Nikki Buckstead
CEO, Child & Family Center
Ms. Buckstead began working in the nonprofit, social services field in 1991. Her passion
has always been in service and helping others. She's held several positions in her
career including CEO, executive director, coalition director, advocacy work, and a
variety of consulting positions, providing, strategic planning, cultural competency
coaching, program implementation, and building cross-functional relationships. Her
background and experience is rich in a variety of different settings and she brings
that breadth and depth of her experience with her when working with organizations.
With over 30 years of experience in social services, her passion for advocacy and
working to reduce stigma, and build collaboration which has led her to work extensively
in the fields of mental health, substance use, and homelessness. Working in a variety
of settings where the collective impact was the leading mission, her work in coalition
settings has been at the forefront of her vision of nonprofits where collaboration
over competition exists.
She has extensive experience collaborating in communities, working with partners,
members, funders, and Stakeholders, to support building networks, capacity, and sustainability,
through innovation, adaptability, as well as being community-focused and data-informed.
In 2012, Nikki worked as a cultural competency coach, was a consultant for the Equity
and Wellness Institute, and worked to adopt the Commitment to Diversity, Equity and
Inclusion Statement, for the organization, which received an "A+" grade from Mind
OC.
She has also committed her time to many local and national boards, leading community
coalitions. For several years she owned and operated Transformative Coaching and Consulting
Services where she provided executive coaching and programs to those in the social
services and healthcare fields. She has extensive experience working with youth, teachers
and administrators, community, faith-based and national leaders, government officials,
law enforcement, program directors, academicians, researchers, and evaluators. She
possesses an in-depth knowledge of collaboration and nonprofits and an ability to
communicate complex concepts to the public.