Staff Roster

Rev. Peggy Clarke began her ministry at Community Church of New York the summer of 2019. She came to us after serving as solo minister at the First Unitarian Society of Westchester in Hastings on Hudson for eight years. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Religious Studies and Peace Studies and a Masters in Historical Theology from Boston College. Her doctoral work was in American Religious History. Rev. Clarke has served on the board of the UUA’s climate justice initiative Commit2Respond, the UU Environmental Justice Collaboratory and as chair of the UU Food Justice Ministry. She was one of the denomination's Observer Delegates at the 2015 United Nations Climate Summit in Paris, represented our denomination at Standing Rock and most recently at the Mexican American border, calling attention to the crisis of separated families.

Meagan is a lifelong Unitarian Universalist with a background in peace and environmental activism. She has 24 years of experience as a UU religious educator. Meagan is pursuing her Master's of Divinity degree at Meadville Lombard Theological School. Meagan's creative outlets are storytelling and photography. One of her hobbies is exploring Green-Wood Cemetery where her husband, James, is a tour guide. She also loves to travel and has been all around the world, most recently in Jordan where her daughter, Starling lives with her husband, Jawad. Meagan also holds a Master's in Religious Studies and is passionate about interfaith collaboration and activism.

Dr. Janice Marie Johnson was commissioned as Community’s Lay Minister (CLM) in February 2020 (https://www.uua.org/central-east/programs/cll). She has been a congregational leader in many capacities since the early 1990s. She developed the Community Care Team in 2018. As coordinator of this team of dedicated volunteers, she centers “care” in all she offers and expects from the community.

Professionally, she serves as Co-Director of Ministries and Faith Development at the Unitarian Universalist Association supporting, sustaining, and advancing multicultural, anti-oppressive, justice-centered, and innovative Unitarian Universalist lay and professional leadership and ministry for all ages.

Committed to making multiculturalism “real,” she is an internationalist, Jamaican, and New Yorker! Janice — mother, grandmother, aunt, sibling -- notes that her mantra, "Masakhane," symbolizes her unstoppable commitment to her beloved Community Church. This is a rich and resonant word from the Nguni family of languages of South Africa, of which Zulu and Xhosa are two. Loosely translated into English, “Masakhane” means, "Let us build together.”

Gerald A. Brown has been the Director of Music for Community Church since 1990. He was Music Director for the Elementary Education Programs at the New York City Opera for thirty-six years. In addition, he served as Organist and Choir Director for the Metropolitan Synagogue in New York City for twenty-five years. He was assistant conductor at the Central City Colorado Opera Festival for five seasons. With the New York Philharmonic he served as a rehearsal pianist under Leonard Bernstein, Pierre Boulez, Rafael Kubelik, Erich Leinsdorf and Zubin Mehta. He holds a Master of Music Degree in Organ Performance from the University of Michigan where he was a student of Marilyn Mason. Upon graduating from the teacher training program at the Mathews School of the Alexander Technique he was certified as a teacher by the American Society of the Alexander Technique. He currently is on the faculty of the Land of Enchantment Opera Institute as a coach and Alexander Teacher.

Esther Rosado has served UU congregations in Massachusetts, most recently as Director of Religious Education in Medford, MA. She is an active Unitarian Universalist leader working on the local, district and continental levels.

Jil Novenski began teaching at Community Church in 2007. She graduated high school at the Northwest School for the Arts, Humanities and Environment in Seattle, Washington, majored in child psychology at the Evergreen State College, and holds a degree in Advertising and Marketing Communications from the Fashion Institute of Technology. Her professional history includes teaching adults with developmental disabilities, editorial support in educational publishing, and nonprofit fundraising and special event management. Fulfilling her passion for putting faith into action, Jil has worked with Victim Services as an advocate for survivors of domestic violence, and was a founding member of the Advisory Board for Family Court Reforms in New York City. In her role as Director of Religious Education for Children & Youth, Jil continues to innovate in the space where arts, education and activism meet.

Irina joined Community Church as our Bookkeeper in 1999

and has been our Senior Accountant since 2019.

She has a Master's degree in Finance and Credit from Azerbaijan University of Baku, Russia.

Irina completed her undergraduate studies at the College of Music, where piano was her focus.

She is a mother, grandmother, and lover of animals, music and dancing.

Amy (she/her) is a lifelong UU raised in the Religious Education program at First Unitarian Church in Portland, Oregon. Since moving to New York City in 2014 to pursue her calling as a writer, Amy worked in retail and customer service before landing at CCNY in January 2020. Amy is passionate about social justice and uplifting the voices of those who are working together to build a better world. When not at CCNY, Amy can be found studying workers' history as a Master's student at the CUNY School of Labor and Urban Studies and hosting a weekly radio show on WBAI 99.5fm.