The Minnesota Children’s Alliance is proud to congratulate two awardees of the Julia Classen Diversity Scholarship in 2017. Thank you for your commitment to serving children in Minnesota through a lens of cultural diversity and humility – the CAC movement will be stronger through your efforts!
Cristian Garcia, an intern with the Family Advocacy Center of Northern Minnesota. Garcia is pursuing a Bachelor’s Degree in Criminal Justice from Bemidji State University. He will complete a comprehensive, 300+ hour field instruction internship with the Family Advocacy Center of Northern Minnesota and develop ideas to increase cultural humility within the CAC and its MDT partners.
Kaila Farnsworth, an intern with the Central Minnesota Child Advocacy Center. Farnsworth is pursuing a Master’s Degree in Social Work from St. Cloud State University. She is committed to promoting social justice in school and community settings, and will work with the Central Minnesota CAC to develop an understanding of how cultural diversity intersects with the CAC movement.
About the Julia Classen Diversity Scholarship
This scholarship is presented annually in recognition of the contributions of Julia Classen to the CAC movement. Classen serves on the Alliance Board of Directors and is the Past Chair. In her work with the Alliance, she has been a guiding voice to ensure that diversity and inclusion become integrated in the field. When she served as President of the Board of Directors, Classen was instrumental in the development of CACs throughout the state over the past several years, as well as the growth of the Alliance itself. Julia is a Senior Consultant for Aurora Consulting, LLC, where she supports organizations in Leadership Governance, Performance Management and Evaluation, and Sustainability.