Biography

 

Amy Stephens is the founder and director of Fresh Ideas Communication & Consulting, helping non-profit and faith-based organizations build their capacity by providing innovative ideas, coaching, leadership, organization and program development as well as federal grant review and writing.  For the last five years through Fresh Ideas Communication, Amy has served Health & Human Services as a panel expert on federal grant review committees.  Amy’s work has contributed to Laura Bush’s Helping America’s Youth program, which assists at-risk youth through a variety of programs - many through the Compassion Capital Fund.  Amy writes on youth and culture issues for magazines such as, In Touch and Focus on the Family and speaks nationally at conferences on family, youth and marriage issues. 

From 1991 - 2001 Amy worked as a public policy and youth culture specialist for Focus on the Family.  While working in Public Policy, Amy represented Focus on the Family in both California and Colorado monitoring legislative issues of concern to the organization.  She led a policy team to Europe, researching approaches to sex education and youth development and spoke on behalf of Focus in Geneva, Switzerland at the World Conference on Families.  While managing the Youth Culture Department at Focus, Amy produced the parent/teen event, “Life on the Edge” as well as the expansion of the youth culture publication Plugged In and Plugged In Online.  Her successful restructure also included booklets and teen radio show Life on the Edge.  Amy produced Focus’ first abstinence curriculum, Sex, Lies & the Truth, and followed up with Focus’ latest abstinence curriculum No Apologies, which is now used world-wide in over 33 countries in over 23 languages.  Amy represented Focus on the Family during her ten-year tenure on television and radio and wrote articles and opinion editorials for state and national newspapers and magazines. 

Amy’s leadership experience includes; being appointed by Colorado Governor Bill Owens to the Governor’s Task Force on the Welfare of Children, serving on the city’s former Human Relations Commission, being chosen as a future leader of Colorado Springs through the Pikes Peak Leadership, and she is currently listed in the Heritage Foundation’s “Policy Experts 2000” as a leader in youth and sex education policy issues. She has done interviews and opinion editorials in many of America’s major newspapers such as USA Today, The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Washington Times, Washington Post, Denver Post, The Rocky Mountain News as well as interviews on hundreds of secular and Christian radio stations across the nation.

Amy’s political experience extends to being a Colorado Delegate to the Republican National Convention in 1996 and 2004.  She has worked on state and local campaigns for Governor Owens, 4^th Judicial District Attorney John Newsome, County Commissioner Wayne Williams, and has served four terms as an El Paso County Republican Bonus Member.

Amy resides in Colorado Springs with her two great loves – husband Ron and son, Nicholas. 

Resources Authored and Co-Authored:

• “Take 12 – Twelve Most Common Myths About Sex Education” report

• Choices - Sexual Integrity Program for Army

•  “What Kaiser Family Foundation is Not Saying About Sex Education in America” report

• Focus on the Family’s “No Apologies” curriculum, now in over 33 countries

• “Let’s Talk About Sex” booklet for parents

• “Hold on to Your Heart” booklet on youth culture

• “Project Intercept” Leadership and Mentoring curriculum for girls

•  “European Sex Education: Lessons Learned” report

• FOF’s Renewing the Heart women’s website devotionals

• “Birds, Bees & STD’s” report, Focus on the Family

• I Can LEAD – an Abstinence & Youth Development Curriculum for middle School boys & girls

Education:

• 1975 – 1976 – University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), winner of the UCLA 1975 Gladys Turk Vocal Scholarship.
• 1977 – 1980 – California State University Fullerton, BA Communications.
• Present - MPA course-work in progress at University of Colorado, Colorado Springs

Media Quotes, Stories & Commentary on Youth & Family Issues:

• The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Washington Post
• Rocky Mountain News, Denver Post, USA Today, and Colorado Springs Gazette Telegraph - story comments and quotes
• Opinion editorials on sex education issues run AP wire in all major cities – i.e. Times, Denver Post, Washington Times, “ABC News Tonight with Peter Jennings", “Fox News w/ Brit Hume", Talk radio in Los Angeles, Denver, Atlanta, Washington DC, Dallas and other national outlets.
• Over 200+ radio interviews on national Christian radio stations re: sex education, Focus videos, media and teens and policy issues
• Guest Host for “Life on the Edge Live” radio talk show, guest host for Colorado Springs Hot Talk 1460 radio show.