We believe the most effective way to help teenagers combat disinformation is to raise awareness and engage them in finding innovative, tailored solutions. Our high school chapters will change the culture around the use of social media and information consumption
High school chapters are more effective with dedicated, centralized infrastructure to help them share information about the spread of online disinformation, while communicating with other teenagers and the communities they serve
Our communities are full of people who want to help. A primary function of The Disinformation Project is to cultivate enduring partnerships among government agencies, media companies, journalists, think tanks, academic institutions and everyday citizens who support our mission
Matt Verich recently retired from the US Navy and founded the Project after watching his teenage kids engage online. Already familiar with how disinformation is used by state actors, he was motivated to get involved after observing how technology trends, politics, great power competition, the pandemic, and social media habits have conspired to create the perfect storm for online disinformation.
Chris Odell is a career naval intelligence professional who has served over 2 decades in both active duty and government civilian roles. He is a leader and mentor with several community youth organizations and is passionate about our mission of empowering young people to be savvy users in the information environment. Chris is proud to serve as the founding treasurer for The Disinformation Project.
Gabrielle Fong is a Naval Officer. In her spare time, she initiates and manages partnerships that help further and promote our mission. She also volunteers with the Yale Veterans as court appointed special advocate (CASA) for children in need of assistance, and an ambassador for Service to School, which recruits veterans to attend Yale University.
Emil Thomann is the Chief Talent Officer for the Project. In this role he leads recruitment efforts and advises the Board on personnel matters. He is a Naval officer.
Allison Verich teaches in a Spanish immersion school in Fairfax County Virginia. She has committed her life to education and improving her community. As Chief Content Officer she creates engaging material to help teens learn about disinformation and its negative consequences so they are empowered to develop solutions.
Matthew Verich is a junior at West Potomoc High School and founding member of the first chapter of The Disinformation Project. He also serves as student advisor on the Board of Directors. In this capacity he represents the needs and perspectives of our teen leaders and members
Rachel Greenspan is Chief Media Officer for the project. Rachel is employed as a systems engineer by the MITRE Corporation and has experience conducting research and analyses in support of counter-disinformation projects at the national level, as well as in her graduate level coursework through Johns Hopkins University.
Connie Matthews Reynolds is a cybersecurity expert and entrepreneur. She founded and leads ReynCon Educational Services and Training (REST) and is actively involved in her community as a mentor and leader.
We are recruiting another Director to join the team as a co-founder and Secretary for the Board; handling internal communications and filing and maintaining corporate documents.