Kristina Anne Kyles-Smith, Ed.D- Chief Executive Office

Dr. Kristina Kyles-Smith currently serves as Chief Executive Officer at Lillie May Carroll Jackson School. In collaboration with her team, Dr. Kristina strives to ensure all students develop a sense of self and community and become responsible and compassionate society members.

Throughout her career, Dr. Kyles-Smith has served in several roles in public education, amassing a wealth of diverse educational leadership experience. These roles include teacher, district director of equity, and district curriculum director in Massachusetts. She has also served as a public-school Principal and Assistant State Superintendent of Education in Maryland. Nationally, Dr. Kyles-Smith supported
school transformation and equity as the Regional Director for EL Education.

Dr. Kyles-Smith was raised in Holland, Michigan, by activist parents who owned and
operated a community outreach center, a black culture center, and a church. Through her
parents, Dr. Kyles-Smith fostered a love of learning and a commitment to her community.
She received her Bachelors from Hope College and a Master’s from Simmons College. She
received her Doctorate in Educational Leadership from Cambridge College, in Cambridge,
Massachusetts completing her dissertation on historically black schools’ ability to educate
black students and sustain powerfully black communities.

Dr. Kyles-Smith successfully supervised the administration of Federal and state programs to
improve students’ educational opportunities, empowered teachers and students to do more
than they thought possible, and focused on growing access to quality educational options.
Dr. Kyles-Smith has dedicated her career to serving and empowering students and teachers.
Dr. Kyles Smith is the co-author of the article, Is Your Approach to Continuous
Improvement Colorblind, published in the March 2021 Issue of Educational Leadership. She
is also the author of The Essence of Dunbar, A Qualitative Exploration of the Essence of a
Historical Black School in Baltimore, Maryland. She is the recipient of several awards,
including Hope College’s Kujichagulia Alumni Excellence Award (2021) and Distinguished
Alumni Award (2004), and The Baltimore Chapter of the NAACP Thurgood Marshall
Award for Community & Business (2012).

Dr. Kyles-Smith lives in Baltimore County, Maryland, with her husband, Lawrence Smith, a
nationally ranked high school football coach and an urban school police detective. She has
three children, who bring her joy and keep her grounded. She is active in several
professional associations such as the National Alliance of Black School Educators and the
Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development. She remains committed to
community service and serves as an executive member of the Harbor City Links,
Incorporated, and an active member of her local NAACP.

Anitra Washington – Principal

Anitra Washington is a lifelong educator who has a passion for increasing leadership skills in
students and teachers. Anitra attended Drexel University, where she first began working with
teenagers on math and science Projects. During her time at Drexel, she became the chairperson
of the pre-college initiative program for the National Society of Black Engineers. After completing her bachelor’s degree in biology, she moved to Newark, NJ to teach at St. Benedict’s Preparatory School.    Her experience at St. Benedict’s Prep led Anitra to pursue a master’s degree in education with a concentration in science teaching, learning, and curriculum at the University of Pennsylvania.

In 2005, Ms. Washington returned home to Baltimore and continued her teaching career
within the Baltimore City Public Schools System. Since then, she has taught various science
courses in high schools and transitioned into multiple positions leading her to a position as
Assistant Principal. Ms. Washington expanded her work to include student leadership training
through her summer work with Western High School student leaders who train for 5 weeks to
become orientation leaders for the school’s freshman orientation program. Her expertise in
student leadership has allowed her to speak at conferences for organizations such as the Girl
Scouts of Central MD, Brooklyn Friends School and the Our Legacy Incorporated. Her biggest
passion is helping students recognize their own greatness and navigating the tough age of
adolescence. She has done this in a variety of ways including creating workshops, speaking at
conferences, and serving as the advisor of the Western High School Fashionettes and WHS
Student Government Association. She truly believes that students are limitless and aims to help
them see the best in themselves.

Natasha Blake – Assistant Principal

Originally from Brooklyn NY, Mrs. Blake-McDowell’s passion for CTE lead her to pursue an
A.A.S degree in Cooking & Baking, B.S. in Business Management, and a M.S. degree in
International Business from Baltimore International College. She later completed another M.S.
degree in School Counseling from Johns Hopkins University and holds her Admin 1 certification
in Leadership and Supervision from Loyola University Maryland. Mrs. Blake-McDowell is
currently pursuing an EdD degree in Urban Educational Leadership at Morgan State University.
Her passion for educational growth for the youth of Baltimore City gave her the opportunity to
be the Associate Program Director at the College Bound Foundation and teach at Mergenthaler
Vocational Technical High School, where she was awarded “CTE Teacher of the Year” for the
2016-2017 school year. Because of her belief in access for all students, Natasha currently sits on
the Regional Council for College Board, KIPP Board of Directors and is an active advisory
board member for Art with a Heart. Mrs. Blake-McDowell believes that equity and access for
ALL students is always priority. As educators we must create the opportunities for our students
to achieve, therefore minimizing the achievement gap.