Staff

President & Chief Executive Officer

Emily Yim is the President & CEO of Washington Alliance for Better Schools (WABS), a collaboration of school districts across WA State, whose mission is to leverage resources, talent, and intellectual capital to help nearly 300,000 students graduate career and college ready. Emily works with the Board of Directors, comprised of Superintendents and Industry leaders to implement collaborative efforts to develop exceptional teachers, engaged students, and empowered families across the WA. 

She also served as the Chair for the Association of Community College Trustees (ACCT) in Washington, D.C., providing leadership in governance and policy advocacy, which serves over 520 governing boards and 6,500 trustees. She served as the Chair of the ACCT Public Policy Committee and is the former Chair of the Asian Pacific Islander and Native American Caucus. And most recently served on the national board of The American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) in Washington, D.C, the primary advocacy organization for the nation’s community colleges, representing more than 1,000 2-year, associate degree-granting institutions and nearly 12 million students.

Ms. Yim is a guest speaker and consultant for Community College Boards across the country and internationally. And also serves as faculty at The American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) preparing future Community College Presidents. 

Ms. Yim was also the founding Director of the Department of Neighborhoods and Community Affairs for the City of Lynnwood; Vice President of Community and External Affairs at Chase, helping to oversee and invest a $29 million annual philanthropic budget; and a former Board Member of the International District Housing Alliance in Seattle, United Way of Snohomish County, and the Community Services Advisory Council for Snohomish County. She completed her B.A. in International Studies and Political Science at the University of Washington.

Director of Equity and Family Engagement

Jennifer was born in Santa Fe, New Mexico where she spent her childhood outside, in the arroyo behind her house basking in the sun and breathing in the smells of juniper and clay. It was in this place that her imagination ran wild and dreams of serving the community were formed. These dreams led to experience as a community educator, teacher, program manager, and family advocate. While in Santa Fe she worked for organizations such as the Boys and Girls Club, Girls Inc, and the Office of the State Historian. She also worked for two years at her former high school, Capital High School, as a Seminar teacher and GEAR UP Site Coordinator. Jennifer moved to Shoreline in 2012 and began working for the Shoreline School District in 2013. She worked as a Specialist in the Office of the Assistant Superintendent and a Family Advocate at Echo Lake Elementary. She has served on several Shoreline District committees and currently still serves on the District Race and Equity Steering Committee. Jennifer has been with WABS since 2017.

She holds a BA in Humanities from the College of Santa Fe and an MA in Educational Leadership – Community and Organizational Learning from the University of New Mexico. In her free time, Jennifer loves to spend time with her husband, two teenage daughters, and toddler. She loves to cook, write, and explore the Pacific Northwest as much as possible.

Director of Development & Communications

An east coast native, April Nilsen joined WABS in 2014 while completing her graduate degree, which focused on education policy, program evaluation, and nonprofit management. April has held many roles at WABS, including overseeing student programs and as the organization’s grant writer. Currently, she is the Director of Development and Communications. Previously, she has experience as an educator and an administrator in early childhood education.

April holds a BA in Psychology from the University of Michigan, and a Master’s in Public Administration from the Evans School of Public Policy & Governance at the University of Washington. She also serves on the Board of Directors for Snohomish County Legal Services. In her time outside of work, April enjoys spending time with her daughters, listening to podcasts, and exploring the outdoors.

King and Pierce County Regional Network Director

John joined WABS in July 2021 as the King and Pierce County Regional Network Director. In this role he catalyzes and convenes outcome-focused collaborations with industry, community-based organizations, education systems, and other key partners to drive the work for Career Connected Learning. Prior to this, John served as Vice President of Corporate & Workforce Training at Everett Community College. This role included collaboratively leading the design, development, and implementation of several new regional centers for high demand career training as well as developing strategic networks and partnerships to create equitable education pathways across industry, labor, K-12, and higher education boundaries.

John has served as a board member with Boys and Girls Club Snohomish County, Economic Alliance Snohomish County, and Everett Area Chamber of Commerce. He has held faculty and managerial roles forging global partnerships for international education at the University of Washington, where he also completed graduate degrees in Teaching and Public Administration. He is currently completing his doctorate in higher education leadership at Northeastern University.

Associate Director of Worksite Tours    

Kim joined the WABS team in 2022 as the Associate Director of Worksite Tours. In this position, she works to bridge the gap between industry and schools and provides opportunities for students and teachers to learn about various careers through interactive worksite tours.

