Susan Keays
Chief Executive Officer
Susan assumed the role of CEO in October 2021 after serving as Chief Operating Officer. Susan joined the organization in 2016. She has 20 years of experience working with youth in residential, inpatient, outpatient, emergency rooms, and homes. Her strengths include program implementation and expansion, clinical assessment, strategic thinking, developing partnerships, grant-writing, and fiscal management. Susan received her undergraduate degree in Psychology and Latin American Studies from Boston College. She later returned to her alma mater to earn her Master of Social Work degree.
Susan’s expertise is in child and adolescent mental health, having trained at Children’s Hospital. She is passionate about permanency initiatives and trauma informed behavioral interventions. She held important child program management positions at South Shore Mental Health (now Aspire), Riverside Community Care, Tenet Healthcare, and Jewish Family & Children’s Service. She has also been on the faculty at Boston College School of Social Work where she taught a graduate level course “Clinical Practice with Children and Families” and has trained many interns from various graduate schools of social work.
Susan’s passion for Italian Home is only matched by her love of family, friends, ice cream, binge-worthy shows, and “glamping”. She can often be found around town cheering on her two daughters at swim, soccer, and dance.
Patti Cedrone
Chief Program Officer
Patti Cedrone is Chief Program Officer at Italian Home. A Licensed Mental Health Counselor, she has been in the field for more than 30 years. She received a B.S. in Human Services and M.A. in Counseling Psychology from Lesley College, as well an M.B.A. from the Isenberg School of Management at UMASS Amherst.
Throughout her career, Patti has worked with children, youth, adults, and families in acute care, residential treatment, outpatient clinics, including home and community-based support, and insurance-based care management programs. She has worked for several prominent human service agencies in the Commonwealth and two insurance companies.
Marc Davino
Vice President of Agency Advancement
Marc Davino joined Italian Home in 2023 and serves as VP of Agency Advancement, overseeing the agency’s fundraising and communications efforts. After a 17-year career in higher education, including stints at his alma mater Stony Brook University, Northeastern University – where he received his M.B.A. – and Boston University, Marc started his career in non-profit development in 2004. Marc’s work has been at a number of Boston-based human services organizations, including AIDS Action Committee, the Boston Living Center, Victory Programs, and, most recently, Casa Myrna.
Marc has successfully raised millions of dollars and awareness about the missions of these organizations. He serves on the board of the Friday Night Supper Program, a Boston area nonprofit assisting those experiencing homelessness and/or food insecurity. He is also an active member of Boston’s LGBTQ+ sports community, as a player and former board member of the basketball, flag football, and softball leagues.
Brian Delaney
Head of School
Brian Delaney is Head of Pallotta School at the Italian Home for Children. He has over 24 years of experience in education, having served as principal of a PK-8 private school in Cambridge, MA, and a public middle school in central Massachusetts. Previously, he taught history for 14 years in Needham public schools, St. Sebastian’s School, Boston public schools, and schools run by the Archdiocese of Boston.
Brian was the President/Founder of Trinitas Advocates LLC, a special education advocacy firm to strengthen the intersection of success between the student, family, and school. A sixth-generation Bostonian, he earned his B.A. in Secondary Education and History and an M.Ed. in Education Leadership from Boston College.
He is a lover of film, music, art and an avid participant in long-distance athletic events.
Yota Gikas
Associate Vice President of Community Based Programs
Dr. Yota Gikas is the Associate Vice President of Community Based Programs, overseeing the outpatient and community-based services within the agency. She has over 20 years of clinical experience working with children, adults, and families in a variety of mental health settings. Dr. Gikas has worked for the Italian Home for Children for over a decade. Previously, she was the Clinic Director of the outpatient program at Italian Home, Brighton Allston Mental Health Association, which included the school-based outreach therapy partnerships with Boston Public Schools. She holds a B.A. in Psychology from Northeastern University, M.A. degrees in Mental Health Counseling and Psychology from Boston College and Suffolk University, respectively, as well a Ph.D degree in Clinical Psychology, with a Specialty in Children and Families from Suffolk University.
She is also an Adjunct Professor at Boston College, where she teaches at the Lynch Graduate School of Education.
Dr. Gikas’ areas of interest include: leadership and program development, clinical supervision, client advocacy, complex trauma and attachment, Dialectical and Cognitive Behavioral Therapies, and adolescent and young adult mental health.
Dr. Gikas is proud to be a 2nd generation Greek-American, and is fluent in Greek. She is also an Adjunct Professor at her alma mater, Boston College, where she teaches at the Lynch Graduate School of Education in the Mental Health Counseling Program. In her spare time Dr. Gikas is an avid reader, and enjoys cooking and traveling.
