Yavapai CASA for Kids Foundation
BOARD MEMBER BIOGRAPHIES
Missy Sikora
President
Missy is the Director of the Yavapai Family Advocacy Center (YFAC), a facility which helps child and adult victims of abuse. Her agency works with local law enforcement and Department of Child Safety (DCS) to reduce trauma to victims by providing a safe and supportive environment and facilitating a team approach to advocacy, investigation and prosecution. Prior to becoming the director at YFAC, Missy was a supervisor with DCS in Prescott, where she worked for 12 years. Missy also taught special education to junior high and high school children with emotional and behavioral health needs for 15 years in the Phoenix area prior to moving to Northern Arizona. Missy feels lucky that she has been able to spend the past 25+ years working with at risk families, as well as children involved in the juvenile delinquency system and victims who have suffered trauma due to abuse or neglect. Missy joined the board of Yavapai CASA for Kids Foundation in 2015. In addition to serving on the YC4KF board, Missy is a member of the Community Coordinated Response Team (CCRT) dedicated to address domestic and family violence in our communities, as well as the Yavapai County Child Abduction Response Team (CART). Missy can be reached at missy@yfac.org.
Jennifer Whittemore
Vice President
Jennifer joined the board of Yavapai CASA for Kids Foundation in 2010. She serves as the board's President. She loves spending time with her family and working on scrapbooks. Mrs. Whittemore was a licensed foster parent for 6 years and adopted four (4) children out of the foster care system. She was a member of the Lincoln School PTA Board as secretary for two (2) years and treasurer for two (2) years. She currently helps with their Character Counts program and chairs their Spring Dance. She has a Bachelor's Degree in accounting from Northern Arizona University. You can reach Jennifer at jenwhittemore@hotmail.com
Ray Polvani
Recording Secretary
Ray Polvani is the past Superintendent of Mountain Institute JTED, located in Prescott Arizona. Dr. Polvani was born in Meriden, Connecticut, attended local schools and graduated with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Elementary Education from Central Connecticut State University. He moved to Arizona after four years of teaching in Connecticut and attained an Education Specialist Degree in School Administration from Arizona State University. Subsequently, he earned a Doctorate in Educational Administration, also from Arizona State. He has 11 years of teaching experience, 13 years as a site administrator and 12 years as a district administrator; including 10 total years as a Superintendent. As an elementary Principal, his school was recognized 3 times as an A+, Top Ten school in Arizona and once nationally as one of the Nation’s Outstanding Elementary Schools. He was awarded Arizona Superintendent of the Year in the year 2000 by the Arizona School Administrators Association. He has also served as a K-12 Education Coordinator for Pinal County as an administrator with Central Arizona College and has served as an Educational Consultant in the areas of school improvement, Leadership Mentoring and Coaching. He is a co-founder of Mountain Institute JTED in Prescott, Arizona; having overseen the creation and development of the Joint Technical Education District into one of the leaders in Career and Technical Education delivery in Arizona in four short years of existence. He is passionate about providing excellent educational opportunities for youngsters, assisting them with Career Development and establishing collaborative efforts to resolve regional educational challenges. He enjoys hiking, biking, tennis and sailing. He is working at golf and guitar playing. Dr. Polvani resides in Prescott, Arizona. He married to Jeanette Shipley Polvani; together they share four sons and a daughter.
Gretta Larson
Grants Chair
Gretta became a CASA volunteer in mid 2013 and six months later joined the Board of Yavapai CASA for Kids Foundation. She has held the position of Treasurer for 2014 & 2015. “It seemed like a logical move, since CASA for Kids Foundation helps those children the CASAs are involved with” states Ms. Larson. Prior to retiring, she worked for 30 years in banking/small business lending- internationally and nationally. She is a member of AAUW and serves on the finance committee of MatForce and Community Counts. She received a Bachelor of Arts from the University of the Americas, Mexico. You can reach Gretta at grettall@yahoo.com.
Stephen Kahne
Board Member
Stephen Kahne is Professor Emeritus at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Prescott where previously he was Professor of Electrical Engineering and Chancellor. Dr. Kahne has degrees from Cornell University and the University of Illinois. He has served on the boards of Yavapai Regional Medical Center, West Yavapai Guidance Clinic, and Northern Arizona Regional Behavioral Health Authority. Steve was a Court Appointed Special Advocate and Victim Advocate in Yavapai County. He is presently a mentor in the Yavapai Juvenile Justice Center, on the board of Prevent Child Abuse Arizona, and a mediator in the Prescott Justice Court.
Tammi Miller
New Project Chair
Tami Miller joined the board in 2017. She grew up in Southern California and has resided in the Prescott area since 2005. Her career has been in the Technology field. She was responsible for setting up high end accounting software in large companies from server/desktop installation, set up and training. Prior to that, she worked in QA as an Integration Specialist as well as customer service and office management. She has one beautiful daughter and granddaughter who are treasured gifts from God. She is very involved in her community and has been volunteering for many events, including Yavapai CASA 4 Kids Foundation the past 3 years. She has been an active participant with Hopefest AZ for the past 4 years. Tami is grateful for her church family and participates in bible study and VBS. Tami offers a unique addition to our foundation because she herself was a foster child from age 12 to 18. Her primary focus is helping kids who are aging out of the system because she can truly identify with the stresses of that venture. You can reach Tami at tami4casa@gmail.com or by phone (928) 830-0627.
David Sahady
Board Member
David Sahady joined the Yavapai Casa for Kid’s Foundation in 2017 looking to continue support for children in foster care in our community. David has worked with children and families in a variety of roles for over 12 years, including work with children in a domestic violence shelter, independent living support for children in foster care, and a licensed counselor with children and families. Supporting children and the community are dual passions for David and the YC4K Foundation provides an excellent opportunity to help meet otherwise unmet needs. In addition to the YC4K Foundation, David also serves on the Board of Trustees for Aztlan Lodge #1 in Prescott. Born and raised in Arizona, David holds a Masters from Northern Arizona University in Anthropology with a focus in cross-cultural communication and the impact of violence in our communities; as well as a Masters from Grand Canyon University in Professional Counseling. David feels blessed to live in Prescott with his wife, daughter and dogs.
Yvonne Bartlett
treasurer & corresponding secretary
Yvonne Bartlett is a Prescott native and ASU graduate. For nearly 20 years she has worked for various non-profits in the Quad-cities where her area of focus has been non-profit development. She has been a member of the Association of Fundraising Professionals since 2004. Over the years, she has held positions as major gifts officer, development director and executive director. She enjoys consulting to non-profits, working in residential real estate and volunteering her time and expertise to select non-profits she supports.