Fostering Family has become
The Riverside Project!

About Us

In 2018, our Executive Director founded Fostering Family with a vision to strengthen foster families and their communities through training and collaboration. Our first initiative, the Babysitting Collaborative launched in partnership with 4 child-placing agencies. Since then, 27 additional agencies have joined the collaborative, and 500+ babysitters have been equipped to provide quality, trauma-informed support for families parenting children in the foster system.

In August 2020, we launched The Riverside Project, a city-wide strategic initiative to mobilize Houstonians to address the various social issues facing their neighborhoods. Over time, it became clear to us that this collaborative approach was actually the future of our organization. So in 2022, we rebranded to become The Riverside Project, bringing greater clarity to our organization and further expanding our vision for the renewal of Houston.

Watch the video below to learn more.

Our Team

Amber Knowles

Executive Director

Amber is a mother of 4, including 2 children adopted through foster care. She has a BSN from Baylor and an MSN from the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston. Prior to founding The Riverside Project, Amber worked as a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner in pediatric community heath and school-based healthcare. She is also a Trust-Based Relational Intervention (TBRI) Practitioner. Her husband, Drew, is a pastor in the Houston area.

amber@riversideproject.org

Megan Mark

Director of Development

Megan received both her Bachelors and Masters from Texas A&M. She has experience working as an Individual Giving Coordinator for Hermann Park Conservancy and Community Relations / Event Manager for Kendra Scott. She specializes in donor relations and fundraising, but she also has experience with event coordination, marketing, and social media. Megan and her husband, Calvin, are licensed foster parents.

megan@riversideproject.org

Kathleen Cowie

Director of Agency Partnerships

Kathleen earned a Master of Social Work from the University of Houston, following a degree in Family and Human Services from John Brown University. She has served as a research assistant focusing on child welfare, as a direct care provider at an emergency shelter for children and youth in foster care, and as a Therapeutic Case Manager for the homeless population. She is a Licensed Master Social Worker (LMSW) and a Trust-Based Relational Intervention (TBRI) Practitioner.

kathleen@riversideproject.org

Caitlin Simpson

Project Coordinator

Caitlin earned her bachelors degree in International Studies from Texas A&M University and her Masters in Social Work from the University of Houston. She previously worked with international nonprofits in sub-Saharan African and South Asia addressing humanitarian aid, poverty, and human trafficking. She also worked as a pediatric social worker in emergency medicine and labor/delivery.

caitlin@riversideproject.org

Anna Kirby

Development Manager

Anna received her Bachelor’s degree from Texas A&M and Master’s degree from Hunter College. She taught for ten years in Houston and New York City before moving into fundraising and development. She has worked for the last six years in foundation and corporate grant writing, working for YES Prep Public Schools and EMERGE Fellowship before joining The Riverside Project.

anna@riversideproject.org

Miranda Johnson

Administrative Manager

Miranda graduated from Belhaven University with a Bachelor of Arts in Biblical Studies. She has previous experience in administration, event coordination, and early childhood development. Miranda and her husband, Marshall, adopted their son and hope to foster in the future. She currently co-leads the foster/adoptive ministry at her church.

miranda@riversideproject.org