WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (Jan. 12, 2023) – LEAD Girls of NC, a non-profit organization based in Winston-Salem for at-risk middle-school girls, announces five new appointments to its Board of Directors. “At LEAD, we focus on providing young girls in Forsyth County with the tools and resources they need to become productive citizens and active leaders in their communities,” said Joy Nelson Thomas, founder and executive director of LEAD Girls. “Through their own professional and community experiences, our board members are a dynamic expression of leadership at work. We are so grateful that they are choosing to invest their time, talents and energy in our organization.”

Dr. Victoria Burgos serves as a Talent and Development Consultant to Forsyth County focusing on professional growth and organizational excellence. Previously, she was Dean of Students of her alma mater, Salem College. Dr. Burgos received her Doctorate in Educational Leadership from the College of St. Mary in Omaha. Her lived experiences as a daughter of immigrants and first-generation college student have infused her professional pursuits with a passion for flattening barriers to educational access. “Throughout my professional life and volunteer work, I’ve had the opportunity to serve students in a variety of settings and age groups from kindergarten to adulthood,” said Dr. Burgos. “I’m excited to support the impactful work of LEAD Girls in our community as a member of its board.”

Camille Davenport is a Regional HR Business Partner for CompassOne Healthcare providing strategic HR support for the organization’s more than 7,500 associates across 18 states. Davenport has more than 20 years of experience in Human Resources and leadership development. “I look forward to supporting the work of LEAD Girls as a board member and ensuring that girls of all ages come to know who they are and to discover the beauty and power that they possess,” she said.

Lucia Higgins is the Director, Philanthropy and Public Relations for Family Services, Inc. Prior to joining Family Services, she worked for 17 years in the Admissions Office of Salem Academy. Higgins serves on the board of the Association of Fundraising Professionals Triad Chapter and has been a volunteer with LEAD for several years. “I began my volunteer work with LEAD through the Marketing Committee and event planning for LEAD’s annual Soiree event,” she said. “I look forward to being more involved with the mission and work of LEAD through the Board of Directors.”

Jasmine Pitt is an attorney with Akerman LLP specializing in commercial litigation in state and federal courts. She is the Vice President of the Forsyth County Bar Association/31st Judicial Bar and serves on the Board of Directors for the North Carolina Association of Defense Attorneys. Jasmine also is on the Board of Directors for the Ronald McDonald House Charities of the Piedmont Triad and the Rose Council at Wake Forest School of Law, her alma mater. Jasmine is a Winston-Salem native and West Forsyth High School graduate. “I enjoy serving my community and actively engaging and participating in leadership development programs,” said Pitt. “I’m excited to join the Board of Directors for LEAD Girls and support the impressive work they do for young girls in Forsyth County.”

Masonne Sawyer is Vice President of College & Career Readiness & Holistic Success Services at Forsyth Technical Community College with a focus on developing and implementing programs that directly relate to improving student success, persistence and retention. Sawyer completed her college transfer degree at Forsyth Tech before obtaining her bachelor’s degree in social sciences from Gardner-Webb University and her Master of Science in Psychology from Capella University. Her community volunteer work includes serving on the Board of Directors for Experiment in Self-Reliance, The Trinity Center and the North Carolina American Council on Education (ACE) Women’s Network. She is Chair of the Education Day Committee for Leadership Winston-Salem and very involved with her church. “I look forward to being more involved with LEAD Girls of NC,” she said. “Through my professional work and volunteer service, I’ve always been strongly committed to mentoring and coaching young women to be strong, bold and courageous leaders.”

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WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (Jan. 12, 2023) – LEAD Girls of NC, a local nonprofit focused on empowering at-risk/low-income girls, has appointed three new directors to its board and added a facilitator to its staff. LEAD (Learning Everyday Accomplishing Dreams) serves more than 300 girls annually in Forsyth County through in-school programming with partner middle schools in addition to weekend and summer offerings.

New members of the LEAD board of directors are Shana Folk, Tahja Gaymon and Tamisha Keith.
Shana Folk serves as the Assistant Vice President, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Officer with Allegacy Federal Credit Union. In her role, Folk leads Allegacy’s journey to create a culture of belonging, oversees employee engagement and spearheads the organization’s DE+I efforts across the community. She is active with the Winston-Salem Society for Human Resources Management and recently completed her MBA at Wake Forest University. “I look forward to partnering with LEAD Girls and inspiring young women to believe in themselves and strive for excellence,” said Folk.

Tahja Gaymon is the Director of Alumnae Engagement for Salem Academy where she enjoys connecting with alums and students. Gaymon is active in the Winston-Salem community as a member of the Winston-Salem Foundation Women’s Fund Events Committee and YWCA Women of Vision Committee. She is passionate about Diversity, Equity and Inclusion and believes change must start within each individual person. “We have to move beyond our comfort zone and make meaningful connections with people that do not necessarily reflect how and where we grew up. This will not only begin to change each person, but it can change our communities,” said Gaymon.

Tamisha Keith is the Director of Gift Planning for North Carolina A&T State University. In her role, Keith is responsible for building and managing a comprehensive planned giving program for long-term revenue growth. Her community involvement includes the Winston-Salem Foundation Women’s Fund, The Enrichment Center, HandsOn Northwest North Carolina Board of Directors and the Winston-Salem Transit Authority. “I first learned of LEAD Girls when I served on the Grants Committee of the Women’s Fund of Winston-Salem and I have always admired the work of this amazing organization. I look forward to joining the board and assisting the organization in its continued growth and development,” said Keith.

The LEAD Girls of NC board is chaired by Amanda Hughes, Environmental, Health & Safety Manager with KIND. Chelsea Barnes, attorney with the Winston-Salem office of Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough, serves as secretary and Caitlin Browne, cost controller for Ontex Operations USA, serves as treasurer. Additional board directors are Fanetta Bryant Jones, Katina Little and Dr. Angela Monell.

Entering 2023, LEAD is expanding its programming with new partnerships at Paisley Middle School and Philo-Hill Magnet Academy, and recently named Shonette Lewis as LEAD Facilitator.

Shonette Lewis comes to LEAD with more than 15 years of education experience. She began her career as a teacher in 2005 and worked in a variety of roles including Parent Educator, Training Specialist, Mentor Teacher and Program Coordinator. Lewis holds a master’s degree in Family Life and Youth Development and an education specialist degree in Early Childhood Education. In her role at LEAD, Lewis will run in-school programming across partner schools and work alongside other LEAD facilitators to direct the weekend and summer offerings.

“Shonette is an experienced educator who brings incredible passion and energy to the LEAD team,” said LEAD founder and executive director Joy Nelson Thomas. “Since our founding in 2016, LEAD has been fortunate to have so many talented and committed women in our community step forward as staff members, board directors, volunteers and financial supporters. Our success in impacting the lives of hundreds of young girls each year is because of their hard work and belief in our mission.”

In addition to growing the LEAD team, Thomas highlights that ongoing staff training is a key organizational priority. In 2022, all full-time staff completed Trauma-Resilient training and LatinaX challenges. “As a staff, we want to keep growing in our skills so that we’re able to best address the needs of the young women we serve through our organization,” she said. “Understanding and responding to trauma and ACE (Adverse Childhood Experiences) is critically important to our success in having positive and sustained impact in their lives.”

LEAD Girls will celebrate seven years of service to the community at its annual Soiree on March 12, 2023. This year’s event theme is “Hear Her Roar” and the event will take place at ROAR on Liberty Street in Winston-Salem. Event details will be available at www.leadgirls.org.

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