SIPCW Staff

Adrienne Abbate, MPA

Executive Director

For over 25 years, Adrienne Abbate has been advocating for public health and social justice issues in a career that spans the private, public, and government sectors. Adrienne is the founding executive director of the Staten Island Partnership for Community Wellness (SIPCW), a nonprofit working to create a healthier Staten Island through cross-sectoral partnerships that address emerging health needs. Under her leadership, SIPCW has flourished as a dynamic public health organization addressing critical issues including chronic disease prevention, mental health, substance misuse, and health inequities. SIPCW currently oversees several collaborative projects including the Child Wellness Initiative and Tackling Youth Substance Abuse (TYSA), a coalition that has driven systems-level change and has been heralded by state and local governments and public health policymakers as a model for communities around the country.

Adrienne has been appointed to advisory committees at the local, city, and state levels to inform topics ranging from opioids to COVID-19. She is currently an executive board member of Nonprofit Staten Island formerly the Staten Island Not-for-Profit Association.

Her interest in systems-level work and passion for education and public health have allowed Adrienne to align her professional and personal interests to show the interconnectedness of health to educational outcomes. Since 2018 she has served as a Curtis High School Community School Advisory Board member. Adrienne holds a Master of Public Administration degree in Health Policy from the NYU Wagner School of Public Service and is a doctoral candidate in the inaugural Community Based Leadership EdD program at the College of Staten Island, CUNY.

Maralie Deprinvil, MPH

Director of Operations & Contracts

Maralie Deprinvil works as the Director of Operations & Contracts, where she helps to manage project strategies and contract deliverables across the organization. Through the Behavioral Health Infrastructure Project (BHIP), Maralie worked closely with the Staten Island Performing Provider System (SI PPS) and various community partners to build the capacity of clinicians to handle behavioral health issues, reduce the stigma of mental health and substance use, and build and strengthen the peer workforce across Staten Island. As a public health professional, Maralie manages projects that seek to strengthen communities, reduce health disparities, address the physical and behavioral health needs, and raise awareness on the many issues impacting Black and Brown communities.

Prior to her role at SIPCW, Maralie worked with children and adults with mental health and developmental disabilities for five years. She holds a bachelor’s degree in public policy with a concentration in health care from Hobart and William Smith Colleges and a Master in Public Health Degree (MPH) with a concentration on health policy and management from New York Medical College.

Steven Chan, MPH

Senior Lead for Evaluation & Special Projects

Steven Chan serves as the Senior Lead for Evaluation & Special Projects at SIPCW, working across projects to strengthen and support SIPCW’s data & evaluation capacity. He has a range of experiences in quantitative and qualitative research design, data collection, data analysis, and dissemination of findings to wide audiences. He is passionate about applying evidence-based learnings that inform best practices to improve the health and well-being of marginalized communities. Steven has a strong non-profit background, having previously interned with various non-profit organizations including the New York Academy of Medicine, Sesame Workshop, and Global Health Corps. Steven earned his Masters in Public Health at the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health with focuses in the Sociomedical Sciences and Comparative Effectiveness Outcomes Research. Steven earned his Bachelor’s Degree from Vassar College with a major in Science, Technology, and Society, and correlates in Molecular Biology and Chinese Language.

Ashley Owen, LMSW

Behavioral Health Manager

Ashley Owen (she/her) is a proud alum of the Silberman School of Social Work at Hunter College. She joins our team with over a decade of post-masters’ experience in the social work field. Ashley began her career as a clinician, but pivoted to macro level work several years into her career because she was struck by the impact that inequitable systems had on peoples’ well being.

Ashley has taught Social Policy and Macro Practice in Organizations & Communities at the College of Staten Island. Outside of her role at SIPCW, she performs poetry and improvisation. She values creative expression as a means to speak about important issues and generate empathy in others and finds purpose in helping others access opportunities where they can find their unique voice.
Her favorite thing about working at SIPCW is being around people with great talents and like-minded values.

Makeda Andargachew

Behavioral Health Coordinator

Makeda Andargachew (she/her) is the Behavioral Health Coordinator. She graduated from Hunter College in Fall 2022 with a Bachelor’s in Social Psychology and minors in English and Public Policy. She is passionate about intersectionality, where all the factors of a person’s experience are considered in how they have been shaped. Although individual care is crucial for ensuring that people are at their optimal health, Makeda is interested in working at the community level where she hopes that strategies to address populations percolates to maximizing every person’s health. Her interests include documentaries, cooking, and art. 

Yeni Ballesteros

Community Engagement and Outreach Coordinator

My name is Yeni Ballesteros and I am a new member of the SIPCW team. I began as a volunteer in the community being a Community Advisory Group (CAG) member with the Project LAUNCH initiative. I continued on as a Birth Justice Defender (BJD) member, and now I am the Community Engagement and Outreach Coordinator for SIPCW, working across projects. I will focus on Maternal Health and Behavioral Health. As well as connecting more with our Hispanic, Spanish-speaking community. I love helping others and putting my knowledge to good use. I love helping the community in any possible way, and I currently hold a donations table in my community where everyone can donate and continue to help one another. Some of my hobbies are drawing, listening to music, and gardening. I believe change starts with us, and if we want to see and make a difference, we have to take the first step!