Prior to being named the founding principal of Northline Elementary, Cynovia served as the Resident Principal at YES Prep Southside. She completed her undergraduate studies at Texas State University in 2012 and earned a Masters Degree and Principal Certification from the University of St. Thomas. Cynovia began teaching in Houston and taught as a founding teacher in Washington D.C. at a turnaround charter school. Upon returning to Houston, she taught upper elementary in  and then as a teacher specialist at a middle school. 

Ashley Smith, originally from Temple Hills, MD, is a published children’s author, and dedicated educator with over a decade of experience with a globally broad population of learners. She attended Temple University, where she became a proud member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., and graduated from the University of Maryland at College Park with a Bachelors in Psychology and a minor in Human Development. 

Ashley’s career in education began in 2011 during her child and adolescent development studies in India. In 2012, she committed to serving students and families in underserved communities as she was a Lead Early Childhood Teacher at Bright Beginnings Inc., having impact on those experiencing housing instability in Washington, DC. Inspired by her initial work in education, Ashley pursued a Dual Master’s in Early Childhood Education and Early Childhood Special Education at The Catholic University of America. She went on to teach various grades from Pre-K through sixth across general and special education, including Life Skills, with both DC Public Schools and at the time, KIPP: Austin. In 2015, Ashley spent five years as a Founder of Baton Rouge Bridge Academy, where she was a Teacher, SpEd Manager, and Leader through the school’s merge with IDEA Public Schools Louisiana. In 2020, she relocated to Houston to be a Founding Teacher and Grade-Level Chair with KIPP Texas. Ashley joined YES Prep Public Schools in 2021 as the Founding Assistant Principal of Southside Elementary. She currently serves as Resident Principal at East End Elementary, setting the stage for her future as a Founding Principal.  

From serving underserved communities in DC to leading initiatives in Louisiana and Texas, Ashley's commitment to excellence knows no bounds. Her passion for cross-cultural education drives her to create transformative experiences for all learners. Beyond her professional pursuits, Ashley finds joy in exploring new destinations and cherishing moments with her loving family.  

Jamelle K. Smith was born and raised on the Southside of Chicago, Illinois, where her educational journey was shaped by attending a magnet school that offered an alternative learning path. It was there that her passion for education first took root. She earned a Bachelor of Science in Special Education from Bradley University and later obtained a Master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction and Educational Leadership from the American College of Education.

Jamelle began her career at George Henry Corliss High School in Chicago, where she taught students with disabilities. She also served as the Special Education Case Manager, advisor of the peer jury, after-school program coordinator, and track and field coach. As a member of the school’s Leadership Team and the School Improvement Plan for Advancing Academic Achievement Team, she represented the special education department with distinction.

In 2011, Jamelle joined KIPP Chicago as the Special Education Coordinator for two campuses. In 2015, she relocated to Houston, Texas, where she continued her impact in education through her work with YES Prep Public Schools. There, she held a variety of leadership roles, including Special Education Manager/Compliance Specialist, Dean of Instruction, Director of Academics, and Assistant Principal.

Outside of her professional work, Jamelle enjoys crafting, watching Hallmark movies, spending time with family and friends, and staying active with her sorority. Her career has been driven by a deep commitment to student success, equity, and building strong school communities.

Tiffany Labrie is a proud native of Beaumont, TX, a small city 90 miles east of Houston.  After graduating high school, she journeyed to Atlanta, Georgia where she attended and graduated from Spelman, College, a historically black, female institution.  Upon college graduation, she spent the next 7 years teaching in Atlanta Public Schools as a 4^th and 5^th Grade Teacher and Instructional Coach.  During that time, Tiffany also earned a Master of Science degree in Urban Teacher Leadership/ Educational Leadership from Georgia State University. In 2014, she moved to New Orleans and joined an awesome team of educators in school turnaround work where she taught 5^th & 6^th grade math and served as Dean of Instruction. 

