Staff

Cynthia K. Orellana, Ph.D.

President and Chief Executive Officer

Dr. Orellana is the incoming, newly appointed President and CEO of Mass Mentoring Partnership, a statewide nonprofit organization focused on supporting young people – and the over 350 youth serving organizations and mentoring programs across the Commonwealth that serve them – by ensuring the mentoring relationships they need to develop into thriving, engaged adults. Dr. Orellana joins Mass Mentoring Partnership with nearly 20 years of experience in community organizing and advocacy, civic engagement and social policy, cross-organizational partnerships, educational access and justice, and the development of startup programs and initiatives. Her professional trajectory is reflective of her passion and commitment for inclusive and collaborative practices, racial equity and epistemic justice, bridging the opportunity divide, and driving systems change. 

Most recently, Dr. Orellana served as the Director of the Office of Community Partnerships at the University of Massachusetts Boston where she led university-community engagement strategies and strengthened reciprocal community partnerships that advanced the university’s mission as Boston’s public research university. Previous roles also include serving as the Assistant Commissioner for Access and Success Strategies at the Massachusetts Department of Higher Education where she led strategic policy initiatives and oversaw over $3.5 million in federal and state funded grant programs to increase college readiness and participation of the Commonwealth’s students, particularly first-generation to college, low-income and under-represented students. Dr. Orellana also served as Director of the Commonwealth Corps in the Office of Governor Deval Patrick, one of the Governor’s cornerstone civic engagement initiatives, and promoted civic engagement through grassroots governance projects that touched upon an array of issues including immigration, income tax credits, public budgeting processes, and young adults. 

Dr. Orellana has a history of service on boards and national and local advisory groups, including as a Founding Board Member of Chica Project focused on empowering young Women and Girls of Color with the skills, confidence, network, and mentoring relationships to succeed. Currently, she serves on the Board of Directors for Community Catalyst, a national organization which seeks to build the power of people to create a health system rooted in race equity and health justice. 

She has been recognized for her work and leadership by the Massachusetts Black and Latino Legislative Caucus with a Latino Excellence Award in 2023, the Commonwealth Seminar’s Civic Engagement Amplifier Award in 2021, Campus Compact’s Nadinne Cruz Community Engagement Professional Award in 2020, Get Konnected’s 25 Influential Millennial Leaders of Color and Amplify Latinx’s list of 30 Amplifiers for the Latino community in Massachusetts in 2018; and among 100 most influential people in Massachusetts to the Latino community in El Planeta Newspaper’s 2017 Powermeter list. 

Dr. Orellana is a native and life-long resident of Cambridge, Massachusetts and the youngest of four children. She is the first generation born in the United States, the daughter of Salvadoran immigrants and first in her family to attend college. She holds a Ph.D. in higher education leadership from University of Massachusetts Boston, an MA in urban and environmental policy and planning from Tufts University, and a BS in political science from Northeastern University.

Beth Fraster

Vice President & Chief Program Officer

Beth joined MMP in 2014, and has more than 25 years of experience leading, evaluating, and managing youth development programs. Beth has provided training and technical assistance to behavioral health programs throughout Massachusetts and across the country while also providing consultant services to federal agencies. Beth leads the Program Services team to promote the most effective and high-quality standards in all aspects of mentoring, and the development of sound and sustainable organizations. She earned a B.S. in psychology from the University of Massachusetts and an MSW from Boston University.

Email: bfraster@massmentors.org

Amanda Doyle-Bouvier

Chief Advancement Officer

Chief Advancement Officer

Amanda Doyle-Bouvier joined Mass Mentoring Partnership in January 2021 as the Director of Development and accepted the position of Chief Advancement Officer in August of 2022. She is a mission driven change maker, deeply motivated by authentic relationships and connecting donors to their purpose. With over 15 years of experience in fundraising, event management and board governance, she comes to MMP from Junior Achievement of Northern New England (JAofNNE), a youth serving nonprofit organization focused on financial literacy, workforce readiness, and entrepreneurship education where she was the Director of Development and Marketing. Prior to her four years at JAofNNE she worked her way up the ranks in the Development office at Lawrence Academy an Independent Boarding School in Groton, MA. There she planned events, managed the social media channels and alumni giving campaigns. At MMP she oversees the Development and Communications teams and takes pride in telling the MMP story.

Email: adoylebouvier@massmentors.org

Nate Simms

Director of Government Relations and Public Policy

Nathan Simms is the Director of Government Relations and Public Policy. He is a Double Husky graduating from Northeastern University class of 2010, with a Bachelor’s in Criminal Justice and a Minor in Political Science, and again in 2017 with a Master’s of Science in Nonprofit Management with a Leadership concentration. During his time at Undergrad and Graduate School he became a recipient of the Balfour Academy Scholarship, a member of the Ujima Scholars program, received the Martin Luther King Jr(MLK) Fellowship, recognized as a member of the Huntington 100, and was awarded numerous accolades including 1st and 2nd place for the Annual Dean Roland E. Latham Oratory competition, the Nguzo Saba award for exhibiting the 7 Principles of Kwanzaa, and the John D. O’ Bryant Award for commitment to furthering education and opportunity for youth in the City of Boston.

Born and raised in Boston, he is of Jamaican heritage, most recently served as the Director for Community and Governmental Affairs at Roxbury Community College and has over 15 years of experience in Community Organizing, Government Relations, and Political Affairs.  He has previously served on the Board of Directors for Uphams Corner Main Street, Dudley Street Neighborhood Initiative(DSNI), and Fenway Community Center.  He currently serves on the Board of Directors for EV Kids, Edward M. Kennedy Academy for Health Careers(EMK) and volunteers as a mentor with the Red Pine Scholars program supported by the Philanthropic Initiative through The Boston Foundation. He likes long walks on the beach, reading, and enjoys online gaming, biking, and pick up basketball as personal hobbies . His favorite shows are Peaky Blinders, Westworld, Spartacus and The Mandalorian.

