For Mentors
Resources to support your mentorship.
Our Leadership
Jennifer Doran-Peña is Foster Your Future’s Chief Operating Officer and Board Treasurer. She brings deep experience with innovative program development, fundraising, community engagement, data tracking and impact measurement to this role.
Prior to joining Foster Your Future in May 2024, Jennifer worked for nearly two decades at the International Rescue Committee (IRC), a nonprofit the helps people affected by humanitarian crisis. During her 19-year tenure with the organization, Jennifer held executive leadership roles, as well as management roles over a range of service areas, including community and economic development, resettlement, employment, behavioral health, early childhood, and Immigration. In 2016, Jennifer opened the IRC’s Kansas Office for Refugees and became its first Executive Director/State Refugee Coordinator. The Office served as a public-private partnership with the U.S Department of Health and Human Services, and in this capacity, she oversaw statewide refugee cash and medical assistance programs, and ensured distributed funds allocated to Kansas through grants and contracts to health care providers, nonprofits and faith-based organizations working with refugees and immigrants across Kansas.
Jennifer started her career as the Grant Coordinator for the Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation, now Visit Philadelphia. She coordinated all stages of the grant lifecycle, making grants and providing marketing technical assistance to cultural, historical and other organizations to promote themselves to leisure tourists and ultimately, boost the local economy.
Jennifer received her Master of Science degree in Anthropology and Development from the London School of Economics and Political Science and her Bachelor of Arts degree from Haverford College with a major in Anthropology.
Jennifer is a mom and is active with the PTO and volunteering at her son’s school. In her free time, she enjoys hiking, running and spending time outdoors.
Ginny Paulsen is Foster Your Future’s Founder, Chief Executive Officer and Board President. She started FYF in 2015 when she identified an unmet need among the young adult foster care graduate community in the Greater Phoenix Area (see Our Story). Ginny is actively involved in direct work with program participants and FYF’s volunteer mentors.
Ginny is CEO of STARS, a staffing company she cofounded with her husband Randy that contracts with school districts throughout the Phoenix and Tucson Metropolitan Areas to provide PT, OT, Speech Psychologists, and Special Education Teachers. Ginny has an almost 50-year business career, having founded, owned, and operated five companies prior to STARS that provided treatment in Occupational Therapy, Speech Pathology and Physical Therapy in respect to Rehabilitation and Nursing Facilities, Home Health, Community Hospitals, and Out-Patient Clinics.
Ginny has a Bachelor of Science degree in Occupational Therapy with Certifications in Neurodevelopment Treatment and Sensory Integration.
Ginny is a mother to five, a grandmother to six and a longtime community volunteer with organizations such as the girl scouts. In her free time, she enjoys collecting and creating art work.
Our Young Adult Advisors
A 2024 graduate of FYF’s Building Your Future program, Jake received services from FYF for 2 years and obtained his Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) Certification with FYF’s support. He has worked as an EMT for the past year. After gaining addition working experience, Jake’s is eager to continue his studies to obtain his Paramedic Certification.
Jake enjoys swimming, camping, hiking, spending time with dogs and horses, and riding his motorcycle. He is a self-proclaimed “foodie” and enjoys supporting local restaurants and food businesses whenever possible.
An active participant in FYF’s Building Your Future program, Catrina is pursuing a bachelor’s degree in nursing. Through starts-and-stops, she persisted in achieving her first goal in 2024, completing a CNA training course and passing the certification exam. She is now working as a CNA since as she prepares for the next step in her career. Catrina enjoys hiking and swimming with her dogs.
A 2024 graduate of the Building Your Future program, Shalimar is a nurse pursuing her Master of Science in Nursing. She received support from Foster Your Future for 5+ years, first getting her associate’s degree in nursing and becoming a registered nurse, and then two years later earning a Bachelor of Science in Nursing.
Alan connected with Foster Your Future in 2021 after graduating from ASU with a bachelor’s degree in communications with the goal of establishing a career path. In the three years that he participated in FYF programming, Alan got his first professional job and launched a business in 2024 to further increase his income.