When Natasha Johnson talks about her 26-year journey with Girls Inc. of Greater Philadelphia & Southern New Jersey, her story doesn’t begin with a title or an office. It begins with a front door — a child needing safety, and a mother doing the best she could with what she had. 

As a recent Temple University graduate and young professional with a degree in Sociology, Natasha was filled with optimism and purpose. She chose her major out of a deep curiosity about people — how the environment, culture, and opportunity shape their lives. “I wanted to understand why things happened the way they did,” she recalls. “I believed that if I could understand the systems that hold people back, I could help change them.” 

She was especially passionate about helping women and children in Philadelphia — families who reminded her of her own upbringing, full of strength and survival. “I wanted to be part of the solution,” she says. “I believed that through compassion, accountability, and access, we could help families rebuild their lives.” 

Her first job as a caseworker quickly challenged that optimism. She remembers walking into homes where the air felt heavy, where silence carried its own kind of scream. “Academia doesn’t prepare you for the reality of what people live through,” she says quietly. “I saw families in poverty, neighborhoods battling addiction and violence, mothers surviving abuse, and children losing their innocence far too soon. I’d go home exhausted — eat, fall asleep, and get up to do it all over again,” she recalls. “The hardest part was knowing that when I left, those kids couldn’t, I ensured their safety but that didn’t change their daily circumstances.” 

The work changed her. It stripped away theory and replaced it with humanity — real faces, real fear, real resilience. “Sociology taught me that one’s environment can shape everything,” she says. “How people think, what they believe they deserve, and even what they imagine as possible. Your environment can be your greatest support or your greatest barrier.” 

She began to understand the truth behind the statistics — that trauma and environment are intertwined. “I didn’t see bad people,” she explains. “I saw survival. Once you understand environment, you stop judging and start asking what people need to thrive.” 

That awareness became her compass. “You can’t empower people without holding them accountable,” she says, “and you can’t hold people accountable if you don’t first understand their trauma.” 

Roots and Inspirations 

Long before she became a leader, Natasha was a daughter learning to see the world through both tenderness and truth. She grew up in Queens, New York — the first U.S.-born child of a Jamaican mother and a Bajan father — surrounded by music, movement, and meaning. 

Her mother, an immigrant who spent her early years doing domestic work, embodied perseverance and pride. Like many women of her generation, especially in their early twenties, her work reflected the limited opportunities available to many women and immigrants at the time. By the time Natasha was born, her mother had begun a meaningful career and, through hard work and determination, advanced steadily until retiring from a highly successful company. 

“Mom was, and still is, my greatest inspiration,” Natasha says. “I got my empathy, spunk and charisma from her. She’s the most generous person I know — deeply spiritual, fashionable, and full of life. My mom raised me in church, set high expectations of excellence, and gave me my sense of style and my work ethic. She was incredibly resourceful and hardworking — she would do anything to make sure I felt safe, loved, and nurtured.” 

When Natasha was a young child, she shared her dream of becoming a chef, her mother gently refused.  Natasha remembers. “It wasn’t about food — it was about freedom.” At the time, she simply couldn’t imagine that career as a path to success — she hadn’t seen women who looked like us thriving in that space. 

“My mother is a force,” Natasha adds softly. “To this day, I proudly say, I am Hazel’s daughter.” 

Creativity also found its way in Natasha’s life. Natasha loved to sing, dance, and perform. She joined every choir she could — from school ensembles to even singing alongside the Queens Symphony Orchestra as a teenager. She participated in school plays, sang and conducted the school choir, and earned a variety of music awards. “Performing gave me joy without rules,” she says. “It taught me confidence before I even knew that’s what it was.” 

Even as a young girl, she looked up to women who embodied wit, grace, and independence. “I loved Miss Piggy for her sharpness and her fashion sense,” Natasha laughs. “She was confident, loud, and stylish — she owned every room she walked into.” She also admired Julia Child, the first chef she ever saw on television. “Julia Child made cooking look powerful,” she recalls. “She wasn’t just making food — she was teaching, leading, laughing. I didn’t realize it then, but that was the first time I saw a woman on TV doing something she loved, unapologetically.” 

Her stepfather, whom she met at five years old, was her champion — steady, loving, and deeply proud of her. “He believed I could do anything,” she says. “He celebrated every accomplishment, big or small, and made sure I knew I was enough just as I was.” He nurtured her curiosity, taking her everywhere — Mets games, museums, and restaurants — while filling every car ride with conversation. “He taught me everything,” she says. “Politics, global history, sports, religion. We talked about the world. He made sure I was part of it.” 

