COMMUNITIES IN SCHOOLS OF RENTON-TUKWILA - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Board Vice Chair / Director of Operations, Puget Sound Educational Service District
- Operations Director for the Puget Sound Educational Service District
ANDREA is the Operations Director for the Puget Sound Educational Service District. She has been in the educational field for almost 20 years starting her career out as an elementary school teacher before eventually moving over to the operations side of education. Andrea first became involved with Communities In Schools while working for the Clover Park School District and volunteering as a CIS mentor for a high school student in Lakewood. It was during this time where she was able to see firsthand the positive impact a mentor can have in a young person's life.
Andrea loves living and working in Renton. She and her husband Terry stay busy keeping up with their 3 daughters, two of whom are in the Renton School District. Her family enjoys working out together, playing soccer, traveling, and trying new things.
ASHLEY comes to us from CIS of Dallas! Born in Spokane, raised in Denver, at 16 years old Ashley moved back to Washington and graduated from Renton High School in 2002. She started her higher education at Bellevue Community College with a major in Finance, but later decided to change her major to more align with her passion for working with youth which led her to apply for the Bachelor's degree program at Highline College for Youth Development.
In 2018 Ashley and her three children moved to Dallas, TX and it was there that she started to work as a Special Education Aide at Richardson ISD. While working at Richardson ISD Ashley discovered that she wanted to do more work centered around student reform and built-in support systems for students in the school. Once she graduated in 2019 with her BA in Human Services from Colorado State University Global, she set out to find an organization that aligned with her current and future career needs. This led Ashley to working for Communities in the Schools. Building upon her desire for student form, Ashley is currently pursuing her Masters in Criminal Justice.
In Ashley's free time she loves to hang out with her three children (one girl and two boys), volunteer with programs targeting young students of color, try new ethnic foods, and binge watch British tv series.
Job Titles:
- Board Member / Researcher, Market Intelligence, Amazon
CAPREE is from the Pacific Northwest. Currently, she works in Talent Acquisition at Amazon. She began her career fighting for kids. She worked in a school district graduating only about 50% of students from high school. While taking on a couple leadership roles, she led 94.7% of students to earn proficient or advanced on the state exam. Her belief in the power of education and our youth led her continue to advocate for youth even as she transitioned into the tech space. She is a former Teach For America- The Collective Board Member and Greater Washington Urban League Board Member.
In her free time, she enjoys reading, sports, and the great outdoors. Regardless of the adventure, she purses it with strategy and true grit.
Job Titles:
- Board Member / Director of Design & Construction, Legacy Development & Management
Job Titles:
- Program and Operations Director
Job Titles:
- Lead Site Coordinator at Nelsen Middle School
GENA is a positive and empowering educator who helps youth establish mental, emotional and physical skills through building self-confidence & growth mindset.
Before starting with Communities In Schools, Gena worked at the City of Renton as a Recreation Specialist. She currently coaches girls basketball and track and field at Mount Rainier High School. Additionally, she serves on the leadership team for King County Play Equity Coalition.
Gena enjoys spending time with her sisters and nephew, poetry slams, reading & discovering nature.
Job Titles:
- Site Coordinator at Campbell Hill Elementary School, and Cascade Elementary School
GINNY is from southern California receiving her degree from Santa Barbara Community College. After growing up in a small community, Ginny fell in love with Seattle in 1978 while on vacation here. The variety of seasons, different cultures, and so many choices of different things to do, Ginny was quickly drawn into the beauty of the area and moved here shortly thereafter! She settled in quickly, married, began her family and in 1994 began working for the Renton School District. In 2002 she joined the partnership program, Communities In Schools of Renton and Renton School District becoming a Family Liaison. Since joining the partnership team, she feels she no longer "works" but does what comes natural to her, helping and supporting others by connecting them to community resources. She is all about family, friends, and a firm believer life should be enjoyed with laughter being the best medicine!
virginia.fulmer@rentonschools.us Campbell Hill Office: 425-204-4033 Cascade Office: 425-204-3355
JAIME is an inspirational leader who can generate enthusiasm so others become as eager as her to transform ideas into action. She is energized by opportunities and possibilities and is driven to create desired experiences.
