Aubrey N. Valencia

Aubrey N. Valencia is an art teacher, community educator, and nonprofit leader with more than two decades of experience guiding learners of all ages through creativity, reflection, and healing. She is the founder and executive director of The Storytellers Project in Aurora, Colorado—an organization dedicated to social-emotional learning for youth and intergenerational healing through the Breaking Chains Building Bonds Family Healing Program. Aubrey’s work draws on her deep background in art education, violence prevention, and restorative justice, merging creativity with trauma-responsive and culturally grounded practices.

Rooted in her own journey of healing, Aubrey brings to the Fellowship a powerful commitment to transforming cycles of trauma into cycles of care. Her leadership reflects a lifelong dedication to building pathways for families impacted by incarceration and the criminal legal system to heal together. Through her organization and community work, she models what it means to lead with empathy, creativity, and purpose—fusing her lived experience as a single mother with her professional mission to make healing accessible to all.

During her time as a Fellow, Aubrey hopes to deepen her understanding of healing-centered business and leadership practices. She is exploring how to refine and share her Breaking Chains Building Bonds curriculum with educators and parents globally, empowering others to break cycles of family trauma and build new legacies of flourishing. Through the Fellowship, Aubrey aims to connect with like-minded leaders, integrate new insights into her organization, and continue expanding her vision for collective healing and transformation.