Faculty
Ajay Trivedi - Program Director Ajay is entering his fifth year at EDCO Youth Alternative. In 2009, he was appointed Program Director after two years as the School Coordinator, serving as liaison between EDCO Youth Alternative and Boston Public high schools. His administrative duties include enrollment, student and teacher support, and day-to-day management of the program. Before coming to EDCO, Ajay worked with youth in Dorchester and Roxbury as an instructor of math, technology, and sign language. He brings patience and a calm energy to the work of navigating young people toward their goals. He enjoys good food, creative projects, and quotable moments.

Dana MacPhee - School Coordinator This is Dana’s first year at EDCO. She graduated with a B.A. from Dickinson College and recently completed her master’s degree in counseling psychology at Boston College. In 2010-2011, she worked as a guidance intern at PATH. Prior to that, Dana worked for five years at Brandeis University for the Transitional Year Program and the Posse Scholars Program. When not at EDCO, she enjoys exploring the city, trying new restaurants, and reading.

Will Schummers - Teacher, History and Media Arts Will has been at EDCO since 1999 and is the webmaster of this site in addition to being the resident "computer guy" at the program. He is a Lead Educator in the Adobe Youth Voices and took two students to a Global Media Summit in the Summer of 2011. He graduated with a B.A. in Social Studies Education from Ithaca College and taught in several Massachusetts school districts before coming to EDCO. When he isn't at school, he can often be found under a pile of Lego bricks.

Amber Hathaway - Teacher, English and Humanities Amber has been with the program since 2006. She received a BS in English Education from Boston University and is currently studying in the Masters of Education program at UMass Boston. She also regularly participates in writing seminars and workshops, including the Boston Teachers Write fellowship at the Boston Athenaeum in 2007 and the Write Boston program on narrative redemptive writing in 2009. When Amber is not teaching or writing, she can be found playing a setlist or two on the video game Rock Band.

Stephen Dudeney - Teacher, Science Stephen graduated in 2010 with a B.S. in Biology, Magna cum Laude, from the University of Massachusetts Boston. He grew up in Boston and attended the Boston Public Schools growing up. While in college, he volunteered at a research laboratory at the Harvard Institutes of Medicine. He also mentored a Boston high school student through the Boston Higher Education Resource Center. He is passionate about science education, especially for inner city youth, and giving them every opportunity to succeed, discover and to go on to have successful and fruitful careers after graduation.

Kara Higgins - Teacher, Math This is Kara's first year at EDCO. She graduated from Drew University in with a BS in Political Science and spent two years teaching math at a vocational high school in American Samoa, a tiny island in the South Pacific. Kara taught at a charter middle school in Dorchester last year. She calls herself a math nerd and loves to play Scrabble and travel.