Tiffany has been a member of the YES Prep family since 2016!  Her roles over the years include: Dean of Instruction, YES Prep Southside Secondary (3 years), Director of Academics, YES Prep Fifth Ward (4 years), and most recently, Director of New Teacher Development, Home Office (2 years).  She is excited to kick off her 10^th year at YES as principal of North Forest Elementary!  Her proudest accomplishments include improving the instructional programs and school ratings at both YES Southside Secondary and YES Prep Fifth Ward as well as co-leading the charge to triple certification rates of Teaching Excellence ACP.  Tiffany is passionate about all things teaching and learning and truly enjoys developing and leading adults and students.  She has a deep belief that the work that we do is important because all students, regardless of their circumstances, deserve access to a quality education.   

Tiffany is the proud mom to a joyful and energetic 8-year-old girlie, Graycen, and enjoys spending time with family, friends, and traveling!  She is excited to continue building on the foundation that has been laid at this amazing campus and working alongside the North Forest Elementary team and community to lead us to our first A rating!  

Stephanee Dorsey is concluding her 14th year in education. Stephanee is a proud native of the beautiful state of Hawaii! She graduated from Southwestern Adventist University in 2009 with a BS in Elementary Education, and in 2012 from the University of Phoenix with her MBA in Healthcare Management. She also completed her Principal Certification with Lamar University. Before joining the YES Prep family, Stephanee held various teaching and leadership positions with Uplift Education, including an elementary classroom teacher and a District Math Content Teacher Leader. While at Houston ISD, she served as a classroom teacher, Math and Science Instructional Specialist, and Assistant Principal at Shadydale Elementary and Blackshear Elementary. Stephanee aims to create a culture where mediocrity is not an option! Only excellence will do – because our scholars deserve it! When she’s not working, Stephanee enjoys family time, crafting, watching sports, eating, and traveling!

Jorge Rodriguez is a Mexico native who relocated to Houston in 2003. He began his career in education as a second-grade teacher with the Houston Independent School District. Over the course of eight years, he taught second, third, fourth, and fifth grades, honing his data-driven instructional skills and deepening his commitment to student success. In 2012, Jorge transitioned into instructional leadership roles like teacher specialist and instructional coach.

Jorge earned his Master's degree in Educational Leadership from the University of Saint Thomas in 2016, a milestone that propelled him into further leadership opportunities. As an assistant principal, he applied his expertise and passion for education to support and guide both students and staff by designing and implementing school-wide systems that supported the success of all students.

In 2019, Jorge took on the role of principal at Lewis Elementary and over the past five years, he has dedicated himself to building a school community where students can learn, grow, and excel within a safe, inclusive, equitable, and responsive learning environment. His leadership has been instrumental in fostering a positive and productive educational atmosphere; and has built a strong school community.

Looking forward to the next chapter in his career, Jorge is excited to join YES Prep. He is eager to learn new strategies to expand his leadership capacity and begin serving the students and staff of YES Prep with the same dedication and enthusiasm that has defined his career.

Prior to becoming the founding principal of Southside Elementary, Andrea Citchen was principal of YES Prep Eisenhower High. She is a graduate from the University of Missouri where she earned a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education, Masters of Education in Curriculum and Instruction and a Masters of Education in Educational Leadership. Prior to joining YES in 2015, Andrea served in various roles at KIPP for nine years. Prior to joining KIPP, she was an elementary school teacher with Indianapolis Public Schools. 

Michelle LaFlure has been a cornerstone of the YES Prep North Central community for the past 24 years, demonstrating passion, excellence, and unwavering dedication in every role she has undertaken. A proud bilingual educator, Michelle holds a Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education from Calvin University and a Master’s in Education from the University of St. Thomas. As a first-generation college graduate, Michelle is deeply passionate about expanding opportunities for all students and ensuring every child receives a high-quality education from pre-K through 12th grade.

