Educating Educators

SSNC believes that educating other educators about LGBTQ+ issues and inclusive learning environments  is one of the best ways to make schools welcoming for all students. Whether you are an individual educator, a school administrator, or a district superintendent, we'd love to talk with you about how SSNC can help you support K-12  students.

Linking You To Resources

SSNC wants  to help anyone connected to a K-12 NC school (students, parents, teachers, counselors, administrators, school board members, etc.) find the resources or support  they need to feel safe or help others feel safe in school.  If we can't help you, we'll find someone who will.   Please reach out, we are happy to help in any way that we can!

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Meet The Board

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The board of Safe Schools NC is a hardworking, dedicated group of individuals who are driven by their own personal stories to make the voices and stories of ALL LGTBQ+ Staff and Students heard and valued.
​Feel free to contact us all at   board@safeschoolsnc.org ​

Board Chair

JP Przewoznik   ​

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JP Przewoznik, MSW(she/her/hers, or anything respectfully), is a trainer, technical assistance provider, practitioner and program evaluator with over 20 years of experience working with and within LGBTQ+ and women’s communities. She is currently the Director of Prevention and Evaluation at the North Carolina Coalition Against Sexual Assault (NCCASA) where she provides training and technical assistance to rape crisis centers and college campuses working on sexual violence prevention efforts, co-chairs the NC Campus Consortium, and is NC’s technical assistance provider for CDC’s Rape Prevention Education (RPE) Program. JP is on the Board of Directors for Safe Schools NC and is on the National Leadership Team for Force: Upsetting Rape Culture. JP is also the founder of Switchback Consulting, a firm that supports professional and institutional growth in the areas of program design and evaluation, strategic planning, and LGBTQ+-affirming practice. She lives happily in Durham, NC, with wonderful friends, an incredible partner, and many fur babies. In her spare time you can find JP very unironically listening to The Boss’s Born in the USA on vinyl.

Secretary

Courtney Parker West

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Courtney Parker West (she/her/hers) is a writer, consultant, and community organizer. She is a first-generation college graduate from The University of Iowa, where she studied Religion Studies, English, Creative Writing, & African American Studies. In 2008, she relocated to North Carolina where she taught middle school language arts for 5 years in Vance County, NC, before joining staff with the Eastern NC regional team of Teach For America as a teacher coach. After 4 years of coaching, she worked as Director, Alumni Impact - Racial Equity & Values-based Leadership for the region. Currently she works for the TFA National team as Managing Director, Leadership Development Strategy. Courtney is a Selah fellow and Leichtag grant recipient through which she does Jews of Color Field-building work.

​​Courtney is most passionate about intersectional anti-racist work, coalition-building, and activism especially as it pertains to communities who have been subjected to multi-generational trauma. She lives with her spouse, a public school leader, in Zebulon, NC.

Board Vice Chair / Treasurer

Stephenie Clark

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Stephenie Clark (she/her) is an Education Consultant with the state. Stephenie earned a B.S. in Business Administration and an MBA from Hampton University in Hampton, VA. She got her start in education teaching fourth grade in a charter school in Durham as a 2012 Teach For America corps member. She is excited to bring her passion for education, equity, and passion for problem solving to the Safe Schools NC Board to help educators across the state create safe learning environments where all students are supported to grow and thrive within their own intersectionality.

She lives in Raleigh with her partner, Carrie, and their fur-babies Jack (dog) and Evie (cat). In her spare time, she enjoys creating art, watching movies, listening to music, and solving the Rubik’s cube. You can connect with Stephenie by following her on Twitter @WorkplaceFairy.

Board Member

Michelle Henderson  ​

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Michelle (she, her) is a theatre teacher at Wake Forest Middle School, and has been in education ever since graduating from Meredith College in 2014 (Go ODDS!). She is also Fine Arts Department Head, part of the SIP team, director of all things theatrical, and advises her schools Sexuality and Gender Awareness club (SAGA). 

Growing up in a very small, rural town in North Carolina didn't do much for educating her on the differences of other people and experiences, nor did it incline her towards understanding her own preferences. College in a larger city made all the difference, and she has been a vocal advocate for students and their safety since pursuing education as a career (and life!) choice. Helping students grow within their own intersectionality, and helping them find their voices has been the most rewarding part of being an educator. 

She lives with her partner, also in education as an orchestra teacher in DPS, and one year old in Raleigh, plus their fur-babies. They live close to her family, whom they see A LOT of. When not busy with school things, she enjoys being outside (not in the heat though), watching animated films with the kid (Coco is her current obsession), and reading (trying to get through all 27 of the battle of the books books).

