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Joan Hinkelman, MSSA, LISW-S

Senior Director of Family Services

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Joan Hinkelman, senior director of family services, joined Catholic Charities in 2007. Since she began her career as a social worker in 1991, Joan has focused on the intricacies of family health services. Currently, she coordinates and directs site activities in the family services division throughout Catholic Charities— these services include five early learning programs and three family centers, and family supportive services, including foster care and adoption, providing for clients ranging from birth to over 100 years.

Joan began her career at Catholic Charities in the Pre-Employment Screening Program. After obtaining her LISW and LISW-S Joan moved into a supervisory position in Community Based Services and became the chief clinical officer for the organization. After a few years Joan transitioned to director of the community based services program. While chief clinical officer, she systematized all the behavioral health programs’ forms in the electronic health record database, Avatar.

In 2016 Joan became the Associate Executive Director of Community Services and then the senior director of family services. As senior director, working at both the micro and macro levels, Joan advocates for her staff and makes sure the programs get what they need. She works behind the scene to ensure family services run smoothly. She is in the process of facilitating the opening of a new family center in Euclid. From petitioning the department of senior and adult services for funds, to engaging with contractors, clients, programs and staff, she makes sure all the moving pieces align.

Joan is a talented writer, navigating local, state, and federal grants. With an astute awareness of her audience, she is able to skillfully manage funding partnerships for maximum results. She liaisons between funders, staff, and clients to guarantee success.

Joan’s achievements stem from her experiences at Case Western Reserve University, Cuyahoga County Board of Health, and MetroHealth. As research associate III at Case Western Reserve University, she assisted with the design and implementation of interventions as part of a randomized clinical trial involving family medicine practices. Taking information from the research, she provided data to educate primary caregivers from the metro area of Cleveland. Preceding her work at Case Western Reserve, she oversaw the Children and Family Health Services Grant administered by the Cuyahoga County Board of Health, providing oversight to agencies receiving funding, including fiscal management. Her work there allowed her to identify gaps in services related to maternal and child health care. During her six-year tenure at MetroHealth, Joan served as a social worker in the area of maternal and child health where she was certified to provide HIV testing and counseling, making her a pioneer practitioner during the height of the AIDS epidemic.

She was later promoted to the intake liaison position in psychiatry.

Joan holds a bachelor’s of science in Social Work from Cleveland State University and deciding to transition out of direct services, she earned a master’s in Social Science Administration from Case Western Reserve University. She is also the co-chair of the Aging Steering Committee for Catholic Charities USA.