Our Founders

Yetta was the founding Principal of Power Center Academy Middle School, Gestalt’s first school. As a founding principal, she led a team of extraordinary educators, dedicated parents, and supportive community partners who in just three years moved the school to the top-performing middle school in Tennessee.

Prior to joining Gestalt Community Schools, Yetta was the Vice President of Curriculum and Professional Development for The JASON Project, a subsidiary of National Geographic. She worked as a Managing Director of Professional Development for the WorldCom MarcoPolo Internet Content for Classroom Program.

Yetta started her educational journey as a teacher in Baltimore City, where she taught middle school language arts for eight years and served on the board of Head Start. Yetta holds a B.A. from Salisbury University, a M.Ed. from Loyola University, and a Certificate of Technology in Education from Johns Hopkins University. She is also a Pahara-Aspen 2015 Cohort member.

Derwin Sisnett is the founder and managing partner of Maslow Development Inc. (Maslow), a nonprofit organization that develops communities around high performing schools. Prior to founding Maslow, Derwin co-founded and served as the CEO of Gestalt Community Schools, a charter management organization that manages the growth of high-performing, community-based charter schools in Memphis, Tennessee. Maslow was established in order to extend the community development and real estate practices that are a core part of Gestalt Community Schools’ mission to other high performing schools across the country. To date, Gestalt serves 2,200 K-12 scholars across 6 campuses in Memphis.

In addition to his work at Maslow and Gestalt, Derwin serves on the Power Center CDC Board of Directors, the Crosstown Arts Board of Trustees, the Martin Institute for Teaching Excellence Board of Trustees, and the Memphis Light, Gas & Water Board of Commissioners, where he serves as chairman.