Lavesha Draper

Lavesha Draper serves as a Head Start teacher at Step Forward Head Start in Cleveland, Ohio, a nonprofit anti-poverty agency where she has worked for 12 years. In addition to her teaching role, she is a mentor and the owner of the brand Classy, Confident, and Curvy Ladies, which focuses on empowering adolescent girls and women through mentorship, workshops, and public speaking. Her background includes prior work in the fashion industry and modeling, where she became a brand ambassador to encourage plus-size women. Draper holds a Child Development Associate credential along with certifications in behavior, inclusion, autism, and communication, and she attended college for communication studies. She maintains memberships in the Ohio Child Care Registry (OCRA) and the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC). Her achievements include features in the 15th and 16th editions of Who's Who in Black Cleveland, the Exceptional Women of Excellence Award, recognition as an unsung hero by Women of Destiny, and Woman Model of the Year. She also models for the NAACP Cleveland branch and conducts community outreach at the local library. Draper attributes her success to her belief system and faith in God, her legacy, and her children, and she emphasizes values such as authenticity, enthusiasm, passion, integrity, accountability, and continuous growth.