our team

  • Sex educator Tara Michaela (she/her) has been working in this field for the past four years, beginning during her sophomore year of college. Being a digital sex educator has meant supplementing the sex education people did not get in their grade schools or communities growing up, by creating online content such as videos and writing articles for various publications. Since beginning, her Instagram community has grown to over 14,000 followers, and has been featured in Buzzfeed, Marie Claire, and Well+Good. She has also helped various sexual wellness brands with their social media presence. This work was paved by a private Instagram account she began at the age of 15, where she would host conversations about her relationship with her body and her sexuality. She understands that young folks remain sexually active despite being discouraged from doing so, and sees education as a form of harm reduction.

  • Mattie Bieberly (she/her) is a young professional with a passion for community inclusion, non-profit work and public policy. She is based in the Midwest and works in the non-profit sector in her community, with specific interests in organizations that support youth and women. Mattie was a successful director of the only student-run university chapter of Alternative Breaks during her undergraduate career and most recently received a MA in International Relations from the University of Chicago. With her professional, academic and fundraising background, she is excited to grow YSP's presence within communities and online, as well as continuing to research new policies that affect marginalized populations in the country and make them accessible to YSP followers at large.

  • Natasha Mellini (she/her) is a dedicated advocate of sex education, driven by her early experiences and a deep understanding of the educational gaps in the United States. Recognizing the confusion and unanswered questions faced by her high school classmates, she realized the urgent need for comprehensive sex education. Natasha holds a degree in Biomedical Sciences and a minor in childhood education and development. She furthered her expertise by obtaining a postgraduate degree in Secondary Biology in the UK, where she taught sex education within one of the most progressive systems in the world. Returning to the US to teach, she witnessed the lack of support and shaming experienced by students. This motivated her to create inclusive spaces and advocate for comprehensive sex education. As the Director of Parent Advocacy and Community Relations at YSP, Natasha continues to champion the cause, providing support and education to those in need.

board of directors

  • Faye Odesser is a writer, feminist and sex educator based in New York. Her work, which has been published in platforms including Salty, VICE, Spectrum Boutique, Nox Shop, and Sunday Times, explores technology and sensuality and is informed by her main goal of reducing stigmas, unpacking shame, and promoting pleasure and consent based education. You can find her work at fayeodesser.com

  • Dirty Lola is an award-winning sex edutainer, speaker, and self-proclaimed dildo slinger. Known for her live sex ed, Q&A show Sex Ed A Go-Go and as a Sexpert on the Netflix docuseries The Principles of Pleasure, Lola has spent over a decade working to end the stigma and shame surrounding sex and sexuality. Having started her journey sharing personal discoveries with polyamory and kink online, Lola now uses her knowledge, warm candor, and public platforms to teach the masses in person and rapt Internet audiences.

    In addition to her educational projects, Lola is the creative director of the Spectrum Journal, an online magazine offshoot of the female-owned online sex shop, Spectrum Boutique, and has brought her unique brand of sex-positive sex education to brands such as B-Vibe, Freya, Womanizer, and Spencers Gifts.

advisory board

  • Alyssa (she/they) is a reproductive justice organizer, sex educator, and abortion storyteller. Alyssa graduated from Rutgers University with a degree in Women, Gender, & Sexuality Studies and is currently a graduate student studying education. Prior to studying education, Alyssa's professional background included being a health educator for Peer Health Exchange,Abortion Educator at Planned Parenthood of Arizona, and a Fellow with Collective Power. Currently, Alyssa is a high school educator with a focus on disability and racial justice for youth in Chicago. She believes that everyone deserves access to comprehensive sexual and reproductive health education to have the information to make the choices best for them regarding their sexual health.

  • Dr. Jessie Ford, PhD is a public health sociologist whose research explores how expectations around gender and sexuality shape sexual pleasure, health and violence. To date, much of Jessie’s research has focused on the way that social forces such as inequality, stigma and power profoundly affect sexual health. She holds a PhD in Sociology from NYU and an MPH from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. She currently works as an Assistant Professor at Columbia University. Jessie has published in numerous academic journals and is committed to engaging with the broader public on various sexual health related topics.

  • Mariah is a Latine sex educator and digital learning designer with a profound commitment to promoting inclusivity and equity in sex education. She has worked with a variety of organizations to provide comprehensive sex education to individuals of all ages and backgrounds. Beyond traditional education settings, Mariah’s goal is to make sex education more accessible through social media. Her social media presence as the Sex Ed Files allows her to share inclusive, medically-accurate and pleasure-centered sexual health information, and make complex topics relatable and informed by youth.

  • Erica Lee Bigelow is an NYU alum who recently graduated with her certificate in Human Sexuality from the University of Minnesota. She hopes to empower young people by approaching sex education with kindness, love, and straightforwardness. @SexEdMadeSimple on Insta and TIkTok.

  • Kiana Lewis (she/they) is a sex educator, pleasure coach and sex work advocate. She believes in the liberation of all people through fighting anti-Blackness, uplifting the queer community, providing pleasurable and accessible sexual education and experiences, and connecting to whatever one considers spiritual.

