Ashley Deckert

WORK HISTORY

EDUCATION

ABOUT ASHLEY DECKERT

Ashley Deckert currently serves as the Director for the Rhode Island Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF). RI DCYF is statutorily responsible for Child Welfare, Juvenile Justice, and Children’s Behavioral Health. Director Deckert believes in partnering with families and communities to raise safe and healthy children and youth in a caring environment. Director Deckert specializes in child welfare administration, policy development, project management, and executive-level leadership. She is a proven leader who believes that teamwork and collaboration is a catalyst for system change and improvement. She drives change by genuinely engaging with community-based organizations and pertinent key partners. Director Deckert is skilled in large scale program development, implementation, and service delivery in both direct service and leadership positions in the public and private sector. From 20••••23, Director Deckert served as the Director of Public Policy and Government Affairs for the Illinois Collaboration on Youth (ICOY). Previously, she held roles of increasing responsibility at the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services (IDCFS). In these positions, she had oversight for the divisions of Child Services including: Residential Monitoring, Residential Recruitment, Foster Care; including Recruitment, Juvenile Delinquency, Restorative Justice, Child Protection and Licensing. Director Deckert also has experience as an Adjunct Professor at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC), School of Social Work. She holds a Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Sociology and a Master of Social Work (MSW) from UIUC and a Master of Arts (MA) in Public Policy from the University of Chicago, Harris School of Public Policy.Director Deckert is passionate about improving child and family well-being in Rhode Island. Through use of her knowledge of macro-level child welfare systems and her collaborative spirit, she will help the State achieve positive system changes.