Author: Eric Greenwald

Nationally respected strategic growth expert and youth advocate elected as Board Chair
of Atlanta’s premier youth service-learning nonprofit

Atlanta, GA: Pebble Tossers Inc., Metro Atlanta’s leading youth service-learning nonprofit
organization, is pleased to name Alieizoria “DrA” Redd, PhD, LCSW, Founder and CEO of The
Institute for Restoration, Well-Being & Leadership, as Board Chair of Pebble Tossers’ Board
of Directors. Effective April 17th, 2026, her appointment marks a defining milestone for the
organization as it scales its mission to empower youth to lead through service.

“I’m honored to serve as Board Chair of Pebble Tossers at such a meaningful time in the
organization’s growth, advancing a vision that engages young people in purpose-driven service
while strengthening communities in sustainable ways,” says DrA, “I look forward to supporting
intentional, equity-centered impact—because aligned purpose creates lasting change.”

DrA’s history as a Board Officer and Co-Chair for agencies including the Atlanta LGBTQ+
Community Center Feasibility Study for the Atlanta–Fulton County Recreation Authority, Atlanta
Mayor Andre Dickens’s LGBTQ+ Advisory Board and Youth Committee, and ANIZ, Inc., brings a
seasoned perspective on governance and strategic planning to Pebble Tossers. Her transition
from policy-led advocacy to community-based action will be instrumental in furthering the
organization’s commitment to centering youth voice and creating new pathways for young
leaders to shape the programs and policies that impact their lives and communities.

Complementing her civic leadership is a formidable track record in executive management. As
the former CEO of Covenant House Georgia, DrA spearheaded transformational growth,
increasing the agency’s operating budget to $8.2 million and securing $10 million in
philanthropic capital. This dual expertise in policy and development makes her uniquely
positioned to support Pebble Tossers in addressing the evolving needs of Metro Atlanta’s youth
and broaden youth access to community service opportunities and developmental
programming.

“We’re thrilled to welcome Dr. Alieizoria Redd as Pebble Tossers’ new Board Chair, “ says
Jonathan Gosse, Executive Director of Pebble Tossers, “Her three decades leading organizations
that serve Atlanta’s most vulnerable young people—most recently as CEO of Covenant House
Georgia—bring exactly the perspective we need for the next phase in our development as we
expand access to service across more of Atlanta’s communities.”

2026 Board of Directors, Pebble Tossers

The Pebble Tossers Board of Directors is an elected group of volunteers with governance and
fiduciary responsibilities for overseeing Pebble Tossers’ strategic goals and long-term
sustainability. DrA joins a distinguished body of professionals dedicated to the nonprofit’s
growth, including:

● Alieizoria Redd, PhD, LCSW, Board Chair — The Institute for Restoration, Well-Being &
Leadership
● Jennifer Guynn, Founder — Guynn Partners
● Kelly Weber, Executive Committee — OneDigital
● Brandy Brock, Executive Committee — Google Cloud
● Samara Kaufman, Executive Committee — Cinagro Wine Experience
● Spencer Rees, Board Treasurer — Bennett Thrasher CPA
● Jonathan Leon — The Moriah Group
● Stephanie L. Block, MPA — Big Brothers Big Sisters of Metro Atlanta
● Roshni Chengappa — Escalate

About Pebble Tossers
Pebble Tossers is Metro Atlanta’s leading youth service-learning nonprofit organization focused
on providing families with a comprehensive path to youth development through service to
others, from preschool to graduation. Customized programming empowers youth to lead by
providing them with age-appropriate service opportunities infused with a unique
service-learning curriculum focusing on social-emotional learning, positive youth development,
social justice, and positive psychology. With Pebble Tossers, volunteers sign up, show up, and
serve to create a ripple of giving in their community. For more information, visit
www.pebbletossers.org.
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What is your group project about, and what made you want to create your project?
Our group project is about bringing awareness to mental health through a summit. My team and I wanted to create this project because we wanted to help people in person. We felt it would be more effective to have a summit and have actual people attend rather than just reaching out through something like social media or a website.

What skills did you gain or develop as a teen leader, and how did you apply those skills to lead your project?
The skills that I gained as a team leader were communication and outreach. I had good communication skills before this, but working with my group, my school, and my teachers to help make this event come together gave me experience as a widespread communicator in addition to working with my peers. I also gained the skill of outreach through social media by making Instagram posts.

What challenges did you encounter while working on your project, and how did you overcome them?
The challenge we encountered was finding a location, which we overcame by communicating with my school and working with my supervisor to hold the event at my school. Another challenge was getting people to attend, which we tried to overcome by posting posters all over our schools and through social media. However, I think we didn’t start early enough, which made it harder to let people know about the event and resulted in fewer people attending.

Tell us how the TLP supported your goals as a teen leader and what your next steps are after completing this TLP year.
The TLP supported my goals as a team leader by giving me this opportunity to have this event, because without TLP, this isn’t something that I would’ve done on my own. The supervisors also helped support my goals because Ms. Alysha attended our event, and they gave great suggestions on how to improve outreach. My next steps after completing TLP this year are to reapply for next year and to hopefully continue volunteering through the summer.

Describe a time when you felt proud of yourself as a teen leader.
I felt really proud of myself as a team leader when the event was going on because I could see how all of our hard work had accumulated to this point and how it paid off.

Do you have someone who inspires you?
My brother inspires me because he’s a hard worker, really good at communicating his feelings, and cares a lot about others.

Imagine you’re giving a TED Talk about a leadership lesson you learned. What’s the title, and what is your main takeaway message?
The title of my TED talk is “Prepare ahead of time.” My main takeaway message is that when you are part of a leadership group and are planning an event, it’s better to come up with what you want to do as soon as possible so that you can plan everything and prepare everything well before the deadline.