LIVED EXPERIENCE IS AUTHORITY
Valerie Frost is a systems strategist and national speaker advancing the idea that lived experience is a form of authority and that those closest to harm must help govern the systems that shape their lives.
Through speaking, consulting, and strategic partnerships, Valerie helps organizations design ethical engagement structures grounded in protection, power, and accountability.
Authority is not granted by titles.
It is forged through proximity, consequence, and survival.
Those closest to harm must help govern the systems that shape their lives.
FEATURED IN
Featured in TEDx, The Imprint, The Courier Journal, The Lexington Herald-Leader, Motherly, and more.
FEATURED TEDx TALK
Authority is Lived, Not Given: Valerie Frost's TEDxLakeAlfred 2026 on redefining credibility, leadership, and who gets to shape the systems that govern our lives.
AREAS OF FOCUS
Valerie’s work focuses on four core areas shaping the future of leadership and systems change:
Authority & Lived Credibility
Ethical Engagement & Power
Narrative, Policy & Influence
Community-Led Governance
WHO I WORK WITH
Valerie partners with leaders across public systems and social impact sectors, including government agencies, courts, school systems, nonprofits, and cross-sector coalitions, as well as parents and directly impacted individuals stepping into leadership and decision-making roles.
WHAT I HELP YOU DO
For Organizations & Institutions
Design governance and engagement structures that move beyond participation toward shared authority, accountability, and trust — strengthening how systems work with the communities they serve.
For Leaders with Lived Experience
Support parents and directly impacted individuals in translating lived experience into leadership, influence, and decision-making power within systems and beyond.
WORK WITH VALERIE
Organizations book Valerie for keynotes, strategy, and transformational learning experiences.
Speaking
Keynotes and panels that challenge traditional assumptions about authority, leadership, and community engagement, while offering clear, practical pathways toward ethical systems change.
Consulting
Strategic advising to redesign governance structures, strengthen accountability, and integrate lived expertise into decision-making.
Training & Workshops
Interactive sessions that move teams beyond performative engagement toward authentic, accountable partnership with families and communities.
ABOUT VALERIE FROST
Valerie Frost brings together deep policy knowledge, systems analysis, and a new framework for leadership that institutions are only beginning to understand.
She has spoken at the White House, delivered a TEDx talk, and built coalitions across child welfare, education, and public systems — all while navigating those same systems as a parent.
Her work focuses on redesigning how power, accountability, and decision-making operate in the systems that shape people's lives.
WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING
Community In-Site Podcast
Valerie hosts the Community In-Site podcast, a platform featuring conversations with leaders advancing the future of family well-being and systems change.
This season highlights next-generation leaders who are reimagining systems, power, and community leadership.
COMING SOON
Unredeemed Leadership: Why Real Authority Is Lived, Not Given
A forthcoming book challenging traditional ideas of authority and expertise, making the case that those closest to the consequences of policy must have a role in shaping it.