  • Portia is a Michigan born sex coach and sex educator based in New York City. Her work centers around helping women and femmes of all experiences reconnect with their bodies, heal their relationship with pleasure and reclaim their sexuality.

  • Ellie Goldstein (she/her) is a Sex Educator based in Chicago. She has worked as a Community Educator at JCFS Chicago Response for Teens and a Health Facilitator Fellow at Peer Health Exchange. She's passionate about ensuring that young people have access to accurate and inclusive information that empowers them to make safe and healthy decisions for themselves. Ellie recently founded Embarrassed to Ask Consulting to provide sex education to wider audiences in Chicago. She received her Bachelor of Arts from Sarah Lawrence College and her Master of Public Health from Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health.

  • James Rose (they/she) is a genderfluid actor, educator, and content creator based in New York City. James holds degrees from NYU in Music Theatre and Child & Adolescent Mental Health Studies, and their work on stage and screen ranges from “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” to leading roles in regional theaters across the country. James also serves as a Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion consultant for regional theaters and corporations nationwide with special focus on gender inclusivity and developing safe reporting policies around sexual misconduct in the workplace. James received their RYT-500 Yoga teacher certification in 2019, specializing in trauma informed yoga and taught at prisons, domestic violence shelters, harm reduction facilities, senior centers, and after school programs during their appointment as CAO of F.I.T.4 All, a wellness non-profit. In 2023 James became an ambassador for Planned Parenthood, where they work directly with the organization to create content on sex education, reproductive health, and transgender healthcare. Their words have appeared in Shape, Well + Good, Women’s Health, Grindr, and more. Online, James creates content about gender, queerness, trauma survivorship, mental health, eating disorder recovery, their feelings, and their exes on Instagram & Tik Tok where they reach a combined community of over 400,000 people. They are honored to be working with Tara on the Youth Sexpert Program and believes everyone deserves access to comprehensive, inclusive sex education.

  • Nath has a deep rooted fascination with reproductive justice and sensual/sexual wellness.  Pole dancing is a movement tool that has guided her towards her own form of liberation— a deeper connection to her body, a stronger sense of autonomy over her body, and the feeling of safety in her body.


    Originally from NYC, Nath is now based in Potawatomi Land (Chicago) working at an abortion access organization where she supports people facing barriers getting to and from their abortion appointments. She is also a certified Postpartum Doula helping guide birthing people and/or their partner(s) to easefully go through the transformation that is the postpartum experience. Nath hopes to bridge the gap between her love for movement, bodily autonomy, and providing emotional support and wellness education for those going through a significant transition.

  • Cat Meyer is a queer Filipina-American and founder of Head South - a sexual wellbeing brand offering sustainable, refillable intimacy serums and Host of Head South Radio - a pleasure-positive podcast dedicated to removing the stigma of conversations about sex. Head South and Cat have been featured in publications such as Hypebae, Beauty Independent, Beauty Matter, and WWD.

  • Yaz (they/them) is an Iranian/Canadian queer, non-binary educator from Toronto, Canada. They currently work as the Social Media Manager and an educator for Queer Sex Therapy as well as a Pro-Dom at The Ritual Chamber. They have facilitated queer community programming that focused on platonic nudity, created a somatics practice called YINTIMATE designed to strengthen self intimacy, and hosted a queer dating show called Dating Unlocked. They are passionate about polyam education and making pleasureful spaces for queer and trans folks.

  • Irma is a certified sex educator in Texas and client services manager at Jane’s Due Process, where she helps Texas minors exercise their reproductive rights to an abortion. Prior to joining the JDP team, she graduated from The University of Texas at Austin and was a sexual health and abortion counselor at a local Austin clinic, as well as a birth doula. She is a strong local and national voice with a professional background in acknowledging and centering sexuality and reproductive justice issues in marginalized communities. Irma is also the creator behind Dirty South Sex Ed on Instagram which serves to cultivate a culture of pleasure and wellness without stigma in The South. She believes that when marginalized people obtain the knowledge they need to care for their sexual health, they are able to experience pleasure on their own terms, which is an act of protest, but most importantly--self-care.

  • Jeneka Jool (she/her) aka The Nomadic Nympho is a somatic sexual health educator and solo travel aficionado. She encourages her audiences to commit to a lifelong journey of self and global exploration to create the most pleasurable and fruitful life possible. With the use of unapologetic bravado, way too many sexual innuendos and recounts of her own sexual missteps, she continues to bridge the gap between sexual liberation and healing while simultaneously reminding those who exist in Black bodies that they deserve to explore the world built off of their backs.

  • Kim is a professional sex educator and writer. Her work focuses on pleasure-based, inclusive, and comprehensive sexual health education. Based in Hartford, CT, Kim provides sex ed programming in her community and facilitates queer social spaces.

  • Tatyannah King is an international speaker and writer covering anything related to sex, dating, and relationships. She is also a recent graduate of Widener University with a degree in clinical sex therapy and hopes of becoming a sex therapist who helps both singles and couples navigate issues surrounding sexual dysfunction.