Who We Are

The Center for Advanced Studies in Child Welfare (CASCW) was established in 1992 with federal Title IV-E funding and a grant from the Bush Foundation. The Center brings the University of Minnesota together with county, tribal, state and community social services in a partnership dedicated to improving the lives of children and families involved with public child welfare. Substantial funding for the Center continues to come from federal Title IV-E funds and support from the University of Minnesota, the College of Education and Human Development and the School of Social Work.

CASCW fulfills its mission by focusing its efforts around three primary areas: Professional Education, Outreach, and Research & Evaluation.

To improve the well-being of children and families who are involved in the child welfare system by: educating human service professionals, fostering collaboration across systems and disciplines, informing policy makers and the public, and expanding the child welfare knowledge base.

  • All children deserve competent and effective child welfare services to promote safety, well-being and permanency.
  • Effective child welfare workers require continual professional development that is financially, geographically and culturally accessible.
  • Effective child welfare training, education, policy and evaluation is multidisciplinary, multicultural and collaborative in nature.
  • Child welfare evaluation informs policy and practice resulting in better outcomes for children and families.
  • Policy makers and the public make effective decisions when provided with current, relevant, and accurate child welfare information.
CASCW’s Outreach activities connect child welfare stakeholders in Minnesota to dynamic, relevant, accessible, research-informed practice and policy resources and trainings. We produce a variety of training events and publications that bridge the worlds of research, policy, and practice, bringing the latest information to students, administrators, policymakers, and practitioners working directly with children and families.
Professional Education encompasses the Center’s work with Title IV-E students and additional academic opportunities for current practitioners. We are committed to supporting students and professionals dedicated to working in the public or tribal child welfare workforce through the distribution of Title IV-E stipends and through the Permanency and Adoption Competency Certificate Program (PACC).
CASCW identifies knowledge gaps through engagement of our stakeholders and conducts meaningful, high-quality research in order to advance the field of child welfare. We disseminate information from policy and practice relevant research undertaken by faculty, staff, and graduate students across the University of Minnesota through web publications, peer-reviewed journal articles, and online modules.

Meet Our Staff

Ashley Aguy, MSW
Ashley Aguy, MSWTitle IV-E Practicum Coordinator
Ashley coordinates field placements for Title IV-E fellows, facilitates field seminar, as well as curates a specialized program that supports BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) fellows navigating through the Child Welfare Workforce.

Office: 212 Peters Hall
Email: booke025@umn.edu

Erin Bernardy, MSW
Erin Bernardy, MSWTitle IV-E Program Evaluator
Erin evaluates CASCW programs with Title IV-E funding, including the Title IV-E Child Welfare Fellowship program, the Permanency Adoption Competency Certificate (PACC), and the Phoenix Learning Xchange (PLX). Erin also manages the Title IV-E National Data Warehouse.

Office: 290 Peters Hall
Email: berna424@umn.edu

Denise Cooper, M.Ed
Denise Cooper, M.EdOutreach Coordinator
Denise supports the Outreach efforts of CASCW. She serves as the managing editor of the CW360° publication. The CW360° takes a comprehensive, multidisciplinary view of a prominent child welfare issue, bridging research, policy, and practice. She assists with the coordination of the CASCW child welfare training events, as well as the development of child welfare training materials. Denise also supports the development of child welfare policy-related resources.

Office: 217 Peters Hall
Phone: 612-624-1250
Email: mcki0055@umn.edu

Amy Dorman, MPP
Amy Dorman, MPPChild Welfare Researcher
Amy conducts child welfare research and program evaluation in partnership with community-based organizations, local and state government agencies, and research centers across the nation. Amy’s research focuses on cross-sector and interdisciplinary collaboration and community-based approaches to public policy.

Office: 290 Peters Hall
Email: dorm0039@umn.edu

Crystal Fernandez
Crystal FernandezExecutive Office & Admin. Specialist
Crystal supports the Title IV-E students through their progression in the Title IV-E Fellowship Program and as they enter the workforce. She also works with the CASCW team to support areas of outreach, finance, administration, and events.

Office: 205 Peters Hall
Email: crystal@umn.edu
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Kaia Forde
Kaia FordeGraphic Designer
Office: 320N-A 1711 W. County Road B
Center for Advanced Studies in Child Welfare
Roseville, MN 55113
Phone: 612-624-4231
Email: kforde@umn.edu
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Liz Fronsoe
Liz FronsoePLX Program Coordinator
Liz coordinates the Phoenix Learning Xchange program which aims to broaden the knowledge of development, challenges, positive engagement and wellbeing of youth and adolescents involved in the child welfare and other social service systems, all while enabling professionals to have a deeper understanding of the inner workings of the youth and adolescents they serve and better connect with them.

Office: Center for Advanced Studies in Child Welfare
Email: efronsoe@umn.edu

Stacy Gehringer, MSW, LICSW
Stacy Gehringer, MSW, LICSW Director of Outreach
Stacy leads the Outreach efforts at CASCW. She manages communication, training events, faculty partnerships, center collaborations, awards, CW360°, and policy tracking.

Office: 205a Peters Hall
Phone: (612) 625-8121
Email: gehr0086@umn.edu

Sydney Johnson, PhD, MPH
Sydney Johnson, PhD, MPHMinn-LInK Researcher
Sydney leads the design and implementation of research and evaluation projects at CASCW. She works with Minn-LInK staff and partners to answer questions about child and family well-being; engages stakeholders in research and evaluation planning; prepares project datasets by linking data across systems; analyzes data; collaborates on technical reports and scholarly publications; and presents research findings to study investigators, community stakeholders, State agency personnel, and the academic community.

