Paige Parks is Executive Director of Rhode Island KIDS COUNT. From 2019-2022, Paige served as Rhode Island KIDS COUNT’s Senior Policy Analyst responsible for policy analysis, advocacy, and project management in areas related to education and economic well-being. Prior to joining Rhode Island KIDS COUNT, Paige served as Director of Advancement and Assistant Director for Books Are Wings, Network Director for the Youth 4 Change Alliance/ Youth In Action, Development Director for Fusionworks Dance Company, Teacher/Advisor at The Met Center, and Safe Zone Coordinator at Youth Pride, Inc. Paige is the proud parent of two beautiful children, one of whom is a child with special medical needs. These lived and career experiences greatly inform her passion and advocacy for children, youth, and families. As Executive Director, Paige advocates for the needs of Rhode Island children and families by testifying on budgetary investments and legislation to ensure children in low-income families, Children of Color, Multilingual Learners, immigrants, and children with disabilities receive the resources they need to succeed.

Paige serves on many boards, coalitions, and advisory groups including serving on the Board of Directors for the Partnership for America’s Children and the United Way of Rhode Island. Paige co-chairs the Rhode Island Department of Human Services Rhode Island Works Advisory Committee, co-leader of the Raising RI Coalition, and serves on the Advisory Board for the Rhode Island Afterschool Network. She has served on the Rhode Island Office of the Postsecondary Commissioner Advisory Committee, the City of Providence COVID-19 Recovery and Resiliency Task Force, the boards of Marriage Equality RI, Providence After School Alliance, and Youth In Action. She was on the working group for the Providence Guaranteed Income Initiative and was a member of the Providence review team and co-chaired the Excellence in Learning subcommittee of the Community Design Team, the team charged with helping to develop the Providence Public Schools Turnaround Action Plan. Paige has received many awards and recognitions including the YWCA of Rhode Island Women of Achievement Award and the Providence Business News 40 Under 40 Award. Paige is currently a fellow with the Institute for Nonprofit Practice Black Leadership Institute. She earned a Bachelor of Arts from Providence College and a Master of Education from Harvard University.

Kelsey is a policy associate at Rhode Island KIDS COUNT. She is responsible for policy analysis, advocacy, research, and project management on child welfare, youth justice, and education issues. Kelsey received her Bachelor of Science from Gordon College and her Master of Public Health from Brown University with a concentration in Maternal and Child Health.

Kelsey has a background in adolescent mental health research and worked as a Clinical Research Assistant at Bradley Hasbro Children’s Research Center on several prevention-based research studies, including one on dating violence prevention interventions for juvenile court-involved girls. While at Brown, Kelsey wrote her master’s thesis on how Adverse Childhood Experiences can impact adult health. Kelsey is a Providence native. She has strong ties to the community and a deep knowledge of the needs of children and youth and is passionate about eliminating racial and ethnic disparities in the youth justice and child welfare systems. Kelsey is currently Rhode Island’s Juvenile Detention Alternatives Initiative (JDAI) Coordinator and a fellow in the Annie E. Casey Foundation’s first cohort of the Rising Leaders for Results Fellowship. You can often find her getting a little treat at any local coffee shop.

Leanne is Director of Early Childhood Policy and Strategy at Rhode Island KIDS COUNT and works to improve early childhood policy statewide (Birth – Age 8). She is the coordinator of the RIght from the Start Campaign, a state legislative and budget campaign led by eight organizations to advance state policies for families with babies and young children in Rhode Island. Leanne has been a leader in developing state laws, policies, and systems to expand access to high-quality child care, Pre-K, Head Start, Early Intervention, family home visiting, maternal and early childhood mental health services, and paid family leave. She was the coordinator of the governor-appointed Rhode Island Early Learning Council from 2010 through 2024.

Prior to joining Rhode Island KIDS COUNT, Leanne was Vice President at United Way of Rhode Island and Program Manager at Work/Family Directions, Inc. She has a bachelor’s degree in developmental psychology from Brown University and a master’s degree in child and family policy from Tufts University. Leanne is endorsed as an Infant Mental Health Policy Mentor.

Jennifer is responsible for providing program and technology management for Rhode Island KIDS COUNT. She provides assistance in all issue areas, tracks legislation and testimony, provides logistical and technological support for meetings and events, contributes to the writing and coordination of the annual Factbook, updates Rhode Island data for the National Kids Count Data Center, and is the point person for all technological needs. Prior to her current position, Jennifer was a marketing manager in the design and construction industry. Jennifer has a Bachelor of Arts degree from New England College.

