The schedule of 2023-2024 Board meetings can be found here.
Our Board Members
Patricia Soussloff, President
Patricia is the NCS Board Chair and, along with retired board member Ruth Meyler, a co-founder of NCS. She is a former corporate lawyer who also has experience providing pro bono legal services to families of children with special needs, helping them get access to appropriate special education services. In addition to NCS, Ms. Soussloff serves on the board of Partnership with Children for twenty years, a not-for-profit organization that provides trauma-informed counseling, school-wide support services, and family and community outreach in New York City public schools.
Cliff Schneider, Vice President
As a transactional lawyer serving a wide range of clients, Cliff takes a cross-disciplinary approach to his practice by focusing on a variety of areas of law including general corporate law, corporate governance, governmental and regulatory affairs, real estate and the constantly-evolving internet, e-commerce and social media legal landscape. Cliff advises entrepreneurs from entity formation through exit, represents small and mid-sized businesses as their outside general counsel, provides counsel to real estate investors and businesses on their acquisition and disposition of real estate and represents charter schools, educational service providers and education/community-focused not-for-profit organizations throughout their lifecycle.
Walter Rendon, Treasurer
Walter G. Rendon is the CEO of Educational Achievement, LLC, which he founded four years ago. He also works as an educator with the DOE and consultant for profit and non-profit organizations. Walter has nearly 20 years of business and educational experience. He has spent a decade working for financial institutions such as Merrill Corp. and Credit Suisse First Boston, managing in Equity Research and later branching out and consulting privately. Walter has also worked in the field of education for nearly a decade, as a teacher in the Bronx, mentor and consultant. His unique blend of financial and educational work experience has led him to his current position. Walter offers a practical knowledge of both pedagogy and business, the nature of learning and education, as well as insight into the 21st century student.
Everado Jefferson
Everardo Jefferson is a founder and Principal of Caples Jefferson Architects. Since its inception, CJA has risen to national prominence as a leader in architecture. The firm has an established reputation for its design excellence, especially for community, civic, educational, and cultural projects. Distinctions include multiple national and chapter AIA awards, national NoMA awards for Excellence in Architecture, a NYC Art Commission award. In 2009, the firm was named NYC’s MWBE of the year; in 2012, the firm was honored as AIA’s NY State Firm of the Year. CJA has been featured in publications including Architect, Domus, The New York Times, and Detail.
Heidi C. Baker, Board Secretary and Parent Association Board Representative Bronx
Heidi is an attorney specializing in insurance defense in the area of toxic torts. She is the president of the NCS: Bronx Parents Association Board and parent representative on the Board of Trustees. Her son, a student in the ASD program, is her pride and joy. She is thrilled that he continues to benefit and grow from the strong academic instruction and social and emotional supports he receives at NCSB.
Wylie Fennell
Wylie Fennell is a Sales and Business Development Specialist with Morgan Stanley & Co. Over his career, he has held several roles in Private Wealth Management and in alternative investments distribution and administration. Prior to joining Morgan Stanley, Wylie was a Summer Associate at BNY Capital Markets( a subsidiary of Bank of New York) in the Private Equity/Merchant Banking Group and spent seven years as a Human Resources Professional with the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. He has also worked on the staff of Senator Joseph R. Biden, Jr.(D-Del.) in the United States Senate and served on the Board of Manhattan Community Board 9. Wylie holds a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Howard University and an MBA in Finance , with honors, from the Fordham Graduate School of Business. He holds the designation Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst(CAIA). Wylie resides in the Harlem with his wife, Carole and son Hunter.
Stephanie Hubbell
Stephanie Hubbell is a licensed speech-language pathologist and Director of Clinical Education at Rutgers University’s M.S. Program in Speech-Language Pathology who specializes in working with Autistic children and adults. From 2014 through 2021, Stephanie worked at Neighborhood Charter Schools as a speech-language pathologist, special education case manager, and eventually the school’s founding Behavior Specialist, helping to grow the school’s Integrated Autism Program and implement school-wide positive behavioral interventions and supports (PBIS). In addition to her role at Rutgers, Stephanie teaches graduate coursework in speech-language pathology at Yeshiva University and for Emerson College’s online master’s program.
Justena Kavanagh
Tena is the director of the Asian art gallery, Koo New York. She spent many years as an editor and archivist in the Chinese Works of Art Department at Sotheby’s and is a former junior high school teacher. In addition to serving on the boards of several Westchester organizations, she has restored more than a dozen historical houses.