Her educational journey began in 2000 as a 3rd-grade teacher in downtown Chicago, Illinois. Disheartened by the inequities in public education, she joined Teach for America and moved to Houston, Texas. After teaching 5th grade in HISD, she transitioned to YES Prep Public Schools. Since joining the Trailblazer family at North Central Secondary, she has taught English, Spanish, and history to students in grades 5 through 8. She was YES Prep’s first Dean of Instruction at North Central Secondary and then became the first Director of Academics at the same school. From 2014 to 2019, she served as the NCS Principal, leading the Trailblazer family to remarkable academic achievements. She has a well-rounded understanding of what it takes to get students from underserved communities to and through college.

In 2019, she launched one of YES Prep’s first elementary schools, North Central Elementary. Despite the challenges of launching during COVID-19, the past six years have taught her the foundational requirements to ensure an elementary school is successful and prepares students for the rigorous AP-centered curricula of YES Prep high schools. With 11 years of experience as a principal, Michelle LaFlure brings a deep commitment to academic excellence, strong leadership, and community partnership. Throughout her career, she has worked to create inclusive, student-centered learning environments where every child can thrive. Michelle is known for building strong relationships with students, families, and staff, and for fostering a school culture grounded in high expectations, collaboration, and continuous improvement. Under her leadership, NCE and NCS have seen gains in academic performance, teacher development, and student engagement.

Outside of work, Michelle loves to work out, travel, and spend time with her beautiful family, including six nieces and nephews, who all reside in Grand Rapids, Michigan. While being an elementary principal has been her dream job, she is excited to expand her influence and work to ensure every Spark receives a high-quality education that prepares them for secondary school, college, and beyond.

Caroline Thouin-Frederick is a proud immigrant, mother, and first-generation college student. She is a dedicated educator who thrives in supporting students become the best version of themselves. As the Founding Principal of West Elementary, she is honored to serve a diverse community that is deeply personal to her and will ensure that each student has the skills and knowledge they need to thrive in and out of school.    

As a child, her family immigrated from Canada to Southwest Houston, and she grew up attending schools in the Fort Bend Independent School District. After graduating from the University of Houston, she began her teaching career with KIPP Texas Public Schools as a high school social studies teacher in Northeast Houston. In her four years with KIPP Texas, she was the girls' head soccer coach, social studies department chair, curriculum writer for AP Human Geography and received an M.Ed. from Texas A&M University. She also spent a summer teaching English in San Miguel De Allende, Mexico.  

In 2018, she pursued her passion for education research and went back to school for her Ph.D. in Higher Education Policy and Leadership studies from the University of Houston. During her time in the doctoral program, she published articles, book chapters, and policy papers that supported the funding and expansion of educational opportunities for incarcerated adults.   

Caroline has now been with YES Prep for 5 years and has made an impact on multiple campuses. She has worked as a Dean of Instruction at Southside Secondary, a founding Assistant Principal at Airline Elementary, and has been a Resident Principal at West Secondary and East End Elementary. She is passionate about seeing students learn, advocate for themselves, and build independence that will help them succeed today and in the future.  

Outside of work, Caroline enjoys staying active by playing soccer, tennis, and pickleball. On the weekends, she can be found exploring new parks and restaurants with her daughter, Lina (4).  

At YES Prep West Elementary, Caroline is excited to instill a joy for learning, independence and curiosity in each student.  

Matt is honored to continue leading at one of the founding elementary campuses for YES Prep after serving as the resident principal for the past year at Southeast Elementary.

Matt and his family moved to Houston in 2017 and before that, they lived in New York City for eight years.

He received his Bachelor of Music from Oklahoma City University in musical theater and during his time in New York worked for Disney, toured North America, and performed on Broadway.

In 2015 he joined the New York City Teach for America Corps and worked at Grant Avenue Elementary School in the Bronx.

During his time in the classroom, Matt taught first, second and third grade and was trained at the RICE Glascock Institute for Early Education in Storytelling. He received his Master of Science degree in Special Education from Brooklyn College and was part of the Rice University Urban Leaders cohort in partnership with Good Reason Houston. Matt is a proud certified principal in the state of Texas.

Prior to joining the YES Prep resident principal Program, he served the YES Prep Brays Oaks community as the literacy specialist and director of campus operations.

Matt is the son of a retired school nurse and is grateful to continue doing what his mom has always called, “worthy work.”

