Christa Gannon: Negotiating With Kids the System Gave Up On

<p>Stan interviews Christa Gannon about founding Fresh Lifelines for Youth (FLY) after volunteering with incarcerated teens and asking what could have prevented their involvement with the justice system. </p><p>A former UC Santa Barbara basketball All-American and Stanford Law graduate, Gannon describes negotiating with fear to take a nontraditional path, learning entrepreneurial lessons from sports, and using deep listening to co-design programs with youth around legal education, mentoring, and leadership development. </p><p>She discusses the demographics and trauma many justice-involved youth face, the use of role plays to teach life skills and conflict resolution, and the importance of authenticity, consistency, and humility in earning trust. </p><p>The conversation covers persuading system stakeholders and donors with shared goals, outcomes, and youth-centered storytelling, plus FLY’s results in reducing recidivism and building hope, and Gannon’s later transition from CEO and her work supporting leadership transitions.</p><p><br></p><p>Check out FLY: https://flyprogram.org</p><p>00:00 Vision Beyond Prison</p><p>00:22 Choosing a Different Path</p><p>02:29 Claiming the Torch</p><p>04:23 Athlete Mindset for Leadership</p><p>05:52 Juvenile Hall Catalyst</p><p>07:31 Founding FLY Mission</p><p>09:00 Credibility and Permission</p><p>10:49 Who the Youth Are</p><p>13:23 Deep Listening Co Creation</p><p>15:36 Teaching Through Role Plays1</p><p>8:21 Persuading Systems and Stakeholders</p><p>20:06 Authenticity Builds Buy In</p><p>23:02 Trust Story Football Mentor</p><p>25:34 Role Plays in Real Life</p><p>26:28 Mentor Program Lesson</p><p>27:51 Volunteer Consistency Matters</p><p>29:19 Parents Gangs Ripple Effects</p><p>31:56 Replacing Gang Belonging</p><p>32:34 Justice System Stakeholders</p><p>34:43 Donors Stories Ethics</p><p>39:10 Measuring Youth Outcomes</p><p>40:32 Teaching Conflict Skills</p><p>41:44 Meeting Kids Where They Are</p><p>44:34 Work Family Balance</p><p>48:29 Founder Transition Bridge</p><p>50:28 Transition Advice Closing</p><p><br></p><p>Host Stan Christensen has spent his career working as a professional negotiator in a variety of arenas. He has also taught a popular course on negotiation at Stanford University for over twenty years. </p>