DCFS Leadership

Leadership at DCFS

Marla McDade Williams

Administrator
 
Jacqueline Wade

Jacqueline Wade

Deputy Administrator

Dr. Jacqueline Wade joined the Division of Child and Family Services in 2006 and currently serves as the Deputy Administrator for Residential and Community Services. In this role, she is responsible for the leadership and strategic direction of Nevada’s Residential and Community Services: The Psychiatric Residential Treatment Facilities, Desert Willow Treatment Center, Mobile Crisis Response Teams, Outpatient Medication Clinic, Intensive Case Management Wraparound In Nevada, Early Childhood and Children’s Mental Health. Prior to joining DCFS, Dr. Jacqueline Wade served as the Coordinator of School Based Services at the University of Nevada School of Medicine Department of Psychiatry where on campus mental health services were provided to Clark County School District students and their families and adjunct faculty at University of Nevada, Las Vegas School of Social Work.

Dr. Wade has extensive clinical experience in the following settings: psychiatric hospitals, community-based services, adolescent group homes, convalescent hospitals, juvenile justice mental health departments, and clinical consultant to mental health agencies. Dr. Jacqueline Wade has experience in providing holistic client-centered therapeutic services to individuals across the life span i.e., children, adolescents, and couples. Additionally, she is a Board approved Clinical Social Work supervisor responsible for supervising students and Clinical Social Work interns.

Her professional interests are resiliency across the life span, challenges of families with limited English proficiency and access to mental health and healthcare services, people centric leadership, diversity and equity in the workplace, prevention services, and continued training and development of mental health professionals.

Email: jwade@dcfs.nv.gov

Sharon Anderson

Sharon Anderson

Deputy Administrator over Juvenile Justice Services
Sharon Anderson joined the Division of Child and Family Services in 2005 and currently serves as the Deputy Administrator for Juvenile Justice Services. In this role, she is responsible for the leadership, operations, and oversight of the statewide Juvenile Justice Programs Office, Youth Parole Bureau, and three state-operated residential juvenile justice facilities: Caliente Youth Center, Nevada Youth Training Center, and Summit View Youth Center. She joined the department in July 2005 as a Youth Parole Counselor, for the Nevada Youth Parole Bureau, where she specialized in gender-specific programming. She subsequently served at the same agency as a Senior Youth Parole Counselor and Unit Manager. She also served as the Committee Chairperson for the implementation of Juvenile Justice Reform Bills that passed during the 2017 Legislative sessions.

Prior to joining the Division of Child and Family Services, Sharon Anderson began her career in Human Services as a Residential Counselor for The Devereux Foundation, a residential facility for developmentally disabled individuals. She subsequently served as a Guidance Counselor/Group Worker at Rancho San Antonio, Boys Town of the West, a Corrections Officer with the Federal Bureau of Prisons for several years, and before moving to Las Vegas, Nevada, she worked as a Juvenile Probation Officer for the San Diego County Probation Department for 10 years.

She holds a bachelor's degree in sociology from the University of California, Santa Barbara, a master’s in social work administration from San Diego State University, and she is a Certified Public Manager.

Tonya Hernandez

Deputy Administrator over Child Welfare

Melanie Young

Deputy Administrator over Administrative Services

Tracey Reuck

Information Technology Manager

Tracey Reuck joined DCFS in 2022 and serves as the IT Manager III for the Division’s Information Services Team.  Tracey has extensive experience in leading complex IT engagements, large scale capital project planning, deployment, and operational support.  Prior to joining DCFS, she spent 4 years with the City of Sparks Police Department implementing new technologies, operational processes, and cloud services. Her career also includes 7 years as an Infrastructure Senior Manager at Accenture, 13 years as an Enterprise Computing Server Lead, Senior Infrastructure Consultant and Engagement Manager at Weyerhaeuser Company. Tracey has a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Information Systems from Chapman University and a Harvard Business School Certificate in Disruptive Strategies. 

Email: treuck@dcfs.nv.gov

Chelsea Heath

Systems Advocate
Chelsea Heath is a Social Services Chief 1 and serves as the Division’s Systems Advocate. The System Advocate oversees constituent services and serves as the Division’s public information officer, hearing officer, and legislative liaison, which includes listening to the public about their experience and concerns with Nevada’s child welfare, children’s mental health, juvenile justice, and victim services programs; review the information and determine the best way to move forward for a reasonable outcome. The Systems Advocate also responds to media requests for records, interviews, and agency statements.

Chelsea is a native Nevadan, born in Reno and raised in Carson City. She joined the Division in 2023. She began her career with the State of Nevada in 2007 as an Administrative Assistant and has served the State of Nevada for over 16 years. She has worked with the Secretary of State, the Division of Welfare and Supportive Services as a Family Services Specialist, and most recently as a Social Services Program Specialist with the Nevada Medicaid (Division of Health Care Financing and Policy) within the Long-Term Services & Supports unit where she was responsible for the oversight of eight program areas, serving the most vulnerable Nevadans.

Email: systems.advocate@dcfs.nv.gov