Celebrating Alumni Successes.
Dispelling the foster care Stigma.

The FCN Foundation Family

GET TO KNOW Our Team

Darryl “DMC” McDaniels

Board Member

Darryl McDaniels grew up in New York and attended Rice High School in Manhattan where he later enrolled in St. John's University in Queens, New York.  McDaniel’s initially became interested in hip hop music after listening to recordings of Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five.  In 1978, He taught himself to DJ in the basement of his adopted parents' home, using turntables and a mixer given to him by his older brother, Alford.  This was the beginning of a passionate career as a Hip Hop artist excelling with  top record sales and prestigious awards in his career as a member of the acclaimed Hip Group “Run DMC” and was inducted into the Hall of Fame on behalf of the group in 2009.

At the age of 35, Darryl learned that he was adopted at just a month old.  In search of his biological parents, he experienced hassle of not having adequate rights and access to his adoption records.  This created a larger barrier in finding the answers that would holistically set him free in reaching and developing his purpose in life.  As a result of this experience, it sparked a flame of passion to become an ambassador for Adoptees and Foster Youth.  Despite the barriers that were suppose to hinder Darryl’s mission to locate his biological mother, he was able to utilize his resources and hired a private investigator and with much success, was able to locate his mother within 6 weeks learning she was a teenage mother of Harlem at the time of his adoption.

Darryl has been a great asset and mentor to foster youth and the adoption community since learning of his identity as an adoptee. In September 2006, Darryl McDaniel was presented with the Congressional Angels in Adoption Award for his work with children in foster care and promotion of adoption. He sits on the Board of Directors of Children’s Rights, a national watchdog organization of failing child welfare systems. He has advocated for foster youth and adoptees in front of New Jersey officials to promote foster youth and adoptee rights.  With great humility and resilience, in February 2006 Darryl has decided to give back in founding the Felix Organization, a 501 C (3) organization that helps to enrich and provide new experiences to foster youth residing in New York.  The Felix Organization has provided over 170 foster children with resources and experiences they otherwise would not have had access to without the additional support from agencies such as  Felix.

His message to empower foster youth and adoptees inspires them to dream “If you dream it, you can do it!”

Shalita O'Neale

founder and board chair

shalita@fcnfoundation.org

Shalita holds a Bachelor of Arts in Criminology and Criminal Justice from the University of Maryland at College Park and a Masters of Social Work Degree with a primary concentration of Management and Community Organization and a specialization of Social Action and Community Development from the University of Maryland Baltimore. She is a proud graduate of the Greater Baltimore Committee’s 2013 Leadership Program, and 2018 Maryland Department of Human Services Leadership Development Initiative and in 2020 became licensed to offer consulting services for The Standards for Excellence® program by completing an exclusive professional development initiative that gives independent consultants and nonprofit leaders, the knowledge, skills and tools necessary to work with and build nonprofit organizations across the country.

Mrs. O'Neale founded Fostering Change Network LLC in 2012 as a way to use her 20 years of experience child welfare training, program development and advocacy to connect young professionals with foster care histories, like herself, through local and national professional networking events such as the Alumni Powerhouse Networking Conferences (APNC), that have taken place in Maryland, California and New York City since 2015. Her desire to help adults from foster care secure resources that will allow them to contribute to the economic development in their communities led her to found the Fostering Change Network Foundation

Shalita is also the Founder of Hope Forward, Inc., now a program of Fedcap Rehabilitation Services established in 2008, based in Baltimore City that worked with transitioning and former foster youth (ages 17-25) to connect them to housing, education, employment and supportive networks. Mrs. O'Neale formerly served as the Foster Youth Ombudsman for the Maryland Department of Human Services.

In 2011, she was honored as one of The Daily Record’s 20 In Their Twenties and the BFree Daily’s 2nd Annual 10 People to Watch Under 30, the Prince Georges County Social Innovation Fund’s 2015 Forty Under 40, featured in the 2013 October issue of Baltimore Magazine’s 40 Under 40 and honored by the Baltimore Business Journal in 2014 as one of their Forty Under 40. Mrs. O’Neale also serves on the Children’s Justice Act Committee (CJAC) and the Board of the Maryland Legal Aid Bureau. Mrs. O’Neale is also a Graduate of the Greater Baltimore Committee’s 2013 Leadership Program.

Christian Benjamin

Board Member

Christian Benjamin is the founder of Story MKTG, a full-service communications & media agency that helps brands & organizations connect & create for people of color. Story MKTG also houses NGAGE Social, which promotes engagement between individuals and audiences on social media, and The LoveART Brand, a clothing line that promotes art and design, and donates a percentage of proceeds to organizations that support youth in those initiatives. 

Christian is the author of a weekly devotional titled “Monday Motivations”, which is written to help people change & grow their mindsets heading into each week, and is finishing his first book of the same title. 

Most importantly are Christian efforts within the community, including working with incarcerated youth, working with various homeless organizations and supporting youth arts learning camps.

