About Us

He / Him

Clinical Director

Co-Founder

Hi my name is Cole! I have worked within the foster care, educational, and juvenile justice systems for about 8 years now. I previously worked as a check-and-connect mentor in the Salt Lake School District, a teacher in the YIC program at Horizonte, and with First Star Academy/Impact ...t!

I graduated from Utah State with bachelor's degrees in psychology and exercise science. Since then, I received an MS in Psychology from the University of Utah with a focus on childhood trauma, foster care, and trust development research. I also gained an MSW from the U and currently am working toward my LCSW

Working in numerous capacities of Utah's child welfare system, it has always been clear that there are major gaps in support for many youths and young adults. Additionally, many of the resources and communities available lack leadership or input from those with lived expertise. I am so excited to be a founding part of 1999 Collective as we are led by lived experience and aim to ensure those with experience in the foster care system have every opportunity and capability to thrive.

"I am no longer accepting the things I cannot change. I am changing the things I cannot accept"– Angela Davis

She / Her

Co-Executive Director

Co-Founder

Hi my name is Natalie Clark and I spent 6 years in and out of Utah’s foster care system between the ages of 3 and 17 years old. Being a dual system involved teen with both DCFS and JJS I had too many placements to keep track of during my teenage years and experienced placements in Foster Care, Proctor Care, Group Home/ Congregate Care, Residential Drug and Alcohol Rehabilitation Program and Juvenile Detention.

I graduated in 2021 with a Bachelor of Social Work from the University of Utah and took a small break in between beginning my Master’s degree in Social Work to work full-time as the first Lived Experience Transition to Adult Living Assistant Coordinator through Utah’s Department of Child and Family Services working with young people in the Transition to Adult Living (TAL) Program. I have worked in many roles over the last 10 years within Salt Lake County Division of Youth Services, State Child Welfare providers, Foster/proctor care agencies and nonprofit organizations serving current and former foster youth. I served as a 2020 All-star intern and continued on as a Lived Experience Leader with the National Foster Care Alumni Network FosterClub (a national organization dedicated to training, educating, and connecting foster youth to various advocacy and policy reform groups and resources), DCFS foster care liaison for Youth Services Youth Advisory Board, and now a Co-Founder of 1999 Collective. I have had the profound honor to participate on multiple local and national advocacy and advisory councils for many years with the goal of educating, informing and improving state foster care systems. I am elated to continue to empower the voices and expertise of young people with lived expertise.

Growing up in and out of various systems beginning at the age of three years old and throughout adulthood, I remember wishing I had someone to connect with that truly understood what I was going through and how to help. That is why founding 1999 collective means so much to me. I hope to one day be the collective that young people in Utah's foster care can always securely count on for the community, resource connection, and support necessary to not only survive but thrive because no one should have to do it all alone.

”You is kind. You is smart. You is important.” - Aibileen Clark

He / Him

Director of Client Support Services

Co-Founder

My name is Nicolas Contreras and I’ve been working in the world of foster care for the last 5 years as part of First Star Academy. I began as a youth coach one summer where I fell in love with the combination of educational, therapeutic, and community-based approach the program took in its efforts to care for the foster youth that made up that group. Since then, I’ve remained with the program, becoming first a coordinator and then transitioning into the role of program manager and director.

Previously my experience was largely in community and education, in various forms. While working on my bachelor’s degree from the University of Utah I spent my undergraduate career working as a writing coach and program coordinator for the Salt Lake Community College’s Community Writing Center. There I focused on leading accredited workshops in the Salt Lake County Jail, while also managing other programming we provided to the public. At the U, I worked with my mentor Dr. Christie Toth on research and development for undergraduate transfer pathways. This turned into the basis of a U of U pathway course built to help students become better integrated upon transferring to the school that is currently offered for free to SLCC students.

While working at First Star, I’ve seen firsthand both the amazing people that make up this community (both the students and the people who work with these youth – some of which make up this very organization) and the various complex challenges that accompany these youth in care as they go through life and seek to better themselves as they leave the system. I believe that an organization like ours will be able to serve our community and close so many of the gaps that folks fall through in their journey to building a better life. In my own experience as an immigrant in the United States, I’ve learned that change and care must come from within our community, those that know best what it is we need and where the system has failed us. I truly believe that this group – composed of those with experience in the system and those who work within and alongside it – is best suited to do so. I’m excited to be a part of this group and for what we’ll be able to do together.

Hi I'm Dalia! I am deeply committed to supporting foster youth as they transition out of the system and into independence. As a lived expert, our organization is driven by a passion to make a meaningful difference in the lives of individuals exiting care.

