2022 Women's Leadership Luncheon

Wednesday, March 23, 2022

University of St. Thomas
Anderson Student Center
James B. Wolfe Alumni Hall
2115 Summit Ave.
St. Paul, Minnesota

Directions and parking instructions (PDF)

Jody Nelson, Ed.D., LMFT, uses creativity, experience and relationship-building as she discovers the best ways to serve urban populations challenged by systemic racism and poverty. Dr. Nelson is the executive director of Change Inc., a community-based social service agency with three main service areas. First, it serves as a GAP School, which could be considered an alternative high school, and was founded in 1967 by a School Sister of Notre Dame, Sister Giovannie Gourhan. The program serves students that include a large proportion of immigrants and refugees, ages 16 to 24, in a program leading to a high school diploma or an industry recognized certificate in construction, health or informational technology. Second, the community school collaborative provides school-based mental health services in 25 schools in the Twin Cities. Lastly, the Change Institute provides supervision, training and consultation in the areas of mental health and urban education.

Dr. Nelson holds a master's in counseling psychology and a doctorate in education in educational leadership from the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minnesota. She has served as department chair for the Master of Arts Marriage and Family Therapy and Doctorate of Marriage and Family Therapy programs at the Twin Cities Argosy University campus. Dr. Nelson currently teaches in the graduate Marriage and Family Therapy program at St. Mary’s University in Minneapolis. She has trained school staff and clinicians locally and nationally in trauma-informed care, which are practices that promote a culture of safety, empowerment and healing.

Dr. Nelson enjoys reading, walking her Bernese Mountain dog and playing with her grand-daughters as often as possible.

For more information, contact:
Heather Spann | 507-389-4230 | hspann@ssndcp.org