Michaela is responsible for policy analysis, advocacy, research, and project management in areas related to health, dental and oral health, and Medicaid. Michaela received a Bachelor of Arts from the College of the Holy Cross and a Master of Public Health from Brown University, focusing on Maternal and Child Health. Michaela’s Master’s thesis focused on obstetric, state, and interpersonal violence with respect to reproductive health care in Ireland.

Before joining Rhode Island KIDS COUNT, Michaela worked closely with researchers at Brown, focusing on Alzheimer’s disease and caregivers, and coordinated the Living Donor Lost Wages Study at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, a randomized trial assessing the impact of income and racial inequality on living kidney donation and attempts to decrease these disparities. Michaela also sits on the Barrington Housing Board of Trustees. Michaela is passionate about affordability and access to person-centered, high quality maternal and children’s health care.

The Executive Assistant / Office Manager is responsible for providing administrative support to the Executive Director and Finance Director. She manages the Executive Director’s schedule and assists with communication with the Board of Directors. She provides logistical support for events, meetings, and conferences, and manages travel arrangements for all staff. She performs the accounting and clerical tasks for processing invoices, Factbook sales and issuing payments. The Executive Assistant / Office Manager oversees all office management and maintains office supplies, equipment, and staff administrative records.

As Deputy Director, Stephanie is responsible for supervising policy and communications staff, program planning, coordination of the annual Rhode Island Kids Count Factbook, and grants management. She has been a member of the Rhode Island KIDS COUNT staff since 2008, previously serving as Senior Policy Analyst responsible for policy analysis in the areas of education, poverty and family economic security. In 2017, Stephanie received the RI Education Champion Award from the New England Secondary Schools Consortium. She has also served on the Annie E. Casey Foundation’s national KIDS COUNT Steering Committee, as a PrepareRI Ambassador, and on the Nellie Mae Education Foundations’ Speaker’s Bureau. Before joining Rhode Island KIDS COUNT, Stephanie was a Research Associate at the National Center on Family Homelessness where she managed a multi-site study that examined the effectiveness of different housing and service approaches for homeless families. Previously, Stephanie was Research Director at Volunteers in Health Care and Scientist at the National Center on Substance Abuse Treatment Needs Assessment. She has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from Wellesley College and a Master’s in Education with a focus on Human Development and Psychology from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. In her free time, Stephanie enjoys hiking, kayaking, reading, writing haiku, and sampling and Yelping about all the great restaurants in Rhode Island.

Katherine (Katy) is responsible for implementing external and internal communications for Rhode Island KIDS COUNT across all issue areas. She maintains our website, social media, and e-news; manages media relations; and assists with policy publications. Previously, she was Policy and Administration Coordinator in the Office of Lt. Governor Elizabeth Roberts and Oral Health Program Specialist at the RI Department of Health. She has a Bachelor of Arts in Social Anthropology and Health Policy from Harvard University. Katy has a deep commitment to giving back to the community, and is active in the recovery field as well as animal advocacy. She writes ‘The Bright Side’; a column about sobriety and authentic living.

Jennifer (Jenn) Stoudt is the Senior Data Manager at Rhode Island KIDS COUNT. Her responsibilities include include data conceptualization, collection, cleaning, management, and presentation to fulfill our mission, build public will, and support policy goals.

In the past decade, Jenn has worked in various data and analytics roles at DataSpark, Providence Public Schools, the R.I. Nurses Institute Middle College Charter High School, and Worcester Public Schools. She also serves on the Board of Directors for Girls on the Run Rhode Island and Thrive Behavioral Health.

Jenn is a proud first-generation college graduate and has earned a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism from the University of Maine, a Master of Arts in Teaching from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, a Master of Arts in Urban Education Policy from Brown University and is currently a Ph.D. Candidate, studying education policy, at the University of Rhode Island.

In her free time, you can find Jenn outside walking with her partner Warren and dog Aspen, on a boat looking for whales, and photographing pretty things and places.

Jessica is Senior Advocacy and Community Engagement Manager. Prior to joining Rhode Island KIDS COUNT, Jessica served as Dunamis Synergy Initiative Director at West Elmwood Housing Development Corporation, Program Director at Social Enterprise Greenhouse, and Skill Development Manager at Foster Forward. She also served as High School Advisor at College Crusade, Case Manager at Tides Family Services, and Home Health Case Manager at The Providence Center.

Jessica served on the Central Falls City Council and was most recently City Council President. Jessica also co-developed and facilitated Rhode Island’s first-ever participatory budgeting initiative, which provides a tangible way for the Central Falls community to engage in the democratic process for allocating how a pool of funds will be used. She also serves as Chair of the Central Falls Juvenile Hearing Board. Jessica has a Bachelor of Arts from Rhode Island College and a Master of Arts from Roger Williams University. Jessica has a strong commitment to race equity and is bilingual in English and Spanish.