I entered Utah's foster care system at 16 years old and aged out at 19 years old. During this time I experienced living in foster homes, half way homes, a group home, and independent living.

My experience as a Middle Eastern and Hispanic woman who navigated the complexities of the foster care system has shaped a deep understanding of the unique challenges faced by youth aging out of care and the importance of having a support system that is empathetic and empowering.

I value integrity, transparency, and acceptance—which is what I bring to the clients I work with. We believe in meeting each individual where they are. Our goal is to provide personalized, compassionate care that honors each person's story and helps them build the future they deserve.

I am a co-founder and The Director of Community Partnerships and Financial Programs at 1999 collective. I am dedicated towards helping individuals transition out of the foster care system navigate the complexities that come with it while providing support and creating a better system. I am currently an MSW student at the University of Utah with plans to become an LCSW.

"Maybe stories are just data with a soul."– Brene Brown

She / Her

Co-Executive Director

Co-Founder

I am honored to be part of 1999 collective! I worked in the field of education for ten years before joining the First Star University of Utah Academy as academy director in 2018. There, I worked with youth in foster care as they encountered barrier after barrier toward achieving education, stable housing, basic needs, and consistent adult support. Our team piloted Impact Scholars in late 2019, and I realized even more needs and gaps exist for those impacted by the system once they become young adults. I am passionate about working within 1999 collective to build bridges across our state to close these gaps. I am also passionate about supporting foster care alumni to lead the way. I believe lived-expertise should be incorporated at every level into child-welfare facing organizations and institutions, in order to most effectively serve youth, young adults and families.

After raising over two million in federal, state and private funds in my previous role at the University of Utah, I became the director of development at First Star, Inc. I hold an MFA in writing and writing pedagogy, and love to learn. Right now, I’m reading books on nonprofit organizational models and ancient Egypt.

I hope 1999 collective can improve the experience of adulthood after foster care for Utahns, and can build effective practices for lived-expertise leadership development within our organization.

She / Her

Director of Trauma-Informed Practices

Co-Founder

I met some of the most influential, compassionate, and driven humans while serving as a mentor/advisor at University of Utah. These individuals all shared the same lived experience of foster care and were now seeking higher education. I quickly realized the immense barriers that exist for these “new-to-adulthood” students and the lack of support for them on many levels.

I obtained my Master’s in Social Work with an emphasis in global social work at the University of Utah. I currently serve as the Manager of Global Health Education at the Spencer Fox Eccles School of Medicine. I also work as a part-time clinical therapist at Neurobehavioral Center for Growth.

As part of 1999 collective, I hope to aid in lessening the barriers and stigmas that exist for foster care alumni. I am certain the talents, experience, and knowledge of our community can provide a more equitable and sustainable life-platform for those who have experienced foster care.

“No one can be authentically human while he prevents others from being so.” - Paulo Freire, Pedagogy of the Oppressed

Student, University of Utah

Co-Founder

My name is Diane! I have been in foster care since I was twelve years old. I was born and raised in Rwanda, Africa, and immigrated to the United States for educational opportunities and safety.

In 2014, I immigrated with my grandparents and siblings to the United States. When we arrived in the United States, my life instantly changed. At the airport, I was told I would be placed in a foster home because the government felt my grandparents were not capable of taking care of my siblings and me. I felt confused, broken, and alone. My grandparents were the only caregivers I knew. Not only was I being affected by the U.S. government's choice in my life, but I also had to learn a new language and adapt to a new culture. Living with strangers who did not speak my language or look like me was especially difficult for me. The process was complicated; however, it made me stronger and more resilient. My foster care journey was never stable and I moved from home to home throughout my childhood until I aged out in January of 2033 at the age of 21. Regardless of all the barriers and trauma that the foster care system exposed me to, I choose to focus on being a student and excelling in whatever I choose to pursue. During my time in the foster care system, I was a part of the First Star program, which supported the pursuit of higher education.

I am currently a 3rd-year student at the University of Utah, and intend to graduate with a bachelor's degree in psychology, and a minor in human development and family studies in spring of 2025.

I am ecstatic to be a co-founder of 1999 collective in working with my team, to ensure that Utahns, who experienced foster care after the age of 13 are given resources connected, and supported through early adulthood and beyond.

"Every kid is one caring adult away from being a success story."- Josh Shipp

She / Her

YHDP Program and Grant Coordinator, Mayor's Office of Homelessness & Criminal Justice Reform, Salt Lake County

Co-Founder

Between the ages of 12-16 I experienced the Juvenile Receiving Center and Crisis Residential at Salt Lake County Youth Services, during which period my family made the decision to have me transition to DCFS custody, of which I was placed in Proctor Care until I aged out at age 18. During my adulthood I experienced homelessness 3 different times reaching out to partners such as the Volunteers of America Youth Resource Center, Salt Lake County Youth Services Milestone Transitional Living Program, and my awesome car.

