James P. DeSantis, Ph.D.

James P. DeSantis is an applied developmental psychologist with 35 years of experience in research and evaluation, training and technical assistance in evaluation, and project management. His subject expertise includes child welfare services, child and adolescent development, capacity building, organizational and systems change, comprehensive two-generation family support programs, and substance use prevention and treatment. He is a seasoned manager and has served as vice president at JBA for nearly 20 years. DeSantis currently leads the Child Welfare practice area.

DeSantis is the project director for the Cross-Center Evaluation of the Child Welfare Capacity Building Collaborative, Phase 2, a 5-year evaluation funded by the Administration for Children and Families (ACF). He is the corporate supervisor and monitor for several other ACF projects, including Technical Assistance on Evaluation for Discretionary Grant Programs and Infant-Toddler Court Program Evaluation.

DeSantis has directed other large-scale, national research and evaluation projects at JBA, including the Cross-Site Evaluation of Child Welfare Implementation Centers and National Resource Centers. He served as project director, and later as corporate monitor, for projects on Adaptable Evaluation Training and Technical Assistance for Healthy Marriage, Promoting Responsible Fatherhood, and Tribal/Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Child Welfare Grantees. He was also corporate supervisor for the following projects: National Cross-Site Evaluation of the Replication of Demonstrated Effective Prevention Programs, Trauma-Informed Approaches: Connecting Research, Policy, and Practice to Build Resilience in Children and Families projects, and Effects of Prenatal Alcohol and Other Drug Programs on Foster Care Prevention and Rapid Reunification: Lived Experience Views.

As project director for the Evaluation Technical Assistance and Cross-Site Evaluation of Early Head Start-Child Welfare Services Demonstration Grants, DeSantis managed technical assistance advisors; helped develop evaluation tools, resources, and reports; and presented findings at conferences and briefings for the Administration on Children, Youth and Families commissioner and Federal Interagency Workgroup on Child Abuse and Neglect. He received a Ph.D. in developmental psychology from The Catholic University of America.