Shireen Mitchell, Events Fundraising Co-Director

Shireen Mitchell is the Executive Officer of Digital Sisters/Sistas Inc., an organization in the Washington DC Metropolitan area that focuses on promoting and providing technology education and enrichment for women and children who are traditionally underserved. Shireen continues to advocate for technology policy issues that affect women's lives. She promotes technology diversity, education, and advocacy. Shireen is also the mother of a hip hop teen girl.

Sarah Brewer

Sarah Brewer is the Associate Director of the Women & Politics Institute at American University. She earned a Ph.D. in political science from American University where she focused her research on gender and political vocation. She is the co-editor of the book Gendering American Politics: Perspectives from the Literature (with Karen O’Connor and Michael Philip Fisher). She is the academic advisor for the Institute’s Graduate Certificate in Women, Policy and Political Leadership (WPPLP) Program and teaches Women and Political Vocation. She also is the Program Director NEW Leadership DC, a political leadership training that brings together college women in the Washington DC metropolitan area. Sarah edits YWTF’s newsletter.

Sophie Brion

A dedicated advocate for social change, Sophie Brion is a graduate of the University of Miami in Political Science and Philosophy. She has worked for the ACLU of Florida, where she was responsible for organizing the ACLU’s successful campaign to establish civilian review of police with subpoena power. She has also worked for Planned Parenthood and currently directs the Women’s Advocacy Project for the Women’s Fund of Miami-Dade which focuses on the issues impacting the lives of women and girls. In her free time she serves on the Board of the League of Women Voters and is a fledgling kayaker. In addition to working on YWTF’s policy issues, Sophie is the Chapter Director of YWTF Miami.

Jessica Corsi

A graduate of Georgetown's School of Foreign Service, Jessica works in international public health and is particularly interested in women and international human rights law and women and international political economy.   While at Georgetown Jessica pursued honors degrees in international politics and law and a certificate in Women's Studies.   She co-founded student advocacy groups for improved response to sexual assault on campus, the University's only peace group (pre-Iraq bombing), a garden for those affected by gendered violence, as well as acting and writing for the weekly newsmagazine and literary journal.    Her community work in Washington, DC has included teaching English to Spanish speaking immigrants and literacy to third graders in a low-resource neighborhood.   Currently her work in international public health deals with cancer and tobacco control, international law and trade policy, and civil society organizing, capacity building and development, with a focus on low and middle income nations and underserved populations.

A Spanish speaker, she has lived and studied in Mexico City , loves to travel, and would like to live and work abroad.    Active in grassroots politics, her activism has been featured in USA Today and the New York Times.    Born in Oregon and raised in Massachusetts and Texas, Jessica lives in the Adams Morgan neighborhood of Washington, DC .   Jessica works on YWTF's website.

Deva Kyle, Board Chair

Born in Long Beach, CA and raised in Los Angeles, Deva (along with her older brother) were the first in her family to graduate college and Deva is the first to attend graduate school.

Throughout Law School and her undergraduate career at Vassar College where she received a BA in Sociology with a focus in women’s studies, Deva has regularly worked and volunteered in the interest of women’s empowerment. She was a co-founder and editor-in-chief of Squirm Magazine, on the advisory board of the campus Women’s Center, and on the board of directors for the national non-profit Alternatives to Marriage Project (AtMP). She was an executive member of the LGBTQ campus organizations at Vassar College and Georgetown Law and participated in a number of organizing efforts in Poughkeepsie, NY and Washington DC including organizing a tri-state feminist conference.

Deva’s interest in social justice has focused on women here and abroad. At the age of 20 she spent a semester in Tamil Nadu, India where she focused her studies on the Indian Women’s Movement studying in the local Indian college and interviewing service providers and other women of the city of Maduria.

Deva received her Juris Doctorate from Georgetown University Law Center. In law school, she was the editor-in-chief of the Georgetown Journal of Gender and the Law— the first law journal to address the intersection of gender and sexuality where she published on the First Amendment and pornography law.

Deva was nominated for the 2006 Young Woman of Achievement Award presented by the Women's Information Network. She currently lives in Alexandria, Virginia, and is a published poet and painter.  

Teresa Liao

Teresa Liao is currently working as the communications
specialist in the external relations department of a Washington, DC based non-profit organization focusing on the international exchange of scholars. She joins YWTF in a newly minted position as one of two media consultants.

Teresa is a staunch advocate for equal and human rights. She has worked and managed small businesses and reported for several media outlets. Whenever possible, she continues to freelance for various publications and teach ESL as she walks the road less traveled while trying not to bump into anything sharp. Teresa graduated with a bachelor's degree in journalism and media studies from her state university, Rutgers’ New Brunswick and aims to continue her education. She is currently working toward her Advanced Graphic Design Certificate from the Corcoran College of Art and Design. Teresa is a Media Consultant for YWTF.

Beth Nichols-Howarth

Beth Nichols-Howarth works for a PR firm in Washington, DC, focusing on projects related to women’s health and social policy issues. Born in New Jersey, she received her B.A. from Rutgers University and her MSW from Boston University. As a clinician she has counseled female and male survivors of sexual assault, both individually and in group settings, as well as female survivors of domestic violence. She has also worked directly with adolescent girls on issues of self-esteem, body image, and dating violence. She recently got married in Charleston, SC, and in the fall she will begin a training course to become a yoga instructor. Beth works on outreach for YWTF.

Whitney Potter

Whitney Potter works in Communications for the scientific research organization, the Institute for Women's Policy Research (IWPR) in Washington, DC. While at IWPR, she has had the opportunity to utilize her skills as a publication manager, designer, and webmaster while expanding the organization's both print and online marketing strategies. She has recently been involved in the local community as an independent graphic designer doing freelance work for progressive organizations and individuals.  Before moving to DC, she received her Bachelors of Arts in Women Studies with a minor in Economics from the University of New Mexico. Whitney is dedicated to improving the lives of women and families through effective communication and design. Whitney is the webmaster and designer for YWTF.

Andrea Tanner

Andrea Carson Tanner’s interest in women’s issues started with her experience attending an all-girls school for middle and high school. She went on to double-major in women’s studies at Emory University, where she wrote her honors thesis about gender equity in school curricula and its impact on girls’ self-esteem. She has worked primarily in the field of university admissions, but her volunteer involvement includes serving as Co-Vice President of Programming for her local branch of the American Association of University Women and as founder of an Alternative Gift Market at her church in Lansdale, PA. In addition to working on YWTF’s website, Andrea is the Chapter Director for YWTF Philadelphia.

Misha Werschkul

Misha Werschkul is a native Oregonian who is currently working as a Research Associate with the Service Employees International Union in the District of Columbia. Prior to coming to the SEIU, she worked as a researcher with the Institute for Women's Policy Research, where she
co-authored research publications on women's employment, economic status, and education. She is also pursuing a Master's Degree in Women's Studies and Public Policy at the George Washington University and is writing a thesis on the employment of registered nurses. She received her Bachelor's Degree in Economics and Political Science from Macalester College in 2003. Misha works on research for YWTF.

Maureen White

Maureen White currently works for the Milwaukee Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Community Center as a Youth Development Coordinator in their youth program called Project Q. In this role, Ms. White does case management with the youth participants as well as advocacy and education about LGBT issues throughout the Metro Milwaukee area. Ms. White has also started a women’s leadership initiative at Project Q and has coordinated a Young Womynz Empowerment Conference for the last two years. She received her bachelors in psychology from Carroll College, and is currently working on her master’s at The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee studying Community Counseling. In addition to working on new chapter development for YWTF, Maureen is the Chapter Director for YWTF Milwaukee.