PTO Board Members
Rebecca Sohmer - President
Rebecca Sohmer is the Van Ness PTO President and parent to 5th grade Otter Sam and Otter alum Jake. Her family has been at Van Ness since it reopened in 2015 and pretty much wish they could stay Otters through high school. Now a full-time PTO president/mom, she previously was an education specialist and volunteer manager at Friends of the National Zoo. She puts her dozen years of volunteer management to work in support of our wonderful school; and tries to apply what she learned about zoology into managing the zoo her household has become.
Myya Seldon - Vice President
Myya Seldon is the PTO Vice President and Assistant, Strategy & Logistics (ASL) at Van Ness. She is mom to a third grade Otter (Giselle) and an Otter alum (Paris) at Jefferson Academy Middle School. Her family has proudly been at Van Ness since 2016. She has been an active part of our school’s community and also serves as Chair on the 2023-2024 LSAT. Myya also owns a creative marketing agency.
Maquita Alexander - Staff Board Member
Maquita Alexander is the principal of Van Ness Elementary School. Prior to joining DCPS, Ms. Alexander served as the Executive Director at Washington Yu Ying PCS, the only Chinese Immersion International Baccalaureate Primary Years Program school in Washington DC. Washington Yu Ying is a high performing, inquiry-based school with a highly diverse student body. Yu Ying opened in the fall of 2008. Under Ms. Alexander’s leadership, Yu Ying has become one of the most sought-after schools in the District of Columbia with its standardized test scores in the top 10% citywide year after year.
Ms. Alexander has over twenty-eight years of teaching and administrative experience, including fifteen years in the Fairfax County Public School system, seven of which she served as an elementary school teacher. She has a Master of Arts in Educational Technology Leadership from George Washington University, a Master of Teaching in Elementary Education from Virginia Commonwealth University, and an administrative certification in Curriculum and Administration from George Mason University.
Maggie McCarty - Secretary
Maggie McCarty has been a Van Ness Otter parent since 2017, when her twin daughters (Iris and Lucy) started in PK3. But she's been involved with the school since before her girls were born, participating in efforts to reopen the school since at least 2013. Maggie’s been a member of the PTO Board since the 2019-2020 school year and has also served as a parent rep on the LSAT. Maggie's day job is with the Library of Congress.
Stephanie Nelson - Treasurer
Stephanie Nelson is the treasurer of the Van Ness PTO and proud parent of Peter and Patrick Campbell (2nd and 1st, respectively). When not chasing her kids on the playground or organizing her pantry, Stephanie works as an independent consultant, helping clients get unstuck and sort through messy problems. She is thrilled to be on the PTO again this year!
Brandy McCarthy - Member
Bio coming soon!
Asia West - Member
Bio coming soon!
Alexis Bailey - Staff Board Member
Bio coming soon!
Yakita Wilkinson - Member
Bio coming soon!
Portia Fendell - Member
Bio coming soon!