Selina Hall-Swope has been the Principal of YES Prep Brays Oaks since 2021. She earned her B.A. in English from Florida State University and her M.Ed. in English Education from Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University. She has been with YES Prep since 2012, first at YES Prep Brays Oaks where she served many roles including teaching English I and Reading Intervention, Literacy Specialist, Dean of Instruction. and Course Leader and Course Facilitator for seventh grade reading lab.  Selina has also served at YES Prep Northbrook High as the Director of Academics and Resident Principal at YES Prep Northbrook Middle. 

Kaitlan was born and raised in southeast Houston where she was profoundly inspired by her grandparents, two life-long educators with a deep belief that all students deserve access to an excellent education.  While studying abroad in college, Kaitlan taught English in an under-served community in Madrid, Spain. This sparked her interest in the power of education in international development, and ultimately, in education reform in the United States.  In 2010, Kaitlan began teaching at Marshall Middle School in Houston Independent School District where she taught eighth grade science and served as the science department chair. As a teacher, Kaitlan was struck by the need for more support for first year teachers and transitioned to YES Prep as an instructional coach with Teaching Excellence.  Since then, Kaitlan has served as a dean of instruction, yoga elective teacher, director of academics, resident principal at YES Prep West Secondary and most recently, as resident principal at YES Prep White Oak Secondary. 

When she’s not working Kaitlan enjoys running, practicing yoga, exploring national parks with her family and reading board books with her newborn daughter, Melanie, during tummy time.

Kenya Pinkard has worked alongside Executive Principal Antonio Castillo this past school year as a resident principal and was previously a campus leader at Fifth Ward. As a strong member of the community and based on her scope of work this year as a resident, Kenya will carry the Titan torch well and will continue to impact the culture of achievement. Pinkard is a first-generation college graduate and proud daughter of an immigrant and entrepreneur Korean woman and of an ex-military, Black man from Dallas.

She is committed to advocating for educational equity due to her personal challenges and opportunities that came by way of mentorship, community and access to knowledge. Her multicultural travel and background fueled her passion to serve multicultural and marginalized communities by way of education that began in 2005 teaching for HISD.

Currently, Kenya is in her 17th year of service and has a range of experience that includes being an ELA teacher for multiple grade levels, interventionist, literacy specialist, LPAC coordinator, RIT committee chair, operations manager, dean of instruction, assistant principal, and most recently resident principal at YES Prep Fifth Ward Secondary.

As a lifelong learner herself, Kenya has a Bachelor of Business Administration with a marketing focus from the University of Texas at Arlington, a Master of Science in both Educational Management and Reading Specialist from the University of Houston, Clear-Lake campus and is currently a doctoral candidate in Ethical Leadership at the University of St. Thomas. 

Cintia Arenas has served as Principal at YES Prep Gulfton Secondary since 2020. She graduated from the University of Houston with a bachelor’s degree in Interdisciplinary Studies. While attending college, Cintia was placed at YES Prep Lee, now YES Prep Gulfton, and held many positions including office aide, teaching assistant, seventh grade math instructor, Grade Level Chair, Dean of Students, and Director of Student Support.

Adrienne Brown was born in Alexandria, LA, and graduated from Louisiana State University (Geaux Tigers!) with a Bachelor of Arts in History and Master of Education in Curriculum and Instruction. She also earned a Master of Science in Education in Educational Leadership from Arkansas State University and recently participated in the Rice Urban School Leaders program. Adrienne was a classroom teacher for nine years. She taught high school social studies for six years in Baton Rouge, LA, and spent three years teaching middle and high school special education in Houston ISD and Katy ISD.  She began her career at YES at the Fifth Ward Secondary campus as a Compliance Specialist before transitioning to student culture as a Dean of Students and Director of Student Support. She was most recently the Resident Principal at the Hobby Secondary campus. In her spare time, she enjoys reading, dining out, traveling, watching sports, listening to music, and spending time with her family, friends, and dog, Lexi

Lilian Macias is excited to continue to carry on her legacy and impact the students, families and staff at YES Prep North Central Secondary. Lilian Macias is a Houston “native”, who immigrated from Guatemala at the age of four. As the daughter of immigrants, she has always been taught to value her education.

