At Unified Youth, we’re done waiting for systems to catch up.
We believe imagination, creativity, connection, and play aren’t extras — they’re the foundation. We built the Unified Youth to put wonder back at the center of youth mental wellbeing—to reframe creativity as a readiness skill.
Not “soft skills.”
Essential life skills.
The skills that build agency, calm, and adaptability.
The skills that help young people face uncertainty of the day without breaking.
How we work
How we work
We Strengthen Grassroots
We fund and support local organizations already on the frontlines of youth mental health and creativity, giving them the resources and stability to grow their impact.
We Create Sanctuaries of Wonder
We seed inspiring community ecosystems of grassroots, philanthropic, government, and corporate partnerships—which we call Wonder Ecosystems—places where young people can connect, play, and create every day, not just in moments of crisis. These place-based cycles of care and creativity turn crisis into possibility and sustains whole communities for the long term.
We Grow Youth Leaders
We train young people and their families as certified mental health coaches and storytellers, equipping them with the creative skills and confidence to support their peers and shape the future.
We Center Communities & Families
We believe true, evidence-driven work must center the communities we seek to serve. The Youth and Family Advisory Council, a founding initiative of the Unified Youth Board, is made up of almost 20 youth and family members who are experts on the intersections between youth mental health and the arts.
The Youth and Family Advisory Council informs, consults, and advises Unified Youth, ensuring the stories, direct lived and living experience, and expertise of youth and family members are embedded into all they do.
Our Senior Leadership Team
Dr. Wizdom Powell
Chief Executive Officer
Dr. Wizdom Powell (she/her) is a visionary leader and the inaugural Chief Executive Officer of Unified Youth. With over two decades of experience at the intersection of mental health, education, and community programming, she drives systemic change through data-driven policy, place-based interventions, and rigorous impact measurement. A tenured professor and nationally recognized thought leader, Dr. Powell has shaped mental health policy, led groundbreaking public-private partnerships, and advanced solutions that create measurable, lasting change globally. She holds a Ph.D. and M.S. in Clinical Psychology and an M.P.H. from the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor. Before joining Unified Youth, Dr. Powell served as Chief Purpose Officer at Headspace, where she led Social Impact, Legislative Affairs, and ESG initiatives. Her innovative public-private partnerships promoted mindfulness and mental health through resource provision and training.
Dr. Powell's distinguished career includes fellowships with the Ford Foundation, Aspen Institute, and the White House. She has provided expert testimony for bipartisan committees shaping national mental health policy and was awarded the Rockefeller Foundation's prestigious writing residency in Bellagio, Italy. Her expertise in localized population health interventions and place-based mental health research continues to transform communities nationwide.
Dr. J. Robin Moon
Chief Strategy & Operating Officer
Dr. J. Robin Moon (she/her) is a transdisciplinary scholar in social epidemiology, a practitioner and entrepreneur in health justice, and an educator in public health. She is a seasoned public health and executive management professional with nearly 30 years of experience across sectors, including corporate America, non-profit management, philanthropy, startup entrepreneurship, and government. She brings her diverse experience into public health, healthcare, social welfare, and food systems development. Her expertise includes global and local food systems development, place-based health equity strategy, healthcare delivery system reform, organizational strategy and development, leadership development and coaching, evidence-based practice development, quality improvement, mixed methods research and evaluation, startup strategy, social entrepreneurism, and restorative and healing justice.
Robin holds a Doctor of Public Health from Harvard University, a Master of Public Health and a Master of International Affairs from Columbia University, and a Bachelor of Science from the University of Chicago. She is a Health Innovators Fellow at the Aspen Institute. She is also a classically trained musician, movement artist, yoga teacher, death doula, and mental health coach.
Our Founding Board
Jorge Alvarez
Youth Leader
Jorge Alvarez (he/him) is a first-generation Latine college graduate who has transformed his lived experience with mental illness into change for his community and other young people who resonate. As a Social Impact Strategist, Mental Health Advocate, and Creator, he uses his love for storytelling to combat stigma by cultivating space for collective reflection, unlearning limiting beliefs, and breaking cycles both on and offline. He’s grown a community of more than 130,000 followers across his social platforms and was recognized by MTV as 1 of 30 participants to be part of the inaugural Mental Health Youth Action Forum at the White House, where he spoke alongside Selena Gomez, the U.S. First Lady, and the U.S. Surgeon General.
While he loves creating, Jorge also speaks at venues, universities, and institutions across the U.S. to empower and educate young people about mental health while also working with companies and nonprofits to drive impact and inspire action through the inclusion of youth voice, strategic partnerships, building intentional campaigns, and developing accessible digital tools.
