Retaining oversight of 5 Child Advocacy Center programs and controlling a $12 million budget, 90 employees, and 150 on-site professionals from the ACS, District Attorney's Offices, NYPD, and contracted hospitals, I take ownership of crises, comprising child fatalities, race-related tensions, deaths of current clients, media cases, the unexpected loss of leadership, staff shortages plus strategic crisis management and staff support. Forging robust interagency relationships with the ACS, NYPD, FCLS, 5 Medical Directors, and 5 DAs Offices, I navigate conflicts of interest to deliver seamless operations and optimal outcomes for children and families. Devising and rolling out innovative strategies to augment team cohesion and collaboration across 5 programs, I utilize program data tools to optimize resources, address staff challenges, restructure staff roles, introduce a city-wide Anti-Racism CAC Workgroup, and bi-monthly, city-wide CAC Town Hall. Driving the development, refinement, and execution of policies, best practices, and services that comply with Safe Horizon's, New York State's OCFS and Accreditation Standards for the Nation Children's Alliance requirements, I lead the provision of forensic interviewing, clinical, and support services to more than 7000 minors and families affected by child abuse investigations each year. Heading the IOAC, comprising over 25 citywide, high-level leaders from the NYPD, ACS, FCLS, Corporation Counsel, and District Attorneys' Offices, I co-lead the citywide IAOC Racial Equity Workgroup, and collaborate with leaders from NYPD, ACS, FCLS, Corporation Counsel and District Attorney's Offices. I secured an increase in funds, leveraging program tours, relationship building, and improved funder relationships that drove donor action and am actively involved with the national CAC movement and National Children's Alliance. I am also a regular participant and presenter at the National CAC Urban Forum.

Leading a team of approximately 60 on-site multi-disciplinary staff and hundreds of remote, interagency professionals, I identified opportunities to augment collaboration and enhance client-centered practices across various agencies, including Child Protection (ACS), District Attorney, NYPD Special Victims Division, Corporation Counsel, Columbia University Medical Center, Safe Horizon and Family Court Legal Services. Coordinating and supporting the activities of essential CAC staff and additional multi-disciplinary team members during the Covid-19 pandemic, I introduced new protocols and procedures to allay the safety concerns of staff with collective traumas and marginalized identities at different phases of the pandemic and maximized team protection. Establishing and refining best practice guidelines with MDT leaders, I rolled out a cloud-based forensic interview storage system - VidaNyx - that offered better safeguarding of child forensic interviews and enhanced investigations.

Manhattan Child Advocacy Center