Our Vision

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 Nathaniel Lancaster is an attorney in a national, full-service, law firm, where he currently practices in the Litigation Department. Previously, Nathaniel worked as a law clerk for two prominent Fortune 500 companies in Atlanta, GA. Prior to law school, Nathaniel began his career as a Disciplinary Investigator for the City of New York, and Youth Specialist for the Police Athletic League, where he inspired and improved the quality of life for youth in the inner-city. 

Nathaniel joined STAR because of his passion for public service. Particularly, as a product of an inner-city community, he is passionate about changing the narrative, by being a resource to help transform youth into leaders and advocates for themselves, their peers, and their city. Nathaniel is a native of the Bronx, NY, and earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from Binghamton University in New York. He received his Juris Doctor, with Honors, from Emory University School of Law.

Kylie Fleet was born and raised in Prince Georges County, Maryland. She began working with children early in high school through Child Development courses in school and volunteering at various summer camps. She attended Bowie State University and graduated May 2018 with a B.S. in Elementary Education. During her time in college, Kylie had the privilege of working at a West River Center, a faith-based summer camp, where she got to encounter hundreds of campers a week and help them grow personally and spiritually. Working at this camp reaffirmed her love for working with children. She is now a teacher in the Prince Georges County Public School System.   

Kylie decided to work with STAR and impact the youth outside of her school’s immediate community. She recognizes that not every part of PG County has the same access and wants to help bridge the gaps.

Rudel Hodge was born and raised in St. Thomas, United States Virgin Islands. He attended Binghamton University, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy, Politics, and Law.  Rudel currently attends Florida International University College of Law in pursuit of his Juris Doctorate. Rudel is exceptionally passionate about the betterment and uplifting of the youths. Rudel routinely volunteers his free time to speak to children about the importance of doing well in school and attending college or trade school and sees STAR as the perfect venture to continue to support and uplift youths for the foreseeable future. Rudel is excited to see what the future holds for STAR.

Emily Vega, originally from New York City, is an educator working with students from the DC area. After graduating college, Emily moved to the DMV area to create educational programming for the National Park Service designed to engage underrepresented audiences focusing on children. Following that, Emily transitioned into working in the classroom teaching foundational math, literacy and writing skills. Emily has been passionate about access to equitable education ever since she experienced being an inner city student herself. Emily is excited to continue great work with STAR to help foster the environment she longed for as a student that'll expand and support students' interests both in and outside of the classroom. 

 Leah McDonagh is originally from Allendale, New Jersey. Leah moved to Silver Spring, Maryland after graduating college in 2018. She got her B.A. in Elementary Education, and is currently pursuing her Master's degree in Teacher Leadership and Policy. Leah is going into her third year as an educator for Prince George's County Public Schools. She has always had a passion for working with children and helping them learn and grow. Prior to graduating college, she worked as a nanny, a camp counselor, and also a coach. She has always wanted to be a positive influence in children's lives and help them grow into the best versions of themselves. Leah chose to get involved with STAR because she strongly supports our mission to make learning more engaging and hands on. This is something she tries to do as an educator, because she feels it is very important for children to see that learning can be fun. Like the mission of STAR states, she wants to play a role in positively impacting children's learning as well as their social-emotional skills.

Originally born in Guyana, Daniel moved to the United States when he was a teenager. He attended Florida International University in Miami, FL and graduated with a BBA in Finance. In college, Daniel discovered social entrepreneurship and cofounded Social Synergy, which was a social enterprise aimed at solving the lack of access to quality early childhood education in urban slums. As a result of this venture and understanding the critical importance of ECE, Daniel developed a strong passion for solving the socioeconomic challenges underprivileged communities face, particularly as it relates to education. Daniel joined STAR because he strongly believes in the organization’s mission and wants to significantly improve the accessibility of opportunity for underprivileged children. Based in Atlanta, GA, he is currently a manager at Collaborative Solutions. 

 Mohamad Shouman was born in Miami, FL but was raised most of his life in Pittsburgh, PA. Growing up, Mohamad spent most of his time volunteering at his local hospital and mosque. His passion and drive for helping the younger generation continued to grow after studying the education system in America. His studies allowed him to understand that the education system in America is not doing enough to create the proper and equal opportunities for the underprivileged. Mohamad has been an active community member in his city through his outreach with underprivileged youth, immigration rights, and the Black Lives Matter movement. He’s currently an entrepreneur, involved and working with multiple businesses and individuals in the city of Pittsburgh.