Who We Are
Los Angeles Advisory
RICARDO HARTIGAN
Rick is a Director & Market Leader, with BlackRock. Political Economics from Princeton University, and CIMA from Wharton.
A Board Member of the Covenant House of California, and Chairman of the Investment Committee.
He is Princeton University Chairman of the Alumni Schools Committee (Southern California), and Co-President of the Princeton Varsity Club (squash).
Rick resides in Palos Verdes Estates, CA with his wife Carolina, and two boys Liam and Aidan.
ISABEL PEDROSA
Isabel (Bel) Pedrosa serves Carnegie Investment Counsel as a Director Portfolio Manager in the firm’s Los Angeles office. Bel handles all aspects of investment portfolio management and client relationships. She offers advice to a worldwide clientele including foundations and individual clients. Bel also manages portfolios for institutional clients and family-office clients through her company Gesar Capital Management for over 10 years.
Bel serves on the Board of Khyentse Foundation, the largest public Buddhist foundation in the world. She is an active volunteer at Khyentse Foundation advising on grant impact management and being a member of their Executive Committee. She holds a degree in Computer Science from the Catholic University of Campinas, Brazil and a MBA degree from the University of San Francisco.
Bel played squash back in Brazil and her current interests are pickleball and meditation.
IVY POCHODA
Ivy Pochoda is the author of the novel The Art of Disappearing, which was published in September 2009 by St. Martin’s Press. Her writing has appeared in HOW Journal and Canteen. She is a contributor to the books section of the Huffington Post.
Pochoda began playing squash at age eight. Within two years she was active on the U.S. Junior squash circuit. At twelve she won her first national junior title and went onto win three more nationals junior titles between the ages of fourteen and seventeen.
After high school, Ivy went to Harvard University. She led her team to three national team championships and was a four-time All American athlete, as well as Varsity Squash Team Captain in both her junior and senior year. In 1998, as a senior, Ivy capped her collegiate career by winning the NCAA intercollegiate squash title. Pochoda graduated in 1998 with a BA in Classical Greek and English Literature.
After college Ivy competed on the professional squash tour. She won several international events and reached a world ranking of 38 and a national ranking of 3. She represented the United States five times in international team competition, and won three gold medals during her two appearances at the Pan Am Federation Cup. While on tour Ivy documented her adventures and observations in a bi-monthly column in Squash Magazine. She presently lives in Los Angeles, California
JAMIE SCHIFF
Jamie is a Partner at Northwood Ventures, a private equity firm, where he is a member of the Investment Committee and serves on several portfolio company boards. Originally from Long Island, Jamie grew up playing singles squash and truly fell in love with doubles when he moved to New York City after college. Jamie attended Trinity College and completed a Masters from Columbia University.
Jamie resides in Los Angeles with his wife, Tyler, and their four children. He loves all sports and actively coaches his children’s teams. As a passionate squash player, Jamie is excited to support youth squash in LA.
WILLIAM E. SIMON
William E. Simon, Jr. is co-chairman of William E. Simon & Sons, LLC. The Firm, which he co-founded in 1988 with his brother and father, former United States Treasury Secretary, William E. Simon, Sr., has built a diverse and significant investment portfolio with holdings in real estate, private equity, and fixed-income securities.
Mr. Simon co-founded a successful municipal bond company in 1990, stemming from his previous experience holding senior positions on the municipal securities and foreign exchange desk for Morgan Guaranty Trust Company. Earlier in his career, from 1985 to 1988, Mr. Simon worked in the Southern District of New York as Assistant United States Attorney under then United States Attorney, Rudolph Giuliani.
A 1982 Boston College Law School graduate, Mr. Simon earned his bachelor’s degree at Williams College where he serves today as a lifetime Emeritus Trustee.
He currently serves as Co-Chairman of the William E. Simon Foundation and the Cynthia L. and William E. Simon, Jr. Foundation. Through these foundations, Mr. Simon helps needy youngsters in urban areas through faith-based efforts. He and his wife, Cindy, established the Sound Body Sound Mind Foundation, providing state-of-the-art athletic equipment, curriculum, and training for Los Angeles area middle and high schools. The program now impacts more than one hundred thousand students per year.
In addition, Mr. Simon serves as Chairman of the Board for Parish Catalyst and The National Urban Squash and Education Association. He is a Trustee on the Boards of St. John's Health Center Foundation in Los Angeles and The Heritage Foundation in Washington D.C. Mr. Simon is a member of the Board of Overseers of the Hoover Institution on War, Revolution and Peace, and he also serves on the Board of Advisors at UCLA Health Systems. Mr. Simon is a member on the Board of Directors at Douglas Emmett and Co. and a current member of the Knights of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta.
Mr. Simon is a Visiting Professor at the UCLA School of Law and the UCLA Department of Economics. He is also a Professor of Practice at the University of Southern California, where he co-teaches a course with Dan Schnur, Director of the Jesse M. Unruh Institute of Politics. In March of 2014, Mr. Simon was honored by the Pacific Research Institute with the Baroness Thatcher Liberty Award, and he has been the recipient of a number of honorary degrees.
Mr. Simon was the 2002 Republican Gubernatorial nominee in California where he came within five-points of unseating Gray Davis, despite being outspent three to one. In addition, Mr. Simon also served as Chairman of California and Director of Policy and Speech Writing for the Rudy Giuliani 2008 Presidential Campaign Committee.
Mr. Simon resides in Los Angeles with his wife, Cindy, and their four children.
TIM WYANT
Tim co-founded SEA in 2005 and became Executive Director in 2012. Under Tim’s leadership, SEA’s membership has grown from 12 to 20 programs in the United States and five affiliate organizations abroad, with combined enrollment exceeding 2,500 students. Previously, Tim was the founding executive director of CitySquash, the country’s fourth squash and education program, which operates in the Bronx. Tim earned a B.A. at Harvard University, where he played varsity soccer and was an All-American on the squash team. Tim later competed on the professional squash tour, was a member of the U.S. men’s national team, and served as a board member of US Squash. A native of Cincinnati, Tim resides in New York City.
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Access News: Success Stories, Impact, DEI, & Development
San Diego academy using squash to help kids reach college
BY STEVE ATKINSON
JULY 29, 2021
It begins with an after-school program of academics and squash from 7th through the 12th grade. Students visit colleges, prep for the SAT and ACT, get help with college applications, and of course, play in squash tournaments ...
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Blair Sadler is ‘flunking’ retirement as he helps students through squash
BY ELISABETH FRAUSTO
JULY 9, 2021
La Jollan Blair Sadler, a former president of Rady Children’s Hospital, is using retirement to continue his crusade to squash social inequities via Access Youth Academy ...
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Academics and squash give charter students a new choice for college
BY M.G. PEREZ
FEBRUARY 2, 2022
“Why is it called squash? Because the ball is squashy,” said Deon Saffery, the Academy’s squash manager. She was recruited from the United Kingdom to come to San Diego and teach children as young as 10 how to play the centuries-old game ...
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A 501(c)(3) non-profit organization committed to transform the lives of underserved youth. Access was founded in 2006 by Greg Scherman and Chris Walker, who believed the San Diego community could benefit from an urban squash program that provided opportunity and support unlike any other non-profit in the region.
Federal Tax-ID (EIN) 20-5119659
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