Kyle van Acker

Background

About Kyle van Acker

I am passionate about increasing the quality of life for and barriers to independence for marginalized populations, especially people with disabilities, housing insecure community members, and in the Native American community. I've specialized in supported employment and mental health for the duration of my career. I’ve been a practitioner/trainer of Motivational Interviewing (MI) for around fifteen years. I’ve trained mental health, educational, and employment counselors in this evidence-based counseling style for around a decade. I've been serving adults and youth with disabilities for 17 years in several different capacities, primarily as a coordinator and manager of programs providing mental health, residential, and vocational support. I currently oversee Goodwill-Easter Seals' Disability Placement and Retention program for the Metro Area as well as our Youth Heading Home program which helps youth experiencing homelessness find greater stability in their lives. I'm privileged to sit on the board of directors for four outstanding nonprofit organizations. Two of these boards are supporting Native American education organizations, The Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwe University and the LCO Charter School Authorizing Board. Both of these operate in and around the Lac Courte Oreilles Band of Ojibwe Reservation, of which I am a member. I am a board member for Tasks Unlimited, Inc. which has been providing mental health, housing, and employment supports to people for over 50 years in the Saint Paul-Minneapolis Area. I am also the board treasurer for Envision Communities, Inc. We are seeking to break ground this year on a micro-housing community in North Minnepolis designed to provide intentional community for those who have been impacted by housing insecurity. In January of 2017, I was selected to participate in the Equity Works Leadership Institute, which was created to Identify, investigate and disseminate workforce development practices that address the equity crisis impacting BIPoC people in Minnesota. In June of 2017, I was selected to help establish the Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity in Action Council at GESMN. I've since contributed to a few different projects including outreach and resource gathering, establishing employee resource groups and group facilitation of discussions around these topics. I remain an active member of several DEI and justice initiatives.