Home 2022 May 03 (Page 2)

Day: May 3, 2022

Ariel Clemmer

By
40 Under 40 Class of 2022

Director, Center for Social Justice, Western New England University School of Law; Age 39

From her early career, teaching elementary school in New York City’s Spanish Harlem with Teach for America, Ariel Clemmer has been passionate about changing lives.

“That was an amazing experience,” she recalled. “I was working with a community-based school, meaning most students lived next to the school in project housing. It was a small environment, and I was an outsider coming in, trying to shake up the system a little bit. That’s been true of most of my positions.”

While studying law, her initial plans were to be a public defender. In fact, immediately after graduation, she joined Bronx Defenders, representing low-income clients charged with crimes.

“From there, my career has taken kind of a winding path, but the common thread has been to help people and try to make the world a better place,” said Clemmer, whose passion for pro bono work saw her named one of the top 30 pro bono attorneys of 2014 by Legal Services of New York City.

What has stayed with her from her experiences in NYC was a burden for people who are struggling, especially those victimized by systemic inequities. She brought that passion to her recent role as pro bono director at the Hampden County Bar Assoc., and then to her current position, as director of the Center for Social Justice at Western New England University School of Law.

“Our mission is to advance justice through research, education, advocacy, innovation, and public engagement,” she said, and the center does so through initiatives like a sealing and expungement program to address harm caused to people of color by the war on drugs, a consumer-debt initiative to defend consumers facing wrongful credit-card collection actions, and a gender-affirming identification project that offers pro bono legal services to individuals who need help with gender-affirming name changes, birth-certificate amendments, and more.

“It’s an exciting time to be working in social justice and living out this mission through our programming,” Clemmer said. “I’ve always had the sense that the world would be a better place if everyone was allowed the same opportunities and treated equally, regardless of what makes them different. So many times in my life, I’ve seen that’s just not the case.

“When racial injustice happens, or other types of limitations are put on people because of disabilities or gender status or sexual orientation, it bothers me,” she added. “That’s why the work I do now is so meaningful. It enables me, every day, to work toward something better.”

 

— Joseph Bednar

Margaret Boyle

By
40 Under 40 Class of 2022

Communications Director, Office of U.S. Rep. Richard Neal; Age 31

Margaret Boyle remembers her first real taste of politics — and it didn’t exactly go down well.

When she was very young, her father was a Springfield city councilor. She would go along with him to campaign events and even appeared, somewhat reluctantly, in a few of his TV commercials.

“I always said, ‘this is not the life for me,’ she recalled, adding that things changed in a profound way when she arrived at Smith College, and especially when she enrolled in a class at UMass Amherst through the Five College Consortium.

It was called “The Politician and the Journalist,” and it was taught by Congressman Richard Neal. By the end of that semester, Boyle was asking Neal if she could intern in his office. He said ‘yes,’ and that put her on a path that has taken her to the position of Communications director in that office.

This is a big job with many different responsibilities, from issuing press releases to updating Neal’s website on a daily basis; from handling all the social media for the congressman to following up with members of the press doing stories on matters Neal is involved with.

“No two days are alike, which is what I like about this job,” she said, adding that she’s in Washington at least a day or two or month and spends considerable time with Neal visiting some of the 87 cities and towns that make up a massive district that covers parts of five counties.

In addition to her work with Neal, Boyle is very active in the community, especially in ways that honor the memory and legacy of her father, William J. Boyle, who eventually became first justice of the Springfield District Court.

Indeed, with her mother, Rose, brother Martin, and lifelong friends of her father, she founded the William J. Boyle Scholarship Fund to advance educational opportunities for Springfield high-school students. She also played a lead role in creating the annual Run Billy Run 5K road race and one-mile walk, which last year raised more than $35,000 for scholarships. She not only organizes it, she runs in it, thus honoring another legacy — going for runs with her father years ago.

Recently, Boyle joined the board of directors of the Springfield Boys & Girls Club, and she is actively involved in fundraising efforts for the Susie Foundation, which provides families living with ALS with compassionate and enduring support services.

 

— George O’Brien

Melissa Blissett

By
40 Under 40 Class of 2022

Vice President of Family Support Services, Square One; Age 37

Melissa Blissett brought a lot of personal items along for her 40 Under Forty photo shoot, and for a reason.

There are many things that are important to her, and she wanted to try to represent them all with one image.

She’s big into plants, and also reading. Family is a huge part of her life, and she brought along a portrait of the group, as well as a framed copy of one of her favorite quotes, and a pink elephant, which represents the sorority she belongs to — Delta Sigma Theta, an organization of college-educated women “committed to constructive development of its members and to public service, with a primary focus on the black community.”

There isn’t anything that directly represents her work as vice president of Family Support Services at Square One, but then again, all or at least most of those other items reflect what she does.

In short, her work is all about family, education, service to others, and helping others live the life they’ve always dreamed of while, as that quote goes, “remembering where you came from but never losing sight of where you are going.”

