Zophelia “Zo” Mays
Texas Health and Human Services

Zophelia “Zo” Mays is the type of person who loves to help others. Her special population of interest is young people in foster care and those who’ve aged out of foster care.  In fact, Zo entered foster care at the tender age of five and aged out at eighteen years old. Zo describes her experience in care as a learning and growing opportunity, which was filled with positive and negative experiences. After aging out of foster care, Zo decided to further her education. Although it wasn’t easy, Zo, received her undergraduate degree in Sociology from Prairie View A&M University. She went on to obtain her Masters in Social Work from University of Texas at Arlington (UTA). Zo currently works for the State of Texas helping those in foster care use their voice to advocate for their lives. Zo enjoys helping children and youth use their voice to bring positive changes in their lives. Zo thanks God for all that she is today and will become in the future. Zo’s passion in life is to spread the awareness about foster care and help current and former foster youth reach their goals in life. She truly believes that tough times don’t last, but tough people do. 
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