Gaelin Elmore
Be the Difference: Your Commitment to Belonging Changes Lives
Belonging is a fundamental and innate need for every single person to grow, develop, learn, attach, and thrive – mentally, socially, emotionally, and physically. Belonging influences how we experience relationships, interact with the world and develop our gifts and talents. Due to life circumstances, youth navigating the child welfare system experience a deficit, or a gap, in their belonging experience. Studies show that the top three sources of belonging for all youth are family, school, and community. Statistically, all three of the top sources are virtually guaranteed to change as a child navigates the system.
In this keynote, Gaelin Elmore will discuss and explore the science (both neuro and psychological) behind belonging, the unique gap that youth in child welfare face, and why it is important for us to choose belonging in every part of our work. Gaelin offers his unique lived experience and describes how his journey of self-love, self-discovery and belonging has helped him overcome the adversity he experienced in his childhood. He aims to inspire, encourage, and equip others, to erase the belonging gap plaguing youth with adverse childhood experiences.
Gaelin Elmore
A dynamic and nationally sought-after keynote speaker, trainer, and thought leader, Gaelin Elmore works with organizations and people who want to help children overcome trauma and unleash their potential through the implementation of belonging. His passion and energy for his work stems from his heart for justice and his own lived experience. Elmore spent most of his life, and his entire childhood, on a journey to find the places in which he belonged. That journey led him to the National Football League and now to stages and board rooms all across the country, aiming to inspire, encourage, and equip others to think differently about their work and its long-term impact on others. He currently lives in Eden Prairie, MN, where he gets to experience the purest form of belonging as a husband to his wife, Micaela, and dad to their two daughters, Laniah and Tatum.
Trinity Wallace-Ellis
You were born for this!
In Trinity Wallace-Ellis's keynote, she will empower, inspire, and evoke the hearts and minds of foster youth champions to re-connect with their Why. In a world that often overlooks the voices of our most vulnerable, Trinity Wallace-Ellis is determined to illuminate the path toward a brighter future. Her life's work has been devoted to breaking generational cycles that plagued her family with addiction, abuse, system involvement and system dependence. She’s been equally committed to uplifting and empowering our most vulnerable (including foster youth, incarcerated youth, pregnant and parenting teens) while also inspiring the tireless champions who walk alongside them: The parents, caregivers, teachers and child welfare professionals who shape their journeys. With every speech, she challenges societal norms, dismantling barriers and beckoning the collective consciousness to embrace the transformative power of resilience.
Trinity Wallace-Ellis
For more than two decades, Wallace-Ellis has immersed herself in the world of foster care, delving into the intricate complexities of a system that can both break spirits and build unyielding strength. She not only experienced the foster care system firsthand from the tender age of five, but also ventured beyond its confines to provide care, support and unwavering advocacy for her own family members.
Wallace-Ellis’s remarkable journey, marked by resilience and unyielding determination, has been a testament to the human spirit's indomitable power. It is a journey that has led her to this opportunity to work with us, offering solace, guidance, and unwavering hope to foster youth, social workers, foster parents, teachers, lawyers, judges, and the fierce advocates who champion the rights of our most vulnerable.
Opening Remarks
Kim Johnson is the director of the California Department of Social Services (CDSS). In this role, she leads a team of more than 5,000 employees serving more than six million Californians in the largest Department in the California Health and Human Services Agency. Before being appointed to the director position by Governor Gavin Newsom in 2019, she had worked with CDSS as deputy director of the CDSS Family Engagement and Empowerment Division, and as branch chief for CalWORKs and Child Care and Refugee programs.
Alani Jackson, MPA, is the deputy director of the Office of Youth and Community Restoration. A respected and dynamic government leader, she has nearly two decades of experience as a public servant in California correctional healthcare and Medicaid agencies. She excels in policy making, stakeholder engagement, outreach strategies and media campaigns that connect policy and practice. Jackson is an expert liaison and collaborates effectively across organizations, agencies and climates to drive solutions for complex issues. Her passion for public service stems from her diverse background and core belief in leading with love.
Jesse Weller, Psy.D., is the executive director of the San Gabriel/Pomona Regional Center (SG/PRC), serving 17,000 individuals with developmental and intellectual disabilities and their families throughout thirty cities. Formerly the deputy director at the North Los Angeles County Regional Center, he oversaw case management and clinical services for 32,000 individuals. Weller is a licensed clinical psychologist and received his Psy.D. from The Wright Institute. His research interests include law enforcement training and mental health call outcomes, for which he has worked closely with police departments and city and county officials.
Meet the Institute MCs
Ebony Chambers is the Family & Youth Partnership chief officer at Stanford Sierra Youth and Families and has over 18 years of experience working with issues of social justice, equity, child welfare, mental health and diversity. She brings both professional and personal life experiences to her work and provides the oversight of advocacy and support to youth and families in Northern California. In addition, she is a speaker, educator and workshop leader who has worked extensively throughout the U.S. and has served nationally and locally as an advocate and activist for access to care and the elimination of the stigma of mental illness for underserved and unserved communities.
Kristina Tanner is the statewide policy coordinator for California Youth Connection, where she leads policy initiatives to develop educational materials and facilitate partnerships to empower both youth and stakeholders. Tanner’s commitment to youth advocacy and her ability to drive change have made her a key voice in shaping policies that support young people in California’s child welfare system. Her impact also extends to the national level, where she has worked as an outreach and development intern for the National Foster Youth Initiative. With additional leadership roles and policy influence at the local, state, and national levels, she aspires to make a positive impact and create a better system for future generations of foster youth.
Cheryl Treadwell has more than 23 years of experience at the California Department of Social Services’ Children and Family Services Division, working on several programs and initiatives that impact providers, resource families, foster youth and tribes. In April 2021, she was appointed as chief of the Safety, Prevention and Early Intervention Branch, which is organized to focus state efforts on the front end of the child welfare system. In this role, she provides leadership to implementing the Family First Prevention Services Act. Her education spans both the social work and legal field along with her extensive experience working in the community and in human services for more than 30 years.