Willy Oppenheim
Founder and Chief Executive Officer
Email: willy@omprakash.org
Skype: willyoppenheim
Phone: uk: +44 (0) 7869.684.083; us: 203.554.0350

Willy came up with the initial idea for Omprakash after serving as a volunteer English teacher at the Louisiana-Himalaya Association (LHA) in northern India in the autumn of 2004. He then attended Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine, where he completed a self-designed major in religion, education, and anthropology. Willy is pursuing a career as an educator and enjoys rock climbing, telemark skiing, playing guitar, and baking bread. In 2009, he received a Rhodes Scholarship and is currently pursuing a doctoral degree in Education at Oxford University. Willy sits as President of the Board of Directors and remains involved with all operations of Omprakash.

Lacey Worel
Chief Outreach Officer
Email: lacey@omprakash.org

Before joining the Omprakash team, Lacey volunteered with Omprakash Partner Helping Hands, where she spent 8 months developing an ecological kindergarten and curriculum. Originally from Washington, Lacey now lives and works in San Francisco, California. A graduate of Cal State San Bernardino, she has experience teaching middle school students with special needs and is particularly talented at community organizing. She is an avid runner, biker, hiker and backpacker.

Anoop Jain
EdGE Mentor
Email: anoop@omprakash.org

Anoop spent his youth growing up in Canada, Syria, Scotland, and the US. He attended Northwestern University where he studied Environmental Engineering. After graduating, he helped support two Omprakash Partners, LHA and Deep Jyoti. Anoop is interested in supporting Partners from a public health perspective. He is currently a graduate student studying Public Health at Tulane University and hopes to attend medical school.

Alex Frye
EdGE Mentor
Email: alex@omprakash.org

Alex is a trumpeter of "critical volunteerism", or the understanding of a volunteer experience through a political-historical lens. He began with Omprakash as a member of the founding team of partner Taller de Paz in Bogotá, Colombia. He is a graduate of Swarthmore College with a degree in Political Science, Latin American Studies, and Spanish. He continues to be involved with Omprakash as a mentor for the EdGE program.

Amara Stuehling
EdGE Mentor
University Relations Coordinator
Email: amara@omprakash.org

Amara volunteered in Potrero, Costa Rica with Abriendo Mentes in the summer of 2012 where she worked on curriculum development and also taught English classes to adults. She is originally from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania but has happily moved to the Midwest and lives in Bloomington, Indiana where she is a doctoral student in Language Education. When she is not working, she is looking for ways to travel or training for her next marathon.

Robin Lattimer
EdGE Mentor
Email: robin@omprakash.org

After graduating with a degree in Geography from Queen's University, Robin spent 1.5 years traveling throughout Latin America. Robin was introduced to Omprakash during her travels and enjoyed the opportunity to visit a number of its Partners. She joined the Omprakash Team as an EdGE Mentor in early 2013. Robin is pursuing her interest in the dynamics of community-based development and environmental management through graduate work in Community and Environmental Planning at the University of Toronto.

Chris Maser
Accounting Consultant

Chris's first experience in global volunteerism was providing disaster relief for hurricane victims in Honduras after the devastation of Hurricane Michele. In 2012, Chris joined Omprakash, volunteering his services as a Certified Public Accountant. He holds degrees from the University of Virginia and William & Mary, and he is currently employed at a CPA firm in the Washington D.C. area. Not-for-profit organizations are one of his key focuses professionally. His interests include hiking, snowboarding, and enjoying nature.

Radha Patel
University Relations Strategy Intern
Email: social@omprakash.org

Radha is a Political Science and World Religions student at McGill University with a minor concentration in Law and Society. She is a strong advocate for youth engagement in both politics and the non-profit sector. In 2011, Radha received an Omprakash Volunteer Grant that helped her travel to India and work for a month with a Partner, after which she had the opportunity to travel. She is now working to expand Omprakash's presence at the university level.

Kate Hourihan
Web Designer

Kate grew up in the Boston area and graduated from Bowdoin College with a degree in Visual Arts. After spending several winters in Utah skiing and traveling in the summer, she migrated to Seattle to pursue a career in graphic design with a focus in web design. She joined Omprakash in 2012 to help create a new interface and give the Omprakash website a much-needed facelift. In her spare time, Kate dabbles in writing, baking and playing in the mountains.

Kelly Rula
Email: kelly@omprakash.org

Kelly grew up in Dallas, Texas, and attended Bowdoin College in Maine. She graduated in 2007 with degrees in Biochemistry and Environmental Studies. She joined the Omprakash team in the fall of 2009 to help with social media development, web marketing, and outreach. She also reviews applications from prospective Partners and grantees. Kelly currently works as an environmental consultant for Cascadia Consulting Group in Seattle, WA, and spends her free time skiing, sailing, and climbing.

Nick Smith
Email: nick@omprakash.org

Nick Smith grew up in Princeton, New Jersey, and currently lives in San Francisco, California. Nick plays an integral role in developing and guiding Omprakash's growth path. After graduating with Willy and Gordon from The Taft School in Watertown, Connecticut in 2004, Nick took a year “on” and spent several months volunteering at the Louisiana-Himalaya Association in northern India. In 2009, he graduated from Harvard College, where he studied Political Science and was the captain of the men’s lacrosse team. Nick currently works in sales and trading for Goldman Sachs. Nick is an avid surfer, an aspiring guitar player, and loves to travel. Nick currently sits as Treasurer of the Board of Directors.

Elliott Wright
Email: elliott@omprakash.org

Elliott Wright has spent the past six years advancing nonprofits through grant writing, community organizing, event management and donor outreach. He currently serves as Development Director for Canopy, an urban forestry nonprofit based in Palo Alto. After graduating in 2004 from Bowdoin College, Elliott spent three years with El Pomar Foundation in Colorado serving as their Senior Program Associate. From 2007 through 2009, Elliott worked as Development Associate for Sempervirens Fund, and recently served as Event Manager for Acterra. Elliott grew up playing in the mountains of New Mexico, and today calls Northern California home. Elliott currently sits as Vice-President of the Board of Directors.

Chrissie is currently working towards her PhD in International and Comparative Education at the University of Virginia; her research focuses on the history of education policy and practice for refugees in protracted refugee settings in the Horn and Great Lake regions of Africa. Chrissie has extensive work experience in outdoor and experiential education. She has led trips for high school and college students that last between three weeks to four months in the western United States as well as Southern Africa and South/Central America and has conducted significant research on the "reaches and limits of transformational learning experiences" while working in these contexts.