Email: joh18519@umn.edu
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Traci LaLiberte, PhD, MSW, LISW
Traci LaLiberte, PhD, MSW, LISWExecutive Director
Traci has served as Executive Director of CASCW since 2007. She oversees all of the professional education, outreach, and evaluation efforts of the Center. In addition, she teaches at the SSW and leads other evaluation projects.

Office: 205C Peters Hall
Phone: 612-624-2279
Email: lali0017@umn.edu
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Kristine Piescher, PhD
Kristine Piescher, PhDAssistant Executive Director
Kristy is the Assistant Executive Director at CASCW. She oversees the professional education, outreach, and research and evaluation efforts of the Center, including the Minn-LInK project. Kristy’s research focuses on child well-being and educational success and stability for at-risk youth, child welfare workforce development and system change, housing and homelessness, interpersonal and sibling relationships, and utilizing cross-systems data for applied research and evaluation.

Office: 205 Peters Hall
Phone: 612-624-9783
Email: kpiesche@umn.edu
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James R. Reinardy, MSW, PhD
James R. Reinardy, MSW, PhDInterim Director
James Reinardy is the Director of the School of Social Work and serves as the principal investigator on the Center’s Title IV-E Program.

Office: 105 Peters Hall
Phone: 612-625-0294
Email: jreinard@umn.edu
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Mary (Karen) Sheahan
Mary (Karen) SheahanGraphic & Multimedia Designer
Karen oversees the CASCW website and is the graphic designer for CASCW’s promotional and education materials including Practice Notes, CASCW Policy Briefs, and CW360.

Office: 238 Peters Hall
Phone: 612-868-6373
Email: msheahan@umn.edu

Elizabeth Snyder, MSW, LISW
Elizabeth Snyder, MSW, LISWDirector of Training Collaborations
Liz manages collaborative efforts with the Department of Human Services, primarily with the Child Welfare Training System. She leads the recruitment, hiring and support of community trainers for statewide child welfare trainings. Liz is also supporting the partnership between the University of Minnesota and DHS on the development of a statewide Child Welfare Training Academy.

Office: 205E Peters Hall
Phone: 612-624-3779
Email: snyde276@umn.edu
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Andrea Stronghart
Andrea StronghartDirector Of Operations
Andrea provides support to the CASCW Executive Director, working to align the budget, human resources, data systems, research-related operations, facilities, technology, and other operational areas with the center’s strategic goals, including the statewide Child Welfare Training Academy.

Office: 205 Peters Hall
Phone: 612-624-7242
Email: astrong@umn.edu

Paying Thao
Paying ThaoAdministrative Financial and Program Support
Paying received her English BA from the University of Minnesota Duluth. In her spare time, she enjoys writing horror fiction and picking up new hobbies that come her way such as flag football and crocheting.

Office: 205D Peters Hall
Email: thao0369@umn.edu
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Elizabeth Keely Vandre, MSW, LGSW
Elizabeth Keely Vandre, MSW, LGSWPACC Coordinator
Keely coordinates the Permanency & Adoption Competency Certificate (PACC) program, supporting advanced level training for mental health and child welfare professionals, and increasing a network of qualified providers state-wide.

Office: 211 Peters Hall
Phone: 612-626-3831
Email: shal0035@umn.edu
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Kate Walthour, MSW, LISW
Kate Walthour, MSW, LISWDirector of Professional Education
Kate leads the professional education components of CASCW. She manages the Title IV-E Child Welfare Program for MSW students including admissions, stipends, advising, and advanced curriculum. She also provides leadership for the statewide BSW Title IV-E Child Welfare Programs and the two certificate programs currently being offered by CASCW.

Office: 205E Peters Hall
Phone: 612-624-3779
Email: kwalthou@umn.edu
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Esther Wattenberg (In Memoriam)
Esther Wattenberg (In Memoriam)Special Projects Coordinator
Esther Wattenberg was a co-founder of CASCW and served as the Center’s first Director. Esther supported the work of the Center up until her passing in 2019.

Affiliated Faculty Members

Priscilla Gibson
Professor
612-624-3678
pgibson@umn.edu

Jane Gilgun
Professor
612-624-3643
jgilgun@umn.edu

Wendy Haight
Professor and Gamble-Skogmo Chair in Child Welfare and Youth Policy
whaight@umn.edu

Katie Johnston-Goodstar
Assistant Professor
john1905@umn.edu

Amy Krentzman
Assistant Professor
akrentzm@umn.edu

Elizabeth Lightfoot
Associate Professor
612-624-4710
elightfo@umn.edu

Lynette Renner
Associate Professor
612-625-1220
renn0042@umn.edu

Rebecca J. Shlafer
Assistant Professor
Department of Pediatrics
612-625-9907
shlaf002@umn.edu

Patricia Shannon
Associate Professor
612-624-3490
pshannon@umn.edu

Jeffrey Waid
Assistant Professor
612-624-3712
jdwaid@umn.edu

Jodi Dworkin
Professor
612-625-1900
jdworkin@umn.edu

Jessica Toft
Assistant Professor
612-624-3689
jtoft@umn.edu

Mimi Choy-Brown
Assistant Professor
612-624-3658
mchoybro@umn.edu