We are excited to introduce our ENLA 2023 Fellows!

EMERGING NONPROFIT LEADERSHIP ACCELERATOR - 2023 FELLOWS

Alex Alam El Din-Meeks, The Food Pantries for the Capital District 
Alex Alam El Din-Meeks is a passionate food advocate who has been working in community nutrition and food security for eight years. Currently, she is the Special Initiatives Manager at the Food Pantries for the Capital District overseeing their Food as Medicine Program. Alex received a bachelor's in Dietetics, Nutrition and Food Science from the University of Vermont and a Master's in Public Health from the University at Albany. 
Jammella Anderson, The Creative Good/Free Food Fridge Albany
Jammella Anderson (They/Them) is an Albany-based community activist/abolitionist, trauma-informed yoga teacher, doula, and founder of Free Food Fridge Albany, NY. Their experiences with food insecurity, work with food insecure populations, and their knowledge of food deserts in Albany motivated them to start Free Food Fridge Albany. Jammella has a passion for helping people and that has driven all their projects. Through their work, Jammella strives to help people become more comfortable with themselves and learn how to navigate systemic, antiquated systems caused by white supremacy. With Free Food Fridge Albany, Jammella looks to combat food apartheid by providing free fresh food in areas where there is little to no other source. The program also provides education on food justice, mutual aid, and how to rewrite narratives on what it means to be food insecure. 
Chrissie Binney, University at Albany
Chrissie Binney is the Associate Director of Corporate and Foundation Relations at the University at Albany. As a two-time alumna, Chrissie is dedicated to advancing UAlbany's vision to be the nation's leading diverse public research university-providing the leaders, knowledge, and innovations to create a better world. Chrissie spent the first half of her career in annual giving then transitioned into events planning, before landing her current role in the University at Albany Foundation. Her free time is spent playing sports, cooking, advocating for local libraries, and hurrying her husband and daughter out the door for the next activity. 
Cody Bloomfield, Hunger Solutions of New York 
​Cody's heart is in food access. She is honored to be working at Hunger Solutions of New York as a Summer and After School Meals Specialist. Bolstered by a degree in Community and Human Services from SUNY Empire, their top priority is the connection of people to resources. Her rich community organizing background, which features an intersection of tenant advocacy, workers' rights and whole-person health, supports the engagement work she performs at Hunger Solutions. In their free time, they climb rocks and volunteer on the board of Capital Streets, a non-profit advancing bicycling and multimodal transportation in the Capital Region. 
Rossana Coto-Batres, Northeast NY Coalition for Occupational Safety and Health 
Rossana Coto-Batres is the Director of the Northeast NY Coalition for Occupational Safety and Health. She is passionate about working with immigrants, low-wage workers, and underserved communities. She has extensive experience training groups of refugee and immigrant workers on various health and safety topics, and has trained workers on infectious disease hazards and safe relief work following disasters. With an understanding of the whole spectrum of what impacts health, she combines her interest in yoga, meditation, and nutrition to offer Stress and Resilience training, Mental Health During COVID-19 workshops, and yoga/meditation workshops at conferences. She is committed to language justice and loves learning new languages. 
Erin Donahue, South End Children's Cafe
Erin Donahue (she/her) grew up in Greene County, moving to Albany in 2011 to attend the University at Albany where she received a BA in Linguistics and Spanish. Erin serves as the Assistant Director of the Maternity and Early Childhood Foundation, and also works at the South End Children's Cafe as a member of the Kitchen Team and as the Director of Development. Erin has led the Children's Cafe organizational culture shift from charity to mutual aid and solidarity, and is dedicated to working with the community to build an Albany that children deserve. 
Erica Edwards, St. Catherine's Center for Children
Erica Edwards is employed by St. Catherine's Center for Children where she serves as a member of the Quality Assurance team. She has held this position for almost three years and looks forward to growing within the agency. Prior to St. Catherine's, she worked for a non-profit organization for over ten years, her last position as Program Manager serving adults with severe persistent mental illness. She is currently working on her Master's in Human Services with a little less than a year left until completion. She enjoy puzzles and spending time with family. 
