OUR WORK
Safe Babies Ohio
4,630 of Ohio’s young children, ages 0-5, were in Public Children Service Agency (PCSA) custody (View 2024 study)
Ohio’s Safe Babies approach intends to transform the experience of infants, toddlers, and their families involved in the child welfare system so they can be safe, loved, and thrive. The Safe Babies Ohio approach empowers communities to be non-adversarial, racially and culturally equitable, and collaborative as they address the challenges that interfere with the health and well-being of children and families.
How we're supporting positive change for families in the child welfare system:
Groundwork Ohio is a key partner in this statewide implementation.
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Alongside the Educational Service Center of Northeast Ohio (ESCNEO), Case Western Reserve University, and Children’s Defense Fund-Ohio (CDF-OH), our team guides the Safe Babies approach in Ohio's communities.
Our work is grounded in the science of early childhood brain development.
Supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), our work is shaped by community-driven solutions and help sustain a statewide infrastructure while promoting program growth and deepening impact.
We're also addressing Infant & Early Childhood Mental Health (IECMH)
A critical factor in healthy development and family well-being, our IECMH work helps ensure that infants and toddlers experience safer, more supportive environments and have the opportunity to thrive.
Watch & Listen:
See how we're championing the expansion of the Safe Babies approach into the prevention space—aiming to support families upstream of the court system to prevent deeper systems involvement.
Our podcast explores the importance of trauma-informed care, the challenges faced in the child welfare system, and the collaborative efforts needed to support families effectively.
Learn more about childhood mental health
& how Safe Babies works to improve the processes of Ohio’s child welfare system:
SAFE BABIES ADVISORY GROUP
Samantha Campbell
Treatment Coordinator, Scioto County Safe Babies Program
Samantha currently holds a Chemical Dependency Counselor Assistant certification, as well as a Qualified Mental Health Professional certification. Samantha’s professional background consists of Case Management and early childhood developmental care. Samantha is currently serving as the Treatment Coordinator with the Safe Babies Program in Scioto County. Samantha plays a key role in supporting infants, toddlers, and their families by assessing the needs of each family and linking these families with the appropriate resources in a timely manner. She also coordinates care with other members of the family’s treatment team, as well as tracks family engagement and case progress. Samantha prides herself on her desire to continue to grow her knowledge of community resources and build a positive working relationship while aiming to reduce trauma and accelerate permanency among families.
Megan Allbright-Campos
Social Work Doctoral Candidate, The Ohio State University
Megan Allbright-Campos, MS, IMFT, is a doctoral candidate and graduate research assistant in The Ohio State University’s College of Social Work and an independently licensed marriage and family therapist. After graduating with her Master’s degree in Child Development and Family Studies specializing in Marriage and Family Therapy from Purdue University, Megan worked as a clinical therapist for children and families involved in foster care. Megan then transitioned to her PhD program in 2021 with the goal of conducting research leading to systemic change in the child welfare system. Her research has largely focused on the experiences of and interventions for parents and babies involved in the child welfare system. Megan will graduate with her PhD in May 2026.
Hailey Barr-King
Senior Manager of Government Affairs, Table Sense
Hailey Barr-King is a policy and advocacy professional with experience spanning higher education, corporate communications, law, and nonprofit leadership. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Miami University and a Master’s in Public Relations & Corporate Communications from Georgetown University. Hailey spent 3.5 years at Georgetown University managing communications, events, and academic scheduling for five master’s programs. She later served as an executive assistant and event coordinator at Gallup, followed by more than a year in public relations at global intellectual property law firm Fish & Richardson. Most recently, Hailey led policy and advocacy efforts at United Way of Greater Cincinnati, advancing initiatives at the local, state, and federal levels across three states. She currently works at Table Sense, a Cincinnati-based startup nonprofit focused on common-sense solutions in the child welfare system, where she is building and implementing a multi-state policy strategy across Ohio, Georgia, Tennessee, West Virginia, and Kentucky.
