Crystal Mills is the founder and CEO of Project Starlet. Before founding Project Starlet, Dr. Mills worked over 30 years as a Social Work Educator and Administrator in higher education. In addition, over the course of her professional life, she provided consultation on program development, strategic planning, and evaluation research to government agencies, foundations, and nonprofits in Hawaii and Michigan. Dr. Mills retired from Eastern Michigan university in 2008. Since retiring, she has taught at the University of Hawaii, Manoa and worked with the Consuelo Foundation to support child welfare issues in both Hawaii and the Philippines.
Dr. Mills has always been interested in, and has advocated for, quality education at all levels. She initially planned to teach young people and earned a secondary teaching certificate along with her undergraduate degree in psychology at the University of Michigan. After working briefly as a substitute teacher in the Ann Arbor school district, Dr. Mills pursued an advanced degree in Social Work and Psychology through the University of Michigan’s combined program.
Though her career trajectory moved her into higher education, she has never lost her commitment to youth education and has donated generously of her time and resources to support positive youth outcomes in both education and life.
Christopher Knight is a corporate litigation attorney in Chicago, IL, at the law firm of Mayer Brown LLP. He represents large corporations in complex commercial and class action litigation. He is a 2015 graduate of the University of Virginia School of Law, and a 2012 graduate of Eastern Michigan University.
Chris is passionate about helping young people in school. In his spare time, he volunteers his time at several elementary schools teaching 7th and 8th graders lessons about constitutional law and the justice system. Chris also enjoys collecting watches, sci-fi movies, and taking care of his dog, Duke.
Pamela Rhoades Todd is Director of K-12 Education Initiatives at United Way for Southeastern Michigan. Prior to joining United Way, she served as University of Detroit Mercy’s first TRiO Upward Bound Director, working with the U.S. Department of Education to improve student’s academic success and increase the number of minority and first-generation students graduating from colleges and universities. Pamela has also served as the university’s Director of Pre-College Programs in the college of Engineering and Science and as a Co-Director for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) ReBUILD program, and in a variety of educational administrative roles within the nonprofit sector including Karmanos Cancer Institute, MotorCities National Heritage Area and Detroit 300 (where she was awarded the Michigan Museum Association Quest for Excellence Award, APEX Award of Excellence). She has also received the Central Area of the Links, Incorporated Best Practices in Programming National Recognition Award among many others for her work in curriculum and program development and implementation.
Pamela holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree from Clark Atlanta University and a Master of Science Degree in Information Assurance with a major in Cyber Security from the University of Detroit Mercy.
She enjoys giving back to her community and is an active member of The Links, Incorporated, Greater Wayne County Chapter, Associate Member of Jack and Jill of America, Inc., Detroit Chapter and is a proud member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.
Pamela is married to her husband, Marcell R. Todd and is the proud mother of three young adults, Jordan, Evan and Adam.
Debra Porchia-Usher (pour-SHAY-Usher) is a nationally recognized in the execution of best practice models in child welfare, government, and nonprofit organizations. Throughout her career, Debra has demonstrated a strong commitment to the development and implementation of diverse family welfare programs and has shared her knowledge and experiences at local and national conferences. She has directed child welfare programs in Santa Clara County and the District of Columbia; and served as the Chief Operating Officer for the Girl Scouts of Southeastern Michigan and a Vice President of the United Way for Southeastern Michigan. Debra also established and served as the Director and for the Strong Families and Safe Children within the Wayne County Michigan Department of Health and Human Services where she was responsible for the coordination of County wide prevention efforts.
As the child of a librarian, Debra has always understood the importance of education in a child’s life. Throughout her career, she has demonstrated her commitment to removing barriers and helping youth succeed in life. She is a lifelong learner with a passion for history.
Riahanah Ali, M.S., TLLP currently holds a Masters in Clinical Psychology and is a limited licensed psychologist. Riahanah currently holds a role of Mental Health Project Manager at the University of Michigan.
Riahanah has a long-standing history providing psychotherapy to client’s of all ages (4-40+), however, she found the most value in working with school-aged children and adolescents in Chelsea, Michigan. During her time as a psychotherapist, Riahanah had first-hand experience with managing the impacts of a lack of economic resources for families, specifically regarding educational and social barriers within childhood development. Riahanah enjoy’s reading, working out, and finding new cooking recipes to create. She is passionate about removing barriers to education to ensure children of all ages can thrive.
Sara Azu is a results-oriented leader with over 20 years of multifaceted experience in operational oversight, strategic planning, process transformation, data analysis, financial performance and client relationship management. She has assisted numerous clients in both non-profit and corporate settings across a variety of industries with assessing opportunities for improvement and developing strategies for success.
As the current Chief Administrative Officer of Detroit Employment Solutions Corp (DESC), Sara Azu is responsible for oversight and management of grants, compliance, procurement, facilities, IT and project management. With a strong focus on people, process, and technology as the foundations for continuous improvement, Sara works to ensure DESC operates with efficiency while complying with local, state, and federal regulations.
Sara earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Systems Engineering from the University of Pennsylvania and an MBA from the University of Michigan.
She is married with 3 children and enjoys spending time with her family and working with several community service organizations.
Chelsea (Derks) Knight is a school social worker and licensed psychotherapist who started her career in Southwest Detroit schools after graduating with her MSW from the University of Michigan. Chelsea’s school experience instilled her passion for removing barriers to children’s education.
Although Chelsea once won a county trigonometry competition in high school, her favorite subject in school was language arts. Chelsea’s love of reading was ingrained early on by her Kindergarten teacher Mrs. Kraley and her mother. Chelsea’s mom regularly took her to the Early Readers program at the local library, let her check out the maximum amount of books, and let her stay up late to read. Chelsea firmly believes that economic resources should never be a barrier to education and for this reason is excited to be a part of Project Starlet’s Board of Directors.
Dyan Jenkins-Ali holds multiple roles within the University managing administrative and operational projects that impact the development of goals and initiatives designed to enhance multiple student, staff, patient and faculty health benefits and experiences. She is currently engaged in managing the operations for the university related to public health guidance and implementation of strategies related to COVID 19.
Her health care career spans more than 25 years, in which time she has worked in an executive capacity with M-CARE, Delta Dental, Providence Hospital and Health Alliance Plan. Dyan has held a State of Michigan Agent//Producer License in Life, Health and Disability, and is a certified phlebotomist. She held a membership with the Association of Health Care Executives and National Association of Health Service Executives, past-treasurer of U-M’s Letterwinners M Club Board (track ’86-’90’) in which she served nine years, and a diplomat with the U-M Credit Union. Dyan received a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and a Master’s degree from the School of Public Health both from the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor.
Marcina Mills Bowers serves as a board member at Project Starlet. This University of Michigan Wolverine is a graphic designer who focuses on print and digital solutions. She currently holds a position as a Communication Associate at Wayne County Community College District. Her creative journey has led her through marketing at Comerica Bank Inc., where she designed in-house projects. At GlobalHue as an art director, where she developed multicultural print and broadcast campaigns for clients like Walmart, Jeep, Chrysler, Dodge, Verizon and MGM Grand Casino Detroit. Additionally, she ran a freelance design company where she created pieces for Detroit Wayne Mental Health Authority, Edible Arrangements, First Media Group, and other companies and individuals.
Marcina’s passion to share art with children, led her to teach after-school art classes in Birmingham and Bloomfield schools and in the Kids Academy at Lifetime Athletic Inc. She also enjoyed mentoring elementary school-aged girls who were in need of guidance. Now, she looks forward to coordinating an annual holiday charity event for children through her church.
Sophia Dubreuil is a retired Early Childhood Education champion with over three decades of experience serving children and families from birth through middle school. She is an advocate for children, a mentor to aspiring teachers, and a lifelong learner inspired by the boundless potential of everyone she encounters. For Sophia, teaching was never confined to the classroom; it was a bridge to build relationships, a mission to uplift communities, and an opportunity leave behind a legacy of service.
This native New Yorker made her way to Michigan after accepting a full track scholarship to The University of Michigan, and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in psychology. After graduating she accepted a child care supervisor position with the Ann Arbor Public Schools. It is there she discovered a natural gift for teaching and service; a talent that went beyond lesson plans and curricula. Building a “classroom family” was Sophia’s forte. Sophia returned to school in pursuit of an elementary teaching certificate at Eastern Michigan University while completing a second bachelor’s in social science and art. She also went on to earn a master’s degree in early childhood education from EMU.
Sophia has received multiple Celebration of Excellence recognitions and most recently was the recipient of The HighScope Educational Research Foundation and Michigan Association for the Education of the Young Child’s 2020 Excellence in High Quality Early Childhood Education Award.
Sophia enjoys spending time with her family and friends, dancing, watching sporting events and volunteering with multiple community organizations. She is particularly proud of volunteering at HouseN2Home; helping restore dignity to families who have endured homelessness and creating a space for them to thrive. Her journey from the track to the classroom is a powerful narrative of growth, impact, and a passion for helping others find their stride.