Staff and Leadership

Terry Witherell, Executive Director, twitherell@firstliteracy.org

Terry joined First Literacy in 2019. She previously served in a leadership role at a national fundraising organization, where she created partnerships and strategic initiatives to help the poorest communities across the United States. She spent much of her earlier career at Boston College. Terry also has experience as a classroom teacher, counselor, and youth minister, and she has worked with homeless youth. She is excited to bring this breadth and diversity of experience to First Literacy and knows that now, more than ever, there is an urgency to help adult learners achieve their full potential.

Amy Letteney, Development Director, aletteney@firstliteracy.org

Before joining First Literacy, Amy was involved with educational nonprofits both in the United States and internationally. She strongly believes in the power of education and has worked as a fundraiser and program manager for organizations of all sizes. Most recently Amy worked for a local community college and was inspired by so many students and their drive to improve their lives. She welcomes the opportunity to contribute her experience to First Literacy.

Simon Lopez, Scholar Support Coordinator, slopez@firstliteracy.org

Simon is a recently retired educator who worked in the Boston Public Schools for the last 30 years in different capacities. He worked as a multigrade bilingual Spanish special education teacher, school-based administrator, and as a Coordinator of Special Education for the last 13 years. His personal journey in higher education and his passion for teaching and school administration inspired him to join First Literacy in order to broaden his skills to support adult learners.

Jillian Mastro, Administrative Assistant, jmastro@firstliteracy.org

Jillian is a recent grad from the University of Massachusetts Boston with a bachelor’s degree in communications. Having experience working in a Montessori school, she is enthusiastic about working for a forward-thinking organization that is focused on another facet of education. She is inspired by the people who are overcoming all of the hurdles and challenges to pursue their education for a better life for themselves and their loved ones.

Bryan McCormick, Program Director, 

Bryan’s passion for social justice and education has led him to First Literacy. Bryan has over 15 years of experience teaching, leading and developing direct service and educator development programs for schools and mission- driven nonprofits. He most recently worked as a fourth grade teacher in the Arlington Public School system and before that worked in leadership roles for several large education focused national non-profits including Project Adventure and Playworks. Bryan is excited to bring his skills and experience to First Literacy.

Julie Slack, Marketing and Communications Director, jslack@firstliteracy.org

Julie joined First Literacy after working at various nonprofits in the New England area. She brings over 10 years of experience managing marketing and communications multi-channel campaigns, digital marketing, advertising, and overall branded online presence. She is passionate about using her marketing expertise to make an impact in the lives of adult learners.