Staff

Dr. Stephanie McGencey is a proven, results-driven leader who brings more than 20 years of experience to Voices. In prior positions, Dr. McGencey served as executive director of Grantmakers for Children, Youth and Families; senior vice president of Training and Research with the Community Anti-Drug Coalition of America; and director of Prevention Services with the National Association of State Alcohol and Drug Abuse Directors.

Dr. McGencey is a board member of the Child Welfare League of America, serving on the Governance and Development Committee; an officer of the Children’s Leadership Council, of which Voices is a founding member; and holds membership in the Washington Area Women’s Foundation, UCLA Center for Healthier Children, Families and Communities, and the American Society of Association Executives.

She earned a Ph.D. from Walden University, a M.P.H. from the University of Michigan and a B.S. from San Francisco State University.

Tamika provides administrative support to the director of Operations, and manages reception duties in the Voices national office. Prior to joining Voices, Tamika worked in the corporate sector amassing more than 15 years of administrative and accounting experience.

As a Senior Policy Fellow, Sheri helps Voices members strengthen their advocacy support and expand state-level efforts to address the needs of at-risk children, especially children of color.

Sheri also represents Voices with the Children’s Leadership Council, a coalition of nearly 40 children’s advocacy groups working to improve the health, well-being and lives of children and youth. Before joining Voices, Sheri was the director of policy at the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, where she advised grantees on a broad range of Foundation program initiatives. She was also responsible for developing and coordinating an overall education policy strategy while working to integrate policy into the Foundation’s overall mission and program initiatives. Sheri received her law degree from the University of California at Berkeley and her bachelor’s degree in political science from Wheaton College.

Jolie manages day-to-day operations at Voices, including accounting, human resources, and office technology, while also assisting finance and development efforts.

She serves as the event coordinator for the Voices national office and as the Convio liaison for Voices member organizations.

Keion provides administrative support to the President & CEO and serves as the principal liaison to the Board of Trustees and Voices’ new Member Leadership Council.

Keion holds an Associates of Arts Degree, in early childhood development from Boston Backbay College, Boston, MA.

Marlo is charged with developing and implementing the programs to empower and connect the Voices network. She brings strong networking and advocacy skills, creativity, and energy to her role as Vice President for Membership. Prior to joining Voices, she was the Vice President of National Initiatives of the United Way of America (UWA), where she served as the head of the largest network of early childhood coalitions, and managed the national early childhood and human service initiatives of the 1300-member organization, including Success By 6 and 2-1-1. She also brings firsthand experience with the Voices network to her position. For nine years before coming to Washington, Marlo was the KIDS COUNT Coordinator and later the Director of Early Childhood Care and Education Solutions for the Oklahoma Institute for Child Advocacy. During this time, Marlo was a recognized leader on early education issues, served on Oklahoma Governor’s Task Force on School Readiness and brought public and private sector leaders together to support greater focus and resources for programs serving children across Oklahoma. Marlo also designed and implemented an advocacy leadership program, Oklahoma KIDS COUNT Leadership, which was nationally recognized by Voices as an exemplary effort.

Marlo has undertaken graduate studies in public health at the University of Oklahoma and holds a B.A. in Sociology, with a minor in French, from Oklahoma State University.

As Vice President of Government Affairs and Equity Programs, Joanna oversees the federal budget work, with a special emphasis on appropriations and tax proposals for their effect on children.

Her responsibilities include analyzing budget and tax proposals and identifying new and emerging fiscal issues at the federal and state levels that affect children, developing budget-focused advocacy tools and mobilizing and educating Voices’ membership on federal budget decisions that adversely affect children and families. Joanna also leads the organization’s efforts to reduce child poverty as well as its race equity and diversity work. Joanna is also a member of the Annie E. Casey Race Matters Technical Assistance team.

Prior to joining Voices, Joanna served as the Associate Director of the Maryland Budget and Tax Policy Institute, focusing on Maryland-specific budget analysis in the areas of health policy and other human services. Other experiences include teaching at the undergraduate and graduate levels, qualitative and quantitative applied research, lobbying, and public education.

Joanna holds a doctorate in public policy from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County as well as Master of Arts in both public policy and Counseling from Regent University. She also holds a Bachelor of Arts in political science from North Carolina State University.

Terrylynn provides strategic guidance for federal advocacy efforts in the area of early care and education. She facilitates the Voices School Readiness Advisory Committee; partners with members and national advocates to influence policy and practices; and educates and organizes the Voices membership about the impact of federal proposals on children in the states.

Prior to joining Voices, Terrylynn served as director of education policy for Advocates for Children and Youth, Maryland. In this role she executed a strategic agenda to increase quality leadership in struggling schools, to close minority and income achievement gaps and to increase educational opportunities for disadvantaged children.

Terrylynn earned the degrees of Doctor of Education from Johns Hopkins University and a Master of Education and Counseling from McGill University. She has a Bachelors of Science in Psychology from University of East London.

Matthew J. Wright has more than 10 years of experience in government relations and policy development. Most recently, he managed MWW Group’s health, energy, higher education and local government sector clients on Capitol Hill and with federal agencies for nearly seven years.

Matthew has long-standing relationships with Republicans and Democrats in the U.S. House and U.S. Senate, leading back to his service on the staff of U.S. House leadership. Matthew earned his Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Albion College and his Master of Arts in Political Management from The George Washington University.