Liliana manages the Reimagine Wisconsin, a partnership that is creating a community reflective, pro-worker, and anti-austerity agenda for Wisconsin.

Liliana was born and raised in a vibrant community known as Humboldt Park in Chicago. As the youngest daughter of Mexican-immigrant parents, Liliana became the first person in her family to graduate from college with a bachelor’s in Education Studies and a minor in the Russian Language. Liliana has spent most of her life advocating for the safety and well-being of Black and Brown children in different capacities. The challenges she witnessed and experienced in these spaces motivated her to obtain a master’s degree in Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis. Prior to joining the team, Liliana served as an immigration legal assistant, educator, youth counselor, and case manager. These blended roles enhanced her unassigned commitment to uplifting Black and Brown voices while challenging policies rooted in white supremacy.

Nicole raises funds to support our antiracist policy, advocacy, and community engagement work. She is committed to joyfully change the narrative of the fundraising sector’s historic and white supremacist norms to implement fundraising strategies that center equity, celebrate diversity, and stand up for justice. Nicole believes systemic change requires long-term and liberatory investments that center community voice and needs.   

With over two decades of experience in fundraising and nonprofit leadership Nicole has raised millions for health, human services, and equity organizations. She is most excited about building genuine relationships that have the opportunity to transform with individual donors, corporations, and foundations. Nicole joined Kids Forward in 2019.  She holds a BA in Communications from Marquette University. When she is not dismantling outdated systems, Nicole loves traveling, being the greatest Aunt, and playing with Gilbert, the bestest pup.  

Carte’cia leads in incorporating an antiracist orientation into Kids Forward’s research, analysis, and advocacy efforts.

She is from the northside of Milwaukee.  As an undergraduate and graduate student at UW-Madison, her focus was to understand and interrogate the ways in which systems and institutions impact the lives of Black and Brown people. In her early career, she spent time as an educator and a government administrator working on social and poverty-related policies. Carte’cia is passionate about centering the voices and expertise of vulnerable children and families who are most impacted by policies. She is motivated by her experiences growing up in Milwaukee, her time as a practitioner and scholar, and her family.

Michele is responsible for Kids Forward’s transition to a community-reflective, data driven, antiracist policy center. Michele leads the strategic vision, ensuring racial equity in all things.

Since 2010, Michele has served as a Senior Fellow/Consultant at COWS, a national think-and-do tank. Previously, Michele served as Managing Director of the Andon Group, LLC, an organizational development, innovation management, and evaluation consultancy. Their policy work in Wisconsin began at the Coalition of Wisconsin Aging Groups’ Elder Law Center and later as project manager for the 12-county $5M Department of Labor WIRED initiative. Michele is a member of the California Bar and had early careers in intellectual property litigation and financial crimes investigation. They hold a B.S., B.A., and J.D. degrees from the University of Notre Dame, and an M.S. degree in Criminology & Management Information Systems from Virginia Commonwealth University.

Amanda is based in Northeast Wisconsin and works to build meaningful relationships with community members, leaders, and organizations to better understand the priorities of the community.

As a first-generation Latina and proud daughter of immigrant parents, she navigated various systems for the first time in her family. She quickly recognized how systems in this country work against allowing communities of color and immigrant communities to thrive. These experiences inspired her to enter the field of social work. Amanda holds a Bachelor of Social Work from the UW-Oshkosh. Most recently she obtained her Master of Social Work from the UW-Madison with a focus on child, youth, and family policy. Many of her academic experiences revolved around advocating for and supporting youth and students of color. 

Emily helps to translate research and policy to a broader audience, distilling its everyday impacts for children, families, and communities across Wisconsin. She also oversees media outreach and strategizes on decisionmaker engagement.

Previously, she served as Communications Director for COWS, a high-road think-and-do tank based at the University of Wisconsin. Prior to that she was a Community Organizer for both the Sierra Club’s Beyond Coal Campaign and the Wisconsin League of Conservation Voters. Originally from Milwaukee, she has a B.A. from the UW-Madison.

William works to protect and expand access to affordable, quality health coverage and care–especially for those impacted by health disparities and in cycles of poverty. He also helps Kids Forward strategize paths to advance health equity in Wisconsin and move toward a system with universal access to health care for all.

William grew up as a white kid in Missouri, and was the first high school student to serve on the board of MidMissouri Peaceworks. He got his formal education from Antioch College, where he learned about the impact of policy, the responsibility for white people to confront racism and white supremacy, and the power of collective action. Previously, William served as executive director for a statewide mental health advocacy and peer support organization where he engaged policymakers, providers, and other stakeholders to redress barriers and build for power with people with mental health challenges. When not diving into policy, William is listening to legal and other nerdy podcasts, hiking around Wisconsin, or playing pool.

Alia Stevenson serves as Deputy Director at Kids Forward, leading our policy and research team. 

Alia has dedicated her career to deep listening, bridging, coalition building, and collective action to build equitable communities. She has over 15 years of experience advancing health, social, and racial justice in non-profit, government, and higher education. She brings a systems approach that centers the needs of, and builds power of those most impacted by inequities; and has shaped notable health and racial equity efforts in her previous roles at Public Health Madison-Dane County and the Foundation for Black Women’s Wellness. Alia is also a racial justice consultant with the nINA Collective and Instructor in the UW School of Medicine and Public Health. She leads with the values of joy, growth and love as an antidote to injustice.