Jody Rodgers
Parent Consultant
Jody is a single mother of three children. She has overcome homelessness, drug addiction and the cycle of domestic violence. Jody was involved in the child welfare system, when her three children were removed in 2013. Jody says it was the “worst and best day of her life.” It was the beginning of her getting her life back and her children getting the mother that they deserved. She realized that every decision she had made directly affected her children, and they had no choice in all of it. That day Jody said, “no more” and from that moment on she never used drugs again. Jody used and grew from the services she was offered and reunified with her children.
Currently, she is raising her three kids and working at her dream job as a parent mentor. She is employed at the Child Parent Institute in Sonoma County where she supports and helps parents in navigating the child welfare system and services. Jody was the first parent mentor in the county and is now the lead parent mentor in the program.
Jody was instrumental in bringing a unique and innovative Birth Parent/Foster Parent Partnership model to her county. As a birth parent, she and another committed foster parent are working closely to advocate as a united front for families involved in the child welfare system. They support and mentor birth and foster parents in building relationships with the goal of helping the parents to reunify with their children, whenever possible. In December 2018, this exceptional work was showcased by Casey Family Programs in an article entitled, “How can birth and foster parent partnerships help families reunify?” In May 2019, during National Foster Care Month, this work was once again spotlighted in another publication, Partnering with Birth Parents to Promote Reunification, released by the Child Welfare Information Gateway. Because of the positive response to this publication, the Gateway developed a podcast with Jody and the foster parent, titled “Birth-Foster Parent Mentoring Teams.”
In 2022 Jody was recognized with two awards. She was honored by the Partnerships for Well- Being Institute for her outstanding dedication to her work and its impact in improving outcomes for children and families involved with California’s systems of care. Jody also received the 2022 Casey Excellence for Children Award for her demonstrated outstanding work, exceptional leadership and unwavering dedication to improving child and family well-being in the United States.
Jody has become recognized for her expertise in parent mentoring and is frequently called upon to do public speaking. During child abuse prevention month, she was part of a panel presentation moderated by Soledad O’Brien, award-winning journalist, speaker, author and philanthropist. Jody shared her valuable perspectives in front of an audience of 600 people at a child abuse prevention event sponsored by Safe & Sound, a nonprofit child advocacy organization based in San Francisco.
On a national level, Jody is an active member of the Birth Parent National Network (BPNN), and helps educate communities and states about the Family First Prevention Services Act and prevention opportunities to strengthen families. Jody is also actively involved in the Birth and Foster Parent National Partnership (BFPP) where she works to increase coordination between birth and foster parents and kinship care providers to improve permanency outcomes for children and families.