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 SHARON ALEXANDERDirector of Finance and Administration salexander@CommonCents.org Sharon joined Common Cents in September 2008 with extensive years in non-profit financial management. She has years of service with top non-profits such as the Boys and Girls Club, Flowers Day Care and several other youth programs funded by FEGS, the New York State Agency for Children's Services and the NYC Department for Youth and Community Development. This, along with other types of non-profit management experience, housing, education and multi-generational programs, has cultured a sense of financial and developmental insight. Sharon earned her degree at Columbia University where she studied economics and political science. She has developed a passion for child and youth development with a focus on social enrichment and financial literacy.  LASHON ALLENPersonnel and Administration Associate lallen@CommonCents.org Lashon, a recent graduate of St. Joseph's College, started at Common Cents as an AmeriCorps VISTA volunteer. She has worked with Penny Harvesting schools and Student Roundtables in Queens and Brooklyn. Currently, she is a part of the administration team and helps with daily office management. She is thrilled to see the continuous growth of the program, while it maintains its mission to empower students to help their community.  ANTHONY BERTHELIT Manager aberthel@CommonCents.org Anthony has worked for Common Cents since August 2002. Prior to that, he was an IT assistant for Leadership for Environment and Development International, a program run by the Rockefeller Foundation. His expertise includes Network management, PC repairs, software and hardware installation and upgrades, and many other computer related skills.  KATHERINE CHOCommon Cents Fellow/ New York City Civic Corps
Katherine joined Common Cents through the NYC Civic Corps program. Having graduated this past May from Duke University with a degree in Public Policy Studies, she wishes to continue pursuing this field, especially within education, health and civic engagement. A summer serving an inner city program in Greensboro, NC has helped fuel this desire as well as working with campus-community involvement for Duke-Durham relations.
 CANDACE DeTROIACommon Cents Fellow/ New York City Civic Corps
As a recent graduate of Manhattan College (May 2010), Candace has joined our team as a member of the New York City Civic Corps. She studied Sociology during her time as an undergrad at Manhattan College and would eventually like to pursue a Masters Degree in Social Work. Candace also attended the University of Sydney, Australia during a semester abroad in Spring 2009. During the following year at Common Cents, Candace hopes to bring her abroad experience and her desire to serve the children of New York to the Common Cents family. Candace believes that there is no better way to serve New York than to serve it’s children first.
 DAVID DILLONCommon Cents Fellow/ New York City Civic Corps
David’s experience in community service, philanthropy and teaching overseas has led him to join Common Cents in 2010 as a NYC Civic Corps member. He believes investing in the next generation to tackle real-life issues will create character, but more importantly, social change. As a TBI survivor at the age of 14, David knows that no challenge is too big—even for a child. David graduated from the University of North Carolina Wilmington with a degree in Creative Writing.
 ANDI DUBEManager of Web and Communications
Andi Dube joined Common Cents in December 2007 after working in disaster response across North America. He is a graduate of Eastern Mennonite University where he studied communications and business administration. His focus is on weaving together rich visual and written narratives to further Common Cents' mission. He is currently a graduate student in the Media Studies program at The New School University. In his spare time he volunteers and explores ways to connect with whatever community he is living in.
 TEDDY GROSSExecutive Director tgross@CommonCents.org Teddy Gross is the founder and executive director of Common Cents, a national not-for-profit educational organization, which specializes in designing citizenship programs for children and young people, and supporting their work in schools throughout the country and across all demographic divides. The organization started in 1991, and grew out of the desire of a four-year-old child to help a homeless man in New York City. As the girl’s father, Teddy responded by developing the Penny Harvest, which has continued to evolve over 17 years, and is now a robust year-long program that uses philanthropy service-learning to teach the skills of democratic participation, moral reasoning, and community building to children during their first decade of school. Under his leadership, a lab at Common Cents continues to pilot new models and programs in civic development. Teddy's interest in innovating social justice programs is the natural outgrowth of a lifetime's work as a journalist, newspaper editor, children's book author, and playwright. He has served as the editor in chief of The Phoenix, a Boston weekly paper. His career as a playwright began at the prestigious Eugene O’Neill National Playwright Conference, where he was a resident for two summers, and continued with many plays and productions, both in regional theatres across the country and off-Broadway. He is also the author of a children’s book, and a frequent speaker at national and international conferences on service-learning and civic engagement. Under Teddy’s leadership, the Penny Harvest has become the largest child-philanthropy program in the United States, helping to nurture a new generation of caring, informed and capable young people.  JOSHUA KHANCommon Cents Fellow/ New York City Civic Corps
Originally from Queens, New York, Josh’s interest in community development and working with youth brought him to Common Cents in August 2010 through the NYC Civic Corps program. Prior to joining Common Cents, Josh worked for many other non-profit organizations such as The Child Center of New York, Big Brother Big Sister of NYC, and NYPIRG. In addition to his work experience, Josh has volunteered at elementary and middle schools within the New York City area through Project Focus, a program under the Americorps VISTA umbrella and has worked with youth in the Mount Vernon and New Rochelle area of Westchester County through programs he implemented while president of his college’s Black Student Union. Josh believes strongly that it takes a village to raise a child and that is why Josh is looking to pursue his post graduate studies in secondary education. Josh graduated from Purchase College with a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism and minor in Political Science.
 ASHLEY PRATHERCommon Cents Fellow/ New York City Civic Corps
A native Minnesotan, Ashley joined Common Cents in 2010 as a NYC Civic Corps Fellow and is excited about the opportunity to dedicate a year to promoting civic engagement. She holds a degree in Global Studies and Italian Studies from the University of Minnesota and is currently pursuing a master’s degree in International Educational Development at Teachers College, Columbia University. Before coming to Common Cents, Ashley taught English and expressive arts in Colombia and Peru, and has continued to foster her passion for Latin America and international education by conducting educational research and working on literacy programs here in New York City. Her personal and professional interests include oral history, arts education, ethnographic research, education for social justice, biking around NYC, Spanish, and cooking.
.JPG) GRACIE RIFINOProgram Manager grifino@CommonCents.org Gracie joined Common Cents in August 2007. She graduated from Binghamton University with a Bachelor of Science in Human Development and minors in Spanish and International Studies. Gracie was drawn to Common Cents by her desire to help youth discover their full potential. Much of her work has focused on developing and facilitating youth development programs for students ranging from ages 5 to 21. During the past 2 years at Common Cents she lead a city-wide high school leadership council and developed a cross-age mentoring program while supporting Penny Harvest schools in Queens, Manhattan, Brooklyn and Staten Island. Embarking on her 3rd year, she now manages the day-to-day operations and communications for Penny Harvest schools in NYC and Albany. Her hopes for the upcoming Penny Harvest are for students, coaches and fellow staff to have a meaningful and successful year.  ADAM SEIDELProgram Director aseidel@CommonCents.org Since his involvement in youth development programs as a teenager, Adam has sought to create similar opportunities for others. He’s worked directly with middle and high school students and has extensive experience supervising various youth programs. Adam joined Common Cents in January 2004 as the Community Development Fellow. After a year and a half in this position, he took over the oversight and operations of the NYC/Metro NY Penny Harvest. He is a graduate of Oberlin College. |
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