Our Team
The Rev Dr Leonisa Ardizzone, Founder & Co-Director
The Rev Dr Leonisa Ardizzone has been a science and peace educator for more than 30 years. She has spent most of her life working in education in various capacities but always driven by the same vision: to create a more just and equitable world. She has been a middle and high school teacher, a museum and environmental educator, a university professor, a non-profit executive, an entrepreneur/small business owner, an instructional coach, and an education consultant. Rev Leonisa, also known as Dr. A, has created curricula for schools, after-school programs, and museums, including a Climate Change Program for the City of New York (through the Department of Design and Construction).
Leonisa began her teaching career at the American Indian Heritage School in Seattle, then worked with under-resourced youth at a BOCES high school in Ithaca. After receiving her doctorate in 2001, she served on the faculty of Adelphi University and Fordham University, leaving the academy in 2007 to run (and grow) the Salvadori Center (a STEAM not-for-profit) for five years. In 2012, she opened Storefront Science in Manhattan, which was awarded “Best of New York” in the Children’s Category by New York Magazine. When she relocated to Rosendale, she became an Instructional Coach for Ulster County BOCES and then joined the faculty at Vassar College in 2019. During her various roles, Leonisa has presented her work all over the world, published numerous articles and two books; Gettin’ My Word Out (SUNY Press) and Science-Not Just for Scientists (Gryphon House).
Leonisa holds a BA in Biology (Ithaca College), an EdM in science education (Western Washington University), an Ed.D. in International Educational Development with a concentration in Peace Education from Columbia University, and an MDiv with a focus on Inter-religious Engagement (Union Theological Seminary).
Leonisa has a permanent teaching certificate in New York State (biology, general science). An ordained Unitarian Universalist minister, Rev Leonisa is an Affiliate Minister at the 4th Universalist Society in the City of New York, a member of the Kingston Interfaith Council, the consulting minister to the UU Ministry for Earth, and a core organizer with GreenFaith. In addition, Leonisa is an accomplished jazz musician (having released three albums), a mom, and a resident of Rosendale. www.leonisaardizzone.com
Get in touch with Leonisa at revdrleonisa@pechv.org.
Leonisa began her teaching career at the American Indian Heritage School in Seattle, then worked with under-resourced youth at a BOCES high school in Ithaca. After receiving her doctorate in 2001, she served on the faculty of Adelphi University and Fordham University, leaving the academy in 2007 to run (and grow) the Salvadori Center (a STEAM not-for-profit) for five years. In 2012, she opened Storefront Science in Manhattan, which was awarded “Best of New York” in the Children’s Category by New York Magazine. When she relocated to Rosendale, she became an Instructional Coach for Ulster County BOCES and then joined the faculty at Vassar College in 2019. During her various roles, Leonisa has presented her work all over the world, published numerous articles and two books; Gettin’ My Word Out (SUNY Press) and Science-Not Just for Scientists (Gryphon House).
Leonisa holds a BA in Biology (Ithaca College), an EdM in science education (Western Washington University), an Ed.D. in International Educational Development with a concentration in Peace Education from Columbia University, and an MDiv with a focus on Inter-religious Engagement (Union Theological Seminary).
Leonisa has a permanent teaching certificate in New York State (biology, general science). An ordained Unitarian Universalist minister, Rev Leonisa is an Affiliate Minister at the 4th Universalist Society in the City of New York, a member of the Kingston Interfaith Council, the consulting minister to the UU Ministry for Earth, and a core organizer with GreenFaith. In addition, Leonisa is an accomplished jazz musician (having released three albums), a mom, and a resident of Rosendale. www.leonisaardizzone.com
Get in touch with Leonisa at revdrleonisa@pechv.org.
Kate Walters, Co-Director
Kate Walters lives and works in Kingston, NY. She is fascinated by the built environment and how our bodies & lives are impacted by the physical spaces that we create for ourselves. At Vassar, she earned undergraduate degrees in Education and Urban Studies, focusing especially on educational spaces and the roles they play in our lives. She also worked in Vassar’s Community Engaged Learning Office, where she published writing about student reflection practices in community-oriented college courses. She has taught in a variety of settings, including middle school classrooms, after-school arts programs, residential summer programs, and an urban farm.
