Kate Goudy staff

Kate Goudy, Contract Manager

Kate received her bachelor’s degree in social work and her master’s degree in family and consumer sciences from Iowa State University. She has 20+ years of experience in the Human Sciences field, including direct care, leading teams, coaching employees, and developing multifaceted training and outreach programs. Kate has been with ISU’s Child Welfare Research & Training Project since 2010; she manages the ISU-Iowa Child Support contract. Under Kate’s leadership, the contract and staff have grown to provide training, research, and outreach services statewide. Kate is a life-long Cyclone fan, enjoys exploring national parks, and being a Mom.

Angela Braggs staff

Angela Braggs, Manager Instructional Design

Angela Braggs earned her Bachelor of Arts in Journalism and Public Relations from Arizona State University. Angela worked most recently as a journalist and workflow analyst, designing and editing as well as teaching software, troubleshooting technical issues and training standards and best practices for newspapers all across the country. In September 2019, she began work as an Instructional Development Specialist with the Iowa State University Child Welfare Research and Training Project. Angela lives in Urbandale with her husband, son and two dogs, and spends most of her spare time proudly (and loudly) cheering for her son year-round from the sidelines of many different sports.

Ginger Monroe staff

Ginger Monroe, Instructional Designer

Ginger received her Bachelors of Science in food science from Mary Crest College in Davenport, IA. She worked as a dietitian in Davenport from 1983 through 1988. Upon relocating to Ames, Ginger began working with individuals with mental/development disabilities. She now has over 20 years experience working in the Human Services field including acting as a supervisor for a mentally ill group home, supported community-based services and assisting in opening a low stimulus ward for geriatric mentally ill individuals. Ginger started working as a Trainer/Technical Writer with the Iowa State University Child Welfare Research & Training Project in August of 2012.

Holly Wengert staff

Holly Wengert, Instructional Designer

Holly received her Bachelors of Science in Physical Education from the University of Iowa. After graduating, she went to work at a children’s activity center coaching gymnastics. While managing that facility she decided to go back to school and earned a Master's in Business Leadership from William Penn University. Most recently, Holly was the Director of Online Learning at William Penn. That role entailed training faculty and students, developing online courses, and overseeing the day to day process of online classes. Holly lives in Bondurant with her husband and two sons. In her free time, you can most likely find her at the gym.

Jay Grey staff

Jay Grey, Instructional Designer

Jay received his undergraduate degree in psychology from Northern State University (South Dakota) and an anthropology degree from Iowa State University. He is currently working toward completing his Masters Degree in public administration at Iowa State. He has 17 years of experience in the human services field, including extensive work with individuals with developmental disabilities and children with behavioral disorders. His most current position was with the Medicaid Home and Community Based Services (HCBS) program where he worked as an HCBS specialist. Prior to HCBS, he was a residential manager at Beloit of Lutheran Services in Iowa, a residential treatment center for children. In September of 2008, he began work as a Technical Writer/Trainer with the Iowa State University Child Welfare Research & Training Project.

Jenny Parker

Jenny Parker, Instructional Designer

Jenny graduated from Iowa State University with a bachelor's degree in Journalism and Mass Communication. During her time at ISU, she worked for a municipal television station in her hometown as she had intentions to establish a career working in broadcast television. After graduation, she was hired to create instructional videos for an employee training and development department. During that time, she discovered her passion for creating and implementing online trainings. In October 2020 she joined the CWRTP as the Instructional Technology Specialist for the Service Training Team, and in July 2021 joined the CSRU Contract Team as an Instructional Designer.

Martha Stewart staff

Martha Stewart, Instructional Designer

Martha received her undergraduate degree from Grinnell College (1980), and completed two Masters Degrees at Iowa State University, one in anthropology (1985) and one in economics (1990). She worked for several years as Field Director for the Center for Family Research at Iowa State University, doing questionnaire design and interviewer training. She next worked as a Database Administrator for the Office of Sponsored Programs at Iowa State University, doing database reporting and training database users. In 2003, she began work as a Technical Writer/Trainer with the Iowa State University Child Welfare Project, providing both written and in-person training resources for the Iowa Child Support Recovery Unit.

Rachel Ogden staff

Rachel Ogden, Instructional Designer

Rachel earned her Undergraduate degree in Psychology from Iowa State University and a Master’s degree in Organizational Psychology from the University of the Rockies. She has more than nine years of experience in the Human Services and training. In May 2015, she began work as a Technical Writer/Trainer with Iowa State University, Child Welfare Research and Training Project and is currently an Instructional Designer II. Rachel currently lives in Altoona with her husband, daughter, son and two dogs. Rachel enjoys all things nature, adventure and travel.

Marc Shoemakerstaff

Marc Shoemaker, Instructional Technology Specialist

Marc earned his bachelor’s degree in mathematics at the University of Iowa and quickly learned that teaching high school math wasn’t for him. Since then, he’s been in the education field in some capacity for nearly 20 years. As a teacher, corporate trainer, curriculum designer and e-learning administrator for various companies and industries, the one constant is the enjoyment that comes from sharing new things with people and getting to watch them have their own “light bulb” moments. Marc enjoys sports, movies, the occasional good book, and spending time with his two children (while they are still in the house.)

