Motivating, Inspiring, Supporting and Serving Sexually Exploited Youth (MISSSEY)

Jul 16, 2020 12:00 PM

Jennifer Lyle

Dr. Lyle is the Executive Director of Motivating Inspiring Supporting and Serving Sexually Exploited Youth (MISSSEY), a community-based organization founded in 2007 in response to the epidemic of commercial sexual exploitation of children (CSEC) in Oakland. For nearly 12 years, MISSSEY has offered safe space, fostered healthy relationships, and facilitated the inner transformation of young people impacted by CSE through a wraparound service model that includes a daily drop-in center, intensive life coaching, advocacy, and prevention.

For over twenty-five years, Jennifer has actively worked towards the well-being of youth and their families. Her education and work have taken place in the streets, across continents, with community organizations, government, schools, and academia. As an African American woman, an educator, and an activist, Jennifer crosses many borders to create a platform that supports youth, expands their range of challenging experiences, and increases their opportunities for supportive relationships. It has always been her goal to support youth to become active in their lives by providing leadership and development opportunities and by helping to reveal their rights, their capacity, and their value.

Jennifer received her Master of Social Work, Master of Sociology, and Ph.D. in Social Work and Sociology from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.