Board of Directors

Tamara Taitt, MS, LMFT, LM

Board President/Chair

Tamara received a BA from Princeton University in Psychology with minors in African-African Studies and Women’s Studies. After graduating from Princeton, Tamara moved to Miami, Florida to pursue her passion for traditional care applications in community health at Miami Dade College’s Midwifery Program. Following completion of her Associates in Midwifery Sciences, Tamara spent five years working in the maternal child health field with a focus on reducing perinatal health disparities, improving black infant health and implementing fetal infant mortality review followed by five years working in home based community mental health services for at risk families. Tamara earned a Masters in Marriage and Family Therapy from Nova Southeastern University and completed three years of PhD coursework in Family Therapy with research interests that centered on perinatal mental health and birth trauma before leaving her program to open a pregnancy & parenting resource center, The Gathering Place and later a birthing center, Magnolia Birth House. Tamara has a nourished her long-standing professional interest in the sustainability of the midwifery profession by serving on a variety of national boards. She was the Southeast regional representative on the board of the Midwives Alliance of North America for seven years and is a past board member for the Foundation for Advancement of Midwifery. Tamara currently serves as the Board President of the Florida School of Traditional Midwifery and is the Director of Student Life, Equity & Access at the Midwives College of Utah. Tamara lives in Miami, FL and shares a home with her partner Michelle, step-daughter, 5 dogs, 4 cats, approximately 200 house plants and a 400 volume cookbook collection. When not reading, streaming her favorite British dramas on Britbox and Acorn and making savory meals, Tamara spends her time planning their Blue Bird school bus to RV conversion which she expects to finish in early 2020.

MEL SMITH-TOURVILLE, MSW, LM, CPM

Vice Chair

Melissa Smith-Tourville is a Licensed Midwife based in Wisconsin, where she lives with her wife and the youngest three of their thirteen mostly grown children. She is a member of the faculty at Midwives College of Utah, and previously served as Staff Mentor at the Florida School of Traditional Midwifery (FSTM), where she developed and facilitated Cultural Congruency training for staff, faculty, and students. Melissa’s work is deeply rooted in antiracism and equity, and she is widely respected for her ability to hold space for complex conversations and personal growth. She offers counseling and mentorship to emerging midwives, seasoned practitioners, and educational leaders alike—supporting them in navigating the emotional, ethical, and systemic dimensions of midwifery care and leadership. Her approach is compassionate, direct, and grounded in a vision of justice. In addition to her professional work, Melissa finds joy in directing theatre productions and spending time with her large and loving family. She is committed to creating a world that is safe, affirming, and liberatory for her children, grandchildren, and the communities she serves.

Sharon Bernecki DeJoy PhD, MPH, CPH, CPM

Secretary

Sharon is currently Associate Professor in the department of Health and Program Director for the BS in Public Health at West Chester University of Pennsylvania. She received her AS in Midwifery from Miami-Dade College and a BA from Columbia University. She holds an MPH in Maternal Child Health and a PhD in Community and Family Health from the University of South Florida College of Public Health. Sharon’s first academic teaching experience included the development of a Maternal Child Health Community Health Worker training curriculum, which she taught at two community colleges in Florida. She spent three years as Assistant Professor in Community health at SUNY Potsdam before moving to West Chester. Sharon has also taught in the MS in Global Health program at Northwestern University and at various midwifery schools. She has twice won the Association of Teachers of Maternal and Child Health Innovative Teaching in MCH Award. In addition to her interest in midwifery, Sharon’s research focuses on weight stigma and the intersection of size discrimination with other types of discrimination in maternal child health. Sharon has local, state, national, and international leadership experience in maternal child health program delivery. She serves on various boards and committees. On the national level, she is a Board member of the Association of Midwifery Educators. She also serves on the Maternal Mortality and Policy committees of the Pennsylvania Perinatal Quality Collaborative. Sharon lives with her husband and large dog in the Philadelphia suburbs, where they are slowly renovating two old houses. In her spare time, she enjoys tinkering with the space-time continuum in failed attempts to create more spare time. Also, reading and drinking coffee. She has been known to collect frogs.