Trustees

Photo: Breakthrough Houston
Community Leaders Advancing our Mission
The Breakthrough Collaborative Board of Trustees brings together leaders from a diverse range of industries to advance our mission, including three Executive Directors representing our national network of affiliates. Our commitment is to continue speaking out against racism and uniting for change as we ensure the pathways for a new generation of leaders, and, through them, a society with justice, equity and opportunity for all. Read the Breakthrough Collaborative Board Race & Equity resolution HERE.
Patrick Talamantes, Chair
CEO, Talamantes Strategies
Santa Fe, NM
Pat is a corporate executive with over 30 years of experience in media and finance. He was the president and CEO of McClatchy, a publicly traded publisher of 30 daily newspapers, from 2012 to 2017, and also served as the company’s CFO for 11 years. In his current role, he runs a management consulting practice advising companies on transformational and financial strategies. Pat has served on the advisory board of Breakthrough Sacramento since 2016, helping to deepen its connection to the community and increase its fundraising capabilities. He holds a bachelor’s degree from Stanford University and an MBA from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.
Christian Hendricks, Vice Chair
Managing Partner, Extol Digital
Raleigh, NC
Chris is the managing partner at Extol Digital, a business consultancy providing media and media-related businesses with strategic and operational guidance. He is also president of the Local Media Consortium, a collective of more than 90 news media companies working together to address common challenges. He is a well-known award-winning figure in the digital media industry with more than 25 years of experience in various corporate and executive leadership roles. Chris currently serves on the boards of directors for the Maynard Institute for Journalism Education, Recruitology, and Centro. He also serves as a board advisor to Report for America.
Elaine Weng M.D., M.S., Secretary
Radiation Oncologist
Englewood, CO
Dr. Weng is a board-certified radiation oncologist, award-winning researcher, and former assistant professor and clinical faculty member of Colorado University. She has served on boards for the Bonfils Blood Center and the Children’s Museum of Denver, which she currently chairs. She holds a bachelor’s degree from Stanford and a medical degree from the University of California, Los Angeles. She is an active member of the Breakthrough Kent Denver advisory board.
Lucy Johns, Treasurer
Associate Director of Fixed Income, Dodge & Cox
Larkspur, CA
Lucy is associate director of fixed income at Dodge & Cox, where she is a shareholder and sits on the firm’s fixed income investment policy committees. She holds a bachelor’s degree from Williams College and an MBA from the UCLA Anderson School of Management.
Pinney Allen
Lawyer, Philanthropist, Community Activist, and Education Leader
Pebble Beach, CA & Atlanta, GA
Mark Contreras
President & CEO, Connecticut Public
Hartford, CT
The son of an Irish American school teacher and a Mexican immigrant, Mark Contreras grew up in the Midwest—first in Minneapolis and later Chicago. He is the President and Chief Executive Officer of Connecticut Public and he’s led several media businesses through digital transformation. Prior to his role as Dean of the School of Communications at Quinnipiac University, Contreras served as CEO of Calkins Media, a privately held local television, digital and local newspaper publishing company. Calkins developed innovative strategies to maximize audience reach, engagement and revenue by embracing streaming media platforms such as Roku, Amazon Fire and Apple TV. He previously led local newspaper publishing and digital businesses for three public companies including Capital Cities/ABC; Pulitzer, Inc; and The E.W. Scripps Co.
Jose Davila
Chief People Officer, J. Crew Group
New York, NY
Cathy Dean
Chief Operating Officer, Govern for California
San Francisco, CA
Kerin Fredman
President, Fredman Family Foundation
Coral Gables, FL
Dr. Fredman, a board-certified psychiatrist, heads the Fredman Family Foundation, which focuses on education, health, and the environment. She has served as a board member and community leader for many organizations, working on behalf of Brown University, Ransom Everglades School, the United Way, the Women’s Fund of Miami-Dade, the University of Miami Center for Ethics and Public Service, Guardian ad Litem in the 11th Judicial Circuit, as well as Breakthrough Miami. She holds degrees from Brown and the University of Massachusetts Medical School.
Allan Dowiak
Principal, Allan Dowiak Consulting, Inc.
