Our Community
POW! is run by wonderful volunteers including students, artists, musicians, teachers, special educators, child development specialists, therapists, play specialists, and more.
POW! also partners with fantastic organizations such as DuDance, Super Soccer Stars, and The Post in order to provide kids with fun and enriching activities.
Program Leaders
In addition to our core team of volunteer program leaders, we also often have guest leaders who run unique activities each week
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Regine Polenz is the founder and director of POW!
Originally from Germany, Regine holds master’s degrees in Fine Arts and pedagogy. For over two decades she has worked as an artist and more than a decade as an educator, predominately in public high schools in East New York.
After becoming the mother of a boy with Down syndrome, Regine left teaching and began working for a national Down syndrome organization, founding their Brooklyn satellite. It was work she found gratifying, and the satellite was extremely successful.
However Regine believed that it was beneficial for neurodevelopmentally different individuals and typically developing ones to be in a program together.
In January 2020 she began Power Of We! in the spirit of inclusion and warm welcoming that is at the heart of POW!’s mission.
In the years since, it began to become clear to Regine why other organizations stay focused on only one area, e.g. Down syndrome or autism. It’s because it’s much easier. It’s easier to structure programming, it’s easier to raise money. But easier isn’t always better. Going forward, POW! will continue to embrace inclusion, and has ambitious plans to add more programs and extend its reach.
These inclusive programs have been in place for + 2.5 years and have shown itself to be of great value for all involved parties.
She also is the mother of a beautiful boy with Down syndrome. This background and life provided a strong basis for creating and running POW. She is currently the Director of POW!
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Brian Stearns is a musician & filmmaker who works with children and their families. Brian has a unique knowledge and creative approach in teaching music and arts to children of all ages. In addition, he uses puppetry and filmmaking as a medium to project his expression and exploration of music. Brian holds a bachelor's in Music from California Institute of the Arts (2006). He is a distinctive and expressive performer of musical sounds from around the world, and the creator of Tunes for Tykes.
Board & Leadership
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Regine Polenz is the founder and director of POW!
Originally from Germany, Regine holds master’s degrees in Fine Arts and pedagogy. For over two decades she has worked as an artist and more than a decade as an educator, predominately in public high schools in East New York.
After becoming the mother of a boy with Down syndrome, Regine left teaching and began working for a national Down syndrome organization, founding their Brooklyn satellite. It was work she found gratifying, and the satellite was extremely successful.
However Regine believed that it was beneficial for neurodevelopmentally different individuals and typically developing ones to be in a program together.
In January 2020 she began Power Of We! in the spirit of inclusion and warm welcoming that is at the heart of POW!’s mission.
In the years since, it began to become clear to Regine why other organizations stay focused on only one area, e.g. Down syndrome or autism. It’s because it’s much easier. It’s easier to structure programming, it’s easier to raise money. But easier isn’t always better. Going forward, POW! will continue to embrace inclusion, and has ambitious plans to add more programs and extend its reach.
These inclusive programs have been in place for + 2.5 years and have shown itself to be of great value for all involved parties.
She also is the mother of a beautiful boy with Down syndrome. This background and life provided a strong basis for creating and running POW. She is currently the Director of POW!
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Susan Golomb resides in Pittsburgh, PA. She is currently retired and has held the following positions: Director of Development for the Realty Services division of PNC Financial Services; Director of the Department of City Planning for the City of Pittsburgh; Executive Director of Oakland Planning and Development Corporation, a community-based nonprofit, real estate development and planning organization; Vice President of Alton Properties, a real estate development company; and owner of Golomb Photographers, specializing in architectural and industrial photography. Susan graduated from Bryn Mawr College with a degree in the History of Art. She is the immediate past chair person of the Board of Contemporary Craft, a past chair of Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens, a current Treasurer of Construction Junction, a past board member of Associated Artists, the Three Rivers Arts Festival, the Urban Affairs Committee of Jewish Federation and the Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy.
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Jon Lewis is a visual artist and builder. As a painter, photographer, and gum bichromate printer, he has shown his work across the US, Europe and Mexico. As the proud parent of a child with Down syndrome, he understands the value of integration for all children and this is why he believes so strongly in POW’s mission.