Katherine Hala
Chief Strategy and People Officer
Katherine Hala joined Italian Home in 2021 and is the Vice President of Strategy and Business Development. She uses processes of innovation, collaboration, and analysis to support our mission and strategic growth.
Previously, Katherine taught English in elementary schools in France, managed a nonprofit arts organization in Boston, and oversaw curriculum and compliance for an international education company. Most recently, she worked for Wheelock College, as Director of Academic Support Programs. She has also worked in the community to volunteer for youth in foster care, chair a DEI committee, and hold a representative position for the Special Education Parent Advisory Council in her public school district.
Katherine holds a bachelor’s degree from Boston University and an M.B.A. Babson College.
Samantha Martinez
Associate Vice President of Milieu Programs
Samantha Martinez is a Licensed Applied Behavior Analyst and has been at Italian Home for Children since 2017. She earned a B.S. from Worcester Polytechnic Institute and M.Ed., with concentrations in Autism and Applied Behavior Analysis from Arcadia University. Before assuming her current role, Samantha also held roles as Clinician Consultant and Associate Vice President of Community Based Programs at IHC. She has over 20 years of experience working with children, families, and individuals with developmental and intellectual disabilities.
She has worked with colleagues to create the Trauma Informed Behavior Based Interventions (TIBBI) framework and is working to bring that framework to programs of IHC.
David Mazza
Vice President of Compliance and Performance Improvement
David Mazza is the Vice President of Performance Improvement. David has been with Italian Home since 2003, and spent over 16 years working in the Residential program. Starting as a Residential Counselor, he later held numerous direct care supervisory positions before becoming the Director of Residential Operations in 2015. During his time with the Residential program, David helped to implement impactful programming, fostered relationships with the Departments of Children and Families and Early Education and Care, helped the program achieve CARF accreditation and was recognized by his peers with an Outstanding Service Award. In his current position, David oversees and supports Italian Home’s licensing and accreditation, quality improvement and risk management activities. He is passionate about the work and mission of Italian Home and is dedicated to assuring all programs provide high quality services. David is also a certified trainer in Therapeutic Crisis Intervention.
David is a graduate of the College of the Holy Cross where he majored in Psychology. An avid Boston sports fan, outside of work David enjoys traveling and spending time with family and friends.
Amy Roderick
Chief Financial Officer
Amy Roderick is Chief Financial Officer at Italian Home for Children. A CPA licensed in Massachusetts, she has 25 years of experience specializing in accounting, finance, and operations for nonprofit, education, and government organizations. She holds a B.S. in Accounting from UMass Dartmouth and an M.S. in Public Administration from Suffolk University.
Previously, Amy served as the Director of Administration & Finance for the Tiverton, RI, public schools. Prior to that, she was the Chief Financial Officer/Chief Operating Officer at Sacred Heart School in Kingston, MA. Additionally, Amy’s career includes serving as Controller at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI), Georgetown, and Brandeis universities. She holds a B.S. in Accounting from UMass Dartmouth and an M.S. in Public Administration from Suffolk University.
Chandni Shroff
Associate Vice President of Day Programs
Chandni Shroff is a licensed clinical social worker who serves as the Associate Vice President of Day Programs at Italian Home. Her role involves overseeing and developing the Partial Hospital Program, Therapeutic After-School Program, and Therapeutic Summer Camp.
She holds her Master's in Social Work from Boston College, and has experience providing clinical care in adolescent group homes, home-based services, CBAT programs, hospital inpatient units, residential programs, assessment units, and psychiatric urgent care. She was part of the statewide initiative through her role in one of the first Community Behavioral Health Centers (CBHCs) urgent care clinics, where she led the child/adolescent evaluation program. She started at Italian Home as the Senior Clinical Director of Milieu Programs, and quickly transitioned to become Associate Vice President of Day Programs.
Dr. Kevin Simon
Medical Director
Dr. Kevin M. Simon, MD, MPH, is the medical director of the Italian Home for Children. Additionally, the Mayor appointed Dr. Simon as the city of Boston's first Chief Behavioral Health Officer. He is a polymath, a physician-scientist, a healthcare policy expert, a noted teacher, and a writer. Dr. Simon is a triple board-certified psychiatrist at Boston Children’s Hospital, an assistant professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, a former Commonwealth Fund fellow in health policy at Harvard University, and a healthcare systems consultant to federal agencies. His writings on mental health equity are in notable journals like the American Journal of Public Health, Health Affairs, and the New England Journal of Medicine. National audiences regularly seek his perspectives on mental health through trusted outlets.