Maria Aoki-Chavez, Robert & Anthony Dudchik SUN Memorial Fund Program Manager

The newest addition to our SUN Scholars team is Maria, a passionate public servant and systems change catalyst. Maria’s journey began at the University of Connecticut, where she founded the first student-led organization by and for youth with homelessness and foster care experience. As a UConn BOLD Fellow, her gift for cultivating cross-systems partnerships shone as she orchestrated a professional development summit for Connecticut’s opportunity youth, sponsored by the Department of Labor, Department of Children and Families, and Marissa Cardona.

Holding a Master's in Public Administration and an unwavering commitment to youth voice, Maria has served as a Policy Fellow with the CWCSEO Children's Sub Commission and intern to the U.S. House of Representatives. As a CCAI 2023 Foster Youth Intern, she presented her research on Interstate Sibling Connections to Congress, the White House, and DHHS, turning lived experience into policy impact.

Today, Maria channels her servant leadership spirit as she leads the Youth Catalyst Team, a collective of systems-impacted young adult consultants, while shaping national conversations on systems change through her training and technical assistance work with OJJDP, RHYTTAC, Chapin Hall, Youth Collaboratory, and Annie E. Casey Foundation's "Ending the Need for Group Placements" committee. Her dynamic voice resonates across three national councils: the National Foster Care Youth & Alumni Policy Council, Opioid Affected Youth Initiative YAB, and the National Youth Employment Coalition. She's bringing that same energy to the R.A.D. Fund Program's "Year of Compassion"—where she's committed to help young people create meaningful learning and giving experiences that reveal the transformative power of service that changes both communities and themselves.