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Our work strengthens emerging adults and evolving workplaces

Empowering both people and workplaces by fostering skills, confidence, and meaningful connections that drive long-term success.
Vision

PYD emphasizes the need for a holistic ecosystem where both youth and institutions are aligned, ready, and resourced to thrive together

Mission

We Unlock Potential.

To prepare young people with disabilities for meaningful, self directed lives and to help employers build workplaces where people communicate clearly, work efficiently, and feel supported

Our History

The Impact in Every Number

Years

Lives

%

High School
Graduation Rate

%

Commitment to Goals
Impact Report (PDF)
Other Reports

Board of Directors

Officers

 Jean M. Joy President
Andrew E. Bentley Treasurer
Jay S. Krish Clerk

Members

 Lori Andrews John Phelan
Oanh Bui Mark Rocca
J. Van Gurley Pankaj Vaish
Beth Morahan, Esq.

Passionate People, Lasting Impact

Lynn Gonsalves

Executive Director
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Courtney Brown

Community Outreach Manager
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Chris Carpenter

Administration & Finance Manager
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Kate Christensen

Career Readiness Coordinator
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Skye Clark

Career Readiness Program Manager
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Becca Cronin

Director of Operations
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Joanna Dumas

Assistant Director of Grants and Data Management
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Ari Fleisher

Director of Youth Programs
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Kristin Humphrey

Workforce Inclusion Director
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Ryan Kell

Career Readiness Program Coordinator
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Micah Luen

Mentoring Coordinator
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Nicholas Manley

Director of Online Learning
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Carol Murray

Youth Leadership Manager
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Ngina Shillingford

Program Operations Coordinator
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Mare Silva

Marketing and Development Manager
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Kristin Sullivan

Career Readiness Program Coordinator
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Eliza Barba-Wheelock

Career Readiness Program Coordinator
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Benjamin Whidden

Assistant Manager of Outreach & Engagement
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The hands that strengthen our community

Partner with Us
Liberty Mutual
Citizens Bank
Denny's Hungry for Education
Mildred's Dream Foundation
Cummings Foundation
Mass Mentoring
PWC

Live, Online & Blended Training

Learning

Lynn Gonsalves

Executive Director

She, Her, Hers

Phone: 617-556-4075 x163
Email: lgonsalves@pyd.org

Lynn Gonsalves is an accomplished executive leader, Occupational Therapist, and scholar with a lifelong commitment to advancing opportunity and equity for transition-age youth with disabilities. As Executive Director of Partners for Youth with Disabilities (PYD), Lynn brings deep expertise in nonprofit leadership, systems change, and cross-sector collaboration to advance PYD’s mission of empowering young people to thrive.

Throughout her career, Lynn has worked at the intersection of direct service, research, public policy, and nonprofit leadership. She has partnered with organizations, educators, employers, and policymakers to design inclusive programs, shape workforce and disability policy, and build strong public–private partnerships that create lasting impact for youth and families.

Early in her career, Lynn developed a nationally recognized School-to-Career program providing paid internships and career pathways for youth with emotional, behavioral, and neurodivergent disabilities. The program was recognized by the U.S. Department of Labor as a national best practice for its innovative design and measurable outcomes.

Lynn earned her doctorate from the Heller School for Social Policy at Brandeis University, where her research focused on social capital and healthy transitions to adulthood. She later served as Senior Program Consultant to the Assistant Secretary of Disability Policy and Programs at the Massachusetts Executive Office of Health and Human Services, supporting statewide strategies that integrated disability, health, and employment policy.

Prior to assuming the Executive Director role, Lynn served as Interim Executive Director and Board President of PYD, providing steady leadership, strengthening organizational strategy, and deepening PYD’s impact. Known for her collaborative leadership style, strategic vision, and unwavering commitment to youth empowerment, Lynn is dedicated to building an inclusive future where all young people have the supports and opportunities they need to succeed.

