In this December 2025 episode, MSSP intern Saadhya Bahudodda interviews Alyssa Dennison-Glasgow, regional program director at Olive Crest in Las Vegas. Alyssa discusses how her early experiences working in juvenile justice and child advocacy shaped her commitment to supporting youth and families and ultimately led her to Olive Crest. She highlights the organization’s Teen and Young Adult Independent Living Program, which won the 2024 Aging Out Institute’s Small Program award. This unique program provides housing, life-skills coaching, and savings-building opportunities for young people aging out of foster care. Throughout the conversation, Alyssa emphasizes the importance of external mentorship, consistent community partnerships, and individualized support, demonstrating that effective aging-out programs rely on strong, collaborative networks to help young people thrive.

In this November 2025 episode, MSW intern Jasleen Virk interviews Jamie Bennett, co-founder and executive director of Cetera. Jamie shares her personal foster care journey and how it fueled her passion to advocate for young people in foster care. She believes that relationship building is a cornerstone to supporting youths’ well-being and highlights the importance of connections with consistent and trustworthy adults. Jamie also discusses the Fostering Success Coaching Institute, an innovative person-centered service that incorporates youth voice and evidence-based research to train professionals working with youth in foster care. Jamie is dedicated to supporting young people nationwide by increasing their visibility and meaningfully incorporating their voices where it matters.

In this October 2025 episode, MSS intern Cheri Mitchell interviews Sarah Pauter, Executive Director of John Burton Advocates for Youth (JBAY). Sarah shares how her lived experience in foster care motivated her to become an outspoken advocate for extending the age of foster care emancipation to twenty-one. She passionately advocated for the passing of Assembly Bill 12 (AB 12) which became law in 2010, creating California’s Extended Foster Care (EFC) Program. At JBAY, Sarah continued her advocacy by establishing support programs for students with foster care experience on every public post-secondary campus in the state of California. To date, JBAY has championed over fifty-five legislative reforms and secured $3.6 billion in new state and federal investments for youth in foster care or experiencing homelessness.