Jennifer Emmett is a Kids Media expert and content creator inspiring kids to be curious, learn, and explore the world. She was Senior Vice President of National Geographic Kids Media where she oversaw a program that included publication of two magazines, 100 books per year, a website, social media channels, a YouTube channel, digital apps, Alexa skills, a radio show, and short-form video. Together with television platforms, the Nat Geo Kids brand reaches 285 million kids per month and is a leader in kids nonfiction, STEM, and fun reference. Jennifer has edited more than 100 nonfiction titles for children, which have collectively sold hundreds of thousands of copies. Highlights include the launch of the best-selling National Geographic Kids Almanac, National Geographic Little Kids First Big Book of Why, and the popular Everything series offering kids “everything you ever wanted to know about everything,” with titles from Sharks to Dinosaurs to Big Cats to Reptiles. Jennifer was a researcher for the children’s television program, Where In the World Is Carmen Sandiego? for two seasons. While earning her M.A. in English Literature from Boston College, she taught English composition and interned at Little, Brown, & Co., in their children’s book department. She’s a graduate of the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. She lives in Chevy Chase, Maryland, with her husband, three children, and a dog.

Lana Wong is based in Washington, DC after living abroad for 17 years in London, Nairobi, and Paris. She has diverse work experience as a photographer, educator, television broadcaster, and creative director. In 1997, Lana founded Shootback – a youth photography and development project in the Nairobi slums that harnessed the creative voices of young Kenyans so they could tell their own stories. Inspired by this experience and her creative collaborations with international organizations, local NGOs, foundations, youth, and artists, Lana is thrilled to be working with Shout Mouse to utilize the power of words and images for advocacy, education, and development. Lana earned a BA in Visual and Environmental Studies from Harvard University and a Master’s in Photography from the Royal College of Art in London.

Tiffani R. Alexander is an award-winning writer, editor, and executive leader with over 18 years of experience developing publications and multimedia, content strategy, and executive communications. Having worked on print and online publications within the public safety sector (Law Enforcement Magazine and Officer.com, Firehouse Magazine and Firehouse.com), entertainment (Sister 2 Sister, Downbeat Magazine, etc.), and association and trade publishing, Tiffani most recently served as Associate Vice President, Editorial Strategy, at the Association of Corporate Counsel (ACC). At ACC, Tiffani oversaw the editorial and multimedia teams within the Communications division, website governance, and global content strategy.

After spending much of her professional life working within trade, nonprofit, and association publishing and media, Tiffani decided to take all that she’s learned and launch TiffaniWrites, LLC (TiffWrites.com). TiffaniWrites provides editorial, creative design, and content strategy services to individuals and organizations. Tiffani strives to help others “tell the story of them,” whether it be their personal story or the story of their organization, product, or service. In addition, she is working on a historical fiction/fantasy novel and looking forward to learning from the accomplished and talented writers published via Shout Mouse Press! 

Tiffani earned a BA in Journalism from the University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP), and a MA in Arts, Entertainment & Media Management from Columbia College, Chicago. She lives in Prince George’s County, Md. and spends an incredible amount of time reading fantasy novels over cups of coffee (vanilla lattes, to be exact); decorating (and redecorating) her home; and catering to the needs of a cat she shouldn’t have named after an Ancient Pharaoh (King Ramses).

Ashleigh Hazley is a private consultant and strategist who empowers organizations to creatively approach diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). With a wealth of experience across multiple sectors, Ashleigh has played a key role in advancing social justice and structural DEI change at and on behalf of prominent institutions like the Muhammad Ali Center, Bellarmine University, the University of Louisville, and the National Collegiate Athletic Association. In addition to their full-time roles, Ashleigh has worked on contract and consulting projects, developing DEI-focused curricula and providing strategic guidance to organizations nationwide.

Currently, Ashleigh serves as the Director of Youth Programming for the Washington Nationals. In this capacity, they lead the club’s education initiatives by fostering educational partnerships with local nonprofits, educational agencies, and Smithsonian Institutions. Ashleigh also oversees youth baseball and softball programs, outfitting over 20,000 young people across the DMV with free uniforms. Additionally, they support key relationships with local government officials, working closely on community initiatives and strategic partnerships.

