Featured Speakers

Alyssa Lentz (she/her) is an organizer with Planned Parenthood Advocates of Wisconsin. She considers herself a “wedding photographer gone rogue,” as she worked in this field prior to organizing. She is a fat, queer woman who aspires to dismantle institutions of oppression and build a safer, more equitable world. (Dismantling Anti-Fat Bias)

Beth Williams-Breault (she, her, hers) has over 25 years of experience in education as a classroom teacher, educational consultant, professor, and researcher. Beth teaches Child and Adolescent Health at Lesley University in Cambridge, MA and is published in several international journals on topics involving sexual health education. (A History of Sex Education in the United States)

Candace Sanchez is a SURVIVOR! Despite wonderful family elements, there was a dark side to her childhood. Candace broke her silence after 40+ years. Now, she shares her story of transformation and resilience that allowed her to find happiness in her family, career, and most importantly, within herself. (Unspoken – Because I Wasn’t Supposed to Tell

Eddie Cannedy is an advocate and coach for Sexual, Mental, and Communal Health. They strive to see happy and healthy people and believe we cannot have liberation and movement without a happy, healthy, and autonomously aware community. The scope of their work is to empower and collaborate with members of marginalized communities to mobilize for change. Their work is done by facilitating workshops about sexual health, wellness, and behaviors, peer support sessions for men of color, and speaking publicly about mental health by sharing their lived experiences with suicide. (Sex-Ed is Power Guidelines for providing Liberation in Sexual Health)

Elle Hill is a Black woman of trans experience, and a dedicated LGBTQ health equity advocate and educator. She is the Planned Parenthood of WI Inclusion Health Program Specialist and a writer, model, and singer. Elle is The First Trans Woman Community Co-Chair of the Wisconsin Statewide Action Planning Group for HIV/AIDS (SAPG). She was an inaugural member of The Black AIDS Institute Ambassadorship of Biomedical Prevention and currently sits on the Board of Directors at Diverse and Resilient. She is speaker and subject matter expert in areas of LGBTQIA/Transgender health, safety, and social disparities. Elle has received numerous awards for her activism and service. Most recently, she received the 2021 Shepherd Express Best of Milwaukee People’s Choice award for Best LGBTQ Advocate, the Black Rose Initiative Community Rose Award, and is a Transfaith Bobbie Jean Baker Grantee. Her mother is a minister, Evangelist Veronica Sears. Elle’s community work honors her mother’s example of unconventional community leadership. (My Journey to Advocacy)

Emily Aytes is the Senior Research Coordinator for the Beam Health Study, in the research department at Planned Parenthood Great Northwest, Hawaiʻi, Alaska, Indiana, Kentucky. Prior to this role, she was a community outreach educator and facilitator of the Indianapolis Teen Council. Emily holds a BA in Women's & Gender Studies from DePaul University and an MA in Social Work from the University of Chicago. Over her career, she has worked in community mental health, school-based mental health services, abuse and neglect prevention, hospice care, and providing sexual health education to adults and youth around Indiana. Her passion lies in educating others about sexual and reproductive justice with a focus on pleasure-centered sexual wellness. (Beyond 50 Shades of Gray: Destigmatizing Kink, Fetishes, and BDSM)

Erica Scott is the creator of The Consent Culture Intro Workshop, co-author of the book Creating Consent Culture: A Handbook for Educators, and the founder of Creating Consent Culture. As a survivor of child sexual abuse, 20 plus years of working in a male dominated industry, and as a parent of young adult children, she feels the urgency to bring more effective consent education to a wider audience. (The Fun Way to Teach Consent) 

Faith Ogungbe is a doctoral student at the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee studying public health with a particular interest in maternal and child health and health equity. She also serves as the coordinator for the PATCH General Health and Wellness Youth Advocacy Fellowship. In this role, she works with youth aged 12-21 throughout the state of Wisconsin learning about health topics that impact their demographic and learning about how to advocate for these topics. She is happy to be part of an organization that centers the voices of the youth it supports. (Youth Work in Community Advocacy: The PATCH Model) 

Haya Khateeb is the Anti-Human Trafficking and Exploitation Advocate at Reach Counseling in Neenah, WI. Haya began her career as a Domestic and Sexual Violence Victim Advocate in Washington State seven years ago. In her role, Haya has developed and supported several programs to create and maintain an inclusive, violence-free, and anti-oppressive environment for all. (Sex Trafficking vs. Sex Work: Understanding the Difference)

Jeriney Rhone (she/they) is an organizer with Planned Parenthood Advocates of Wisconsin in Milwaukee. They attended UWM, where they found their special interests in reproductive rights and fat liberation, as well as spending time doing undergraduate research in the Sociology department. They strive to remove the barriers that fat people face when accessing health care, as well as creating a world that sees fatness as a natural part of biodiversity, rather than a disease to be cured (Dismantling Anti-Fat Bias) 

Joella Striebel (she/her) is the Western Wisconsin Public Affairs Regional Coordinator for Planned Parenthood of WI. She lives in La Crosse, WI where she and her spouse own a small business and raise their children and a small flock of backyard hens. Prior to joining PPWI in July of 2021, she worked as a Harm Reduction focused substance abuse counselor for over a decade and organized in the community around various justice issues. (Storytelling During the Abortion Access Crisis)

