Who creates our content

Contact our team at [email protected]


Lindsay O'Gan
Instructional Design Manager

 Lindsay started her career in the animal world as a vet tech at a private vet clinic in 2003. Seeing the shelter euthanasia crisis in Austin, she joined Dr. Ellen Jefferson at EmanciPet, a low-cost spay and neuter clinic. While working there, Lindsay helped quadruple their low-cost spay/neuter capacity through the creation of standing clinics in addition to their mobile hospital. 

In 2008, it became clear that high volume spay/neuter was not solving the euthanasia crisis on its own, and Lindsay joined forces with Dr. Jefferson again, this time to start Austin Pets Alive's! life saving work. With a shoestring budget, Lindsay started APA's first vet clinic in an airstream trailer and began working with Dr. Jefferson to literally write the book on how to provide high quality, high volume medical care to shelter animals.  

Lindsay helped build several programs at APA! over the years, including the cat rescue and foster program. Under Lindsay's leadership, the City of Austin became a no-kill city for cats for the first time ever in 2011, and has been no-kill for cats ever since. In 2012 she managed San Antonio Pets Alive's neonatal kitten nursery, working to find innovative solutions to saving one of the most vulnerable populations. 

In 2015, Lindsay interrupted her animal career to get a bachelor's degree in Education from Texas State University, and became a Certified Science Teacher. Upon graduation, she worked as an 8th grade science teacher for 5 years in Wimberley, Texas. 

In 2023, Lindsay returned to APA!, and brought her knowledge and passion for animal welfare, as well as experience and expertise in educational best practices, to create Austin Pets Alive's Training and Education Center!

Government and non-profit animal shelters around the country continue to struggle with employee burn-out and compassion fatigue, as well as the need to improve the quality of care they provide to the animals and folks in their communities. The need for a robust, engaging, and high quality shelter training program is as high as ever.

"I look forward to creating quality, on-line, on-demand training content for everyone from the frontline animal shelter worker, to medical staff, volunteers, fosters, and more. After more than 15 years of saving lives in Austin, we know what the best practices are for helping people and their pets. Delivering that knowledge in a compact, digestible and educationally sound format is something I'm very excited about, and I look forward to continuing to create courses that will help support the critical work of animal shelters!" - Lindsay O'Gan


 Dr. Mike Stegen
Director of Learning and Development

Dr. Stegen is a leader and educator, currently serving as the Director of Learning and Development at Austin Pets Alive! With an extensive background in education, years of experience leading teams, and a passion for personal and professional development, Mike plays a pivotal role in shaping the skills and knowledge of APA! staff members and volunteers.

Prior to his role at APA!, Mike dedicated 23 years of his life to the United States Air Force (USAF), where he held various influential positions. One of his significant contributions was overseeing the policy, curriculum, and implementation of the Air Force's Aerospace Physiology Program. For 16 years, he shared his expertise by teaching Aerospace Physiology and Human Factors, at several Air Force bases across the country, including the USAF School of Aerospace Medicine.

During his service, Mike earned a Master's Degree in Organizational Development and Leadership, showcasing his deep understanding of organizational dynamics and leadership principles. Further, he earned a Doctorate of Education in Organizational Change and Leadership, emphasizing his commitment to driving positive transformations through learning within organizations.

In his current role at APA!, Mike is responsible for guiding the personal and professional development of all staff members and volunteers, focusing on both job skills and leadership skills. He is further responsible for developing and delivering educational curricula, tailored to the unique needs of those who serve in the animal welfare industry, to animal shelters across the country.


Jordana Moerbe
Content Consultant, National Shelter Support Director, APA!

  Jordana brings 15 years of experience in the animal welfare field and is one of the founding staff members of Austin Pets Alive!. Her work there created the Medical Triage and Wellness Clinic that is now the largest foster-centric medical clinic in the country and sees upwards of 7,500 medical cases each year. Her work more recently has been in Medical and Disease Management and Shelter Support, working with shelters and rescues across the country to improve medical practices, live outcomes, and shelter efficiencies through innovative ideas and programming. Jordana also served as the American Pets Alive Maddie’s Medical Program Instructor, creating in-person training courses as well as online coursework. 

Jordana’s passion continues to bring outside-the-box thinking to the industry, uncovering live outcome pathways, and helping people acquire realistic methods and tools to accomplish the job. She is a conference speaker across the country on issues of shelter clinic management and contagious disease.

Jordana resides just outside of Austin with her husband, daughter, dogs, cats, and many farm animals. 



Clare Callison
Content Consultant, Senior Director of Care Operations

Clare Callison brings over 15 years of animal welfare experience to Austin Pets Alive!  Before joining APA!, she was the Director of Operations for San Antonio Pets Alive! for 5 years, where she helped the City of San Antonio's open admission, municipal animal shelter go from a 28% to a 90% live release rate in just 3 years. 

In 2018, she joined APA! in a national-facing role as Director of National Outreach, where she provides guidance and support to help animal shelters and organizations build robust lifesaving programs, while improving operations to better serve people and pets. Clare specializes in helping organizations grow their transport relationships and increase their lifesaving through rescue partnerships and inclusive adoption and foster practices. Clare is a frequent conference speaker, and enjoys supporting others to implement lifesaving solutions to common challenges that exist in the animal well-being space.

Who is Austin Pets Alive?

Austin Pets Alive! is a non-profit animal rescue based in Austin, Texas that has saved over 100,000 dogs and cats from euthanasia.

For more information, visit austinpetsalive.org or email [email protected] to learn about our current and future courses!