A single Lyft ride changed Sarah-Ashley Andrews’ life. Now, she is Philly’s youngest school board member.

Sarah-Ashley Andrews got a world-class education in Philadelphia public schools: top-notch academics, trips to the opera and the Clef Club, a chance to explore her passions and discover who she was.

Andrews grew up in North Philadelphia, down the block from E.W. Rhodes Elementary. To have those world-expanding experiences, her parents used someone else’s address to send Andrews and her sisters to McCall Elementary — they knew their girls would get a better education at a public school in Center City.

That’s something that drives Andrews, now Philadelphia’s youngest school board member, as well as a therapist in private practice. Who runs a nonprofit. And is also a preacher.

“I want our public education to be equitable,” said Andrews, 36.

The daughter of a Philadelphia police officer father and a medical assistant-turned postal worker mother, Andrews attended W.B. Saul High School, the district’s agriculture magnet school.

She loved the hands-on experience, the opportunity to pick corn she grew and take care of horses. Saul students operated a business, the greenhouse and school store; Andrews loved the feel of running something, the idea of entrepreneurship.

After graduation, in 2005, Andrews headed to Bloomsburg University as a communications major, her sights set on making films.

“I was in college, I was having the time of my life, but I was fighting my purpose,” Andrews said. “I felt this overwhelming calling — this is not what you’re supposed to be doing.”

A person of deep faith — Andrews now preaches at a church in Chester twice a month — Andrews ultimately left Bloomsburg to enroll in Lancaster Bible College’s Center for Urban Theological Studies, in Philadelphia.

Then, a dear friend of Andrews’ died by suicide at the age of 25. She was devastated — and galvanized.

“He dies and I’m like, ‘I don’t want this to happen to anybody else,’” said Andrews. “We don’t talk about mental health, especially in the Black and brown community.”

Andrews founded Dare 2 Hope, a nonprofit whose mission is to “conquer suicide” by making mental-health services more accessible in underserved communities.

The mission caught on: Andrews was suddenly doing events with Meek Mill, offering workshops educating people about prioritizing wellness, winning grants, working in schools and at community health fairs. Finishing college became less of a priority, and she stopped taking classes. In addition to the nonprofit, Andrews worked at a bookstore and as a Lyft driver.

One ride changed the trajectory of Andrews’ life. A man who got in her car needed a ride to a far-away destination, in New Jersey. The two had a long, serious conversation about mental health and wellness.

Soon after that ride, Andrews received a $1,000 donation through Dare 2 Hope’s crowd-funding campaign. It turns out the rider was a businessman who lost someone close to him to suicide and was impressed by Andrews’ vision and drive.

Andrews was delighted, and determined to learn from him; she took him to coffee to pick his brain about how to grow her organization, what her board should look like.

The businessman loved her ideas, Andrew said, but he told her to go back to school. A counseling degree would legitimize her mission “to save people, to heal people,” she concluded.

“He told me, ‘People need to see that you start and finish something,’” said Andrews, who re-enrolled in school, ultimately earning an undergraduate degree in biblical studies and human services at Lancaster Bible College in 2017, then a master’s degree in counseling from Lincoln University in 2020, and soon began working as a therapist.

Dare 2 Hope remains a priority, also, and this year, Andrews debuted what she believes is Philadelphia’s first mobile therapy van.

Step inside the shiny mobile therapy van and you’re transported inside Andrews’ vibe — relaxing but not boring, with a bright orange couch, colorful throw pillows and artwork. “Therapy is dope,” a neon sign hung on a wall of fake greenery reads. Andrews wants the people who step inside for sessions or help navigating mental-health resources to feel comfortable.

On a recent day, a trash-truck driver moving past the van hung his head out his window and shouted at Andrews.

“That’s real dope,” he said, nodding at the white mobile therapy sign painted on the black van. “I’ll follow you on Instagram.”

Andrews first raised her hand for consideration as a school board member when the Philadelphia School District returned to local control, in 2018. She had plenty on her plate, but Andrews is a get-things-done kind of person, usually strategizing about how to make the biggest impact.

“I just wanted to be able to bring a fresh voice, a fresh perspective,” said Andrews. “I feel like I’m a little bit more connected to — I don’t want to say the street, but to the ears of the people.”

Though Andrews has no children of her own, her nephew attends Thomas Mifflin Elementary, an East Falls public school. And her own experience as a public school student who had to leave her neighborhood propelled her forward.

“I hear it, when people say, ‘Can anything good come from the public school system?’” said Andrews.

She wasn’t chosen the first time she applied for the board, or the second. The third time she did, in 2022, Andrews was finally picked by Mayor Jim Kenney for a seat. She’s the youngest voting member — two students are board members, but cannot vote on board matters.

Adding a high-profile, unpaid job to the pile of tasks she already had — running Dare 2 Hope, starting and managing her own private therapy practice, preaching — was daunting, but worth it, said Andrews, who estimates she spends at least 15 hours a week on board work between meetings, community events, and more.

Andrews brings a therapist trick to the school board table: She does a lot more listening than talking.

On Thursday night, she spoke twice, once to honor Flenard Pulley, her favorite teacher from Saul High School, who died in October at age 75, and once to shout out Superintendent Tony B. Watlington Sr., who reviewed metrics from the 2022-23 school year that showed the district moving in the right direction by nearly every measure.

“I just want to be strength-based and tell you you’re doing a great job,” Andrews told him.

Behind the scenes, the board of nine dynamic professionals is close, but sparks can fly, and Andrews said she doesn’t shy away from wading in as peacemaker; difficult conversations don’t daunt her.

“We argue, we bicker. I’m usually the one who says, let’s stop, let’s process this, what do you really want to say. For me, I’m always looking for bottom line. How do we make sure that whatever an issue is, we’re curing it from the root?” she said.

Andrews especially looks up to Joyce Wilkerson, a current board member and former board president; Andrews said Wilkerson has taught her “to be steady.”

Wilkerson, who has decades of experience in various government positions, said she’s learned a lot from Andrews, too. (And not just good selfie poses, though Andrews has also taught her those, Wilkerson said.)

“She lives in North Philadelphia, and she is a practicing psychologist who works with young people, who understands first hand the struggles so many of our children and families are grappling with,” said Wilkerson. “She brings an entrepreneurial bent that is aligned with her values, her commitment to supporting children to achieve.”

Andrews relishes being the board’s liaison with the student board representatives, high school students who serve in an advisory capacity on the board. And she cares a great deal about student safety and dropouts — issues that she thinks a lot about both as a board member and as a therapist working with young people who have experienced trauma.

Andrews is keenly aware of the responsibilities placed on the board’s shoulders.

“The school has to be a lighthouse, whether we want it to be or not,” said Andrews. “We have to be the ones to keep the light lit.”