ABOUT US
“Kids could have no better guardian angel.”
- National Review
OUR MISSION
Gen Justice works to mend the child protection system and bring a permanent end to innocent children enduring violence. Our bipartisan reforms are improving safety for more than 35,000 kids across the country. Coupled with those reforms, the Children’s Law Clinic provides free counsel for children in imminent danger and creates precedent that serves all child victims.
OUR WORK
We put the law on their side.
This is not merely a social issue, it’s a legal one. Founded in 2017, Gen Justice has developed and driven the adoption of seven child safety reforms, all with strong bipartisan support. Our reforms are based on the principles that children should be reunified with family as soon as possible, foster care should be temporary, and when adoption is necessary, it should proceed without delay.
These new laws work in powerful ways:
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Expediting the search for relatives
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Reducing the time to adoption for infants, toddlers and older teens
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Requiring immediate judicial review of serious cases, helping to prevent fatalities
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Providing special education services to children in foster care
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Increasing transparency of the state’s actions
Bring our missing children home.
One of Gen Justice’s priorities is helping the more than 18,000 children who disappear from foster care each year. The FBI reports that many of those children fuel America’s sex traffic trade. Often, states close the cases of these children after six months, and searches are inadequate to non-existent. Our work addresses this crisis.
Fatality rates are rising.
The majority of children who die from abuse are known to child protection authorities who failed to keep them safe. We must do better.
Taking our mission nationwide.
The fight has just begun. Gen Justice works with local organizations coast to coast, helping communities tailor reform to local needs.
OUR LEADERSHIP
DARCY OLSEN
Founder & CEO
“We have newborns sleeping in offices,” the social worker told me. “If you could open a crib, we’d be thankful.” I couldn’t shake the image of newborns struggling under the glare of fluorescent lights. So, instead of fostering a teen as I’d planned, I left the hospital cradling an abandoned infant, meth-exposed. In a few short years, I’d taken home ten.
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REBECCA SMITH MASTERSON
Vice President & Chief Counsel
My foster son sifted through the possessions he had accumulated in his 13 years of state care. Next to the clothes that didn’t fit was a rainbow tower of backpacks. It took me a minute to understand. “Whenever you got moved to a new place, you got a new backpack?” “Yeah,” he shrugged, “Sometimes with a stuffed animal or school supplies.” I realized that at every stage of this child’s life, instead of meaningful help, instead of exiting foster care for the permanent family he needed, he got a backpack. I promised to change this.
ANN TREDWAY
Executive Director
Ann joined Gen Justice as a founding team member, offering her expertise in management, operations, and fundraising. Ann’s work honors the memory of her stillborn son, William. Ann believes all children should have the chance to grow up safe and loved.
LAURA MAJOR
Manager of Donor Relations
Laura brings twenty years of management, organizational and charitable fundraising experience to Gen Justice. She’s a lifelong proponent of individual rights and believes children, like adults, are born with inalienable rights.
ALESIA HANSEN
Paralegal
Alesia’s A+ research and organizational skills are the cornerstone of the Children’s Law Clinic. She triages the incoming cases and ensures that every child gets the representation she needs, when she needs it.
TARA GLASS
Director of Technology
Founder of GM Technology, tech expert Tara has served Gen Justice pro bono since its founding. Growing up, Tara witnessed the destructive impact of drug abuse on children in her family. She’s at the ready 24/7 for the kids of Gen Justice.
board of directors
William Coats
The Leona Group, LLC
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Alan P. Dye
Webster, Chamberlain & Bean
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Jack Fowler
National Review
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F. Phillips Giltner
Shamrock Foods
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Renee V. Giltner
CPA
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Sandy Leong
Sandy Leong Jewelry
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Celia McClelland
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Rob Nicoletti
WhyFor
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Darcy Olsen
Gen Justice
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Carrie Tynan
Adolph Coors Foundation
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FINANCIALS
GuideStar has awarded Gen Justice with its Platinum Seal of Transparency every year since inception.