Katie Kordsmeier has over 20 years of experience in the field of Social Services covering a wide variety of areas, including medical case management, housing, crisis intervention/ stabilization, and mental health. Before coming to Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin, she served the HIV+ community by ensuring access to medical care, housing, behavioral health, and AODA treatment to improve health outcomes and treatment adherence. She oversaw the training of new Medical Social Workers in Trauma Informed practice, Motivational Interviewing and SBRIT, to improve quality of care statewide for a diverse group of HIV+ patients accessing HIV care and medical clinics. (Simplifying Trauma Informed Practice: Transforming Patient Care into Patient Empowerment)

Kisha Shanks is an accomplished maternal and child health consultant, speaker, and author. Consulting with numerous community-serving organizations and government agencies, she provides dynamic racial equity and reproductive justice trainings by using both her lived experiences and academia to inform, inspire, and empower individuals into action that leads to change. (Black Lifelines at the Intersection of Race and Reproduction)

Latoya Bates is the Director of Educational Programming and Outreach for Wounded Wings: Association for the Betterment of Women and Girls. An interfaith organization, Wounded Wings provides programs for survivors of sexual and domestic abuse. A graduate of Alverno College and Cardinal Stritch University, LaToya has a bachelor’s in business and management, a master’s in adult education, and a master’s in pastoral studies. LaToya’s career has focused on equity and empowerment for women, youth, LGBT+ and persons of color. (The P.O.W.E.R. of Consent: A Sexual Abuse Prevention Program)

Lily Franscotti Is a social media content creator specializing in inclusive sex education. With over 215,000 followers on the world’s most popular social media app, TikTok, Lily shares thoroughly researched advice to her followers regarding safe, pleasurable sex and personal empowerment. (Becoming an Internet Big Sister: Using the Unique Power of Social Media for Providing Accessible Sex Education)

Marianne Radley Welhouse is the Public Affairs Regional Coordinator with Planned Parenthood of WI. She is based out of her home in Appleton and services the Northeast Region of Wisconsin. She has been with PPWI since June of 2020, and before then was Advocacy Program Director at a sexual assault service agency in Neenah, WI. At home, she spends time with her husband, their beautiful and smart two-year-old daughter, and their 3 cats. In non-pandemic times they like to travel, camp, and visit breweries. (Storytelling During the Abortion Access Crisis)

Michelle Velasquez is the Director of Legal Advocacy and Services for Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin.  Before joining PPWI, Michelle co-founded Civitas Law Group, Inc. a non-profit law firm in Milwaukee whose mission is to improve and promote access to justice by providing representation in family, criminal, and immigration law. (Communicating About the Future of Abortion Access in Wisconsin) 

Mike Murray is the Vice President of Public Affairs for Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin. Mike has worked on policy and advocacy issues related to reproductive rights, gender-based violence and economic justice in Wisconsin for over 16 years. Mike lives in Madison with his wife and two boys (12 & 15). (Communicating About the Future of Abortion Access in Wisconsin) 

Mollie Overby (they/them) is a Spark*ED facilitator and Community Outreach Educator based in South King County, Washington. They facilitate the South King Teen Council program where they help teens build their peer education and advocacy skills to use in their communities. Mollie is passionate about trans specific sex ed and access to healthcare and enjoys having conversations with youth and their parenting adults. They received a MPH in Community Oriented Public Health Practice from the University of Washington in 2016 and a BS in Latin American, Caribbean and Iberian Studies from the University of Wisconsin- Madison in 2011. Mollie worked in global health in Wisconsin and has worked with the Q Card Project and the Northwest Network of Bi, Trans, Lesbian, and Gay Survivors of Abuse. (Strategies for Responding to LGBTQ+ Microaggressions)

Paige Mac Leod is the Capacity building Specialist with PPGNHAIK where she oversees the creation and delivery of Spark*ED. Launched in 2020, Spark*ED provides online sex education professional development, focusing on the information and skills required to deliver impactful and inclusive sex education. All course material is created with a social justice and racial equity lens, and incorporates the latest information about sexual health, gender, and adolescent development fields. (Strategies for Responding to LGBTQ+ Micro-Aggressions

Rashidah Butler-Jackson is a motivated and Certified Nonprofit Consultant & Events Technology Associate with 12 years of diverse nonprofit experience. She has had a variety of roles, from classroom educator to working with nonprofit start-ups. Rashidah describes herself as a self-driven leader, with a long history of working closely with community boards and volunteers, training staff, strategic planning, and budgeting. (Expect Respect)

Samantha Collier is the founder Team Teal 365 Inc., a grassroots organization which educates, empowers, and validates sexual assault survivors and their families. Their mission started with information booths and closed group sessions in the community. Today, she empowers high school students through weekly healthy relationships co/ed groups, providing sessions for local nonprofit organizations, and reaching providers through statewide conferences and collaborations.  Sam is a licensed provider at Collier’s Training Institute and serves as the Communication Manger for Neu-Life Community Deveolpment Center. She is presently the Chairwoman for the City of Milwaukee Domestic Violence- Sexual Assault Commission. (Expect Respect)

Tammaka Staley (she/they) is a sex educator from Columbia, SC. She is the Founder and CEO of Youth Affirming Sex Education (YASÉ), LLC, and has been facilitating decolonized sexual health workshops in South Carolina since 2012. They have also been a safe site for the National Great American Condom Campaign with Advocates for Youth. Tammaka strives every day to create a consent culture, one sexfirmation at a time. (Culture, Sex and Systems)