Melissa (she/her/hers) has spent her career working to build and support school communities to become more equitable and inclusive spaces where all children are able to thrive. Most recently, she served as the Vice President of Systems Learning at Teach for America where she led the launch of an ongoing learning curriculum to support TFA’s leaders to deepen their thinking and practices related to systems change. She also played a key role in designing the coaching model and leadership development programs for school leaders at DC’s School Leader Lab and the Lynch Leadership Academy at Boston College. Melissa has also served as Director of School Partnerships at Flamboyan Foundation. Prior to her coaching career, Melissa led both Scott Montgomery Elementary School and Walker Jones Education Campus, and taught in DC and California. She has also played a supporting role at Onward, participating in the design of LiberatED: Homeschooling for Justice, a learning platform that supports the innovative, community-based, and liberatory learning environments that our children deserve. 

Melissa earned a master’s degree in school leadership with a focus on teacher leadership from Harvard’s Graduate School of Education and a master’s degree in educational administration from Trinity College. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Sociology from Bowdoin College. She lives in the Mt. Pleasant neighborhood not far from where she grew up.  As a DCPS graduate and parent of a child in the DC schools, she’s thrilled to be a member of the Kindred team. It is her experiences with students, families, teachers, and leaders who inspire her to continue to learn and to become a better person.