SINCE 2017

24,025

STUDENTS REACHED

1,382

INSTRUCTORS TRAINED

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SINCE 2017

20,099

STUDENTS REACHED

1,250

INSTRUCTORS TRAINED

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SINCE 2017

17,000

STUDENTS REACHED

700

INSTRUCTORS TRAINED

OUR WORK

Choose Creativity, powered by the Lulu and Leo Fund, empowers children to build resilience, creative confidence, and social-emotional skills through our Learn with Creative Confidence programs. We provide training and social-emotional learning (SEL) curricula for educators and other professionals based on the 10 Principles of Creativity.
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Three young female students stand with their arms around each other's shoulders, smiling.

THE ORIGIN OF OUR PROGRAM

When faced with the tragic loss of two of their children, Marina Krim, a former educator, and her husband Kevin chose to rebuild their lives in a way that felt authentic to them – by tapping into their creative confidence. By formalizing and scaling the invaluable teachings Marina germinated in their home with the children, they came up with Choose Creativity and the 10 Principles of Creativity.

Marina and Kevin recognize that creativity is an essential life-skill for children to possess and therefore must be nurtured and cultivated as part of their educational experience. They collaborated with psychologists, school administrators and education experts like Dr. Stephanie Jones of the Harvard Graduate School of Education to build Learn with Creative Confidence, a SEL curriculum that empowers elementary-aged children to build self-efficacy skills.

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CREATIVITY IS A MINDSET

Research has shown that, as children, we all start with creativity and then it’s educated out of us. Young people and adults must be engaged in activities where creativity and the creative process is modeled, taught, named, noticed, and embedded across learning processes and environments with conscious effort, forethought, and consistency. Being creative is not about being artistic – it is a mindset that we can practice and support. Choosing creativity helps us in school, at work, and in our homes – across all parts of our lives.
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A male creative coach talks to a small child in school uniform.
Six small children sit in a circle with their Creative coach. Some of the students have their hands in the air with excitement.

WHY LEARN WITH CREATIVE CONFIDENCE

Numerous studies have demonstrated that SEL capabilities can improve students well-being, social behavior, and academic achievement. The events of the past several years have challenged our educators and students in extraordinary ways. Extensive research demonstrates that SEL instruction is most effective when it is weaved into academic content and delivered throughout the school day. Our program, Learn with Creative Confidence, folds the language of confident learning into the school day, creating a culture of self-efficacy and resilience.

MEET THE TEAM

Sandra Benedict

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Terese Boegly

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Debra Disbrow

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Stephanie Krieger

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Marina Krim

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Meredith McNerney

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Christina Noyes

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Damian Owens

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Nancy Quach

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Melissa Shaw

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MEET THE TEAM

Sandra Benedict

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Terese Boegly

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Debra Disbrow

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Stephanie Krieger

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Marina Krim

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Meredith McNerney

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Christina Noyes

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Damian Owens

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Nancy Quach

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Melissa Shaw

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BOARD OF DIRECTORS

MARINA KRIM

Co-founder & Creative Director,
Lulu & Leo Fund

KEVIN KRIM

Co-founder & Chair, Lulu & Leo Fund
CEO, EDO Inc.

BRIAN C. FOX

Treasurer, Lulu & Leo Fund
Senior Partner, McKinsey & Company

CASANDRA FRITZSCHE

Learning and Development Manager,
Macquarie Group

CHAD HARBACH

Author, The Art of Fielding
Senior Editor, n+1

MAURA MILLER

Managing Director – Equities
Compliance, Credit Suisse

SONIA SAWLANI

Global Head of Scaled Education,
LinkedIn

SONALI THEISEN

Managing Director – ‎Head of FICC E-Trading & Market Structure, BoA Merrill Lynch

LINDSAY TOMENSON

Director, Alumni and Career Services,
Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP

RICHARD WOLFFE

Columnist, The Guardian
Book author

SEE THE POSSIBILITY IN EVERY MOMENT

SEE THE POSSIBILITY IN EVERY MOMENT

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SEE THE POSSIBILITY IN EVERY MOMENT

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Sandra Benedict

Director of Development

After graduating from Rutgers University with BA’s in both Communication and English, Sandra enjoyed a successful career in enterprise sales at Adobe and Hewlett-Packard. She moved to the nonprofit arena when her children began elementary school, joining the staff of the New Jersey Marathon. Seeing firsthand the impact socio-economic status has on a child’s ability to be active, she implemented a school-based program that incentivizes exercise through play. Sandra has inspired generous individuals and entities to share their resources to further worthy missions including combating childhood obesity, freeing the wrongly imprisoned and making healthy food choices accessible to low-income households.

Terese Boegly

Educational Design Consultant
Terese has worked as a teacher, principal, and professor for 30 years. She completed her doctoral work at Arcadia University, Glenside PA. Her work as a principal was highlighted in Bena Kallick’s Using Curriculum Mapping and Data Analysis to Improve Instruction (2008). She has presented at national conferences on topics including Creating a Culture of Mathematical Empowerment, Professional Learning Communities, and Successful Strategies for Closing the Achievement GAP. Terese has extensive knowledge and experience creating positive and supportive learning environments and helping schools address the social and emotional needs of children. She used Choose Creativity in her school and they continue using it following Terese’s departure.
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Debra Disbrow

Creative Coach
Debra is a performance artist, multidisciplinary coach, and arts educator who has taught theater, music/voice, and movement for The Center for Arts Education, Community Works, Wilma Theater, Mumpuppet Theater, University of Colorado, Naropa University, Earthdance, Spoke the Hub, and more.
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Stephanie Krieger

Senior Director of Programs
Stephanie has a combination of programming and fundraising experience and a lifelong passion for making creativity accessible to everyone. Prior to joining the Lulu & Leo Fund, Stephanie served as Manager of the Lincoln Center Corporate Fund, raising millions in corporate revenue. Her previous experience includes working in Development at MoMA and planning volunteer events for the corporate sponsors of New York Cares. Stephanie earned a BA in Art History and Business from Muhlenberg College and holds a MA in Arts Administration from Columbia University.
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Marina Krim

Creative Director

Marina is a mother, teacher, artist, entrepreneur, and co-founder and board member of the Lulu & Leo Fund and ChooseCreativity.org. Marina turned the tragic loss of two of her children into an inspirational movement and creative curricula that empower children, families, and communities to survive and thrive in the face of adversity. Marina earned her MA and BA degrees in Education from the University of Southern California, and has been a teacher in California and New York, as well as founder of several creative businesses. Marina resides in New York with her family.

Meredith McNerney

PD Facilitator

Former principal from West Maryland, Meredith’s passion is strengthening strategic partnerships with community agencies and nonprofits. She believes that an integrated model between community and school increases access to services for students by providing culturally sensitive prevention and early intervention-oriented services. She advocates for programs to support social-emotional learning, behavior, and academic motivation for students through a safe, accessible environment. Meredith was recently awarded The Superintendent’s Administrative Award for Excellence and Equity based on academic growth and achievement among English Learners (ELs) at Gaithersburg Elementary. Meredith believes in the Choose Creativity Curriculum. Based on her experience, she knows staff and students will benefit deeply from the mantras, lessons, and activities to empower all learners to see the possibility in every moment!

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Christina Noyes

Creative Coach

Christina is a credentialed arts and drama teacher and an instructional technology curriculum designer. She is currently a consultant leading various technology and creative workshops throughout the San Francisco Bay Area.

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Damian Owens

Creative Coach
Damian is an artist, cartoonist, vocalist, and guitarist with several years experience as a Child Care Facilitator at Children’s Aid. He holds a degree in Audio Engineering.
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Nancy Quach

Program/Administrative Assistant
Nancy holds an MS degree in Education with a concentration in Mental Health Counseling and a BA in Psychology from St. John’s University. When not working at the Fund, she is a professional skating coach at Chelsea Piers. For the past 15 years, Nancy has taught a creative skill-based curriculum to various age groups. Nancy worked as a preschool director prior to joining the Lulu & Leo Fund, where she developed an on-ice and off-ice curriculum that has made the program so successful today.
Headshot of Christina Noyes

Melissa Shaw

Creative Coach
Melissa is a writer, theater artist, and educator who has taught and conducted workshops in schools, detention centers, corporate offices, and homeless shelters. She has worked with a variety of organizations including Brooklyn Arts Council and Community Word Project and was on faculty at Drew University’s Institute on Religion and Conflict Transformation.
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Jason Krobatsch

Marketing and Communications Manager
Jason joined the Fund in 2019 with a background in marketing, publicity, and social media. He has worked at multiple agencies covering industries including theatre, nonprofits, higher education, and entertainment. He earned a BA in Communication with a minor in Theatre/Comedy and an MA in Professional Communication from William Paterson University. Jason has relied on creativity throughout his life in various forms and is thrilled to support the mission and legacy of the Lulu & Leo Fund.