Board of Directors
Board Members & C-Suite
Courtney Farrell, M.S. | President
Courtney has over 20 years’ experience in economic and community development. She has coordinated development efforts between cities, counties, government agencies, private companies and nonprofits. Her expertise is in grant writing, donor development, fundraising, partnership development, and marketing. Courtney holds master's and bachelor's degrees from CSU, Chico. Additionally, Courtney is a lecturer in CSU, Chico’s College of Business. Courtney has volunteered for many community organizations but was most excited to be a board member for Youth for Change. In her down time, she enjoys running with her friends and spending quality time with her husband, Brenton.
Ashley Hilton | Secretary
Bio coming soon.
Mark Chrisco
Mark moved to the north state from Southern California to attend CSU Chico in 1983. Shortly after graduating Mark entered the real estate profession and has since been a Broker/Owner of the RE/MAX of Chico sales office. He specializes in the sale or purchase of residential and income producing properties. Outside of real estate Mark has worked with various community organizations including Big Brothers Big Sisters, Chico Aqua Jets, and the Chico Creek Nature Center. Mark lives in Chico with his wife and two daughters.
Michele Carter, CRM, CIC
Michele Carter is a Vice President at InterWest Insurance Services, LLC, and the Executive Director of Commercial Insurance Operations. She is a member of InterWest’s senior leadership team with responsibilities and involvement across brokerage & client services, human resources, information technology, professional development, long-term planning, strategy and performance of business development, and a member of the mergers & acquisitions team.
Giving back to the communities in which she lives and works is one of Michele’s personal passions. Michele has been a board member with Youth for Change for over 15 years, and enjoys volunteering with local charities, nonprofit organizations and her daughters’ school. Michele appreciates the time she gets to spend with her husband, daughter and son. They enjoy camping, spending time on the Oregon coast, exploring the US and other countries, and weekends spent traveling to soccer competitions.
Matt Depa
Matt is a Chico native raised on the front lines of his family’s property management entity. He worked as half of a father-son duo at Re/Max of Chico for over 18 years, and has vast property management and real estate market experience. He specializes in the purchase and sale of investment and commercial properties. Matt also wears the CCIM (Certified Commercial Investment Member) lapel pin.
Outside of real estate, Matt has served on the Board of Directors for the North Valley Property Owners Association. In his spare time you can find him watching a game, on the golf course, or spending time with his family.
Jarreau Gilbert
Bio coming soon.
Amanda Konyn
Bio coming soon.
Chandese Meghdadi
Bio coming soon.
Joe Sweeney, B.S.
Joe has been a board member of Youth 4 Change for over 5 years, and is a partner at the local Financial Planning firm Sweeney & Michel, LLC. He was born and raised in Chico, then earned his B.S. in Finance from Azusa Pacific University. In 2009 he married his high school sweetheart, Britney, and moved back to Chico. They have three children together.
Joe is an active member of the community, involved with the Butte County Farm Bureau, Youth For Change, the Chico Children’s Museum, and Enloe's Hospital’s golf committee. He enjoys softball, golf, basketball, skiing and spending time with friends and family.
Directors
Nancy Jorth, LMFT | Director of Social Services Programs
Nancy has been delivering a wide range of services to youth and families through YFC for over 20 years. Prior to her role as Director of Social Services Programs, Nancy directed the successful implementation of Homeless Youth Services in the agency including 6th Street Center for Youth and HEART (Homeless Emergency Action Response Team). Nancy started in the agency working with youth in our foster care and group home programs.
Nancy came to YFC from the Bay Area where she gained experience and passion working with homeless youth in San Francisco. She lives in Chico with her husband, daughter and son. The family enjoys camping, basketball, time at the beach and anything related to music. For self-care Nancy spends time gardening and painting.
Kathleen Shenk | Director of Community Resources and Development
Kathleen joined Youth for Change in 2010 and is currently the Director of Community Resources and Development.
Brooke Chambers | Director of Quality
Brooke relocated from the Midwest to California in 1999 and started working in group homes. She has over 25 years of experience in behavioral health and social services. As the Director of Quality, she is focused on continuous quality improvement at all levels of the organization and helps to incorporate learning and fun into the work environment at Youth for Change.
Sarah Feingold, LCSW | Director of Behavioral Health Programs
Sarah has been a member of our Youth for Change team since 2010, and has worked in the social service field for over 20 years. She started her career in group homes and foster care, and spent 6 years in law enforcement as a Probation Officer. She has worked as a mental health clinician since 2008. As the Director of Behavioral Health Services, she is passionate about supporting her staff toward professional development to ensure that high quality, compassionate and effective services are delivered at Youth For Change.
Terri Coutolenc | Director of Human Resources
Terri has been with Youth For Change since 2019 as our Human Resources Manager. Prior to YFC, she spent 25 years in the Midwest as HR in the manufacturing field. Terri finds working at YFC and the social services field immensely satisfying.
Karen Eley, LCSW | Assistant Director
Karen Eley has been working at Youth for Change since 2012. She loves getting to work with youth and families in the community as well as her co-workers. Karen is a certified Forest Therapy Guide and is passionate about introducing people to the outdoors. She loves to travel, play with her dog Wilder, and be outside.