Savannah R. Overton is an educator, social activist, media and diversity scholar and public speaker that has worked around the world addressing some of the most pressing issues of our time. In 2014 she was recruited as the Director of Admissions at Duke Ellington School of the Arts. Now as Director of Enrollment she oversees enrollment, residency verification in addition to admissions and educational partnerships.  Through the DCPS Global Education Program, she has served as a Travel Ambassador taking students on study abroad trips to Peru, Senegal, Ecuador, France and Italy. Savannah earned two BA’s from Pepperdine University: in Intercultural Communication and in Sociology and later a MA in Media Studies from Syracuse University.  She spent three years in reality television as a Coordinator for Alternative Entertainment at Fox Broadcasting Company working as a liaison between production companies and the network on shows such as: American Idol, So You Think You Can Dance, The Emmy Awards and so on. As an Adjunct Professor she has taught courses in Race, Class & Gender and School Violence.  In addition to teaching, consulting, and shaking up the world, she loves to volunteer with youth organizations and is an avid sports enthusiast. 

Anthony (Tony) Keith, Jr., PhD. is a Black American gay poet, spoken word artist, and Hip-Hop educational leader from Washington D.C. He is author of the debut young adult memoir in verse, How the Boogeyman Became a Poet and the young adult poetry collection Knucklehead forthcoming from Katherine Tegen Books. His feature performances include John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Washington National Cathedral, and the African Alliance Community Center in Arusha Tanzania. Tony’s writings appear in the Journal of Negro Education, Equity & Excellence in Education and the Journal of Black Masculinity and many others. A multi-year fellow of the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities, Tony is founder and CEO of Ed Emcee Academy, an entrepreneurial extension of his award-winning dissertation research about Hip-Hop culture and leadership for racial equity in American education. He holds a PhD in education from George Mason University, and lives with his husband, Harry Christian III and their dog, Sage, in his DC hometown.

David Farrell, professionally qualified as a Chartered Accountant and in Corporate Finance from the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England & Wales, has over thirty years of experience in Corporate Finance and Financial Management. His career has included national and international consultancies (KPMG, FTI), covering both strategic as well as transactional M&A work, with deep knowledge of the U.S. and European markets. David has also served in multiple senior financial and strategic roles at corporate head offices (including his present position as SVP, Finance at OnPoint Group) with a focus on M&A and performance improvement initiatives.

David is also on the Board of Directors for Capital for Children and National Capital Poison Center. David lives with his wife, Laura Frigenti, and his three English Springer Spaniels, Oreo, Red, and Tilly.

Denisse Arias is the inaugural Director of The EdRedesign's Lab Fellowship for Cradle-to-Career Partnership Leaders, supporting new and aspiring leaders of cradle-to-career place-based partnerships. 

Denisse brings experience in equity-focused leadership development, cross-sector collaboration, education systems transformation, and monitoring, evaluation, and learning within education and international development. Prior to joining EdRedesign, Denisse held various roles at Teach For All, supporting leaders across Asia, Latin America, Africa, and Europe pursuing systems change and collective leadership efforts, most recently as the Director for Leadership Development & Equity. During her time at Teach For All, Denisse also co-led a 17-person team responsible for designing and executing over 50 learning experiences, Fellowships, and communities of practice for network stakeholders. She also supported partnerships with USAID, the European Commission, and the World Bank. Denisse co-led the Leading from Lived Experience Fellowship from 2019-2024, a leadership development opportunity for network members who themselves had experienced inequities within their contexts, that reached over 100 network members. 

A Teach For America Alum, Denisse taught in her community and served as inaugural Co-Board Chair for the Teach For America – Massachusetts’ Homegrown Alumni Board, supporting engagement with corps members and alumni from Massachusetts. In June 2024, Denisse was selected as a Hispanics in Philanthropy Lideres Fellow. She holds a B.A and B.S. from Boston University and a Master’s in Public Administration (MPA) from Columbia University’s School of International & Public Affairs.