Jeanette Holdbrook

Jeanette Holdbrook specializes in helping human services practitioners transform their programs to better serve families through evidence-informed decision making and accessible analytic methods. With experience conducting formative and implementation research in workforce development and public assistance programs, she has led program redesigns, quality improvement efforts, and the development of practitioner-friendly tools for programs across the country.

Holdbrook has held leadership roles on a range of technical assistance and research projects for federal clients. She currently oversees the design and delivery of a large portfolio of technical assistance activities that support state and Tribal TANF programs for OFA’s STAR project. For OPRE, Holdbrook led the development of a widely-downloaded toolkit and formative research for the TANF and Child Support Moving Forward project. She is currently a state coach and peer learning lead for OPRE’s SUPPORTT, helping to prepare states participating in the Fiscal Responsibility Act pilots for an implementation and outcomes evaluation. Holdbrook has also led descriptive research for ASPE on states’ TANF spending on child welfare and child care services.

Since 2017, Holdbrook has coached state and local TANF programs, workforce development programs, and community-based organizations to redesign and modernize services. For example, she has helped the Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services TANF program build leadership capacity, better align policy and service delivery, and implement an employment coaching model. She led a four-year project with Philadelphia Works to redesign Philadelphia’s TANF employment and training program, partnered with North Carolina to develop and implement an electronic TANF application, and supported Kentucky’s efforts to increase prevention services for TANF participants. She has also designed and facilitated trainings for program leaders and staff on rapid-cycle learning and testing, data collection methods, and leadership.

With seven years of experience working in public health-focused nonprofit organizations in Philadelphia, including coordinating a nutrition education program for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program recipients, Holdbrook is passionate about improving service delivery, processes, and policies to better meet families’ needs. She holds a master’s in public administration from Rutgers University.