Staff
John Sciamanna
National Foster Care Coalition
John Sciamanna leads the National Foster Care Coalition and is the Executive Director of the National Child Abuse Coalition. In addition, he consults with a number of children’s organizations on related children’s issues.
Mr. Sciamanna has worked on children’s issues for more than twenty-five years working for a state legislature, the U.S. Senate and three non-profit organizations.
Over this period of time he has focused on a range of critical children’s programs and policies that include the prevention of child abuse and neglect, child welfare financing, making improvements and changes to policies that effect children in out of home care, development of the nation’s child care block grant, the 1996 implementation of the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program, the preservation of the Social Services Block Grant and many other policies and federal programs that impact the nation’s most vulnerable children and families.
Mr. Sciamanna came to Washington in 1993 to work in the United States Senate as a Legislative Assistant first for Michigan Senator Donald Riegle and later Senator Barbara Mikulski of Maryland. After leaving the Senate he worked with the American Public Human Services Association (APHSA) followed by nearly a decade at the Child Welfare League of America (CWLA) and more recently at American Humane.
Mr. Sciamanna has been a regular contributor to publications for all the organizations on the issues of TANF, child care, teenage pregnancy prevention and child welfare. He has testified before congress, written journal publications and written and developed congressional testimony, legislative agendas and policy statements.
Board of Directors
Jeannette Pai-Espinosa, Board Chair
The National Crittenton Foundation (TNCF)
A firm believer in the power and potential of all girls and young women, Jeannette brings to this 130-year-old institution more than thirty-five years of experience in advocacy, education, intercultural communication, public policy, strategic communication, program development, and direct service delivery.
Jeannette began her career as a vocal advocate and activist for issues of importance to girls and women in the early seventies, working to open doors and address gender bias. Today, she leads TNCF, which is the national umbrella for the 27 members of the Crittenton family of agencies, which provide services in 32 states and the District of Columbia. In addition, TNCF provides national advocacy, communication, and agency capacity building services and operates BOLD – a social capital and youth/survivor leadership initiative.
Jeannette is currently; Chair of the National Foster Care Coalition, the co-Director of the National Girls Institute – Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, U. S. Department of Justice, a member of the Board of Directors of the Human Rights Project for Girls and of the Advisory Committee for Women’s Services – SAMHSA (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Jeannette holds a master’s degree in student development, counseling and education administration.
Lee Mullane, Secretary
Mullane Communications
Lee has dedicated a career in communications and advocacy to improving the quality of life for vulnerable children and their families in the United States and around the world. Prior to launching Mullane Communications in 2012, she was Interim Strategic Communications Director for the Annie E. Casey Foundation and Communications Director for the Foundation’s Center for Effective Family Services and Systems. Previously, Mullane was Public Affairs and Communications Director for Save the Children. While with Save the Children, she joined international disaster relief teams in Africa, Asia and Latin America and served as a member of the Save the Children international delegation to the Fourth United Nations World Conference on Women in Beijing. She later assumed interim responsibility for communications within the International Save the Children Secretariat in Geneva. Mullane has held communications posts with the U.S. Department of State, the U.S. Agency for International Development, and ACTION, comprising the Peace Corps, VISTA, and Older American Volunteer Programs. She began her career as a newspaper reporter in Massachusetts.
Steve Trippe, Treasurer
New Ways to Work
Steve is an accomplished facilitator, trainer, presenter, partnership developer, and program designer. He is a nationally recognized expert in youth employment policy and practice and is a seasoned veteran in youth work, beginning his career as a direct service provider in San Francisco in 1975. He is currently President and Executive Director of New Ways to Work, where he has worked for nearly three decades. Steve is the principal designer of New Ways’ All Youth - One System approach, and has been involved with youth employment, career development, and education policy and implementation on the national, state and local levels. His background includes developing and implementing a number of model initiatives, including the Foster Youth Pathways to Employment Initiative, Youth Transition Action Teams, New Ways Workers, Communities and Schools for Career Success in California, the Quality Work-based Learning Initiative, the California Youth Council Institute, the School to Work Intermediary Project, the Sonoma County Youth Ecology Corps and many others. He planned and delivered the landmark “Youth at the Crossroads” conference in Los Angeles, focused on the implementation of extended foster care in California.