Jaime has over 16 years' non-profit leadership experience serving youth and families within King County. She has a Master's in Education with a specialization in Transformational Leadership and brings a passion for equity and social justice. She has lived in Renton since 1999 with her husband and two boys.
Jaime is very goal-oriented and thrives on challenges, both of which led her to become an Ironman… not once, not twice, but three times! If you'd like to get in touch with her, you are more than welcome to join her for a 4:30am workout. Just don't try to schedule anything with her past 7:00pm as that's her bedtime.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Board Chair / Director of ECommerce Product Management, Costco Wholesale
JONATHAN is a Seattle native, attending the University of Washington for his undergrad. His career interests took him to a local company, Costco Wholesale, where he is currently an Information Systems Project Manager in the supply chain space. It was at Costco that he learned of the company's large and long-time investment in Communities In Schools and decided to take a mentoring opportunity in Renton (where he and his wife live). From mentoring, his interest grew in CISR where he joined the board. He began serving as Treasurer for the organization in summer of 2016.
In his spare time, Jonathan trains for marathons and is true to his Pacific NW self and enjoys hiking through Washington's beautiful outdoors. He and his wife Jaycee enjoy travel and the search for new and interesting restaurants, both local and abroad.
JULIANA was raised in the Bryn Mawr area and her husband and children all attended Renton schools. She has worked in the schools in various positions for over 10 years. She also worked for a non-profit organization facilitating the needs of families whose husbands and fathers were in recovery. She feels a deep tie to Renton and loves being able to give back to the community that supported her as a young teen mother. She is very active in her children's lives, attending UW games, Lindbergh activities and travels to see her 1st granddaughter frequently.
Job Titles:
- Board Member / Vice President of Finance and Administration, South Seattle College
JULIENNE has been in education accounting since 2004 and medical accounting and supervising staff since 1992. Julienne earned her chief business official certification from the California Association of School Business Officials in 2007 and served as the first Chief Business Official for West Sac Prep Charter School. Since transitioning to higher education, Julienne worked for the University of California for 7 years serving in several positions including Interim Director of Administrative Services for Student Health and Counseling Services at UC Davis and Student Health Services Director at UC Riverside. Julienne currently serves as the Vice President of Finance and Administrative Services at South Seattle College where she oversees an annual budget of 37 million. She leads the business office, facilities, security and capital projects at South. While in California, Julienne served as the Treasurer for Parents for the Arts, Parent Coordinator for Davis Musical Theatre Company as well as serving as the chair of the gifted and talented advisory committee at Washington Unified School District.
Job Titles:
- Site Coordinator at Showalter Middle School
KATYA is a recent college graduate from the University of Washington. She graduated in spring of 2020 with a BA in Law, Societies, and Justice and a minor in Diversity. While in school, Katya had the opportunity to work as an Instructional Assistant at a middle school in South Seattle where she discovered her passion for working with low-income students and students of color.
Katya was born and raised in Federal Way, WA to Mexican immigrant parents. As a first generation student, she hopes to be a mentor to low-income students and students of color struggling to navigate the public education system. Katya's position allows her to connect students and families to community resources and ensure students have the tools they need to reach their full potential. Her passion for supporting students is the reason why she is excited to be joining the Communities in Schools team, working alongside people dedicated to empowering students to stay in school.
Job Titles:
- Site Coordinator at McKnight Middle School
KAY is a born and raised West Seattleite of Washington State. She has served in social/human services for 10+ years, working with both children of all ages and adults from all backgrounds. She has held many positive roles in non-profit organizations. Kay has also worked in the education field with children from daycare services to providing paraprofessional services within RSD, ILC/ASD program. She has 6 years' experience with at-risk youth as a former case-manager for juveniles in the criminal justice system as well as being an at-risk youth herself. She pursued her career in the field of criminal justice with a BA in Public Administration in hopes to be the next female Al Sharpton fighting social injustices or will settle for becoming a statistic analyst in government organization. She's a mother of two boys (13 & 8) in which she holds high standards when it comes to education. She comes to CIS in hopes to return the favor back to youth and providing restoration in areas necessary for future success. She singlehandedly hopes to positively impact and touch the lives of the youth one by one. Her biggest passion is helping people, it gives her something to look forward to.