She attended the University of Texas at Austin, graduating with a Bachelor of Journalism and a Bachelor of Arts in Spanish. Lilian has also received a Master of Arts in Teaching from Relay Graduate School of Education.

As a first-generation high school and college graduate, she is passionate about providing opportunities for students who come from the same underserved communities and believes that it takes a village to raise a child.

Lilian started her career with YES Prep North Central Secondary in 2007, as a YES Corp member. After receiving her bachelor’s, she moved to YES Prep Brays Oaks where she taught middle school ELA, served as the grade level chair and middle school dean of students. She transitioned to the director of student support role at YES Prep North Central and was director at YES Prep Thrive.

Macias has also served as the school director for Credit Recovery and has been a co-lead for the Latinx Leadership Summits.  Most recently, she served as the resident principal at YES Prep North Central Secondary

She currently resides in the Tomball area with her husband Luis and their four kids: seven-year-old LJ, six-year-old Lilah, two-year-old Leon, nine-month-old Luke and their dog Max. 

Naketchia Alfred was raised in Ville Platte, LA, a close-knit community in southwest Louisiana where much of her family still resides. She is a proud graduate of Grambling State University where she earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Marketing and worked for two years as an Admission Counselor and Recruiter. She credits her time at Grambling with sparking her interest in college access work and highlighting the impact of fit on college persistence. Most recently, Naketchia served as Resident Principal at YES Prep Northwest Secondary and YES Prep Hobby Secondary where her work focused on coaching leaders, driving student achievement, and creating sustainable systems for campus growth. Naketchia entered the Resident Principal Pathway Program having spent 8 years at YES Prep North Forest Secondary building and leading its College Initiatives programming as a College Counselor, and later Director of College Counseling. She also taught middle school ELA at Ville Platte High School (Evangeline Parish Schools) and Attucks Middle School (Houston ISD). Naketchia’s journey has taught her a great deal about what is possible when the playing field is leveled for students from marginalized communities.  

Zicuria Ussery is a native of Atlanta, Georgia, and a proud alumna of Spelman College, where she graduated Magna Cum Laude in 2015. Her love for learning sparked an interest in education at a young age. Zicuria’s dream of being an educator became a career goal after completing a summer teaching internship in 2014 with Uncommon Schools. During this internship, she realized that education is a key driver for social advancement and to close opportunity gaps. From 2015-2017, Zicuria served as an eighth-grade teacher and grade level chair at YES Prep Hoffman. In 2017, she joined the YES Prep Southside Giants where she has served as a teacher, grade level chair, Dean of Instruction, and now Director of Academics. Zicuria holds a Master of Arts in Public School Building Leadership from Columbia University’s Summer Principals Academy. When she is not working to close opportunity gaps for students, she enjoys travelling, dining, and strength training. Zicuria is looking forward to learning more about what it takes to be a courageous leader at YES Prep. 

Nicci Cole was born and raised in Lansing, Michigan. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology in 2011 from the University of Michigan. She also has a a Master of Business Administration from Rice University and earned her Principal’s Certification at that time.

Nicci relocated from Michigan to Houston as a Teach For America corps member where she quickly fell in love with teaching. She taught middle school science at Sharpstown International School in HISD for 5 years. Followed by 3 years at KIPP Academy West where she served as the year 2 founding Assistant Principal.

Nicci joined YES Prep as Director of Academics at North Forest Secondary and then continued in that same role at Northside Secondary for another two years.  Nicci most recently served as Resident Principal at Northside Secondary.

Justin West is a University of Georgia alumni who moved to Houston to join the 2011 Teach for America Corps. He later completed his Master of Education with Principal Certification from the University of St. Thomas in 2016. His placement school was YES Prep North Forest where he had opportunity to serve in many roles such as 7^th Grade ELA and MS Seminar teacher, Grade Level Chair, High School Dean of Students and Director of Student Support. Throughout his time, he was able to see his first two groups of students complete the full mission of YES Prep by graduating from the campus. After being accepted into the first cohort of the Principal Residency, he was privileged to be placed at YES Prep Northbrook High School before being named principal of YES Prep Hoffman Middle School where he has served in that capacity for the past three years.

