Executive Director & Founder
Michelle Castro Douglass
Michelle Douglass is the Founder and Executive Director of Prom Plus NYC, a non-profit organization that offers targeted enrichment and educational programming to the city's young adults.
Michelle provides strategic guidance to Prom Plus NYC, and she spearheads its various enrichment programs and workshops, which take place throughout the school year. The organization's signature event, The Total Boutique Experience (TBE), is the culmination of these workshops.
After a career spanning 15+ years in sales and marketing at esteemed publications like Sports Illustrated, Vibe, and Latina, Michelle left the corporate world to start Prom Plus NYC in 2015. Even while traveling extensively for her corporate career, Michelle always made it a priority to serve her community. Her vast experience in the corporate world, coupled with her extensive volunteer work for family and youth charities, uniquely equipped her to establish an organization dedicated to empowering young adults.
When Prom Plus NYC first began in 2015, it had just a few participants and a handful of dresses. However, it has evolved into something far more significant, partnering with professionals in almost every field to offer seminars on self-empowerment, Life Skills 101, dining etiquette classes, social media safety, and an intensive vision board workshop that inspires students to dream big and work towards achieving their goals.
Michelle's commitment to youth extends far beyond the borders of New York City and the United States. She has demonstrated her philanthropic spirit by engaging in humanitarian efforts in Cuba and, most recently in 2022, by collaborating with political officials in the Philippines to restore food and medical programs to remote communities that had been severely impacted by Typhoon Odette.
Michelle's unshakable belief in the power of equality, education and self-confidence is what inspires her to help transform the lives of our youth. She knows that by providing teenagers with the tools they need to succeed, we can help them become the leaders and visionaries of tomorrow. Her unwavering commitment to empowering youth is a reflection of her deep compassion and empathy for the challenges young people face today. With her visionary approach and passionate advocacy, Michelle is working to create a brighter future where every young person has the opportunity to thrive and achieve their dreams.
Associate Director
Kerri Jackson
Kerri is a curator of visual style. Having a distinguished 25-year career in the footwear, and retail industry, working with major brands, such as Charles David, Coach, and Leon Max. She combines her extensive skill set of fashion and merchandising to curate one-of-a-kind experiences for PPNYC.
Team PPNYC
Irasema Rivera
Irasema brings over 15 years of branding and creative direction experience to the Prom Plus NYC team. She has done extensive work with NPO's such as Bette Midler's New York Restoration Project, CIR Policy Institute, La Canasta, NYC and Company (World Pride 2019 Global Campaign launch,) and recently the rebrand of TheaterWorksUSA.
As founder of Irasema Design, a strategic branding studio, she has worked with small startups and large consumer brands such as Travelzoo, La Fe, P&G, Anthology.co and Pfizer. Her work has garnered 49 national and international awards across the design spectrum.
Team PPNYC
Belén Aranda-Alvarado
Belén brings over 15 years of experience empowering iconic brands such as the New York Times, Estée Lauder and the Wildlife Conservation Society to embrace the digital and social space so they can thrive at connecting with the audiences that matter most. As an online marketing expert passionate about the intersection of digital and experiential, Belén brings her skills to Prom Plus NYC to help grow the reach and impact of the Total Boutique Experience.
Team PPNYC
Shirley Garcia
With two decades of experience in the entertainment industry working with brands like A+E Networks and Vibe Magazine, Shirley is a master at media planner and complex project management.
She brings her passion for overseeing high end branded events to PPNYC with one vision; to give back. Empowering others is a way of life for her. Through her blog, she’s helped to guide other parents raising children with Autism and Spina Bifida. Her motto is that united efforts can save our underserved youth. She is a distinguished member of the Bronx Parents Autism Support Circle (BPASC).