Steve currently serves as the Treasurer of the National Foster Care Coalition. He co-chaired the California Foster Youth Career Development and Employment Task Force and served on the Leadership Team for California’s Breakthrough Series Collaborative on Independent Living Program Transformation. He is a former member of the National School-to-Work Advisory Council and past chair of the National Youth Employment Coalition. At home, he has served as a member of the Sonoma County Economic Development Board and the Russian River Redevelopment Planning Commission, and is past president of the Monte Rio Union School District.
Celeste Bodner
FosterClub
Celeste Bodner is the founder and Executive Director of FosterClub, the national network for young people in foster care. The mission of FosterClub is to lead the efforts of young people in and from foster care to become connected, educated, inspired and represented so they can realize their personal potential and contribute to a better life for their peers. The 35,000 members of FosterClub use their first-hand experiences and stories to provide youth perspective, engage and support their peers, and to influence policy and practice. Bodner is a social entrepreneur who leverages communication strategies and new technology to engage and activate the underrepresented population of young people in foster care. Previously, she had 13 years of senior level marketing and communications experience with clients including Nike, Pottery Barn and the Transportation Security Administration. Celeste and her family reside in Seaside, Oregon.
Sixto Cancel
Foster Youth Alumni
Sixto is a current undergraduate at Virginia Commonwealth University who grew up in foster care. His most recent project outside of being a full-time college student involves leading a long term effort called Think of Us, a commitment of action for the Clinton Global Initiative. Cancel also serves as a Youth Innovation Advisor to Dell and is a member of the Youth Thrive Expert Panel. Cancel has been named a Millennial Maker by BET and recognized as one of the Top 24 Changemakers under 24 in the country by the Campaign for a Presidential Youth Council and Sparkaction. In high school, he founded and secured funding for Stellar Works, a SAT and remedial education program for students in foster care. As a Young Fellow at Jim Casey Youth Opportunities, Cancel is a national voice advocating for youth aging out of foster care. He has participated in over 30 conferences related to issues facing youth including those sponsored by Harvard Law, the Clinton Global Initiative, and the Center for Enterprise Development. Cancel has been quoted on NPR’s “Tell Me More,” Fox News, and by the Huffington Post. Cancel presented on issues facing black, LGBT youth in foster care at the White House’s Black LGBT Emerging Leaders Briefing. He also provides recommendations related to older youth in care to the Acting Assistant Secretary for the Administration for Children and Families under the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Cancel currently serves on the Board of Directors for the National Foster Care Coalition, North American Council on Adoptable Children, and on several advisory boards for other noteworthy organizations.
Howard Davidson
American Bar Association
Howard has been actively involved with the legal aspects of child protection for 40 years. He has directed the American Bar Association’s Center on Children and the Law, leading a twenty person staff in work on child welfare law and policy improvement, since its 1978 establishment. Prior to his tenure at the ABA he directed a pioneering Children’s Law Project in the early 1970’s at Greater Boston Legal Services.
He’s served as chair of the U.S. Advisory Board on Child Abuse and Neglect, is a founding board member of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and is also on the governing boards of ECPAT-USA, a national group focused on law and policy reform related to child trafficking and sexual exploitation. He recently served on a National Academy of Sciences/Institute of Medicine Child Maltreatment Panel and is an advisor to the National Center for the Review & Prevention of Child Deaths.
His local work includes membership on Maryland Children’s Justice Act Committee and being named by the Mayor of Philadelphia to a Community Oversight Board helping guide improvements in that city’s child protection system. Howard also was selected as a U.S. delegate to the first World Congress Against the Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children. Howard has authored many legal articles and book chapters related to child maltreatment and the law.
