Keynote and Plenary Speakers
Kaysie Getty
Founder and Principal, KOAT Consulting LLC
Keynote Speaker
Kaysie X. Coley Getty, MSW, is the Founder and Principal of KOAT Consulting LLC, a strategy and advisory firm that partners with government agencies, nonprofits and community organizations to translate knowledge into opportunity, action and transformation.
A social worker and child welfare expert, Getty brings over a decade of experience working across community-based organizations, state and federal government agencies, and national policy initiatives, with a particular emphasis on elevating the voices of young people with foster care experience within policy and practice.
Prior to founding KOAT Consulting, Getty served as a senior program analyst at the Center for the Study of Social Policy, where she contributed to the Youth Thrive Initiative, supporting jurisdictions nationwide advancing youth-centered frameworks into policy and practice.
She previously worked at the New Jersey Department of Children and Families as a youth programming advisor in the Office of Family Voice, where she established and led a statewide Youth Council that formally integrated youth voice into departmental policy, programming and operations. Kaysie also served as a national consultant supporting National Youth in Transition Database (NYTD) through JBS International.
In addition to her consulting work, Kaysie is a former co-host of the Diaries of a Black Girl in Foster Care podcast, where she helped amplify the lived experiences of Black girls navigating the foster care system.
She is widely recognized as a skilled facilitator, speaker and advisor in youth engagement, leadership development, and systems change. Kaysie holds a Master of Social Work from Rutgers University School of Social Work and is a recipient of the Child Welfare League of America’s 100 Champions for Children Award. Her career reflects innovation, leadership and a deep commitment to youth advocacy nationwide.
Chan Hellman
Professor, University of Oklahoma and Director, Hope Research Center
Keynote Speaker
Chan M. Hellman, Ph.D., is a professor at the Anne & Henry Zarrow School of Social Work at the University of Oklahoma and serves as Director of the Hope Research Center.
His work focuses on the science of hope as a measurable, teachable psychological strength that helps individuals, organizations and communities overcome trauma and adversity.
Hellman has published more than 80 peer-reviewed studies and has spent over two decades translating hope theory into practice across human services, education, public systems and nonprofit organizations. His research informs the development of the Hope-Centered & Trauma-Informed® model and training programs now used nationwide to strengthen workforce well-being, organizational effectiveness and system-level change.
In recognition of this work, the University of Oklahoma Hope Research Center received the 2024 “Building Knowledge Through Research” Award from the U.S. Department of Justice, Office for Victims of Crime.
He is the co-author of the award-winning book Hope Rising: How the Science of Hope Can Change Your Life and co-founder of Hope Rising Oklahoma, a statewide initiative launched with First Lady Sarah Stitt to help build a hope-centered culture across communities and institutions.
Hellman was one of five invited workshop leaders for Jane Goodall’s Activating Hope Summit and has delivered invited presentations at national venues, including a main-stage session at the American Psychological Association convention. His work has been featured by major national media outlets, including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, TIME, CNN and the APA Monitor.
In 2025, Dr. Hellman was inducted into the Oklahoma Higher Education Hall of Fame in recognition of his contributions to research, teaching and public impact.
Alex J. Adams
Assistant Secretary for Family Support, Administration for Children and Families at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Plenary Speaker
Alex J. Adams, Pharm.D., MPH, serves as assistant secretary for family support, leading the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. He was nominated to lead the agency by President Donald J. Trump and was confirmed on Oct. 7, 2025, by the U.S. Senate.
Adams brings years of health, human services, education, and regulatory expertise to advance President Trump and Secretary Kennedy’s broader vision to “make America healthy again.”
Prior to leading ACF, Adams spent more than 10 years in Idaho state government as Gov. Brad Little’s budget and regulatory director and state Department of Health & Welfare director. In these capacities, he oversaw the state’s first upgrade to an AAA credit rating with both Fitch Ratings and Moody’s. Adams led the Governor’s zero-based regulation initiative, which resulted in Idaho becoming the least regulated state in the nation. He also made significant efforts to improve Idaho’s child welfare system, enacting kin-specific licensing standards, announcing paid family leave for foster parents, extending foster care to age 23, and overseeing record recruitment and retention of foster homes.
Adams earned his bachelor’s degree and Doctor of Pharmacy degree from the University of Toledo in Ohio and his Master of Public Health degree from Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore.
Adams and his wife, Jennifer, are raising their daughter, Emerson.
Stu Perry
Child Therapist, Author and Nationally Recognized Speaker
Plenary Speaker
Stuart “Mister Stu” Perry, LCSW, ASDCS, is a child therapist, author and nationally recognized speaker who helps adults better understand kids—so kids and the adults who care for them can thrive.
With more than a decade of professional experience in children’s mental health (and a lifetime spent working with kids in real-world settings), Mister Stu brings research, clinical insight and lived experience together in a way that is practical, engaging and immediately usable.
His sessions are known for blending humor, powerful storytelling and clear takeaways that attendees can apply the very next day—whether they work in schools, mental health, childcare or with families.
Mister Stu challenges common myths about behavior and mental health while offering a compassionate, play-based lens for understanding what kids are really communicating. Attendees consistently describe his presentations as energizing, validating and grounding—leaving them feeling both encouraged and better equipped to support the children in their lives.
Above all, Mister Stu’s work is rooted in one core belief: Bad kids don’t exist.
You can learn more about Mister Stu at BadKidsDontExist.com and follow him @MisterStuTV on YouTube and social media.