Staff Biographies
Sally Matsuishi - President / CEO
As President / CEO, Ms. Matsuishi is the driving force behind Next Generation Scholars. In addition to sharing her expertise in college preparation and admissions with current Scholars, Ms. Matsuishi also conducts workshops and participates in sessions at the annual
conference of the Western Association for College Admission
Counseling (WACAC). She has also presented
workshops for counselors related to working with underserved college bound
students and mentoring men of color. Sally is frequently invited to speak
at schools on various aspects of the college
admission process. She has worked as a consultant for both public and independent schools as well as educational foundations and universities on
issues related to educational access services for students of color.
Ms. Matsuishi has been dedicated to assisting underprivileged families attain educational equity for over a decade. As an independent educational consultant, she has helped countless numbers of students navigate the higher education admissions process. Ms. Matsuishi currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Marin Education Fund, the Asian American Alliance of Marin and the Action Coalition of People of Color. She also holds membership in the Higher Education Consultants Association, Western Association for College Admission Counseling, The American College Counseling Association, and The Association of Multicultural Counseling and Development.
Ms. Matsuishi is a past recipient of the "Volunteer of the Year" by the Center for Volunteer and Nonprofit Leadership of Marin. She holds a B.A. in East Asian Studies and Art History from Vassar College and a Masters of Fine Arts from the University of Southern California.
Kenji Treanor - Vice President / CFO
Mr. Treanor oversees the administrative and fiscal management of Next Generation Scholars. Additionally, Mr. Treanor supports current scholars in implementing community-service activities.
Mr. Treanor's professional experience has spanned service in several educational and nonprofit institutions. He is currently grants manager at The James Irvine Foundation as, where he plays a lead role in directing the foundation's grants to college access organizations across California. He has had a direct hand in distributing more than 1.5 million dollars in the past two years. Previously, he served at San Francisco State University, administering a special project for student engagement under the Associate Vice President. Prior to San Francisco State, he worked as a consultant to the San Rafael City Schools, focusing on issues of enrollment and federal funding for an alternative curriculum offered in grades 7–12. Mr. Treanor also served several years at the Youth Leadership Institute where he created and delivered leadership and social justice training to a diverse community of young people. He has also worked as a teacher and tutor, including a year as a middle school English teacher in rural Japan.
Mr. Treanor is currently pursuing a Master in Public Administration degree at the University of San Francisco. He holds a B.A. in American Studies, with emphases in Ethnic Studies and Socio-Political Analysis, from the University of California, Santa Cruz, where he graduated with honors and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. He also holds certification in Nonprofit Management from San Jose State University.
Beverly Matsuishi, Ph.D. (PSY # 16203) - Clinical Director
Dr. Matsuishi is a licensed clinical psychologist and as Clinical Director, she oversees the provision of social and clinical support services. Drawing upon years of both academic and applied training, Dr. Matsuishi works to facilitate the wellness of current Scholars and their families.
Dr. Matsuishi has been a dedicated practitioner, focusing on ethnic mental health issues of communities of color. Having trained across the spectrum of psychiatric services from in-hospital acute care to community mental health settings, she has been an activist, therapist, group facilitator, coordinator of children's services, and supervisor of training. Throughout these experiences, Dr. Matsuishi has advocated vigorously for creating a bridge between governmental agencies and families. She strives for all her young clients to leave for college with a “toolbox of skills” enabling them to overcome adversity, push away self-doubt and persevere towards their goals.
Dr. Matsuishi holds a B.A. in Latin American Anthropology from University of California, Berkeley, a Master of Science in Education from Dominican College, and a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the Wright Institute, where her dissertation won the Richard Allen Smith Award for excellence. She is a past the recipient of a National Institute for Mental Health / American Psychology Association grant for specialized training in Asian American Psychology. Dr. Matsuishi served as a Visiting Scholar at Hunan University in China and has taught in the Ethnic Studies Department at Sonoma State University.
