About our Staff
| Lewis M. Andrews, Ph.D., Executive Director | |
| Lewis M. Andrews is executive director of the Yankee Institute for Public Policy in Hartford, CT. He holds a bachelor's degree in psychology from Princeton, a master's in communications research from Stanford, and a Ph.D. in social psychology from the Union Institute. He has been a research fellow at Yale University and a visiting scholar at the Columbia University Graduate School of Business. Dr. Andrews's books include Requiem for Democracy? (Holt), Man Controlled (Free Press), and To Thine Own Self Be True (Doubleday). His articles have appeared in such diverse publications as Saturday Review, the Wall Street Journal, Investor's Business Daily, The Nation, National Review, Policy Review, New Oxford Review, Budget and Tax News, Professional Counselor, School Reform News, and The American Enterprise. Dr. Andrews's recent studies include "Free College for High School Students (January 2007),"America’s Second Civil War: The Public Employment Complex vs. Taxpayers" (April 2006) and "The Early Graduation Reward Plan: Helping High School Students Mature While Municipalities Reduce Spending" (October 2004). Under Dr. Andrews's direction the Yankee Institute has been a leader in education reform. The Institute's current projects include the design of an online calculator which shows the financial benefit to suburban towns of sending some children to private schools. He lives in Redding with his daughter Kate, his son Zachary, and two cats. Andrews can be reached at lew@yankeeinstitute.org and (860) 297-4271. | Mary Crean, Chief Development Officer |
| Mary Crean is chief development officer at the Yankee Institute for Public Policy in Hartford, CT. She holds a bachelor’s degree from Saint Joseph College. Beginning her professional career as an entrepreneur Crean owned and managed a fitness center for ten years. For the next seven years served as executive director for Avant Garde Studios where she hosted a weekly broadcast television program called “Connecticut Lifestyles” which promoted non-profit organizations, businesses and tourism destinations. For twenty-four years, Crean has worked in development, marketing and communications for a variety of enterprises. During that time she has raised millions of dollars, created and implemented numerous collateral multimedia materials, while significantly increasing the profile of organizations through cultivating partnerships and affiliations with the media, individuals, businesses and foundations. Recruited by the Institute Crean has designed a blueprint for the initial development, communications and grassroots organizing programs. Through her hard-charging work ethic, skills and acumen Yankee is already achieving tremendous successes. Crean serves as a board member for the Association of Fundraising Professionals and is a member of the Middlesex County Chamber of Commerce and its legislative committee. She can be reached at mary@yankeeinstitute.org or at (860) 297-4171. | Brian Bolduc, Research Associate |
| Brian Bolduc is a research associate of the Yankee Institute for Public Policy. Currently, he is a junior at Harvard University, pursuing a major in Economics and a minor in Government. In Cambridge, Brian regularly writes for The Harvard Crimson, the campus daily, on politics and economics. In addition, he is the editor of The Harvard Salient, the college's conservative magazine. Brian also is active in the Institute of Politics, where he was a liaison to former Congresswoman Nancy Johnson (R-CT). Outside of school, Brian is involved in Republican politics. He recently interned for Gov. Mitt Romney's presidential campaign and the Connecticut Republican Party. This summer, he is interning with the Winston Group, a survey research firm in Washington D.C. At the Yankee Institute, Brian plans to study education policy. He can be reached at bolduc@fas.harvard.edu. | Natalie Kindred, Social Services Policy Analyst |
