The 2024 Vision Fellows Are Announced!
The Martha’s Vineyard Vision Fellowship Grants Committee is delighted to announce the recipients of the 2024 Vision Fellowship awards. The Committee was impressed by these individuals' passionate and thoughtful commitment to their endeavors and fields of study, as well as to the Island. They each showed a vision to support and sustain the Island’s best qualities in the years ahead, not just as it exists today.
The 2024 Martha’s Vineyard Vision Fellows are:
Health Aging MV, with Marge Dolan as the Project Mentor, will research, develop, and test a volunteer bank pilot program that uses technology to connect volunteers and organizations. The project’s goal is to combat loneliness and isolation by expanding engagement opportunities for individuals over age 60. Healthy Aging MV will hire a Project Fellow, who will work with Marge’s assistance and guidance, to implement the project. Marge, a member of HAMV’s Board, brings to the project deep experience as a strategy and management consulting executive, with a strong corporate and legal background. The project will also explore the concept that the volunteer bank could serve as an “hours bank” in which older adults who volunteer could “deposit” that time for “withdrawal” at a later time, when they in turn need services.
Kim Garrison will earn her PhD by completing and defending her dissertation in human development at the University of Rochester. She will also earn her Leader Effectiveness Training (LET) certification from Gordon Training International. Kim’s dissertation study examines how the use of person-centered methods of capturing organizational culture and climate relate to a teacher's commitment to their school organization. With her PhD and LET certificate, Kim will help Island organizations to align the technical (mission, programs to implement mission, etc.) and human (social, emotional) aspects of their work. This is Kim’s second Vision Fellowship award. With a 2020 award, Kim conducted a two-year feasibility study for a school-based health center. For more information: https://sites.google.com/mvyps.org/mvrhssbhc/home
Sasha Iammarino will enroll in the 22-month Speech Language Pathologist Assistant program at Elms College in Chicopee, Massachusetts. Sasha’s goal is to address the need for multilingual speech services in the Martha's Vineyard community, particularly in a school-based setting. Sasha is bilingual in English and Brazilian Portuguese. She currently works as a medical interpreter at Martha’s Vineyard Hospital and as a school interpreter. Ultimately, Sasha plans to pursue a master’s program in speech-language pathology. The need for multilingual staff in speech therapy services is highlighted by the fact that approximately 11% of Island students receiving speech therapy services are multilingual.
Jesse Jason will pursue her master’s in clinical mental Health Counseling: Dance/Movement Therapy from Lesley University. Her goal is to fill the gap in mental health care for young children on Martha's Vineyard and to address social and emotional delays in children through trauma-informed pedagogy and art therapy. Since April 2021, Jesse has been Lead Preschool Teacher at Martha’s Vineyard Community Services Early Childhood Center. From 2012 through early 2021, Jesse was Director of Island Programs and Education at The Yard in Chilmark. She holds a BFA in Performance and Choreography from Ohio University and earned her Early Childhood Lead Preschool Certification from Cape Cod Community College in 2022.
Martha’s Vineyard Builders Association with Anna Koppel as the Project Fellow will plan and implement ‘Spark’, an Island-wide, community event to reinvigorate interest in the trades. The goal is to encourage and empower Islanders to pass down skills, life lessons, and a sustainable future through a hands-on approach to learning. The Vineyard’s inaugural Spark event will be held on Saturday, October 26th, 2024, from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. at the MV Agricultural Society in West Tisbury. Attendees will spend the day exploring modern and ancient trades, agriculture, and arts and crafts. The broad vision is to shift the narrative about what it means to do meaningful work, to have a good job, and to build a life. Anna's dedication to the Spark project stems from her commitment to building a sustainable future for Martha's Vineyard. With a background in event planning, organizational management, and community engagement and volunteering, Anna brings valuable expertise to the project.
Vineyard Power’s Energy Transition Program with Thamiris Marta and Sophie Pittaluga as the Project Fellows will continue to facilitate the Island’s transition to 100% renewable energy by 2040, a resolution that has been adopted by all Island towns. The program is dedicated to tracking milestones and progress in achieving the Island’s increased renewables and greenhouse gas reduction targets. This includes initiatives focused on increasing building weatherization and energy efficiency, strategic electrification of heating and hot water systems, electric vehicle adoption, supporting increased renewable energy production primarily though solar and offshore wind, supporting income eligible ratepayers, and building a renewable energy curriculum, including a career pathways program, for the island schools. Thamiris is an American-Brazilian islander, born in Brazil and raised on the island. She has deep roots in the island’s Brazilian community and speaks fluent Portuguese. Thamiris is enthusiastic about our community, its diversity, and its willingness to collaborate to address climate change and environmental challenges. Sophie was born in Italy and grew up in Northern Virginia. She earned her BS in Public Health and BA in Environmental Policy in May 2023 at the College of William & Mary in Williamsburg, VA. Sophie is passionate about helping others, environmental education, and delivering equitable solutions for communities to mitigate and adapt to impacts of climate change.
