Our Team

 

Mary Stewart took on the role of Executive Director in 2012.  She had been the Program Director since 2004 and holds a degree in Education from Northwestern University.  As a fully licensed teacher, Mary has an well-rounded background in education and prior to being Program Director she had been substitute teaching in the Mounds View School District when we snatched her up for a full-time position (hey, we know quality when we see it!).  She has a great deal of experience in all of our programs, as she has been with CPY for over 20 years.

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Jennifer Willprecht Walzcak joined CPY in 2013; however, this was not her first time at CPY – she is also an alum!  Jennifer serves at our Program Director.  Jennifer graduated from the U of MN with a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and a minor in Family Social Sciences.  She is also a mother of three (soon to be 4!), and in her free time (which isn’t all that often!) she enjoys dance, crocheting, and occasionally chasing her chickens.

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Talia Zavala joined CPY in 2019 working with the middle school youth as a youth worker.  She quickly became indispensable to the team, and now serves as the Middle School Program Manager, overseeing the day to day activities of the 6-8th grade youth.  She holds a degree in Youth Development from The University of Northwestern.  When not at CPY, she enjoys spending time with her husband, going thrifting, and being outside.

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Thomas Lor joined the team in 2021, working with the elementary youth as a youth worker.  He now serves as the Elementary School Program Manager, overseeing the day to day activities of the K-5th grade youth.  He holds a degree in Elementary Education from The University of Northwestern.  As a fully licensed teacher, he is an incredible asset to the team!  In his free time he enjoys being outside, playing games with friends, and spending time with his cats. 

 

We also employ a talented staff of 7-16 Youth Workers (depending on the time of year).  Our staff have diverse educational backgrounds ranging from elementary/secondary education and psychology to cultural studies.  We are thrilled to have a staff that is representative of various cultural backgrounds which is a huge asset to serve our diverse group of youth.   It is also important to us to continually evaluate our staff and offer youth development trainings that help them perform at their best.  Community Partners with Youth is proud of the work our staff does - it is because of them we succeed.  One of our biggest flexes is the fact that at any given time half of our staff are alumni of the program, a true testament to the power of youth programming!