Social Empowerment Texas was created by Lauren Welch in January 2026 after years of experience working with child protection professionals including case managers at CPS – as a foster and adoptive parent and professionally – through past work experience supporting foster/adoptive and kinship families, social workers and aged out foster youth.
Over the years, Lauren started stepping into the lives and caseloads of CPS employees to find out – how can we make this better for the worker, the foster family and the children in their homes?
Social Empowerment Texas was born out of a place of care for the system and those that are affected by it – and the enormous trickle effect that caring, encouraging and empowering CPS employees does.
Executive Director
Lauren has almost two decades of nonprofit experience specifically in Fundraising, grant writing and grant management, raising over $17 million dollars. In 2021, Lauren created a grant consulting firm, Welch Consulting Inc., working with nonprofits of all sizes throughout the United States. Lauren is a foster and adoptive mother and has professional experience working in the foster care space, supporting families and social workers.
Lauren is a Certified Grant Professional (GPC).
Community Involvement:
You can reach Lauren at [email protected].
Secretary
Marcia Valle brings over a decade of experience in child welfare and foster care systems. She currently works with the Stafford County Department of Social Services as a Resource Home Coordinator, a role she has held since December 2022. In this capacity, she oversees the approval, training, and support of foster families, coordinates placements for children entering care, and serves as an ICPC Coordinator, supporting families seeking placement of relative children across state lines.
Previously, Marcia worked for nearly five years as a Senior Foster Care and Adoptions Worker with Spotsylvania County Department of Social Services, and earlier in her career served as a Case Manager and Compliance Coordinator with a nonprofit private treatment foster care agency, where she supported children and families through permanency planning, foster care case management, and adoption processes.
Treasurer
Sarah Verdusco Singh, MPA, is a dedicated development and nonprofit professional with extensive experience in building partnerships, fundraising, and community engagement. She currently drives strategic advancement efforts in the education sector, supporting mission-driven work that expands access and opportunity for underserved students. With a strong foundation in program management and relationship building, Sarah has a track record of delivering meaningful impact through collaboration with donors, volunteers, and organizational leaders. Her work reflects a deep commitment to equity, service, and long-term organizational growth.
Board Member
Located in Northern Virginia, Margaret is a foster and adoptive mom who cares deeply about children and teens in the foster care system.
Margaret serves as the Don’t Go Alone Director at Project Belong Virginia, where she works with youth who are aging out of foster care. In this role, she helps connect young adults to mentors, practical resources, and steady support as they navigate next steps like housing, education, and employment.
Before this role, Margaret worked as an educator. She had the opportunity to work with orphanages in Ethiopia, an experience that broadened her perspective and deepened her commitment to caring for vulnerable children across different communities and cultures.
Board Member
While Miller is a Mississippi native, he has lived more years in Texas than he has anywhere else. Miller is a retired oil and gas engineer spending most of his life working and living in Houston, TX. Miller has one daughter and has three grandchildren – all adopted from foster care. As a foster and adoptive grandfather, Miller has a unique view of the needs of foster parents, children in foster care and social workers.
Board Member
Evans has been working in the Human Services field for over 26 years, working in residential facilities, juvenile justice system, gang prevention domestic violence victims and families and children connected to the foster care system in Northern Virginia.
Board Member
Tanya N. Rollins, MSW received her BS in Psychology from Texas A&M University in 1990 and her MSW from Texas State University-San Marcos in 2007. She retired from the child welfare system after thirty years. She worked in roles as an investigator, intake specialist, intake supervisor, training specialist, training manager, and disproportionality manager. In her role as the Child Protective Services Disproportionality Manager for the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, she was charged with examining the racial and ethnic disparities in the child welfare system while working with internal and external partners to eliminate the disparities. Ms. Rollins is currently a PhD candidate and research assistant at the University of Houston Graduate College of Social Work. She has presented at numerous national, regional, and state conferences on poverty, child welfare, racial and ethnic identity, cultural responsiveness, and disparities in the child welfare system. She has co-authored scholarly work addressing racial inequities in the child welfare system. Ms. Rollins continues to work with community, persons impacted by child welfare, and other interested parties to advocate for change.
Board Member
Board Member
Lucas Bergman is a finance professional currently working at Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), where he supports financial planning, analysis, and strategic decision-making within a fast-paced, global technology environment. His experience spans corporate finance, data-driven analysis, and cross-functional collaboration to drive business performance.
In addition to his professional role, Lucas is an MBA candidate, further strengthening his foundation in finance, strategy, and leadership. His academic and professional experience positions him to bridge financial insight with business operations, particularly within the technology sector.
Lucas is passionate about corporate finance, investment strategy, and leveraging analytics to support long-term growth and innovation.
Board Chair - Tanya Rollins, MSW
Other Board Members - Chandler Evans, Sharon Berger, LCSW, LCDC,
Lauren Welch, Executive Director
Council Members:
Amanda Edmondson, Peer Recovery Coach, Walton Empowers Addiction Recovery Support Center (GA), biological parent
Jocelyn Chamra Barrera, Executive and Clinical Director Christi Center, past foster and current adoptive mom
Lauren McBee, Faith Based and Community Engagement Specialist, Region 7 CPS
Norma Mercado LMSW, Executive Director, Bastrop County Cares, social worker
Angelo Thompson, active duty Army, aged out foster youth
*Lauren McBee is an informal member of the Advisory Council