She enjoys reading, listening to music, drinking tea, Saturday morning walks, binge watching shows, gardening, crocheting, and going on adventures with her family. Her favorite color is pink and she loves unicorns. Her favorite educational subject is history/social studies
KEYSHA-RAE comes from a diverse background in both the for-profit and non-profit sector. Her educational background may be as diverse as the experiences she brings to the team, as she holds a BA in Sociology from the best university in the state, WSU (Go Cougs!), and a MPS in Fashion Marketing. She is an advocate in her community and continues to fight for social justice, equity, rebuilding our educational system, and eradicating houselessness. She was born in Wisconsin but has spent majority of her life living in Tacoma, after a short time living in Austin, TX. Keysha-Rae is also a Palmer Scholars mentor where she believes that pouring into and truly setting up ALL youth for success is more critical now than ever. She is grounded in relationship building which is a huge pillar of development.
Keysha-Rae is a go-getter and a servant leader who loves to be pushed outside of her comfort zone and challenged. She's also obsessed with CrossFit, which is where you can find her 4-5 days a week at the gym throwing around weights!
Random but fun fact, Keysha-Rae also has two former professional athletes in her family!
Job Titles:
- Mobile Outreach Coordinator
LATISHA was born and raised in Washington state. She is the only girl of four children. She earned her GED in 1995. Latisha decided to return to school in 2013, where she earned an Associate's degree in Chemical Dependency and Human Services at Highline College. She decided to take her education a step further and earned a Bachelor's degree in Youth Development as an Honor Scholar in 2017.
Latisha worked as a Customer Service Representative for a leading wireless carrier for more than a decade. Upon returning to school, she worked as a Highline College Operator. In 2019, she began working for a non-profit organization as a Substance Use Professional Trainee. In November 2020, she became fully licensed as a Substance Use Professional. Latisha has a passion for servicing individuals, families in need, and at-risk youth.
Latisha has one teenage daughter. She is planning to grow her family through fostering children and ultimately hopes to adopt one day. Latisha enjoys a ray of activities, which include, movies, dining out, concerts, comedy shows and traveling. Most of all, she enjoys being an active mother and spending quality time with her family.
Job Titles:
- Mobile Case Manager at Hazen High School, Lindberg High School, and Renton High School
Job Titles:
- Site Coordinator at Ella Baker Elementary School
LIZ was born and grew up in the suburbs of Chicago, Illinois, and moved to the Seattle area in 2010 during middle school. She graduated from Redmond High School and Bellevue College in 2016, from Western Washington University with a BA in Human Services in 2018, and then from Northwest University with a MA in Secondary Teaching in 2019. During this time, she realized the importance of understanding/learning systems of power to better serve those who historically have lacked power. She has worked with a wide variety of students (high support special education to highly capable students) in many different roles. She is incredibly excited to work at CIS because this organization intersects the purposes of supporting the whole child while keeping academic growth as a priority.
Liz enjoys watching tv, reading comic books, and learning trivia in her free time.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Treasurer of the Board
LYNN is the daughter of a space program engineer and grew up in Florida and moved to eastern Washington with her family after high school. She attended Washington State University, graduating with a degree in Mechanical Engineering and working at Boeing for 10 years before becoming a ‘stay at home' mom after the birth of her third child. Starting with her involvement with cooperative preschool and continuing through high school, with some sports team-mom duty along the way, Lynn has been involved in education-related nonprofit work and served on the Renton School Board from 1991 until 2019. She has been a CISR mentor since 2000, and a board member since 2011. Her other interests are family history research (also know as Ancestry Anonymous) and gardening.
Job Titles:
- Board Member / Senior Project Manager, T - Mobile
MELINDA is originally from Vancouver, Washington but has been living in the Seattle area since 2016, after she relocated to attend graduate school. Melinda received her undergraduate degree from Western Washington University in Biology and her MBA from the University of Washington. Currently, she works in project management at T-Mobile in the Wholesale Organization. T-Mobile's Project 10Million effort inspired her to support educational equity in our community and join the board of Communities in Schools of Renton-Tukwila.
In her spare time, Melinda enjoys mountain biking, gravel and road cycling, cooking, travelling and reading. Still on her bucket list is to ride her bike across Washington State.
