Joyce Taylor, PhD, is a child welfare expert with more than 30 years’ experience in a variety of roles in multiple states. Early in her career, she worked at the front lines of child protective services, as well as in supervisory roles in investigations, reunification, training and family resources. She was one of Connecticut’s first DCF Mental Health Program Directors and then became DCF Deputy Commissioner. For several years, she helped the Massachusetts Rosie D Court Monitor evaluate early implementation of the Children’s Behavioral Health Initiative. She is currently on faculty at Southern Connecticut State University. Her past academic roles include Assistant Clinical Professor at the Yale Program on Supervision (Department of Psychiatry at the Yale School of Medicine) and Associate Professor at Springfield College.

Joyce has created and provided numerous trainings throughout her career. Since the pandemic, she has developed training and adapted the content primarily for four target audiences: 1) all DCF administrative staff and managers, 2) screeners at the Child Abuse and Neglect Hotline, 3) all CPS staff, supervisors and managers, and 4) all staff with responsibilities for recruiting, licensing home studies, training and support of foster, adoptive and kinship caregivers. She has consulted in Florida, Massachusetts and Connecticut to help improve CPS practice skills and supervision. Additionally, she conducts case reviews and provides consultation as an expert witness in civil and dependency court cases in Florida and Massachusetts.