Ilya Lyashevsky

CEO

Ilya is a cognitive science faculty member Columbia Teachers College and a serial social entrepreneur, having previously cofounded WeShelter, a nonprofit using mobile technology to alleviate homelessness, which logged over 500K charitable actions. He also has two decades of experience developing software in various engineering and management positions at startups, Fortune 500 companies like Motorola, and government agencies like the NYC Dept of Social Services. He holds a PhD in cognitive science, with a social-emotional learning concentration, from Columbia, and an MS and BS in computer science, with a creative writing minor, from Stanford.

Melissa Cesarano

President & Chief Learning Officer

Mel is a cognitive scientist, professor at Columbia University, and cofounder of Affectifi Inc. She has over a decade of experience in research, curriculum development, and consulting for educational and media organizations and startups. She holds a BA in Cognitive Neuroscience with a minor in poetry from the University of Pennsylvania, an Ed.M. from Teachers College, and a Ph.D. in Cognitive Science from Columbia University.