SVP CT logo
For Partners
Donate

staff

Photo of Mark Argosh

Mark Argosh

Executive Director

Caroline Barney

Director of Marketing and Communications

Skye Cornell

Director of Nonprofit Consulting

Nebiyu Daniel

Data Analytics Manager
Photo of Wendy Foster

Wendy Foster

Chief Operating Officer

Photo of Jen Gerber

Jen Gerber

Director of Early Childhood Education Special Projects
Photo of Monisha Gibson

Dr. Monisha Gibson

Director of Early Childhood Strategy

 
Photo of Camille Guthrie

Camille Guthrie

Director of Operations

Photo of Christine Yang

Christine Yang

Nonprofit Project Manager

Michael Van Leesten

Director of Organization Development and Stakeholder Engagement

Mark Argosh

Mark Argosh has been an SVP Partner since 2014 and has served as Executive Director since December 2016. Since 2016, SVP has tripled in size to almost 200 members, while its nonprofit and government consulting portfolio has grown from two to 18 organizations. As Executive Director, Mark oversees the daily management of SVP to engage Partners, recruit new Partners, and maximize the impact of SVP’s work to close the opportunity gap. In addition, he serves as the Chair of the Governor’s Workforce Council and serves as an advisor to many of SVP’s projects with nonprofit organizations and initiatives.

Prior to his role with SVP, Mark worked for more than thirty years as a boardroom consultant and operating executive in the financial sector. He began his career in the nonprofit sector as a community organizer and executive director of two grassroots community organizations focused on community revitalization and economic development in low and moderate-income communities in the Midwest. Mark did his undergraduate work at Brown University and received his MBA from Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business.

Caroline Barney

Caroline and her husband joined SVP in 2019 and have been working closely with Horizon’s Bridgeport. She brings vast experience to her new role as a former Managing Director and EVP with Omnicom where she was named 40 under 40 by AdAge. Her client experience includes industry giants like: IBM, J&J, Pfizer, Merck, Phillips and even the White House.

Caroline’s experience in the nonprofit sector includes a range of social impact organizations including: Save the Children, Alzheimer’s Association, Arthritis Foundation, AARP, Horizons, and the Circle of Care, among others. She has also served on the boards of multiple nonprofits.

Caroline’s passion is helping purpose-driven organizations tell their stories clearly and with impact. And helping individuals connect to purpose-filled lives. In addition to her marketing & communications work, she builds on this passion as a bestselling author, inspirational speaker, and coach. Her award-winning, pre-teen fiction trilogy The Trebor Tales brings to life the power of community and connecting to something bigger than ourselves. Her upcoming adult, non-fiction book How to Connect to a Life You Love releases soon!

SKYE CORNELL

Skye Cornell is the Director of Nonprofit Consulting at Social Venture Partners Connecticut.

Previously, Skye directed program strategy, partnerships, and operations for Wholesome Wave as the Chief Programs Officer. Wholesome Wave is a national nonprofit dedicated to improving health through food system change. 

Skye is passionate about transforming systems and scaling initiatives centered on equity and community empowerment. She draws on a diverse background that includes corporate and brand strategy; nonprofit leadership; and marketing. Skye formerly worked with Unilever, Nestle, Mead, Campbells, Peoples United Bank and Royal Bank of Scotland on marketing initiatives. She received her Master of Business Administration from Sacred Heart University.

In her role as Director of Nonprofit Consulting, Skye supports the SVP teams engaged in capacity building projects with community partners while helping to develop the capacity building skills and understanding of the nonprofit sector of SVP Partners.  Her responsibilities also include oversight of the strategy and metrics committee as well as the annual grant making and portfolio review process.

Nebiyu Daniel

Nebiyu Daniel is an experienced business consultant with a background in healthcare, finance, and nonprofit management. In his prior role as a Technology Business Consultant at Wells Fargo, he managed internal audit controls for the Technology Integrity Group.

In 2018, he graduated from Wesleyan University with a bachelor’s degree in Neuroscience and Behavior. While at school, he co-founded an organization that focused on health equity in rural communities in Ethiopia and Guyana. This experience ignited his passion for community empowerment and social impact. Nebiyu is eager to bring his diverse skill set and passion for making a difference to the SVP team.

