Since co-founding the Center for Child Protection and Family Support in 1987, Joyce N. Thomas, has served as President and CEO providing leadership for quality services to children and families. For almost four decades, Ms. Thomas has made significant contributions to the field of children's services in the District of Columbia and throughout the globe.

She is an advanced practice pediatric nurse and program administrator who maintains "first hand" experience as a specialist in prevention of child maltreatment. She is former President of the American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children, and former director of the Division of Child Protection (now known as the Freddie Mac Child and Adolescent Protection Center) at Children's National Medical Center in Washington, DC.

Ms. Thomas is a Fellow in the American Academy of Nursing and is recognized as a premier nurse leader and scholar in the field of child maltreatment. She currently serves as a member of the DC Mayor's Advisory Committee on Child Welfare, the DC Council on Young Child Wellness, the Institute on Domestic Violence in the African American Community, the Steering Committee of National Conference on Domestic Violence and Health, and the National Partnership to End Intimate Partner Violence.

Ms. Thomas has received awards as: Humanitarian of the Year; T. Barry Brazelton First Lecture Award; Distinguished Black Marylander; Makosky Award from the University of Maryland, School of Social Work, Delta Research and Educational Foundation; Institute on Domestic Violence in the African American Community; DC Department of Health; and the American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children.

Ms. Thomas has been the invited guest of the President of the United States, the Attorney General of the United States, and the Surgeon General of the United States to provide critical input for policy development on a host of topic related to the safety and protection of children and families. She has authored numerous professional articles, testified before Congress, and lectured to audiences throughout the globe. She has served on the faculty of Trinity College in Washington, DC, and is an Adjunct Faculty member of Johns Hopkins University, School of Nursing. She is a regular guest lecturer at the University of Maryland, School of Social Work.