Dr. Sharrica Miller’s experience in foster care drives her to be a passionate educator and advocate and to serve as a strong voice for youth in care and those transitioning out of foster care. She spent most of her childhood in and out of California’s foster care system, enduring constant uncertainty and upheaval. Driven by her love for reading and passion for writing, she earned her bachelor’s degree, then went on to achieve master’s and doctorate degrees in nursing. Now an assistant professor at California State University, Fullerton’s School of Nursing, Dr. Miller is also a mentor on campus with the Guardian Scholars Program. In 2019, Dr. Miller was awarded the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Award at Cal State Fullerton for her efforts on campus. She is a longtime member of the California Youth Connection, and a founding co-chair of the Director’s Child Welfare Advisory Council for the L.A. County Department of Children and Family Services, focused on improving child welfare policy.
casey excellence for children awards
Alumni award Winner
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FAMILY AND ALUMNI AWARDS
Dr. Sharrica Miller
LEADERSHIP AWARDS
FULLERTON, CAlifornia
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Autumn Adams is a member of the Yakama Nation and an alumni of foster care. Autumn was awarded guardianship of her two younger siblings to keep her family together and maintain their cultural heritage and teachings. She was one of 12 foster alumni to participate in the Foster Youth Internship program through the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute in 2020. She is a national leader and was selected by the Center for Native American Youth as a “Champion for Change,” advocating for the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA). Adams was featured in the Yakima Herald-Republic’s “39 Under 39” special section in 2019 for her advocacy for children affected by implementation inconsistencies within ICWA. She is also very active in issues affecting Native youth, including education, missing and murdered indigenous women and girls, and maintaining Native children’s connection to their culture. Autumn graduated from Central Washington University in 2020, earning a Bachelor of Arts degree in anthropology and minoring in museum studies and American Indian studies.
KINShip Caregiver award Winner
Autumn Adams (Yakama)
Ellensburg, Washington
Edward Casillas is a leader and trailblazer in Tucson, Arizona, developing support programs for fathers and serving as a positive role model to his community. Edward’s own experience with the child welfare system inspired him to not only reunify with his children in five months but also to take on the roles he is in today. He works as the program and services development manager at the Family Involvement Center, focused on increasing service delivery and building family support programs in Southern Arizona. His leadership enabled him to fulfill his vision of expanding support programs for fathers and families in his community. He most recently became a member of the National Advisory Council of the Alliance Resiliency Project to help keep families strong, providing support and resources to aid them in getting through the pandemic. He is a certified facilitator with the Nurturing Fathers evidence-based parenting program and is a member of the Parent Advisory Collaborative within the Arizona Department of Child Safety. Edward received the Resilient Family Award from Arizona’s Child Abuse Prevention Committee in 2015, and in 2016 he received the Champion for Children and Families Award from Child and Family Resources in Arizona.
Birth Father award Winner
Edward Casillas
TUCSON, ARIZONA
A dedicated advocate for parents involved with the child welfare system, Shrounda Selivanoff is the director of Public Policy for the Children’s Home Society of Washington, a key community partner in elevating public policy issues at the state and national levels impacting the lives of children and families. She had previously been involved with the child welfare system due to a severe drug and alcohol addiction, and her third child was removed from her at birth. Shrounda successfully addressed her addiction and was reunited with her daughter more than a decade ago. Shrounda’s hard work continues today as she advocates on behalf of other parents like her — calling out the needs of birth parents, as well as racial and other inequities they experience, while working to ensure they maintain access to their children during the COVID-19 pandemic. She is a member of the National Advisory Council of the Alliance Resiliency Project to help keep families strong during the pandemic. She has worked extensively with numerous programs, including the King County Parents for Parents program, the Perinatal Treatment Services and the University of Washington Fetal Alcohol and Drug Unit, Parent-Child Assistance Program. Shrounda is a founding member of the Birth Parent National Network.
Birth Mother award Winner
Seattle, Washington
Shrounda Selivanoff
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON
Debbie and Elliott Dorsey became licensed Casey foster parents in rural Idaho when a sibling group needed a safe home. The Dorseys took the children in and successfully completed the extensive licensing process. The Dorseys stepped up once again when they met a transgender foster youth named Jayde. They chose to throw themselves into loving, understanding and supporting Jayde in his transition and they have put an extraordinary amount of work into developing a strong and lasting relationship. The Dorseys, who have been foster parents to 10 children, are active in Jayde’s therapeutic process and are highly involved in his school and extra-curricular activities. They advocate on his behalf in court, at school and at home. They also support Jayde having a close relationship with his birth family. Jayde has lived with the Dorseys for nearly two years and they recently became his legal guardians.
