Speaking At:

Standard 5: What's in your S.O.U.P? Part 2 - The Power of Partnerships
Partnering with Parents

Bio:

Christa Austin is a Principal Trainer with Healthy Families America, where she provides support to Foundations trainers and offers technical assistance to her assigned region. She also serves as a Foundation Family Support Trainer and Peer Reviewer, bringing over eleven years of dedicated service to these roles. With 30 years of experience in early childhood home visiting and center-based services, Christa’s diverse career includes managing and supervising multi-site Early Head Start and Head Start programs, family case management, substance abuse support, program monitoring, parent group development, and Infant Mental Health. She is also skilled in organizing and facilitating workshops and training sessions. Christa earned a Bachelor of Social Work and a Master of Public Administration from the University of Illinois Springfield, along with a Master’s in Social Work from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. She is also a certified Early Childhood Infant Mental Health Consultant through the Illinois Association for Infant Mental Health. Happily married for 30 years, Christa and her wonderful husband have six adult children and twelve grandchildren. She is deeply involved in her church, serving in the New Members Ministry and Sunday School Ministry. A proud member of Delta Sigma Theta, Inc., she enjoys volunteering in her community. A passionate sports fan, Christa loves college basketball and football and is a devoted supporter of the Pittsburgh Steelers!