Jocelyn Guyer
Policy Leader
Jocelyn Guyer (she/her) provides policy analysis, strategic advice, and technical support to states, foundations, and a range of other clients on delivery system reform, Medicaid, and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP,) with a particular focus in recent years on behavioral health issues. With decades of health policy work, Jocelyn possesses a nuanced perspective on a variety of policy, regulatory, and legal issues. She has done work for the American Medical Association, the American Association for Addiction Medicine, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and numerous states and foundations, among other clients.
Prior to joining Manatt, Jocelyn was a founding member and co-executive director of the Center for Children and Families (CCF), a health policy center at Georgetown University. She also serves as an associate director with the Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured, analyzing issues in health care for vulnerable Americans.
Ben O’Keefe
Arts & Entertainment Leader
Ben O’Keefe (he/him) is an activist, storyteller, and social entrepreneur who has spent his career helping people recognize and wield their power while building collective strength in their communities. From sparking a national body-positivity movement as a teenager to advising U.S. presidential campaigns in his twenties, his journey shows that no one is too young or too ordinary to change the world. Named to Forbes’ 30 Under 30 list for Hollywood & Entertainment, Ben is the creator of the Flip the Script Short Film Fund, which has produced multiple award-winning films, including the Oscar-shortlisted Bienvenidos a Los Angeles. He is also the CEO of Chaotic Good Labs, a media company for social good, and creator of the hit iHeart podcast HIGHKEY! with Ryan Mitchell and RuPaul’s Drag Race’s Yvie Oddly.
His work spans digital movements, documentary filmmaking, public policy, and creative leadership alongside figures like Elizabeth Warren, Alicia Keys, and Stacey Abrams. He was a writer and guest co-host on MTV’s Decoded, appears in Netflix’s White Hot: The Rise & Fall of Abercrombie & Fitch, and continues to use story as a tool for cultural change. Across every platform, Ben’s mission remains the same: to help build a more just, joyful, and connected world.
Fatema Zanzi
Corporate Leader
Fatema Zanzi (she/her) is the SVP, Chief Legal Officer & Corporate Secretary at Lurie Children's Hospital. Fatema has also worked as a Partner and Chicago Office Partner at Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP from August 2018 to January 2020. Prior to that, she was a Partner at Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP from September 2006 to August 2018. From January 2004 to December 2004, she worked as a Research Assistant in the Office of Civil Rights at the US Department of Health and Human Services.
After completing her undergraduate degree at Northwestern University, Fatema attended Loyola University Chicago School of Law, where she earned her J.D. Her educational career has focused on health law, and she has practiced in this field for many years.
Bill Bernstein
Corporate Leader
Bill Bernstein (he/him) is the Chairperson of the Board of Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP, and leader of Manatt Health, a 200-person national legal and consulting practice. Bill’s practice concentrates on providing strategic, business, and legal advice to clients in the health care industry, including provider organizations, managed care companies, emerging companies, and financial institutions. Bill serves as Chairperson of the Center for Democracy and Technology, as Chairperson of Human Rights in China, as a member on the Board of Trustees for Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer-Center, and as a member of the Health Policy and Management Executive Council at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Additionally, Bill is an adjunct professor for Health Law and Regulation at the New York University School of Law.
Bill received his B.A. and M.A. from Brown University and his J.D. from the New York University School of Law, where he served as a Root-Tilden Scholar and an Arthur Garfield Hays Civil Liberties Fellow. He began his career working as a special assistant at the Department of Health, Education and Welfare and as a law clerk to the Honorable Raymond J. Pettine, U.S. District Court of Rhode Island.
Margaret Laws
Policy Leader
Margaret Laws (she/her) has distinguished herself as a catalytic leader in health care, forging cross-sector partnerships that drive positive social impact. At Hopelab, Margaret leads a multidisciplinary team with expertise in health care, academic research and design to create science-based technologies to improve the health and well-being of teens and young adults. She is passionate about bringing together government, nonprofit and private-sector stakeholders interested in advancing the role technology can play in supporting and improving health outcomes, with a particular focus on improving care for underserved populations.
Prior to Hopelab, Margaret spent 17 years at the California Health Care Foundation (CHCF) as Director of Public Financing and Policy and Director of the Innovations for the Underserved program. Margaret holds an M.A. in Public Policy from Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government and an A.B. in English Literature from Princeton University.
Arc Telos Saint Amour
Youth Leader
Arc Telos “Tay” Saint Amour (they/them) is a neurodivergent, autistic, queer and trans, gender non-conforming person of Mexican Indigenous descent (Coahuiltecan), and a victim/survivor of trauma and abuse who deeply believes in listening to youth voices and the power of holistic affirmation and self-agency.
Arc Telos spent over ten years as a business developer, opening start-ups and working with established organizations to expand into new territories all over the US. Following this, Arc Telos spent another ten years active in the non-profit field, working with organizations throughout Chicago, New York, Vermont, California, and Michigan, centering Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (JEDI) practices and using trauma-informed and intersectionality-based frameworks. They are currently the Executive Director of Youth MOVE National and the owner/founder of Arc Telos Consulting.
