FORMER FOSTER YOUTH & ADVOCATE MAKES NATIONWIDE IMPACT...

Sixto Cancel is a current VCU student who grew up in the foster care system. He is the founder of “Think of Us: The Center for Emerging Adults”, which works to create positive life outcomes for vulnerable youth. He has been named a Millennial Maker by BET and recognized as one of the Top 24 Changemakers under 24 in the country by the Campaign for a Presidential Youth Council and Sparkaction. In high school, Cancel, founded and secured funding for Stellar Works, a SAT and remedial education program for students in foster care. As a Young Fellow at Jim Casey Youth Opportunity, Cancel has had a national voice advocating for youth aging out of foster care.

Cancel has participated in over 20 conferences around issues facing youth including the Harvard Law, the Clinton Global Initiative, and the Center for Enterprise Development. Cancel has been quoted on NPR’s “Tell Me More,” Fox News, and in The Huffington Post. As a policy council member, he provides recommendations to the Acting Assistant Secretary for the Administration for Children and Families under the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. He also currently serves on the Board of Directors for the National Foster Care Coalition and on advisory boards for noteworthy organizations including the Center for the Study of Social Policy and the American Institute of Research.