Jerrie Jacobs-Kenner, PhD, Named President of Crittenton Children’s Center

Congratulations to Jerrie Jacobs-Kenner!  Jerrie Jacobs-Kenner, PhD, LCSW, has been named President of MCCA member, Saint Luke’s Hospital of Kansas City’s-Crittenton Children’s Center. Dr. Jacobs-Kenner joined Saint Luke’s in 2015, as the Senior Director of Community Based Programs. Jerrie has 33 years of clinical and leadership experience in the social and behavioral health fields; serving Missouri’s public and private sectors.As the President of Crittenton Children’s Center, Jerrie will provide leadership for a dynamic team of professionals committed to the highest quality of care for children and families through hospital, residential, and community based services.

Carrie Bolm Appointed President and CEO of Missouri Alliance…

Congratulations to Carrie Bolm, Missouri Alliance for Children and Families (MA-CF) new President and CEO!  She will lead the organization’s overall strategic direction through a partnership of agencies.  Carrie will assure quality programs are provided while maintaining fiscal accountability, and looks forward to working with the executive team to achieve these goals.

Carrie is uniquely qualified for this position as she has prior experience with the Missouri Children’s Division, the
Missouri Alliance for Children and Families and Great Circle, a partner agency. Most recently, Carrie was the Senior VP of Community Behavioral Health at Great Circle and prior to that role she was appointed VP/Chief Program Officer of Community Based Services in December 2012. In those roles she was responsible for operational oversight, strategic direction and financial management of all programs in which services are provided to children and families within the community and educational settings. Carrie has an extensive history in the field of child welfare and has previously worked for Missouri Alliance for Children and Families as their Regional Operations Director and Director of Training, Quality Improvement and Human Resources. She also worked for the Missouri Children’s Division for 10 years as a Program Development Specialist after beginning her career as a Social Service Worker. Carrie is a graduate of the University of Missouri –Columbia with a B.A in Speech Communication and Psychology and a Master’s in Social Work.

Long Time Child and Family Advocate, LeAnn Haslag, Retiring

LeAnn Haslag, dedicated child and family advocate, is retiring from MCCA member, Missouri Alliance for Children and Families (MA-CF), this month.  In addition to her tireless work to improve the outcomes for children and families connected to Missouri foster care, LeAnn is a committed ally to colleagues and partner organizations, always making time to help others help families.

Prior to joining MA-CF as CEO in 2013, she was with the State of Missouri for 28 years.  As a part of Missouri’s Children’s Division for 23 years, her accomplishments included drafting the first Performance Based Foster Care Case Management contract and assisting with the implementation of this public-private partnership. While with the Office of the State Court Administrator, she assisted with the implementation of the initial Fostering Court Improvement sites.

We at MCCA are grateful for her steady leadership, partnership and commitment.  She has helped us better serve children, families, and community based providers.  Thank you.

From LeAnn:

“I have been very fortunate to work in a variety of roles throughout my career, both in the public and private sectors, which has given me a broad perspective of child welfare issues.  I am proud to have played a small role in the child welfare arena and hope to continue my involvement after retirement.  It may not always feel like we are making progress but when I think of what child welfare practice looked like in the 1980s I know we have come a long way.  Best wishes to all of you who continue to make a difference in children’s lives .”

Carrie Bolm has been named the new MA-CF CEO.

Bills filed to expand coverage for developmentally disabled children

Lawmakers in both the Missouri House and Senate have pre-filed bills that would expand health coverage for children living with developmental disabilities.

The bills – HB 399 in the House and SB 45 in the Senate – would make it so children living with conditions such as Down syndrome and cerebral palsy would be covered under health plans in Missouri. Currently, Missouri requires health plans to cover those inside the Autism spectrum.

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