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DCF Commissioner nominee Jodi Hill-Lilly speaks with former Speaker of the House of Representatives Richard Balducci prior to a hearing. Credit: Shahrzad Rasekh / CT Mirror

Connecticut Department of Children and Families Commissioner Jodi Hill-Lilly is leaving her post for a job at a national nonprofit less than two years into the role.

Hill-Lilly was nominated by Gov. Ned Lamont to be DCF Commissioner and underwent confirmation hearings last year.

Her departure comes at a time when the state is still waiting for another role key to child welfare — leading the state’s office of the child advocate — to be filled. OCA has not seen a permanent replacement since Sarah Eagan resigned more than a year ago.

Hill-Lilly was the second Black commissioner of the agency, following the departure last year of Vannessa Dorantes, who was the first. Hill-Lilly had previously served as deputy commissioner of DCF.

DCF is the agency charged with managing the care of thousands of children who enter the foster system. It also oversees programs that provide mental health care for kids and investigates reports of child abuse and neglect.

“Over the past 18 months, I was reminded daily of the critical role we all play in the lives of children. While there is still much work ahead, I’m proud of the work we have done together in the system,” Hill-Lilly said in a statement. “… As I step into this national role, I do so with hope and urgency, knowing our most vulnerable need us now more than ever. My roots and my heart will always be in the great State of Connecticut.”

In a press release, Lamont praised Hill-Lilly for her work over the past 37 years at DCF, beginning as a case management social worker.

“Jodi is one of the hardest working and most compassionate people I know, and her service to our state has absolutely made a positive impact on the lives of our youngest and most vulnerable residents,” Lamont said in the release. “Jodi truly stands as an example of what it means to serve the public and care about your community and its future, which is why I am not at all surprised that a nationwide child advocacy organization saw her talents and asked her to join their team.”

Hill-Lilly will become the director of the Child Well-Being Program at the Doris Duke Foundation, which works to “build a more creative, equitable and sustainable future by investing in artists and the performing arts, environmental conservation, medical research, child well-being and greater mutual understanding among diverse communities.”

In a statement, the legislature’s Committee on Children co-chair Sen. Ceci Maher, D-Wilton, wished Hill-Lilly the best.

“Her national recognition for her detailed, meaningful approach to this work reflects the care and compassion she has shown throughout her time at DCF,” Maher’s statement said.

Ahead of taking on the role of commissioner, Hill-Lilly oversaw the department’s administrative functions such as human resources, the Academy for Workforce Development and fiscal services, among other areas.

She has also served on the faculty for the National Child Welfare Workforce Institute and as vice president of the National Staff Development Training Association. She led DCF’s initiative on racial justice.

During her time as commissioner, Hill-Lilly has said she was focused on mental health services and helping families recover after the COVID-19 pandemic. 

“I will listen, I will learn, I will partner and I will act,” she said during her confirmation process. “My ultimate goal is to continue the great work started and go a little deeper. We will remain responsive to the emergent needs, particularly post-pandemic.”

Under her leadership, DCF has launched enhancements to the Specialized, Trauma-Informed, Treatment, Assessment and Reunification homes, or STTAR homes. The agency announced enhancements to the emergency shelters for kids, including the opening of two new treatment centers, after highly publicized reports of abuse and neglect at one home in Harwinton.

During Hill-Lilly’s tenure, the agency has also launched a new case management software system after years of using an outdated program.

Hill-Lilly is the second DCF commissioner to serve under Lamont’s administration. Her predecessor, Vannessa Dorantes left the agency at the beginning of 2024 after being appointed commissioner in 2019, at the start of Lamont’s first term.

Hill-Lily’s announcement comes just a couple of months after DCF Deputy Commissioner Michael Williams left the agency for a new role in Oklahoma child welfare.

Hill-Lilly earns about $250,000 annually, according to state records.

Laura Tillman is CT Mirror’s Human Services Reporter. She shares responsibility for covering housing, child protection, mental health and addiction, developmental disabilities, and other vulnerable populations. Laura began her career in journalism at the Brownsville Herald in 2007, covering the U.S.–Mexico border, and worked as a statehouse reporter for the Associated Press in Mississippi. She was most recently a producer of the national security podcast “In the Room with Peter Bergen” and is the author of two nonfiction books: The Long Shadow of Small Ghosts (2016) and The Migrant Chef: The Life and Times of Lalo Garcia (2023), which was just awarded the 2024 James Beard Award for literary writing. Her freelance work has appeared in The Wall Street Journal, New York Times and The Los Angeles Times. Laura holds a degree in International Studies from Vassar College and an MFA in nonfiction writing from Goucher College.

Ginny is CT Mirror's children's issues and housing reporter. She covers a variety of topics ranging from child welfare to affordable housing and zoning. Ginny grew up in Arkansas and graduated from the University of Arkansas' Lemke School of Journalism in 2017. She began her career at the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette where she covered housing, homelessness, and juvenile justice on the investigations team. Along the way Ginny was awarded a 2019 Data Fellowship through the Annenberg Center for Health Journalism at the University of Southern California. She moved to Connecticut in 2021.