Marlene McLean is a dedicated community leader and administrative professional with years of experience driving organizational change and student success within the New York education system. As the Program Manager, she manages a comprehensive support ecosystem that provides fellows with paid training, academic instruction, and direct access to personal development coaches and social workers. Marlene is responsible for facilitating the strategic training opportunities necessary to fulfill the program’s core promises.

I believe that every young person deserves a consistent, encouraging presence as they build their future. My mission is to help you translate your lived experiences into strengths, ensuring you don't just "get through", but truly lead the way in your own life.

Stephanie Mui serves as the Evaluation Consultant for Working the Gap, where she partners with staff and youth to design and implement participatory evaluation approaches that center youth voice and strengthen program learning. In this role, she supports the development of accessible data systems, facilitates a youth evaluation cohort, and helps translate data into meaningful insights for program improvement and decision-making.

Whitney Q. Hollins, PhD, is the Faculty Academic Coordinator in the Youth Studies department at CUNY SPS. Her research uses critical theory to unpack complex social issues, aiming to amplify the voices of underrepresented populations by exploring the lived experiences of overlooked and understudied communities. Dr. Hollins' work primarily focuses on issues related to mass incarceration, education, youth development, and equity in the workforce. She is particularly interested in how people who sit at the intersection of multiple identities interact with the world.

Sarah Zeller-Berkman, PhD is the founder of the Youth Studies department at CUNY SPS which includes a BA, MA and Advanced Certificate program. She is currently a Distinguished Lecturer in the program. She has worked in partnership with young people on participatory action research projects about issues that impact their lives such as sexual harassment in schools, incarceration, parental incarceration, economic mobility, housing and high-stakes testing.  She has published in the Encyclopedia of Adolescence, Current Issues in Out-of-School Time, SAGE Encyclopedia of Out-of-School Learning, Harvard Educational Review, Community, Youth, and Environment, and The Oxford Handbook of Qualitative Research.

The Working the Gap Initiative takes the mental health of our Fellows seriously. During their time in the program, each Fellow has access to licensed social workers as needed to deal with issues such as housing insecurity, food insecurity, anxiety, and depression. These social workers work with the Fellows' schedule to make sure they can get the support they need at a time that is convenient for them