Penny Austen is co-founder and Executive Director of ThinkGive. A native Canadian, Penny holds a deep belief that she has been the most fundamentally impacted by a handful of kind and compassionate people. She is passionate about elevating the importance of kindness and empowering young people to discover their capacity to affect change through the strong (not soft) skills of kindness and compassion. Skills that can help the world reconnect and heal.

Penny spent two decades working in technology and nonprofit management, then co-founded ThinkGive as a platform to shine the light on character. She received her bachelor’s degree from McGill University and her MBA from Duke’s Fuqua School of Business. She lives in Concord, MA, with her husband, three children, and three dogs. When she’s not working, you can find her watching her kids play sports, climbing a mountain, or struggling to stick to meditation practice.

Ginger believes that kindness and empathy are skills that must be continually taught and are just as important as reading, writing, and arithmetic. We live in an interconnected world where every interaction has the power to change another person’s life. Ginger’s experience working for Autism Speaks as a fundraiser and event planner 15 years ago made this clear, and inspired her to run her own business doing the same for health and education non-profit organizations such as the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, Vibrant Emotional Health, and the Kidsbridge Center. Ginger is enthusiastic about building relationships to grow ThinkGive’s experiential social and emotional learning program.

Ginger is pursuing her graduate degree at Johns Hopkins University and, in her spare time, coordinates the volunteer food service at her son’s elementary school. She lives in New Jersey with her spouse, two children, and cat, and enjoys singing at the top of her lungs when no one is home.

Scott sees the remarkable power of kindness through the actions of his fifth-grade son, who is beloved by fellow students, teachers, parents, and coaches for his generosity of spirit. Seeing the profound difference one child’s kindness can make in their community is why Scott wants to help bring ThinkGive to more classrooms.

Prior to ThinkGive, Scott worked in a number of marketing roles, mostly in higher education and publishing. Most recently he led marketing at an executive search firm focused on nonprofits. Before that, he worked at Northeastern University, where a highlight was being the lead marketer on partnerships with Major League Baseball, Google, and General Electric.

Scott lives in Southborough, MA, with his wife, their son, and two rescue dogs. He cherishes going on family hikes with the dogs, trying new recipes while cooking, watching his son play sports and the violin, endlessly writing and rewriting a screenplay, and spending summer days on any body of water.

Hannah’s fondest memories from her childhood education involve kindness and empathy; indeed, these essential experiences led her to choosing a career in education. She believes that social and emotional learning (SEL) is an essential part of any successful and joyful school experience, and equally as important as any subject area. Students deserve to be empowered to spread kindness within their school communities and beyond.

Prior to joining ThinkGive, Hannah taught elementary school for 11 years—one year in kindergarten, five years in third grade, and five years in fourth grade. In her classrooms, Hannah sought to form meaningful connections with each and every student and to create an atmosphere of kind-heartedness and generosity. And, of course, plenty of laughter!

Hannah lives with her husband and two children in Woburn, MA. As a family, they love to explore the woods, sing and dance, and draw silly pictures. Some of Hannah’s favorite activities include mountain biking, reading, embroidery, gardening, and visiting historical sites.

Lisa believes the key to a meaningful life is the connections you form with people and the world around you. She has a passion for enriching the lives of youth and teaching them the importance of helping others.

Prior to joining ThinkGive, Lisa began her career practicing law. After becoming a mom of three kids, she shifted her focus to teaching youth. Lisa co-founded a financial literacy program for children. She also authored and published children’s books about empathy and kindness with the purpose of donating the books to children’s charities and raising awareness about various causes.

Lisa was drawn to ThinkGive because she strongly believes that youth benefit from learning that acts of kindness connect us to others and help strengthen our communities. She plans to bring her creativity and teaching background to ThinkGive to expand the reach of the organization.

Anum is a passionate advocate for equity in education and believes strongly in the inherent learning potential of every child. She holds a law degree and briefly practiced in the corporate sector before finding her heart in the non-profit world. Prior to joining ThinkGive, Anum worked in under-resourced classroom settings in Pakistan to improve access to quality education. Her subsequent work on standardized testing in the United States assessing student responses further reinforced her belief that disparities in education is a global concern and only immense hard work and an uncompromising vision at both the individual and systemic level is going to instigate change.

Becoming a parent broadened her perspective even more as she delved into the social emotional realm of education with her children and saw the importance of formally integrating SEL into the curriculum in schools. She is excited to work for ThinkGive's inspiring mission and help spread kindness and empathy in the world – one lesson, one child at a time.

When she is not busy working and being a mom, you can find Anum going on family hikes, running while listening to her favorite podcast, picking up books from the library, and doing the occasional jigsaw puzzle.

Suzi’s eclectic, thoughtful and sensitive approach to curriculum design produces meaningful experiences for a wide range of learners. From early work as a graduate assistant in the Eliot-Pearson Curriculum Resource Lab at Tufts, to teaching at The Meadowbrook School of Weston, and more recently exploring best virtual teaching practices, Suzi’s calling remains: to discover, define or concoct the “secret ingredient” that makes individual lessons truly impactful. Her definition of success is when students take concepts/skills explored in the classroom, make them their own, and spontaneously apply them in their own unique ways.

