We at Sangha Education Center are extremely honored to have an amazing team with diverse educational backgrounds and experiences who are champions for our youth.
Sangha Founder
Christine Keller, Executive Director, founded The Children’s Sangha in 2005 on behalf of young people with a range of abilities, understanding the need for “whole-child” teaching and learning which would address systemic issues impacting our youth. In 2019, Christine established Sangha Education Center, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization located at Historic Malcolm House on the Jericho Preserve in order to expand our programming and reach greater numbers of young people, parents, professionals, and other community members on Long Island and beyond. Her life-long involvement in organic farming and outdoor education is at the center of our program offering, pairing education and well-being, with primary program pillars connected to nature, history and the arts.
Christine holds an M.S.Ed., dual certification in Childhood Education and Special Education (Autism Case Program) from LIU, an M.A. in Religious Studies (focus in Mysticism East & West) from NYU, and a B.A. in English Literature (minor in Film Studies) from PACE University. She has completed CPS Advanced Level I & II Training with Dr. Ross W. Greene, who developed the Collaborative & Proactive Solutions (CPS) approach upon which our Community Support Group is based. Additionally, Christine has been trained as a Certified Presenter for NAMI programs including Parents & Teachers as Allies and Ending The Silence, mental health in-service education programs for school personnel and students respectively, to help establish a better understanding of the social-emotional challenges which many young people face.
As an Adjunct Professor at SUNY College at Old Westbury since 2001, Christine teaches courses in the History & Philosophy Department and within the First Year Experience Program, having also taught in Exceptional Education & Learning. She has served as a First Year Experience freshman advisor and continues to be a Community Action, Learning and Leadership (CALL) program community partner. Campus collaboration extends to various departments in order to provide avenues for student opportunity. Christine has partnerships with colleges across Long Island and presents for Long Island schools and community organizations.
Program Operations
Donna Knepple works as a Legal Assistant and a Community Habitation staff member through NYS. She has served as a Teacher’s Aide and Vocational Job Coach for Rockville Centre UFSD. In these capacities, she working with young people on the Autism Spectrum and those with other disabilities. She comes to Sangha Education Center with an array of experience related to education and advocacy, understanding the different abilities and needs of all individuals and strives to raise awareness related to the educational void impacting our youth. Her administrative expertise have lent themselves to working with us in various functions over the years including outreach at conferences and transition fairs as well as assisting with programs and special event coordination. Donna assists with office management for Sangha Education Center and served as interim board treasurer from 2022-2023 handling general financial operations tasks. She now serves on our community outreach committee.
Jack Abbenda is a senior Accounting student currently enrolled at SUNY Old Westbury who has joined the Financial Operations team at Sangha Education Center. Jack is focusing on providing assistance to the Financial Operations team through funding outreach, income and expense tracking in QuickBooks, and other financial operations tasks to help Sangha continue its mission and achieve incremental growth. Jack has assisted in Sangha Education Center’s Civic Mentoring program to learn more about the young people we serve and add his kind-hearted energy to our educational environment. In addition to focusing on completing his accounting degree, Jack currently works part time at his local gym. In his free time, Jack enjoys exercising, listening to music, and hanging out with friends. We are grateful to have Jack with us as a valued member of our collaborative community.
Education
Stephanie Gaglione is a Doctor of Pharmacy, who earned her Pharm.D. from Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences and is a NYS Licensed Pharmacist. In addition to pharmacy consulting work, Stephanie established Biophilia Wellness focusing her experience in integrative medicine to include healing modalities such as reiki, meditation and forest bathing. She is a Certified Nature Therapy Guide through the Association of Nature and Forest Therapy. She works with Nature to co-create a safe space to explore and experience what it is to be human. In these guided immersion experiences lies the opportunity to develop a deeper connection to the natural world and all beings that it encompasses. Healing is not a sought-after goal but rather a common bi-product of the relationship established from these consistent and intentional interactions with Nature. Stephanie offers Forest Bathing experiences as part of Sangha Education Center’s Nature & Wellness Connections programs throughout the spring, summer and fall seasons. In addition, Stephanie handles administrative functions at Sangha in program and financial operations assisting with non-profit expansion and sustainability. Her dedication and commitment to our mission is truly appreciated.
Steeve A. Sproul graduated with a B.S. in Biology and minor in Religion & Philosophy from SUNY Old Westbury. She has been working as a STEM teacher over the last few years for neurodivergent teens and previously, students who are at-risk for graduating from high school. Steeve has many interests including but not limited to living environment, psychology, holistic wellness, and computer science. Steeve has developed her own website, Sorting Space, with an ecommerce platform to inspire young people and help them to organize. Steeve has been a long-time mentor in our Civic Mentoring program. Her multiple talents have contributed greatly to the success and well-being of Sangha program participants. Steeve developed a Raspberry Pi technology and program language development projects. She also inspired the idea for our Medicine Wheel Garden that has been implemented in our Meadow Farm. She has taught a number of creative workshops focused on the living environment as part of our Summer at the Sangha program.
