Through United Way’s Volunteer Impact Partnership Manager Corps program, participating King County organizations partner with a VIP Manager Corps (VMC) Member to help develop the tools and systems needed to more effectively engage with volunteers and community members. Together, these participating organizations and VMC Members identify volunteer program needs, implement projects, track results, and ensure that volunteer program improvements are sustained long-term.
Below are the short biographies of the VMC Members involved in the VIP Manager Corps program. Learn more about the VIP Manager Corps program and how you can get involved.
2015 Fall-Spring VMC Members
Andrea Mosko – Skate Journeys
Andrea is currently the executive director of the Saint Mary’s Nursery School (SMNS) - a non-profit in Philadelphia, PA. SMNS is a 501c3 corporation that employs 50 full and part time staff while serving 150 students and their families in our day-care, pre-K, and K-5 after-school and summer camp programs. Her family relocated to Seattle in July of 2015 for her husband’s new employment at the University of Washington and an executive search for her replacement is in its advanced stages.
As the founder of the nursery school as a non-profit corporation, Andrea has learned from the ground up how to establish and grow an organization, be its visionary, steward its mission, advocate for its members, lead, develop and retain quality and qualified staff and contribute to the leadership of the community and the industry. She is well versed in non-profit law and finance, is able to develop, recommend and manage a multi-million dollar budget, manage a staff of greater than 50 and work with a strong nonprofit board as a member of the governing team.
Prior to becoming the executive director, she earned a bachelor’s in British Literature with dual minors in Mathematics and Biochemistry from the University of Arizona in 1994. Later she earned a management certificate from the Wharton School of Business at University of Pennsylvania and was a business manager for University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine departments, managing $12M in annual income, grants and endowments.
Barbara Zito – St. Stephen Housing Association
Barbara is looking forward to helping SSHA build a sustainable volunteer plan that engages and nourishes their volunteer base while serving the homeless families who rely on their support. SSHA has a strong core volunteer base that includes some of the founding members, who deeply believe in the mission and have supported it for many years. I am impressed with the caliber and endurance of the volunteer base that have brought them to where they are today. Barbara is also excited to work in a professional environment and look forward to learning many lessons from the 2015/16 VMC cohort as well as with the support of 501 Commons and United Way.
Barbara has been employed in the for-profit sector during all of her working life. Recently, she worked for Verizon Wireless in their large business sales department, working with C level and entire employee base of fortune 500 companies. Previously she has volunteered with many different organizations including but not limited to Big Brothers Big Sisters of Puget Sound, Cedar River Salmon Run, the Bishop’s Committee for the Environment, and as a grant writer with the Capitol Hill Youth Center. She earned her MBA in Sustainable Business from Pinchot University, a certificate in Fundraising Management from the University of Washington and a BS in Business Admin from Portland State University.
Caitlin Oberst – DisAbility Rights Washington
Caitlin is the Owner and Principal Consultant at Ethic Works, LLC, a full-service human resources consulting firm that offers compliance support, policy development, and outsourced HR services to nonprofits, social venture enterprises, and other businesses.
Prior to founding Ethic Works in September 2015, Caitlin spent 5 years working as a labor and employment attorney at the law firm of Stradley Ronon Stevens & Young, LLP in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Caitlin has also worked in the nonprofit sector, serving as a Volunteer Coordinator at Little Brothers/Friends of the Elderly in Dublin, Ireland. Caitlin has volunteered with numerous nonprofits over the years, including Habitat for Humanity, the Ronald McDonald House and, most recently, the Support Center for Child Advocates, an organization that provides legal assistance and social service advocacy for abused and neglected children.
Through the VIP Manager Corps program, Caitlin will be working with DisAbility Rights Washington, a private, non-profit organization that protects the rights of people with disabilities statewide. Caitlin is excited to help develop and grow DisAbility Rights Washington’s volunteer program and engage new volunteers to advance the dignity, equality, and self-determination of people with disabilities.
Caitlin holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Notre Dame and a JD from Temple University Law School. She is also certified as a Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) with the HR Certification Institute.
David Skye – Lambert House
David recently moved to Seattle after working as the Living Dharma Volunteer Program Coordinator at Tara Mandala, a Buddhist retreat center in southern Colorado. David recruited and managed volunteers for two other Buddhist organizations, and has overseen volunteers in his capacity as outreach educator in a variety of LGBT-focused organizations.
