Lyra Logan, J.D.
President & CEO
Lyra Logan, J.D., is President & CEO of the Florida Education Fund, where she provides leadership for the organization’s programs, operations, fundraising, technology, and strategic initiatives. Before becoming President & CEO, she served as Executive Vice President and General Counsel and directed FEF’s statewide pre-college programs, including the Centers of Excellence, Florida National Achievers Society, Brain Bowl scholarship competitions, and academic enrichment programs.
Logan also created FEF's CodeMasters program to provide year-round computer science education in underserved communities and won a substantial multiyear grant to expand FEF Upskill, an offering that provides digital and technical skills training to underemployed young adults. Earlier in her FEF career, she ran the organization’s Miami office, where she initiated and directed the $54 million Minority Participation in Legal Education Program, which supported hundreds of law and pre-law scholars.
Logan earned her bachelor’s degree from Fisk University and juris doctorate from Harvard; holds a graduate certificate in Educational Mobile Computing (MIT App Inventor); and is industry-certified in Perl, Python, JavaScript and database design. She has presented and published articles on copyright, supplemental educational services, online learning, and MIT App Inventor, and authored the book
Learn to Program with App Inventor, a computer programming text published by No Starch Press and distributed by Penguin Random House.
Logan has served as an appointee to the Florida Constitution Revision Commission, Florida Supreme Court Judicial Nominating Commission, Florida Small & Minority Business Advisory Council, and several municipal boards, and been elected to the boards of multiple charter schools and non-profits. In 2018, she received a
Tampa Bay Business Journal BusinessWoman of the Year Award.
Lawrence Morehouse, Ph.D.
President Emeritus
Dr. Lawrence Morehouse served as President and Chief Executive Officer of the Florida Education Fund from 2000 to 2026. During his tenure, FEF's McKnight Doctoral Fellowship (MDF) Program doubled the number of fellowships offered annually and expanded its support system to include publication of the
FEF Journal of Interdisciplinary Research, online graduate writing workshops, professional editorial services, a Midyear Research and Writing Conference, and a Summer Research and Writing Institute for advanced graduate students and junior faculty. FEF also raised over $76 million for its pre-college and doctoral programs while also growing its endowment.
Before joining FEF, Dr. Morehouse was a tenured associate professor at the University of South Florida, where he taught political science and directed the University’s Political Science and Pre-Law programs. He has published numerous scholarly works and been at the forefront of educational reform, having been appointed to the One Florida Accountability Commission, the Florida Board of Education Accountability Commission, the Governor’s Access and Diversity Commission, the Florida Department of Education Student Growth Implementation Committee, and the College Board Southern Regional Council. He has also served on the boards of Florida Memorial University, The Education Channel, Tampa Bay United Way, the Tampa Chamber of Commerce, and the Museum of Science and Industry.
Dr. Morehouse earned his bachelor’s degree from Southern University and his master's and Ph.D. from Cornell University.
Natoya Martin, CA, CPA
Finance Manager
Natoya Martin, CA, CPA, is the Finance Manager at the Florida Education Fund, bringing over
a decade of experience in financial leadership across public accounting, banking, investments,
and financial services. In her current role, she leads the organization’s financial planning,
budgeting, compliance, and reporting functions, ensuring transparency and fiscal responsibility
in support of the Fund’s mission.
Natoya began her career as an External Auditor in public accounting, where she developed a
strong foundation in audit procedures, regulatory compliance, and risk assessment. She then
transitioned to the banking and financial services industry, where she served as Accountant and
Senior Accountant, overseeing investment portfolios, financial reporting, operational controls,
and coordinating and executing year-end audits. Natoya is a Chartered Accountant (CA) and a licensed Certified Public Accountant (CPA). She holds a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from Excelsior Community College, along with
graduate certificates in Managerial Accounting from the University of the West Indies and Audit
and Forensic Accounting from Southern New Hampshire University.
Ms. Monica Montes
Project Manager and Graphic Designer
Ms. Monica Montes is Project Manager and Graphic Designer at FEF, where she supports the retention and graduation of McKnight Doctoral Fellows at nine Florida universities. Ms. Montes assists with managing the MDF budget and application and selection processes, the Mid-Year Research and Writing Conference, New Fellows’ Orientation, and the Annual Fellows Meeting. She also collects data on the MDF Program and reports findings to the FEF President and Board of Directors. Additionally, Ms. Montes manages production of and designs all of the organization’s publications, including the FEF Annual Report, conference program books, brochures, flyers, social media posts, and the semi-annual
FEF Focus newsletter. She is proficient in the use of Adobe Photoshop, Adobe InDesign, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Acrobat, Microsoft Office, Microsoft FrontPage, Dreamweaver, CSS and HTML, among others. Ms. Montes earned her associate degree in commercial arts from Florida Metropolitan University and bachelor’s degree in graphic design from Full Sail University.
Ms. Phyllis Reddick
Program Manager and Communication Specialist
Ms. Phyllis Reddick is McKnight Junior Faculty Development Fellowship (JFF) Program Manager and Communication Specialist at FEF, where she manages the JFF application and selection processes, the editing component of the McKnight writing assistance program, the McKnight Fellows’ evaluation process, and the MDF deferment program. Ms. Reddick also assists with developing FEF’s professional development workshops and recruiting speakers for MDF conferences. Her communication responsibilities include writing and editing articles for the semi-annual
FEF Focus and other FEF publications, such as the FEF Annual Report and conference programs. Ms. Reddick earned her bachelor’s degree in print journalism from Howard University.
Taylor Rodman, Ph.D.
Senior Program Manager
Dr. Taylor Rodman is Senior Program Manager at FEF, where she manages the day-to-day implementation of FEF CodeMasters. Her responsibilities include program planning, curriculum development, instructor and staff training and supervision, site coordination, and the delivery and expansion of coding and STEM enrichment programming for elementary and secondary students. As a McKnight Dissertation Fellowship alumna, she also supports the design and delivery of programming for McKnight Doctoral Fellows. Drawing on her experience in doctoral study, she helps develop convenings and professional development activities; leads and moderates panels, workshops, and other sessions; and contributes to engagement, assessment, and program improvement efforts.
Rodman earned her Ph.D. in computational chemistry from the University of South Florida and a B.S. in chemistry from Winston Salem State University. Throughout her academic career, she received several prestigious fellowships, including the McKnight Dissertation Fellowship, the NSF Florida Georgia Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation Bridge to the Doctorate, the NSF East Asia and Pacific Summer Institutes (Japan), and the National GEM Fellowship.
Ms. Katelyn Sengsoulya
Office Manager/Accounting Assistant
Ms. Katelyn Sengsoulya manages the day-to-day operation of the FEF offices, which includes purchasing and distributing resources and providing IT support services for the MDF program. She also coordinates the MDF application and selection processes and FEF’s annual fund campaign, provides administrative support for the MDF Program and FEF offices, and has worked with the organization since 2005. As Accounting Assistant, Ms. Sengsoulya helps manage FEF’s financial operations. She earned her bachelor’s degrees in information technology and finance from the University of South Florida.