Ella Hurst (she/her) is a Junior at Pleasant Valley High School. This summer she competed for Miss Iowa’s Outstanding Teen and was awarded 2nd Runner Up, The Spirit of Miss Iowa’s Outstanding Teen, and Best Interview. Through pageants, Ella discovered her platform topic, “ACES” (Adverse Childhood Experiences). As someone with her own experience in trauma. She leads from understanding and empathy to raise awareness and create lasting change in communities. In Ella’s day-to-day life she enjoys theatre, diving, and helping others as a competitive gymnastics coach. She finds joy in helping others as a future elementary teacher. She hopes her legacy will leave an impact on the next generations.

Jada Coleman (she/her), is an HR Coordinator with Unilever. After working in the HR field for over 5 years, she now has a Master of Arts in Mediation and Conflict Resolution and is passionate about being the face of diversity and inclusion within the workplace even if it can be challenging at times. She believes in working hard for movements she believes in and being a resource to those around her. Outside of her profession, she is a mother to two wonderful children, Grayson (boy, age 3)and Zyan (girl, age 7). They are the “why” behind everything she does and the rewards of her labor are so worth it. She also enjoys thrifting, community service, and crafting in her free time.

Aliyah White (she/her) is currently navigating life in between post-undergrad and the journey to her Ph.D.! She fills her time with youth all around her, friends, and family, and always exploring Chicago. Her passions include all of the unique personal stories in the world and if you get her talking about trauma, you might need to cut her off. She is such a happy soul that feels a lot of emotions and she hopes to one day leave an impact in a way that promotes more emotional healing in our communities.

Cas Berta (they/them) is an artist, activist, sex educator, and writer who lives in Cambridge, MA. As a queer Jewish trans person who grew up in Iowa, Cas has done a lot of teaching about their identity and the reality for other marginalized peoples, which gave them a passion and love for teaching. Cas is a member of the Getting to Zero Coalition of Massachusetts which makes efforts to bring the state's HIV/AIDS diagnosis down to zero.

Cas is currently writing "Shlosh Esrey," a TV pilot about a transgender Jewish girl studying for her Bat Mitzvah. They were chosen as one of 6 @roadmapwriters fellows for their 2021 LGBT+ Writers Initiative.

Cas will be a webinar leader for The People's Sex Ed at @fenwayhealth and will teach an Empowered Queer and Trans Sex Education workshop on August 23rd at 5:30 pm EST. Join them for the inclusive sex ed you wish you would have gotten!

Cannot wait to highlight the amazing individuals who keep our world moving. 

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