NFTE Volunteers of the Year
Integral to the success of NFTE classroom programming are the generous time and talent offered by our volunteers. Volunteer speakers share their entrepreneurial journeys and insights in the classroom; coaches work one-on-one to support students’ work on business plans; field trip hosts demonstrate real-life businesses in action; and judges provide important feedback at competitions. Each of the volunteers selected displays an ongoing dedication to NFTE’s mission to make a difference in the lives of our students.
2025
Individual Volunteer of the Year
Kristoffer Kizer, Modern Exit Advisor, Unbroker and Venture Investor – Representing the NFTE Midwest Region
Kristoffer Kizer has been an invaluable volunteer with NFTE for over four years, contributing significantly to the advancement of NFTE’s mission to empower young entrepreneurs. As a business plan coach, mentor, and judge, Kristoffer has directly impacted the success and growth of countless NFTE students. His expertise and dedication have helped students develop solid business plans, prepare for pitch competitions, and hone their entrepreneurial
skills.
Kristoffer’s commitment to NFTE goes beyond individual mentorship. He has been a key participant in NFTE Midwest’s Guest Speaker Series, sharing his experiences and insights with students, teachers, and alumni. Furthermore, his work with the national team as a Founders Forum coach demonstrates his leadership and passion for shaping the next generation of entrepreneurs.
Corporate Volunteer of the Year
Valley National Bank
Valley National Bank has been an exceptional partner in advancing NFTE’s mission through a deep commitment to volunteerism and strategic engagement across multiple programs and regions. Over the past year alone, 93 Valley employees contributed an impressive 224 volunteer hours—demonstrating not only the breadth of their support, but also the depth of their dedication to our students and educators. Their volunteers have shown up for NFTE’s Global Day of Coaching in NYC, served as judges at the Regional, National, and World Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge series, coached at school sites across the Mid-Atlantic, supported our NYC Summer BizCamp, and contributed to our Founders Forum and Youth Entrepreneurship Summit.
Valley National Bank’s sustained, multi-regional support and dedication to student success through hands-on involvement make them a clear standout among our industry partners. Their continued investment of time, talent, and leadership truly exemplifies what this award is all about.
2024
Individual Volunteer of the Year
Andy Beepath (NFTE Class of 1995), AVP, Business Banking Officer at Brookline Bank – Representing the NFTE New England Region
Andy Beepath started his volunteer journey with NFTE New England while at Santander Bank, back in 2018. As his first engagement with us, he judged the 2018 regional challenge, and since then, Andy has come back to support students in a variety of capacities, from judging other competitions to one-on-one coaching in classrooms.
Andy’s authentic passion for our work stems from his own experience as a NFTE alumnus, and now as a banking executive, Andy has the opportunity to give back. When he changed companies and moved to Brookline Bank a few years ago, he brought his love of NFTE and volunteering with him, inspiring his new colleagues to follow in his footsteps and join him in the classroom. Most recently, Andy and his colleagues decided to dedicate themselves to supporting a specific classroom, working with the students from Keefe Regional Technical High School on a near monthly basis, building deeper relationships with the
students and forming long-term mentoring partnerships.
Corporate Volunteer of the Year
Citizens Bank
Through the combined efforts of financial investment and human capital, Citizens Bank has profoundly impacted hundreds of students across the NFTE New England and Mid-Atlantic regions, empowering young people to develop the entrepreneurial mindset and skills necessary for success in the modern economy. Throughout both regions, Citizens Bank volunteers have guided and inspired NFTE students as coaches, judges, speakers, and workshop facilitators.
In New England specifically, engagement from executive leaders like Jim Uehlinger as well as the Citizens Public Affairs, Community Development, and Elev8 teams exemplifies their commitment to NFTE’s mission. Citizens Bank provided special funding to support the NFTE Boston PIC Winter Camp, and the Citizens Financial Empowerment and Career Mentoring Program provided a group of NFTE alumni with a workshop focused on financial planning and managing paychecks. Citizens Bank has also facilitated other meaningful opportunities for NFTE, including a Small Business Lunch and Learn session and roundtable discussions with community stakeholders, enabling NFTE to connect with like-minded community leaders, fostering collaboration and advocating for equitable change in the region.
