Rebecca Bender

Born with tenacity and an entrepreneurial spirit, Rebecca Bender believes that we are all more than the bad things that have happened in our lives. After escaping her trafficker in 2007, Bender was determined to make a new life for herself and her young daughter. She worked hard, eventually opening her own business and earning a Master’s degree. While she was attending college online, Bender dreamed of launching a school for survivors of human trafficking - a place where anyone with lived experience could enroll and learn the skills and knowledge necessary to build a new life. In 2014, Elevate Academy was born and within eight years had served nearly 1,000 students in 12 countries and nearly 508 U.S. cities across the nation. This innovative online school is thriving today and remains a place where survivors continue to connect, grow, and find tools to ignite their futures.

Bender is a CEO and a published author who has earned a distinct reputation as a trailblazer and thought leader in the field. Her specialized training has equipped well over 100,000 professionals including FBI, Homeland Security, local law enforcement, community leaders, medical professionals, and more. Bender was appointed to the United States National Advisory Council and serves as an advisor to Aequitas, A21, and the HSI North Texas Task Force. She assists as a subject matter expert for investigations and operations across the country, and is regularly called upon to testify as an expert witness. Bender is a highly sought-after speaker, consultant, and nationally recognized authority who is passionate about seeing people transform their lives so they can change the world. When she’s not traveling and leading her team, you’ll find her on the sidelines or in the audience cheering for her four daughters, listening to true-crime podcasts, or working on her next manuscript by the pool.