Board of Directors

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 Giuliana Addesso is a proud new board member of the Rye Youth Council. She was added to the faculty at Rye High School this year (‘21- ‘22), where she teaches English 10 and co-teaches humanities in The Academy, an emerging project-based experience for upperclassmen.  This fall, Giuliana spent time as the assistant coach of the Rye Girls’ Varsity Soccer Team, where she was lucky enough to build relationships with the most valued members of the school community- the students.  While she has received a Bachelor’s Degree in English Secondary Education and Master’s Degrees in Special Education and Curriculum Instruction, the most valuable education Giuliana receives is in her classroom every single day.  She is dedicated to supporting the social and emotional needs of her community and helping every child recognize that they have a voice.  Giuliana is looking forward to assisting in the incredible program that already exists within Rye Youth Council and hopes to become a role model for advocacy and wellness, both inside and outside of the community. 

Monica Brenner moved to Rye in 2010 with her husband and three children: Nate, Charlie and Claire.  Prior to moving to Rye, she spent 12 years working as the Manager of Legal Recruitment for a large, Wall Street law firm.  Monica has been actively involved in numerous local not-for-profits, including the Rye Free Reading Room, Midland Elementary School (where she served as the PTO President), and Community Synagogue of Rye (where she currently serves on the Board of Trustees). Monica is a graduate of Colgate University and is the director of PlaySmart Academy, a free, one-week leadership and sports camp for under-served youth in the area.  She joined the Rye Youth Council’s Board in 2019.

 Kathleen moved to Rye in 2014. She has three children, Eliza, Nate, and Zack Uberuaga. Nate graduated from RHS and Zack, 14, attends RMS (Eliza finished her education in New York City.) Kathleen graduated from Middlebury College and went onto Columbia's Teachers College.  She did her graduate work in London in the areas of learning differences.  Kathleen is the Founder and Director of Brigham Learning, a boutique tutoring company which focuses on uncovering a student's individual learning style in order to help them succeed.  Kathleen also works with families in a counseling capacity in her divorce counseling business: helping parents navigate co-parenting and nesting. Both businesses focus on the importance of relationships and collaboration.  She is excited to bring that same energy and focus to RYC. When not in Rye, Kathleen and her husband, Chris Dugan, can be found upstate, in Cazenovia, New York.  

Pixie has lived in Rye since 2013 with her husband, Carter, and two children, Jasper and Skylar. She owns a successful private pilates studio in her home and has dedicated over 20 years to studying and teaching functional movement and wellness. Known for her wealth of knowledge of anatomy and physical rehabilitation, Pixie applies a holistic, individualized approach to all of her clients. In addition to Pilates, Pixie holds a certification in health coaching from the Institute for Integrative Nutrition, certifications in Pilates for osteoporosis and pre/post natal, as well as personal training from NASM. Prior to discovering Pilates, Pixie spent 12 years at CNET Networks where she was an early adopter of digital publishing/media while serving as a key contributor to their Global Strategic Account division. Pixie holds a BA from Middlebury College. 

Erin moved to Rye in 2013 and has 2 children attending the Rye schools.  Prior to joining the Rye Youth Council Board, Erin worked as Vice President of Merchandising for various footwear brands and holds a BS from Syracuse University in Retail and Marketing.  Her initial community engagement included chairing Midland's Picture Day, the Children's Chance Room at the Midland Fair, as well as delivering food for Horizons to neighboring low-income communities.

Allison moved to Rye in 2001 and had 3 children attend the Rye schools.  She has been a Rye Youth Council Board Member since 2016 and will serve as co-president with Elyssa Gray and Laura Kovacs in 2020-2021.  During her service with RYC, she has focused on developing the Rye Youth Council Employment Services (RYCES) which, in 2020,  set record numbers for local student and employer connections. Her initial community engagement included chairing Osborn’s Scare Fair and Holiday Angels program and serving on the Board of Family Services of Westchester.  Allison holds a BA in International Relations from Hamilton College. Professionally, Allison works in Talent Acquisition for Genpact.

 Catherine Conway is in her 4th year as Director of Athletics at Holy Child Rye, where she also serves as the varsity lacrosse head coach. She has been heavily involved in the Rye community through various youth sports organizations since 2012, namely Rye Youth Lacrosse. Beyond Holy Child, Conway is a co-owner and director of Snipers Elite Lacrosse, and holds the position of National Team Assistant Coach for Ireland Lacrosse.  

 Elyssa moved to Rye with her husband, David, and 2 boys, Ethan and Justin, in 2014. She has been a Board member of the Rye Youth Council since 2019 and currently serves as one of three co-presidents along with Allison Chader and Laura Kovacs. Having participated in many of the RYC’s programs and experienced the benefit for her children, she was eager to jump right in and put her marketing background to work to continue to raise awareness of the many programs that RYC offers our community. Elyssa holds a BS in Consumer Studies from the University of Vermont and a Diploma in Coaching from NYU. When she isn’t in Rye, you can find her and her family in racing programs at Stratton, VT. She currently works as a brand consultant and professional coach.  

Rammy has over 25 years’ experience building organizations from the ground up. Most recently,  Rammy was the founder and CEO of Kidville, an Early Childhood Enrichment franchise with locations  throughout the US and over 200 locations sold in 9 countries. His passion is for developing a culture of  cross-functional integration and performance measurement that is the catalyst for significant team  member growth and both organic and inorganic expansion. 