Courtney Brown

Community Outreach Manager

She, Her, Hers

Phone: 617-556-4075 x147
Email: cbrown@pyd.org

Courtney Brown joined Partners for Youth with Disabilities as the Community Outreach Manager in 2022. Prior to working at PYD, she held a variety of volunteer positions in both her hometown in South Carolina and Providence, Rhode Island. Courtney has devoted her career to supporting efforts to utilize community engagement as a means of social change in areas of social activism, disability justice, and reproductive rights.

Courtney graduated with a degree in Medical Anthropology from Brown University. She enjoys finding new methods to utilize anthropological perspective to build and sustain partnerships between community organizations and the public through reciprocal engagement, research, and culturally competent leadership. It has been through these means that Courtney developed a passion for working in direct service roles.

Outside of PYD, Courtney likes to spend time crafting, reading, and connecting with friends and family. She is a self-proclaimed caffeine aficionado and loves to relax in local cafes.

Chris Carpenter

Administration & Finance Manager

He, Him, His

Phone: 617-556-4075 x124
Email: ccarpenter@pyd.org

Chris Carpenter has over 20 years of financial control experience in both not-for-profit and for profit settings, and manages the financial, technical, and administrative operations of Partners for Youth with Disabilities.

Before joining PYD, Chris performed a similar finance and administration role for the Boston Preservation Alliance, an historic preservation advocacy organization. Prior to his transition into the not-for-profit environment, Chris was employed with FleetBoston Financial and predecessor institutions holding a variety of staff and management positions within the Corporate Audit function.

He has a Bachelor of Arts degree from Tufts University.

Kate Christensen

Career Readiness Coordinator

She, her, hers

Phone: 617-556-4075 x159
Email: kchristensen@pyd.org

Kate is a Career Readiness Coordinator at Partners for Youth with Disabilities. She is currently pursuing a degree in Art Therapy from Lesley University. Prior to working at PYD, Kate was a therapeutic paraprofessional at Public Schools of Brookline. In her free time, Kate enjoys creating art and playing guitar. She is passionate about expressive therapies and bringing support services to schools.

Skye Clark

Career Readiness Program Manager

She, her, hers

Phone: 617-556-4075 x108
Email: sclark@pyd.org

Originally from Seattle, Skye is excited to join the PYD team as the Career Readiness Program Manager. Skye studied Sociology and Criminology at Gonzaga University, with a minor in Solidarity and Social Justice.

After graduation, Skye served for a year with AmeriCorps designing and implementing mentorship programs to connect university students with previously unhoused youth. Skye spent the 2023-24 school year teaching in Spain, where she expanded her perspective on social justice to a global scale.

Her drive to support local youth with disabilities stems from her passion for sustainable youth-centric programs that strengthen communities through the power of connection.

In her free time, Skye loves to get outside, play ice hockey, read, and explore new places and meet new people.

Becca Cronin

Director of Operations

She, her, hers

Phone: 617-556-4075 x131
Email: rcronin@pyd.org

Becca Cronin joined PYD in the summer of 2019 and is the Director of Operations. Before this, she was the Career Readiness Program Manager for 4 years. Prior to working at PYD, she worked in education as a Pre-K Teacher and as a Special Education Aide. Becca has always had a passion for helping others. She particularly enjoys helping young people grow and develop into strong and confident individuals. She continues to be passionate about social justice and advocacy.

Becca holds a Master’s Degree in Nonprofit Management from Lesley University and a Bachelor’s Degree in Elementary Education from Saint Anselm College. She found her love for service during her time at Saint Anselm College, where she spent countless hours per week volunteering in after school programs and soup kitchens.

In her free time, Becca likes to spend time with family and friends, especially her little brother, Conor, and niece, Avery. She is also an avid Patriots fan and has a love for country music!

Joanna Dumas

Assistant Director of Grants and Data Management
She, her, hers

Phone: 617-556-4075 x127
Email: jdumas@pyd.org

Joanna is the Youth Services Lead Administrator at Partners for Youth with Disabilities. She has over 4 years of experience working with adults and youth with disabilities, and over 8 years working with teens and young adults in educational programming.