Board Member

Alex Barker

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Alex Barker (they/ them) works with NC State University coordinating the 4-H Life Skills program focused on supporting students within Hoke County. Prior to their current role, Alex developed a youth peer support program in West Virginia and focused efforts on LGBTQ youths’ support needs. Alex holds a Bachelor’s in Social Work and has experience working within rural communities and implementing youth and young adult voices. Alex is passionate about creating environments that support youth and young adults in reaching their goals.​

Board Member

Dana M. Stachowiak

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Dana M. Stachowiak (she/her/hers) is an Associate Professor and the Director of the Women’s Studies Program and Resource Center at The University of North Carolina Wilmington. Prior to her tenure at UNCW, she was a classroom teacher and literacy coach at both the elementary and middle schools. Dana researches, writes, and speaks on topics of gender justice, supporting trans students and faculty, and creating equitable curriculum.

​Dana is the founder and curator for Queer[ed] Storyscapes, an ongoing project providing space for LGBTQ people to learn about and share their experiences of being queer in Wilmington, through art and expression. She also serves as the Vice-Chair of the National Council for Teachers of English’s Genders and Sexualities Equity Alliance, an assembly that provides a forum for ongoing and sustained discussion among all individuals who share a professional commitment to LGBTQ students, teachers, issues, and academic materials as they pertain to the teaching of English at all levels of instruction.

Board Member

Kelly J. Barber-Lester

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Kelly J. Barber-Lester, PhD, is a mother, a teacher, and a scholar. She has recently completed her doctorate in Education at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She grew up in Statesville, NC and is a proud product of North Carolina’s public schools from kindergarten to PhD. Before going to graduate school, Kelly taught upper elementary grades 3-5 in Connecticut and North Carolina. Her experience in the classroom helped her understand more deeply the ways in which our systems of education are inequitable and oppressive. Kelly’s scholarship is focused on the pursuit of educational and social equity. In her dissertation research, she sought to understand the types of experiences that shaped White teachers in coming to think in critically conscious ways about their work and the world.

​Kelly lives in Durham, NC, with her partner, their three awesome kiddos, and their dog, Shamus. In her free time, Kelly likes to be outside (reading, cycling, hiking, swimming) and to go treasure hunting at yard sales and thrift shops. She also loves water slides.

Board Member

Michelle Falter

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Michelle Falter, PhD (she/her/hers) is currently an Assistant Professor of English Education and Literacy in the Department of Teacher Education and Learning Sciences at North Carolina State University, in Raleigh, NC. Previously, Michelle worked as a middle and high school English teacher both in Wisconsin, and abroad in Germany and the Dominican Republic, and also as a high school instructional coach in Georgia. Her research, teaching, and scholarship demonstrate a deep commitment to diversity and social justice, helping English language arts and literacy educators’ co-construct knowledge with their students using critical, feminist, and dialogical teaching practices.
 
At the heart of her work as a scholar and teacher is advocacy and allyship for and with teachers and students. She works to prepare teachers to be inclusive of all students in their classes and demand equity and justice for the betterment of students. Michelle is currently also a member of the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) Committee Against Racism and Bias in the Teaching of English and has written numerous published articles about how to include, advocate for, and support LGBTQ content and students in the classroom. In her free time, Michelle loves to spend time with her two kittens, George and Lennie, and read as many Young Adult texts she can get her hands on. You can connect with Michelle on twitter @MFalterPhD.

Board Member

Mary Alicia Lyons

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Mary Alicia Lyons (she, her, hers) has been a North Carolina public school teacher for 27 years. Having come to the Triangle region to attend UNC-Chapel Hill as a Teaching Fellow, where she earned a BA in Elementary Education, a BS in Psychology and an MEd in Reading, she settled down in Durham for the long haul. She is currently an instructional coach at Morris Grove Elementary (Go Geckos!) in Chapel Hill Carrboro City Schools. She is passionate about all things reading and her new favorite picture books are “Sparkle Boy” and “Pink is for Boys, Blue is for Girls”.

Mary Alicia has long been an advocate for the LGBTQ+ community. She previously served on the Lesbian Health Resource Center’s board and founded Triangle Families, a group for LGBTQ+ families in the Triangle region. When not knee deep in work or advocacy, she enjoys hanging out with her partner and kid, going to movies, reading, playing board games and fostering kittens. Mary Alicia is excited to be a part of the Safe Schools NC board and to have the opportunity to advocate for LBGTQ+ students and educators statewide.
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Board Member

Kristy Lowther

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Kristy Lowther (she/her) currently works at RTI International as the Program Manager for Diversity & Inclusion. She oversees the Employee Resource Group (ERG) Program and is a founding Co-Chair for the Pride (LGBTQ and Allies) ERG. As a member of the LGBTQ community and a mother of two young kids, Kristy is dedicated to creating inclusive schools and promoting equity for all. In addition, Kristy is a strong advocate for women’s sexual empowerment. She holds a Master’s in Social Work and Bachelor’s degrees in Psychology and Business Administration from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.