Foster or Adoptive Parent award WinnerS
Debbie and Elliott Dorsey
BOISE, IDAHO
Lovingly called “the Mother Teresa of Foster Care” by her peers, Debbie Stolz was known as a kind and compassionate caregiver, with an enormous capacity for love and dedication to abused and neglected children. A foster parent for 36 years, her voice as a leader of the resource parent community was much sought after and highly respected. She served on numerous task forces and committees over the years. Debbie spent many hours mentoring foster parents on the special care of infants and toddlers with histories of abuse, neglect and trauma. She used her expertise as a foster parent to help other parents cope and not give up on the children in their home. She worked as a parent partner for Fred Finch Youth and Family Services in its Comprehensive Assessment and Stabilization Services division, working with children of all ages with a variety of emotional and behavioral concerns. Debbie also played a key role as an advocate in the passing of statewide legislation, testifying with other foster parents before the State Assembly on behalf of the parents, relatives or guardians of children in care. Debbie died in July 2020.
San Diego, California
Special Recognition Award – Foster or Adoptive Parent (posthumous)
Debbie Stolz
First Lady Tracey Quillen Carney has an unwavering commitment to empowering and giving voice to Delaware’s children. Through the First Chance Delaware initiative, she has prioritized ending childhood hunger, promoting early language skills, and recognizing and responding to childhood trauma. She is a leader in partnerships that include Trauma Matters Delaware; serves as honorary chair of the state’s Dolly Parton Imagination Library Program, Library Card and Kindergarten Registration campaigns; and leads the Task Force to End Childhood Hunger (ECHO). As COVID-19 closed schools, ECHO transitioned to support innovative approaches to make sure children were fed throughout the state. As part of the renewed focus on systemic racism, First Lady Quillen Carney has pushed to infuse principles of anti-racism into the First Chance work in Delaware. She understands the value of lived experience in identifying policy priorities. She partners with children in foster care through agencies and nonprofits, and directly through Delaware’s Youth Advisory Council. An early council initiative was reducing the financial burden of attending college, and in 2020, Gov. John Carney announced a tuition and fees waiver to ensure children in and aging out of foster care can attend college for free. She has made long-term, positive impacts on the lives of Delaware’s children.
Tracey Quillen Carney
First Lady, State of Delaware
With a goal of true system transformation to support families and their children, Joe Ribsam joined New Hampshire’s Division for Children, Youth and Families (DCYF) as director in 2017. At that time, the system struggled with heavy caseloads, having seen the number of children in foster care nearly double following two high-profile child deaths. Borrowing from the blueprint he helped develop as a deputy commissioner in New Jersey, he created a vision for a child and family care system in New Hampshire. In less than three years, he and his team have drastically lowered caseloads and the backlog of child protective services assessments, implementing effective strategies for ongoing improvement. After peaking in 2018, the number of children in care has stabilized and begun to safely decline through both a decrease in entries and an increase in exits. He is leading efforts to ensure that every child in the state is able to grow up in a safe, supportive family environment and to reduce the need for — and use of — group homes and other institutional placements. Other accomplishments under Mr. Ribsam’s leadership include a statewide parent partner program, expanded foster care and adoption subsidies to age 21, and a foster care nursing program to support the medical needs of children in care. During COVID-19, Mr. Ribsam brought together a coalition of partners, including parents with lived experience, to develop the New Hampshire Child and Family Well-Being Guide and to create a helpline to support families within their communities. The guide and the Waypoint Family Support Warm Line are seen as the first building blocks for transforming the front end of the system.
Director, New Hampshire Division for Children, Youth and Families
Joseph Ribsam, Jr.
Judge Bruce Manning presides over cases subject to the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) in Hennepin County, Minnesota, the state’s most populous district. He is mindful of the fact that Minnesota has a high rate of disparities for Native children in foster care and has worked with the Native community and other court professionals to develop a practice that embodies a collaborative approach to ICWA cases and supports the possibilities of a culturally competent, relationship-based model of child protection. He has redesigned his courtroom to be a welcoming, respectful space for Native families: tribal flags from in-state Dakota and Ojibwe tribes fly alongside the Minnesota and U.S. flags, artwork from Native artists adorn the walls, and medicines of sweetgrass, sage and cedar are centrally placed in the courtroom, where parties are welcome to smudge before hearings. He is a vocal advocate for the judiciary about bias from the bench, and, with the involvement of other professionals, he has helped to achieve positive outcomes for children and parents through intentional, ongoing outreach and collaboration with the tribes whose homelands are in and around Minnesota. He credits the years of work done before his time, whose commitments he tries to continue. Judge Manning also serves as the board president of Shir Tikvah, a Minneapolis synagogue, and of Trademark Theater.