Joanna’s personal mission aligns well with the mission of PYD: to help others reach their full potential. She applies her mission to all levels with whom she interacts and serves: youth, teammates, partners, and community organizations. Joanna received her Master’s of Science in Health and Human Services, Family Science option at Montana State University in Bozeman, MT. Having two close family members with disabilities gives her a unique family perspective to complement her professional experience.

A New Hampshire native, Joanna has lived in Vermont, Montana, and now Massachusetts. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her daughter and husband, as well as Newfoundland Lily and cat Wickett. On weekends during the summer, you will find her at her cabin in Northern New Hampshire (Errol) enjoying the woods and on the lookout for moose.

Ari Fleisher

Director of Youth Programs
She, Her, Hers

Phone: 617-556-4075 x171
Email: afleisher@pyd.org

Ari Fleisher joined PYD in 2026 and brings a deep commitment to inclusive design, community-building, and youth agency. With nearly two decades of experience in education and youth programming, Ari’s work centers on Universal Design for Learning (UDL), Social Emotional Learning (SEL), and Professional Learning as tools for building community, deepening a sense of belonging, and expanding opportunities for all learners.

Across her career, Ari has developed, facilitated, and scaled programs in classrooms, out-of-school-time settings, nonprofits, and higher education. She has partnered with students, educators, and leaders nationwide through roles in Boston Public Schools, the YMCA of Greater Boston, CAST, and the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Ari is passionate about building strong, collaborative teams and believes that “every system is perfectly designed to get the results it gets." She believes that it’s time to start designing differently so we get a world all young people deserve.

Outside of PYD, Ari enjoys reading, being outside, and spending time with her family; her two young daughters constantly keep her amazed, delighted, and on her toes.

Kristin Humphrey

Workforce Inclusion Director
She, her, hers

Phone: 617-556-4075 x121
Email: khumphrey@pyd.org

Kristin Humphrey, Workforce Inclusion Director and Director of the NDMC, oversees our workforce inclusion trainings and fellowships and the National Disability Mentoring Coalition. A strong proponent of mentoring, she has been involved with mentoring for over a decade, beginning with her role as a volunteer mentor. She has worked with youth with disabilities for the past fifteen years and founded a club at Connecticut College that facilitated group mentoring for siblings of youth with disabilities.

She co-authored the manuscript, “Expanding Horizons: A Pilot Mentoring Program Linking College/Graduate Students and Teens with ASD,” which was published in the Journal of Clinical Pediatrics in 2015. She has presented regionally and nationally on the topics of mentoring and inclusion.

Kristin graduated magna cum laude from Connecticut College with a BA in Psychology and was a selected scholar for the Holleran Center’s Program in Community Action and Public Policy. She holds a Master’s in Public Administration from Clark University and a graduate certificate in Human Service Management from Clark University.

An avid football fan, she has played charity flag football for eight years through RivAlz. RivAlz is a nationwide women’s flag-football league dedicated to advancing the care, support and research efforts of the Alzheimer’s Association.

Ryan Kell

Career Readiness Program Coordinator
He, Him, His

Phone: 617-556-4075 x133
Email: rkell@pyd.org

Ryan is the Career Readiness Program Coordinator at Partners for Youth with Disabilities. Prior to working at PYD, Ryan worked in various direct care roles at several programs for people with disabilities on the North Shore. He enjoys meeting participants and learning how to best support them lead fulfilling and happy lives.

Ryan has a strong belief in helping others and lifelong learning. In his prior roles, he enjoyed helping participants develop stronger social skills, coping skills, and employment skills. He especially enjoyed accompanying participants on community outings, running a communication skills group, and organizing an Improv Comedy group for participants.

In his free time, he enjoys spending time with friends and family, writing, reading, and spending summer days at the beach or lakes. He likes to explore the city, go out dancing, and play softball for fun.

