Krystal D. Henderson

Provide strategic leadership and oversight for the Hope Florida initiative, supporting families in achieving long-term self-sufficiency through education and community partnerships. Develop and implement programs that connect students and families with educational, social service, and workforce resources. Collaborate with school districts, state agencies, nonprofit organizations, and community partners to expand support services for families in need.

Hope Navigator Director - Department of Education - Tallahassee, FL

(2025-06)

• Provide strategic leadership and oversight for the Hope Florida initiative, supporting families in achieving long-term self-sufficiency through education and community partnerships.
• Develop and implement programs that connect students and families with educational, social service, and workforce resources.
• Collaborate with school districts, state agencies, nonprofit organizations, and community partners to expand support services for families in need.
• Oversee program operations including planning, implementation, evaluation, and reporting to ensure compliance with state policies and departmental goals.
• Lead and supervise program staff, providing training, guidance, and performance management to ensure effective service delivery.
• Analyze program data and outcomes to improve service effectiveness, identify gaps, and support evidence-based decision making.
• Coordinate outreach initiatives to increase community awareness and participation in Hope Florida services.
• Manage partnerships with faith-based organizations, nonprofits, and community leaders to strengthen support networks for students and families.
• Prepare and present reports, briefings, and program updates for leadership, stakeholders, and state officials.
• Ensure programs align with Florida Department of Education policies, state regulations, and strategic initiatives focused on family empowerment and educational success.

Hope Navigator - Department of Education - Tallahassee, FL

(2025-02 - 2025-06)

• Receiving cases from the Hope Line, or the BEESS Line and working with participants as a navigator to create a care plan with providing available programs and methods/referrals of attaining resources to meet the participant's goals.
• Conducting a person-centered, critical needs assessment to identify the participant's critical needs, formulating an appropriate list of referrals to partners that can assist the participant with services to meet their needs.
• Document all pertinent information and ensure that all appropriate forms are completed and uploaded into the program data tracking system accurately and in a timely manner.
• Provides follow-up and monitors connections to service delivery. Preparing correspondence, case notes, narratives, technical reports, notifications, and related documents using computer-based applications.
• Assisting customers in identifying and applying for appropriate benefits and services, providing referrals to other state agencies and other resources to support individuals and families.
• Participating in team meetings, community activities, outreach events, emergency or natural disaster response efforts, and other team efforts as required.
• Building and maintaining relationships with respect, trust, sensitivity and confidentiality to customers, coworkers and community stakeholders and partners.
• Actively participating in ongoing cross-program training and team meetings.

Healthy Start Visitor - Gadsden County Healthy Start - Quincy, FL

(2023-09)

• Drive to family home and deliver health, educational, nutritional and child growth and development information to parents via weekly meetings.
• Prenatal and parenting education using standardized, research informed curricula.
• Interoception education using a standardized curriculum.
• Screening for perinatal depression, intimate partner violence, tobacco/substance use and child development using validated tools at key intervals in pregnancy and following, delivery. Provide continued assessments to mothers and babies while enrolled in the program.
• Intervention pathways that ensure risk and healthcare barriers are being address with the help of Healthy Start staff. worker or through referrals to community providers to address screening results.
• Follow-up, through care coordination, to ensure participants access prenatal and post-natal. health services, and other needed community services.
• Anticipatory guidance and support to engage participants and build on their assets, strengths and goals.
• Providing counseling services when needed to the mothers in the program.

Program Director - Big Brother Big Sisters of the Big Bend - Tallahassee, FL

(2022-01 - 2025-02)

• Plans, leads and drives implementation of program success, designed to increase and strengthen Mentors and Mentees match relationships and youth development.
• Establishes and ensures a system for messaging and program quality assurance, and a relentless dedication to youth protection.
• Monitors operational effectiveness using workflow and tracking systems; gathers correct information for reports, tracks performance & develops measures to ensure growth, minimize Big Brothers Big Sisters risk and meet annual agency program goals.
• Develops and maintains positive working relationships with community, school, faith-based, and business leaders in the service area to educate them regarding the agency’s mission, promote involvement in agency activities, and gain their support of the agency.
• Develops strategy to meet the goals and targets established by leading and participating in volunteer recruitment and partnership development efforts.

