Let Your Voice Be Heard
The National Runaway Safeline (NRS) has worked for more than 50 years to help keep youth experiencing crisis, at risk of homelessness or facing dangerous alternatives, safe and off the streets. The NRS Youth Advisory Board (YAB) adds the valuable perspective of youth with lived experiences to our work and helps elevate the national discussion about the impact of runaway incidents and homelessness among young people. YAB members have a meaningful impact on the way NRS serves youth in crisis. Members will also be compensated for their time.
Qualifications
• Applicants must be between ages 16 and 23.
• Applicants must have experience with running away, housing instability, being expelled from home, and/or homelessness.
• Applicants must be able to commit to a minimum of nine virtual meetings per year.
Recent work from the Youth Advisory Board
November 28, 2022 – Podcast Episode
Let’s Talk: A Conversation with the National Runaway Safeline Youth Advisory Board
June 22, 2022 – Panel Discussion
The Intersection of LGBTQIA2S+ Identity & Homelessness
Current NRS Youth Advisory Board Members
Antonio “Tony” Latray Davis-Robinson
Pronouns: He/Him/His
Location: Las Vegas, NV
Age: 22
Antonio “Tony” Latray Davis-Robinson is committed to serving his community through outreach and advocacy. Tony experienced youth homelessness firsthand and has volunteered and acted as an ambassador for those with similar experiences since he was a teenager. He works as a shift manager at McDonalds, is a student at Northwest Career College, and has plans to become a nurse.
EJ Velez
Pronouns: He/Him/His
Location: Kutztown, PA
Age: 21
EJ serves on the National Runaway Safeline’s Youth Advisory Board and as a Youth Consultant for the National Network for Youth. As somebody who is both blind and transgender, he knows intimately how the intersectionality of disability and identity can impact a youth struggling with homelessness. EJ is passionate about supporting youth in crisis through resources and advocacy.
Malachi Gillespie
Pronouns: He/Him/His
Location: Fort Collins, CO
Age: 18
Malachi has partnered with Fort Collins Rescue Mission and other outreach efforts for two years to ensure people experiencing homelessness in his community feel safe reaching out to him for support. In addition to advocacy work for youth in crisis, Malachi’s other interests include music, marketing, and audio production. Malachi is a student and works in event production.
Mia Sostrin
Pronouns: They/Them
Location: Chicago, IL
Age: 23
Mia is a social work student at Northeastern Illinois University in Chicago. Mia’s personal experience with homelessness informs both their career path and their advocacy work. On top of Mia’s dedication to NRS’ Youth Advisory Board, they are also a Youth for Truth representative. Mia loves music, singing, and performing; they hope to incorporate music into their future career in social work.
Rachel Litchman
Pronouns: She/Her/Hers
Location: Madison, WI
Age: 23
Rachel is a disabled artist, writer, youth advocate, and community organizer in Madison, Wisconsin working at the intersection of disability justice and youth housing justice. She is a current member of the National Runaway Safeline Youth Advisory Board, the Dane County Youth Action Board, and Youth Collaboratory’s Youth Catalyst Team. Her artistic work is rooted firmly in her identities as a queer, disabled survivor of child sexual abuse and commitment to bringing awareness to silenced and stigmatized issues faced broadly by the disability community. Her comics and writing on disability and youth homelessness have previously appeared in The Washington Post, Disability Visibility, Rooted in Rights, and Youth Collaboratory’s blog, among other places. She has been involved in Youth Homelessness Demonstration Program for the past two years and is privileged to be part of an amazing team in Madison, WI collectively making systems change.
Zachary Mallory
Pronouns: They/Them
Location: Independence, MO
Age: 26
Zachary has firsthand knowledge of the struggles of youth homelessness and issues such as domestic violence, gun violence, and mental health concerns. As a non-binary person, Zachary is a passionate advocate for the LGBTQIA2S+ community and has lent their voice to many organizations in the past decade, including the National Network for Youth, A Way Home America, the Missouri Department of Mental Health, The Trevor Project, and the Human Rights Campaign Foundation. Zachary also volunteered for three years with the Crisis Text Line.
Youth Advisory Board Membership Application