Our Co-Conspirators in Change

Prior to that, Anthony led the Economic Justice portfolio at ideas42 for 9 years, where he focused on using applied behavioral science to fight poverty. Anthony’s initial career was in child welfare, where he worked for over a decade in positions spanning direct service, supervision, training, advocacy, and system improvement. In 2018 Anthony was selected as an Aspen Institute Ascend Fellow for his work advancing the well-being of children and families. Anthony holds a BA in Philosophy and Art from UMass Boston, an MFA in Printmaking from the San Francisco Art Institute, and an MPA from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government where he was a Gleitsman Fellow at the Center for Public Leadership.

Miesha has delivered her signature CLE/CEU-accredited trainings to legal professionals and system leaders and has presented at national conferences including the National Association of Counsel for Children (NACC), Children’s Trust Conference, Families Rising Conference, Harvard Law School, Boston College Law School, and Boston University. Her article “When Safety Is a Smokescreen for Separation” was published in NACC’s Guardian legal journal (Winter 2025). She is currently leading Massachusetts’ site for Imagination Factory’s housing intervention pilot to prevent family separation. Miesha’s frameworks, including Culturally Responsive Placement Review Panels, emerge from experiential authority: knowledge that sits where consequences live.

A survivor of domestic violence and a third-generation individual impacted by foster and family regulation systems, as both a child and a parent, Tatiana brings powerful lived expertise to her leadership. As the daughter of immigrant parents, her work is grounded in resilience, cultural understanding, and an unwavering commitment to protecting families from systemic harm.

Tatiana founded Family Matters 1st in 2021 after losing custody of her son while seeking safety from domestic violence. Navigating the family policing system largely on her own revealed how few supports existed for families facing system involvement. That experience inspired her to organize impacted parents, build community power, and create pathways for advocacy, support, and systems change so that no family has to navigate these systems alone.
Under Tatiana’s leadership, Family Matters 1st has developed community-driven solutions centered on family preservation, particularly within historically marginalized communities. Using a Participatory Defense model in family defense, the organization mobilizes community support, provides court advocacy, and connects families with holistic resources that recognize supporting parents is essential to children’s well-being. Family Matters 1st’s approach reflects Tatiana’s belief in “wrapping our arms around the entire family.”

A nationally recognized advocate, Tatiana serves on the American Bar Association’s Family Justice Initiative Parent Advisory Council and Massachusetts’ Court Improvement Program Task Force, helping shape legal advocacy, policy reform, and improvements to court practices affecting families. She has been a leading voice in advancing a Family Miranda Bill of Rights in Massachusetts and regularly facilitates Know Your Rights trainings in partnership with legal organizations, including the Harvard Legal Aid Bureau.

Tatiana is featured in the documentary Broken and is a sought-after keynote speaker and presenter for judges, attorneys, law students, and legal professionals across the country. Through these engagements, she advances the recognition of lived expertise as essential knowledge for transforming family defense, legal systems, and public policy.

In addition to leading Family Matters 1st, Tatiana continues to walk alongside families navigating investigations, court proceedings, and reunification. Her work is grounded in the belief that healthy parents create healthy children, families are the experts in their own lives, and every family deserves dignity, support, and the opportunity to thrive together.

Meri has been working with family organizations for over 25 years and is a mental health advocate, highlighting the challenges she faced in navigating the mental health system and the stigma surrounding mental illness. Meri currently holds the position of Associate Director for Parent/Professional Advocacy League (PPAL) and is a consultant nationally with the Annie E. Casey Foundation . Her passions include emphasizing the importance of community support, advocacy for parents, understanding the complexities of trauma in children’s behavior, and making sure that racial equality happens across many systems. Meri firmly believes in supporting families prior to reporting on them or bringing them to court systems. She also advocates for the need for quality care, not giving up on children in need, and the importance of community among parents.