Garden Manager
Anna was born in Ukraine and grew up as a public school student in Brooklyn. She has spent her career working in green spaces all over New York City, from heavily forested parks to tree pits to community and botanical gardens. She is excited to add school gardens to that list!
Near a lilac bush in the springtime
Executive Director
Originally from London, Kate has made her home in the U.S. for the past 15 years. After a varied career spanning financial services and marketing, she turned to nonprofit management. Prior to Edible Schoolyard NYC, Kate worked at a charter school network. She studied Classics at Cambridge University and has an MBA from Columbia University. She lives in Montclair, NJ with her husband and three children, where she enjoys attempting to turn her wild backyard into a beautiful garden and cooking with her family.
On the back of a horse, anywhere
FoodCorps Service Member, Brooklyn Gardens
Abby grew up in the Bay Area before going to college in Connecticut, where she learned about winter and the seasonal availability of produce on the east coast! With a background in environmental organizing as a high school and college student, working with young people in gardens and food is a new direction that Abby is excited to be headed in.
Pumpkin
Director of Education
Liza comes to Edible Schoolyard NYC after many years as a classroom teacher of both children and adults, and trains our educators to become better teachers themselves. She is currently trying to perfect the kale pesto recipe she learned in a kitchen class at PS 216.
Marcella Hazan: Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking.
Program Manager,
P.S. 216
Dan comes to Edible Schoolyard NYC from the culinary world. Prior to 2012, Dan had a brief stint in the nonprofit development world before leaving to attend culinary school and cook professionally in New York City restaurants. Fortunately he found his way to Edible Schoolyard NYC at P.S. 216, where he happily remains to this very day.
Eating Delancey: A Celebration of Jewish Food
FoodCorps Service Member,
Brighter Choice Community School
Garden Teacher,
P.S./M.S. 7
Sweet Potato
Program Manager,
Partner Schools
Cady joins Edible Schoolyard NYC with a strong culinary and food justice background. She got her start as a chef and has cooked in restaurants, bakeries, and schools. Last year, Cady served with FoodCorps, working in NYC public schools to foster a creative interest in food and flavor during classroom lessons. Cady is currently studying Food Policy at the New School and plans to work towards making systemic improvements in our food system.
Garden Teacher,
P.S. 216
Cecilia has been teaching in parks and gardens for several years in NYC. She can most likely be found looking for ladybugs in the asparagus bed or taking a nap next to the basil.
The Joy of Cooking
Kitchen Teacher,
P.S./M.S. 7
After years of working in account management at a media research company, Shey decided it was time to leave the corporate world to sprout new seeds in classrooms and gardens. As a proud Bronx native, Shey found his passion in his community (and its soil!) after learning how to grow everything from jalapeño peppers to cherry trees. When he’s not busy advocating for the Bronx, he can be found exploring the world with his wife, daughter, and dog.
Planning my next adventure
Educator/Program Manager,
Evergreen School for Urban Exploration and Brooklyn Gardens Elementary
Leonisa joined the Edible Schoolyard NYC team after spending several years working to bring edible education to local New York City after-school programs. A native New Yorker, Leonisa has always enjoyed cooking, eating, and spending time around the table.
The beach
Garden Teacher,
P.S./M.S. 7
Originally from New Rochelle, NY, Anthony grew up with a love for getting his hands dirty. After studying Environmental Science, Anthony worked in the mountains of California to reconnect students from urban areas to the outdoors. In addition to his experience in outdoor education, Anthony has also worked alongside local community members to promote healthier eating habits. Anthony is passionate about garden-to-table education and encouraging others to eat their fruits and veggies. He is ecstatic about working with NYC students to inspire, grow and eat fresh food. When he doesn’t have his hands deep in compost, Anthony can be found in Barbados, scuba diving, rescuing sea turtles and relaxing on white sand beaches.
Butternut Squash
Garden and Kitchen Educator
Evergreen School for Urban Exploration
Paloma is a proud native New Yorker, born and raised in Queens. Her enthusiasm for this work has brought her home, where she’s excited to bring her passion for food and nutrition to the 5 boroughs. After earning two Bachelor’s degrees, a BA in psychology from NYU and a BS in nutrition and dietetics from Queens College, Paloma is looking forward to bringing her knowledge to her role as Garden and Kitchen Educator in Bushwick, Brooklyn. Prior to coming to ESYNYC, Paloma volunteered as a dietary intern with City Harvest. Most recently she worked as a Program Manager in the Children’s Education Department at New York Cares. In her free time she can be found enjoying all the amazing food the city has to offer.
