Tanya Hernandez is the Family Policy Advisor for the WNY region with Families Together in New York State and the Office of Child and Family Services. As a mother of three sons and five grandchildren who personally navigated the Juvenile Justice, Child Welfare, and the mental health systems, Tanya brings a wealth of lived experience into all the work that she does.  

Working  one-on-one with families for 18 years as a bilingual, credentialed advocate, she has always worked with families to assist them in finding their “voice” to be champions in the services they need and receive. She now brings that voice to yet another level and to all the systemic places in which it needs to be heard. 

 Tanya strives to incorporate those skills to ensure that all marginalized populations are at the forefront of meaningful conversations and family driven solutions. With a passion for advocacy, she steps into every role looking forward to “building bridges” between the system and the communities they serve. Using a DEI framework and lived experience, she brings the family voice to the various systems and make certain that the family perspective is part of the policies that drive much needed change.