ICWA Court, Hennepin County Juvenile Court, Minnesota
The Hon. Bruce Manning
Caleb Reed, executive director of Aim Right Ministries in Phoenix, works to provide a safe place in the neighborhood for young people to come and find meaning and purpose. This is done through community building, anchored in significant relationships, and providing positive alternatives for at-risk youth through after school and community-focused programs. He is deeply invested in the organization as well as the neighborhood, and the community. The Garfield Historic District is home to many multigenerational families, many of them LatinX, and many of them living at or below the poverty line. Throughout the pandemic, Aim Right has worked to ensure children and youth could still receive support such as care packages, food and masks. Aim Right partners with others in the community, such as Garfield Elementary School and ThriveAZ, to ensure families are connected to needed resources. The organization is part of a coalition of churches and religious leaders that marched to draw attention to the Black Lives Matter movement and the need to end racial inequity and injustice. Mr. Reed leads by example and inspires others in the neighborhood to give back.
Executive Director, Aim Right Ministries, Arizona
Caleb Reed
Widely recognized in the Bexar County community as a leader who works hard to bring new ideas and solutions to help resolve issues of child abuse and neglect and family violence, Judge Peter Sakai focuses on helping professionals in the child welfare system to best serve the families that come into his courtroom. Judge Sakai has participated in several major initiatives, including creation of the Bexar County Children’s Court – the first in Texas and only the second in the U.S. He was involved in starting and presiding in the Early Childhood Court, the Family Drug Treatment Court for parents with children in foster care and a redesign of Children’s Court processes, resulting in safely reducing the need for foster care, increased exits and shorter stays in care. Judge Sakai also created a family preservation docket to assist relatives who wish to take custody of children and prevent entry into foster care and a guardianship docket to help find guardians for long-term care youth who need legal guardians beyond foster care. Judge Sakai’s many honors include the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute’s Angel in Adoption Award, and the 2020 Innovator of the Year Award from the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges.
Judge, 225th District Court, Bexar County (Texas) Children’s Division and Program
The Hon. Peter Sakai
Laurie Tochiki is president and CEO of EPIC ‘Ohana, a nonprofit organization she co-founded with Arlynna Livingston in 1997. EPIC ‘Ohana serves families in the child welfare system and vulnerable transitioning youth. EPIC, which stands for Effective Planning and Innovative Communication, reflects the organization’s goal of breaking down barriers between social workers, families, government systems and others to make better connections. EPIC’s programs are national models for giving voice to birth parents, families and young people. A former associate dean at the William S. Richardson School of Law, she also taught Children and the Law and Family Law. She is a co-founder of the Kids First program at the First Circuit’s Family Court. She is a co-recipient of the Hawaii State Bar Association’s “Golden Gavel” award, recipient of the Volunteer Legal Services of Hawaii Niu Award, the HWL Distinguished Service Award, the HWLF Rhoda Lewis Community Service Award and the William S. Richardson School of Law Alumni Association Service Award.
President and CEO, EPIC ‘Ohana, Hawaii
Laurie Tochiki
Lisa Parrish was a champion for children from coast to coast, having served in New York City and Los Angeles during her distinguished career. As deputy commissioner for Foster Care and Preventive Services at New York City’s Administration for Children’s Services (ACS), she organized the first task force exploring the needs of LGBTQ children in foster care. Ms. Parrish carried her passion for including youth and family voices to the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services, where she led programs that dramatically reduced the number of children in group home care. Returning to NYC ACS as senior advisor for LGBTQ Policy and Practice, she understood the need for data and was a catalyst for an LGBTQIA+ youth survey. The survey provides New York with the needed data to allocate resources for LGBTQIA+ youth in care, showing that these youth are a significant part of the foster care population. Ms. Parrish also served as ACS Deputy Commissioner for Financial Services, and with the NYC Office of Management and Budget, where she understood the importance of economic equity, staunchly advocating for leveling the playing field for families facing adverse circumstances. Throughout her career, Ms. Parrish had an enormous impact on her colleagues, both in New York and Los Angeles. She always provided an open door, offered honest feedback and encouraged innovation. Many describe her as “the best boss I ever had.” Ms. Parrish died following a battle with colon cancer.
Posthumous award, formerly of New York City Administration for Children’s Services and Los Angeles County Department of Child and Family Services
Lisa Parrish
