Staff & Board | The Horticultural Society of New York

Cultivating Plants, People & Purpose

OUR LOCATIONS

Education Center
Denny Farrell Riverbank State Park
679 Riverside Drive, New York, NY 10031

Midtown Administrative Offices & Library
148 West 37th Street, 13th Floor
New York, NY 10018

OUR PROGRAMS

APPLE SEED builds learning gardens in public schools for thousands of disadvantaged children suffering from a lack of green spaces and fresh foods, and provides much-needed professional development to their teachers.

GREENHOUSE offers horticultural therapy and vocational training to incarcerated individuals on Rikers Island and helps them learn not just a skill but how to change the very course of their lives.

GREENTEAM provides transitional employment to at-risk youth and ex-offenders and helps them secure full-time jobs.

NEIGHBORHOOD PLAZA PROGRAM beautifies public spaces in low-income communities across the five boroughs and helps make New York greener.

NYDIGS provides affordable horticulture-based workshops, activities, and conferences to positively change perceptions and behaviors toward health, community, and the environment.

Board of Directors

Jared Goss, Chairman
Frances Schultz, Vice-Chair
Duncan Sahner, Vice-Chair
Bruce Addison, Treasurer
Martin Breheny, Secretary

George Ball
Elizabeth Cabot
James P. Druckman

Timothy Hamilton
Michael A. Kovner

Michele E. Lindsay
Mario Nievera
Lily O’Boyle
Mitchell Silver, ex officio
Patricia Sovern

Advisory Board

CeCe Black
Andrea Henderson Fahnestock
Janet Mavec

Staff

Sara Hobel, Executive Director
shobel@thehort.org

George Pisegna, Deputy Director & Chief of Horticulture
gpisegna@thehort.org

Administration

Lauren Keane-Farrell, Senior Director of Administration
lkeanefarrell@thehort.org

Cleo Lewis, Director of Finance
clewis@thehort.org

Adriana Lall, Assistant Director of Finance
alall@thehort.org

Katherine Biggar, Administrative Manager
kbiggar@thehort.org

Raquelle Sewell, Administrative Assistant
rsewell@thehort.org

Children’s Education & Professional Development

Pamela Ito, Director of Education
pito@thehort.org

Carla Shotwell, Greenhouse & Education Center Manager
cshotwell@thehort.org

Bethany Kogut, Education Manager & Content Creator
bkogut@thehort.org

Development

Kevin Sullivan, Senior Grant Writer
ksullivan@thehort.org

Charlotte Muth, Development Associate
cmuth@thehort.org

GreenHouse & Horticultural Therapy

Mechthild (Hilda) Krus (HTR), Director of GreenHouse & Horticultural Therapy
hkrus@thehort.org

Sarah Schluep, GreenHouse Program Manager & Horticultural Therapist
sschluep@thehort.org

Zahra Booth, GreenHouse Instructor
zbooth@thehort.org

Jake Kennedy, GreenHouse Instructor
jkennedy@thehort.org

Nadine Kruczowy, Project Coordinator
nkruczowy@thehort.org

Valentina Michelotti, Curriculum Writer
vmichelotti@thehort.org

Douglas Pentland, GreenHouse Instructor
dpentland@thehort.org

Kiana Taylor, GreenHouse Instructor
ktaylor@thehort.org

McLean Zauner, GreenHouse Instructor
mzauner@thehort.org

Rose Upton, GreenHouse Instructor
rupton@thehort.org

Horticulture

Nick Guntli, Senior Director of Horticulture
Horticulturalist
nguntli@thehort.org

Wilson Berroa, Field Supervisor
wberroa@thehort.org

Natalie Brickajlik, Program Development Manager
nbrickajlik@thehort.org

Patrick Costello, Workshop Instructor
pcostello@thehort.org

Davonta Daniels, Assistant Gardener
ddaniels@thehort.org

Georgia Faulkner, Director of Special Projects
gfaulkner@thehort.org

Loissa Harrison-Parks, Account Manager
lharrisonparks@thehort.org

Paulene Hosein, Field Supervisor
phosein@thehort.org

Jeremy Jungels, Director of Horticulture
jjungels@thehort.org

Taariq King, Gardener
tking@thehort.org

Amiel Lucre, Gardener
alucre@thehort.org

Josuan Martinez, Field Supervisor
jmartinez@thehort.org

Jennifer Palmer, Therapeutic Garden Workshop Coordinator
jpalmer@thehort.org

Steven Roig, Field Supervisor
sroig@thehort.org

Kemberly Villalta, Gardener
kvillalta@thehort.org

Craig Zeitlin, Account Manager
czeitlin@thehort.org

City CleanUp Corps
Meet the Corps

The City Cleanup Corps (CCC) is a New Deal-inspired economic recovery program to create jobs and make New York City the cleanest, greenest city in the United States. Announced in the Mayor’s Recovery For All of Us plan, the CCC will employ 10,000 New Yorkers to help beautify our city. Corps workers will wipe away graffiti, power wash sidewalks, tend to community gardens, beautify public spaces, and work with community organizations to clean their neighborhoods. Questions and applications can be sent to CleanUpCorpsJobs@thehort.org.

Available Jobs

Maintenance Crew Member

Program Associate

Collaboration is a vital component of everything the Hort does. We partner with greening and environmental organizations, academic institutions, departments of the local, state and national government, cultural and arts organizations, community-based groups and social service agencies. If you are interested in collaborating with the Hort on a project, please contact one of our staff members here.

Selected Press

Edible Manhattan, “Growing New Lives” (PDF)

Fox News, “New program gives former inmates a second chance”

The Huffington Post, “By Leaves or Play of Sunlight, John Cage: Artist and Naturalist”

National Geographic, “This Is Your Brain on Nature”

News 12, “Horticultural program aims to rehabilitate Rikers inmates”

New York Family, “Green Days: The Hort is Growing A New Generation of Little Gardeners and Eco-Minded Families” (PDF)

The Wall Street Journal, “One Bright Side of Rikers Island” (PDF)

Well + Good, “How You Can Help Make Healthy Food a Staple on Everyone’s Table”

NYC Dept. of Correction, “Bold Print: Official Newsletter of the New York City Department of Correction (March/April 2019)” (PDF)

NY1 News, “Kids Part of Beautification Effort Along Sutphin Boulevard”

The Horticultural Society of New York’s archives (1811 – 2010) are available from The New York Historical Society through NYU Digital Library Technology Services.
Guide to the Horticultural Society of New York Records