Kate is also a printmaker and textile artist. Having owned a small screen-printing and textile business for many years, she currently works mostly on custom commissions and small-batch prints (including some for sale at PECHV—check them out in our shop by the front window!). In addition to printmaking, Kate has held many roles as a maker of things, including working at a design-build firm, on a carpentry crew, in the kitchen of a bakery, and in the height of the pandemic, leading a grant-funded project designing & building COVID-safe play structures. Having many roles as a maker of things is, for Kate, an integral part of her intellectual exploration of the physical world and our bodily experience of it.
Kate brings this exploration to the Peace Education Center of the Hudson Valley. As co-director, she facilitates physical & artistic practices of learning, and works to create a safe space for the difficult work of building peace in our selves, our communities, and our world. She also incorporates her personal study of Yoga and somatic healing practices into the work at PECHV, and is dedicated to cultivating a community of peace-building that is always growing and evolving.
Get in touch with Kate at kate@pechv.org.
Kate is also a printmaker and textile artist. Having owned a small screen-printing and textile business for many years, she currently works mostly on custom commissions and small-batch prints (including some for sale at PECHV—check them out in our shop by the front window!). In addition to printmaking, Kate has held many roles as a maker of things, including working at a design-build firm, on a carpentry crew, in the kitchen of a bakery, and in the height of the pandemic, leading a grant-funded project designing & building COVID-safe play structures. Having many roles as a maker of things is, for Kate, an integral part of her intellectual exploration of the physical world and our bodily experience of it.
Kate brings this exploration to the Peace Education Center of the Hudson Valley. As co-director, she facilitates physical & artistic practices of learning, and works to create a safe space for the difficult work of building peace in our selves, our communities, and our world. She also incorporates her personal study of Yoga and somatic healing practices into the work at PECHV, and is dedicated to cultivating a community of peace-building that is always growing and evolving.
Get in touch with Kate at kate@pechv.org.
Board of Directors
Tony Marmo
Tony has a Masters Degree in Public Administration from Long Island University and a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration from Pace University. Tony has been President and CEO of Kingston Regional Healthcare System; CEO of Margaretville Hospital; Licensed Nursing Home Administrator for the Northeast Center for Special Care, Lake Katrine, N.Y.; the Diamond Hill Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, Troy, N.Y. and Care One at Ridgewood Avenue, Paramus, N.J. Tony brings deep civic and community connections, including his work with Radion Kingston, Ulster County Regional Chamber of Commerce Foundation Board, The YMCA of Kingston & Ulster County, NY Board; the Rotary Club of Highland, NY and the Ulster County Italian American Foundation.
Dr Maria Hantzopoulos
Maria Hantzopoulos earned her BA from Boston University in History, her MA in Social Studies Education from Teachers College, Columbia University and her doctorate at Teachers College in International Educational Development. Her work broadly considers how educational processes structure inequity in their contexts and beyond. Her research interests include school culture and climate, project-based assessment, peace and human rights education, migration and education, and social studies curricula. She has written numerous articles and released two books about peace education. Her latest is “Educating for Peace and Human Rights”.
Jane Ahn
Jane (she/her) is a current graduate student in Sociology and Community & Environmental Sociology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She is deeply interested in issues of community, climate violence, and peace education. She also loves to read, play with her two cats, and cook new recipes.
Julio Gonzalez
My name is Julio Gonzalez (he/him), a native Bronxite who has enjoyed taking steps towards transformative education. I am currently working as an Admissions Officer at Prep for Prep, an nyc-based educational non-profit. I look forward to working in many spaces that will engage my critical thinking and ability to step out of my comfort zone. Outside of work, I enjoy spending time rooting for the New York Knicks and going to the movie theaters (animated movies are my favorite!).