The Board of Directors

Maxxwell LaBrie

President

Pronouns: They/Them/He/Him

Maxx has been in the peer support field since 2014, and has been participating in and leading systems advocacy efforts since 2015. He received his Peer Specialist certification in the state of Massachusetts in 2018. As an autistic, trans and queer young adult with lived experience in the special education system and the mental health system from a young age, their call to systems advocacy came from their own negative experiences in said systems.

In addition to systems advocacy and peer support, Maxx has also developed and facilitated
numerous trainings, such as LGBTQ+ Youth 101, Effective Communication for Non-Profits, and The Impact of Diet Culture, among others. They are also a certified Hearing Voices Network USA Facilitator.

They currently work as the Director of Community Engagement and Outreach at GSA Link, a
non-profit that supports LGBTQ+ youth and their families. He is also a regular contributor/staff writer on WriteThroughtheNight.com who blogs about books, tv shows, stories from his childhood and musings on life.

Their personal and professional passions include fat liberation, mad liberation, youth autonomy, bodily autonomy, anti-capitalism and anti-carceral care practices.
 
In their spare time, they enjoy cuddling with their cat Sully, crocheting, reading, writing poetry, and spending time with their amazing friends. They also enjoy causing mild amounts of chaos and performing stand up routines.

Haley Rizkallah

Vice President

Pronouns: She/Her

Haley Rizkallah is the Program Coordinator at Maryland Coalition of Families, an organization that works with caregivers and other loved ones to help them access needed support and services for their families. In 2019, she joined MCF as the Senior Youth Engagement Specialist, and was a founding member of their local Youth MOVE chapter. She graduated from St. Mary’s College of Maryland in 2015 with degrees in Psychology and Sociology. Haley has worked at several residential treatment centers and passionately advocates for positive changes in all youth-serving systems. She also uses her lived experience with behavioral health challenges to support and empower her peers. Haley enjoys windsurfing, laying in her hammock, classic movies, and growing her record collection.

John Dellick

John Dellick

Treasurer

John Dellick is a young man who is passionate about helping other youth lead healthy lives. He has experience in many youth serving systems. He is currently a student at Cleveland State University studying Business Administration. John is on the YouthMOVE Ohio State Council. He also started a local YouthMOVE Chapter in his hometown. John sits on the Ohio Interagency Council on Youth Steering Committee. He enjoys developing programs aimed at at-risk youth. John has a background in peer support and mentoring. One of John’s favorite quotes is by Frank Warren, “it’s the children almost broken by the world that grow up to save it.”

Astraea Augsberger

Secretary

Pronouns: She/Her

Astraea Augsberger is an assistant professor in the Clinical Practice Department at Boston University School of Social Work. She is passionate about elevating the voices of youth and young adults in practice, program and policy decision making. As such, her research program examines multi-level factors that inhibit and/or facilitate a person’s ability to participate in decision making within multiple institutions including child welfare, health care, education, and government. She employs in-depth qualitative research, community engaged research and youth participatory action research methods to center the voices and experiences of youth and communities. Astraea’s research has been shaped by her professional social work experience. Prior to working at Boston University, she was a forensic social worker and supervisor at the Juvenile Rights Practice of the Legal Aid Society in New York City Family Court and directed global mental health programs for young adults residing at International House, New York.  In her free time, Astraea enjoys cooking, traveling and spending time with her children.

Brittany O'Neal

Pronouns: She/Her

My name is Brittany O’Neal and I am an Atlanta, Georgia native. Professionally, I am a speaker, facilitator, mentor, and a college student pursuing my degree in social work. I am a president in a local Youth MOVE chapter in Georgia. I am a certified peer specialist-youth that assists my peers in their mental health challenges through lived experiences. My self-care consists of drawing, painting, songwriting, and spending time at the salon. I love the colors purple and green. I am excited to be a part of the team, by bringing my creativity skills to the Board of Directors!

Robert Penfold

Pronouns: He/Him/His

I do research designed to improve real-world mental health care for young people. I believe that incorporating the lived experience of young people into the design and conduct of research is critical. Only by listening to young people can we design and offer mental health services that address their needs.

I am a health services researcher at the Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute in Seattle, Washington. My work focuses on developing and testing strategies to optimize behavioral health care delivery and patient outcomes—particularly in children and teens. My research addresses practical issues, such as how to reduce unnecessary use of antipsychotic medications. I also study ways to identify people experiencing suicidal thoughts and programs to reduce suicide attempts.

