Executive Director - Megan McNally
Megan is the co-founder of The Foundry. She graduated from Barnard College with a degree in Environmental Policy, has worked on green building construction sites across the country, and gained experience in woodworking at Yestermorrow Design/Build School. She moved back to Buffalo to run a woodworking business from 2011-2014 and is passionate about supporting women and people of color in "non-traditional" career pathways. She is active in Big Brothers Big Sisters and encourages everyone to consider mentorship. She has been the recipient of Women Who Move The City Award, BizJournal's 30 under 30 Award, Protege of The Year from University at Buffalo’s Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership and one of the finalists in the Community Foundation of Greater Buffalo Centennial Awards.
Director of Curriculum + Instruction - Amina Boyd
Amina is a well rounded creative and educator who loves hands-on learning and exploration. She comes to The Foundry with a significant background in K-12 education, media production and screen-printing, and a passion to support youth of color in career exploration. She loves working with people of all ages to help them uncover their untapped potential and is excited to help cultivate more creatives and entrepreneurs within The Foundry. She develops our interactive, maker-focused curriculum to support students in afterschool as well as in our workforce development training opportunities.
Development Director - Melissa Rechin
Melissa is a creative, crafter and hobbyist with a steadfast desire to explore new hands-on learning. She comes to The Foundry with experience in nonprofit communications & marketing, artistic entrepreneurial support, and membership / donor relations. Melissa is passionate about the importance of establishing welcoming, inclusive spaces for creative expression and hands-on education without the barriers of cost, skill-level, and other cultural challenges. She works on grant writing and developing new strategies for increasing donor support in order to continually spread our mission here at The Foundry.
Makerspace Manager - Emma Brittain - Hardy
Emma wears many hats in our organization and community. Along with being the Makerspace manager she is a teaching artist and small business tenant at the Foundry. On any given day you may see her working on her own pottery or sculptures, supervising Open Maker Hours, teaching classes in the tech or textile lab, or helping with our youth programs. She loves everything related to art and tinkering, she jokes that she "collects hobbies". Emma is always willing to learn more and also to share her own knowledge.
Business Development - Tamara Zantell
Tamara and her daughter were one of the first tenants at The Foundry - after many years of hard work, she helped her daughter turn her business idea into a million-dollar brand Zandra Beauty. Tamara is the founder of Raising A Mogul, a worldwide community that supports parents in nurturing the next generation of leaders, influencers, philanthropists, and entrepreneurs. In addition, she co-founded Legacy Brand Creators, LLC, a boutique brand development, marketing, and publishing agency. She has consistently been a champion and instructor of our Youth Entrepreneurship Program, and is committed to supporting youth entrepreneurship globally and families who aspire to build an impactful family legacy brand. She is a mother to five. Together or separately, they have been featured on AOL, ESPN, Netflix, USA TODAY, Forbes, Entrepreneur Magazine, Black Enterprise, ABC News Nightline, Today Show, and more. With expertise in building community relationships, delivering exceptional products and services, and creating systematic and diverse environments, Tamara has the knowledge and experience to help clients launch international brands, generate revenue, and develop young moguls and family businesses for success.
Office Manager - Jennifer Weber
Jennifer brings 25+ years of non-profit experience working in Community Relations, PR/Marketing, Fundraising/Development, Event Planning and Volunteer Management to her role at The Foundry. In her spare time she serves as a volunteer on several boards, dabbles in community theater productions and blogs and writes at All Things Jennifer.