Staff Bios

Dawn Chávez, Boston Teen Environmental Network Coordinator

Dawn serves to facilitate interactions and the sharing of resources among private and public sector organizations and professionals in the environmental, youth development and job training fields, in order to train and deploy Boston teens in meaningful apprenticeship positions.  Prior to her current position she was the Director of the Manice Education Center, a residential environmental education center in the Berkshires for inner city students from New York. She is a graduate of Cornell University and holds a Masters of Environmental Education from Montclair University. Dawn is pursuing a doctoral degree in Environmental Studies from Antioch New England Graduate School.

Helen Christou, Boston Teen Environmental Network Assistant Coordinator

Helen Christou assists the Boston Environmental Network Coordinator with the tasks related to building connections among private and public sector organizations and professionals in the environmental, youth development, and job training fields in order to build youth environmental employment opportunities. Helen has worked with and managing programs for children, adolescents, and the elderly in a variety of settings. At Emmanuel College she earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Studio Arts with a specialization in Art Therapy. In Boston, Helen worked with The Rogerson House as Assistant Director of Therapeutic Recreation. From 2001-2007 she worked with the YMCA of Greater Boston, First as Teen Outreach Director and then as Senior Program Director.

Mariel Gonzales, Vice President and Chief Operating Officer

Mariel oversees Boston Beyond’s operations, finances, communications, network initiatives, and national partnerships. She has a long history in nonprofit management and community development. Prior to joining Boston Beyond, Mariel was the Executive Director of Bird Street Community Center in the Uphams Corner neighborhood of Boston, where she was one of the founders of GOTCHA, a neighborhood network of providers and youth employment. She has worked for Baltimore Advisors (an affiliate of the Initiative for a Competitive Inner City), the San Diego Chapter of the American Red Cross, Boston Living Center, and the Conservation Law Foundation. She has also served on the Boards of the MBA Nonprofit Connection, Dudley Street Neighborhood Initiative, and African American Federation of Greater Boston. Mariel earned a Bachelor of Arts in Asian Studies from Dartmouth College and a Master of Business Administration from the Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley.

Patricia McGuiness, Knowledge Projects Manager

Patricia assists the Director of Knowledge Management with the coordination and implementation of various data and evaluation projects. For the past three years, she conducted policy research and program evaluation of state education programs at the South Carolina Educational Policy Center. Patricia has a range of clinical experience including, most recently, social worker at a Department of Juvenile Justice facility in South Carolina, individual and group therapy with college students at the University of South Carolina, and volunteer for the Families and Schools Together (F.A.S.T.) program in Columbia, South Carolina. Patricia graduated from Stonehill College in 1999 with a Bachelor of Arts in Criminal Justice and Psychology. She then completed a Masters of Social Work in 2004 at the University of South Carolina.

Janette McKinnon, Deputy Director of Partners for Student Success

Janette has over 10 years of experience in the out-of-school and human services field. In her most recent role at the Department of Human Service Programs of the City of Cambridge, Janette had overall responsibility for the management and oversight of approximately 65 staff in six National Association for the Education of Young Children accredited and state licensed preschools, seven state licensed afterschools and numerous citywide family support services. Janette also spent several years at ABCD, Parents United for Child Care and Boston Centers for Youth & Families where she oversaw the Boston Community Learning Center Initiative.

Janette has a strong commitment to children and youth and to creating opportunities for equity and access to quality programs. Her demonstrated abilities to create and maintain strong partnerships that enable high quality programming will be an asset to Boston Beyond. Janette attended Northeastern University and has her Master of Management degree from Cambridge College.

Whitney Prior, Administrative Assistant 

Whitney offers administrative and project support to Boston Beyond staff.  Prior to joining Boston After School & Beyond, Whitney worked for the Supported Employment Program at Boston College, a program which incorporates developmentally disabled adults into a competitive work environment. She also worked with children with special needs as a volunteer in the Infant/Toddler Program at the Perkins School for the Blind.  She has served nationally and internationally as a volunteer with Hands On Disaster Response, a nonprofit organization dedicated to timely disaster response and relief.  Whitney, a native of Portland, Maine, received her Bachelor of Arts in Human Development with a minor in Faith, Peace and Justice from Boston College.

Caitlin Ryan, Partners for Student Success Manager

Caitlin oversees the PSS quality elements and manages the PSS capacity fund.  Before coming to Boston Beyond, she served as Director and Director of Programs at Community Bridges Beacon, one of the San Francisco Beacon Initiative’s eight centers. Prior to that, she managed a new collaborative program of the Legal Aid Society of San Mateo County to provide legal services to families around issues affecting children’s health.  After volunteering at an orphanage in Central America for a year, Caitlin is fluent in Spanish.  She has a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Brown University.

Adam Shyevitch, Director of Teen Initiative

Adam came to Boston After School & Beyond with over five years of urban development experience, gained while serving as Project Manager for Housing Investments, Inc. in Boston, Massachusetts, and Development Project Manager for The Community Builders, Inc. also in Boston.  Adam also served as a consultant for various firms across Boston from 1998-2000.  Adam earned a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy and Religion, graduating Magna Cum Laude from Colgate University.  He then went on to a Master of Theological Studies from the Harvard University Divinity School, and a Master of Business Administration in Nonprofit Management and Finance from Boston University.

Vickie Stringfellow, Director of Knowledge Management

Vickie coordinates and implements data and evaluation projects that help Boston Beyond and the OST field better serve youth. This involves capturing key information about OST programming in the city and country; identifying gaps between supply and demand; tracking participation in programs; and other projects under development such as the BOSTONavigator.  Vickie comes with extensive research experience from the University of Massachusetts Boston’s Center for Survey Research.  There her job included developing study designs, data collection, and analysis of social science research projects that have been published and presented at professional conferences. Vickie has also worked hands-on with patients with behavioral disorders at East Boston’s Sunrise/Mediplex Skilled Nursing and Rehabilitation Center. Vickie graduated from Bard College with a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology.