Staff

 

LaVasia Bullard, Interim Executive Director 

LBullard@horizonsatlanta.org

LaVasia Bullard is serving at the Interim Executive Director for Horizons Atlanta. Prior to this position, she served as the Director of Regional Programs where she supported regional programming of the eleven Horizons Atlanta sites, focusing on supporting newly launched sites and providing support for the professional development needs of the sites. Before joining the Regional team, LaVasia served as the founding Site Director for Horizons Atlanta with Purpose Built Schools for five years. Prior to Horizons, LaVasia has worked in and with Atlanta Public Schools for close to 20 years in various roles in support of achieving academic excellence for the children in Atlanta.  She has been an elementary and middle school ELA teacher, an Instructional Coach and supported new teachers as a Manager of Teacher Leadership and Development at Teach for America. LaVasia attended Syracuse University and earned a B.A in Policy Studies.  She has a passion for improving literacy skills for all kids and continues daily with that in mind. 

 

 

Luz Baqueiro, Enrollment and Records Manager

LBaqueiro@horizonsatlanta.org, enrollment@horizonsatlanta.org

Luz Baqueiro joined the Horizons Atlanta regional office in March 2023 as the Enrollment and Records Manager. Luz has been part of the Horizons Atlanta community since 2019, providing enrollment support to Horizons Atlanta at Atlanta International School. She is a certified interpreter in Education and Special Education, and she has previously worked for Atlanta Public Schools as a District Bilingual Community Liaison. Luz is originally from Mexico and has lived in Georgia for the past 20 years. She has a passion for serving under-resourced communities and in her role at the Regional office she will utilize her prior experience in outreach as well as her administrative and organizational skills to support Horizons Atlanta’s enrollment, record keeping, student recruitment, and family engagement.

 

Kelly Criss, Director of Development

KCriss@horizonsatlanta.org 

Kelly Criss has been working in Atlanta for over sixteen years as an Arts Administrator and Fundraising Professional, Actor, Director, Producer, and Teaching Artist.  Prior to joining Horizons Atlanta, she held the title of Director of Individual Giving at the Atlanta Ballet, the nation’s oldest established ballet company and the state of Georgia’s largest self-supported arts organization. In this role, she directed the cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship of current and prospective major donors and was able to increase the total donor portfolio by over 50%. During her tenure, she achieved new organizational records- exceeding the Ballet's annual fund goal two years in a row. Before her time at the Ballet, she served as Director of Corporate & Individual Giving at Aurora Theatre and stewarded the Lawrenceville Arts Center capital campaign. Other experience includes the Manager of Special Projects at the High Museum of Art and the Artistic & Education Manager at Horizon Theatre, where she mentored the apprentice company and was the primary coordinator for the annual Young Playwrights Festival.

Kelly also teaches beginning acting courses for teens at the Alliance Theatre and has been a member of the Atlanta Shakespeare acting company since 2006, after completing their pre-professional apprentice training program. Kelly attended Furman University and earned a B.A. in Theatre Arts. Additionally, Kelly is a founding member and former producer with the Weird Sisters Theatre Project, where she currently serves on the Board of Directors. 

 

 

 Khalilah Moss, Associate Director of Regional Programs

KMoss@horizonsatlanta.org

Khalilah Moss joined our team in April 2023 as the Associate Director of Regional Programs. In this role she is tasked with supporting programmatic planning and achieving continued positive student outcomes, while also ensuring consistent alignment with Horizons Atlanta’s core program components. Prior to joining the regional office she served at Horizons Atlanta with Purpose Built Schools for two years as their Program Coordinator. Khalilah hails from Augusta and began her extended education at Georgia State University where she received her Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice in 2001. She later received her Master of Science in Special Education in 2005 and an Educational Specialist Degree in Curriculum & Instruction from Lincoln Memorial University in 2009. In 2012 she also earned a Reading Specialist Endorsement which extended her expertise and methodology in reading. Khalilah has served 15 years in an educational career consisting of K-12 classroom instruction and administration leadership. She has an overall love for students and literacy, and a goal to continue providing an instructional foundation for all teachers and students while also developing instructional-based learning methods for their success.