Meet the Team

Maryanne Schretzman, DSW

Executive Director
Previously, as Family Services Coordinator for the City of New York, Maryanne was responsible for identifying and implementing cross-agency collaborations to enhance services provided by the City's HHS agencies to those in need. She has also served as Deputy Commissioner for Policy and Planning at the Department of Homeless Services and as Deputy Assistant Commissioner at the Administration for Children's Services. Prior to joining city government, she was an adjunct professor at Hunter College of Social Work and held a variety of leadership positions at the non-profit organization Women In Need, Inc. Maryanne was also a consultant for 15 years specializing in the planning and evaluation of government and non-profit institutions in the United States and Europe. Maryanne holds a B.A. from the University of Montana, a Master of Social Work from Hunter College, and a Doctorate in Social Welfare from the Graduate Center of the City University of New York.

Jessie Sell, MPH

Research Analyst
Jessie has served NYC for nearly all her career, first as middle school mathematics teacher with the NYC Department of Education, then as an infectious disease epidemiologist with the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.  Prior to joining CIDI, Jessie assisted in the COVID-19 pandemic response, conducting matches and analyses of testing, case, and immunization data, and providing interactive data visualizations to inform the response.  Throughout her time at the DOHMH, she analyzed data and assisted in the response to various infectious disease outbreaks, including legionella, measles and Zika.  She holds a BA in Mathematics from Hunter College, an MA in Mathematics Education from City College, and an MPH in Epidemiology from New York Medical College. 

Oliver Ponce, MSPP

Research Analyst
Oliver Ponce is a policy analyst with a sustained commitment to using data and policy analysis to improve social services, especially to low-income people and racial/ethnic minorities. Prior to joining CIDI, Oliver worked as a Research Associate at Action Research Partners, where he developed analysis plans to validate data and verify performance for monitors of federal child welfare class action litigation in Michigan, Oklahoma, and Texas. He previously partnered with the New York City’s Administration for Children Services (ACS) and the New York City Family Court to produce analyses concerning children with longstanding termination of parental rights petitions. Oliver is both a Posse Scholar and a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Undergraduate Public Health Scholar (CUPS). He received his B.A. in Sociology from Colby College, and his M.S. in Public Policy from NYU Wagner.