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Khushi Shah is a graduate of the Master’s in Child Development program at Sarah Lawrence College. She first applied her psychology, developmental neuroscience and related technical skills as Research Assistant in an fMRI study at the Child Psychiatric Epidemiology Group and later as a Health Informatics Analyst at Levy Konigsberg, LLP where she supported a litigation on behalf of children affected by the Flint Water Crisis. After this she worked to provide behavioral health nonprofits in the NYS area with technical infrastructure that is both effective and economical through roles at Coordinated Behavioral Care and Innovative Management Solutions, groups that served one of the largest healthcare collaboratives in NYS. After becoming deeply invested in data systems throughout her career journey, Khushi recently pivoted her career fully towards strategic data roles and is currently serving as Data Solutions Risk Director at Citizens Bank.
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Clement is originally from France and is an entrepreneur. His first company, called Prynt, designed a smartphone case that prints photos instantly like a Polaroid. He now spends his time between new projects and advisory roles. His experience in management and fundraising as well as his creativity make him a great addition as Secretary of the board.
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Lisa Zaretsky, a mom of 2 grown children and a lifelong early childhood educator, received her Masters in Education from Bank Street College of Education, worked for many years as a teacher in preschool settings, and started her own program, playAGAIN, in 2010.
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Jed Berger currently serves as the Global President of Kenneth Cole. Formerly, he was the Global Chief Marketing Officer for the Foot Locker family of brands, where he also led business areas such as licensing, digital and product development. Career highlights include creating Foot Locker’s award-winning “Approved” campaign and the “Week of Greatness,” launching their loyalty program and their incubator Greenhouse, and many of the company’s investments.
Prior to joining Foot Locker, Jed’s professional experience has deep roots in youth culture. After co-founding Dime Magazine and building the agency 94x50, he moved on to serve as the Senior Vice President of Marketing for Modell’s Sporting Goods. His marketing acumen has been recognized regularly throughout his career, including being named to SBG 40 Under 40 in 2011, and Footwear News 40 Under 40 in 2018.
Jed holds a BA in Sports Management from The George Washington University and is currently based out of Kenneth Cole’s headquarters in New York City. He has two children, Jackson and Jonah, and is a proud special needs parent and advocate. Jed is an avid sports fan despite being a very average athlete but claims to be an exceptional fantasy sports owner.
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Nancey Flowers Harris is the founder of Flowers in Bloom Publishing as well as Flower Child Books, which focuses on books for children with disabilities. Through her publishing company, Flowers in Bloom Publishing, she successfully published a catalog of over a dozen titles, many of which became bestselling novels. She also brokered publishing deals on behalf of other authors with St. Martin’s Press, Simon & Schuster among other leading publishers. She is presently the Editor-in-Chief of Hunter Publishing Group, a place that gives a voice to the voiceless. Hunter Publishing Group, was established in 2017 and proudly distributes stories that span every genre.
She has worked as the Executive Vice President of Wendy Williams Productions and was also the Executive Director of The Hunter Foundation, which provided support and resources to young people who fell victim to drug addiction or substance abuse. Nancey worked at BET Networks, where she was a leading Account Executive who supervised and negotiated sales efforts leading to multi-million-dollar partnerships as well as increased her advertising portfolio from $13 million to $28 million in 3 years.
Nancey graduated from Morgan State University in Baltimore with a Bachelor's degree in Mass Communications and she’s presently attending the City University of New York for her Master’s degree in Business & Leadership.
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Alice Golomb Friedman received her Masters in Early Childhood Education at Bank Street College. For the past 27 years, Alice has taken on a variety of roles at Horace Mann School in the Nursery Division. However, she is most proud of her role as mom to 16-year-old Max! Alice approached teaching and parenting Max similarly and appreciated and respected the importance of learning through exploration and discovery. Whether it was teaching 3s, pre-k or kindergarten, she believed in an emergent curriculum that was process oriented and play based.
After many years as a lead classroom teacher and Literacy Specialist where books were such an integral part of her teaching, Alice stepped in as full-time librarian where she’s been for the last eight years. She carefully selects every book circulated in the library and is very committed to maintaining a diverse and up to date collection for both teachers and students. Most importantly, Alice runs library sessions with all the students where they read together and browse books independently.
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Rebecca Elbogen is an educator, dancer, and program director dedicated to supporting kids and community. Rebecca graduated summa cum laude from NYU with a degree in Developmental Psychology and specializations in Child/Adolescent Mental Health and American Sign Language. As a classically trained dancer, she established and directed the NYC branch of Ballet For All Kids, a non-profit program making dance accessible to children of all abilities and disabilities. Rebecca is currently the Program Director of Connect To Learn, an executive function and academic coaching service. She has worked extensively with a broad range of ages and abilities, and always strives to nurture playfulness, creativity, and connection.