Using his experience as a member of the VMC, David plans to begin his own consulting business for nonprofits, combining his passion for social issues with his ability to assist organizations better operate in accordance with their mission and values. He currently helps run the Queer Dharma Group at the Seattle Shambhala Center and volunteers with Gay City.
David holds an M.Div. in Applied Buddhism, with a focus in interreligious social justice. His internship was as a Religious Leader Organizing Fellow at Clergy and Laity United for Economic Justice in Los Angeles.
Edwin Beatty – SHAG Community Life Foundation
Edwin is the VMC Member with SHAG (Senior Housing Assistance Group), working with the Community Life Coordinator to develop a volunteer handbook, assess volunteer needs and opportunities, develop a plan to recruit and manage at least six new volunteers including filling two skills based positions. He is working with both the Community Life Coordinator, the Executive Director of SHAG and other staff personnel to gather information on SHAG residents engaged in volunteering, resident interest in volunteer opportunities and local community volunteer needs.
Edwin worked for four years on staff at Plymouth Congregational Church collaborating with and coordinating various church volunteer service groups. As a member of University Friends Meeting, he has served on the Peace and Social Concerns Sub-Committee on Homelessness and also on the program planning and outreach team of the University District Conversation on Homelessness – a monthly forum of service providers, advocates, educators and community members. He also works with the Friends Committee on Washington Public Policy, lobbying in Olympia and Seattle for funding, legislation and administrative actions to address homelessness, affordable housing and economic equity and opportunity issues. He is a member of Faith Action Network (FAN) and volunteers on their lobbying and education initiatives.
Edwin is a freelance writer, engaged in blogging and reporting on homelessness and other social issues in Seattle and in other cities. He is a photographer, videographer, multimedia maker and documentary producer / director whose work has been seen locally on cable and on PBS. Edwin believes in the importance of volunteering and has witnessed the significant impact that volunteers can have in communities, and he’s very excited to be part of the VIP Manager Corps and the opportunity to work with SHAG. Edwin holds undergraduate degrees from Johns Hopkins in Literature and Art History, from New Mexico State University in Film and Television Production and a Masters in Professional Studies from the Interactive Telecommunications Program in the School of Arts at New York University.
Jim McCue – Urban Family
Jim made a recent move to the Seattle area after two years of teaching and coaching in Mississippi. Jim holds a B.S. in Finance and B.A. in Economics from Saint Joseph's University, and will pursue a Master of Public Administration at the University of Washington starting this fall. In addition to this role, Jim will be a Title I Tutor for the Seattle Public School District, working with students on a one-on-one basis in the areas of reading, writing, and mathematics through supplemental support.
Jim looks forward to learning more about the community of Skyway and Renton in his capacity as a VMC Member, and helping Urban Family encourage underserved youth to develop a voice as public participants. In his free time, Jim enjoys long-distance running, keeping in contact with his former runners in Canton, MS, and spending time with family.
Joyce St. Jean - Helping Link
Joyce St. Jean is an effective leader and program manager. She has a wealth of knowledge and experience in the nonprofit and for-profit sectors. She has owned & operated two businesses, an auction business and a General Store in Vermont. In the nonprofit sector she has been a program manager for numerous organizations including the Student Conservation Association, Rockingham Community Land Trust, and Hilltop House Residential Care Home. Her most recent position was as a Business Accounts Manager with Vermont Association Business Industry and Rehabilitation in economic and workforce development.
Joyce has volunteered in a variety of capacities including serving two terms as an AmeriCorps member, being a big sister with Big Brother Big Sisters program, and a “pee cycler” with the Rich Earth Institute, whose mission is dedicated to “advancing and promoting human waste as a resource.”
Joyce received her Nonprofit Management Certificate from Marlboro College Graduate School and holds a bachelor’s of science in business management from Union Institute & University at Vermont College. Joyce is also a member of Marlboro College’s Advanced Leadership Institute for Growing Nonprofits.
Joyce recently moved to Seattle and is excited to serve as a member of VIP Manager Corps. She will be working with Helping Link a Vietnamese-American organization whose mission is “to empower Vietnamese-Americans’ social adjustment, family stability, and self-sufficiency while nurturing community service and youth leaders.” She looks forward to helping them grow as a sustainable nonprofit organization.
Kate Riley – Transitional Resources
Kate Riley recently retired from the University of Washington where she worked in a number of senior administrative positions. Her last job was program manager for the Global Support Program that provided administrative support for the University’s worldwide research activities. In this position, she worked closely with the University’s HIV-AIDS research efforts in Kenya to create a Kenyan non-profit. Kate provided quality improvement oversight, program development, facilitation and training to departments across the UW campus.
