Roque R. Gerald Director   Roque R. Gerald, Psy.D. has devoted his career of more than three decades to improving the well being of children, youth, families, and individuals. Mayor Fenty appointed him as interim director of CFSA in July 2008. By the end of the year, Gerald had mobilized the agency to eliminate a backlog of over 1,700 investigations, hire 40 social workers to fill vacant positions, move 70 social workers to community locations, and launch three innovative strategies for getting more children into permanent homes more quickly.   Gerald’s background includes extensive experience in counseling troubled and emotionally disturbed children, adolescents, and adults and families in crisis in both in-patient and outpatient settings for public and private organizations. He is a widely recognized expert in strengths-based approaches to serving troubled families.   Early in his career, Gerald spent nearly three years in a county child welfare agency investigating reports of child abuse and neglect and evaluating and assisting families. Later, he served as clinical director of For Love of Children, a non-profit agency providing foster care, housing, and family services in Washington, DC. In that position, he also provided technical assistance, including capacity building, to community-based agencies and played a leadership role in developing citywide policy during formation of the District’s Healthy Families/Thriving Communities Collaboratives.   Gerald joined the Child and Family Services Agency in 2001, as deputy director of the Office of Clinical Practice. In that position, he designed, developed, and directed an innovative in-house resource that coordinates health, mental/behavioral health, and other supportive services for children, youth, and families involved with the child welfare system. OCP also provides expert consultation to social workers regarding child and family needs in the areas of education, domestic violence, substance abuse treatment, and other issues. Gerald spearheaded development and establishment of a unique model of Family Team Meetings as a standard practice within CFSA and other District Government human services agencies.   Gerald earned his doctorate in clinical psychology from the Virginia Consortium for Professional Psychology in Norfolk. He serves on the board of directors of the American Humane Association and is a member of the Health Care Advisory Workgroup of the Annie E. Casey Foundation. He consults on clinical practice in child welfare locally, nationally, and internationally—most recently in Russia.