SHANTEL RANDOLPH

BOARD MEMBER

Shantel Randolph has a 9-year history in the non- profit & child welfare sector and is also an Alumni of the foster care system. Shantel’s history of work includes Founder of  Foster Youth Inc. and former Deputy Director position of Hope Forward Inc. Shantel worked closely with the Executive Director on fundraising strategies that have yielded highly successful fundraising opportunities to support the work at Hope Forward Inc. Hope Forward, Inc; was a  non-profit organization which worked with transitioning foster youth ages 17-25 to employment, educational resources, housing and supportive networks. Shantel’s grant-writing skills and relationships with local Foundation funders and key community figures was critical in creating sustainability outcomes for Hope Forward Inc, from 2008-2015.

In 2007, Shantel Randolph was awarded a grant through Open Society Institute and a Community Fellow in Baltimore Maryland. This social innovation grant was used to establish the program F.Y.I. (Foster Youth Incorporated), which works with youth in foster care to advocate for rights through Baltimore City School System.

In 2011, Shantel was awarded the Human Rights and Justice Champion award along with A Step Closer Foundations Foster Care Alumni Champion Awards for her work with foster youth and improving the child welfare system.

Pauline Rose-Moore

board member

Pauline Rose-Moore is a United States Air Force Reserves Servicewoman and Veteran, Author, motivational American Sign Language (ASL) Interpreter and Alumna of foster care. She earned her Master of Arts Degree in Rehabilitation Counseling from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, Associates Degree in Human Resource Management from the Community College of the Air Force, Bachelor’s of Science in Education from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and Associate of Applied Science Degree in Computer Information Technology from State University of New York at Farmingdale and Master of Divinity in Religion from Howard School of Divinity.

Pauline is an amazing mother of two and wife that has selflessly given of herself and her many talents for over 15 years. She is an alumni of foster care and is a living example that there is success after foster care. Each year she donates to Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) program in Prince Georges County (where she resides) and even wrote a children's book, “Gabriella and Samantha’s New Mom”, based on her experiences in foster care. Pauline's personality is contagious and electric. Every room she enters, she leaves it better than she found it.

Rachel J. Barrett-Dolcine

BOARD MEMBER

Rachel launched Compass Consulting and Training Solutionsin 2010 and has continued to implement innovative strategies to grow the company’s training classes, consulting services and other offerings. Compass Consulting and Training Solutions, LLC is a community based business that prides itself on being an asset to the communities throughout Central Maryland.  Through its Community Giving Back Program, Compass facilitates free training classes and workshops for nonprofit and community organizations that are on a limited budget.

Rachel has been a Trainer and Professional Development Facilitator for over 10 years.  Rachel is an Adjunct Faculty staff member at Community College of Baltimore County (CCBC); a Certified Health & Safety Institute (HSI) CPR and First Aid Instructor; a Certified Health & Safety Institute Instructor for CPR and First Aid Trainer Certification Course; and an approved Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) Office of Childcare (OCC) Core of Knowledge Trainer.  

In April 2017, Rachel published her first book, ‘Conversations With My Son: Fun & Witty Inspiration for Mothers Raising Boys’.  ‘Conversations With My Son’ is a collection of conversations Rachel has had with her son, Julius, since he was in preschool.  Rachel wrote this book in hopes of inspiring mothers raising boys to listen to their sons, look for opportunities to have meaningful conversations and create a safe space at home so that sons feel safe enough to talk, make mistakes and grow. ‘Conversations With My Son' is available at www.compasscts.comor can be purchased on Amazon. Rachel is currently working on her second book project.

Rachel received her Bachelor of Arts, cum laude, in Deviant Behavior and Social Control from John Jay College of Criminal Justice; a Master of Public Administration from the University of Baltimore; is a graduate of the Associated Black Charities (ABC) Board Pipeline Leadership Program and the prestigious Maryland Certified Public Manager Program- Nonprofit Track at the University of Baltimore.  In February 2015, Rachel was named one of Maryland’s Top 100 Women. In July 2018, Rachel was listed as a Maryland V.I.P (Very Important Professionals), a recognition given to Maryland's leaders who are 40 years or younger based on their professional accomplishments, community service and a commitment to inspiring change.

Rachel is an avid volunteer and currently serves as the Founder of the Joseph and Vera Douglas Family Foundation, Inc.; is on the Board of Directors for Bringing On New Direction (BOND), Inc., MSPRITY, Inc; and A Good Black Man, Inc. Rachel is a member of Maryland Nonprofits, Black Speakers Network (BSN), National Association for Christian Women Entrepreneurs and Hagerstown Professional Women's Group. She is also a proud Alumni of kinship care. Rachel lives in Randallstown, Maryland with her husband and son.

Carmen Fletcher

Marketing and Public Relations Director

carmen@fcnfoundation.org

Carmen is a social media manager, publicist, author, journalist, speaker/educator, website designer, and film producer based out of the Washington DC area. In 2011 Carmen had the opportunity to be published in a collaborative relationship advice book. This sparked an interest in writing professionally which brought about writing for nine more online and print publications starting in 2013; then becoming a managing editor over a blog up until 2015.

Carmen began her freelance business in 2015 which brought about projects such as working with women owned small businesses, non-profit organizations, motivational speaking and film production.

Carmen has a Bachelors Degree in Public Relations from Clark Atlanta University and loves music, food, travel, and hearing people’s stories.