Our Staff
Michelle Smith Howard
President and CEO
Michelle Smith Howard began her career as an early childhood special education teacher and administrator with the District of Columbia Public Schools. She then served as the Director of Early Learning for the Obama Administration’s White House Neighborhood Revitalization Initiative, DC Promise Neighborhood Initiative.
Additionally, Michelle has held leadership positions with Catholic Charities of DC and Alexandria City Public Schools. She currently serves on the Virginia Department of Education Early Childhood Advisory Committee and is also an Alexandria Chamber of Commerce 40 Under 40 Awardee.
Michelle holds a bachelor’s in political science from Southern University and A&M College. She also holds a master’s in early childhood special education and an educational specialist in educational leadership and administration from The George Washington University.
Michelle credits her love for education to her mother, a retired public school teacher, and to her pre-Kindergarten teacher. Her favorite children’s books are The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats and Caps for Sale by Esphyr Slobodkina.
Maria McDonald
Director, Collective Impact and Partnerships
Maria McDonald graduated from the University of Notre Dame with a degree in History and Art History. After working in American Furniture and Folk Art at Sotheby’s in New York, she moved to Washington, DC to work at The Phillips Collection. Working in a museum setting helped Maria realize that her passion was using art as a lens to explore different cultures and explain history. She completed her Masters in Art History and earned her teaching degree in Social Studies at American University. Maria worked at Bishop O’Connell High School for nine years before joining the KFY team in the spring of 2019 as a project manager for the Preschool Development Grant.
As the mother of two young children, Maria wants all children to be exposed to a love of learning early on so that they can embrace being life-long learners and have the tools necessary to succeed in life. Although she finds it very difficult to pick just one children’s book that is her favorite, she loves reading Circus Ship by Chris Van Dusen with her boys.
Natasha Ettienne-Johnson
Director, Strategy and Implementation
Natasha Ettienne-Johnson brings over a decade of experience in strategic operations and systems building within mission-driven organizations. She has led the development of operational frameworks, cross-functional initiatives, and data-driven systems that strengthen outcomes for diverse communities.
Her interest in early childhood systems grew through her work as an Education Advocate with DC School Reform Now, where she collaborated with partners to align early childhood initiatives and create shared tools for tracking school readiness.
A resident of Alexandria, she is committed to ensuring all children have equitable access to high-quality early learning. She holds a Masters in Public Administration from the University of Baltimore, and her favorite children’s book is I Am Enough by Grace Byers.
Muriel Tapia
Executive Coordinator
Muriel Tapia has always been dedicated to bettering the community. Born and raised in Northern Virginia, she has strong ties to the community. She has worked in school districts in Northern Virginia for the last eight years and enjoys supporting organizations in efforts to connect with families.
Muriel’s career path in early childhood education began with Alexandria City Public Schools as an early childhood special education paraprofessional. There she learned more about the different early childhood programs offered by the city. A series of truly fortunate events led her to work in the office of Early Childhood Programs office with ACPS where she was able to engage directly with families in Alexandria City and became more familiar with the needs of the community.
As a doting aunt, Muriel has a couple of favorite children’s books she enjoys reading to her nieces and nephews. The top two favorites are Guess How Much I Love You by Sam McBratney and The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein.
Tomashia Cornitcher
Coordinator, Family Connections
Tomashia Cornitcher considers herself blessed as a mother of three talented children. Her children have inspired her to be courageous and persistent when faced with meeting life’s challenges and devotes herself to learning about any organization or activity that involves her children.
Tomashia has served as a volunteer with many organization throughout her community, organized teacher appreciation days, and served as an active member of the Head Start Policy Council, where she served as Chair in 2019. Additionally, she has participated in a number of conferences as a parent representative and highlighted Alexandria’s early childhood work. Tomashia currently serves as Chair of Virginia Promise Partnership Parent Advisory.
Tomashia is passionate about children and believes that all children should have the opportunity to thrive. She is deeply aware of and committed to the work of Alexandria’s early care and education system and the focus to ensure families, including herself, can remain in the city. She made a promise that if given the opportunity to serve, she would gladly step forward given the support she has received from the early care and education community.
Dr. Kim Sopko
Advisor, The Basics Integration and Alignment
To ensure maximum efficiency, the Bruhn-Morris Family Foundation (BMFF) generously supports Kids’ First Years (KFY) using a shared services model. Dr. Kim Sopko supports KFY and BMFF with integration of The Basics and curricula alignment.
Kim’s thirty-year+ career includes higher education, early childhood special education service delivery, curriculum development, national policy, research, professional development, and national, state, and regional technical assistance. Kim has worked to ensure all individuals have opportunities to learn, participate and excel in their communities.
She earned her Ed.D., M.A., and B.A. from the George Washington University and a Graduate Certificate in Learning Design and Technologies from George Mason University.
Kim has many favorite children’s books but enjoyed reading The Little Mouse, The Red Ripe Strawberry, and The Big Hungry Bear by Don Wood to her children the most.