Fred Begley, Director of Finance and Administration
Frederic Begley is the Director of Finance and Administration at Artists Striving to End Poverty (ASTEP), a nonprofit that provides arts education and empowerment programs for underserved youth. Prior to joining ASTEP, he was director of operations for a prominent local not-for profit, no-kill animal shelter located in downtown Manhattan. In addition, Fred has worked as an independent consultant for several other New York City organizations in an administrative capacity. He holds an MPA from Baruch College specializing in Non-Profit Administration. Fred has been working in non-profit management since 2005.
Mary-Mitchell Campbell, Founder and Executive Director
Mary-Mitchell Campbell has had an extensive career as a musician and humanitarian. In 2005, she founded ASTEP and is the Executive Director, overseeing the management and strategic direction of the organization. She has taught AIDS education in rural India, healthy hygiene in South Africa, and promoted the values of dreaming big to children in the United States. She has conducted on Broadway, performed at the White House, and won awards for orchestrating on Broadway. She was featured in the television show “Giving” for her work with arts education for children in need. In 2006, she was chosen as the New Yorker of the week. Recently, she has been the Music Director and Conductor of The Addams Family on Broadway and is currently supervising the national tour and many international productions. She is from North Carolina and lives on the upper west side of Manhattan with her amazing dog, Coleman.
Abby Gerdts, Director of International Programs
Abby Gerdts has nine years experience coordinating and leading arts education programs around the world and is currently the Director of International Programs at Artists Striving to End Poverty (ASTEP), a nonprofit that provides arts education and empowerment programs for underserved youth. At ASTEP, Abby recruits and trains volunteers who will serve in ASTEP’s international programs and manages and evaluates current partnerships while researching and developing new programs. Prior to her current role at ASTEP, Abby spent three years building arts programming for organizations working with refugee populations in Istanbul, Turkey. Abby holds a BFA from the Juilliard School’s Drama Division. Recent appearances as an actress include Of Rivers of Days at Interborough Repertory Theater in New York, and the title role in Miss Julie at the GAF Theatre in Istanbul.
Mauricio Salgado, Director of Domestic Programs
With over nine years of experience planning and building arts education programs for diverse communities, Mauricio Salgado is currently the Director of Domestic Programs for Artists Striving to End Poverty (ASTEP), a nonprofit that provides arts education and empowerment programs for underserved youth. As a founding member of ASTEP, Mauricio recruits and trains volunteers who will serve in ASTEP’s domestic programs and manages and evaluates current partnerships while researching and developing new programs. Originally from Miami, Florida, Mauricio graduated with a BFA from The Juilliard School. Recent appearances include Michael Kahn’s production of Love’s Labours Lost with the Shakespeare Theatre Company, The Cenci at Ohio Theatre, the title role in the Kaai Theatre [Brussels] production ofPhiloctetes, and the premiere of Marco Ramirez’ Mermaids, Monsters and the World Painted Purple at the Kennedy Center. Mauricio has been invited by organizations around the world (the Dominican Republic, South Africa, Peru and India) to teach the ASTEP methodology. In March of 2009, he was presented with the prestigious Martin E Segal Award in recognition of his work with ASTEP.
Davinia Troughton, Director of Development
Davinia Troughton has worked in the nonprofit sector for over seven years, most recently in philanthropy. She current leads fundraising, board development, and communications efforts as the Director of Development at Artists Striving to End Poverty (ASTEP), a nonprofit that provides arts education and empowerment programs for underserved youth. She came to ASTEP from the NoVo Foundation, where she worked as the manager of grants and research and in the Women and Girls Initiative, focusing on funding efforts to end violence against girls and women around the world. Davinia is also a New York State certified sexual and domestic violence crisis counselor at St. Luke’s-Roosevelt Hospital in New York City and volunteers regularly at Sanctuary for Families in the Children’s Program. She serves on the board of SAFER (students active for ending rape). She is dedicated to social justice and supporting the voices of women and children.
