Abraham Abullarade was born and raised in San Francisco, CA. He graduated from SF State University with a B.A. in Broadcasting and Electronic Communications. Upon graduating he interned at Kaiser Permanente’s Public Affairs Department where he worked with the communications team and helped organize various community health fairs. Abe then worked at Spark, a national youth-apprenticeship organization headquartered in the Bay Area. During his time at Spark he worked with students in San Francisco, Redwood City, and San Rafael to facilitate individualized apprenticeships in various careers. He is passionate about youth empowerment and is excited to work with a talented and enthusiastic CNG team!

Sam Cortez was born and grew up in San Francisco. She was fortunate to have the opportunity of being a volunteer in the YMCA after school programs in her neighborhood. It was in those programs that she found out that she wanted to pursue a career having to do with children.

Now, she lives in San Mateo, and attends San Mateo College, pursuing a degree in Child Development. She has had the opportunity to build several positive relationships with the youth at Hoover Community School, and is excited for what the school year has to bring.  Sam loves to live each day open mindedly, with positive attitude, and ready for what the day has in store for her.

Meredith Watts was born and raised in Wichita, Kansas. She graduated from the University of Kansas in December 2009 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Journalism and an emphasis in Strategic Communication. While at the University of Kansas Meredith volunteered with and held leadership positions in multiple programs dedicated to promoting youth development. Through her leadership positions and active membership in several nonprofit organizations Meredith found her passion for helping others.

During her freshman year, Meredith began volunteering at the Boys and Girls Club of Lawrence, KS. She worked with youth to become more environmentally aware through gardening and other outdoor activities through “Grow,” a student led program based in the Center of Community Outreach at the University of Kansas. In the fall of 2008, Meredith became a co-director of Students Tutoring for Literacy, where she directed the creation of the new after-school program, “Literacy Buddies,” which offers students who are falling behind in school additional help from college students with their homework.

In September 2010, Meredith moved to the Bay Area in search of new adventures and experiences. Her work with the BGCP began in October 2010 when she started coaching soccer at the Mervin G. Morris Clubhouse through Team up For Youth. In February 2011, she became one of the Assistant Directors of the CNG After-School Program at Hoover. In the future, Meredith hopes to go back to school and get a Masters Degree in Nonprofit Administration. She hopes to begin her own organization that helps youth all over the world.

Vanessa Navarro graduated from Menlo Atherton High School in 2006. Her plan is to attend Foothill College to major in Radiology. Vanessa is an outgoing person and loves working with arts and crafts. This is her second year working for CNG @ Belle Haven as an Academic Mentor. Vanessa enjoys taking her time working with young people and helping them with their homework as well as helping them learn new things. It is important to Vanessa that she is making a difference in young people's lives.

Hector Cornejo recently graduated from San Jose State University with a degree in Kinesiology with a concentration in Preparation for Teaching. His favorite part of working at CNG  is the ability to interact with the kids by teaching them life lessons that will better prepare them for their adolescence and adulthood years. His goals for the 2011-2012 school year is “to prepare these kids as much as I can and teach them how to work together, work hard, and think critically about making the right decisions in life. A goal that I want to encourage this year is the awareness of physical activity and nutrition. The lack of physical activity and proper nutrition is a huge problem in America for young children.  We as educators must educate about the importance of choosing to live a healthy lifestyle and what particular characteristics will help you get there.”

Kayla Anderson is the current 5th grade CNG mentor. She is originally from Palo Alto and currently attends Foothill College. She will be transferring to UCSC next Fall and majoring in Literature with plans to graduate with her Masters Degree and a teaching credential. She loves children and teaching and looks forward to becoming a teacher. Her goal this year is to develop close relationships with her class and give them a more positive outlook towards school and their future.

Rubie Macaraeg
Academic Mentor
Since 2011

Rubie Acosta Macaraeg is the 4th/5th grade CNG Hoover mentor. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Art History and History from Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, CA. Providing support and encouragement to youth – especially those of color from urban areas that do not have access to cultural and academic institutions – is one of the most important and powerful acts that she feels one can contribute. Her favorite part about being a CNG mentor is sharing her love for art with her energetic students who jump right in to any project! Her goals for the 2011-2012 school year in the classroom is to “expose my students to various ways of seeing, experiencing and exploring the world while embracing people and things that are different from themselves.”

Anahi Ortega
Academic Mentor
Since 2011

Anahi Ortega is excited to be working with youth and to serve as a go-to individual. Her previous work experience with youth includes a horseback riding camp, at-risk youth camp, and a mentoring position for freshman in college. A recent CSU, Monterey Bay graduate she chose to work with CNG because of its commitment to serving at-risk youth. Anahi’s goals for the sixth grade class are “to establish organizational skills, teamwork, and confidence. So far I am appreciative of the impact that my athletics personality is having on our students- we've created a bond and I have already seen them grow in such a short period.”

Erika Monroe is Hoover’s new 4th grader mentor. Erika is currently a junior at Notre Dame de Namur University in Belmont studying Political Science with a minor in Psychology. She has aspirations of become a lawyer in the future that works with children. She has mentored children since she was 14 years old as a youth-worker for San Francisco Recreation & Park and also for MYEEP (a youth employment agency).  She was drawn to the Boys & Girls Club because its mission of helping students thrive aligns with her own personal and career goals. She is excited to work with the 4th graders this year and hopes to “be a positive role model and a supportive adult in their lives.”

Rosie Venegas is returning for her 3rd year with CNG Hoover. She is a current student with an AA in liberal arts with a major in Social and Behavioral sciences currently working on her BA. She spends her free time taking black and white photos and spending time with my family. Her favorite part of working at CNG has been seeing the kids grow and mature. She has worked with her students since 6th grade which has made the whole class united. Rosie’s goals for the year are to help her kids not only have a plan for high school, but also a plan after high school. This will be an exciting year as she helps her students work on high school applications, Youth of the Year, private school testing, high school prep and so much more.

Roger Woods is CNG’s 8th grade mentor on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Mr. Woods holds an impressive background including Communications Electronics, the U.S. Navy, Electrical Engineering (Stanford University), volunteer service for a myriad of mentoring and youth programs, church ministry leadership, silk screening startups, real estate and insurance sales. His goal this year is to “speak into the lives of youth of our community in ways that will empower them to be productive citizens. I expect them to understand how the choices and actions made now concerning their education can profoundly influence their livelihood and future ability support a family.”