Founded in 2012, the CSF Young Leaders Board is a network of young professionals that supports CSF’s mission and seeks to maximize educational opportunities for New York City children through fundraising, volunteering, and raising awareness about CSF among their friends, families, and colleagues. To learn more about joining the Young Leaders Board, contact Kurt Faulhammer by email or by phone at (212) 515-7106 or click here.

The following individuals currently serve on the Young Leaders Board:

Katie Allen, J.P. Morgan
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Americo Arias, KPMG, LLP
Penn State University

Alisha Asija, PGIM Fixed Income
Cornell University

Michael Berezny, Mindset University
Kean University

Allison Bernstein, H.I.G. Capital
Tufts University

Elizabeth Bianchi, TriNet
Boston University, University of Virginia Darden School of Business

Annie Brockett, Junto Capital Management
Davidson College

Hugo Buist Rodrigues, Court Square Capital Partners
New York University

Andrew Callister, Centerbridge Partners
BYU

Donald Castle, Data Axle
Colgate University

Erica Leffler-Castle, Lexington Partners
Colgate University

Vanessa Chan, Orchard
Northeastern University

Reco Charity, Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP
Virginia Tech; Georgetown Law School

Francis J. Connolly Jr., Practising Law Institute
SUNY at Old Westbury

Antoine Crépin-Héroux, AON
Princeton University

Conor Cunnane, Axial
Loyola University Maryland

Hilal Dahleh, Axel Johnson, Inc.
Middlebury College

Hayden Edelson, JP Morgan Chase & Co
New York University

Josh Farkas, Delmare Capital
University of Michigan

Abigail Fossaceca, JP Morgan
Villanova University

Christian Garrett, 137 Ventures
University of Kansas

Priscilla Habeeb Sankar, Morgan Stanley
Pace University

Nick Harker, Nautic Partners
University of Kentucky

Kevin Heller, Point72 Asset Management
Amherst College

Shirley Hu, Audax Group
University of Pittsburgh

Nick Johnson, AIM13
Vassar College

Eli Joyner, Citibank,
Baruch College

Madison Kadis, Givaudan
Savannah College of Art & Design

Alessandra LaRocca Dowling, Manatt, Phelps & Phillips LLP
Bucknell University

Ryan LaRue, Barings
Binghamton University

Esther Lawson-John, Oliver Wyman
Columbia University

Jane Lee, Easy Resume
Ithaca College

Francesca Marini Fichera, Goldman Sachs
Columbia University

Maxwell Masur, McKinsey & Company
NYU Stern School of Business

Carlos Navarrete, Whitford Management LLC
New York University

Jacqueline Palma, Northleaf Capital
Vassar College

Daren Palmer, Fortress Investment Group
SUNY Cobleskill

Rhea Pathak, Bank of America
Northeastern University

Bennett Reid, CrossCountry Consulting
University of Georgia

Bobby Ritter, Ari Fleischer Communications
Middlebury College

Nicole Serrato, CSF
City College of New York

Isabel Sessions, The Riverside Company
Middlebury College

Faizal Sheriff, Barclays Investment Bank
Baruch College

Brandon Sumner, Morgan Stanley
SUNY Oswego

Stephan Thevalingam, KPMG
The University of Texas at Austin

Josu Trevejo, PwC
SUNY Albany

Katelyn Weber, Tongal
Pepperdine

Jason Weber, OpenInfluence
Pepperdine University

Olivea Woo, Hofstra University
CUNY Hunter & Adelphi University

Kengo Yamada, Liberty Science Center
University of Minnesota, Twin Cities

Dan Yu, Sterling Investment Partners
Wake Forest University

Samantha Zeiss Heller, Nielsen Sports & Entertainment
Dartmouth College


Spotlight on Young Leaders Board Member Francesca Marini Fichera!

LinkedIn and/or Website

Hometown: New York City, NY

Alma Mater: Columbia University

Industry: Asset Management

Hobbies: Cooking, Baking, Music, Pilates, Movies

Fun Fact! I have never lived outside of New York City

How did you get involved with Children’s Scholarship Fund and the Young Leaders Board? 

After graduating from college and joining the professional workplace, I wanted to find an organization that would allow me to give back to my community and continue to volunteer with a group that aligned with my passions. I found CSF online and knew I wanted to be a part of their mission.

Why is education important to you? 

My parents always put education first. They worked hard to ensure that my siblings and I were always given the best opportunities possible, both inside and outside of school. I want to help ensure that all students are given the opportunity to access quality education that would set them on a path to success in life.


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