Forensic Social Worker - Justice Administrative Commission - Tallahassee, FL

(2021-07 - 2021-10)

• Provide case management services and support to clients.
• Complete face-to-face intakes with clients upon case opening and keep ongoing contact with the clients for the duration of the legal case.
• Document work done on the client’s behalf in the case management system.
• Link and refer clients to appropriate services and resources.
• Communicate with attorneys regarding the client’s progress towards or barriers to success regarding the client’s service plan and regarding other relevant updates/changes in the client’s status.
• Interface with providers offering direct services to clients.
• Attend dependency court-related meetings and in-court proceedings to offer clinical insights to the attorney and act as a support person for clients.
• Attend and observe visitation between parent and child.
• Conduct visits with the client in their home or in the community; and,
• Participate in trainings on topics such as relevant clinical issues and current multidisciplinary best practices.

Social Work Services Program Consultant - Department of Health (Children’s Medical Services) - Tallahassee, FL

(2016-05 - 2021-07)

• Complete day-to-day administrative operations which include responding to regional and statewide requests for information regarding the Children’s Multidisciplinary Assessment Team
• Complete psycho-socials to determine development, educational, psychological, behavioral, social, and environmental factors.
• Participate in multidisciplinary team meetings and phone conferences.
• Assist with Behavioral Services
• Ensure all care coordination activities are objectively documented in the PMCC/EHR note section of the client medical record within one business day of the activity, using appropriate terminology and acronyms, relative to the activity.
• Ensure care coordinators work closely with patients on a one-on-one basis.
• Provide comprehensive care coordination services to children who are birth to twenty-one to ensure access to behavioral health and medical care.
• Complete extensive assessments of patient and family needs
• Provide support to the Behavioral Health Clinic

Mental Health Associate - Tallahassee Memorial Hospital - Tallahassee, FL

(2016-10 - 2021-01)

• Act as a supportive member of the team who performs delegated tasks within the scope of education and training in the areas of supportive listening, educational group leadership and specifically assigned patient care tasks, especially in the areas of physical intervention, safety, and maintenance of therapeutic milieu.
• Assist patients with activities of daily living (feeding, bathing, dressing, etc.), vital signs, height/weight and specialized tasks which may include Foley, NGT, ECG and Lab
• Utilize Crisis Prevention Intervention as needed.
• Utilize CPR as needed.

Adoption Case Manager - Children’s Home Society - Tallahassee, FL

(2014-10 - 2016-03)

• Provide adoption preparation services to foster care parents, foster care children, adoptive parents, and legal family members.
• Conduct recruitment efforts for foster care of children.
• Conduct adoption home studies of the prospective adoptive parents.
• Complete mandated reports and legal documentation for court hearings
• Conduct monthly home visits with foster care children.
• Provide adoption training and social services to adoptive and foster care families.
• Provide social work supportive services in the homes of foster care children, foster care parents and adoptive families.
• Participate in monthly supervisory meetings with supervisor.
• Prepare for and attend court hearings.
• Follow guidelines of social work code of ethics
• Maintain confidentiality of client and family information
• Offer post-adoption services to families.

Intern - Florida Department of Children and Families - Tallahassee, FL

(2014-01 - 2014-05)

• Utilize child protection knowledge, skills, and abilities.
• Utilize professional ethics relating to child protection and counseling.
• Utilize investigative techniques.
• Utilize family-centered interviewing and counseling techniques.
• Utilize interviewing techniques for children with and without parental presence.
• Identify problems, determine accuracy and relevance of information presented, and determine whether additional information needs to be sought.
• Manage personal time and the time of others well.
• Plan, organize and coordinate work assignments, with considerations of case management potentially getting involved.
• Communicate effectively.
• Maintain well-executed case files.
• Utilize the Florida Safe Families Network computer system.

Master of Social Work - Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University (2022)

Bachelor of Social Work - Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University (2014)

Associate of Arts - Tallahassee Community College (2011)