Susan Genco
Arts & Entertainment Leader
Susan Genco (she/her) is Co-President of The Azoff Company, working alongside industry icon, Irving Azoff. Her responsibilities include the oversight and management of a diverse portfolio of entertainment companies, along with the company’s strategic and legislative efforts. The Azoff Company includes interests in Full Stop Management, Global Music Rights, Iconic Artists Group, and Oak View Group, among others. Prior to joining The Azoff Company, Susan held a variety of executive positions including Executive Vice President, Global Music Rights; Head of Business Affairs & Music, Guitar Hero, a division of Activision/Blizzard; Head of Business Affairs, Warner Bros. Records; Senior Vice President, Business Affairs & Senior Vice President, Operations, Capitol/EMI; and Vice President, Business & Legal Affairs at Arista Records under the tutelage of Clive Davis. Susan is proud to be a founder and the Treasurer of the Music Artist Coalition, an artist advocacy group giving music creators a voice on national and local issues.
Susan received a J.D. from Harvard Law School, and a B.A., Summa Cum Laude/Phi Beta Kappa, in Economics from Wellesley College where her studies included one year at the London School of Economics.
Jordan Bromley
Arts & Entertainment Leader
Jordan Bromley (he/him) leads Manatt Entertainment and the Firm’s Entertainment Transactions and Finance practice. He is highly sought after as an entertainment adviser who is consistently on the pulse of the latest market trends, and he is driving impactful advocacy efforts for industry creators. Jordan has been recognized by Billboard as one of “Music’s Most Powerful Attorneys” and by Chambers USA as one of the country’s foremost transactional lawyers in the entertainment industry.
Jordan sits on the Board of Directors of the Music Artists Coalition (MAC), an artist led and artist first advocacy organization. MAC advocates for artist rights both in private conversations with stakeholders, and in judicial and legislative branches of State and Federal government. He has been instrumental in expanding artist protection in ticketing, copyright terminations, and AI.
He also cofounded Hip Hop Congress, an international nonprofit that uses music and culture to inspire social and civic action among youth.
Cindy Mann
Policy Leader
With more than 30 years of experience in federal and state health policy, Cindy Mann (she/her) works with clients to develop and implement strategies around health reform, Medicaid, the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), and delivery and payment system transformation. Before joining Manatt, Cindy was deputy administrator at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and director of the Center for Medicaid and CHIP Services, where she led the administration of Medicaid, CHIP, and the Basic Health Program for more than five years during the implementation of the Affordable Care Act.
Before her appointment at CMS, Cindy was a research professor at the Georgetown University Health Policy Institute. She was also a senior advisor at the Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured, as well as director of the Family and Children’s Health Program group at the Health Care Financing Administration, now CMS.
Solome Tibebu
Policy Leader
Solome Tibebu (she/her) is a behavioral health strategist and consultant passionate about frontier technologies and solutions transforming mental health, equity, and access. Solome founded and ran a mental health tech startup and, as a former anxious teen, founded and ran the nonprofit AnxietyInTeens.org for ten years. Today, Solome also leads a philanthropic fund focused on youth mental health, and she is a board director or advisor to various youth and adult mental health organizations and for-profit companies, including CaringBridge, Columbia University Mind Ventures, Equip, Headstream, Hopelab, Made of Millions, the Telosity Fund, and Violet.
Solome is the founder and host of the Going Digital: Behavioral Health Tech summit, the largest conference focused on virtual behavioral health. She is also the co-author of ReThinkBehavioral Health Innovation, the source for digital behavioral health technology and startups.
Janet Yang
Arts & Entertainment Leader
Janet Yang (she/her) came to prominence through her collaboration with Steven Spielberg on Empire of the Sun, followed by partnerships with Oliver Stone and Lisa Henson. Her extensive Film and TV credits include The Joy Luck Club, The People vs. Larry Flynt, Shanghai Calling, and High Crimes. Emmy Award and Golden Globe-winning Hollywood producer, Yang is the President of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Yang has worked with some of the most formidable directors and actors in the world; among her many credits are: Over the Moon directed by Glen Keane; Dark Matter with Meryl Streep; The Weight of Water directed by Kathryn Bigelow with Sean Penn; Fox’s High Crimes with Morgan Freeman; a Chinese adaptation of the acclaimed Disney franchise High School Musical; cult favorites Zero Effect, by Jake Kasdan, and Shanghai Calling with China Film Group.
Committed to fostering global understanding, Yang is a co-founder of Gold House, the nonprofit collective of influential Asian cultural leaders; a long-standing member of the Committee of 100, an organization of the most prominent Chinese-Americans; and an advisory board member of Asia Society Southern California, where she also chairs its highly regarded US-Asia Entertainment Summit.
Let’s transform the funding landscape for youth mental wellbeing and future readiness.