Rammy thrives on building brands through experiential and operational excellence to drive remarkable  results for both team members and guests alike. He finds joy in helping other charitable organizations execute their goals specifically with Second Chance Toys, Rock Asylum Foundation, and  Worth of Love. 

Rammy received a BS with honors from Middlebury College, an MBA from NYU Stern, and is an active  YPO Executive Board member. Rammy lives in Rye with his wife Courtney and two children Cameron  and Xander. 

Sally Joyce and her husband Jim moved to Rye in August 2014, just in time for their daughter Caroline to start Kindergarten at Midland. Before making the move to the suburbs, Sally spent nearly 6 years in London working for a large American bank selling prime brokerage services and, then 10 years in New York City as the head of marketing and sales for Citco Fund Services. As a cancer survivor, Sally is an active volunteer with Memorial Sloan Kettering’s patient to patient program and serves on their Patient Family Council for Quality.  More locally, she works as a Wig Exchange Client Coordinator with Soul Ryeders. During her daughter’s time at Midland, Sally was very active with the PTO, including running the annual fundraiser and even acting as PTO President. Originally from the West Coast, Sally is a graduate of the University of Oregon and remains an avid Duck Football fan!! She joined the Rye Youth Council’s Board in 2021. 

 volunteered for many local non-profits and her children's schools. Meghann joined the Rye Youth Council Board in 2021 and is excited to help the RYC promote and support the social and emotional health of our community. Before moving to Rye, Meghann lived and worked in Bangkok, Thailand, Chicago and NYC in education and social services, disaster relief and non-profit development. Meghann has a BA from the University of Notre Dame in History, Sociology and International Peace Studies. Currently, Meghann can most often be found with her four perfectly imperfect children: Mac, Stepan, Walter and Rhetta. 

Michael Konicoff grew up in neighboring Rockland County and moved to Rye in 2017, where he presently resides with his wife Taylor, who grew up in Rye, and two children, Jordan and Charlie. Michael is a graduate of Boston College, where he played for and captained the Men’s Soccer Team, and Pace Law School. He has been working for a civil litigation firm in Rye since 2013 and has been coaching with Rye Youth Soccer since 2015. Michael has served as President and Secretary of the Mamaroneck Harrison Larchmont Bar Association and joined the Rye Youth Council Board in 2022. 

Lisa is a former RYC Board member and president, and has been the executive director since  2018.  A strategic leader and marketing professional, Lisa’s 22-year career in the health information industry included 10 years at WebMD, most recently as Director of Consumer Integrated Marketing. She holds a B.A. from Miami University (OH), a Certificate from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management in Digital Marketing Strategies, and is a certified  Youth Mental Health First Aid instructor. 

Linda is a licensed clinical social worker (LCSW) who has worked in this field for more than 20 years. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Human Services from St. John’s University and a Master in Social Work from Fordham University.  Her professional background includes geriatric care in a nursing home, dual diagnoses in an inpatient psychiatric setting, crisis intervention in emergency rooms, medical social work & case management in an ambulatory care setting, and clinical and administrative work in an outpatient mental health setting, which includes the modalities of individual, group, family and couple’s therapies. 

 Jessica Lodato holds an M.A. in Clinical Psychology from Pepperdine University and a B.F.A. in Dance from the State University of New York College at Brockport. Jessica has extensive group work experience in classrooms and community settings with children and adults. As Youth Educator, Jessica works with the 3rd and 4th grade classes in Rye, delivering a social and emotional learning curriculum, and all 6th grade classes, teaching Dialetical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) skills.  

Christina joined the RYC social work intern team in January 2022 and is earning her master’s degree in social work from Fordham University Graduate School of Social Service. She attended CUNY John Jay College of Criminal Justice and graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice in 2009.  Christina became a Police Officer in White Plains, NY, starting in 2009, spent time as an officer in Tuckahoe from 2010-2011, then returned to White Plains in 2011.  She currently serves as a school resource officer in White Plain High School.  Christina was promoted to a detective in 2020, has training in de-escalation, policing and safeguarding Students with Disabilities-NYSSA,  and works closely with children and adolescents in the White Plains School District. She will serve as a RYC clinical intern for three semesters:  Spring 2022 and then through the full academic year 2022- 2023.    

Jessica joined the Rye Youth Council clinical intern team in September 2021 as a Social Work Intern from Fordham University. She graduated from CUNY Baruch College with aBachelor of Arts in Political Science and English in 2020.  She has experience working with children who are in foster care, clients dealing with domestic violence and sexual assault, adolescents, and adults. Jessica is the advisor for the RYC Youth Advisory Board and is a Mentor for the Peer to Peer Depression Awareness Campaign at Rye High School.  A graduate of Port Chester High School, Jessica speaks several languages: English, Spanish, Italian and French.

 Emily joined the RYC social work intern team in January 2022.  A master’s student in the Fordham University School of Social Work, Emily previously attended SUNY University at Albany and graduated with her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology, Minor in Sociology and Fine Art in May 2018. Emily has experience working with children and adolescents in different settings such as recreational day camps, youth centers, and school settings. She will serve as an RYC intern for three semesters: Spring 2022 and then the academic year 2022-2023. Emily is bilingual in English and Italian.