Amy believes deeply in the need to create psychologically safe classroom environments for students and educators. For her, social-emotional and academic learning go hand-in-hand to support healthy development of the whole person towards a happy, fulfilling, and purposeful life.

Over 14 years of working with various historically marginalized student populations, Amy has honed her ability to produce inspired curriculum and support effective pedagogy. This work is founded upon a deep theoretical background in educational psychology through her research experience at Clark University and Harvard University. And as a first generation professional from a low income family, she has lived the opportunity for social mobility that is education.

Amy was raised and still lives in the Bay Area beach town of Half Moon Bay where she enjoys spending time outdoors, waiting for affection from her cats, and cooking with friends and family. She is constantly curious and on the lookout for opportunities to challenge her understanding of education and the world.

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.

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.

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.

Christine was raised by a Montessori school teacher and believes in the power of experiential learning to help young people build confidence and develop their personalities. She joined ThinkGive in 2022 to help the organization formalize its fundraising and donor recognition processes.

Christine has over 15 years of professional fundraising experience at a variety of organizations ranging from small grassroots organizations to major academic research hospitals. Her goal at ThinkGive is to raise additional revenue from individuals, foundations, and corporations, and to broaden the base of support for this work. She believes in a community-centric approach to fundraising that prioritizes the needs of historically excluded groups and educates funders on how they can be better allies.

Christine volunteers for several organizations in the Greater Boston area including the Boston Cyclists Union and the Mattapan Food and Fitness Coalition. She lives in Medford with her Jack Russell Terrier, Franklin, and enjoys cycling and circus aerials.

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.

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.

Julie-Ann Destine (Smith College '21) is majoring in Education & Child Study and minoring in Psychology. From South Orange, NJ, Julie has seen the benefits of school counseling and hopes to work in that capacity in the future. Julie has a passion for social-emotional learning, making ThinkGive a wonderful fit for her. Julie currently works for ThinkGive, where she edits lesson plans and implements multicultural resources in the units. Julie is excited to be part of the Junior Advisory Board to help ThinkGive provide curricula that is beneficial to any community that uses it.

Alex Giles is currently a senior at Williams College. She is a Psychology major, with a specific focus on social, developmental, and educational psych. This interest in learning about the psychology of children, and the profound impacts of education on their development, is what led her to ThinkGive. She has always had a passion for working with students, and hopes to continue her involvement in the education nonprofit world next year!

Cherry is a junior at Smith College majoring in Psychology and Sociology. Her passion for social justice in education and past experiences working with adolescents in academic settings led her to join ThinkGive. She strives to continue to live by and spread ThinkGive’s values of empathy, equity, and inclusion.

Shoshi Gordon is from Newton, MA. A first-year student at Bowdoin College, she’s interested in education, history, and religion. At ThinkGive Shoshi helps with curriculum development and is a member of the Junior Advisory Board. She plans to be a high school history teacher and was drawn to ThinkGive because of her interest in curriculum development and her belief in the power of giving.

Sophie is a senior at Bowdoin College, pursuing a dual major in Neuroscience and Education. She is passionate about working with students and ensuring that all kids have equitable opportunities to thrive both in and outside the classroom. What brought Sophie to ThinkGive was the desire to develop curriculum specifically focused on social-emotional learning, well-being, and social justice. She believes this kind of curriculum is crucial for all students to engage with. After graduating from college, Sophie hopes to attend medical school and become a Pediatrician. 

Chalyssa Robinson is a senior at Smith College and majors in Education and Child Study. She is from Boston, MA, and plans to work as an elementary teacher in Boston after graduation. Chalyssa supports ThinkGive's curriculum development team by gathering multicultural resources that represent an array of identities, cultures, and abilities. She also implemented several ThinkGive lessons with a group of middle schoolers. Chalyssa is a member of the Junior Advisory Board where she provides her perspective as a woman of color to ensure all identities and backgrounds are considered at ThinkGive.

Julia is a 21-year-old from the Jersey Shore, and currently a junior at Tufts University. Julia is double majoring in Child Study and Human Development & Education, making ThinkGive a perfect fit! At ThinkGive, Julia has been a curriculum development intern since June 2020. During that time, she has created countless worksheets and PowerPoints, attended weekly curriculum development meetings, created new lesson plans, and now she's so excited to add participating as a Junior Advisory Board member to the list! Post-grad, Julia will decide whether to go down the teaching route or towards admissions counseling and recruiting for private high schools and colleges.