About me
Jodi Hill-Lilly is the Director of Child Well-Being at the Doris Duke Foundation (DDF), where she leads a national portfolio focused on fundamentally reimagining how systems serve children, youth, and families—shifting investment and practice further upstream to prevent involvement in the child welfare system and ensure families have the support they need to thrive. A recognized systems innovator, she advances transformative strategies that move beyond intervention toward prevention and long-term well-being. She joined DDF in August 2025 following a distinguished 37-year career with the Connecticut Department of Children and Families (DCF), where she rose from front-line social worker to Commissioner.
Appointed Commissioner of DCF by Governor Ned Lamont in December 2023, Hill-Lilly was recognized for her compassion and her measurable impact on the lives of the state’s most vulnerable children and families. She led with a clear vision for change—championing workforce development, driving system modernization, and leveraging cross-sector partnerships to improve outcomes. Her leadership centered on strengthening child safety and permanency while pushing the system to better serve young children and transitional-aged youth.
Prior to her appointment as Commissioner, Hill-Lilly served as Deputy Commissioner of Administration, where she oversaw fiscal services, human resources, the Academy for Workforce Development, information systems, and systems development—advancing strategies to ensure all children and families have the opportunity to thrive.
A highly sought-after speaker and trainer, Hill-Lilly has spent more than two decades influencing the national child welfare field as a consultant on federal and state initiatives. She is known for challenging conventional approaches and equipping leaders with actionable strategies that drive systemic change and improve outcomes for children and families.
Hill-Lilly holds both bachelor’s and master’s degrees in social work. Throughout her career, she has remained deeply committed to strengthening the child welfare workforce, grounded in her belief that investing in and supporting those who serve is essential to improving outcomes for children and families. She sees workforce development and partnering with families with lived expertise not as parallel priorities, but as central strategies for ensuring families receive the support they need to thrive.
