Community Engagement

Cindy Lopez

Director, Community Engagement

With over three decades of experience in the field of education, Cindy has transitioned her expertise and leadership in education toward fostering stronger ties between CHC and our community, focused on schools, individuals and other community based organizations and their surrounding communities. She has had the opportunity to have thousands of conversations with parents, students, teachers, community members and more always focused on how we at CHC can help build stronger communities. In her role, she also hosts CHC’s Voices of Compassion podcast series.

Mike Navarrete

Associate, Community Engagement

Mike is a graduate from Loyola University Chicago, where he received his Bachelor of Business Administration in business, marketing. He worked as a Communications and Media Facilitator, educating adults with developmental and learning differences for one of the leading nonprofits in Silicon Valley, Hope Services. At Hope, he worked with a local community college to cultivate personal development, autonomy, interdependence, and emotional well-being, while incorporating technology.

At Loyola, he was a Marketing Assistant for both Student Government and for a community of family-owned businesses at Loyola’s Family Business Center. In his spare time, he worked as a freelance writer curating a Wikipedia page for a breast cancer survivor and advocates for “the cause” who ignited a national campaign called “Paint the Town Pink.” As a writer, educator, advocate, and marketing intern, he has established an educational framework, bridging communities together while offering digital, social and written content as a resource.

Mike is elated to be CHC’s Associate, Community Engagement. He is fervent on attentively addressing the national movement of 1 in 5 – impacting those with learning and mental health needs. Work aside, Mike loves to get out and exercise whether that be taking a crossfit class or running a new trail. His hobbies include photography, videography and adventuring to new sites and exploring new coffee shops!

Natalie Tamburello

Manager, Community Engagement

Natalie Tamburello is a learning disability and education equity advocate and empowerment expert, with expertise in student voice, post-secondary transitions to college and/or work, social-emotional development, community building, workshop facilitation and public speaking.

Natalie is excited to join the Community Connections Team at CHC. As a lifelong advocate, Natalie has served a number of non-profit organizations supporting students who learn differently throughout her career, including: Learning Ally, Understood, The National Center for Learning Disabilities and Parents Education Network.

Natalie is passionate about developing and implementing programs that prepare individuals who learn differently for life’s transitions, in addition to creating and facilitating a community of parents, educators and employers to support them along their journey.

Natalie received her BA in Psychology at Whitman College in Walla Walla, Washington. During her time at Whitman, she worked at both the Center for Interdisciplinary Brain Sciences Research at Stanford and BrainLENS at the University of California – San Francisco, doing research on dyslexia and related social-emotional issues such as motivation, advocacy, self-awareness, growth mindset, grit and stereotype threat. She then completed a M.Phil in Education at the University of Cambridge in England, focusing on leadership within the LD/ADHD community and the emerging learning rights movement.

Her many volunteer activities focus on non-profit organizations and foundations serving students underrepresented and underserved in our education system, including: Eye to Eye, New Profit’s Reimagine Learning Fund, Oak Foundation and Headstrong Nation.