OUR TEAM
At Growing Abilities,
we continually strives to be in the forefront of innovative and creative approaches to the provision of quality service. We believe that quality service is dependent primarily on skilled, knowledgeable and diligent direct care workers and therapists. Our organization is based on recruiting creative, dependable, experienced and a hard working team of individuals who enjoy
their work and the families they serve. We are continually on the lookout for the next idea that can be incorporated into our programs. We believe the member, families and/or member representatives we share are THE ultimate determining factors in the service we provide.
Andrew GUTHRIE
Executive Director & CEO
Andrew has worked with individuals with special needs for over 18 years. He has worked and supervised in various positions in adult day programs, teen and children’s programs as well as created exercise and sport classes and facilitated with other group activities. Andrew has also spent a large amount of time coaching afterschool sports, one of his great passions, for over 20 years. Special Olympics, track, soccer, high school basketball and volleyball are some of the sports he has also enjoyed coaching. Andrew has bachelor’s degree in Elementary and Special Education through NAU. He is father to 2 beautiful children and in his free time likes use his creativity and handyman skills to build furniture, playgrounds and other various things he dreams up.
Carla MANZANO
ADH/CDH Licensing Coordinator & Case Manager
Born in El Salvador and working with teenagers with special needs since she was 15 years old, Carla has been involved in the industry for over 27 years. She started out her career as a service provider at a leading agency in the East Valley and her drive and passion for helping members, propelled her to grow within the company. She became the Article IX and First Aid/CPR Instructor, supported the Adult Development Home (ADH) and Children Development Home (CDH) caseload, and became Director of the Spanish Department. Now Carla is enjoying working at Growing Abilities as the ADH/CDH Licensing Coordinator and Case Manager. Carla has two beautiful children and two dogs. She is an avid German Shepherd lover and enjoys spending time with her children, reading, traveling and cooking all sorts of delicious food!
Johanna RUDD
Case Manager & Human Resource Specialist
Johanna has been fortunate enough to work in this field for 8 years, beginning as a caregiver in the Teen Program for a top agency in Mesa. Through her experience, she received the responsibility as a case manager for the Spanish Caseload and began training in the Human Resources Department.
Johanna was born in Lima, Peru but was raised here in sunny Mesa from the age of two. She graduated from Mesa High. After that, she went to Chandler-Gilbert Community College where she received her Associates Degree in Art. She is currently taking classes online at Brigham Young University – Idaho and is working on getting her Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management.
In her free time, Johanna likes to bake all kinds of goodies and experiment with new recipes. She competitively plays tennis with her husband and enjoys going on walks with her Golden Retrievers and Yorkie. Johanna loves to travel around the world with her family and experience different cultures and food each place has to offer. Her favorite thing is to spend her time snuggling her son and husband while watching movies. Her greatest accomplishment is being a mom and seeing her son grow and discover the world around him. Johanna is excited to be a part of this new team at Growing Abilities where she can focus her efforts on these individuals’ lives to become independent and reach for their dreams!
Megan SWIATKOWSKI
Billing Director and BBP Developer
As an Arizona State graduate, Megan started her career in elementary education teaching 4th grade at one of the top schools in the Mesa Unified District. After having children, she decided to step out of that role to become a full-time mom; however her passion for kids of all ages and background in child development quickly lead her back into the classroom as a preschool teacher. When presented the opportunity to expand her professional experience into the lives of children and adults with special needs, Megan excitedly jumped on board and quickly fell in love with the individuals and families. Megan currently works for Growing Abilities developing Positive Behavior Treatment Plans and as Billing Director. Megan has been married to her husband Paul for over 12 years. They have 3 biological children and are actively involved in foster care. Traveling, date nights, coffee and rainy days are a few of her favorite things!
Vivamus hendrerit arcu sed erat molestie vehicula. Sed auctor neque eu tellus rhoncus ut eleifend nibh porttitor. Ut in nulla enim. Phasellus molestie magna non est bibendum non venenatis nisl tempor. Suspendisse dictum feugiat nisl ut dapibus. Mauris iaculis porttitor posuere. Praesent id metus massa, ut blandit odio. Proin quis tortor orci. Etiam at risus et justo dignissim congue. Donec congue lacinia dui, a porttitor lectus condimentum laoreet. Nunc eu ullamcorper orci. Quisque eget odio ac lectus vestibulum faucibus eget in metus. In pellentesque faucibus vestibulum. Nulla at nulla justo, eget luctus tortor. Nulla facilisi. Duis aliquet egestas purus in blandit. Curabitur vulputate, ligula.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Nullam in dui mauris. Vivamus hendrerit arcu sed erat molestie vehicula. Sed auctor neque eu tellus rhoncus ut eleifend nibh porttitor. Ut in nulla enim. Phasellus molestie magna non est. Bibendum non venenatis nisl tempor. Suspendisse dictum feugiat nisl ut dapibus. Mauris iaculis porttitor posuere. Praesent id metus massa, ut blandit odio. Proin quis tortor orci. Etiam at risus et justo dignissim congue. Donec congue lacinia dui, a porttitor lectus condimentum laoreet. Nunc eu ullamcorper orci. Quisque eget odio ac lectus vestibulum faucibus eget in metus. In pellentesque faucibus vestibulum. Nulla at nulla justo, eget luctus tortor. Nulla facilisi. Duis aliquet egestas purus in blandit. Curabitur vulputate, ligula lacinia scelerisque.
Tempor, lacus lacus ornare ante, ac egestas est urna sit amet arcu. Class aptent taciti sociosqu ad litora torquent per conubia nostra, per inceptos himenaeos. Sed molestie augue sit amet leo consequat posuere. Vestibulum ante ipsum.