About Dr. Ali Caliendo
I work to improve outcomes for children and families by helping organizations and public systems turn good ideas into effective practice. My work draws on experience leading direct services, conducting research, building organizations, evaluating programs, and working alongside policymakers, practitioners, and families. I am particularly interested in how systems respond to complex human problems, why well-intentioned policies often produce unexpected results, and what it takes to create lasting change at scale.
In 2011, I founded Foster Kinship. I served as the Executive Director for 15 years, transforming a grassroots effort into Nevada’s statewide Kinship Navigator Program and the largest kinship support program in the United States. Under my leadership, the organization served more than 24,000 children and 13,000 families, earned a Promising rating from the Title IV-E Prevention Services Clearinghouse, and became a nationally recognized leader in kinship care policy and practice. Along the way, I learned that outcomes are rarely determined by policy alone. They are shaped by implementation, incentives, organizational capacity, relationships, and the countless decisions made by people throughout a system.
Expert in Child Welfare Policy and Practice
My research and teaching focus on the ways public policies, organizational systems, and implementation decisions shape outcomes for children and families. I am particularly interested in the translation of evidence into practice, the design of effective family support systems, and the unintended consequences that can emerge when research, policy, practice, and family realities become disconnected.
I am most interested in one question: how do we build systems that work better for the people they are intended to serve?
In addition to my nonprofit leadership experience, I serve as an Assistant Professor in Residence in the School of Public Policy and Leadership at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, where I teach courses in implementation, evaluation, and translating research into practice.
Through Kinship Policy Lab, I partner with governments, nonprofits, and communities to strengthen systems serving children and families.
A Personal and Professional Commitment
My perspective is shaped not only by professional experience but also by lived experience as a kinship caregiver, foster parent, adoptive parent, and parent of a child with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD). These experiences continue to inform my commitment to building policies and systems that are both evidence-informed and responsive to the realities families face every day.
Whether working with policymakers, researchers, nonprofit leaders, or practitioners, my goal remains the same: understanding systems, improving outcomes, and helping turn ideas into action.
At the center of all of it is the same commitment that started this journey: building systems that honor the dignity of children and families. I remain committed to advancing evidence-based, compassionate solutions in child welfare and to shaping leaders who can carry this work forward.