Micah Luen

Mentoring Coordinator
He, They

Phone: 617-556-4075 x136
Email: mluen@pyd.org

Micah Luen is the Mentoring Coordinator at Partners for Youths with Disabilities. Prior to working at PYD, they worked with folks experiencing chronic homelessness as a housing navigator at HomeStart, Inc. Three years of working one-on-one with homeless and disabled youths and adults has taught them a lot about the intersectionality of advocacy and social justice and has helped them realize their passion in uplifting and empowering marginalized communities.

Born and raised in New York City before moving to Connecticut for college and then relocating to Boston post-grad, Micah’s first job was working at a small clinic that served low-income youths with accessible mental health services. Working as a youth advocate to disabled youths, while being a disabled youth, was an eye opening experience and has left a lasting impression on them as they build their professional life.

Micah has a BA in Art from Connecticut College, and when they are not working, they enjoy cooking, drawing, playing video games, bird watching and photography, and taking care of their plants. They have a rabbit named Hopkins and two leopard geckos named Polly and Marybelles.

Nicholas Manley

Director of Online Learning
He, Him, His

Phone: 617-556-4075 x155
Email: nmanley@pyd.org

Joining PYD in 2023, Nick Manley is a Sr-level educational technology professional with 10+ yrs. experience in end-to-end digital strategy and delivery. With a passion for education, he has co-founded online schools in the US and Singapore and has been a professor of Media Production for 10 years teaching at Harvard, Emerson College and Texas A&M. He has an MFA in Media Arts from Emerson College.

With instructional experience at every level and as a lecturer at Harvard’s Department of Continuing Education, Nick Manley has a proven track record in instructional design, leadership, and course execution for all learner types. He has received letters of commendation and multiple awards for his courses and community engagement.

Nick has extensive experience in synchronous & asynchronous curriculum design and management, online course development, universal design for learning (UDL), and utilizing emerging educational technologies in Europe, the US and Asia.

As an Assistant Professor at Texas A&M Corpus Christi, he co-developed a program of community building for media production students, fostering support in technical education, career advancement, and establishing leadership on media projects while bringing diverse voices to an underserved population in South Texas.

As a co-founder of two online schools in Singapore, he acted as CEO and Director of Learning Strategy & Innovation. These roles provided him with opportunities in the development of governmental partnerships, international learning design, business development, and leveraging emerging trends in educational technology in Singapore, Indonesia, and Thailand.

In 2023, Nick was a fellow at Harvard’s Inclusive Teaching Institute’s (ITI), which recognizes instructors for their inclusive teaching practices. The group was part of a pilot program receiving a grant from the Harvard Culture Lab Innovation Fund (CLIF). The Inclusive Practice Fellowship was designed to enable instructors to share their instructional expertise in inclusivity with the wider Harvard community, and following Nick’s participation in a successful pilot, he has extended his participation as a mentor of the program through 2024.

In his spare time Nick shoots documentary films, with his latest being a profile of Richard Fierro, a decorated war veteran and champion of inclusivity who stopped a mass-shooting at a Denver area LGBTQ+ nightclub in 2022.

Nick brings a unique combination of media experience and a demonstrated history of success in all levels of educational design to the PYD team. His work focuses specifically on utilizing educational technology for the removal of barriers, providing opportunities for all voices, and designing curriculum through negotiated learning practices.

Carol Murray

Youth Leadership Manager
She, Her, Hers

Phone: 617-556-4075 x150
Email: cmurray@pyd.org

Carol Murray joined PYD in November of 2022 as the new Youth Leadership Manager. Carol was drawn to PYD’s mission to empower youth with disabilities to fulfil their self-determined dreams and goals. Carol comes to PYD with three decades of experience in public education as a teacher and member of administrative teams.

Upon graduating from Boston University, Carol began her career as a licensed elementary and special education teacher. Rooted in seeing all learners through their strengths, she sought to develop more inclusive opportunities to address the inequities that often existed with separate programming for students with disabilities. She attended Northeastern University’s Principal in Residence Program to learn how to leverage her school’s programmatic design, scheduling, grants, partnerships, and recruitment to strengthen programming for all students. Carol is excited to join PYD and eager to connect with youth about their future goals.