Their relationship shaped how she saw men and fathers — and why she remains passionate about “girl dads.” “He’s the reason I love that term,” she says. “I know what it’s like to be seen and encouraged by a man who believes in you. That kind of love changes everything for a girl.” 

Natasha describes her childhood as “full and fearless.” She experienced opportunities many children never saw — art, travel, culture and the kind of mentorship that widened her view of what was possible. 

She credits her teachers for nurturing that sense of possibility. Her fifth-grade teacher, Ms. Reid, introduced her to Black history and literature. “She showed me our excellence,” Natasha says. “Langston Hughes, Maya Angelou — she made us proud of who we were.” Later, her high-school choir teacher, Patricia Pates, demanded excellence. “She made us sing everything from Mozart’s Requiem to Whitney Houston,” Natasha recalls. “She was tough but fair. She made me believe I was capable of anything.” 

Those early influences — her mother’s grace and determination, her stepfather’s insistence on authenticity, and her teachers’ unwavering belief in her — built the foundation she still stands on today. “My teachers and my family were my greatest protective factors,” Natasha reflects. “They showed me that power doesn’t come from changing who you are, but from showing up fully as yourself.” 

Those early lessons carried her into adulthood, grounding her as she began serving families navigating hardship, hope, and everything in between. 

Lessons from the Front Lines 

As a young case manager, Natasha’s days were long and unpredictable. She might start the morning helping a mother apply for housing or utilities assistance, spend the afternoon counseling a teenager in crisis, and end the day in a child’s school addressing truancy issues. 

“Some days, it was too much,” she admits. “I saw families living in survival mode — mothers who loved their kids but didn’t know where the next meal was coming from. Children being hurt by people who were supposed to protect them. It was a lot.” 

Those experiences tested her empathy and strengthened her resolve. “I’d go home feeling broken,” she says. “But even in those spaces, there was still light. There was a mother’s laugh, a child’s accomplishment, a moment of hope that made it all worth it.” 

And in those moments, she found clarity. “I realized I couldn’t change their pasts,” she says, “but maybe I could help change what came next.” 

Finding Purpose in Girls 

That clarity became purpose when Natasha was offered the chance to design an after-school program at Girls Inc. “I realized I wanted to reach the girls before the world broke them,” she says. “If we could help them see their worth early, maybe we could stop the cycle.” 

Her first classroom was a South Philadelphia auditorium filled with 40 Pierce Middle School girls — curious, skeptical, and bright-eyed. “Forty girls — forty sets of eyes looking at me like, ‘Who is she?’” Natasha remembers with a laugh. “I thought I was there to inspire them, but they inspired me- they changed my life.” 

She remembers that first day vividly. “They were loud, funny, brave, and real. They weren’t waiting to be saved — they were waiting to be seen. That’s when it clicked: this is my purpose.” 

From that point on, Natasha began building programs from the ground up. “We didn’t have a blueprint,” she says. “We built everything from scratch — STEM, literacy, health, leadership, everything. All of it came from listening and connecting with the girls genuinely.” 

Each new program was crafted with intention — a mix of structure and imagination, rigor and joy. “From career exploration and science experiments to golfing, etiquette, and creative writing, I wanted the girls to experience things that reminded them that refinement, intelligence, and leadership belonged to them too.” 

Those early years of after-school programming became the foundation of what Girls Inc. GPSNJ offers today — an integrated network of trauma-informed, empowerment-based initiatives serving thousands of girls across the region. 

The Test of 2008 

Five years later, everything Natasha had built was put to the test. 

The nonprofit world was reeling from the global financial crisis. Schools were cutting programs, grants were drying up, and community partnerships were in limbo. “We were exhausted,” Natasha says. “But I came to work every day. Purpose can’t be motivated by money. I had watched mothers feed their kids on twelve dollars — how could I quit?” 

“Cherice, now Associate Director of Programs and Advocacy, stood alongside me during the toughest years,” Natasha recalls. “In 2008, everything collapsed — our funding dropped, layoffs happened, and by 2011 our budget had fallen to about $250,000. It was just me and Cherice — two people. But with a determined board and dedicated interns, our collective effort allowed us to reach 1,700 participants by 2014.” 

