Staff 2021-2022 SCHOOL YEAR
Great to meet you! Our diverse staff is excited to connect with you.
Click on the plus sign below to check out our staff member's biographies & contact information:
Erica Mosca, Founder & Executive Director
Erica Mosca is a proud first-generation college graduate, daughter of an immigrant, and social justice advocate. Part of the college access non-profit 10,000 Degrees in high school and serving as a fifth grade teacher with Teach For America, Las Vegas, Mosca experienced educational inequity in both her personal and professional life. “I am dedicated to empowering change from the community, for the community to ensure students can play the game to change the game to upend structural inequity and systemic racism. The opportunity to attain a college education is the foundation, though not prerequisite, for underrepresented students to become the diverse leaders of their own communities.”
Mosca currently serves on the Board of Directors of college access private school Cristo Rey St. Viator as the Academic Committee Chair, as an Authority member of the NV State Public Charter School Authority, the Board Chair of college persistence program & housing complex Q3 Student Partners' Community Advisory Board, serves on the Clark County Community Development Advisory Committee & is part of US Congressman Steven Horsford's Equity Cabinet. Previously, Mosca served on college access charter school Equipo Academy's Committee to Form, as the Chair of the United Way of Southern Nevada's Women's United Engagement Committee & as an Executive Board member of the Asian American Pacific Islander Democratic Caucus serving as the Corresponding Secretary. She has worked for Teach For America, TNTP & as a Special Projects Manager for previous Clark County School District Superintendent Dwight Jones.
Erica was awarded the 2021 Women Inspiring Nevada recognition, 2020 Community Hero Award from the Public Education Foundation for LIT's work during COVID-19 and the 2019 Boston University Young Alumni Award. Erica is a proud 2021 Leadership Las Vegas Phoenix class member, 2017 Emerge NV member, 2011 Education Pioneers Boston cohort member, 2008 Teach For America Las Vegas corps member and holds a B.S. from Boston University, an M.Ed. from UNLV & and Ed.M. from Harvard's Graduate School of Education. She is an avid J-Cole, rompers, Las Vegas and connecting people fan and was married over zoom during quarantine in April 2020 to her husband Nicholas Jared Smith who is serving in his 16th year in the United States Air Force currently stationed at Nellis Air Force Base. Erica is 35 and continues to own her home 16-houses down from her Teach For America placement school where her mother and father reside and daily run into LIT students and families. Erica and Nick live together with their dog Panda.
Mosca currently serves on the Board of Directors of college access private school Cristo Rey St. Viator as the Academic Committee Chair, as an Authority member of the NV State Public Charter School Authority, the Board Chair of college persistence program & housing complex Q3 Student Partners' Community Advisory Board, serves on the Clark County Community Development Advisory Committee & is part of US Congressman Steven Horsford's Equity Cabinet. Previously, Mosca served on college access charter school Equipo Academy's Committee to Form, as the Chair of the United Way of Southern Nevada's Women's United Engagement Committee & as an Executive Board member of the Asian American Pacific Islander Democratic Caucus serving as the Corresponding Secretary. She has worked for Teach For America, TNTP & as a Special Projects Manager for previous Clark County School District Superintendent Dwight Jones.
Erica was awarded the 2021 Women Inspiring Nevada recognition, 2020 Community Hero Award from the Public Education Foundation for LIT's work during COVID-19 and the 2019 Boston University Young Alumni Award. Erica is a proud 2021 Leadership Las Vegas Phoenix class member, 2017 Emerge NV member, 2011 Education Pioneers Boston cohort member, 2008 Teach For America Las Vegas corps member and holds a B.S. from Boston University, an M.Ed. from UNLV & and Ed.M. from Harvard's Graduate School of Education. She is an avid J-Cole, rompers, Las Vegas and connecting people fan and was married over zoom during quarantine in April 2020 to her husband Nicholas Jared Smith who is serving in his 16th year in the United States Air Force currently stationed at Nellis Air Force Base. Erica is 35 and continues to own her home 16-houses down from her Teach For America placement school where her mother and father reside and daily run into LIT students and families. Erica and Nick live together with their dog Panda.
Cynthia Romero, Part-Time Program Manager
Cynthia Romero is a proud first-generation college student, who after graduating with a double major in Chicano Studies and Spanish Linguistics from the University of California, Riverside, has focused a lot of her energy in ensuring educational equity for students in Las Vegas. As someone who grew up as an English Language Learner and became the first in her family to attend college, she understands the need for providing unique support to each and every student to assure they reach both their educational and personal goals. Through her work as an elementary school teacher she has had the privilege to show students at a young age the importance of education and goal setting. She has been able to take those classroom skills and apply them with LIT's high school students as a Program Manager, where now the focus is ensuring college access and giving back to the community. Se habla español.
Miriam Gomez, Part-Time Program Manager
Miriam Gomez is a proud first-generation Latina student whose dream is to become a child psychologist. Being the only child of 5 born in Mexico, her parents strived to give her the same education as her brothers and sisters in the United States. She graduated from Las Vegas High School in 2018 and now attends Nevada State College as a Psychology major with a minor in Counseling. Miriam works part-time at LIT as an Operations Manager and is a Cohort 3 member. Se habla español.
Briana Vaught, Postsecondary/ Alumni Program Manager
Briana Vaught (she/her/hers) Post Secondary/Alumni Coordinator:
UCSD Alumni, B.S. Biology. UNLV Alumni, M.Ed. First-Generation College Graduate. Teacher at Rancho High School.
email: bvaught@litlv.org
UCSD Alumni, B.S. Biology. UNLV Alumni, M.Ed. First-Generation College Graduate. Teacher at Rancho High School.
email: bvaught@litlv.org
Welcome from Mr. Romero (He/Him/His)
I am a former middle school mathematics teacher with the Clark County school district. I was once in your shoes as the first in my family to not only graduate high school, but be first to attend university. I hold two bachelor degrees from the University of California, Riverside in the disciplines of Sociology and Dance. I also hold a Master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. I have over 6 year experience in the field of education and educational outreach. I am excited to join Leaders in Training as a Program Manager to help our community’s Youth become the next generation of trailblazing leaders.
Communication will be relayed through slack.
Cell: (909)-213-4308
I am a former middle school mathematics teacher with the Clark County school district. I was once in your shoes as the first in my family to not only graduate high school, but be first to attend university. I hold two bachelor degrees from the University of California, Riverside in the disciplines of Sociology and Dance. I also hold a Master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. I have over 6 year experience in the field of education and educational outreach. I am excited to join Leaders in Training as a Program Manager to help our community’s Youth become the next generation of trailblazing leaders.
Communication will be relayed through slack.
Cell: (909)-213-4308