ACES Staff

Chad Caruthers

Executive Director

Chad took on the executive director role in 2010 and brings to it a deep familiarity with ACES. His most recent position with ACES was as development and marketing director, where he applied his diverse communication and marketing experience to markedly increase community awareness of ACES. He reminds everyone to become a Facebook Fan of ACES and to follow ACES on Twitter.

Chad has been a full-time ACES staff member since 2006, after serving as a part-time Team Leader during the 2005–06 school year. He was the ACES program coordinator at Cityview Performing Arts Magnet for the 2007–08 and 2008–09 school years, and at Lincoln Community School in 2006–07, both in north Minneapolis.

Chad holds a bachelor's degree in journalism from the University of Kansas and a master's of education from the University of Minnesota. His professional background spans casino marketing, book publishing, business communications, and writing and editing for fun and profit. Click here to email Chad.

Jeff Longenecker

Program Quality & Replication Manager

Jeff has a master's in education from Minnesota State University Mankato and joined the ACES team in September 2011 with 17 years experience in education. A founding staff member of Park Spanish Immersion School, his most recent position was as parent involvement specialist at the Minnesota Parent Center, where Jeff used his skills and experiences to build connections between school staff and families to increase student achievement. Jeff has language skills in Spanish and French, and his mission is to ensure every student has the tools and support to achieve his or her goals. He invites you to share in that mission. Click here to email Jeff.

Catherine Diersen

Program Coordinator, St. Paul Sites

Catherine joined the ACES staff in 2006 as an AmeriCorps member at Green Central School. She assisted with the start-up of the ACES program at Cityview Performing Arts Magnet program in 2007 and co-led the expansion of the ACES program at Monroe during the 2008-09 school year, then served as site coordinator at Monroe for the 2009-10 and 2010-11 school years. She also oversaw the ACES E-Mentoring Program at Cityview, Green Central, and Monroe. Catherine is a graduate of St. Olaf College, with a degree in English and Family Studies. Click here to email Catherine.

Emmy Matzner

Program Coordinator, Minneapolis Sites

Emmy joined ACES in 2008 and was site coordinator at Green Central for the 2008-09, 2009-10, and 2010-11 school years. She holds a degree in Psychology and Spanish from Macalester College. While working toward her degree, Emmy attended the Center for Interamerican Studies in Ecuador. She returned to South America in 2007 and spent a year working with nursing home residents in Argentina. As an assistant teacher in three Twin Cities K-8 schools, Emmy gained vast experience in youth education, focusing on improving the success of ELL students. Click here to email Emmy.

Anna Wienke

Volunteer & Events Coordinator

Anna joined ACES in 2008 as a volunteer tutor/mentor for middle school students at Green Central School. After piloting the ACES Mustaches for Kids fundraiser in 2009, Anna was hired as a part-time Special Events Coordinator. In August 2010, she was promoted to full-time Volunteer & Events Coordinator. Anna is a graduate of the University of Minnesota, with a bachelor's degree in Cultural Studies and Comparative Literature. Because of her passion for the ACES program, she continues to stay involved with students as a volunteer e-mentor. Click here to email Anna.

Emily Vogel

ACES AmeriCorps Promise Fellow, Olson Middle School (Minneapolis) Site Leader

Emily joined ACES in 2007 as a part-time Team Leader. After working with sixth graders at Cityview Performing Arts Magnet during the 2007-08 school year, she moved to Green Central School in 2009-10. For the 2010-11 school year, Emily was an AmeriCorps Promise Fellow with ACES, serving as site coordinator at Olson Middle School. She returns to the same position for the 2011-12 school year. Emily holds a bachelor's degree in English and Political Science from the University of Minnesota. Click here to email Emily.

Annie Hanrahan

ACES AmeriCorps Promise Fellow, Green Central School (Minneapolis) Site Leader

Annie joined ACES in August 2011. She recently received her bachelor's degree from Northwestern College, in Iowa. Annie majored in Elementary Education with a reading endorsement. She is certified to teach K-6 grade general classroom and K-8 grade reading. Annie's participation in classrooms ranges from short-term service projects in Mississippi and Mexico to student teaching in a Title 1 classroom. These experiences helped her gain perspective and learn many valuable lessons about the academic achievement gap. Click here to email Annie.

Kit Alviz

ACES AmeriCorps Promise Fellow, Farnsworth Aerospace School (4-8 Campus) Site Leader

Kit started the ACES Promise Fellow position in 2011 and is working toward her master's in Global Youth Policy at the University of Minnesota. Originally from California, she moved to the Twin Cities to explore the fields of education and youth development. Kit brings programming experience in hip hop, intercultural training, youth-adult partnerships, leadership, and academic coaching, and is interested in working toward eliminating the academic achievement gap. Click here to email Kit.

Amanda Duhon

ACES AmeriCorps Promise Fellow, Linwood Monroe Arts Plus (St. Paul) Site Leader

Amanda joined ACES as an AmeriCorpos Promise Fellow in August 2011. Originally from Virginia, she recently received a bachelor's degree in sociology from Macalester College. Having served as an ACES Team Leader at Linwood Monroe during the 2010-11 school year, Amanda was inspired to return and continue to help students develop academic, leadership, and service-learning skills. Amanda brings programming experience in cross-cultural dialogue, peace and team building, and leadership training to her new position at ACES. Click here to email Amanda.