For months, they worked hard to keep programs going. “We did whatever it took,” Natasha says. “You can’t wait for perfect conditions to serve people. You just serve.” 

The weight of that year still lives in her memory. “When the money disappeared, the mission didn’t,” she says. “That’s when I learned who we were.” 

That season of survival — of doing more with less — changed not only Natasha but the organization itself. It proved that the Girls Inc. mission could withstand anything, as long as the purpose stayed clear. 

From Surviving to Scaling 

A decade later, the numbers tell a different story. What was once a struggling, two-person operation is now a thriving $3 million organization with more than 30 staff and over 2,500 girls served annually. 

“We went from two people to thirty,” Natasha says. “From surviving to scaling.” 

She credits the growth to collective resilience, thanks in large part to the leadership of former Board Chair Saniah Johnson and new executive leadership under Dena Herrin. “It wasn’t just about fundraising,” she says. “It was about rebuilding trust — with the community, with the girls, with each other. The money came because people saw the integrity of the work.” 

But Natasha measures success differently now. “What makes me proudest isn’t the numbers,” she says. “It’s the girls who go from good to great! We’ve nurtured thousands of participants who’ve gone on to create companies, become executives, engineers, architects, archaeologists, and more.” 

Full Circle: From Purpose to Leadership 

After 26 years of service, dedication, and vision, Natasha’s journey came full circle. Following a long executive search, she stepped into the role of Chief Executive Officer of Girls Inc. of Greater Philadelphia & Southern New Jersey in July 2025. 

The appointment was not just a promotion — it was an affirmation of her legacy. She had helped build the organization’s program model from scratch, guided it through economic collapse, and shaped its philosophy around trauma-informed care and equity. 

During the search for a new CEO, Natasha was deeply involved in the process but had no intention of applying for the position herself. “I was focused on supporting the transition, not stepping into it,” she recalls. Yet destiny — and the encouragement of the Girls Inc. GPSNJ Board of Directors — had other plans. 

The Board had watched Natasha’s evolution over two decades: her commitment during the organization’s leanest years, her leadership through change, and her unshakable dedication to the mission and the girls it serves. They saw in her both the continuity of the organization’s legacy and the promise of its future. “They believed in me,” Natasha says softly. “They poured life into what was once just an idea, and I’ll never take that for granted.” 

For Natasha, the moment carried deep meaning — not just as a personal milestone, but as a promise to continue the work she helped build. “This organization raised me as much as I helped raise it,” she reflects. “Stepping into this role is about legacy — not mine, but the legacy of every girl who has walked through our doors.” 

Now, as CEO, she leads the same organization she helped rebuild from the inside out. “When I started, we were helping a few hundred girls a year,” Natasha reflects. “Now, we’re serving thousands. And we’re still growing.” 

Her leadership is grounded in confidence and authenticity. She often reflects on what it means to hold multiple, interconnected identities and to lead from that place of wholeness. “Leadership is about being confident in who you are and how you show up in the world — not about trying to fit in,” she says with a smile. 

Vision for the Future 

Natasha’s vision for Girls Inc. GPSNJ is as bold as her story. She envisions a network of programs across Philadelphia, Montgomery, Chester, Delaware, and Camden Counties — serving over 10,000 girls annually through after-school programs, mentorship, and leadership initiatives. 

“I want girls to walk into our programs and feel safe,” she says. “To feel like they belong. To see themselves reflected in the mentors around them. To grow up knowing they belong in every room they enter.” 

Her commitment is to transformation — not just for the girls she serves, but for the environments that shape them. “I’ve seen what happens when society looks away,” she says. “And I’ve seen what happens when people invest. The difference is life-changing.” 

Legacy, Light, and Leadership 

When Natasha reflects on her career — from case manager to CEO — her tone is both proud and humble. “I’ve watched girls become engineers, authors, educators, entrepreneurs,” she says. “Transformation like that doesn’t happen by accident. It happens because someone believes in them long enough for them to believe in themselves.” 

Her story is one of persistence, compassion, and conviction — a reminder that the best leaders are those who never stop learning from the lives around them. From those early homes she once entered as a case manager to the classrooms and boardrooms she now leads, Natasha has seen how environment shapes destiny — and how one person’s belief can change everything. 

And as she looks toward the future, her message remains simple and steadfast: 

“When girls rise, we all rise.” 

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