Ann 'Jalynn' Almond staff

Ann "Jalynn" Almond, Legal Analyst

Jalynn earned her Bachelor of Arts in psychology from the University of Central Florida in 1988. She lived and worked in Berlin, Germany “before, during, and after the wall” until returning to the U.S. to attend law school at the University of Baltimore. She graduated from law school and passed the Maryland Bar in 1995, and thereafter practiced law in Maryland for 15 years. She subsequently received her Master of Laws degree in environmental law from Vermont Law School and her Doctor of Philosophy in sustainable agriculture from Iowa State University. Jalynn joined the team as a legal consultant in late 2017, providing legal research support to the Child Support Recovery Unit and attorneys within the Child Support Unit of the Office of the Iowa Attorney General. When she is not working, Jalynn is either milking her cow, Sanilla, or working with her spouse on other projects on their small farm in north-central Iowa.

Matthew Femrite staff

Matthew Femrite, Legal Analyst

Matthew earned his Bachelor of Arts in history from Knox College in 2005 and his Juris Doctor from Drake University Law School in December 2012. He was admitted to the Missouri Bar in 2013, where he briefly practiced law. He returned to Iowa in 2014 and began working at the Iowa Civil Rights Commission. While there, he evaluated complaints to determine whether a full investigation was warranted, conducted investigations, and mediated complaints. He also was admitted to the Iowa Bar in 2015. In September 2018, Matthew began working as a Legal Consultant with the Iowa State University Child Welfare Research and Training Project. In his free time, Matthew enjoys watching movies with his wife and two cats.

Miles Tritle staff

Miles Tritle, Marketing Specialist

Miles joined CWRTP in 2019 as the first Communications Specialist on the contract. He graduated from Iowa State in 2018 with a bachelor's degree in Public Relations. Miles' professional experience includes a variety of communication formats including social media, graphic design, podcasting, print and digital media, and more. His daughter keeps him busy, but he enjoys playing guitar and writing music at his home studio in his spare time.

Amy Peters staff

Amy Peters, Program Specialist, Voluntary Paternity Affidavit

Amy Peters, LMSW, joined CWRTP in September 2016 as a Human Services Training Facilitator. She received her Bachelor of Arts in social work from Marquette University, and her Master of Social Work from the University of Kansas. Ms. Peters has over 20 years experience working in adult mental health services in Iowa, including community, facility, and correctional based programs. She was a member of the Story County Mental Health / Criminal Justice Task Force, serving as Chair for the last two years.

Jo Ann Lee staff

Jo Ann Lee, Program Specialist, Parenting: It's a Life

Jo Ann holds a Bachelor of Arts in sociology and criminal justice from Graceland University, and holds a Master's in leadership and development from Drake University. She joined the CWRTP in April 2013 as a trainer, and became the program director for Parenting: It's A Life in March 2016. Jo Ann has worked in the child welfare arena since 2007. She served as a foster and adoptive licensing worker at Children’s Square USA/Iowa Kids Net, and as a behavioral health intervention specialist with Sequelcare of Iowa. She also worked for the Department of Corrections as a counselor and program coordinator, coordinating offender education planning to meet parole board recommendations.

Rhonda Evans staff

Rhonda Evans, Program Specialist, Parenting: It's a Life

Rhonda received her bachelor’s degree in English from Iowa State University. She has 18+ years of experience teaching in academic co-ops and private education. In September 2018 Rhonda began working as the program coordinator for Parenting: It’s a Life under Iowa State University’s Child Welfare Research and Training Project. After living in states across the Midwest, she and her husband are excited to return to their alma mater and rediscover all the university town has to offer. She loves music, reading, and traveling—especially to see her four kids who are scattered around the world.

Olivia

Olivia Schaller, Lead Facilitator, Parenting: It's a Life

Olivia received her Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology from Iowa State University in May of 2022. During her time as an undergraduate student, she worked for Parenting: It’s a life as a facilitator. Some of the tasks and projects she took on with PIAL included presenting in classrooms, managing different social media platforms, and working with surveys. In her free time, Olivia enjoys exercising, reading, spending time with family and friends, and boating.

Tom Nelson

Thomas Nelson, Social Media Specialist

Thomas graduated from Iowa State University with a bachelor's degree in Journalism and Mass Communication. In the middle of his time at ISU Thomas enlisted in the United States Marine Corps and served as Administrative Specialist from 2011 to 2015. During his time at ISU, he worked at the Iowa State Daily and did his internship at IowaWatch, an Investigative Midwest Newsroom. After graduation, he worked as a newspaper reporter in Charles City, Waterloo, Cedar Falls and Marshalltown. In 2020 he made the transition from journalism to marketing communications working with the Crop Protection Network and SHAZAM Inc. In August 2022 he joined the ISU-Iowa Child Support Contract as a Social Media Specialist.