Empowering Moms. Nurturing Children.
Michele Atkins chairs the Board of Directors of the Nurture® Program, and has more than 30 years of not-for-profit management, strategic planning, fundraising and governance experience. She has served in a senior leadership position at various organizations including Make-A-Wish Foundation of America, as well as served on numerous boards of directors including Carlow University, Pittsburgh Opera, and UPMC Magee Womens Hospital.
“The Nurture® Program was founded 10 years ago with a mission of providing free and confidential text-based information and connecting experienced moms with new moms to offer support and resources. I was proud to be part of the founding team for this great organization. My career included working with parents of sick children as well as children in early learning environments. This work taught me that children can thrive if they are given the tools to succeed. Parenting is the foundation of these tools — and many new parents feel ill equipped to manage the overwhelming needs of a newborn.
All children can thrive if they experience love, acceptance and nurture. This organization can help new moms grow into the nurturing parent the child deserves. I hope each of you who reads this message will find a way to support the next 10 years as we expand Nurture PA to serve even more moms and their children.” -Michele Atkins
Tom Canfield is a co-founder and Treasurer of the Nurture® Program, and is a retired businessman who was an investment banker, running Equity Catalysts LLC, which he founded in 1999. He was Adjunct Professor of Entrepreneurship at Carnegie Mellon University, served on the board of directors at Propel Schools and Auberle, and earned his MBA from Harvard University.
Vince Ciganik is a co-founder of the Nurture® Program, has been instrumental in the design and development of several hardware products as well as been responsible for the architecture and development of many software products including web interfaces and web-based applications. He has a degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Pittsburgh.
Becky Flaherty has more than 24 years of experience in the non-profit field, and has provided strategic direction for organizations that have served some of the most under-resourced populations in Pittsburgh and nationally. She has served in senior leadership positions in several organizations including Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Pittsburgh, and is currently Vice President of the Satell Institute.
Judy Horgan has focused her recent efforts on improving the lives of young children in Allegheny County and western Pennsylvania. She helped create the Allegheny County Early Childhood Collaborative to join together local agencies serving children ages 0-5. Judy has served in an advisory capacity for the Office of Children, Youth and Families in Allegheny County, and worked with a local non-profit advocacy organization for children.
Susan Kaminski is a retired executive from the semiconductor equipment industry. With a degree in physics, she has held positions at M.I.T. Lincoln Laboratory and Applied Materials. Susan has served on the board of directors for various organizations including Youth Connect, a local community collaborative organization focusing on reducing teen risky behaviors, along with Village Theater Company, Sweetwater Center for the Arts, the Sewickley YMCA, and Pittsburgh Social Venture Partners.
Philip Keys is a co-founder and President of the Nurture® Program, and has over 35 years of management experience in healthcare organizations including as co-founder and president of successful for-profit companies. He has served on the board of directors of a local cyber school and Chartiers Community Center. He earned his MBA from Carnegie Mellon University where he has been an invited lecturer in entrepreneurship.