Within this it has allowed me the opportunity to have been a member of the Salt Lake County Youth Advisory Board for 4 years and was the Milestone House Manager for 2 years. Now I am currently the President of the Youth Advisory Board, Lived Youth Expert Advisor to the CoC, Chair of the Lived Expert Task group, and Co-Chair of the Youth Experiencing Homelessness Task group.

I am also currently working towards my Bachelor's degree in Political Science, I am at Salt Lake Community College and will be transferring to the University of Utah. I am dedicated to learning and making youth voices loud and heard throughout the world.

My aspirations for 1999 collective is to serve youth in every aspect that we can that has formally failed, youth throughout the years of the system. My goal would also be that we create a model of what reality looks like when you include live expertise in the positions of power and decision-making, where we can make effective change not just for those living within our county, state, but possibly throughout the entire United States. I am a part of this group because it is rare, and far between to have a space that is safe and open for those with Lived experts to bring their expertise to the table as well as acknowledging the reality of why they have that Lived Expertise.

“My soul is at peace when the world is shrouded in quiet darkness. My peace is what I need to survive so if I must I will thrive in the darkness.” - Maygan Martinez

She / Her

Paraprofessional, Special Education

Secretary & Co-Founder

My name is Kalhan Sparks. I am 19 years old and I have 4 years (ages 12-16) of experience being in the foster care system. I've lived in several group homes and foster placements and in those experiences, I have learned much about the world of justice and consequent injustice.

I am currently a lived-experience member and co-founder of 1999 collective, a volunteer for the Utah Board of Juvenile Justice, and a special education paraprofessional at Philo T. Farnsworth Elementary. In the past, I have also mentored youth in foster care through First Star Academy after having graduated from the program myself.

While I do not wish to pursue a collegiate degree, I am a lifelong student and a wildly passionate learner of many subjects. As a member of 1999 collective, I aspire to provide the best possible service to anyone and everyone who is interested in the work of our program. I hope to show every human we come into contact with, that they are the key to their own success and the world is there to aspire for them instead of the alternative that they knew all too well.

"My humanity is bound up in yours, for we can only be human together." --Desmond Tutu

He / Him

Entreprenueur

Co-Founder

Rick was born in Sonora, Mexico but was raised in northern Utah. Rick was in the Utah foster care system for 4 years before he aged out at the age of 19. Rick attended Weber State University where he studied Social Work and went on to work various jobs within the social work field. He has worked at a youth shelter (Ogden Christmas Box House), residential treatment and day treatment centers (working with teenagers running group sessions and recreational therapy), worked with DCFS as a TAL Coordinator (mainly focusing on establishing Regional and State Youth Boards and providing support for teens in northern Utah transitioning into adult living), he was Utah’s first FosterClub summer internship recipient (a national organization dedicated to training, educating, and connecting foster youth to various advocacy and policy reform groups and resources), served on the Board of Directors for First Star (an organization focused on providing support and guidance in higher education and career pathways for foster youth in Utah), and is currently serving on the Advisory Board for Common Thread (a non-profit with a mission of providing a place for teens in Utah to feel seen, connected, and supported).

Rick enjoys being outdoors in nature and likes to stay active. He is an ultra runner, loves to snowboard, is a beginner surfer, is a novice fly fisherman, dabbles in rock climbing, and loves to find time to meditate and practice yoga. His favorite pastimes include reading, listening to his favorite podcasts, and going down crazy and interesting rabbit holes on YouTube.

She / Her

Cosmetologist

Co-Founder

My Name is Fatuma. As a 12 -year -old unaccompanied refugee minor, I entered the United States in 2015 and was placed in foster care under Catholic Community Services. Before I was adopted at the age of sixteen, I spent three years of my childhood in the foster care system. During that time I was a part of the First Star program, which supports foster youth in their pursuit of higher education. I served on the First Star National Advisory Board’s Student board, where I advocated for programmatic improvement as well as the requirements and desires of the students nationwide.

I graduated from Murray High School in 2021, and this fall I'll be enrolled at SLCC to get my Bachelor of Science in Nursing. I’m happy to be a Co-Founder for 1999 collective. We represent all those who have lived in the foster care system in Utah. Our goal is to create a strong foundation, supportive community, and improve access to available resources.

“You are not the Problem. You are an opportunity” is our motto.