2023
Individual Volunteer of the Year
John Antos, President at Value Creation Group – Representing the NFTE South Region
John has been a NFTE staple volunteer for the past 14 years, during which he has affected countless student and parent lives, as well as helped develop many NFTE staff in the way of non-profits and volunteerism. John has always been selfless in his giving of his most precious resource: time. He spends time with others to help make the NFTE difference, as he recognizes the essential need for filling the opportunity gap society has created.
Corporate Volunteer of the Year
Slalom
Slalom began their NFTE relationship as a supporter and partner in our Midwest region, and we are excited to report that Slalom volunteers have since supported hundreds of NFTE students in our Capital, New England, Mid-Atlantic, and West Regions as well. Slalom volunteers have served as coaches, judges, speed networking participants, and more at various NFTE Youth Entrepreneurship Summits, Summer BizCamps, and other coaching and speaking opportunities throughout the school year.
Slalom executives coach to empower and encourage NFTE learners in the business ideation and opportunity recognition phase, model and help develop students’ professional communication skills, share their own experiences and discuss career exploration, and work one-on-one to hone students’ business plan presentation skills in preparation for the Regional and National Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge.
2022
Individual Volunteer of the Year
Senthilkumaran Ramaiyan, Associate Director and Program Manager of Moody’s Analytics – Representing the NFTE Southeast Region
A true ambassador of NFTE and the entrepreneurial mindset, Senthil has served as judge, mentor, and coach for our students, working virtually from his home on whatever volunteer engagement opportunity he can. This past spring, he coached one of our student finalists, offering flexibility in his schedule to add coaching sessions to his calendar so that the student could take advantage of other trainings in school and attend school events. Additionally, he made himself available to new students during his coaching sessions, all because he enjoys engaging with our NFTE learners.
Senthil is always willing and ready to volunteer, and regularly takes time to provide NFTE with feedback gained during his coaching sessions. He shows his appreciation for each opportunity he’s given to support and engage with teachers and NFTE learners around the country.
His dedication to NFTE students in the Southeast and beyond is one of the few true perks of the pandemic, as he’s been able to work with many different NFTE students regardless of their location. We are thrilled to honor Senthil for the extra effort he makes as a volunteer, and to celebrate the difference he’s made to NFTE’s budding young entrepreneurs.
Corporate Volunteer of the Year
EY
Since 1998, EY and NFTE have worked together to activate the entrepreneurial mindset and launch the next generation of entrepreneurs. Over the years, EY has expanded our relationship by growing their support to include valuable skills-based volunteering that improves NFTE as an organization. From professional development workshops for NFTE staff and alumni, valuable pro-bono work, board members who serve as ambassadors within the company and externally, to 827 EY volunteers who served nearly 3,000 hours as business plan coaches, guest speakers, advisors, and judges this past year and are key to the success of our relationship.
EY is historically a great supporter of NFTE’s most ambitious projects, offering pro-bono teams to strategize and support the launch of new offerings that increase the value of NFTE programs. These include the Entrepreneurial Mindset Index, the Innovation Day toolkit, NFTE’s asynchronous Start It Up course, and many other projects that continue to propel NFTE as a leader in entrepreneurship education. EY volunteers are true champions of our youth, supporting them with personal career skill building, business ideation, and business launch and scaling—empowering youth to create their own success and take control of their futures with each step.