Previous to joining WABS, Kim was an engineering and research teacher for 12 years and most recently worked as a STEM/CTE facilitator for Everett Public Schools. Kim also owns a horse ranch on Camano Island where she spends all her free time riding, training and competing with her horses.

Leah joined the WABS teams in 2022 as the Finance & Operations Manager.  She has been working in business and project management for the last 15 years. She has worked with corporations to startups and helped improve and streamline processes along the way.

In her downtime outside of work she loves using her right side of the brain designing weddings and special events. 

Program Manager

Grace Schouten joined WABS as an Executive Assistant in 2019, where she supported programming and operations. She became passionate about the nonprofit sector while working in child protective services and juvenile justice diversion programs where she worked directly with youth and families. In prior roles, Grace facilitated professional trainings and managed volunteer groups supporting programs for women and children. In her work, she most enjoys connecting people with their community and strengthening public programs.

Grace holds a BA in Criminology and Sociology from the University of South Florida, and an MPA in Nonprofit Management from South University. She grew up throughout the Southeast, moving to many new places as a military daughter. She enjoys volunteering, cycling, board games, and being outdoors with her family. 

21st Century Community Learning Center Program Director

Margeaux was born and raised in Western Washington. She has a M.S. in Special Education, a M.Ed. in Learning and Technology, and a B.A. in Sociology/Social Studies. She also earned her teaching certificate from Woodring College of Education at Western Washington University.

In addition to her role at WABS, she also is a full-time teacher. In her spare time she enjoys reading, sewing, and spending time with friends and family.

James joined WABS in late 2022 as a Senior Project Manager. In this role he will work collaboratively with several employers, higher education partners, and K-12 partners to build Career Launch programs as well as collaborate with other regional leaders working on providing students with learning that is connected to future careers. He got first-hand experience working with WABS in his previous role as a Project Manager with Providence’s Community Partnership division. James currently supports projects with T-Mobile, Fred Hutchinson, and Providence in the Seattle and Spokane regions.

James grew up in Michigan before having brief stints living in Florida and Arizona. He has called Washington home for the past 12 years and if he’s not working, you can find him mountain biking, cooking, or hanging out with his wife, daughter, and miniature dachshund.

Family Engagement Program Manager

Fernanda is the Family Engagement Program Manager and works directly with our Natural Leaders Program. She has a diverse professional background ranging from Program Management around Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging to communications and the travel industry. As an Afro-Latina, her first language is Brazilian Portuguese and as an immigrant, she knows firsthand how challenging it is to navigate the school system and the other systems in this country. She is excited to be part of the WABS team and bring her perspective to continue to advocate and empower families/ caregivers and students to share their experiences and to thrive beyond the school environment.  In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her dog, gardening, reading, and spending time outdoors. 
 

Program Manager

Kyleigh grew up in western Michigan before attending Northern Michigan University where she earned her B.A. in International Studies & Spanish. After 3 years working for a TRIO program, and serving 2 years as an AmeriCorps member she joined the WABS team in May of 2022.

In her spare time she enjoys traveling, reading, and spending time with friends and family.

Employee Engagement Manager for Worksite Tours

Genevieve joined WABS in July of 2022 as the Employer Engagement Manager for Worksite Tours. She works with Challenge Seattle partner organizations and other top Puget Sound employers to develop interactive worksite learning tours for high school students to support their Career Connected Learning journey.  Genevieve is proud to call herself a native Seattleite who attended Seattle Central College as a Running Start student before receiving her B.A. from Western Washington University. As an avid traveler who loves learning about different cultures, Genevieve has lived and worked in Israel, France, Gabon, Mexico, and South Africa, in addition to traveling to nearly two dozen other countries. She also holds Master’s Degrees in Social Work and International Studies from the University of Denver. 

Communications Coordinator

Maryam joined WABS in April 2022, as the Communications Coordinator. She is currently completing a Master’s in Public Administration with a focus on social policy,  and public financial management at the Evans Schools of Public Policy and Governance. She is passionate about educational justice and equity. 

Maryam has previously received Bachelor’s Degrees in Economics and Journalism and Public Interest Communication from the University of Washington, Seattle. She has work experience in both the nonprofit and higher education sectors. When she’s not working at WABS or working towards her master’s degree, she can be found reading, hiking, and enjoying pop culture.