Divya Verma is a graduate of SUNY Old Westbury earning a B.S. in Biology. She currently works as a behavioral specialist at a local school for neurodivergent teens. Divya has served as an intern, mentor, and volunteer at Sangha Education Center since 2020. Her compassionate nature led her to welcome and train new Sangha staff over the course of her time with us, becoming a senior mentor. She helps everyone to feel at home and has coined the phrase “the Sangha family.” As a mentor, Divya has guided teens and young adults in our Civic Mentoring program to achieve their goals. Her keen understanding of human nature and psychology have been used to uplift others. Additionally, Divya serves as our resident art teacher. She has supervised many art projects over the years, using her talents to demonstrate techniques that have enabled group artwork to come to life. She inspired our first Sangha Nature-Art Exhibit and has impressed our community partners with the art installation we created for the Intergenerational Green Jobs Summit at SUNY Farmingdale. We are truly blessed to have Divya as part of Sangha.
Kate Landsdorf received her M.S. in Urban Affairs from CUNY Queens College and completed her undergraduate work in Media & Communications from SUNY Old Westbury. Kate currently works as a Care Management Coordinator with an agency serving children at Northwell Health to connect vulnerable youth and their families to medical and social services. She has been an advocate in the areas of education, health and social justice throughout her life. Kate has taught as an adjunct professor at SUNY Old Westbury within the Public Health Department and facilitated workshops at Healing Hands Holistic Wellness. Her involvement with organic food and farming has included an aquaponic farm in Brooklyn. Kate has worked with Sangha for several years in all aspects of our educational offering as program coordinator, teacher and mentor to our youth. She has been instrumental in Start Your Own School Garden as a lead teacher. The activities she has organized have positively impacted the lives of Sangha teens and young adults as well as the community at-large. Her creativity has inspired all those with whom she works.
Guidance Services
Dr. Lisa LoPinto is a NYS Licensed Psychologist with a Ph.D. in combined Clinical and School Psychology which she earned from Hofstra University. Dr. LoPinto has over 25 years of experience working with children and adolescents and maintains a private practice in Suffolk County for young people with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and behavioral difficulties. She is a Certified Provider and Consultant Trainer in the Collaborative & Proactive Solutions (CPS) approach developed by Dr. Ross Greene, for understanding and helping children with social, emotional, and behavioral challenges. Dr. LoPinto uses CPS as a primary approach in her practice and trains families, individual professionals, and school districts on how to implement the CPS model. She also provides specific skills training and cognitive-behavioral therapy to her patients as needed. Dr. LoPinto assists in facilitating our Community Support Group at Sangha Education Center in order to introduce and guide parents and professionals in the use of CPS as a community service.
Alanna Robinson is a SUNY Old Westbury Psychology major, minoring in Social Work and Women & Gender Studies. At Sangha Education Center, Alanna has been serving as a mentor in our Civic Mentoring program and has recently taken on the role of Case Manager for the program. She handles program organization, scheduling, and guidance related to Skills Development Plans and Case Summaries, working under the direction of our Executive Director and with our mentoring team. In addition, Alanna supervises incoming interns in preparing materials for each season’s programming needs including the use of Canva. Alanna is a talented artist and has assisted one of her mentees, Laura, with Laughing Laura’s Designs and the Printify app used to create inspirational products related to kindness and antibullying. Her creative talents positively impact the mentoring projects she embarks on with all mentees. We are happy to have Alanna grow with us as an integral part of Sangha. And Christine Keller is excited to announce Alanna’s role as a TA in her Ethics of Engagement class at SUNY Old Westbury beginning Fall 2026.
IT, Media & Development
Brian Autar is in his senior year at SUNY Old Westbury where he is majoring in Computer & Information Science. He originally joined Sangha through a fellowship with the Community Action, Learning, and Leadership (CALL) program. Since the conclusion of his fellowship, he has continued on as a technology consultant, mentor, and volunteer. Brian’s technology expertise had led him to take on the role of webmaster handling the implementation of our seasonal program schedule, troubleshooting and resolving problems, introducing new ideas, and enhancing website design components. As a mentor, Brian has worked with several Sangha participants and with community partner organizations on IT, electronic media, and video creation projects. Always looking to challenge himself in his quest for personal growth, Brian assists at Sangha however he can, extending to all Sangha programs including Project Stewardship and Summer at the Sangha. Education, empathy, and kindness are values that are deeply important to him and are the values he works to embody through all of his contributions at Sangha. In his personal life, he enjoys spending time with family and friends, reading books, playing video games, watching movies and television shows, and experiencing an enriched life.
Eric Benz is a senior Computer & Information Science student currently attending SUNY Old Westbury. He has joined the IT team at Sangha due to their lifelong passion for technology and helping others. Eric’s focus includes helping the team to streamline technical operations in support of our mission and the teens and young adults in our programs as well as the broader Long Island community. Eric has taken on web development, e-commerce, and digital marketing projects enabling more efficiency on these technology platforms. Starting their programming journey in high school, Eric has years of experience with technology that they bring to the table. When they aren’t tinkering with tech, they can be found at the skatepark, competing in online multiplayer games, or playing Magic: The Gathering with friends. We appreciate Eric’s contributions and positive vibe in alignment with Sangha’s philosophy.
Our Board
Christine Keller, President/Executive Director
Suzanne Schoenfeld, Secretary
Remi Farnan, Treasurer
Therese Coppola, Development
Craig Saperstein, Director
Kim Keller, Director
Committees
Development & Funding
Therese Coppola and Claudia Newman
Community Outreach
Donna Knepple and Hira Akmal