Audrey Smolkin, MPP

Audrey Smolkin is the Executive Director of the Center on Child Wellbeing & Trauma at the Office of the Child Advocate (OCA). Prior to transitioning to the OCA, Audrey was the former Director of Child and Family Policy at ForHealth Consulting at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. Audrey was instrumental in planning for and launching the Center in 2021, which serves as a hub of information, trainings, and technical assistance for Massachusetts child-serving organizations seeking to become more trauma-informed and responsive.

Audrey has worked on state and national policies related to children and families for over two decades. Previously, she developed new programs, research, and evidence-based policy initiatives related to children and families, including partnering with the Massachusetts Department of Children and Families on medical care for children in the care of the department as well as management related to a statewide network of Family Resource Centers.

Before coming to UMass Medical School, Audrey was a Presidential Fellow serving in a variety of roles during the Clinton Administration. This included work as a senior legislative analyst at the Administration for Children and Families. In that capacity, she worked on estimating the federal costs of various welfare and child welfare legislation. She also served as the lead budget and policy analyst on a major childcare expansion.

Audrey received her master’s degree in public policy from the University of Chicago and earned her bachelor’s degree in psychology at the University of Pennsylvania.