Wendy Foster

Wendy is an accomplished, mission-driven C-suite leader and nonprofit board member with more than three decades of executive leadership driving organizational capacity, adaptability, and sustainable growth in the corporate and nonprofit sectors. Most recently, Wendy was the inaugural Chief Customer Experience Officer at Success Academy Charter Schools, the largest charter school network in New York City serving 20,000 children. Prior to that, Wendy was President & Chief Executive Officer of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Eastern Massachusetts (BBBSEM), the largest youth mentoring organization in New England and among the top 1% of independent Big Brothers Big Sisters affiliates in the nation. Under her 11 years of leadership, BBBSEM scaled quality service by more than 125%, growing to serve more than 4,000 under-resourced children annually, grew revenues by 80%, prioritized diversity, equity, and inclusion, and received national recognition as Agency of the Year in 2019.

Prior to her work in the nonprofit sector, Wendy served as a senior executive with the Internet start-up, America Online (AOL), and held executive roles in companies in the publishing and direct marketing industries.

Wendy is nationally recognized for her leadership within the Big Brothers Big Sisters of America federation. She is a member of the Board of Mary Baldwin University in Staunton, VA and the International Women’s Forum of Connecticut. She has previously served on the boards of the Big Brothers Big Sisters Foundation, YWBoston and the International Women’s Forum of Massachusetts. She is a Director Emeritus of the BBBSEM Board of Directors. Wendy received the 2017 Pinnacle Award for Nonprofit Management from the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce.

Wendy holds an undergraduate degree from Cornell University and an M.B.A from The George Washington University. Wendy lives in Norwalk, CT with her wife, Claudia, a career officer in the US Coast Guard.

JEN GERBER

Jen joined SVP CT as a Partner in 2018 and has been participating enthusiastically ever since. Her roles have included leading workforce and early childhood projects in both nonprofit capacity building and systems change efforts. She is especially passionate about early childhood.

Over the past four years, Jen has had the opportunity to work closely with the Office of Early Childhood on several SVP projects and has helped to develop SVP’s early childcare and education sector. Prior to this role, she also served as the Vice Chair of the SVP board, where she was a board member since 2020.

Jen has a background that spans both nonprofit management and for-profit management consulting. She worked as the deputy or managing director focused on strategy and operations for two different nonprofits: Columbia’s Center for Public Research and Leadership and the Partnership Schools in New York. She has served on several nonprofit boards and helped run a family foundation for many years.

Before and after getting her MBA at Kellogg, she worked as a management consultant for Booz & Company. Jen graduated from Princeton with an A.B. She lives in Greenwich with her husband and lures her three now grown children home as much as she can.

MONISHA GIBSON

Monisha Gibson is the Director of Early Childhood Strategy at Social Venture Partners Connecticut. In this role, she works with the Office of Early Childhood as well as diverse stakeholders to develop and support the execution of a comprehensive statewide Early Childhood plan that will transform the early childhood sector in Connecticut.

Prior to SVP, Monisha served as the Founder and Director of the Maritime Odyssey Preschool, an innovative early childhood center in partnership with the Maritime Aquarium with an emphasis on workforce development and prenatal support and education for families. Monisha  began her career as an elementary school teacher in New York City. Her passion and commitment to ensure high quality educational access for all children is reflected in her active leadership roles at the local, state, and national levels.

Monisha is an Educational Leadership doctoral candidate at the University of Bridgeport. In addition, Monisha holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in French Language and Literature from the University of Virginia as well as a Master of Arts degree from Teachers College, Columbia University with a concentration in Curriculum Development.

CAMILLE GUTHRIE

Camille has been a member of the SVP team since its launch in 2013.  In her role as Director of Operations, Camille draws upon her diversified career experience to provide robust oversight of SVP’s internal functions to ensure sound financial management and organizational operations to facilitate SVP’s execution of its mission. 

Much of Camille’s early career was spent in the professional sports and television production industries promoting professional men’s tennis around the world, directing tennis media operations at the Sydney Olympics,  and providing content for televised sports programming that ranged from golf to ice skating events.

After leaving the sports arena behind, Camille was a client services manager for a marketing firm focused on educational affinity travel and later, a project manager for a global hedge fund managing the build out and on-going facility operations for domestic and international offices.

Camille graduated from Trinity College with a Bachelor of Arts degree in History.  When she’s not in the office, she can most often be found near or in the water, sailing or kayaking, as tides, time, and weather permit.

