BOOSTER TROOP is an elite squad of intergalactic action hero kids who fight misinformation and promote better health with the help of a talking penguin.
Meet the Characters
SOFIA THE INVENTIVE
As a whip-smart and very inventive inventor, 11-year old Sophia is all about new discoveries through rationale and the facts. Raised by her single mother, she knows she has to push herself extra hard, and there’s no problem too big for her to think her way through and solve. Plus, she has a magical coat that can take them backwards and forwards in time to understand how and when things (like certain scientific discoveries) came to be!
MATEO THE FACTFINDER
12-year old Mateo is our arts and science expert. He knows a lot about both. And loves them equally. Mateo is an information addict. If he doesn’t know it, he knows where to get it. (Hint: It’s not always on the web!) He brings the important (and cool) facts and tie-ins to each episode. He has a gift of being able to draw things in a way that make it easy to understand.
JULY THE AWESOME
12-year-old July is highly empathetic and understands that while there are facts, people believe inaccurate info for a lot of reasons, and helping her team understand how people have come to believe what they believe is important. She’s a bridge builder between worlds, generations and everything else. She also sees the good in everyone. She used to hate her glasses until she realized that by turning them a particular way, they would let her see a world of possibilities she didn't’ know existed.
NORM THE PENGUIN
Norm is essentially a 6-year-old kid who looks up to his friends and wants to help and learn from them. He’s the little brother or sister that the viewer might be or have, and the kids will feel smart by helping Norm understand something he is really struggling with but they’re starting to get. He will ask the questions our younger viewers will want to ask too.
But their real superpower? Making smart health choices fun and easy:
Fun: Action packed, broadcast quality animated videos
Interactive: A personalized app with quizzes, certificates, and stickers
Engaging: Fun activities for mom, dad and the whole family
And much more!
Combining hard science with kid-relatable stories, every episode presents a high-stakes, real-world, kid-relatable health and mental health issue that the Booster Troop will bring to life.
Outfitted with all the latest “inner space” technological equipment (some of which hasn’t even been invented yet), the best information from leading experts, and with a little help from a penguin named Norm, the gang will take us on amazing journeys that will give kids real insights and strategies to improve physical and mental health.
But best of all, Booster Troop is an initiative of Welfie, a doctor and educator-founded platform that brings better health to schools and families.
Partners:
Funding for the first episode of Booster Troop was made possible by a grant from VaxUp, a joint initiative of the Children’s Hospital of LA (CHLA) and the LA County Department of Health.
VaxUp challenged participants to create a unique solutions to increase vaccinations in LA Black and Brown children aged 5-11.
The Booster Troop team partnered with KIPP Socal and Linwood School District in California to pilot Booster Troop with their students to learn from their vaccination experiences, fears, and what they were hearing on the playground. .
We are so grateful to these students, teachers and administrators who listened to early ideas and reviewed early storyboards and told us what they needed the series to be.
Booster Troop is as much theirs as it is ours.
Special thanks to everyone at CHLA and the LA County Department of Health, particularly Tracey Veal, Aizita Magana, Dana Le and Margeaux Akazawa along with all of the judges.
KIPP & Linwood logos to come
CHLA & LA Department of Health TBD
The Team
Mike Erskine-Kellie & Susan McLennan
Mike Erskine-Kellie and Susan McLennan are winners of two regional Emmy awards for co-creating the TV series, Scientastic. They have created and/or written television shows for PBS, Disney XD, BBC, TVO, CBC including Franny’s Feet, Ranger Rob, Pucca, Turbo Dogs, 1001 Nights, Endangered Species, the Emmy Award-winning PBS show Zoboomafoo, and the Gemini Nominated CBC show Sketchcom. They are also recipients of a Harold Greenberg Award for their screenplay, The New Adventures of Jason and The Argonauts.
They also co-created, story edited and wrote for the TVO kids’ magic series Spellz, winner of the US International Film and Video Festival in Children’s Programming and a Silver Remi at the Worldfest-Houston International Film Festival. Their television series, Brian Paisley In Hell, was a recipient of OMDC funding.
Their first kids’ book, I Got You A Present was published by Kids Can Press in the spring of 2020. They created, wrote and starred in the animated online series, Spike & Toody, aimed at children between three and seven years old, covering a range of COVID-19-related subjects, such as how to be a good helper and how to practice good hygiene.
Mike and Susan also created a comedy website which was featured on radio shows across North America, on CBC’s The Hour, and in various publications, including The Daily News and The Ottawa Citizen. It also won some awards, including from National Lampoon and CBC and it was included in the Library of Congress.
Steve Moyo MD
Steven's goal is to create generational health and wealth for people of color and immigrants.
Dr. Steven C. Moyo (DocMoyo) is a Board Certified Physician and CEO/Founder of Welfie. A company focused on delivering health equity to the families that need it most. He completed his residency training at the Osler Internal Medicine Residency Program at The Johns Hopkins Hospital. Attained his medical doctorate from Michigan State University College of Human Medicine and a Bachelor of Science from McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
DocMoyo founded Welfie after seeing too many Black and Immigrant people die preventable deaths. Welfie is a ”Wellness Selfie”, giving people a regular snapshot of their health so they can see the big picture of their wellness journey. Guiding them along the way with health education, communities, and resources. He is a member of the Alpha Omega Alpha and Gold Humanism Honor medical societies. DocMoyo was awarded the 2019 American College of Preventive Medicine Design Hack and 2020 Blink UX Social Impact Award.