Justin’s passion for education is student-centered, rooted in equity and illuminated by the thought that all students can learn and positively impact the world. He is excited to apply his experiences and learnings with leading or teaching at schools within all four of YES Prep’s former and current partnerships to continue to expand the trajectories of students at YES Prep Northwest Secondary.   

Emily Ryans has a degree in Early Childhood Education from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga and a Texas Principal Certification and Master of Educational Leadership Degree from the University of St. Thomas. Emily came to YES Prep to work as a Dean of Instruction at YES Prep Southwest Secondary and most recently served at YES Prep Southeast Secondary as a Resident Principal.

Lauren Lightfoot was born and raised in Lithonia, Georgia. After graduating from Georgetown University (HOYA SAXA), she moved to Houston, Texas in 2010 as a proud member of the Teach for America Apollo 20 cohort and taught English for two years at Sharpstown High School (SHS) in Southwest Houston. After her time at SHS, she became the founding 11th grade English teacher at KIPP Sunnyside High School (KSHS) and she looped up that next year with the founding class. She worked at KSHS for 7 years and taught English I, English III, English IV, AP English Literature & Composition, AP English Language & Composition, and was the English department lead, testing coordinator, and a dean of instruction. After leaving KSHS, she became a YES Prep North Forest Legend, and then a Director of Academics at YES Prep Southside. She just finished her year as Resident Principal at YES Prep Brays Oaks and she is excited to step into a new chapter of leadership. She missed the Southside dearly in her year away and can't wait to get back! 

Erin Sadler is a Louisiana native that relocated to Houston in 2009 after earning a Bachelor of Arts from Louisiana Tech University. She joined the education movement as an English I teacher at Sharpstown High School in 2011 where she served as department chair, literacy specialist and supported Houston ISD’s PowerUP initiative. In 2015, Erin began her journey with YES Prep as an instructional coach for Teaching Excellence and then transitioned to a founding instructional leader at YES Prep Eisenhower High, a partnership school in Aldine. At YES Prep Eisenhower, she worked alongside other instructional leaders to launch YES Prep’s first 1:1 program – a technology initiative where each student is issued a laptop to support instructional technology - and supported academic initiatives that helped Eisenhower achieve A ratings. In July of 2019, Erin joined the family of YES Prep Southside Secondary as the Director of Academics where she launched one-to-one programming for high school students and cultivated an environment of academic excellence. She earned a Master of Arts in Public School Leadership from Teachers College Columbia University in the City of New York in 2019.

Natalie Garcia is a proud native Houstonian and member of the Latinx community. She proudly represents the Mexican, Cuban, first-generation, and bilingual communities that make up Houston and YES Prep. She joined Teach For America as a bilingual elementary school teacher for Houston Independent School District after graduating from Texas Christian University in 2012. Natalie joined the YES Prep community in 2014 at the Brays Oaks campus. She graduated from Johns Hopkins University with her Master's in Education in 2015 where she had the unique opportunity to have YES Prep Brays Oaks' class of 2019 cheer her on as she crossed the stage during their 8th grade Spring Trip. Natalie has been a proud Cavalier throughout her time at YES Prep and is excited to represent the Latinx community in the next level of leadership. In her free time Natalie enjoys spending time with friends and family. 

Greg Little first joined YES Prep in 2011 as a middle school Social Studies teacher, as a founding team member at YES Prep Fifth Ward Secondary. Before becoming Principal at YES Prep Northbrook High, Greg had the opportunity to serve as a Resident Principal at YES Prep Fifth Ward Secondary and YES Prep North Central Secondary. In his 10 years in education, Greg has served as a teacher, Grade Level Chair, Coach, Athletic Director, Dean of Students, and Director of Student Support. Greg is also a Teach For America alumnus.