In over 30 years as a teacher, Suzi has witnessed the important role that social emotional learning, community, respect, and trust play in empowering students to fully engage in learning experiences with confidence and to interact socially with genuine kindness.

Collaborating with colleagues energizes Suzi. She likens the process to making a great lasagna! Each person adds layers with their own unique contributions, and the result is a magnificent creation that could only be achieved by working together. Suzi believes that students are luckiest when they can benefit from this type of professional planning and collaboration.

Suzi lives in Waltham with her husband and two whippets. She is the proud mother of a sports TV producer. She can often be found outdoors: gardening, beach combing, walking trails, collecting heart shaped rocks, or swimming in ponds, lakes and the ocean in all four seasons.

Minna is a big believer of a people-centered approach through collaborative and creative integration of meaningful small habits that lead to powerful shifts. She is honored to be a part of stewarding ThinkGive’s vision and mission for transformation through small acts of empathy and kindness.

She has recently transitioned out of elementary education classroom facilitation and instruction after 11 years and is moving towards work that prioritizes elevating content and humanizing spaces. She has had the honor of co-creating with beautiful humans of all ages, ranging from elementary school students to our elderly through various modalities, from reflective processes, somatic practices, conflict resolution, and play! She is grateful for the skills and wisdom she continues to nurture through YES! Jams, FuelEd, and Questabox and is looking forward to weaving in her experiences at ThinkGive.

Minna nourishes her mind, body, and spirit through yoga, rock climbing, reading multiple books at a time while struggling to finish even one, solo-karaoke in the car, forest baths, and connecting to her ancestry through Korean folk dance.

Rianna strongly encourages kindness in schools as she has seen how it can positively affect youth’s outlook on life. Given the current climate of the world, she believes that we need programs like ThinkGive in our schools to change the atmosphere in our communities.

Rianna attends the University Of Massachusetts-Amherst studying communication with a concentration in film/media studies. This semester she will be working with the College for Social Innovation, who has partnered her with ThinkGive as a social media/film intern.

Rianna moved to Framingham, MA from Jamaica in 2018 and now lives in Marlborough. She enjoys film acting and plans on pursuing that more during her time in Boston. In her free time she enjoys traveling and activities like laser tag and escape rooms with friends and family.

Embedded in Sean’s earliest learning was his school’s motto, “Sua Sponte” or “It’s in your hands.” Students experience the most impactful learning when they understand that they have the power to make a difference in their community. ThinkGive’s call to action, embedded in each lesson, is what drew Sean to ThinkGive, as it helps students learn that kindness and empathy are in their hands each and every day.

Prior to joining ThinkGive, Sean taught for 13 years at Shore Country Day School in Beverly, MA--8 years as a lead fourth grade teacher, then as a 6th grade English teacher and Dean of Students. He believes a community built on gratitude and kindness is a community that leaves every member feeling fulfilled. He is excited about bringing the positive vibes of ThinkGive to as many classrooms as possible because he believes giving is, and always has been, cool.

Sean lives in Boston, MA with his wife where he enjoys long city walks, running along the Charles River, and writing in coffee shops. He’s also on a perpetual hunt for the best cheeseburger in town.

My name is Alicia Augustin and I am a sophomore at the University of Pennsylvania studying Political Science and Urban Education. As a passionate advocate for education equity in America, I dedicate my studies and career work to researching education disparities and shortcomings. I hope to improve the education system through policy work. I am excited to intern at ThinkGive to explore the mental and emotional health aspects within the field of education. At ThinkGive, I am particularly looking forward to developing programs that allow children to grow self-aware of the abilities they possess to engage with the world in a positive manner.

Alex Chayrigues attends Concord Carlisle High School in Concord, MA. He enjoys activities focused on history, international affairs, baseball, and working with kids as a camp counselor and as an assistant coach at a local youth sports organization. Alex was drawn to serving with ThinkGive based on his interest in creating new ways for kids to learn and take part in improving their community.

Hi! My name is Audrey Elmes and I live in Williamsburg, Virginia. I am a rising sophomore at Hampton Roads Academy. I am a field hockey and track athlete and I play flute in my school band. I enjoy volunteering at children’s fairs and food banks, helping out at my school library, and working with animals. I am interested in ThinkGive because I love working with children and helping teachers out. I’m also looking to get more involved in my school, especially with a mental health or kindness project.

Bella is a junior at Concord-Carlisle High School. Her passion for working with kids has led her to babysit, work at a children's boutique, and volunteer with children. She hopes to become an elementary school teacher, and was drawn to ThinkGive to learn more about creating a curriculum. ThinkGive's mission resonates with Bella, and she hopes to continue her involvement of working with children into her future!

Tytianna is a Junior at the University of Pennsylvania studying Urban Studies and Political Science. From a young age, Tytianna has always been passionate about education. This started out as helping her cousins with their homework, and has blossomed into her volunteering in local Philadelphia public schools. Tytianna is drawn to ThinkGive because of its mission and dedication to introducing kindness and compassion to our next generation of leaders. Furthermore, she deeply resonates with the value "small is profound," for she believes it will be the small inches of progress that will blossom change.