Marketa Edwards, Community Rising Project
Marketa Edwards is a skilled chef who is passionate about food justice, looking for ways to build strong communities one healthy meal at a time. Having experienced houselessness and poverty herself, she has been particularly vocal about ways to build power among vulnerable populations, working to support the many women and families who share her struggles. Marketa is current the EiE Campus Projects Director with NYSCASA. In that position she works hard to support the rape crisis program across NYS. Marketa previously worked as a professional organizer with the Katal Center for Health, Equity and Justice. There she dedicated her time to advocating for an end to mass incarceration and the war on drugs, policies that she has seen fracture families and harm youth. Building on that advocacy work, Marketa co-founded and serves as the Executive Director of The Community Rising Project, an organization dedicated to supporting families who are directly impacted by state-sanctioned violence and by involvement in the criminal legal system. 
Maggie Hall, Hope 7 Community Center
Maggie Hall is the Youth Program Director at Hope 7 Community Center in Troy. She earned her bachelor's degree in Childhood Education from SUNY Cortland in 2014. In March 2019, she moved to the Capital Region from Connecticut, where she worked as an elementary school teacher for 5 years. Besides working hard to provide high quality programming for elementary and middle school children, Maggie also enjoys hiking, being in nature, and reading. She lives in East Greenbush with her husband, cat, and dog. 
Genevieve Hudson, United Way of the Greater Capital Region
Genevieve Hudson (she/hers) currently serves as a Relationship Manager at United Way of the Greater Capital Region, where she works with the Resource Development team to engage donors and drive change through collaboration. Previously, she was the Advancement Information Coordinator at University at Albany. With a background in theatre arts administration, customer service, and higher education, her dynamic experience helps her recognize the importance of fostering meaningful connections across nonprofit and for-profit sectors. Genevieve is a lifelong resident of the Capital District and is positively delighted to be a 2023 ENLA Fellow!
Madeline Kreider Carlson, Mayan Hands
Madeline Kreider Carlson is the Executive Director of Mayan Hands, a non-profit social enterprise with offices in Albany and Guatemala, which partners with Maya women artisan cooperatives to bring top quality handmade products to an international market. Madeline is passionate about the transformative potential of art and craft, and has extensive experience in artisan education and grassroots economic development. Madeline has lived in Guatemala and Haiti and speaks Spanish and Haitian Kreyol. She was a 2010-2011 Watson Fellow and has a B.A. in Latin American history and sculpture from Haverford College. Madeline enjoys bike touring, digital illustration, and walks with her rescue dog. 
Shanae Lawrence, City School District of Albany
Shanae Lawrence is a Community School Site Coordinator for the City School District of Albany. She is an advocate and change agent by nature. Shanae is passionate about addressing urban education and human service inequalities. Throughout her career, she has built and fostered positive partnerships with community-based organizations, developed strategic action plans, and designed programs to promote early literacy, increase academic performance and empower families and community members. Shanae genuinely has a heart for people; when she is not serving students, families, and the community through work, she serves as a youth leader at Empire Christian Center. Ultimately, she is committed to transformative actions that will disrupt systematic manners that pose barriers to obtaining access to opportunities to elevate lives. 
Sandra Linnell, CCE Columbia and Greene County
Sandra's love and passion for agriculture has led her on a journey of learning and the ability to move around in various agriculture areas. She started at the John Bowne High School in Flushing, NY as a student in their agriculture program, then SUNY Cobleskill for an Associate's Degree in Ornamental Horticulture Floriculture and a Bachelor's Degree in Plant Science. Sandra has been able to work in a florist shop, various nurseries, organic, native, and sustainable farms, product registrations, and now at her current position at Cornell Cooperative Extension where she strongly aligns with its vision and mission.
