Blog

(May 15, 2017 – Somerville, Mass.) Parenting Journey (formerly The Family Center) , a nonprofit innovator of high-impact programs that help parents build stronger families, is pleased to announce its new leadership model. In April 2017, the organization transitioned from its previous vertical leadership structure and introduced a new shared leadership approach. As part of t he new collaborative leadership model, three Managing Partners have been appointed to oversee the administration, programs, and strategic plans of the organization. According to Noël Twigg, one of Parenting Journey’s new Managing Partners, “Shared leadership developed organically for us at Parenting Journey. In mid-2016, our previous Executive Director left the organization, and while the search process to find a replacement was underway, the Board appointed members of the senior leadership team to oversee day-to-day operations. We each had our own areas of expertise but it ended up resulting in something incredibly dynamic and very positive, not just for the organization but also for our entire staff. We are very excited to be working together and for what the future holds.” Imari K. Paris Jeffries, Ty Bellitti, and Noël Twigg have been appointed as Parenting Journey’s Managing Partners.

Imari Paris Jeffries, Managing Partner and Chief External Relations Officer, is the newest member of the Parenting Journey team, having joined the staff in February of 2017. Paris Jeffries brings a wealth of nonprofit management expertise to Parenting Journey, with extensive experience in education and social justice issues. He comes to Parenting Journey after serving as the Chief Executive Officer of Italian Home, a behavior health organization in Boston. He previously served as COO of Jumpstart, a national early education organization and interim CEO of Boston Rising, an anti-poverty initiative. Paris Jeffries has a strong commitment to giving back and serves as a board member of the University of Massachusetts, the African American Advisory Commission, and the Appalachian Mountain Club. He previously served on the boards of the African American Federation of Greater Boston; Save the Harbor, Save the Bay; Massachusetts Mentoring Partnership; The Edward Brooke Charter School; Third Sector New England; and the Elizabeth Peabody House. Paris Jeffries is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts with Bachelor of Arts, Master of Education, and Master of Arts degrees. He is currently pursuing a doctorate in Education at the University of Massachusetts.

“Parenting Journey offers so much to families in Massachusetts, bringing critical resources to some of our most vulnerable children and families,” said Paris Jeffries. “Our aim is to expand the number of families we care for through our high quality programs to meet the increasing demand for our services. I look forward to this opportunity and to working with an amazing team to help Parenting Journey advance our important work.”

Ty Bellitti, Managing Partner and Chief Operations Officer, joined Parenting Journey in 2015. With more than 16 years of experience leading operations, training and mentoring of diverse teams, Bellitti delivers quality assurance expertise to improve results and achieve greater impact. He comes to Parenting Journey after a long tenure in the travel industry. Most recently Bellitti served at Grand Circle Travel, a Boston-based travel company which provides impactful intercultural experiences to significantly affect the quality of life for both travelers and their hosts. There, he was responsible for operations and quality assurance of 26 international offices and hundreds of partners. He is an active member of the local community and previously served as a board member of the Cambridge Community Art Center and the Cambridge Babe Ruth League, where he also invested 20+ years as a youth coach and mentor. Bellitti has a strong commitment to helping others and giving back to the community and regularly donates his time and photography services to local groups and individuals to promote arts education and family bonding.

Noël Twigg, Managing Partner and Chief Systems Officer, joined Parenting Journey in 2013. Twigg led the organization’s rebranding efforts in 2014 and has played a key role in shaping the organization in recent years. With more than fifteen years of experience leading and managing organizations in the nonprofit sector, she has a passion for helping others. She previously served as the Associate Director at Charles River Conservancy, a non-profit citizens’ advocacy group dedicated to the renewal and stewardship of the Charles River Parklands. Noël is an active member of the community and has previously served as a board member for the Boston Cyclist Union and, prior to her time in Boston, Bridgercare, a non-profit healthcare agency in Bozeman, MT. Twigg holds an MBA in Public and Nonprofit Management from Boston University and an undergraduate degree in French from Montana State University. She has been a member of the Boston community since 2008.

“We are thrilled to have such an accomplished executive team to help Parenting Journey continue to grow and evolve,” said Bern Haan, Board Chair. “Their collective experience and passion for the mission will benefit our commitment to advocate for programs that enhance the well-being of children and families.”

Parenting Journey is currently seeking a Clinical Director to join the Managing Partners as part of the Executive Leadership Team. Together this four-member team will share strategic and operational responsibility for the organization. To learn more about this position, visit www.parentingjourney.org/about/join-our-team/.

ABOUT PARENTING JOURNEY

Parenting Journey, a multi-service family support agency headquartered in Somerville, MA, offers powerful programs that help parents build safer, stronger families and trains professionals nationwide to implement its high-impact approach. More than 2,000 facilitators have received training and 52,000 parents raising almost 151,000 children have benefited from Parenting Journey’s unique curriculum. Parenting Journey programs have been replicated in nearly 500 locations throughout Greater Boston, New York, Florida, New Hampshire, and Washington, D.C. For more information, visit www.parentingjourney.org.

###