Email: nsimms@massmentors.org

Greg Smith

Director of Operations

Greg Smith joined MMP in 2015. As the Director of Operations, he provides oversight of financial processing and reporting and leads MMP’s administrative functions including human resources, IT and office management. Prior to joining MMP, he was a program manager at a cross-cultural consulting firm. Originally from Delaware, Greg attended high school in Switzerland and received his BA in Economics from The University of Vermont.

Email: gsmith@massmentors.org

Janeen Smith-Carnes

Director of Training and Capacity Building

Janeen Smith-Carnes joined MMP in March 2015 and is the Director of Training and Capacity Building. In her role, she builds the training and leads technical assistance and operations support for youth mentoring and other youth-serving programs across the state. She gained experience in youth development and program management during her time as an AmeriCorps Promise Fellow and has worked in adult programming at YWCA Boston. A New Jersey native, Janeen earned her BA from Smith College and an MBA in Nonprofit Management from the Heller School at Brandeis University.

Email: jsmith@massmentors.org

Lauren McCabe

Manager of Training and Capacity Building

Lauren joined MMP in August 2022. In her role as Manager of Training and Capacity Building, she trains and supports youth-serving programs implementing high quality mentoring programs across the state. Lauren comes to MMP from Boston After School & Beyond, where she led the Partnerships for Social and Emotional Learning Initiative with Boston Public Schools. Lauren grew up in New Hampshire and holds an Interdisciplinary Degree from Stonehill College. After graduating, she completed an AmeriCorps term with the Jesuit Volunteer Corps Northwest in Aberdeen, WA, and completed a second year of service in Brockton, MA with the Stonehill College Service Corps. Over the years, she has worked with young people, consulted with programs to integrate SEL, facilitated retreats, led book clubs, and shared her efforts to live sustainably. Lauren values community, solidarity, simple living, and joy.

Email: lmccabe@massmentors.org

Rosie McMahan

Manager of Training and Special Projects

Rosie McMahan has worked within the Boston area for over 25 years. Along with developing and implementing services for youth, she provided counseling and education to youth and youth-serving adults in a variety of settings including schools, health clinics and court systems. She has presented at conferences and facilitated workshops on the local, national and international level, and written curricula for classroom and non-classroom settings.

Receiving her M.Ed. from the Harvard Graduate School of Education, she directed CASPAR Youth Services for over 10 years, a program dedicated to the lives of young people struggling with alcohol and other drugs. Additionally, she has run a small private practice called Optimistic Options. She also organizes and/or participates in community-based activities attempting to address inequities and effect social change.

Rosie has expertise in the area of trauma and healing and is a published author on the topic. Her book, Fortunate Daughter, A Memoir of Reconciliation has been awarded first place in the Chanticlear International Book Awards 2023. In this book, Rosie offers the reader a portrait of childhood abuse, followed by the difficult and painful task of healing—a journey that, in the end, reveals the complicated and nuanced venture of repair, reconciliation and the freedom that comes along with it. She brings both personal experience and a solid understanding of the current research and findings to support and promote healing in her work with MMP.

Email: rmcmahan@massmentors.org

Melany Mendoza

Manager of Community Engagement, Western MA

Melany joined Mass Mentoring Partnership in April 2016 as the Manager of Community Engagement for Western Massachusetts. Melany has 15 years of experience leading and supporting after school programs. Melany has also provided training and support to youth development programs in Western Mass. In her role, her main focus is building relationships and mobilizing resources that raise the profile of empowering youth-adult relationships across Massachusetts. A native of Puerto Rico, Melany graduated with a BA from the University of Puerto Rico and an MBA in Entrepreneurial Thinking and Innovative Practices from Bay Path University.

Email: mmendoza@massmentors.org

Gabrielle Paquin

Operations Associate

Gabrielle Paquin joined Mass Mentoring Partnership in September 2023 as the Operations Associate. In her role, she works on multiple fronts to impact the daily operations at MMP and contribute to our mission-driven work. Gabrielle grew up in New Hampshire and attended Keene State College, where she earned a BS in Public Health. She recently moved to the Boston area and previously worked for the Women, Infants, and Children program at Southern New Hampshire Services. Gabrielle believes in our mission and is excited to be a part of the mentoring movement.

Email: gpaquin@massmentors.org

Natalie Spriggs

Manager of Community Engagement, Eastern MA

Natalie Spriggs joined Mass Mentoring Partnership in February 2023. Natalie is originally from Dayton, Ohio, but recently moved to Boston Massachusetts. She has spent the last 20 years in non-profit work with a youth serving focus. She started out as a teacher before becoming a director of programs within different organizations. Natalie holds a degree in Early Childhood Education as well as Human Development. She now serves as MMP’s Manager of Community Engagement for Eastern Massachusetts.

Email: nspriggs@massmentors.org

Hannah St. Laurent

Marketing Manager

Hannah St. Laurent joined Mass Mentoring Partnership in October 2023 as Marketing Manager. She is a passionate storyteller, and hopes to be able to amplify the mission of MMP through the implementation of an intentional, impactful marketing strategy. She joins the team equipped with over 15 years of client-facing role experience, which also includes communications and development experience in the non-profit sector. She is a Board Member for an MA-based Therapeutic Riding Center, BINA Farm Center (where she was a former employee).

Email: hstlaurent@massmentors.org

Olivia Taylor

Advancement Operations Manager