Meet the Board
Board Members:
Dr. Lakisha Covert - President
Dr. Raquel Talley - Vice President
Melissa Tapscott - Treasurer
Dr. Mykia Cadet - Secretary
Dr. Jacqueline Marshall - Community Relations Officer
Aricka Washington - Child and Family Advocate
Dr. Lakisha Covert
President
Known as "Your Destiny Cheer Captain!" Dr. Lakisha Covert, CPC, serves the community as an entrepreneur, author, educator, executive coach, and certified life coach. She is an award-winning educator and has mentored, coached, and served the community Nationwide for 25 years. She taught for 11 years and was a five-year principal, successfully leading two schools in Prince George’s County, Maryland, and Alexandria, Virginia. Currently, she serves as Deputy Chief at a non-profit organization. In 2014, she founded a non-profit called The Christmas Experience, Inc. The Christmas Experience, Inc. serves children and families in need during the holidays. For over a decade, this non-profit has served hundreds of children and their families through partnerships with organizations such as Target Stores, Lifestyles of Southern MD, and Local Schools. In addition to serving the community, she is a best-selling author of “Try Success, It Won’t Bite: How to Live Your Best Life Through 10 Principles of Self Excellence,” Available on Amazon.
This book was inspired by Lakisha’s love for coaching others as a certified professional coach (CPC). She specializes in life planning, productivity, and destiny fulfillment. Since her book was published, she has been featured on several podcasts and has spoken at various events virtually and in person. In 2020, she founded Success My Way Academy, a life coaching mastermind course that moves people from their dreams to their destiny. Her mission is to serve others with all her heart, mind, and soul, spreading love and teaching destiny fulfillment through her life and actions.
Dr. Raquel Talley
Vice President
Dr. Raquel Talley has been an educator for 28 years, working in K-12 urban education, where she served as a district leader for six years and a school leader for ten years. She has also held various school instructional leadership positions after teaching grades K-5 as an elementary classroom teacher. She spent her educational career in large urban school districts in Maryland and Virginia.
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Raquel is passionate about collaborating with educators to support their professional growth in providing a high-quality, equitable education for all students. When Raquel conducted her dissertation study, she was eager to learn how the principal evaluation
process contributed to a change in principals' professional growth and development and how it informed change in principals' instructional leadership. She wanted to ensure there were systems in place to build the instructional capacity of school leaders. Raquel continues this work in her current role at an educational non-profit organization. She is part of the program and implementation delivery team. Her role is vital in ensuring the delivery of exceptional educator professional development programs and services to school systems across the country with a focus on anti-racist instructional teaching practices. She enjoys coaching and leading adult learning and empowering educators to provide equitable instruction to students.
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Raquel holds a doctorate in Educational Leadership and Policy Studies from Howard University, a Master of Teaching in Early Childhood Education from Virginia Commonwealth University, and a Bachelor of Science in Psychology with a concentration in Elementary Education from Virginia Commonwealth University. Raquel also holds Superintendency and Inclusive Leadership: The Power of Workplace Diversity certifications.
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In her spare time, Raquel is an event planner who coordinates weddings, birthday parties, and other special occasions and events.
Dr. Kia Cadet
Secretary
Dr. Kia Cadet is the CEO and President of Education Acquisition Group where she provides executive consultation around strategic planning, organizational effectiveness, and project management. She also serves as a middle school principal of approximately 1,300 students and 130 staff members in one of the nation’s largest urban school districts. Dr. Cadet previously served as an instructional consultant and mentor teacher where she coached educators through creating inviting educational environments, led professional learning series on instructional strategies, supported development and calibration of evaluation tools, and consulted with school administrators to build teacher efficacy and pedagogical practices. In 2010, she earned the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards’ National Board Certification in Adult/Young Adult English Language Arts.
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Within the same year, the National Society of High School Scholars recognized Dr. Cadet as a Claes Nobel Educator of Distinction, an organization founded and chaired by the renown Nobel family. Between 2011 and 2014, she served as a National Board Certified Teacher (NBCT) Candidate Mentor while earning a Master's degree in Counseling from Trinity Washington University. Dr. Cadet earned a doctoral degree in Educational Leadership and Policy from Howard University with a focus on African-American female superintendents’ experiences leading urban school districts. In 2016, she completed the AASA, The School Superintendents Association Urban Superintendents Academy, a selective program aimed at preparing current and future superintendents to address national concerns of education equity, access, and governance; a year later, AASA honored her as an Educational Administration Scholarship Award Recipient, a scholarship awarded to seven top graduate students in the nation who promote education change. When not working, Dr. Cadet enjoys spending time with her husband traveling, creating innovating cuisine, and playing with their two dogs.
Melissa Tapscott
Treasurer
Melissa has over 20 years of experience in budget and finance. She spent 8 years as a Budget Analyst for the Office of the Chief Financial Officer at DC Public Schools and currently works as a financial analyst in the Office of Budget and Programs for the Federal Aviation Administration. As a Financial Analyst, Mrs. Tapscott manages an over $600 million budget and is responsible for the development, execution, and justification of that budget.
