Role: Chief Executive Officer

Background: Rebecca Louve Yao is the Chief Executive Officer at NFYI, a role she assumed in December 2024 after joining the organization in 2018 as National Policy and Organizing Director and serving as Executive Director beginning in 2021. A seasoned senior strategist, she brings deep expertise in leadership development, movement-building, grassroots organizing, strategic planning, and civic engagement — work that has repeatedly brought together diverse stakeholders to drive meaningful policy and legislative change.

Rebecca’s perspective on child welfare is uniquely multidimensional: she has navigated the system as a former foster youth, adoptive parent, child protection worker, therapist, and advocate. Prior to NFYI, she served as a social worker for Child Welfare Services in Solano County, California. During her tenure at California Youth Connection from 2008 to 2014, she launched advocacy campaigns and developed organizing plans across 13 California counties. She also served on the California Redesign Taskforce in 2002 and completed a congressional internship with the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute in Washington, D.C., in 2006.

Rebecca holds a BA in Communications from California State University San Marcos and an MSW from UC Berkeley. She is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker.

As an alumna of the child welfare system, Rebecca is passionate about empowering former foster youth to become change-makers in the child welfare system because she believes they are experts whose voices should be at the center of policy reform.

Why she likes working at NFYI: “I love working with the incredible staff, NFYI members, decision makers and board. I love NFYI’s organizational cultural of communication, teamwork, building community and NFYI’s inclusive and supportive work environment.”

Hobbies: Rebecca volunteers as a mentor for young women in her community and travels with current and former foster youth with Foster Youth Cultural Exchange. She sits on the Advisory Committee for Foster Youth Museum and is a volunteer therapist for Catholic Charities in Washington, DC. She enjoys spending time with her children, husband, family and friends.

Fun personal fact: Rebecca has a dog named Charlie Brown.