Overcoming the obstacle of her own dysfunctional birth family, Debra Slover has been not only teaching leadership but also exercising it as well—for 27 years. She's coordinated two national and 18 statewide conferences, trained over 2000 teens as trainers, designed and presented programs to over 40,000 people, and directed 38 youth leadership camps and four advisor training institutes.
Debra has personally raised over $3,200,000 in grant funding through 26 separate grants, and administered total funding of $3,879,000 for the agency she directed for 18 years. She's worked extensively with federal, state, and local government agencies, law enforcement, civic organizations, and the media. She's been Board President and Vice President of the National Association of Teen Institutes, chaired two different statewide programs on driver safety, successfully managed a long-term state funding campaign for her program, and has served as an expert/reviewer for the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Juvenile Justice, and several other organizations.
A graduate of Oregon State University, Debra began her career in teaching…later became director of a statewide organization promoting student responsibility around driving, alcohol abuse, and other wellness issues…and then began her own consulting, training, and publishing firm, Leadership Garden Enterprises LLC. As an author and blogger, she has written several books, a book chapter for the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, and numerous articles in both professional and general-interest publications. A mother to two biological and three blended-family children, and grandmother of six, she lives with her husband in Albany, Oregon.