Jakolya Gordon
Social Program Administrator, Cuyahoga County’s Office of Early Childhood at Invest in Children
Jakolya Gordon, MSW, LSW, is a Social Program Administrator with Cuyahoga County’s Office of Early Childhood at Invest in Children. She provides strategic leadership and oversight for a portfolio of child-serving programs that address the social, emotional, and behavioral needs of young children, including Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health (IECMH), Special Needs Child Care (SNCC), Child Fatality Review, and IECMH workforce initiatives. Drawing on more than 20 years of experience and a macro-focused Master of Social Work in Program Policy and Development, Jakolya is committed to strengthening early childhood systems through strong partnerships and strategic funder leadership, advancing accountability and impact to better support young children and their families.
Kristin Hannan
Associate Director of Early Childhood, Lucas Country Family Council
Dr. Kristi Hannan is the Associate Director of Early Childhood at Lucas County Family Council in Toledo, Ohio. She has worked in the field of early childhood for 40 years, in roles that include teaching young children, university teaching, academic research, family policy, and program administration. For the past 22 years, she has led several publicly funded prenatal-to-three programs in Lucas County, including home visiting, early intervention, central intake and referral, and Early Head Start. For the past 11 months, she has overseen the Safe Babies project in Lucas County with the support of the Community Coordinator. Each of these programs provide two generational supports to ensure that both young children and their families thrive. Kristi also serves on a number of advisory groups and workgroups in Lucas County, including the Pathways Hub Advisory, Healthy Families America Advisory for the Lucas County Early Childhood Home Visiting programs, Owens Community College’s Education Advisory, the planning committee for the annual Early Childhood Forum, and the Interagency Transition Committee. Her professional work is driven by a mission to make a difference in the lives of infants and toddlers in our community and beyond, through partnerships with parents, professionals, community partners, and policymakers.
Deanna Herold
Human Services Policy Developer, Children Services Policy and Support Bureau, Department of Children and Youth
Deanna Herold, MS has been employed with the Department of Children and Youth (DCY) as a Human Services Policy Developer since 2016. Currently she serves as a Project Manager for training and education on the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act and oversees the contract between DCY and The Ohio State University’s Citizen Review Panels. Prior to transferring to DCY, Deanna was employed with Franklin County Children Services where she served as a supervisor for the Adoptions Department, Director of Kinship and Foster Care, and an Associate Director for the Intake and Screening Department. Deanna obtained her undergraduate degree at The Ohio State University and her Masters Degree from Ohio University.
Delaney Jones
Community Coordinator, Cuyahoga County Safe Babies Program
Delaney (MSSA, LSW) is a graduate of the Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences where she studied Community Practice for Social Change. Delaney’s professional and educational background, focused in the area of young child/ family wellbeing, intertwines a micro- level study and practice (child behavior, family dynamics, trauma), with a macro- level focus and practice (policy and program development). Delaney currently serves as the Community Coordinator for the Safe Babies Program in Cuyahoga County where she is working alongside local child welfare, judicial, and social services leadership to plan, implement, develop, execute and evaluate the Safe Babies program model.
Jordan Oberling
Community Coordinator, Scioto County Safe Babies Court Team
Jordan is a graduate of Shawnee State University where she obtained a Bachelor of Arts in Social Science. Jordan’s professional background consists of juvenile and family court functioning and infant/early childhood development. Jordan is currently serving as the Community Coordinator for the Safe Babies Court Team in Scioto County, where she facilitates community meetings with a diverse group of individuals with educational, professional, socioeconomic and ethnic backgrounds. Jordan works closely with many community partners such as child welfare and social services to align each of the systems that serve vulnerable infant and toddlers in the community with best practices and the most up to date science of early childhood brain development.
Jordan Rasmussen
Peer Recovery Mentor
Compassionate Peer Recovery Mentor with over two years of direct experience in supporting individuals facing substance use disorders. Proven track record in delivering tailored navigation services for vulnerable populations, fostering trust-based relationships, and promoting harm reduction. Successfully assisted in transitioning individuals from incarceration to community resources, mitigating homelessness through immediate placements. Committed to empowering those in need, particularly women affected by exploitation, homelessness, and pregnancy enhancing their self-efficacy and access to resources to overcome challenges.
