1. Jessie-Mae E. Secord
1200 Holmes Rd
Ypsilanti, MI 48198
jessiemae.secord@gmail.com
734-576-3692
March 13, 2016
To Whom It May Concern:
I am seeking new employment working withan organization where I can utilize my diverse
set of skills to advocate for and empower at-risk children and families while working to
strengthen our communities.
In my current position, I have spent 9 years as a Wendy’s Wonderful Kids Adoption
Recruiter, locating families for over one hundred of the longest waiting and hardest to
place children in foster care, the majority of which are older children and teens with
developmental disabilities, emotional impairments, and other special needs. I took the initiative
to create new systems, procedures, trainings, and creative recruitment techniques to
increase productivity in what was previously a failing program, and bring it up to national
standards. My success is largely due to my ability to build relationships with children and
families, networkand collaborate withprofessionals on the recruitment team, and my passion for
and dedication to nurturing children’s strengths to overcometheir challenges and reach their full
potential. I advocatefor children through guiding and educating their caretakers on resources,
trainings, and support services to improve awareness of developmental, emotional, physical, and
educational needs of their children. I take a holistic approach to child recruitment by examining all
factorsof a child’s history, special needs, and family characteristics, and how those dynamics
influence the child and family’s functionality.I strongly believe that parents need support and
services to build upon their ownskills and strengths and learn new techniques to meet their
child’s needs. In my current role I have also provided supervision forand nurtured the
development of Masters level interns as they are oriented to the child welfarefield and provide
recruitment services to their own caseload of clients.
I would appreciate the opportunity to meet with you to discuss how I may benefit your
organization in any future job openings as they may arise, and willbe contacting youshortly to
schedule a meeting at yourconvenience. Thank you fortaking the time to review my attached
resume. I look forwardto speaking with you about my qualifications to join your team.
Sincerely,
Jessie-Mae Secord

2. Jessie-Mae E. Secord
1200 Holmes Rd
Ypsilanti, MI 48198
jessiemae.secord@gmail.com
734-576-3692
Objective: To find fulfilling employment with an organization where I can utilize my
diverse set of skills to advocate for and empower at-risk children and families while
working to strengthen our communities.
Wendy’s Wonderful Kids Adoption Recruiter; Family Service & Children’s Aid;
Jackson, Michigan; April 2007 – Present
Find adoptive homes for the children assigned to the WWK program and increase
awareness around the need for adoptive homes for older children, sibling groups, and/or
children with special needs.
 Building and maintaining an active caseload of 12-15 foster children and/or sibling
groups in need of active adoption recruitment as well as monitoring children in
pre-adoptive placements until finalization; providing advocacy and assisting in
identifying services to improve clients quality of life
 Working with numerous adoption agencies to identify and recruit children for the
caseload, and develop a relationship with the child and his/her team to learn about
their special needs, preferences, and interests; and build an individualized
recruitment plan specific to that child’s needs
 Case file and data mining, analysis, and interpretation. Database management,
input and tracking for Child Trends, a national children’s research organization
 Researching the case file for possible adoptive resources. Recruiting adoptive
families for special needs children utilizing extensive internet search techniques to
locate relatives and other members of the child’s social network
 Prepare families to meet the needs of children in the program through the
matching and transition process by providing resources, training, and identifying
services and supports for children and their families.
 Creating and implementing new recruitment materials, resources, and marketing
techniques such as newsletters, child flyers, Power Point presentations, websites,
and blogs. Developing innovative trainings for foster and adoptive parents
 Building relationships with adoption professionals, prospective adoptive families,
biological families, and important members of the child’s network
 Supervise Masters of Social Work interns in the Wendy’s Wonderful Kids program
as they recruit for a small caseload of children.
 Thorough documentation of case records, complete reports, develop the program
budget, and write grant renewal applications in a timely manner
 Coordinating general adoption awareness efforts with MARE, AdoptUSKids,
Adoption Resource Center, National Adoption Month/Day, A Home for the Holidays
television special, and other media outlets
 Participating in fundraising such as Fathers Day Frosty Weekend and the Stanton
Charity Golf Classic Annual Pairings Party and Adoption Benefit

3. Adoptive Family Assessor (contractual); Family Service & Children’s Aid, Jackson,
Michigan; November 2008 – April 2010
Assisted families through the adoption process, wrote family assessments
 Assisted families in the home study process
 Provided training, guidance, and support to adoptive families
 Assisted families through the adoption process through dual roles as the home
study writer as well as the adoption recruiter for their child
Assistant Teacher; Bright Horizons; Pete Pestillo Child Development Center;
Ypsilanti, Michigan; Bill Ford Child Development Center; Dearborn, Michigan;
October, 2005 – April, 2007
 Assistant Teacher, ages infant through kindergarten 
 Supervised and directed children
 Coordinated with the Guidance Center in implementing Individual Action Plans and
facilitated parent-child/parent-teacher liaisons
 Assisted teacher and lead teacher
 Created and brainstormed on lesson plans tailored to children’s developmental stage and
interest
 Created documentation and newsletters
Ensured adherence to NAEYC accreditation standards
Education
Eastern Michigan University; Ypsilanti, MI
Bachelor of Social Work August 2004
GPA 3.64, graduated cum laude
Additional Roles and Responsibilities
Collaborating with the Human Rights Campaign on the All Children - All Families Initiative
Presenting Diligent Search Techniques (Family Finding & Internet Search Techniques) at a
national adoption summit
Training & Experience
Special education advocacy; cultural frameworks in parenting; crisis intervention;
advocacy for clients with physical, emotional, behavioral, mental, and learning
impairments; Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders; Autism; medical advocacy & support;
family recruitment, assessment, and training; child-focused recruitment strategies;
Adoption and Foster Care Licensing; Youth In Transition; internet search techniques
Computer experience
Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, Power Point), Adobe Photoshop & InDesign, Web
Blogging, social media, type approximately 80 wpm