Currently, Kate serves on the board of the Camano Arts Association and works closely with the scholarship committee to raise funds for promising students to attend art training after graduating from high school. She also volunteers in the garden steward program run by the Washington Park Arboretum.
Volunteering has been a lifelong value of Kate’s. She’s excited to have the opportunity to work with Transitional Resources in their work to create a community for people living with major mental illness.
Kate received a Ph.D. in Educational Psychology from the University of Washington. She also completed the UW’s certificate in Editing in 2013.
Kellianne Lauer – Vietnamese Friendship Association
Kellianne is the VMC Member serving with Vietnamese Friendship Association, an organization that works to advance equity in education, foster civic engagement, and advocate for Vietnamese and other refugee and immigrant communities. In addition to her current role as a VMC Member, Kellianne works as a Team Development Specialist for AFS Intercultural Programs and is a Grants Committee Member for Friends of Armenia and SEAPAX.
Kellianne received a Bachelors in Political Science from the College of Saint Benedict in Minnesota and served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Armenia. Kellianne has enjoyed working with volunteers in many different capacities and is excited to work with VFA’s team!
Lauren Holstein – Coalition for Refugees from Burma
Lauren is a recent Seattle transplant, and currently enrolled as an MPA student at the University of Washington’s Evans School of Public Policy and Governance. Currently, Lauren works as a tutor with K-12 students at several schools around Seattle. After receiving her Bachelor of Arts for Berry College in 2012, Lauren lived and worked abroad in South Korea and France for two years. There she discovered her passion for education and youth development.
A life-long volunteer with a love of community involvement, Lauren is very interested in learning more about how non-profits serve the community, and is excited to help the Coalition for Refugees from Burma grow their volunteer base.
Nicole Bayard – Global to Local
Nicole is the VMC Member for Global to Local, a non-profit dedicated to implementing global health strategies in the underserved communities of South King County. Holding a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree from Pacific Lutheran University, she is committed to health equity across diverse populations.
Nicole has been involved with non-profits throughout her educational and professional career, where she has taken on roles in health promotion, program management, and donor relations. She is excited to be joining Global to Local in their volunteer outreach and engagement efforts. Nicole currently works at a family practice in Seattle and can be seen in her free time running, biking, or throwing a disc with her ultimate frisbee team.
Vennela Challa – LCSNW International Counseling & Community Services
Vennela is currently a Customer Experience Manager at Amazon. Before moving to Seattle in May, Vennela lived and worked in Houston where she volunteered with StandUp for Kids providing street outreach, and with various industry organizations such as SPE, IPAA and SWE in organizing and leading STEM (Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics) activities for middle and high school students.
Vennela is passionate about volunteering, and has always sought out opportunities outside of work to contribute and make an impact. From her industry and volunteering background Vennela has experience with program management, project planning and results delivery.
Vennela found the VIP Manager Corps program, aimed towards helping organizations get started on the path toward building sustainable volunteer programs, to be a unique and extremely beneficial way to help an organization beyond front end volunteerism. She is very excited to have the opportunity to work with the team at Lutheran Community Services Northwest International Counselling and Community Services. Vennela holds a PhD in Mechanical Engineering from Clarkson University.
2015 Summer VMC Members
Kate Bandzmer - Brain Injury Alliance of Washington
Kate consults on communications and outreach at a number of nonprofits and social venture startups, and is currently the Marketing Manager at Stockbox Neighborhood Grocery, a small-format grocery store that operates in urban areas to offer fresh produce, meal solutions and grocery staples. Having worked and taught at a variety of farms, public lands, and home backyards, she can usually be found where ecosystems, food systems, and nonprofits collide.
Kate has participated for over fifteen years of dedicated volunteering at nonprofits to serve communities in Canada, Massachusetts, and Washington state. Most recently, she has volunteered at Impact Hub Seattle, Pacific Science Center, and Seattle Tilth.
Kate is highly committed to maintaining healthy, sustainable nonprofits in Seattle, and believes that strong volunteer programming is the backbone of many great organizations. She knows firsthand that nonprofits have the power to transform individuals and communities through volunteerism. Her role as a VMC member at the Brain Injury Alliance of Washington will serve to help others flourish as volunteers and volunteer managers.
Kate is honored to hold a Certificate in Nonprofit Management from the University of Washington, which she obtained in May 2015. She can’t wait to apply and share the skills she’s gained from her nonprofit community.
