Chantae Readye, Board Chair

Chantae Readye has been an educator in the Clark County School District since 2006. It has been her passion and privilege to work with students from some of the most vulnerable populations and to watch them succeed. Originally from San Diego, CA, she grew up in a low income, single parent household where she was taught the importance of a good education as a means to open doors and to improve her life. With the support of her mother and many mentors along the way, Chantae got her undergraduate degree at the University of California, Los Angeles where she double majored in Economics and Sociology in 2006. Although she intended to go into marketing after college, after attending a Teach For America informational session her senior year, she applied and joined the 2006 Las Vegas Valley corps and became an elementary teacher for CCSD. As a teacher Chantae had the opportunity to teach kindergarten, second, third, and fifth grades and earned a Master’s of Education in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV). She was an active leader on her school campus and involved with the school community and was able to use her experiences growing up to help connect with her students. This led to the realization that education was her passion and that she desired to be a school leader to expand her impact in the pursuit of sustained change. Chantae decided to become an administrator and pursued her second Master’s in Urban Leadership Development from UNLV in 2017. Chantae was appointed as an Assistant Principal in September of 2019 and has continued to work within low income communities in Las Vegas to empower students to use education as a means to unlock opportunities.

Anne Weisman, Board Vice Chair

Dr. Anne Weisman is the Director of Wellness & Integrative Medicine with the UNLV School of Medicine. She developed wellness and integrative medicine curriculum and workshops for the medical students, faculty and residents.  Previously Dr. Weisman worked in the field for thirteen years as a massage therapist in HIV/AIDS clinics and hospices. She was awarded the Jefferson Award for Public Service for this work in 2007 and has presented her research numerous times at the Nevada Public Health Association and American Public Health Association conventions and was chosen to attend the Clinton Global Initiative University in Miami, FL.  Dr. Weisman earned her B.A., M.P.H. and Ph.D. degrees from UNLV (Human Touch: Perceptions of Self-Efficacy from a Non-Pharmacology Treatment for Individuals Living With HIV/AIDS). Additionally, she studied at the University of Cape Town with New York University in a 4- week immersion course where she worked with the families and patients in a community setting. She specializes in integrating massage therapy and other integrative practices into the care and treatment of patients. Dr. Weisman has taught therapists about her integrative techniques and works to teach patients’, care providers and families techniques that they can use at home.

Dr. Weisman spent 13 years caring for people living with HIV/AIDS, as well as volunteering and working for hospice patients. During this time, she developed continuing education classes for nurses and other health care providers to help teach some techniques that are soothing for patients and non-pharmacological. Her role at UNLV medical school is to introduce these and many other techniques to the medical students, faculty and residents to help them manage their own stress as well as to help provide a broader understanding of integrative treatments for their patients. Dr. Weisman has been trained and certified with the Center for Mind Body Medicine and uses many of these modalities and approaches in her work.

Kelsey Stegall, Board Secretary

Kelsey E. Stegall advises and defends corporate clients in a variety of labor and employment matters as an attorney in Littler Mendelson’s Las Vegas office.  Prior to joining Littler, Kelsey clerked for two years for the Honorable Chief Judge Gloria M. Navarro of the U.S. District Court for the District of Nevada. In law school, Kelsey served as vice president of UNLV’s exclusive moot court team, the Society of Advocates, and as notes editor of the Gaming Law Journal. 

Kelsey moved from the southwest valley to Downtown Las Vegas in early 2017, and she has been an active resident ever since.  Due to the disparity that is apparent in the Downtown Las Vegas community, Kelsey has made it a part of her personal mission to become more involved in equity within this community, particularly involving education.

Rebecca Gonzalez, Board Treasurer

Rebecca Gonzalez has many years of experience in the Accounting field and possesses both a degree in Accounting and a degree in Business Management. She has worked in both the private and public sector and now looks to utilize her knowledge to help make Battle Born Academy a success. Having moved to Las Vegas in 2006, she has a strong desire to be involved in the community and help nurture changes that are very much needed in our downtown area. Opportunities and possibilities should be available to every individual regardless of circumstances and through various avenues, such as Battle Born Academy’s vision, she is excited to help make this a reality.  With previous experience maintaining the financial records for another Charter school in the Las Vegas area, Rebecca hopes to be able to help establish Battle Born Academy by providing insight from a financial perspective. In her spare time Rebecca loves to be with her husband and two daughters. Being able to find a balance between work, life, passions and commitments is her ultimate goal, but slowing down is not an option. 

Suyapa Canales

Suyapa Canales is a Learning Strategist at Dr. C Owen Roundy Elementary School. Suyapa moved to Las Vegas in 2014 as a TFA corps member where she served as a HeadStart PreK teacher. She moved to Clark County school district in 2016 where she continued to teach 1st grade and serviced 2nd grade English Language Learners. Suyapa holds a BA in English and Media Cultural Studies from the University of California, Riverside, an M.Ed in Early Childhood Education from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas , and is currently embarking on her journey towards school administration by beginning her M.Ed in Educational Policy and Leadership at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. As someone who grew up in underserved Southern California public schools, Suyapa is deeply committed to working towards educational equity for all students. She understands the importance of high quality education for all students and strives to be part of the systemic change necessary to reimagine teaching and learning in schools. 

Traci Cheatham

Mom, yogi, wellness educator, transformational thinker, lifelong learner, Traci’s life purpose is to allow people to see the beauty within themselves and the world around them.  A Las Vegas transplant, originally from Southern California, Traci made her way to Sin City to teach middle school mathematics in East Las Vegas. After nearly five years in the classroom, she decided to move deeper into her passion for wellness and became a full-time yoga instructor. Traci is an RYT 200 through the Yoga Alliance and a certified Trauma Recovery Yoga instructor. She hosts classes around the city of Las Vegas at local community centers. Traci’s primary focus is to bring quality mindfulness practices to those who may not have access to a typical yoga studio. In addition to teaching, Traci is pursuing her Master’s in Social Work with a focus on Trauma therapy. My goal is to merge the sciences of wellness and social interaction to create a better, more holistic world. 

Keith J.D. Hightower

Keith Hightower currently directs the government affairs and corporate relationships at Teach For America Las Vegas. He joined TFA’s team as the Director of Corporate and Public Partnerships in October 2019. A decade earlier, Keith was selected to join the 2009 TFA Hawai’i corps where he taught middle-school social studies and science and chaired the Social Studies department. Prior to his role with TFA, Keith served on Nevada Governor Steve Sisolak’s senior leadership team as the Governor’s Legislative & Intergovernmental Affairs Director. Keith also served as the Legislative Director for Governor Brian Sandoval. In an era of troubling political tribalism and intense political polarization, Keith earned trusted advisory roles from these successive governors belonging to opposite political parties. Keith majored in Political Science and earned his Bachelor of Arts from Columbia University in 2009, his Master of Education in Teaching from the University of Hawai’i in 2013, and his Juris Doctor from the University of Nevada Las Vegas, William S. Boyd School of Law, graduating in 2017 with Pro Bono Highest Honors. Keith was recently appointed to the Board of Visitors at Columbia University’s School of General Studies, he also serves on the UNLV Law School Advisory Board for the Justice Michael L. Douglas Pre-Law Fellowship Program, he sits on the executive leadership board for the Las Vegas National Bar Association, and in 2019, the UNLV Law School presented Keith with its prestigious Young Alumni Award.