Joslyn McArdle, Albany/Schenectady JCCs
Joslyn McArdle holds a bachelor's degree in Public Communications from SUNY Buffalo State. Ms. McArdle has worked in the not-for-profit arena for more than a decade. She believes that giving back to her community is at her core. Ms. McArdle is a member of Times Union Women@Work, has been an Ambassador for the Rensselaer County Regional Chamber of Commerce, and served on the Board of Directors of Joy US Foundation. She considers herself to be a relationship builder within the Capital Region. She currently the Development Associate for the Albany and Schenectady JCCs. 
Tamara McCallum, Siena College Center for Academic Community Engagement 
Tamara McCallum is a native of Mount Vernon, NY. She has worked in education for over 10 years, starting at her former high school- Mt. Vernon High School, and most recently in the Siena College Center for Academic Community Engagement (ACE). Tamara has created postsecondary access and success programs for middle and high school students, connecting them with opportunities for community service and scholarships. She has also helped to connect students of all ages to their creative side, by teaching crochet classes. Tamara received her BA in Liberal studies from SUNY Purchase College. Tamara is passionate about equitable access to higher education and teaching self advocacy. In her current role, she works as the Director of the Bonner Service Leaders program at Siena College and leads the Recruitment, Engagement and Retention initiatives at ACE. 
James Mitchell, Young Futures Company LLC
James Mitchell is a community leader and servant who has served in many spaces! His journey started in the not-for profit sector working with adults to increase their employability and develop new job skills. His work in the career service sector spans over 15 years. In addition to working with individuals to grow their skillset, he collaborated with employers to develop best practices to reduce turnover. In 2015 James founded Young Futures LLC, an institution providing families with an innovative artistic outlet centered on positive social development and educational growth. In 2020, Young Futures developed a curriculum that teaches children Financial Literacy with art.  
Amanda Montenieri, Youth Research Incorporated
Amanda Montenieri currently works as the Program Superviors of the Training and Events Team at Youth Research, Inc. (YRI) in Delmar, NY. YRI is a responsive research, program, and policy organization that supports the New York Office of Children and Family Services (OCFS) and its state and local partners. Amanda has a Bachelors in Business Administration and over 10 years of experience directing and managing programs for a variety of businesses and organizations including those in finance, healthcare, and the nonprofit field. In her free time, you can find her spending time with family. 
Dave Pinkowski, Professional Development Program 
Dave Pinkowski works for the Professional Development Program (PDP) of the University at Albany's Rockefeller College as a Training Program Coordinator. In that role, he supervises trainers and training teams that support state and county workers who facilitate social services programs such as SNAP, Temporary Assistance, Employment and Advancement Services, and HEAP. Dave has lived in Albany since 2000 and is a founding member of the Albany Society for the Advancement of Philanthropy (ASAP). Dave holds a B.A. from St. Lawerence University and a Ph.D in Philosophy from the University at Albany.  
Mari Shopsis, Albany Fund for Education 
Mari Shopsis has been the Executive Director of the Albany Fund for Education since 2018. Mari grew up in New York City. After graduating from the University of Chicago, she worked in the Education Department at the Museum of Science and Industry and the Chicago Botanic Garden and earned a master's degree in museum education from Bank Street College of Education. In 2007 she moved to the Capital Region to serve as the Education Director at the Rensselaer County Historical Society, developing new school programs based on museum artifacts and historical documents. She then turned her attention to non-profit development, working for Capital Roots and the Palace Theatre and was thrilled to merge her two career interests by returning to her roots in connecting students to the arts and hands-on-learning at the Albany Fund for Education. 
Jess Tanguay, Prevent Child Abuse NY
Jessica serves as the Associate Director of Prevention Programs at Prevent Child Abuse NY and previously worked as the Team Leader for Healthy Schenectady Families, coordinated perinatal education programs at Bellevue Hospital, provided case management for people living with HIV & AIDS, and as a counselor for Planned Parenthood. Jessica currently serves as a board member for BirthNet a birth justice organization and the Center for Women in Government and Civil Society.