I am a co-investigator in the Mental Health Research Network (MHRN), a resource for studies on mental health conditions ranging from depression and anxiety to autism and psychosis. I lead the MHRN’s child and adolescent scientific interest group.

Javid Javadi

Javid Javadi is a third-year undergraduate student majoring in Cellular and Developmental Biology at California State University, Fullerton (CSUF). He has recently joined the Youth MOVE National Board of Directors team in the first few months of 2021. He is very passionate about the non-profit sector and has been a part of many non-profit organizations, from aiming to reduce global poverty, to tutoring high school students. He is also extremely passionate about empowering youth voices as he believes that the youth of today will have the biggest impact on the world tomorrow. As someone who sometimes feels his words and thoughts are undervalued due to his age, Javid wants youth all over the country to not feel burdened by the world’s perception. A quote that extremely motivates and inspires him is “the youth of today are the leaders of tomorrow.” In his free time, Javid tends to listen to music, play soccer, and go for a walk outside in nature in order to de-stress.

Felicity Krueger

Pronouns: She/Her

Felicity Therese Krueger is a 19 year old youth leader. She is a member of Kentucky Youth MOVE, Youth MOVE board member and is a Kentucky youth ambassador. She has worked in the advocacy realm since she was 11 years old, starting with following her mom to the capital and is currently working on several projects to better help youth struggling with mental health or are in the foster care/adoption system. She spends her summers working as a camp counselor. Her passion is working to educate young people in leadership and empowerment. 

Avery Irons

Avery Irons is the Associate for Technical Assistance for the New York State Youth Justice Institute. Through roles in training, technical assistance, and policy advocacy Avery’s work has focused on increasing supports and funding streams for community-based prevention and alternative programs, reducing racial and ethnic disparities, and strengthening protections for vulnerable populations in contact with justice systems. She has held positions at the National Center for Youth Opportunity and Justice, the Los Angeles LGBT Center’s RISE Program, the Juvenile Justice Project at the Correctional Association of New York, and Children’s Defense Fund-New York. 

Picture of Rick Yang

Rick Yang

Pronouns: He/Him

Rick Yang (he/him) is a high school student deeply involved in public health and policy research, championing the integration of robust mental health systems in schools and emphasizing the importance of youth participation in shaping systems of care. He initiated and led a research project pinpointing Tier 1 evidence-based mental health solutions tailored for his county’s educational institutions. In partnership with a wide array of professionals, researchers, and policymakers, Rick authored detailed reports and led community-centric presentations for numerous audiences. Beyond this, he collaborates with several mental health organizations to better adolescent well-being across the country. Outside his advocacy realm, Rick is passionate about debating, playing soccer, and beatboxing.

Picture of Michael Branche Jr.

Michael Branche Jr.

Pronouns: He/Him

Michael is a compassionate leader with lived experience who has advocated for youth for nearly 10 years. He is from the Southside of Columbus, OH where he was reared by his father Michael, Sr. He is a regional leader for Youth MOVE Ohio. As a teen Michael worked with multiple youth advocacy and social justice groups as a grassroots advocate and as a counselor and teacher’s assistant for younger children. He has experience in Peer Support, prevention, and culturally based mental health advocacy. He works with his local chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) where he enjoys giving Ending the Silence (ETS) presentations, promoting mental health awareness, at local high schools. He teaches chess with the Royal Oak Initiative where they promote leadership, critical thinking, and cultural competency through chess instruction and gameplay. He is also a Licensed Real Estate Salesperson in the State of Ohio.

Xinyi Liu

Pronouns: She/Her

Xinyi Liu is a passionate advocate for youth empowerment in her community. She serves as vice president on the Youth MOVE Suncoast Board and is a member of her city youth council. Her experience with youth advocacy started when she moved across the world with her family at 12 years old. Her perspective as a youth advocate and her experience with cultural adjustments led her to start a mental health peer support group, impacting over 500 immigrant youth. She has also started a youth mental health training program to match trained peer support volunteers with youth seeking counseling. Xinyi founded Human Rights Youth Advocacy Inc. in 2022 and has worked to provide more than 1,200 youth in Tibet, South Africa, and the US with health and education support. She recognizes the value that youth voices hold and is excited to be a part of the team! In her free time, Xinyi enjoys doing protein research, dancing, and volunteering with her local Youth MOVE.