About - Bayview Foundation

Bayview Foundation is committed to improving the education and lives of children in Florida.

Bayview Foundation was started by the founders of Bayview Asset Management, LLC, an investment management firm that owns a family of companies including Bayview Loan Servicing, LLC. The organization has made a strong commitment to participate in improving the education and lives of children in Florida. We provide mentorship opportunities, academic support, and enrichment activities through our programs and initiatives.

Through the “I Have a Dream” Program, Bayview Foundation partnered with our original 1st grade class of 97 students in 1999. This class of Dreamers completed high school in 2010 with an overall graduation rate of 97%, and many of them have gone on to college. Over the years, we have developed a variety of academic, cultural, community service, and enrichment activities for the children we support, ranging from college tours and field trips to donations that improve their schools. Today, Bayview Foundation supports several programs and initiatives, sponsors 5 classes, and has supported 100s of children.

As Bayview Foundation continues to grow its philanthropic efforts in our community, we also work to extend opportunities for employees from the Bayview family of companies to become more involved in ways that leverage their knowledge and expertise. As such, we partnered with Junior Achievement (JA) of Miami to deliver financial literacy lessons to grade school students in Miami-Dade County. “I Have a Dream” Program students volunteer to contribute their time and abilities through our other initiatives, including the Knowledge Is Power Program (KIPP) School we partner with in Miami, where the Dreamers mentor K-1 grade students. While JA and KIPP empower young people, the programs also inspire our volunteers to help students connect with education and develop life skills.

Leadership

David Ertel – Chairman of the Bayview Foundation. The Bayview Foundation is the philanthropic affiliate of Bayview Asset Management (“Bayview”) where he is the founding Chairman and CEO. Bayview is an investment management firm headquartered in Coral Gables, Florida, serving as a private credit fund manager with platforms focused on investments in structured products, loans and special situations in the U.S. and Europe.

Mr. Ertel serves on the Board of Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania and is Chair of the Academic Policy Committee. He also is Chair of the Board of Overseers for the School of Social Policy & Practice. At Penn, Mr. Ertel helped found the Center for High Impact Philanthropy. The Center provides independent analysis, education, and other decision making tools for donors interested in maximizing the social impact of their charitable donations.

Mr. Ertel attended the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania where he earned a Master of Business Administration degree in 1988 as well as a Bachelor of Science in Economics degree with a concentration in Finance in 1987.

Sonya Belletti, LSCW, — Executive Director of the Bayview Foundation. Ms. Belletti manages a team who organize various academic, cultural, community services programs focused on engaging with the students in the program and their families. Under Ms. Belletti’s leadership, Bayview Foundation’s high school graduating class of 2010 proudly boasted a 93% on-time graduation rate and a 97% overall high school graduation rate. The class of 2017 had a 70% on-time graduation rate with the overall graduation rate at 88%. The class of 2018 had 80% on-time graduation rate with an overall graduation rate of 94%.

In addition to her role as the Foundation’s Executive Director, Ms. Belletti also serves as the Director of Community Relations for Bayview Asset Management, which focuses on partnering with the Human Resources department to encourage and engage employees in various community service projects, such as various school beautification projects and tutoring and mentoring programs with community partners.

Prior to joining Bayview, Ms. Belletti worked as a Mental Health Clinician in Campbell, CA. During her tenure she was a member of a multi-disciplinary team providing psychotherapeutic and psycho-rehabilitative services to children and families referred from Children Services and the Juvenile Probation Department. In addition, Ms. Belletti has worked at Kristi House in Miami, FL as a Comprehensive Behavioral Health Assessor, conducting assessments for children in the Department of Child and Family’s care and providing recommendations to ensure appropriate placement.

Ms. Belletti holds a master’s degree in Social Work from San Jose State University and a bachelor’s degree in Psychology with a minor in Child and Family Studies from Syracuse University. Ms. Belletti continues to expand her knowledgebase through numerous continuing education programs as she is a life-long student who shares her passion for learning with the students with whom she works.

Bayview Foundation is committed to improving the education opportunities for young people in Florida through our programs and initiatives. Learn more about our programs: