellow. Jessica serves as Board Chair for Daily Acts.

Janice Yang, Director of Program Quality
Janice joined the Summer Search team in 2003 and has been a mentor, the Program Director (2004-2006), and the Executive Director (2006-2008) of Summer Search New York City. In her current role as National Director of Program Quality, Janice is focusing on program evaluation and the implementation of systems to maximize program quality, training, and staff recruitment. Prior to Summer Search, Janice worked in the curatorial department of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York and at the East Bay Community Foundation in Oakland, CA. She holds a B.A. in Art History from Cornell University and an M.A. from New York University.

site leadership

Hagar Berlin, Executive Director, Summer Search San Francisco
Hagar was born in Israel and lived in the Netherlands as a young child, but spent most of her youth growing up Queens, New York. Hagar attended college at Wesleyan University in Connecticut. After graduation, she returned to New York where she began her fundraising career at Urban Education Exchange, a non-profit that partners with inner city schools to improve reading instruction. In 2004, Hagar relocated to San Francisco where she joined the development team at Jumpstart for Young Children, a national early childhood education non-profit. Hagar served as Jumpstart’s Development Director, securing the organization's operating budget in California and Washington States and spearheading Jumpstart’s annual Read for the Record Campaign. In 2009, Hagar left Jumpstart to pursue a Masters of Education with a focus on Policy and Organization Leadership Studies at Stanford University. Upon graduating from Stanford, Hagar was thrilled to join Summer Search as the new Bay Area Director of Development, charged with supporting fundraising efforts in San Francisco, Silicon Valley and the North Bay.

Karina Kirsch, Executive Director, Summer Search New York City
Karina received a B.A. in Portuguese and Brazilian Studies from Brown University. After graduating from Brown, Karina went on to the New York City Teaching Fellows Program where she taught 3rd and 4th grade in the South Bronx while also receiving an M.A. in Early Childhood Education from Lehman College. After completing the Fellows program, Karina joined the Summer Search team as a Program Associate. She became the Program Director in 2006 and stepped into the role of Executive Director in May 2008.

Debbie Krause, Executive Director, Summer Search Boston
Debbie graduated from Michigan State University with a BA in Psychology (1998) and went on to receive her MA in Counseling Psychology from Boston College (2000). While in college and graduate school Debbie’s studies focused on the effects of violence on the social and emotional functioning of children. After graduation, she worked for Dare Family Services, a non-profit organization that performed homebased counseling for children and families. Her strong belief in the life-altering power of traveling comes from extended time she spent in England, Spain, and Italy. Debbie joined Summer Search in 2005 as the first ever Outreach Coordinator. She rapidly advanced to become Program Director of Outreach and Alumni in 2006, and then Executive Director in 2007. Debbie is a member of the Richard and Susan Smith Family Foundation Capacity Building Group.

Amanda Jefferson, Executive Director, Summer Search Philadelphia
Amanda Jefferson received a B.A. in Spanish Language and Literature from the University of Maryland. During this time, she studied abroad in Spain and Chile, which ignited her love for travel and adventure. After graduating from Maryland, she moved to Washington, D.C. and began working in the international education arena, working with Youth for Understanding International Exchange and Hostelling International. Amanda then joined Chemonics International to support international development projects funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development. Her travels then led to her to Santiago, Chile, where she lived for two years while working at the Chilean-American Chamber of Commerce and pursuing her MBA from the Universidad de Chile in conjunction with Tulane's Freeman School of Business. Upon moving back to the U.S., she joined the Wharton School’s Executive Education division where she served as Director of Partnerships for Social Impact. After several years volunteering with Big Brothers Big Sisters and Summer Search Philadelphia’s Young Professional Network, she joined Summer Search as Executive Director in March 2011.

Deidre McCormack Martin, Executive Director, Summer Search Seattle
Deidre is originally from California, where she attended Santa Clara University and received her B.A. in History and Ancient Studies. In search of her life work, she moved to Seattle in 1999 and joined an AmeriCorps program called City Year. Her City Year placement was in a high-need elementary school where she witnessed firsthand the inequities in our educational system. Since then she has held positions in non-profit fundraising, operations and program management in the youth development and educational fields. She joined Summer Search in September 2008 as Associate Director and stepped into the role of Executive Director in July of 2010. Deidre lives in West Seattle with her husband and three daughters.

Carlin Johnson Politzer, Executive Director, Summer Search Silicon Valley
Originally from Ann Arbor, Michigan, Carlin has committed her professional life to working with organizations that focus on youth in diverse, under-served communities and was thrilled to become the Executive Director of Summer Search Silicon Valley in July 2010. Carlin began her career with Teach For America (TFA), first as a corps member in Los Angeles, and then as a national staff member based in Chicago as well as New York City. Following her time with TFA, Carlin attended the Masters in Social Work program at The University of Michigan where she was a CIVITAS Fellow concentrating on child maltreatment issues. Upon completing her MSW, Carlin moved to the Bay Area to work for the Foster Care Mental Health Program, an agency within the City and County of San Francisco’s Department of Public Health, and became a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) during that time. Immediately prior to coming to Summer Search, Carlin was the Community School Coordinator of Taft Community School, a public elementary school serving a historically low-income, low-performing population on the eastside of Redwood City. During her tenure as an administrator, Taft became a fully integrated community school and dramatically increased its academic performance. In addition to her MSW, Carlin holds a BS in Education and Social Policy from Northwestern University. She has served on the boards of Teach For America Bay Area, Congregation Beth Am Sisterhood, and Mini Infant Center. Carlin lives in San Carlos with her husband and their two children.