Nneka Edwards-Jackson MD, MPH
Nneka is a general pediatrician and public health professional who has dedicated her career to advancing child health equity, and has worked in diverse settings both in North America and abroad. Throughout her career, she has participated in research, advocacy, and clinical care aimed at promoting the health of children from marginalized communities and reducing health disparities. As a woman of color in medicine, she has been involved in diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts at large medical centers, and has helped lead youth pipeline and empowerment programs. As Welfie’s Chief Medical Officer, she led Welfie’s COVID advisory services - a consultation model aimed at helping K-12 school administrators deal with COVID.
Nicole Trickett
Nicole considers herself a teacher, first and foremost. As a special education teacher in the San Francisco Unified School District, she learned what an engaging and rigorous classroom looks and feels like, committed to a lifelong journey towards cultural competence, and realized the power of nourishing the whole child. Nicole is an experienced urban educator and leader with a passion for adult learning and a track record of collaborating effectively with the various stakeholders that make up our educational ecosystems. With over 13 years of experience in the field of education, she has played a variety of roles including teacher, teacher coach, central office administrator, and school site leader. She is committed to creating environments that promote equity and inclusion and accelerate student learning and growth. She joined Welfie because she knows that healthy school communities lead to better outcomes for all. She has seen the power of youth in action and is excited to help give students and their families the agency to live happier and healthier lives.
Advisors
(bios and pictures coming)
Booster Troop is grateful to our advisors and supporters who have been so generous with their help, advice and support:
Alice Cahn
Ed Greene
Lisa Fazio
Frederick Ghahramani
Lisa Dare
Karla Armendariz, KIPP SoCal
The KIPP SoCal Community
Patrick Gittisriboongul, Linwood Unified School District
The Linwood Unified School District Community
Alice Cahn
Alice Cahn is a child development and social responsibility consultant focused on using media to create successful brands; encourage employee engagement; and contribute to positive social change. Current projects range from Abu Dhabi’s World Early Childhood Development efforts to Cesar Milan’s newest dog-friendly media project. At Cartoon Network for over 10 years, Cahn founded the network’s award-winning STOP BULLYING: SPEAK UP project, now embraced across the US, Latin America and Europe.
Prior to Cartoon Network, Cahn served as Managing Director of the Markle Foundation’s Interactive Media for Youth division; President of Television, Film, and Video at Sesame Workshop; and head of children’s programming at US Public Broadcasting, where she acquired the network’s most effective, highest rated and most profitable youth series: BARNEY, ARTHUR, THE MAGIC SCHOOL BUS and TELETUBBIES.
Cahn did her Masters work in Educational Technology at San Francisco State; and holds a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education from NYU; and an RFS from Town and Country School. She and her wife and children live in Rockport, Maine.
Ed Greene, PhD
Ed Greene is the Educational Outreach Advisor on the team of Wonder Why Consulting, continuing his media and technology consulting efforts within the field of early childhood research. Dr. Greene is also an advisor for PlayPattern and a research fellow for Knology. Dr. Greene has advised on educational outreach and community engagement opportunities for WonderWhy Consulting, Cartoon Network, Al Roker Productions, Home Plate Entertainment, and with teams at WGBH, Twin Cities PBS Mashopolis, and ABF Creative.
Previously, Dr. Greene was Vice-President, Children, Youth and Digital Media Literacy Initiatives at the Hispanic Information & Telecommunications Network (HITN) and Director of Global Outreach at Sesame Workshop.
He has served on the faculty of Pacific Oaks College and has held faculty appointments as Assistant Professor at Lehman College (CUNY); Associate Professor, Montclair State University; and Visiting Professor, University of the District of Columbia; and the boards of the High/Scope Educational Research Foundation, The American Camp Association; Young Audiences of NJ and Central PA; and was a member of the Advisory Council of The Educational Equity Center at FHI360. He was an elected member of the Governing Board of the National Association for the Education of Young Children and serves as a trustee of the coalition Quality Children’s Media.
He completed his B.Mus. Ed at DePauw; an M.A. in Child and Human Development at Pacific Oaks College; and a PhD from the College of Graduate and Professional Studies at IndianaState University.
Ed is currently Chief Strategy Officer at EMGreene Educational Connections Associates, Monmouth Junction, NJ.
Lisa Fazio, Ph.D.,
Lisa Fazio is an Associate Professor of Psychology and Human Development at Vanderbilt University. Her research focuses on how adults and children learn true and false information from the world around them and how to correct errors in people’s knowledge. Her research informs basic theories about learning and memory, while also having clear applications for practitioners, such as journalists and teachers. She’s written on how to recognize misleading COVID-19 information on social media as well as how to avoid spreading misinformation and correct false beliefs.
Karla Armendariz
Karla started her KIPP journey in 2019 as a Founding Business Operations Manager at KIPP Pueblo Unido LS, and transitioned to the regional ops team in 2021. As a ROM, Karla supports several functional areas. These include the School Nutrition Program, Student Health, Covid Vaccine Management, and various compliance and CDE requirements. She is passionate about quality resources and support for school teams to feel successful, and to focus on quality execution as well as student/family engagement.
Karla is a mother, wife, and daughter. Her family is the center of her universe. She enjoys movies, music, dancing, and is in a constant state of learning and growing.