Hi, I’m JoAnn!

I have been living in Manhattan for a little over 5 years now, previously working as a Child & Adolescent Therapist in a private practice setting. I obtained my bachelors in Psychology in 2018 at the University of Louisville in Kentucky where I was also a 4x National Champion Collegiate Cheerleader. I obtained my masters in Social Work at NYU in 2022. Growing up, school was never my strong suit. I relied on my cheerleading heavily to motivate me through school. I have a learning disability which made school very difficult due to my different learning styles. When I decided to go back to graduate school, I was nervous. I excelled more in those two years than my five years in undergrad and that was because of the passion I have for making a change. I always saw myself owning my own private practice one day but when life hands you lemons… you make lemonade! Challenge Island was an opportunity that fell on my lap that I absolutely could not pass up. Something I have witnessed while working in the mental health field over the past 10 years is that as technology continues to evolve, we become less engaging as human beings. We rely on google to answer half of our questions nowadays which is passing down to our younger generations negatively affecting their social and emotional development. Challenge Island is evolving as the children evolve, providing them a safe space to learn and grow and we bring the fun to you… NO SCREENS INCLUDED! Challenge Island offers many STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math) programs including On-Site Field Trips, Summer Camps, After School Enrichment and more! Every program is categorized by different destinations and every destination includes a challenge that the children must solve together, in their “STEAM teams.” Challenge Island encourages kids to “learn by doing” providing them with instructions on how to solve each “challenge” they face whether that is within their Challenge Island challenges or beyond.