Joy Errico of Rite Aid, Rochelle Rivas of Ember Group Consulting, and Meris Sato of PwC are now working with the girl-empowerment nonprofit
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (July 10, 2024) – Today, Girls on the Run International (GOTRI), a nonprofit that empowers young girls, announced three new additions to its board of directors: Joy Errico, senior vice president, chief corporate affairs and communications officer at Rite Aid; Rochelle Rivas, CEO and co-founder of Ember Group Consulting; and Meris Sato, director in the cyber, risk, and regulatory practice at PwC. “Joy, Rochelle, and Meris each bring essential expertise and significant experience to Girls on the Run, and we are excited to welcome these leaders to our board,” said Elizabeth Kunz, CEO of Girls on the Run International.Joy Errico Brings Communications Knowhow from National Partner
Joy Errico, Rite Aid senior vice president, chief corporate affairs and communications officer, leads corporate communications and oversees corporate responsibility, event management, and the relationship between Rite Aid and its public charity, Rite Aid Healthy Futures. Errico also serves as the board president of the Rite Aid Healthy Futures, which has invested $1 million in Girls on the Run International to support the launch of GOTRI’s Hello, Superstar! curriculum, and marketing initiatives to recruit coaches and participants of color and coach training.
In addition to her position on the GOTRI board, she currently serves on the customer advisory board for The Know and on the Meehan School of Business at Stonehill College advisory board. Errico lives in the New York City metropolitan area.
Rochelle Rivas Offers Strategic Consulting Experience
As CEO and co-founder of Ember Group Consulting, LLC, Rochelle Rivas leverages her extensive management consulting and business leadership experience to deliver success for her clients. Previously, Rivas served as the president and founder of Darton Group Consulting, a finance, accounting, and project management consulting firm in Charlotte, N.C. After selling Darton Group, Rivas worked as an executive at North Highland, a global management consulting firm focused on change and transformation.
Rivas also has deep global philanthropic roots through the Rivas Family Foundation. In addition to her role with GOTRI, she currently serves on the American Heart Association executive leadership team and the Novant Health Foundation board of directors. She resides in Charlotte, N.C.
Meris Sato Provides ERM Expertise
Meris Sato, a PwC director in the cyber, risk, and regulatory practice, has worked in the consulting industry for over 15 years. She specializes in enterprise risk management (ERM) and governance, risk, and compliance (GRC). Sato designs and implements robust risk management programs, fostering transparent and risk-aware cultures for her clients. Before her focus on ERM and GRC, she worked in audit and business process optimization.
Sato is passionate about early childhood education and sees her position on the GOTRI board as an opportunity to use her ERM skills to create a safer and more secure environment for girls to thrive. She lives in Hawaii.
These three leaders join the GOTRI board as today’s girls are facing a confidence crisis. According to survey findings reported in the 2023 Girls’ Index by Ruling Our Experiences, overall rates of fifth- to 12th-grade girls’ confidence have dropped from 68% in 2017 to 55% in 2023, with fifth- and sixth-graders reporting the biggest declines in confidence and self-perception. Participants in the GOTRI program build confidence as they prepare for and complete a 5K celebratory event. In a spring 2024 end-of-season survey, 95% of girls said they were more confident, and 94% of coaches said that participants on their team were more confident.
Kunz added, “We are the experts in building confidence, having served over 2.5 million girls since we were founded in 1996. We have refreshed our curricula and revamped our national coach training to meet the needs of today’s girls at this critical time. With the dedicated board leadership of Joy, Rochelle, and Meris, we are excited to reach as many girls as possible to help them reach their limitless potential.”
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