Our Coaches and Collaborators
MARIE DEVEAUX, Founder and CEO
Marie is the founder of High Tides, as well as a coach and small business consultant. She is an experienced and highly skilled training developer and facilitator, having assumed these roles for numerous organizations, leading trainings for groups of leaders as small as 6 to over 1500 people at a time and has lent her expertise both in the U.S. as well as abroad. Her passion for seeing emerging leaders grow and expand led to her founding of High Tides in 2016.
KERRY-ANN TOTTEN, Leadership Coach
Kerry-Ann has a Bachelor of Arts from SUNY Albany, and Masters of Arts in Teaching from Howard University. Being in the education field for almost two decades has helped Kerry-Ann become a client-focused leader with a strong dedication to women, while providing a safe, reflective, motivating and empowering environment for transformation.
BETTY CHAN, Inclusive Leadership / DEI, Executive Coaching, Women in Leadership, Emerging Leaders / Early Career, Team Dynamics & Communication, Conflict Resolution / Mediation, Change Management, Somatics & Embodiment
Betty Chan is an authenticity coach, speaker, and facilitator who helps exhausted achievers, quiet powerhouses, and mission-driven teams create success without losing themselves. She supports clients in building self-trust, setting values-aligned goals, and navigating transitions with clarity and calm. A recovering perfectionist and child of immigrants, Betty draws from lived experience to guide others through the often invisible work of letting go, showing up, and redefining success on their own terms. With 10+ years in client services, project management, and people development, she brings a rare blend of heart and practicality to every session. Outside of coaching, you’ll find her in the boxing ring, giving old furniture a second life, or patiently translating between generations at home.
AKUA NYAME-MENSAH, Executive Coaching, Women in Leadership, Emerging Leaders / Early Career, Team Dynamics & Communication, Change Management
Akua Nyame-Mensah is a certified executive and leadership coach, recognized facilitator, speaker, and host of the Open Door Conversations Podcast. With a mission to guide entrepreneurial-minded leaders, Akua draws from her experience as a former startup executive, having launched an online platform for the first African-based technology unicorn, now listed on the New York Stock Exchange. Currently serving as a leadership and culture advisor, her passion lies in helping leaders strategically align their focus, guiding them from being taskmasters to making informed, intentional decisions about where to direct their time and energy.
FREDERICA PETERSON, Executive Coaching, Women in Leadership, Team Dynamics & Communication
Frederica is a Professional Speaker, Certified Executive Coach, Learning Strategist and Award Winning Program Designer. She has been dedicated to results-focused performance excellence for over 20 years. Described by her clients as passionate, charismatic, intuitive and outcome focused, Frederica’s elite client list includes some of the top organizations in the country.
CASSANDRA LAM, Inclusive Leadership / DEI, Executive Coaching, Women in Leadership, Emerging Leaders / Early Career, Somatics & Embodiment
LYNCY YANG, Trauma-Informed Leadership Coach, Facilitator, and DEI Consultant
Lyncy is a trauma-informed, inclusive leadership coach, DEI consultant, and trainer-facilitator with a rich tapestry of experiences. With a background that weaves together her Hmong- and Asian-American identity, Lyncy has journeyed through diverse paths, encompassing roles as a high school educator, professional development specialist, and nonprofit senior leader, where she continuously integrated DEI and social justice into her work and leadership. Lyncy’s passion lies in leveraging intercultural intelligence to foster equitable and inclusive leadership, teams, and systems. Lyncy is committed to putting people first and creating a more inclusive world.
SHARON DRAPEAU, Inclusive Leadership / DEI, Women in Leadership, Emerging Leaders / Early Career, Somatics & Embodiment
Sharon Drapeau is a Certified Professional Co-Active Coach (CPCC) who partners with leaders to grow their capacity, align goals, and navigate change with confidence. With a background in communications, women’s entrepreneurship (Cornell), and publishing/accelerator training (PVAA), she brings a unique lens to leadership development, blending strategic insight with practical tools for growth. Her coaching style balances support and thoughtful challenge, encouraging clients to deepen self-awareness, strengthen executive presence, and translate learning into lasting results. She has worked with executives and emerging leaders across sectors, known for creating safe, reflective spaces that spark clarity and momentum. Outside of coaching, she is a lifelong reader, creative thinker, and mentor to women building their leadership journeys.
REEM LABIB TYSON, Executive Coaching, Emerging Leaders / Early Career
Reem Labib Tyson is the CEO and Founder of EDspired Coaching and Consulting. EDspired partners with purpose driven leaders to identify, articulate and demonstrate their gifts and talents in order to lead and live authentically. With 25+ years as a leader in the education sector as a coach, facilitator, and consultant, Reem is gifted at creating space for people to develop and thrive in their personal and professional lives. EDspired was established in 2010 as a global education consultancy with the mission to provide schools and leaders with education solutions through project management, technical expertise and leadership coaching. In 2019, Reem expanded EDspired’s offerings beyond education, and serves as a leadership coach for entrepreneurs, non-profit leaders, and individuals who are ready to pivot, transform or looking to get “unstuck.” Reem prides herself on being authentic, compassionate, and light-hearted while consistently delivering results. She believes in disrupting the system and challenging boundaries to achieve desired outcomes.
LILLIAN FORSYTH, Inclusive Leadership / DEI, Executive Coaching, Women in Leadership, Team Dynamics & Communication, Conflict Resolution / Mediation
Lillian Forsyth is a coach, facilitator, and consultant focused on leadership and diversity, equity, and inclusion. She is Co-Founder & CEO at Lead with Equity, whose mission is to help leaders make space for the voices of historically marginalized people to drive change in organizations. Lillian has 15 years of experience leading operations and human resources for both for-profit and nonprofit organizations, and 20 years of experience facilitating workshops on identity, diversity, inclusion, and belonging. Lillian has trained and coached leaders from organizations such as Goldman Sachs, Facebook, and IBM. Clients describe Lillian as authentic, engaging, kind, direct, and someone with a unique blend of intuition and analytical skills.
