It is with great excitement that REEL announces our first ever executive director - Abby Kirigin! Abby has been a key member of our REEL team since she joined us in August 2021. Thanks to generous gifts from our founding donors, we are now able to bring her on as our Executive Director. This is a huge milestone for our non-profit, establishing a cohesive direction and longevity for our endeavors. And of course any of you who have interacted with Abby know what a treasure trove of knowledge and kindness she is. We are thrilled to have her at the helm in our mission of ensuring Silicon Valley twice-exceptional students thrive in school by raising parent and educator awareness and understanding of practical, research-based strategies to address their needs successfully.
A message from Abby:
I am very excited to step into this new role as Executive Director at REEL! Thank you to REEL’s Board of Directors for this opportunity. It has been an honor getting to know Callie and Yael through our work at REEL over these past two years. I am passionate about REEL’s mission to ensure Silicon Valley 2e students thrive in school, and committed to our work of building bridges between educators and parents. Leading up to this new role, I have been working for several months on REEL’s strategic plan, which is comprised of four goals that I am excited to share with you today:
Raise educator awareness of and empathy towards the twice-exceptional
Build educators’ capabilities to support twice-exceptional learners in the classroom
Empower parents with the tools to make changes for their children
Grow REEL’s internal capacity and sustainability
As Executive Director, I plan to spearhead new efforts and initiatives which align with these goals, while also continuing to provide the services and support our community enjoys. I look forward to engaging with you, our valued REEL community, for feedback, support, and ideas as we launch this next chapter. I am inspired by our community every day, and am looking forward to getting to know you all better. Thank you!