Staff

 Candice Anderson is Executive Director of Cool Culture.  Previously, Candice served as Director  of  Child Care and Head Start Collaboration at the NYC Children’s Services where she worked to  coordinate effective use of resources and strengthen program services.  Prior to that she served  as Senior Policy Associate for Child Care, Education and Youth Development at Citizens’  Committee for Children of New York where she conducted research and advocated on behalf of children and families.  Candice also worked at the Child Care Action Campaign, received her MS in Urban Policy from the New School for Social Research, and BA from Oberlin College.

 Monica Abend is the Program Director at Cool Culture, and comes to the organization from the  Wyckoff Farmhouse Museum, where she developed the Museum’s first Public programs  calendar and arts education school program.  Prior to that, Monica served as the Museum  Education Program Director at the Grumblethorpe Museum in Philadelphia, PA, worked in  museum education at PS 1 Contemporary Art Center and The Museum of Modern Art in New York City.  Monica received her BFA from University of the Arts and her MPA from New York University’s Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service.  She exhibits her visual art and performance works on a local and international stage. 

 Lindsay Booker is Communications Coordinator at Cool Culture.  Prior to that she worked in the Children’s Library at Fayetteville Public Library in Arkansas where she led activities centered  around reading to young men with Youthbridge, a provider of care to troubled teens.  Lindsay graduated from Princeton University, where she earned an BA in sociology with a certificate in  African-American Studies. Her coursework focused on early education and the potential causes of the achievement gap.

Sandra Nanita is Program Assistant at Cool Culture. Previously, she worked with NJ SEEDS, an organization that builds leaders from inner city youth while closing the achievement gap. Sandra is experienced in working with children and young adults in various programs focused on building youth leadership. Sandra graduated from Rutgers University, where she earned a BS in Business Management and Latin American Studies. Also an artist, Sandra has showcased her artwork in exhibits throughout New Jersey. 

 Barbara Palley is Education Manager at Cool Culture, where she develops educational  resources and coordinates Literacy through Culture, a rich, multi- site partnership between  cultural institutions, early childhood centers, and their families. She has over 13 years of  experience engaging youth, families and adults in arts learning experiences in museums. She formerly served as an in-house evaluator at the Museum of Modern Art, as the school programs manager at the Brooklyn Museum, and as a research assistant at Project Zero. She has a BA in Art History, University of Virginia and an Ed.M., Arts in Education, Harvard University.

Johanne Sterling is the Public Allies Program Fellow at Cool Culture, managing family events and coordinating volunteers. Prior to that she worked at the Dorothy Day Center for Service and Justice at Fordham University where she implemented college access programs and provided student leadership development training.  Johanne graduated from Fordham University, where she earned a BA in Communications and Media Studies and Visual Arts. Her coursework focused on media analysis and criticism and the environmental possibilities in design.

Stefania Trelles is the Public Allies Education Fellow at Cool Culture. She recently earned her BA in Sociology with a minor in Globalization and Society at Fairleigh Dickinson University in Madison, NJ. As an undergraduate she helped increase cultural awareness through her participation in the Latin American Student Organization.  Stefania has participated in community development programs, including Alternative Spring Break where she volunteered with Amizade-Global Service Learning in Navajo-Nation. After having spent time as a teacher assistant for early learning center, she hopes to do more for children through her work in the non-profit sector.

 Alex Wang is Development Manager at Cool Culture. He comes from Neighborhood House  where he managed the High Point Center - a social service center in Seattle's most  impoverished community - a helped raise funds for its $13 million capital campaign. Prior to that  he worked as a communications and fund raising consultant developing strategic plans, brand strategies, online campaigns and special events for nonprofits across the Pacific Northwest. Alex is a graduate of the University of California at Berkeley and when he isn't working on his novel and screenplays, he's scouring the city for the best soup dumplings or croissant or karage.

 Consultants

Loren Miller has more than 20 years of program and capacity building experience in education, social justice and community development initiatives, and has worked throughout New York City and in Senegal, Haiti and Ecuador. Loren has over seven years of expertise building effective school, family and community partnerships. She is a national trainer for the Parent Services Project Family Support and Parent Leadership curriculum, specializing in strengthening family involvement in children’s education. Most recently, Loren served as the director of Bushwick IMPACT, an early childhood family resource center that she brought from conception to implementation. She speaks French, Spanish and Haitian Kreyol, received her BA from Brown University and has completed coursework towards her PhD in Cultural Anthropology. Loren is the proud mother of a ten year-old son.

Melissa Ptacek has been involved in the field of education for 25 years. She has been an elementary school teacher, university professor, school administrator and staff developer. In an earlier career, Melissa worked as a textile designer in the United States, the United Kingdom and Italy. She has taught in the NYC public school system, as well as teaching several college courses and art classes to all age levels. She has designed and carried out workshops on a variety of topics for both parents and educators. Most recently, Melissa has worked as a private educational consultant specializing in curriculum development with both private and public schools and independent organizations in urban and suburban settings. In her work with cultural institutions, she strives to foster inquiry learning for young children and their families.

Cathleen Wiggins is Director of the Leadership in Technology and the Arts Program at Bank Street College of Education, which is a collaborative Master’s degree program with Parsons New School of Design and Sarah Lawrence College. Cathleen is also a member of the Museum Education faculty at Bank Street.  A former public early childhood and elementary school teacher and theater artist, she brings her life long love of the arts and education to her many professional endeavors. She is passionate about museum education, the transformative power of the arts in education, and to minimizing the success and opportunity gap for our nation’s children.

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