In her free time Carol loves to travel and have new experiences. She enjoys spending time with family and friends, soccer, live music, and outdoor activities.

Ngina Shillingford

Program Operations Coordinator

She, Her, Hers

Email: nshillingford@pyd.org

Ngina is a Program Operations Coordinator and previously worked with PYD as an Administrative Intern leading up to YLF in 2025. She graduated with a BA from Wesleyan University where she studied Anthropology and Sociology. Since then she has worked as a paraprofessional in Boston Public Schools, and is currently a creative entrepreneur. In her free time Ngina enjoys going for walks in the sun, learning new make-up techniques, traveling with family, and indulging in nearly all of the Real Housewives franchises.

Mare Silva

Marketing and Development Manager
They, Them, Theirs

Phone: 617-556-4075 x160
Email: msilva@pyd.org

Mare Silva joined Partners for Youth with Disabilities as the Marketing and Development Manager in 2025. Prior to working at PYD, Mare has experience in the nonprofit world with marketing, development, and community engagement. They have a lifelong goal and passion of improving marketing strategies with a focus on accessibility.

Mare graduated with a degree in Theatre Arts from Suffolk University with a concentration on performance and directing. In their spare time they volunteer for LGBTQIA+ centered organizations, perform in a chorus, stage and voice act, and create art.

Kristin Sullivan

Career Readiness Program Coordinator
She, Her, Hers

Phone: 617-556-4075 x156
Email: ksullivan@pyd.org

Kristin joined PYD in the Fall of 2023 as the Career Readiness Program Coordinator. She graduated from Saint Joseph’s College of Maine with a BA in Special Education and Elementary Education.

Kristin’s experience working with youth with disabilities began in high school where she would co-op in the special education classroom semesterly. Since then she has worked in a variety of settings, including in applied behavioral analysis and direct personal care.

Outside of work Kristin enjoys reading, spending time with family and friends, and volunteering at ECW Camp Fatima, an overnight camp for people with physical and intellectual disabilities.

Eliza Barba-Wheelock

Career Readiness Program Coordinator
She, Her, Hers

Phone: 617-556-4075 x162
Email: ebarbawheelock@pyd.org

Driven by the belief that community engagement can drive social change, Eliza brings her passion for equal access to education to PYD as a Career Readiness Program Coordinator. Originally from Portland, Maine, Eliza moved to Boston after receiving a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology and Dance from Skidmore College.

Eliza combines her love of creative expression and continuous learning to inspire others to create a more inclusive and compassionate world. Prior to joining PYD, Eliza worked for the Saratoga Performing Arts Center where she taught dance classes to youth with disabilities and children in the foster care system.

In her free time, Eliza enjoys taking dance and pilates classes, reading thriller novels, and trying new coffee shops.

Benjamin Whidden

Assistant Manager of Outreach & Engagement
He, Him, His

Phone: 617-556-4075 x157
Email: bwhidden@pyd.org

Benjamin Whidden joined Partners for Youth with Disabilities in the Fall of 2023 as the Assistant Manager of Community Outreach and Engagement. Prior to joining PYD Ben has worked with numerous youth programs serving in roles such as an Americorp Member with City Year at Young Achievers in Mattapan, Coordinating a summer youth volunteer program through the United Way of Central Massachusetts, and serving as a Camp Director on Cape Cod. These experiences sparked his desire to work to improve access and lower barriers to programming for all youth.

He Graduated from the College of the Holy Cross with a Bachelor’s of Arts in Political Science and Education and from the Brandeis Heller School of Management and Social Policy with a Master’s in Public Policy where he focused in Youth and Disability Policy and Programming.

Outside of work Ben enjoys sailing, running, playing ultimate frisbee, hiking, and coaching high school and middle school frisbee.