Job Titles:
- Reengagement Coordinator at Renton High School, and Hazen High School
MIKE has been working in the human services field for over 10 years with at-rick youth and adults. He recently moved to Washington form Pennsylvania to work at Renton and Hazen High Schools as a Reengagement Coordinator aiding students who are disengaged in the educational system. In his spare time, Michael writes poetry, goes to museums, participates in marches or protests depending on the issue, and likes a good horror movie.
Job Titles:
- Principal
- Board Member / Lead Learner, Principal, Kennydale Elementary
NIKKI is the proud Principal and Lead Learner at Kennydale Elementary. She started her career as an elementary teacher and enjoyed her time in the classroom for 15 years, before moving into administration. Nikki first became involved with non-profits, such as the University of Minnesota YMCA Big Buddy Program as a freshman in college. Through her commitment to Communities In Schools, she hopes to collaborate to ensure programs that connect the community with youth thrive in Renton and Tukwila.
Nikki enjoys family time with her husband, who serves the City of Tukwila Fire Department, as well as their two growing boys. They like to backpack, cook and stay active-exploring all of the wonders of the Pacific Northwest.
Job Titles:
- Site Coordinator at Bryn Mawr Elementary School, and Honey Dew Elementary School
SARAH MICHELLE was born and raised in Skyway, and is deeply proud of her West Hill roots. After graduating from Franklin High School, she attended South Seattle Community College, transferring to the American University of Cairo in 2006 to complete a BA and graduate work. The experience of living in Egypt was a trans-formative one, as well as providing her with many interesting stories to tell, such as time she was locked in pyramid or got hit by a parked car.
She lived in Egypt until 2011, and returned to the US with desire to give back to the community that had nurtured her dreams. In 2012, Sarah Michelle joined CISR and the Renton School District as an AmeriCorps Step-Up Mentor Program Coordinator, working with at-risk 5th grade students across seven elementary schools as they transitioned to middle school. Once her year of service concluded, she joined the staff at Bryn Mawr Elementary full time, serving in a variety of positions ranging from special education to the school health clinic. When an opportunity to rejoin the CISR team as a family liaison opened up, she was thrilled to be able to advocate for equity in the city she loves by supporting students and families in need.
In addition to being a travel fiend, Sarah Michelle enjoys photography, flying a wonderful drone named Martha, and reading far too many questionable books.
sarah.leonard@rentonschools.us Bryn Mawr Office : 425-204-4198 Honey Dew Office : 425-204-4835
Job Titles:
- Lead Site Coordinator at Thorndyke Elementary School
SEBASTIAN is a Seattle native, born and raised in the Central District. She graduated from Nova High School in 2009 and went on to live in NY for a year before returning to Seattle to go to college at Seattle Central College to explore career paths. She received a BA in Applied Behavioral Sciences in 2019. Her focus while in school was on child development and psychology, behavior, foster youth, and incarcerated youth.
Sebastian has worked with children from birth to 8th grade. She really found her passion for working with kids after spending about 5 years supervising at a home daycare. She then did some teachers assistant work at John Muir Elementary School and spent a year working with youth at Washington Middle School. While in school Sebastian had the opportunities to intern at Amara, working with foster and adopted youth, and at Therapeutic Health Services. Sebastian is currently a Site Coordinator at Thorndyke Elementary School in Tukwila.
Job Titles:
- Board Member / Assistant Principal, Hazen High School
Job Titles:
- Site Coordinator at Cascade View Elementary School
Job Titles:
- Board Secretary / Vice President of Continuous Improvement, Ideal Option
- Vice President of Continuous Improvement at Ideal Option
YUKI is the Vice President of Continuous Improvement at Ideal Option, an addiction medicine company. Since an early age growing up in Prosser, WA, she has been passionate about education, healthcare, fitness and service. During her time at Washington State University, she was a Big Sister. Post college, she volunteered with an educational software company. When the opportunity to become involved with Communities in Schools came up, she jumped at the chance to support her local community in an area that she believes wholeheartedly in.
Yuki loves living in Renton with her husband. She enjoys serving on the board of the HopeCentral, hiking, traveling and playing tennis. And someday, she will be a Kindergarten teacher.