| Natalie Kindred is the Yankee Institute's social services analyst. She graduated with honors from Trinity College, earning a B.A. in public policy and law. Her undergraduate career included four months of policy studies at the Universiteit Maastricht in the Netherlands, internships in the private and public policy sectors, and completion of a thesis on the future of parental leave policy in the United States. After first surveying social services in the summer of 2005, Natalie returned to the Yankee Institute as a veteran intern in the summer of 2006. During that period, Natalie authored "Connecticut's Social Services Breakdown", which describes Connecticut's complex and confusing system of social service delivery from multiple perspectives. And then in January of 2007 joined the Yankee Institute. In November of 2007 Kindred authored the study,"Help Wanted: Serving Connecticut's Neediest Citizens through Job Training." The paper spotlights highly successful programs and strategies, and suggesting how those methods might be used to improve the self-sufficiency of Connecticut's disadvantaged citizens. Future plans include a study aimed at preparing Connecticut for the inevitable adjustments to Medicaid's long term care policies in the coming years. She can be contacted by email at natalie@yankeeinstitute.org or by telephone at (860)297-4271. | Dan Lips, Contributing Writer |
| Dan Lips is an education analyst at the Heritage Foundation, a public policy think tank in Washington, D.C. Lips also works as an education consultant with the Yankee Institute for Public Policy and is a senior fellow with the Goldwater Institute and Maryland Public Policy Institute. Dan's research has been cited in the Wall Street Journal and his commentaries have been featured in media outlets across the nation, including National Review Online, the Baltimore Sun, and the Arizona Republic. In February 2006, Dan authored "Providing School Choice to Connecticut Foster Children: Fostering Stability and Achievement." Dan graduated with honors from Princeton University, where he earned a bachelor's degree in politics. He was raised in Weston, Connecticut. He can be reached at dan@yankeeinstitute.org and (860) 297-4271. | Armand A. Fusco, Ed.D., Contributing Writer |
| Armand A. Fusco, Ed.D. began his career in education as a teacher in 1958. He quickly moved into administrative roles, and in 1971 became superintendent of schools in Hadley, Massachusetts. In 1980, he resigned his position to pursue a postdoctoral fellowship with the Boston Labor Management Center, specializing in quality of work life programs. Following his fellowship, he served as superintendent of schools in Branford, Connecticut, from 1985 until his retirement in 1992. Dr. Fusco later became a professor of education and director of teacher intern programs at the University of Bridgeport. He has authored many professional works, including the book School Corruption: Betrayal of Children and the Public Trust. Dr. Fusco's articles appear regularly in his column "Inside Education," published by several shoreline newspapers. Fusco has authored two Yankee Institute manuals, "Stopping School Corruption: A Manual for Taxpayers," in May of 2006 and "Ending Corruption and Waste in Your Public School," in December of 2007. Fusco earned a degree in education from the Central Connecticut State Teachers College, a professional diploma from the University of Connecticut, a Master of Arts from Columbia University, and a doctorate from the University of Massachusetts. Fusco also founded the Parkside School and Academy for special-education students and co-founded the Springfield Preparatory School. He resides in Guilford, Connecticut, with Constance, his wife of 53 years. They have four children and fourteen grandchildren. Fusco can be reached at armand@yankeeinstitute.org or (860) 297-4271. | Natasha Sasonova, Artist |
| Natasha Sazanova is a freelance artist who specializes in editorial and book illustrations. Born in the Ukraine, Natasha began painting as a toddler. At age four, she was the youngest student to attend the Fine Arts Studio of the University of Engineering and Architecture in Kiev. At sixteen, Natasha immigrated to the United States to join her mother, and achieved academic success by graduating from high school in the top 5 percent of her class. Natasha has exhibited her artwork in galleries throughout the Northeast, including New York City’s Museum of Art and Design. Her work ranges from the famous outdoor cow parade exhibit in Boston to exquisite illustrations that adorn the study covers and website of the Yankee Institute for Public Policy. Giving back to the country that has become her second home is important to Natasha. She donates her time and talents to the Connecticut Children’s Medical Center, Danbury Hospital heart program, the Jimmy Fund, and Nutmeg Big Brothers and Big Sisters. She is a graduate of the University of Connecticut School of Fine Arts and is currently pursuing a master’s degree in graphic design. Natasha’s collection can be viewed at http://artns.us. She can be contacted at natasha@artns.us. |