Erika Chen - America SCORES Seattle
Erika holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Miami in Business Administration. She is currently pursuing her Masters of Public Administration at the University of Washington’s Evans School of Public Policy and Governance and will begin the Non-Profit Management Certificate Program this Autumn.
In addition to being a full-time student, Erika is the Operations Manager for Hommage, a modern, creative restaurant located on the Fremont Canal. She also is the Program Coordination Intern for Invest in Youth, an organization which exists to enhance the academic abilities, self-confidence and life prospects of struggling learners in Seattle Public Schools.
Erika has been accepted to the Foster School’s Board Fellows Program. She will be a non-voting member of the Board of Directors for Salish Sea Expeditions, an organization that provides innovative marine science education programs that teach students scientific principles while they navigate Puget Sound on a 61' sailing vessel.
Erika is passionate about youth development and service delivery through non-profit organizations and is excited to have the opportunity to enhance the volunteer program of America SCORES Seattle through VIP Manager Corps.
Kady Fisk - Invest in Youth
Kady recently walked for graduation at Seattle University’s Albers School of Business & Economics. She is going back in fall to complete her last three classes and then will receive her Bachelors in Business with a Major in Management and a Minor in Innovation and Entrepreneurship. She plans to move into project management or consulting in either non-profit or profit.
A large passion of hers is working with non-profit organizations in her local community. Kady has volunteered for the last 4-5 years for a guild at Seattle Children’s Hospital. As a chair, she has held fund raising events for the guild to raise money for their annual camp for kids. She also donates food as often as possible to Northwest Harvest, the local food bank. Currently, Kady is working on a diaper drop-bin service to get more diapers to Northwest for their baby/family day.
In her free time, Kady enjoys dancing, running, camping, exploring the city and new foods. She likes traveling and enjoys exploring new places. She continues to stop in at Northwest Harvest to donate food and volunteer her time as well as the guild at Seattle Children’s hospital.
Megan Innes - Chief Seattle Club
Megan is a recent transplant to Seattle after living in NYC and working with nonprofits in the city for over ten years. She holds an M.A. from NYU in Museum Studies as well as a B.A. from Fordham University in Anthropology and Media Studies. She's worked in museums such as: The New York Botanical Garden as their Volunteer Coordinator, the Intrepid Sea Air & Space Museum as an Educator and Digital Education Coordinator, and at the American Museum of Natural History.
Her current projects include consulting with nonprofit volunteer programs as well as working at the Museum of Flight in their Digital Learning department. Thinking about ways institutions and organizations can create more engaging and accessible public programs, from museum educational programs to online curriculum and community-building is at the root of her career.
Megan is excited to be in her new PNW home, and looks forward to working with more nonprofits in the future.
Jennifer Jerabek - Amara
Jennifer is volunteering this summer at Amara, an organization that provides a home for every child by creating and supporting stable, loving homes for vulnerable children. Prior to starting work at Amara, Jennifer finished her master’s degree in public affairs at the Evans School at the University of Washington.
In addition to this role, Jennifer also volunteers with PEPS, the Program for Early Parent Support, which prepares families to cope with life stresses by creating neighborhood-based parent support groups.
Jennifer has fifteen years of advocacy work and government affairs experience working with non-profits, local and federal government agencies. She is looking forward to using her skills and experience at Amara’s volunteer program through VIP Manager Corps.
Jennifer holds two bachelor’s degrees from the University of Washington in Community and Environmental Planning and Geography in addition to her master’s degree from the Evans School. She is currently seeking volunteer experiences and a career in advocacy work with Seattle area non-profits.
Jordan Wildish - Youth in Focus
Jordan finished an AmeriCorps service year with City Year Seattle/King County. His position included tutoring and mentoring 3rd grade students in a Spanish/English dual immersion school, as well as facilitating whole school programs. Jordan will begin a graduate program with the University of Evans School of Public Affairs in the Fall, pursuing an MPA with a focus on Nonprofit Managment.
Prior to his AmeriCorps year Jordan worked as a volunteer coordinator with Willamette University for three years, and has had a lifelong interest in volunteering with youth development and environmental stewardship.
Jordan is excited about the VMC program as a way to engage and support Seattle nonprofits. He believes it will be an excellent way for him to transition from AmeriCorps to graduate school.
2014 VMC Members
The short biographies of the VMC Members from the 2014 VIP Manager Corps cohort.