The Possible Zone

The Curriculum & Instruction team is thrilled to welcome Samantha Ulloa as our new Curriculum Manager, starting July 29th! Samantha Ulloa has been an ESL educator for several years. She was born in Massachusetts into a Lebanese and Ecuadorian family. She has lived in several different places but always returned back home to Boston. We are excited to bring Samantha on board as we work to refine our existing curriculum to better support English Language Learners; design new curriculum for our upcoming program relaunch; clarify where and how curriculum should be stored and updated; and build team capacity through both asynchronous and synchronous professional development.

Please welcome Ephraim Asfaw, TPZ's Director, Controller! Ephraim brings over 14 years of work experience in accounting. Starting as a staff accountant, he held positions as a senior accountant, accounting manager, financial analysis manager, deputy finance director, and most recently as a controller for an international non-profit organization located in Baltimore. Throughout his career, Ephraim performed and managed overall accounting functions, led a team of accounting staff, collaborated with senior management and external stakeholders while making sure the organization stayed compliant with reporting, compliance, and annual audit requirements. He has extensive experience in managing Federal, State, and private grants and contracts that involves budgeting, financial reporting, and compliance. Ephraim has a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Mekelle University, a master’s degree in accounting from New England College and is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) registered in the Massachusetts and Connecticut. Apart from work, Ephraim enjoys reading, playing basketball and soccer, volunteering at school and community activities. He also serves as the Board Treasurer for Community Guidance Clinic for Central CT, Inc.

The Strategy and Administration team is excited to welcome Amy Macauley to TPZ. Amy joins us as Executive Assistant and will be a key partner to the Program, Ventures, STEAM, and R&E teams. She has over ten years of experience supporting senior executives in fast-paced environments and is an expert in managing schedules, coordinating travel, and organizing high-level meetings. Amy has exceptional organizational abilities, attention to detail, and a proactive approach to problem-solving. She is passionate about optimizing executive productivity and efficiency. And she is committed to continuous improvement and excellence in administrative support. When she is not working, Amy loves to learn new languages, knit, travel, and try new cuisines.

Please join us in welcoming Vanessa Jean-Baptiste to the Program Team as our new Instructional Coach. Vanessa is a Haitian-American educator who has been serving the Boston area for over ten years. Working as a Science Teacher, Instructional Coach, New Teacher Developer, and Program Director, Vanessa has dedicated her career to empowering students and educators through innovative and inclusive practices. She has a passion for STEM and aims to inspire and engage students from inner-city schools in STEM studies and careers. Vanessa's commitment to addressing systemic barriers and promoting social-emotional development has been a driving force throughout her career. As an instructional coach, Vanessa helps build educators’ capacity to develop and implement instructional practices that support diverse student learners. She holds a dual Bachelor of Science degree in Kinesiology and Public Health from the University of Massachusetts-Amherst and a Master’s Degree in Education from Boston University. In her free time, Vanessa likes to travel, work as a fitness coach, hike, and relax with her Husky, Luna.

Please join us in welcoming Timothy Nystrand as our new Instructional Coach. Tim has dedicated over 14 years to teaching and learning, with focus on curriculum development, instructional coaching, and student achievement. Originally from Madison, WI, Tim got his start in education as an Americorps Corps Member in City Year, serving at a primary school on the West Side of Chicago, where his passion for education was ignited. In his professional journey, Tim has taught physics, engineering, and ESL in the Chicago Public Schools and Boston Public Schools. His leadership extends to district-wide curriculum and assessments initiatives and mentoring students, guiding them towards post-secondary goals. Tim enjoys biking, cooking, and traveling. These interests have helped him connect with learners in unique ways, such as leading a summer bike maintenance and safety program for high school students. Tim believes in the power of instructional coaching as a means to transform learning experiences and support educational excellence.

The Pathways and Work-Based Learning (WBL) team is very excited for Shira Zar-Kessler to join us as WBL manager! After graduating from Washington University in St. Louis, Shira joined Teach for America and completed her two-year commitment at Washington Heights Expeditionary Learning School, known as WHEELS in New York City. She had many roles at the school, including history teacher, physics teacher, special education teacher, and the co-head of the drama department. She also worked as the Alumni Support Coordinator working with WHEELS' first two classes of alumni, who were also her first set of students! She has been doing college counseling ever since and loves each journey that she goes on with the students as they move through the college application process. Shira worked at Match, a Boston public charter school, and her own alma mater—Gann Academy. While she will miss being in a school, she is so excited to transition to career counseling and imagine all the possibilities at TPZ!

Calling all industrial/marketing designers who are eager to mentor students at The Possible Zone's inaugural annual Hackathon: FastForge. FastForge is a month away, Friday, November 1, and there is still time to get involved! Held at EpiCenter of Artists For Humanity, we are looking for volunteers to advise Boston area high school students in a mini physical consumer product launch. If interested please visit https://bit.ly/4eIumko or scan the QR code. We hope to see you there! #industrialdesigners #marketingdesigners #fastforge #hackathon

Thank you for the interest! All seats are filled and there's a waiting list--we are no longer accepting registrations for Saturday's Youth Entrepreneurship Summit.

We were thrilled to see so many smiling faces from the community at our Back to School Kickback! Students and families from the neighborhood learned about TPZ, enjoyed free ice cream and back-to-school supplies, including custom TPZ backpacks, courtesy of Supermix Studio! Carolicious whipped up some mouthwatering Venezuelan bowls, all enjoyed in the sunshine, bubbles, and music. Our fellow nonprofits and programs shared their incredible work, including Boston Public Schools, Urban Edge Housing Corporation , Center for Women & Enterprise and more! We’re buzzing with excitement to welcome our new classes of students soon!

The Possible Zone is grateful to be a recipient of $200,000 award from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to implement Innovative Pathways program in Clean Energy/Advanced Manufacturing! Learn more! https://lnkd.in/eNsi9tDG #cleanenergy #pathways #youthdevelopment