- Leadership
- Professional Education
- Research and Evaluation
- Interdisciplinary Child Welfare
- Outreach
- Operations
Traci LaLiberte, PhD, MSW, LISW
Senior Executive Director of CASCW
She/Her/Hers
205C Peters Hall
612-624-2279
[email protected]
Traci served as Executive Director of CASCW from 2007-2024. Currently, she is the Executive Director of the Multidisciplinary Institute for Child Welfare, an entity which houses and provides support and resources to CASCW. She oversees all aspects of Center programs and operations. Additionally, she provides oversight to the Minnesota Child Welfare Training Academy (MNCWTA) as well as serving the School of Social Work in a variety of capacities.
Kristine Piescher, PhD
Assistant Executive Director
She/Her/Hers
205 Peters Hall
612-624-9783
[email protected]
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.
Elizabeth Snyder, MSW, LISW
Co-Director Minnesota Child Welfare Training System
She/Her/Hers
1711 County Road B
Suite 200N
612-301-9808
[email protected]
Liz has been with CASCW since 2007. As of 2019, she provides strategic leadership and management of the University units as part of our partnership with the Department of Children, Youth and Families (DCYF), co-directing the Minnesota Child Welfare Training Academy (MNCWTA). MNCWTA's mission is to train, develop, and support the skills, expertise and well-being of Minnesota's child welfare workforce while nurturing a commitment to equitable child welfare practice.
Kate Walthour, MSW, LISW
Director of Professional Education
She/Her/Hers
205E Peters Hall
612-624-3779
[email protected]
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 our sub-contracted BSW Title IV-E Child Welfare Programs and the two certificate programs currently being offered by CASCW.
Claire Wever
Title IV-E Program Coordinator
She/Her/Hers
105 Peters Hall
612-626-0518
[email protected]
Claire is the Title IV-E Program Coordinator at the Center for Advanced Studies in Child Welfare. Claire supports current IV-E fellows in various aspects of their learning, including creating and coordinating a mentorship program. She also plans and coordinates new initiatives with IV-E fellowship alumni.
Crystal Fernandez
Executive Office and Administrative Specialist
205 Peters Hall
[email protected]
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.
Michael Hoffmeister, PhD, MSW
Director of Research and Evaluation
Michael leads the Research and Evaluation team at CASCW. He oversees the child welfare research, Title IV-E evaluation, and Minn-LInK related work of the Center. Michael conducts mixed methods, applied research regarding the public child welfare system that focuses broadly on child welfare workforce development, organizational policy and practice, and child and family well-being.
Sydney Johnson, PhD, MPH
Minn-LInK Researcher
Sydney leads the design and implementation of research and evaluation projects at CASCW. She works with Minn-LInK team 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 various audiences.
Liz Fronsoe
PLX 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.
Elizabeth Keely Vandre, MSW, LGSW
PACC Program Coordinator
211 Peters Hall
612-626-3831
[email protected]
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.
Stacy Gehringer, MSW, LICSW
Director of Outreach
She/Her/Hers
302N-E 1171 W. County Road B
Center for Advanced Studies in Child Welfare
Roseville, MN 55113
[email protected]
Stacy leads the Outreach efforts at CASCW. She manages communication, training events, faculty partnerships, center collaborations, awards, CW360°, and policy tracking.
Denise Cooper, MEd
Outreach Coordinator
She/Her/Hers
302N-B 1171 W. County Road B
Center for Advanced Studies in Child Welfare
Roseville, MN 55113
[email protected]
Denise supports the Outreach efforts of CASCW. She serves as the managing editor of the CW360° publication. She also assists with the coordination of the CASCW child welfare training events, as well as the development of child welfare training materials and child welfare policy-related resources.
Kaia Forde
Graphic Designer
She/Her/Hers
302N-A 1171 W. County Road B
Center for Advanced Studies in Child Welfare
Roseville, MN 55113
[email protected]
Kaia leads graphic design efforts related to marketing and communication materials used internally and externally at CASCW. She creates assets for events, email marketing, special projects, web, social media, and more. Kaia also serves as the photographer for CASCW events.
Julia Lodge
Communications Specialist
She/Her/Hers
302N-D 1171 W. County Road B
Center for Advanced Studies in Child Welfare
Roseville, MN 55113
[email protected]
Julia leads the planning and execution of CASCW's communication efforts, collaborating with the Outreach team as well as outside partners to develop comprehensive and effective communications plans.
Tim Nichols
Web Editor
He/Him/His
302N-A 1171 W. County Road B
Center for Advanced Studies in Child Welfare
Roseville, MN 55113
[email protected]
Tim manages web strategy, design, and implementation for CASCW, creating accessible content to help promote new products and events. He also coordinates and designs newsletters for CASCW's email marketing channel.
Karen Shehean
Graphic and Multimedia Designer
302N-A 1171 W. County Road B
Center for Advanced Studies in Child Welfare
Roseville, MN 55113
[email protected]
Karen designs promotional and training materials for CASCW across digital and print mediums. Her primary focus is translating faculty research to practice. Karen takes the lead on designing CASCW's flagship publication, CW360°.
Paying Thao
Administrative Financial and Program Support
She/Her/Hers
205D Peters Hall
[email protected]
Paying assists with CASCW's finances including purchase requests, along with preparing, processing, and tracking various payments. Along with that, she also provides administrative and program support within the office environments and at CASCW events throughout the year.