Blissett, who earned a bachelor’s degree at the University of Lowell and a master’s degree in social work at Springfield College, told BusinessWest that while Square One is most associated with early-childhood education, the nonprofit has long understood the importance of supporting families. And it is her job to essentially coordinate and deliver that support, which comes in many forms.

“The parent is the child’s first teacher in general, so the goal is to provide educational support,” she explained. “We also want to provide and help them access resources within the community. We want to make sure that the child is safe, that the child is receiving adequate education, and that the family is getting the resources it needs to grow healthy children.”

Blissett first worked at Square One as an intern while working toward her master’s at Springfield College, and later joined the agency as Healthy Families and Supervised Visitation supervisor. She was later promoted to assistant vice president of Family Support Services and is now vice president of that department.

She is also an adjunct professor at Springfield College in the graduate department of Social Work and, as noted, very active with Delta Sigma Theta. She is also active at her church, Shiloh Seventh-Day Adventist Church in Springfield.

 

— George O’Brien

Zydalis Bauer

By Contributor
40 Under 40 Class of 2022

Host and Producer, New England Public Media; Age: 31

You could say Zydalis Bauer has been training for her career since second grade.

Back then, her class put on a news show as one of its projects and chose Bauer for the anchor role.

“From that moment, I had a natural curiosity to pursue media,” Bauer said. In 2008, straight out of high school, she became an intern at WGBY (now New England Public Media) through the Latino Youth Media Institute at the station. After pursuing other internships at NEPM while attending college, she was eventually offered part-time and then full-time employment.

“Since that first internship, I never really left,” she said.

When members of the Latino community said they wanted to hear their language on local TV, NEPM responded with its first bilingual series, Presencia, with Bauer as a co-host. Though her family is from Puerto Rico, her first language is English.

“I had always been self-conscious of my Spanish skills, but this was an opportunity to show that I didn’t have to be perfect to speak the language,” she said. The show set out to deliver engaging stories and has won two Telly Awards since it began.

“When Latinos are in the media, it’s too often about issues,” Bauer explained. “Presencia tells inspirational stories that show how much the Latino community in Western Mass. has to offer.”

Bauer’s success with Presencia led to co-host and producer roles on Connecting Point, NEPM’s magazine show on the arts and culture of Western Mass. Last year, she was offered the job as the show’s main host. Though she considers herself shy, she didn’t hesitate to take on the hosting duties.

“Something inside said follow your instinct, and your brain will figure it out later,” she said. “I’ve learned to follow my gut.”

Now a board member for Girls Inc. of the Valley, Bauer appreciates the opportunity to mentor young women in the community. “Girls Inc. is a great organization that helps young people build confidence from their elementary years through college.”

As a student, she took part in NEPM’s Media Lab workshops, and now she runs them.

“It’s come full circle, and now I am the facilitator,” she said, acknowledging those who took the time to help her along the way.

“I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t have mentors,” Bauer added. “My ultimate goal is to give back and open the door a little further for another individual.”

 

— Mark Morris

Meghan Avery

By
40 Under 40 Class of 2022

Senior Vice President, UTCA Inc.; Age 37

Meghan Avery says that most people assume the name given the brewing company she co-owns with her husband, Mark, stems from what would be considered her day job as senior vice president with West Springfield-based Unemployment Tax Control Associates.

They would be wrong.

“My husband came up with the name Two Weeks Notice Brewing Company because, quite literally, he wanted the brewery to be a success so he could quit the job that he had,” she explained, adding that he was able to do just that and pursue his passion full-time.

But while her work in the unemployment tax realm wasn’t the source of a corporate name, it has become her passion, and her career, one in which she is following the lead of her mother — Suzanne Murphy, the company’s founder — in all kinds of ways, from her entrepreneurial energy to her commitment to giving back to the community.

At UTCA, Avery handles a wide range of responsibilities, including client services, all aspects of the Claims department, various HR functions, and management-education seminars offered to every client. She also supports the business-development side of the organization.

Meanwhile, at Two Weeks Notice Brewing in West Springfield, she wears an equally large number of important hats, handling finances, marketing, event planning, and brand development. And while all aspects of the company are in a growth mode, the event side of the ledger is really taking off, with the West Springfield location hosting gatherings for YPS, Toys for Tots, Parish Cupboard, the West Springfield Police Department, and the Susan B. Anthony Project, which offers services to those affected by domestic violence and sexual assault. It has even hosted an “adult prom do-over,” which was … well, just what it sounds like — adults doing their prom over.

Sometimes, Avery’s two worlds come together, such as when she organized a free training for local breweries in Massachusetts and Connecticut to educate them about effective sexual-harassment policy and management of these issues in the brewery setting, training that was conducted with the Employers Assoc. of the NorthEast, an agency she partners with frequently in her role at UTCA.

Within the community, Avery is a certified victims advocate for those experiencing domestic and sexual violence. She and Mark have also recently partnered with Brave Noise, an organization geared toward eliminating sexism, sexual harassment, and gender discrimination in the brewing industry.

 

— George O’Brien

 

News

Contact

Advertise

Events