In this special issue article, the voices of mothers affected by the child welfare system are at the forefront. A group of five women, including our own, Jeanette Vega and other Rise staff and parents, discuss their experiences with the child welfare system, highlighting and illustrating the many systemic injustices. It is their hope that sharing personal stories inspires and helps others across the country. The article also focuses on the development of Rise as … Read More
Cassandra Gonzalez is the proud mother of an amazing 2 year old boy. She is a parent impacted by the child welfare system. She came to Rise in 2022 and joined the Rise and Shine Parent Leadership program and then started as a Parent Contributor bringing her perspectives and experiences to different conversations. Cassandra is currently Rise’s Program Support Manager and her role is to continue to elevate other parents’ voices in these tables … Read More
Mary Holiman has years of experience volunteering with and working for organizations centered around bettering families and their communities through providing support, after-school programs, positive discipline training, and other resources, with her most recent experience focused on providing violence and substance misuse prevention education and trauma support to K-12 school-aged youth.
As the new Organizing and Communications Director at Rise, she is excited to use her background in criminology & psychology, her passion for media, and … Read More
Shanene Bryant is a proud mother who was impacted by the child welfare system personally and has dedicated her career to helping other families. She has been advocating for the past 18 years, previously working with foster care agencies and supporting families, helping them to understand their rights and how to navigate reunification so that they can safely reconnect with their children. She is currently Rise’s Parent Advocate Director where her role is to train … Read More
On December 10, Rise joined the Schuyler Center for Analysis and Advocacy and other organizations and advocates for a rally and press event to urge expansion of the Child Tax Credit (CTC) and Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC).
