Permanency Quality Assurance Team, Department of Children, Youth, and Families, Elisha and Nicole.

Elisha graduated from St. Cloud State University in 2010 with a bachelor’s of science – social work. Elisha holds her LSW license through the Minnesota Board of Social Work and currently works for the Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF). Within DCYF, Elisha started in Family Systems Licensing as a program consultant for foster care, community residential settings, and child placing agencies. In March of 2018, Elisha joined Child Safety & Permanency as a Permanency Quality Assurance Consultant for Northstar Adoption & Kinship Assistance. Prior to DCYF, Elisha worked for different county systems primarily practicing in child welfare and child protection including adult & relative child foster care licensing, on-going child protection case management, and relative search.

Nicole obtained a BSW from Winona State University in 2014 and a MSW from Winona State University in 2024. Nicole holds a LGSW license through the Minnesota Board of Social Work. Nicole was a Title IV-E scholar through her graduate program with a focus on child welfare. Nicole currently works for DCYF in the Child Safety & Permanency administration as a Permanency Quality Assurance Consultant. Prior to joining the DCYF team, Nicole had 10 years of social work practice experience and has practiced with a variety of populations including: the aging population, mental health case management and ARMHS, jail social work, waiver case management, and spent the past 5 years practicing in child welfare: including child protection, permanency, ICPC, and licensing. Nicole is a NASW Certified Supervisor, and holds certificates in Permanency and Adoption Competency, as well as Policy Practice.