 
CHRISTINE YANG

Prior to joining SVP in 2020, Christine worked as an independent consultant, specializing in strategic, technology and marketing projects for both nonprofit and for-profit organizations in Fairfield County, CT. She serves on the Board of Directors for The Tiny Miracles Foundation.

Christine holds a Bachelor of Arts degree, Magna Cum Laude, from Mount Holyoke College. Christine and her husband, Ted, were co-founding members of SVPCT.  They live in New Canaan, CT with their two children and two cats.

As Nonprofit Project Manager, Christine selects and coordinates Partner engagement teams to maximize the success and impact of the grantee projects.  She is also involved with the creation of SVP’s social media and website content.

MICHAEL VAN LEESTEN 

Michael received an MBA from Columbia University with Honors in 1997. From 1997 to 2005, Michael served as the CFO of the Construction Division of Travelers Insurance Co. In 2005, he changed careers after acquiring his teaching certification in mathematics. Michael began his teaching career at the Foote School in New Haven before joining Hopkins School in 2007 where he taught mathematics and was the Director of Pathfinder Hopkins School, an award-winning academic enrichment middle schoolers from New Haven-area public and parochial schools.  Deeply engaged in the New Haven community, Michael currently serves on the boards Elm City Montessori School and Integrated Refugee and Immigrant Services (IRIS). 

An SVP Connecticut Partner since 2019, Michael joined the SVP staff in April 2020 as Director of Organization Development and Stakeholder Engagement.  In this role, Michael supports the engagement of multiple stakeholders including the Board, the SVP partnership, and Community partners.  He also focuses on growing SVP’s statewide presence and deepening our community relationships throughout the state through the development and execution of programming to increase interaction amongst the SVP Partners and the communities we serve.

 
BEN STANG

Ben Stang is the Director of Healthcare Workforce Strategy at Social Venture Partners Connecticut. In this role, he provides management support to develop career and education pathways for health care professionals, and address the hiring needs of Connecticut’s health care system.

Prior to SVP, Ben was an Associate Program Officer at The Helmsley Charitable Trust. Specifically, he worked in the Type 1 Diabetes (T1D) Program, where he oversaw a grant portfolio to increase access to diabetes care through innovative clinical care models and improve outcomes for people living with T1D. Ben started his career at Community Healthcare Network, a system of Federally Qualified Health Centers throughout New York City.

Ben holds a Master of Public Administration from Baruch College, and a bachelor’s degree from Binghamton University.

 
AUSTIN HUTCHINSON

Austin Hutchinson (Hutch) has a background rooted in STEAM education, program management, and workforce development initiatives. He began his career in 2014 with Teach For America serving in South Louisiana and then on to Union School in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. In 2019, Hutch joined the Corporate Social Responsibility team at IBM and managed the regional P-TECH partnership between IBM, P-TECH Norwalk, and Norwalk Community College. With P-TECH, Hutch designed programs that engaged early-college high school students and educators in STEM-industry pathways, workplace learning, and access to internships, apprenticeships, and early careers. 

At SVP, Hutch will lead the replication of pathways, statewide, to family-sustaining careers in information technology and business services. The primary focus of his work is to equip Connecticut industries with an inclusive and highly-skilled workforce. 

Hutch is an alum of Hampton University and a proud member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. He lives in Stamford, CT and enjoys all things summertime.

 
MARJORIE ALMANSI

Marjorie joined SVP in 2017. In her current role, Marjorie leads the organization’s effort to recruit new Partners and develop opportunities for Partner engagement.

Prior to her role with SVP Marjorie worked for 20 years as a human resources executive within the financial services and pharmaceutical industries. Her professional experience included managing the HR functions for various client groups at Smith Barney, Deutsche Bank and Pfizer. Marjorie’s area of expertise is employee relations and recruitment. Additionally, Marjorie served as the Chief Operating Officer of a tech startup, where she managed the day to day operations including staffing, vendor sourcing, counterparty relations, legal and other critical functions.

Marjorie graduated from Boston University with a degree in Sociology. She is an active member of the Westport community having served on the Board of Directors at A Better Chance of Westport and the Westport Y. Marjorie lives in Westport with her husband and three boys. She is an avid runner, cyclist, and dog lover.