CASA Youth Programs
CASA (Community Action for Safe Alternatives), 45 Pauline St, Winthrop, MA 2152
About
CASA Youth Programs offers youth-driven experiences that include afterschool clubs based on teens’ interests and a Middle School Planning Group that organizes peer-driven events. The program also includes the Youthworks Soft Skills Career Readiness Program for youth in Winthrop and CASA’s Community Diversion and Intervention (CDI) Program. CASA Youth Programs offers no-cost, safe, inclusive programming with a focus on resiliency, social-emotional learning, and mental health support for youth and families.
• Price: CASA offers no-cost programming.
CASA Youth Programs has been working to establish free safe alternatives for youth since 1997. Its mission states that, in collaboration with community partners, CASA offers no-cost, safe, inclusive programming with opportunities to build resiliency, foster social emotional learning skills, and address mental health needs for youth and families, and that through outreach and initiatives, it aims to empower youth to actively engage in their communities and to reach their full potential. CASA collaborates with community partners including For Kids Only, Winthrop Public Schools, Winthrop Public Health and Clinical Services, Winthrop Parents Network, Winthrop Police Department, Winthrop Public Library, and SPARK, and uses coalition-building within the communities it serves. CASA also collaborates with Winthrop Public Schools on Youthworks, the Soft Skills Career Readiness Program for youth in Winthrop.
The leadership team includes Amy Epstein (Executive Director); Jen Reth (Director of Curriculum & School Partnerships); LeighAnn Eruzione (Diversion Program Director); Paige Caballero (Youth Program Coordinator); Skyla Buonopane (Youth Program Specialist); and board members Mary Lou Osborne, Aaron Williams (Vice President), Meredith Hurley, RN, MPH, Stephen Ruggiero, Ricky Baez (Treasurer), Rubin Rubiera (President), and Jacquelyn Lamont (Board Secretary). Staff experience includes Amy Epstein, who has been working in the fields of prevention and public health for over 20 years and has extensive experience in youth development; Jen Reth, who has been in the Afterschool and Out-Of-School Time field since 1993 and serves as Director of Youthworks, serves on the Community Action for Safe Alternatives board, is a Massachusetts Ambassador for the National Afterschool Alliance, and is a program support specialist at Mass Afterschool Partnership; and LeighAnn Eruzione, a Licensed Independent Social Worker (LICSW) who provides clinical oversight to CASA youth initiatives, provides knowledge on adolescent development, addiction, and trauma, has been affiliated with CASA Inc. in various capacities since 2006, and is Director of CASA’s Community Diversion and Intervention (CDI) Program. Additional staff experience includes Paige Caballero, who has a strong background in youth work, previously served as Teen Experience Coordinator, Teen Camp Director, and Student Coordinator of the Positive Alternatives to Suspension Program at Greater Beverly YMCA's McPherson Youth Center, has been adult coordinator of the Regional Youth Prevention Network for Beverly, and organized the annual regional Teen Mental Health Day; and Skyla Buonopane, who has nearly 10 years of experience working with youth, has experience as a camp counselor and academic mentor, supports teens in creating afterschool clubs, and leads CASA’s Middle School Planning Group.
Last updated January 26, 2026.
• Price: CASA offers no-cost programming.
CASA Youth Programs has been working to establish free safe alternatives for youth since 1997. Its mission states that, in collaboration with community partners, CASA offers no-cost, safe, inclusive programming with opportunities to build resiliency, foster social emotional learning skills, and address mental health needs for youth and families, and that through outreach and initiatives, it aims to empower youth to actively engage in their communities and to reach their full potential. CASA collaborates with community partners including For Kids Only, Winthrop Public Schools, Winthrop Public Health and Clinical Services, Winthrop Parents Network, Winthrop Police Department, Winthrop Public Library, and SPARK, and uses coalition-building within the communities it serves. CASA also collaborates with Winthrop Public Schools on Youthworks, the Soft Skills Career Readiness Program for youth in Winthrop.
The leadership team includes Amy Epstein (Executive Director); Jen Reth (Director of Curriculum & School Partnerships); LeighAnn Eruzione (Diversion Program Director); Paige Caballero (Youth Program Coordinator); Skyla Buonopane (Youth Program Specialist); and board members Mary Lou Osborne, Aaron Williams (Vice President), Meredith Hurley, RN, MPH, Stephen Ruggiero, Ricky Baez (Treasurer), Rubin Rubiera (President), and Jacquelyn Lamont (Board Secretary). Staff experience includes Amy Epstein, who has been working in the fields of prevention and public health for over 20 years and has extensive experience in youth development; Jen Reth, who has been in the Afterschool and Out-Of-School Time field since 1993 and serves as Director of Youthworks, serves on the Community Action for Safe Alternatives board, is a Massachusetts Ambassador for the National Afterschool Alliance, and is a program support specialist at Mass Afterschool Partnership; and LeighAnn Eruzione, a Licensed Independent Social Worker (LICSW) who provides clinical oversight to CASA youth initiatives, provides knowledge on adolescent development, addiction, and trauma, has been affiliated with CASA Inc. in various capacities since 2006, and is Director of CASA’s Community Diversion and Intervention (CDI) Program. Additional staff experience includes Paige Caballero, who has a strong background in youth work, previously served as Teen Experience Coordinator, Teen Camp Director, and Student Coordinator of the Positive Alternatives to Suspension Program at Greater Beverly YMCA's McPherson Youth Center, has been adult coordinator of the Regional Youth Prevention Network for Beverly, and organized the annual regional Teen Mental Health Day; and Skyla Buonopane, who has nearly 10 years of experience working with youth, has experience as a camp counselor and academic mentor, supports teens in creating afterschool clubs, and leads CASA’s Middle School Planning Group.
Last updated January 26, 2026.
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