Hackettstown, NJ
Allan Dowiak, former senior vice president of human resources at New York Life, runs a strategic organizational development consultancy serving major corporations. Formerly an HR leader at ADP and Macy’s, he holds a bachelor’s degree from Rutgers University.
John Hiester
Executive Director, Breakthrough Silicon Valley
Redwood City, CA
John is the executive director of Breakthrough Silicon Valley and holds a deep-seated commitment to ensuring that all young people have the opportunity to realize their full potential. A Colorado native, he has worked to expand educational and economic opportunities to youth and young adults in San Jose for the past 10 years. Prior to Breakthrough, he served in a variety of leadership capacities for Year Up, a national workforce development nonprofit. He was director of operations and strategic planning for Year Up Bay Area, founding site director of Year Up Bay Area’s Silicon Valley campus in San Jose, and as launch lead for Year Up’s expansion into Arizona. John earned a B.A. in Spanish literature from Kenyon College and an M.B.A. in public and nonprofit management from Boston University. He lives in Redwood City and enjoys world travel, hiking, and is an avid mountain biker.
Aditya Kaddu
Founder, Edstruments
Redwood City, CA
Miho Kubagawa, Ed.L.D.
Partner, NewSchools Venture Fund
Birmingham, AL
Miho invests in entrepreneurs who design and launch innovative public schools at NewSchools Venture Fund. She spent eight years at KIPP NYC as the director of talent and was the founder and director of the teacher residency Program and 7th grade math teacher at KIPP Infinity Middle School in Harlem. In 2013, she co-founded Breakthrough Birmingham in her hometown and currently sits on the board of New Schools for Alabama. She holds a doctorate in education leadership from Harvard, a BS from Duke, and a master’s in adolescent education from Pace University.
Vince Marigna
Executive Director, Breakthrough Collaborative
Deb McLoud
Executive Director, Breakthrough Manchester
After graduating from the University of New Hampshire, Deb began her career with Merrill Lynch where she was a Series 7 Registered Representative who trained Financial Advisors throughout the country. After 10 years, she stepped away to work with nonprofits in Rhode Island, mostly as a volunteer while her children were young. She served on the board of St. Mary’s Home for Children, was President of the Junior League of Rhode Island and was Treasurer of the Rhode Island Antiques Show. Deb volunteered at Hasbro Children’s Hospital, The Tomorrow Fund, and other organizations supporting women’s and children’s health. Deb joined Breakthrough Manchester at the Derryfield School in August 2018 and as Executive Director at Breakthrough Manchester, she supports students from underserved communities in Manchester who are on the path to college and helps train the next generation of college students to become effective teachers working with a diverse student population.
JuliAnne McDowell
Coral Gables, FL & Park City, UT
After earning her degree in French studies at Stanford and an MBA from INSEAD, a leading global business school in Fontainebleau, France, JuliAnne worked in corporate marketing and advertising for DDB Needham, L’Oreal, and the McDonald’s Corporation. As a board member for Breakthrough Miami, she created unique strategies for community engagement and fundraising, leading to the organization’s growth and recognition by the Miami Foundation in 2017 as one of the city’s leaders in creating opportunities for youth.
Jabali Sawicki
Compass Director, nXu
Brooklyn, NY
Monique Shields
Executive Director, Breakthrough Atlanta
Atlanta, GA
Abby Zanarini
Philanthropist & Civic Leader
Miami, FL
Abby Zanarini has been an active member of the South Florida community since arriving in 2004. After growing up in Brazil and France, she returned to the US and graduated from Southern Methodist University. Abby began her fashion career as an account executive at the Dallas Apparel Mart joining the team at Ellen Tracy and subsequently worked for a range of firms including Emanuel Ungaro, Bottega Veneta and Johnny Was in New York and Los Angeles. Since moving to Miami, in addition to raising her two daughters, Abby has been involved in a myriad of volunteer activities. She has served on the Parent Association Board of Ransom Everglades School and was the President of Beaux Arts, a volunteer organization supporting the University of Miami and its Lowe Art Museum. Since 2014, she has been an active and passionate supporter of Breakthrough Miami.