Samantha A. Fried

Samantha Fried has worked in child welfare for over ten years. She began her career as a therapeutic case planner at New Alternatives For Children, a foster care agency in New York City that serves medically fragile children and those with other special needs. She then spent four years as a Forensic Social Worker at the Legal Aid Society’s Juvenile Rights Practice, where she worked alongside attorneys to represent children in child protective and juvenile delinquency proceedings in Brooklyn Family Court. Samantha transitioned to project management at the Center for Court Innovation, where she oversaw a federal grant from the Office for Victims of Crime of the United States Department of Justice – Child Victims and Witnesses Support Materials. This national project involved creating a package of interactive materials for children and justice system practitioners to facilitate the provision of effective, developmentally appropriate court support to children involved in state, federal and tribal court settings in criminal and civil cases.

Samantha is currently the Director of Program Planning at JCCA (formerly Jewish Child Care Association), where she works on agency-wide best practice initiatives to advance, support, and improve the delivery of child welfare and mental health services to children and families. Samantha has presented at conferences around the country about best practice work in preparing children for court, and has taught as an Adjunct Professor at the Columbia School of Social Work, New York University’s Silver School of Social Work, and the Fordham University School of Law and Graduate School of Social Service. She sits on the board of City Living NY, a Brooklyn-based agency that empowers young people who age out of the foster care system to transition successfully into adulthood. Samantha holds a B.A. in Psychology from the University of Michigan and an M.S.S.W. with a Minor in Law from Columbia University. Samantha is passionate about child welfare and Family Court reform, with a specific emphasis on an increased voice for children.