2021 Outstanding Young Leaders

Leslie Reneau She/Her/Hers 24 Years Old Texas Foster Care System As a former foster youth, Leslie had a great experience, but also a bad one. When people in high school knew that someone didn’t have parents or that their parents left them, it was an open opportunity for people to... Read more

Earl Clark Jr. He/Him/His 22 years of age New Jersey Foster Care System Earl Clark was born and raised in Trenton, New Jersey. He is currently a junior at Rowan University and will be graduating with a BA in Psychology in the spring of 2022. Earl has lived experience of... Read more

Francisco Zamago He/Him/His 23 Years Old Texas Foster Care System Francisco entered the Foster Care system at age 14. He is now attending the University of Texas – Rio Grande Valley in pursuit of a Master’s in Educational Leadership. He also works at his University as a graduate assistant for... Read more

Patrick Hannifin He/Him/His 17 Years Old California Foster Care System I am 17 years old and have spent about 2.5 years in foster care in Los Angeles County with one displacement. I am from Wilmington, CA and will be attending UC Berkeley for Civil Engineering. Throughout High school I have... Read more

Laticia Aossey 10 years in Iowa's Foster Care System she/her/hers Laticia is currently a student at Capella University working towards her Masters in Social Work. One thing she would like people to know about the foster care experience is that one of the best ways to be successful is to... Read more

Shanell Lavallie Montana’s Foster Care System 22 years old She/her/hers Shanell is currently student teaching at Whittier Elementary in Great Falls, MT. She will graduate with her Bachelors of Science in Elementary Education this June. Shanell was in two foster care placements; she spent a total of 17 years in... Read more

Justin Hayden Indiana’s Foster Care System 21 years old he/him/ his Justin experienced five years in Indiana's foster care system. From the time he entered care at age 14 he was in four different placements up until he graduated high school. Justin is currently enrolled at Purdue University Northwest, where... Read more

Kimberly Wilborn 5 years in Illinois Foster Care System 19 years old She/her/hers Kimberly is currently a student at The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. One thing that motivates her passion for being an advocate in her community is her desire to see others be changed. Kimberly's hope is for... Read more