About Us

Meet our team of experts

Who We Are

National Leaders in Human-Centered Systems Change

J. K. Elder & Associates, a nationally recognized consulting firm, works with public and private social services organizations to improve outcomes for children, families, and communities. We collaborate with executive and operational teams to address needs for innovative improvements in programs, operations, technology, and fiscal management. We also work closely with organizations to develop proposals, reports, and outcomes evaluations.

Experts in public & private social services

The JKEA team includes experts in public and private social services, including domestic and global child welfare, mental and behavioral health, disabilities, domestic violence, and trafficking. We also focus on systems change, organizational transformation, and enhanced training programs.

JK Elder and Associates Who We Are Video

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Our subject matter experts have experience working in government organizations, private entities, and academic institutions.

JKEA

The Team

Jean K. Elder, Ph.D., FAAIDD

Chief Executive Officer & President

Jean K. Elder, Ph.D., FAAIDD, is the founder and driving force behind J.K. Elder & Associates. For more than 45 years, she has blended clinical insight with policy expertise to advance child welfare, early education, and disability inclusion nationwide. Her leadership has expanded Head Start, established the first federal Supported Employment initiative that opened competitive jobs to 90,000 people with developmental disabilities, and modernized foster-care regulations to allow licensed kin to care for children—pioneering today’s kinship-care model. Clients rely on her strategic vision to turn promising ideas into measurable results.

History & Experience

Dr. Elder’s federal service is distinguished. As Assistant Secretary for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services—and concurrently Commissioner of the Administration on Developmental Disabilities—she managed a $5.5 billion portfolio and supervised 1,100 staff across ten regions. In that role, she steered 174 pieces of legislation, launched Supported Employment, and issued the landmark rule permitting states to license relatives as foster caregivers. Earlier in her career, she helped translate the Perry Preschool Project into the national Head Start program and later served as the Assistant Secretary responsible for overseeing the program. Her global perspective grew during her tenure at the Council on Accreditation, where she led the task force whose standards became the Hague Convention framework for intercountry adoption. Since founding JKEA in 2006, Dr. Elder has guided public agencies, nonprofits, and private firms through accreditation, performance-based contracting, and large-scale systems change, always with a focus on improving outcomes for children and families.

Education & Accolades

Dr. Elder earned her M.A. and Ph.D. in Education and Developmental Psychology from the University of Michigan and completed post-doctoral studies in Organizational Development at the University of Wisconsin. She holds honorary doctorates from Ferris State University and Davis & Elkins College and is a Fellow of the American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities. Her federal appointments include the President’s Committee on Employment of People with Disabilities, the Commission on Presidential Scholars, and the President’s Committee on Intellectual Disabilities. Among numerous honors, she is a recipient of the Ravenswood International Award for her advocacy on inclusive employment internationally.

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Penny Putnam Collins, MPA

Child Welfare Consultant | Implementation Specialist | Workforce Development Leader

Penny Putnam Collins, MPA, is a respected national consultant with more than three decades of experience improving outcomes for children, youth, and families through workforce development, system reform, and implementation of evidence-informed practices. As founder and principal of Penny P Collins Consulting, LLC, she partners with states, universities, and national organizations to strengthen child welfare systems through strategic planning, policy development, and continuous quality improvement. Her work is grounded in the belief that a supported, knowledgeable workforce is essential to family well-being and permanency.

History & Experience

Ms. Collins has served as a Subject Matter Expert and Implementation Specialist for multiple federally funded initiatives, including the Quality Improvement Centers (QIC-EY, QIC-WA, QIC-WD) and the Capacity Building Collaborative and the National Child Welfare Center for Innovation and Advancement of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Children’s Bureau. She has collaborated with leading universities and research institutions such as UCLA, the University of Nebraska, and the University of Louisville to translate research into effective practice, build workforce capacity, and promote equitable, data-driven decision-making.

Earlier in her career, Ms. Collins held leadership roles with the Georgia Division of Family and Children Services (DFCS) and the Child Welfare Information Gateway, where she guided statewide training and policy initiatives, directed quality assurance functions, and produced resources that have reached thousands of child welfare professionals nationwide. Her tenure at ICF spanned over a decade, where she led national dissemination of child welfare research and authored publications and reports to Congress under the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA).

Across her consulting engagements, Ms. Collins has been recognized for her ability to align diverse stakeholders, foster collaboration among state and federal partners, and design practical tools and curricula that enhance workforce effectiveness. Her expertise extends across the continuum of child welfare practice—from prevention and family support to foster care, adoption, and workforce sustainability.

Education & Affiliations

Ms. Collins earned a Master of Public Administration and a Bachelor of Science in Political Science from Georgia College in Milledgeville, Georgia. She continues to contribute to national conversations on child welfare reform and workforce development through presentations, technical assistance, and the development of youth-focused and practitioner-friendly resources.

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Beth Englander Maida

Emeritus Chief Operating Officer

For nearly five decades, Beth Englander Maida has turned complex child-welfare systems into engines of safety and permanence for children around the globe. Colleagues say she has “management in her DNA,” a gift she has used to rescue struggling agencies, translate statute into frontline practice, and guide entire states through once-in-a-generation reforms. Whether modernizing Florida’s $900 million child-welfare program, building the world’s largest foster-care network for unaccompanied refugee minors, or helping tribes reclaim jurisdiction for Native children, she leads with the conviction that every policy must work for the child who needs it most.

History & Experience

Beth’s career began in Oregon, where she rose from county director to statewide program manager, driving landmark improvements in protective services, family-sex-abuse treatment, adoption, and guardianship. She then accepted Florida’s call to execute Community-Based Care—privatizing services in fifty-five counties while renegotiating the state’s federal IV-E waiver and overseeing development of a new SACWIS platform. Her results endure today in stronger performance metrics and lower staff turnover. Nationally, Beth directed ICF’s support for the federal Child and Family Services Reviews, coaching states through data-driven system change, and later led the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ resettlement programs for unaccompanied refugee children and trafficking survivors, monitoring services in all fifty states and refugee camps on three continents. Along the way she has briefed Congress, testified before state legislatures, and presented practice breakthroughs from Stockholm to San Antonio—all while mentoring the next generation of child-welfare leaders.

Education & Accolades

A skilled communicator, Beth earned her B.S. in Communications from the University of Maryland and pursued graduate studies in Organizational Policy and Management at the University of Oregon. She was selected for the Pacific Program Catalytic Leadership cohort and holds certifications in Lean, Total Quality Management, and Trauma-Informed Care. Her impact has been recognized with the Nine Nations Award for excellence in Indian Child Welfare Act implementation, the national Adoption Across Borders award from Voice for Adoption, and appointments to the Oregon State Bar and the Executive Committee of the National Association of Professional Child Welfare Administrators. Yet her favorite honor remains the countless letters from former youth who now call themselves “home.”

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