• Education: B.A. Political Science - California State University
• Education: M.A. Library and Information Studies - University of Wisconsin-Madison

The founder of this organization- Sharon Edwards-Billings has demonstrated a commitment to advocating and supporting students and their parents, since 1999. Sharon, has prior work experience as a Librarian with several major law firms and the Legislative Reference Bureau.

Her analytical and people skills and an ability to advocate for others is grounded in her previous experience as a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) with the CHILD ADVOCATE OFFICE - Superior Court of Los Angeles.

She worked with students with mental health challenges through the Dane County Mental Health Agency - Children Come First, Family Works and the Dane County Foster Care Program.

Her ability to manage conflicts and understand the needs of parents was strengthened by her experiences as a facilitator of workshops as a PEOPLE PARENT  through the University of Wisconsin-Madison PEOPLE PROGRAM.

Her work experience as an Administrator with a federal agency strengthens her ability serve as the Executive Director of ALLPARENTSONDECK, LLC.

EXPERIENCES

Her personal experience as a parent of students, who experienced challenges throughout high school; bullying, violence and physical harm, learning challenges and indifferences on behalf of teachers resulted in both parents, advocating to their local school district to address many of their concerns.

The process of seeking answers to their questions from school staff and district representatives was difficult and downright frustrating, because neither parent had experiences that involved  working within the public school system. Support from others such as siblings, grandmothers, grandfathers and fictive kin helped them to survive their ordeal and find solutions to their problems.

They met a diverse pool of parents through the University of Wisconsin-Madison People Program, who shared similar stories. Their personal experiences and conversations impacted the decision to create a parent-based organization and to advocate on behalf of other parents.