Kait Schroeder, Executive Director, Summer Search North Bay
A native of New England, Kait graduated from Haverford College in 2002 with a Bachelor’s degree in chemistry and a minor in education. After college, Kait spent three years at Millbrook School in New York State teaching chemistry, working as a dorm parent, coaching field hockey, and guiding a community service group. This reinforced for her the importance of a holistic approach to helping high school students develop their leadership. In the summer of 2004, professional development funds allowed Kait to travel to the Samburu region of Kenya with the Earthwatch Institute as part of a conservation research team. This expedition strengthened her firsthand understanding of the power of experiential education. After moving back to Boston in 2005, Kait joined Summer Search as a Program Associate. In 2008 she became Associate Director of the Boston site to oversee programming for 300 students and 600 alumni, as well as lead mentor training for a staff of 14. In April 2010 Kait was thrilled to move to California and step into the role of Executive Director for Summer Search North San Francisco Bay.

national staff

Melanie Damm, Volunteer & Career Manager
Melanie grew up in northern California as well as the Southern Tier region of upstate New York. She attended San Francisco State University where she earned a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration with a concentration in Marketing in 2004. After starting her career in recruiting and sales, Melanie joined the Taproot Foundation in late 2005 where she managed the National Pro Bono Consultant Recruitment team. Her personal volunteer service earned her recognition in 2007 when she won a trip to Egypt on the CBS Early Show. After several years at the Taproot Foundation, Melanie joined Summer Search in 2010 in order to strengthen career exploration and volunteer programming.

Mia Ellis, Summer Program Coordinator
mellis@summersearch.org
Mia graduated from the University of Colorado in 1997 with a degree in Interpersonal Communication. After college, she worked for the National Outdoor Leadership School in Wyoming and Alaska, and then for Deer Hill Expeditions, a wilderness leadership & service program, in Colorado. At Deer Hill, Mia was the Program Manager and a Field Leader and worked with many Summer Search students as they transformed their lives and unlocked their potential in the wilderness. Mia joined Summer Search as the Founding Executive Director of Summer Search Seattle in September 2003. In 2010, she transitioned into a new role at the Summer Search Support Center working to coordinate Summer Search’s efforts around summer programs nationally. She is thrilled to be working in an area of Summer Search that first drew her in - creating opportunities for all students to access experiential education. She lives in Seattle with her husband and two young daughters.

Amanda Graham, Development Manager
Amanda was born and raised outside of Boston, Massachusetts. She attended George Washington University in Washington, DC, and during her junior year, she studied abroad. Her spring semester, Amanda was a student of the Semester at Sea program where she studied aboard the S.S. Universe Explorer. During this time, Amanda participated in global fieldwork and cultural exchanges in countries such as Brazil, South Africa, Kenya and China. In each port, she was able to learn about and assist local communities with some of their challenges including hunger prevention, family planning and wildlife preservation. Amanda graduated in 2002 with a bachelor’s degree in business with a concentration in marketing. Her lifelong interest in volunteering and her experience on Semester at Sea, brought Amanda to Boston to work for United Way of Massachusetts Bay. After four years at United Way, Amanda relocated to San Francisco and joined Summer Search staff in June 2007.

Katherine Kennedy, Campaign Manager
Katherine was born and raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and attended the University of Pennsylvania with a degree in African American Studies. She first discovered the field of summer experiential education when she taught in a village in Kenya after her freshman year at Penn. Upon graduating in 1993, she joined Teach For America and taught middle school in Baltimore. In 1995, Katherine joined Founder Linda Mornell as her first staff member to teach and train the unique mentoring methods. After five years as Program Director, Katherine became the Executive Director of the San Francisco office in 2000. In 2005, Katherine joined Summer Search National to apply what she has learned as a director and mentor to the training and building of a growing staff.

Shelby Lewis, Development Database Administrator
Shelby was born and raised in Omaha, Nebraska. She earned her B.A. in English (with minors in Biology, History and Political Science) from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. After returning to Omaha, she worked for Metropolitan Community College as a Library Assistant while studying Web Support Technology. In 2002, Shelby joined The Salvation Army Western Divisional Headquarters where she was the Data Management Coordinator and Online Communications Specialist. She remained there until moving from Omaha to San Francisco in September 2008 to begin her work with Summer Search.

Matt Osgood, Summer Program Coordinator
Matt grew up in Kansas City, but he has been traveling the world off and on since high school, experiencing different cultures in Europe, Latin America, and Asia. He graduated with majors in Biology and Spanish from Hanover College in 2004. He has been interested in improving the lives of others ever since the summer of 1999, when he lived and worked in a rural community in Paraguay. Before joining Summer Search, Matt worked at various non-profits, including Children International, the Christian Foundation for Children and Aging, and Amigos de las Americas, where he first heard of the amazing things that Summer Search does for young people. Observing the drive, energy, and maturity of Summer Search students and how it spreads to other teenagers was always a highlight of his job at AMIGOS. Matt enjoys his role in creating new opportunities for such deserving students.

April Ruiz , Human Resources Coordinator
April grew up in Manila, Philippines, and graduated from San Francisco State University with a BA in Broadcast Communication. After working in production for five years, she moved into the corporate world with a job at Gymboree Corporation. April worked as a Payroll Administrator for four years and in a marketing role for two years. Before joining Summer Search in September 2008, she was contracting with Exelixis, Inc., a bio-tech company, as a Benefits Specialist.