Meet the team

We’re a female-founded team of educators, administrators, and parents on a mission to tackle the youth mental health crisis and support kids and the educators who care for them.

Maria Barrera

CEO
Stanford grad, Nearpod alum, Clayful founder. As someone who turned adversity into strength, she's battling the mental health crisis with accessible resources.

Melissa Pelochino

Co-founder & Advisor
Melissa Pelochino is the Chief Experience Officer & Co-Founder at Clayful Health. Her goal is to provide access to mental health resources to EVERY kid.

Erika Boehme

Coach Training Specialist
Erika is a Coaching Training Specialist at Clayful and a Certified Life Coach. She creates spaces for people to remember who the force they are.

Jenna Rosenthal

Chief of Staff
A product marketer and operations lead, Jenna comes from a family of educators and is excited to drive student engagement and make Clayful accessible to all.

Payton Johnson

Student Engagement Intern
Payton is a Student Engagement Intern at Clayful with a passion for promoting youth inclusion and diverse perspectives within the mental health sphere.

Dr. Bianca Howard, Psy.D

Clinical Advisor
Dr. Bianca Howard is a post-doctoral resident specializing in children and adolescents. She provides therapy to children, adolescents, adults and families.

Dr. Vivien Keil, Ph.D.

Clinical Advisor
Dr. Vivien Keil is a child and adolescent psychologist with over 20 years of experience working with children and families.

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Jennifer Wu

Investor & Advisor
Venture Partner at Reach Capital leading the fund's mental health investments & impact efforts.

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Wayee Chu

Investor & Advisor
Investor in early stage startups focused on education and the future of work.