2021
Individual Volunteer of the Year
Holly Wallace, Managing Director and Senior Financial Officer at Merrill Lynch – Representing the NFTE Mid-Atlantic Region
Holly has been an exceptional volunteer and friend to NFTE for over 16 years. In addition to her role as chair of our New York Metro Advisory Board, Holly dedicates significant capital, energy, and time to support our students as they embark on their pathway to success. Through her family foundation, she coordinates workshops, college visits, and resources focused on college access, including the opportunity for NFTE students to apply for a Cornell University scholarship, and providing year-over-year mentoring and college support to those students attending Cornell. Each year, she leads a bus trip for a group of NFTE students to visit Cornell for a day to tour the campus, learn about their undergrad programs, and meet college professors and NFTE alumni who currently attend the school, and she covers all of the costs related to the trip. To date, she has supported NFTE with over 100 hours of volunteer support, close to $500K in
contributions through personal giving and family foundation, as well as provided leadership over the past few years through her involvement in the Advisory Board.
Corporate Volunteer of the Year
Santander
Since 2014, Santander has been a true champion of NFTE, contributing nearly $2 million in financial support to our New England, MidAtlantic, and Southeast Regions. Over the past 5 school years, over 1,000 Santander employees have served as business plan coaches, guest speakers, mentors, advisors, and judges. Santander is a driving force when they enter the room, and are exceptional in meeting our students where they are and engaging them through their entrepreneurial journey.
Santander always steps up to support all our virtual volunteer needs and has proven to be a true champion in modeling employee engagement across all levels – from bank tellers all the way to the president of the bank and the senior executive team. Santander volunteers are always willing to go the extra mile for NFTE students, and some have continued mentoring them beyond their classroom experiences.
2020
Individual Volunteer of the Year
Gary Polk, Entrepreneurship Professor at California State University Dominguez Hills – Representing the LA Metro Region
For the past 3 years, Gary has volunteered as a guest speaker, business coach, and business judge in for NFTE LA Metro. He coordinates NFTE’s involvement in the annual Transform LA (TLA) at California State University Dominguez Hills, which hosts over 100 NFTE and non-NFTE students from local high school and business volunteers from the CSUDH Innovation Incubator. Always ready with a smile, words of wisdom, and readiness to jump in, Gary has gone above and beyond to welcome and recruit NFTE students, connect the NFTE program to more schools and teachers, and get University support behind NFTE and TLA.
Corporate Volunteer of the Year
PayPal
Over the last several years, more than 400 PayPal team members have committed over 1,800 hours as coaches and advisors to NFTE young entrepreneurs. Paypal has contributed to judging countless NFTE business plan competitions and hosting student field trips to PayPal offices, allowing students to network and learn about careers, work on their business pitches, and so much more.
PayPal volunteers are always willing to support NFTE students and some have continued mentoring them beyond their classroom experiences. We are deeply
grateful for their time, commitment, and the important role so many individuals from PayPal play in our program and the lives of our students.
2019
Individual Volunteer of the Year
Alexander Van Atta, Customer Engagement Consultant at Slalom Consulting – Representing the NFTE Chicago Region
Since 2016, Alex’s commitment to NFTE has grown in depth and breadth. He is a champion within his company, supporting two classrooms with advisor teams on a monthly basis. As a member of the eCouncil, Alex acts as a part of the NFTE team and is always looking for innovative ways to engage volunteers. This year, he spearheaded a virtual volunteer session that engaged both Slalom and their clients, expanding NFTE’s community outreach and providing students with feedback on their ideas. Alex believes in building equity through entrepreneurship, encouraging his team to dig deeper with students and go beyond the curriculum in providing support as advisors and role models.
Corporate Volunteer of the Year
SAP
Since 2005, hundreds of SAP team members serve as coaches, judges, speakers and field trips hosts to NFTE young entrepreneurs, as well as leaders on NFTE’s Board of Directors and several Regional Advisory Boards.
2018
Individual Volunteer of the Year
Stuart Halpert
Corporate Volunteer of the Year
Citi
2017
Individual Volunteer of the Year
Jim Yim
Corporate Volunteer of the Year
Mastercard
2016
Individual Volunteer of the Year
Randy Haran
Corporate Volunteer of the Year
EY
2015
Individual Volunteer of the Year
Dawn Gayapersad
2014
Individual Volunteer of the Year
Ellen Lynch
2013
Individual Volunteer of the Year
Aalap Shah
2012
Individual Volunteer of the Year
Jeffrey Green