Meet Alexa!

I am honored to be part of the 1999 Collective! I worked in the field of education for ten years before joining the First Star University of Utah Academy as academy director in 2018. There, I worked with youth in foster care as they encountered barrier after barrier toward achieving education, stable housing, basic needs, and consistent adult support. Our team piloted Impact Scholars in late 2019, and I realized even more needs and gaps exist for those impacted by the system once they become young adults. I am passionate about working within the 1999 Collective to build bridges across our state to close these gaps. I am also passionate about supporting foster care alumni to lead the way. I believe lived-expertise should be incorporated at every level into child-welfare facing organizations and institutions, in order to most effectively serve youth, young adults and families.

After raising over two million in federal, state and private funds in my previous role at the University of Utah, I became the director of development at First Star, Inc. I hold an MFA in writing and writing pedagogy, and love to learn. Right now, I’m reading books on nonprofit organizational models and ancient Egypt.

I hope the 1999 Collective can improve the experience of adulthood after foster care for Utahns, and can build effective practices for lived-expertise leadership development within our organization.