Nicole Sillaman
Executive Director, Ohio Children's Trust Fund
Nicole Sillaman has served as the Executive Director for the Ohio Children’s Trust Fund (OCTF) since 2022. OCTF is housed within the Ohio Department of Children and Youth and supports child maltreatment prevention efforts statewide. Ms. Sillaman joined OCTF as a program manager in 2014, and since that time, has served in many different capacities at the agency. Prior to joining OCTF, Ms. Sillaman worked at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center for seven years in program coordination for physician medical education programs. She completed her Bachelor of Science in Healthcare Management, as well as her Master of Business Administration at The Ohio State University.
Jo Ellen Simonsen
KinFirst Program Manager, Kinnect
Jo Simonsen brings more than three decades of experience addressing some of the most complex challenges facing families, including domestic violence prevention, access to behavioral health services, and improvements in child well-being. After 17 years with Ohio’s domestic violence coalition, she joined Kinnect in 2021 as a Regional Director for OhioKAN, the statewide kinship and adoption navigator program. She now serves as KinFirst Manager, where she leads innovative programming designed to strengthen outcomes for kinship families. Jo is particularly proud of her recent collaboration with OhioKAN, the Legal Aid Society of Greater Cincinnati, and Chapin Hall to pilot a new referral model that enhances the experience of kinship families and expands access to essential legal services. In 2025, she led the creation of videos and eLearning resources on Legal Relationships in Kinship Care—tools developed to help kinship caregivers secure the legal authority needed to obtain childcare, healthcare, and benefits for the children they are raising. A hallmark of Jo’s work is elevating the voices of individuals with lived experience to co-design programs and advance public policy. She holds a B.A. from Wittenberg University and pursued graduate studies in Communications at Emerson College.
Linda Topping
Court Improvement Program Analyst, Supreme Court of Ohio's Children & Families Section
Linda Topping is the Court Improvement Program Analyst with the Supreme Court of Ohio’s Children & Families Section. A Licensed Professional Counselor with a Master’s degree in Community Clinical Counseling from the University of Dayton and a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from The Ohio State University, Linda brings over 17 years of experience in child welfare and behavioral health. Her work focuses on strengthening court practice, supporting abuse, neglect, and dependency proceedings, and improving outcomes for children and families through training, technical assistance, and system collaboration.
Tequilla Washington
​Children’s Justice & Court Engagement Program Administrator, Ohio Department of Children and Youth
Tequilla Washington, MSA is a mission-driven leader with over 20 years of experience transforming child welfare systems through collaboration, innovation, and continuous improvement. She currently serves as the Children’s Justice and Court Engagement Program Administrator for the Ohio Department of Children and Youth (DCY). In this role, she leads statewide efforts to strengthen cross-system collaboration, increase the quality of and access to legal representation, and improve outcomes for children and families. Her work focuses on advancing court and child welfare practice through training, technical assistance, and system reform. She holds a Master’s degree in Administration from Central Michigan University and a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology from Central State University.
Mary Watchel
Director, of Public Policy, Public Children Services Association of Ohio
Mary Wachtel is PCSAO’s director of public policy. Prior to joining PCSAO in August 2014, Mary was director of access and coverage policy at the Health Policy Institute of Ohio. Mary coordinated HPIO’s legislative outreach and worked with multiple stakeholders to lead the organization’s work to assure Ohioans have timely access to comprehensive, integrated and appropriate health services. Prior to that, Mary was director of health policy for Voices for Ohio’s Children, advocating on behalf of child and family health issues with state legislative and agency officials. She also has served as health advocate for Children’s Defense Fund-Ohio and as director of policy and programs at the Association of Junior Leagues International. A native of Ohio, Mary holds a bachelor’s degree in social work from the University of Akron and a Master of Social Work from Washington University in St. Louis. She also holds a certificate in theological studies from The School of Theology at Sewanee (Episcopal).