Groove Team
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Maria Gutierrez
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
As a Cuban born girl, in a family of professional Rhumba and Mambo dancers, Maria knows the power of music and dance. As NYC.org’s Director, her passion is to share it with everyBODY! With 30+ years in the fitness and dance profession, Maria realized how terrified people were to move their bodies in a healthy and healing way….she then found Groove in 2009 and hasn’t looked back! Maria has been sharing healing arts curriculum with youth for over 20 years. As an affiliate of SEE Learning, Emory University, she has created a blended curriculum using art, music, dance and Social Emotional and Ethical Learning to help young people experience a vision for their world.
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Jessica Travato
DIRECTOR OF SEL CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT
A life-long creative, and builder of community, Jessica has been certified as a GROOVE facilitator since 2009. She has also earned her certification in Movement and SEL through Breathe for Change, as well as, an advanced certification from SEE Learning l, Emory University for Compassion Studies.
Since then she has worked both with families and mentoring young adults using creative communication, mindfulness, and the arts.
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Leslie Howitt
COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT AND YOUTH LEADERSHIP FACILITATOR
With over 30 years of experience, Leslie is a versatile artist, fitness expert, and community activist who unites people through music, dance, and joy. Leading our youth creative team and leadership academy (ages 16-24), she fosters a safe space for uninhibited self-expression. A movement authority, Leslie emphasizes well-being and uniqueness through mindful dance.
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Charles Chessler
Photography Teaching Artist
Based in NYC, Charles specializes in portraits and headshots for creatives, business professionals, and corporate clients. Beyond photography, he's a wildlife conservation advocate, serving as an ambassador for a South African non-profit where he teaches annually. In NYC, he hosts workshops and mentors underserved youth, fostering their creative growth. Leading our NYC photo walks with Youth Leadership Academy participants, Charles enables adolescents to express themselves freely through photography, creating a unique avenue for communication and self-discovery. He's thrilled to collaborate with GROOVE NYC.
Board of Directors
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Anna Theresa Cascio
BOARD PRESIDENT
Anna Theresa Cascio is a graduate of Yale School of Drama in playwriting and the recipient of a Rockefeller Grant. She has attended the O’Neill Playwrights Conference BROAD CHANNEL, the one-man show ”Godzilla’s Prince” that she wrote with and for her husband, Doc Dougherty, was widely produced in New York and LA.. She is co-book-writer of the musical, THE HOUSE OF MARTIN GUERRE, which ran at the Goodman Theatre in Chicago, and at CanStage in Toronto. Her other work has been produced at MCC, ACT, among others.
Anna has won an Emmy and seven Writers’ Guild awards for her television work.
She is the creator of our Youth Leadership Academy’s creative writing program and has volunteered with GROOVE NYC on many initiatives.
Anna is also the creative lead on our upcoming documentary focusing on art as an essential part of our everyday lives
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Jackie Jackson
BOARD SECRETARY
Jackie Jackson is from a lineage of educators and deeply values GROOVE's significance. With over five years in the community, she's a vital member and also holds a distinguished three-decade tenure as a Senior Executive Assistant at American Express.
Since assuming the role of our board secretary in 2019, Jackie has emerged as an indispensable pillar of our administrative ensemble. Her adept management of schedules, meetings, and events serves as the bedrock of our operational efficiency.
Jackie indulges in pursuits such as photography, fashion design, and ceramics. This well-rounded perspective bolsters her understanding of the role creativity plays in a child's holistic development.
'Be a change maker" ~ Author Unknown
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Rebecca Batt
BOARD MEMBER
Rebecca Batt is retired after decades of working as a freelance project manager. Projects included film production, political campaigns, and various non-profit efforts, mostly in Utah. These included a book, The Sky Is Green, documenting a collaborative effort between the Utah Arts Council and Art Access Utah. Rebecca also served as the Director of Administration for a start-up museum, the Museum of Utah Arts and History, a collaborative effort of three State of Utah agencies. Finally, working with the Utah Humanities Council, Rebecca served as Director of the Council’s annual Great Salt Lake Book Festival. Rebecca currently lives in New York City where she has volunteered for GROOVE NYC in many capacities since 2022.
She also volunteers at Open House New York, the Great Saunter, and Team TLC’s Little Shop of Kindness.
Advisory Board
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Verónica Labrador Monteiro
Verónica is a NYC based yoga and meditation instructor. She is also a high school Spanish teacher with over two decades of experience. She first discovered yoga in 2008 when she was experiencing stress, adversely impacting her health. Needless to say, it was love at first practice and she wanted to share it with everyone! Verónica received her RYT 200-Hour Certification through Breathe For Change. She chose the program because of its comprehensive focus on the principles of Wellness and Social Emotional Learning. Verónica is committed to creating classes that promote a sense of belonging and positive self-worth. Her background as an educator enables her to create sequences that are designed to be challenging yet accessible for all. She routinely incorporates props to allow for a practice that is simultaneously fluid and aligned. Verónica draws upon her experience as a practitioner and an educator to create a space that is safe, inclusive, and welcoming to each and every body.
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John Pacos
John Pacos is a Certified Public Accountant licensed in New York State and has been with S. Napolitano Corp since 2021. He earned his BS in Accounting from Ramapo College of New Jersey and his MBA in Public Accounting from SUNY New Paltz. He is a current member of the New York State Society of Certified Public Accountants.
“We make living by what we get; we make life by what we give.” Winston Churchill.
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David Sloan
Producer and Creative Lead ABC Studios.
Throughout David's tenure at ABC News, the exec has received nine Emmys, four Peabodys and a duPont Award for his exceptional producing.
"It would be nice to feel that we are a better world, a world of more compassion and a world of more humanity, and to believe in the basic goodness of man." ~Barbara Walters