Danielle Gletow
One Simple Wish
Danielle has been a passionate advocate for children’s rights for nearly two decades. In August 2008, she founded One Simple Wish after becoming a foster parent and witnessing firsthand the obstacles, trauma and heartbreak faced by children in the foster care system. Not one to sit by while injustices occur, Danielle decided to create an organization that empowered anyone to make a direct and meaningful difference in the lives of foster children and vulnerable families by granting them simple, personal wishes online. In July 2009, Danielle left her decade-long career in interactive marketing to pursue One Simple Wish full-time. To date One Simple Wish has granted over 9000 wishes to foster children and vulnerable families and has created a network of over 600 social service agencies in 45 states.
Danielle has appeared on CNN, NBC Nightly News, The Katie Couric Show, The Nate Berkus Show and News 12 and in The Star Ledger, The Christian Science Monitor and Woman’s World, among other media outlets. Ms. Gletow delivers presentations throughout the United States on topics including improving the child welfare system and living a life of passion and purpose.
Danielle has been honored with the Mercer County Cherish the Children Award, the Woman of Achievement Award by the Princeton Chamber of Commerce, the Tribute to Women Award from the YWCA and the Evangelina Menendez Trailblazer Award. In October 2013, Danielle was chosen as a Top 10 CNN Hero among tens of thousands of nominees worldwide.Danielle currently resides in Ewing, NJ with her husband, Joe, their two daughters, Mia and Lily, and their beloved English Bulldog, Duncan.
Shadi Houshyar
First Focus
Shadi serves as First Focus’ Vice President for Child Welfare Policy. She has experience working with families involved in the child welfare system and is particularly interested inidentifying opportunities to address the health and behavioral health challengesof children and youth impacted by the child welfare system. Shadi also serves as project manager fortheState Policy Advocacy & Reform Center (SPARC), a national resource center for state-based advocates, aimed at improving outcomes for children and families involved with the child welfare system.
Shadi received her PhD in developmental psychology from Yale University, where she worked with children who were maltreated, and concentrated her research on identifying factors that foster resiliency in children exposed to trauma. Shadi’s graduate project involved an evaluation of an intervention program in the state of Connecticut designed to minimize multiple placements, re-abuse, and re-entry into the child welfare system. Her research was recognized by awards from Division 37 of the American Psychological Association (APA), the Section on Maltreatment of Division 37 of APA, and the American Psychological Association of Graduate Students. While at Yale, Shadi served as a Fellow of the Bush Center in Child Development and Social Policy.After graduating, Shadi went on to serve as an AAAS/SRCD Congressional Fellowship in the Senate, working on education and health policy in the Office of Senator Jeff Bingaman (NM). At First Focus, she is leading our efforts on child welfare and mental health policy.
Roxana Torrico Meruvia
National Association of Social Workers
Roxana is a Senior Practice Associate with the National Association of Social Workers. Roxana conducts research and develops written products on issues related to child welfare involved children, youth and families as well the child welfare workforce. She also recently authored “Ensuring a Successful Transition to Adulthood for Foster Youths” in The Children’s Bureau: Shaping a Century of Child Welfare Practices, Programs and Policies. Prior to joining NASW, Roxana worked at The Finance Project where she co-authored several publications including Financing Housing Supports for Youth Transitioning Out of Care. She has also worked as the Director of the Housing and Homelessness department at the Child Welfare League of America (CWLA). There Roxana provided direction and technical assistance specific to the development and knowledge regarding the intersection of foster care and homelessness. Through the coordination of regional, state and local efforts, she facilitated the integration and collaborations of child welfare and housing/homeless systems. In addition, Roxana worked closely with CWLA’s National Foster Youth Advisory Council. She has several years of experience working with diverse, low-income children, youth and families in the non-profit and public systems. Roxana holds a Master of Social Work degree from Virginia Commonwealth University.