Annie Ollen is an Island native who graduated from Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School in 2015 and Barnard College in 2019 with a major in political science and a minor in Africana studies. Annie moved back to the Island at the pandemic’s onset. Initially, she continued to work remotely in digital marketing for nonprofits. As the world reopened, she took a teaching assistant position at the West Tisbury School, which she attended through 8th grade. She loves working with the teachers who shaped her and helped her to become a successful student. Within the first month of teaching, Annie knew she had found her career path and discovered a particular love for teaching math. In 2023, Annie obtained her provisional teaching license in Mathematics (Grades 1-8), which allowed her to take on a new role as a Math Interventionist. She is involved in many of the school’s extracurricular activities because she enjoys them and because it helps her to build relationships with her students outside of the math classroom. With her Vision Fellowship award, Annie will pursue a Master of Education in Secondary Education with a focus in Middle School Mathematics from Merrimack College.
Martha’s Vineyard Commission (MVC) with Morgen Schroeder as the Project Fellow who will serve as Climate Change Communications Specialist. In 2022, through a collaborative effort led by the MVC, a regional, 20-year Vineyard Climate Action Plan, The Vineyard Way (CAP), was developed (www.thevineyardway.org). Community knowledge and support of the actions detailed in the CAP is critical to successful CAP implementation and, ultimately, Island climate change resilience. As a Climate Communications Specialist/Vision Fellow, Morgen Schroeder will develop and implement a two-year climate change communications campaign to raise awareness, inspire community action, and build a foundation for an on-going climate change communications presence. The campaign will empower community members to engage in climate action by generating ongoing messaging, content, and action opportunities that align with the CAP.
Kara Shemeth will earn a Geographic Information Systems and Data Communication Professional Certificate from the University of Vermont’s Professional and Continuing Education Program. Kara is currently the Conservation Assistant for the Town of Edgartown. Previously, she served as Conservation Agent for Chilmark, and project surveyor for Schofield Barbini and Hoehn, Inc. in Vineyard Haven. Kara is a two-time Vision Fellow. As a 2016 Fellow, she earned a master’s degree in environmental policy & management with a focus in public policy from American Public University. Among other things, Kara has served as Captain / EMT Edgartown Fire Department since 2004 and was a founding member of the Amity Island Running Club.
Pricila Vilaca will earn her undergraduate and master’s degree from Southern New Hampshire University, through its online program. Pricila’s goal is to become a psychologist who specializes in domestic abuse/violence. She has been working in the field for five years. Pricila’s passion lies in equipping herself to effectively support both families and individuals to navigate mental health challenges within the Vineyard’s communities. She is committed to not only understanding and bridging cultural gaps but also to meeting individuals on their unique journeys. Among other things, Pricila established the first support group and book group for victims and survivors in Portuguese in an initiative to address the growing issue of domestic violence within the Brazilian community on Martha's Vineyard.
Vision Scholar Awards:
The Martha’s Vineyard Vision Fellowship Scholar Award recognizes high school seniors who are committed to strengthening the Island’s social and environmental sustainability and who show promise as future leaders and change advocates. The Vision Scholar award is for two-years in the amount of $10,000 per year. For more information, visit https://www.vineyardvision.org/
This year’s Vision Scholars are:
Clara Athearn who will earn a bachelor’s degree in human ecology from the College of the Atlantic.
Oona Carroll who will earn a bachelor’s degree in biology from Mount Holyoke University.
Robert “Huck” Moore who will earn a bachelor of science degree from Yale University in environmental engineering.
Lyla Solway who will study biological and agricultural engineering at North Carolina State University
Brooke Ward who will study environmental science and business from Florida Atlantic University.
In addition, the following undergraduate students who were awarded two-year Vision Fellowships upon high school graduation in 2021, have been awarded second two-year Vision Fellowships, for their junior and senior years:
Keissila Cecilio who is majoring in biology with a minor in neuroscience at Elon University.
Nick Cranston who is majoring in environmental biology with a minor in marine biology at Tulane University.