Kitchen Teacher,
P.S. 216
Hannah grew up in Washington State, following her mom around the kitchen and exploring the great outdoors. After graduating from Whitman College with a degree in Environmental Studies and Biology, Hannah found her way to Thailand and the education world, first teaching English and later working as a field instructor for a study abroad organization. She merged her love of food and Environmental Studies and Biology as a FoodCorps Service Member in the South Bronx and is now settling into the kitchen classroom at PS 216, where she can’t wait to bring people together around the table. When not in the kitchen, you can find Hannah exploring new places via bicycle or picnicking in the park.
Pok Pok
Communications and Outreach Coordinator
Before coming to NYC, Alex was living her greenest life, leading climbing trips and studying community development in the valleys, rivers, and mountains of beautiful Vermont. It was in Burlington that she experienced the power of community, which sparked her passion for bringing people together around food. When she’s not writing for Edible Schoolyard NYC, you can probably find her being resourceful in her humble kitchen or biking leisurely around Brooklyn, usually with a huge smile.
Artichoke
Program Manager,
P.S./M.S. 7
Oil painting
Senior Manager, Operations and Finance
Luis spent most of his childhood watching cooking shows and making a mess in the kitchen. He is currently working on his Master’s degree in Food Studies at NYU, where he is studying food access and hunger issues.
Purple Carrot
Institutional Giving Manager
Maya landed in New York City for college and never wants to leave. Deeply invested in the city’s beautiful diversity and thriving arts and food culture, she can often be found exploring a Brooklyn art space, geeking out about urban studies, or cooking her way through a new cookbook at home. Maya is excited to bring her background in communications and development to help Edible Schoolyard NYC advance health and wellness in the city’s schools.
The Everlasting Meal by Tamar Adler
Kitchen Teacher,
P.S. 216
Born and raised in South Central, Los Angeles, Fabian is a diehard Dodgers fan. Before finding his roots at our Gravesend Demonstration school site, Fabian wore many hats in both hospitality and education.
A baseball field
Senior Manager, Events and Engagement
Ellen’s roots are in the mangrove forests and citrus groves of Southwest Florida. While in college, she spent summer breaks waiting tables on a tropical island, caught the “care bug,” and has been working in restaurants ever since. She was drawn to New York in 2008, and her hospitality experience at Union Square Hospitality Group and Eleven Madison Park instilled in her a deep love for the NYC community and a need to get involved. She is thrilled to be working with kids, food, plants and of course, parties.
Bird chili
Garden Teacher,
P.S. 216
Emily grew up with her food-obsessed family in Wisconsin. She moved out to Berkeley to study Environmental Science, and then hopped over to Utah to garden with kids in the red rock canyons. She is now thrilled to be gardening here with the kids in New York City!
Beet
Educator/Program Manager,
P.S. 109 and P.S. 311
Ryan comes to NYC from Texas, where he grew up around a family of educators and good food. After attending Columbia University for nutrition and becoming a Registered Dietitian, Ryan spent time at GrowNYC and Children’s Aid Society working with seed-to-plate and food justice programs. With a background in research, Ryan is as likely to be found reading a journal article as searching for the best new restaurant in town.
The Flavor Bible
FoodCorps Service Member
P.S. 311
Dinah is a recent graduate of Sarah Lawrence College, where she studied history with a focus on community development and urban studies. Before serving with FoodCorps, she interned with the Science Barge in Yonkers, NY and Edible Schoolyard NYC. Through these experiences and working with children in an after school program and daycare, she solidified her love of plant and teaching. Born and raising in Illinois, Dinah has happily called New York home for the past few years and is excited to serve in the Bronx.
Dinosaur Kale
Evaluation Manager
Jessie didn’t know that her four years of mandatory agricultural tech classes in school would come in handy. Now with a Master’s in Public Health and over ten years of designing, leading, and training others to lead edible education programs with young people, she is delighted to be measuring impact and helping Edible Schoolyard NYC find new ways to make a difference in our school communities. She and her family live in Pennsylvania and travel back to Brooklyn for work and play often.
Aubergine
Head Garden Manager
Decades after leaving the beaches of Puerto Rico to become a set designer in Barcelona, Mirem switched to garden design (specifically for school gardens) in New York City. She is a mother of two young and experimental cooks.
Elizabeth David: inspiring, evocative, and not at all precise.
Development Assistant
Claire joined the Edible Schoolyard NYC team after several years in Vermont, where she dove headfirst into the vibrant food and agriculture scene of the Green Mountain State. Born in Bridgeport, Connecticut, Claire’s passion for agriculture was cultivated while working on a number of urban gardening and food justice projects in high school. When she’s not in the office, you can catch her bopping around Brooklyn in search of tall trees, unique ingredients to add to dinner, and dogs to meet.
Radish
We make the connections between food, health, and environment come alive for our students.
Our Board is comprised of dedicated individuals who are deeply committed to Edible Schoolyard NYC’s mission.
Our supporters include nonprofits, foundations, corporate partners, and both the culinary and wellness communities.
