Meet

Our Leadership

A kin-first approach

Leading With Heart. Rooted in Kin.

At Kinnect, we believe lasting change starts with people — those who listen deeply, lead with empathy, and center family in every decision. Our team brings together professionals from across Ohio and beyond who are dedicated to reimagining what’s possible for children, families, and systems. Our leadership team guides the vision and strategy behind Kinnect’s work. They bring decades of experience in child welfare, nonprofit leadership, legal reform, and systems change — and work to cultivate a culture that is collaborative, accountable, and rooted in community.

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Shannon Deinhart

Executive Director
& Co-Founder

Bio
Shannon Deinhart is executive director and co-founder of Kinnect, an Ohio nonprofit dedicated to ensuring permanent families for all children in the shortest time possible and supporting those families. She has over 25 years’ experience advancing kinship care, foster care, and adoption. She has led the way in advancing Family Seach and Engagement efforts in Ohio, including implementing best practices in counties and the successful implementation of Kinnect to Family. Shannon supported the implementation of Youth Centered Permanency Roundtables, a program developed by Casey Family Program, with public child welfare agencies across Ohio. Shannon led Kinnect’s partnership with the Ohio Department of Jobs and Family Services, in the development and implementation of the Ohio Kinship and Adoption Navigator Program (OhioKAN). She has a Master of Science in Social Administration from Case Western Reserve University.
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Kimberly Bell

Chief Operating
Officer

Bio
Kimberly Bell joined Kinnect in March 2025 as Chief Operating Officer, bringing over 25 years of experience in operations, compliance, and strategic program management across government and nonprofit sectors. A Cleveland native, Kimberly most recently served as Board President for Kinnect’s Board of Directors. She previously held leadership roles focused on streamlining systems, strengthening teams, and driving growth in mission-driven organizations. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Public Administration from Cleveland State University and is a Certified Ethics and Compliance Professional.
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Kristi Burre

Chief Strategy
Officer

Bio
Kristi Burre serves as the Chief Strategy Officer at Kinnect, where she leads strategic planning, drives program advancement, strengthens organizational capacity, and implements innovative strategies and change management initiatives. With over 25 years of leadership experience in the child welfare field, Kristi has worked at the local, state, and federal levels to improve outcomes for children, youth, and families. Kristi joined Kinnect in 2023 after serving as the Director of Children’s Initiatives and leading the Office of Children’s Services Transformation for the State of Ohio. Prior to her state role, she spent nearly two decades in leadership positions within county public children services agencies. In addition to her executive leadership, Kristi has served for over 15 years as a Training Consultant with the Safe & Together Institute, where she specializes in addressing the intersection of domestic violence and child maltreatment. She holds a master’s degree in sociology from Ohio University and bachelor’s degrees in sociology, psychology, and criminology from Capital University.
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Karen Anderson

Chief Program
Officer

Bio
Karen serves as Kinnect's Chief Program Officer, supporting Kinnect programs through aligning efforts, coordinating resources, and continuing to ensure effective delivery of all Kinnect programs. Karen has more than 25 years' experience both in nonprofit and public children welfare. Karen spent more than 15 years at Bellefaire and as a Division Director lead Federal Demonstration Grants that included the Runaway and Homeless Youth Grant as well as directing services teams on developing innovative approaches in human services with effective practices, resource allocation and strategic planning. As a Deputy Director at Cuyahoga County Division of Children and Family Services, Karen led the Pay for Success grant that demonstrated positive outcomes for preventing homelessness as well as other Special Projects such as the Affirm Me program of which Kinnect was a sub grantee. Prior to leaving CCDCFS Karen managed a team of 200 social service caseworkers supporting children, parents, kinship, foster and adoptive families within the child welfare system.
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Erika Blockson

Human Resources Manager

Bio
Erika Blockson joined Kinnect in 2025 with over 20 years of Human Resources experience providing strategic HR leadership and aligning HR initiatives with organizational goals. Erika has developed HR programs including performance management, compensation, talent development, and employee relations. Most recently, Erika served as the Director of People and Culture and Director of Workforce Management for Parkwood and the Mandel Foundation where she had a reputation for building strong business partnerships. Erika began her education locally at Mount Union College and completed a Bachelor of Science Degree in Management Studies (Cum Laude) at The University of Maryland campus in Okinawa, Japan. She completed a Master’s Degree in Labor Relations and Human Resources (MLRHR) from Cleveland State University. She also holds a Professional in Human Resources Certification (PHR). Outside of work, Erika enjoys participating in public service projects and youth programs through her membership with Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.
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Stephanie Beleal

Program Director
Kinnect to Family

Bio
Stephanie Beleal directed the successful implementation of Kinnect to Family (previously 30 Days to Family), in the initial 18 Ohio participating counties, as well as the expansion to additional counties. She has served as the program director for the statewide management and expansion of Youth Centered Permanency Roundtables (YCPRT). Stephanie is a Licensed Independent Social Worker who earned a master’s degree in Social Work from the University of Akron and a BA in Social Work from Malone University. Before joining Kinnect in 2018, she served on the leadership team at Stark County Children Services for ten years.
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Julia Donovan

Program Director
OhioKAN

Bio
Julia Donovan is the program director for the OhioKAN. She is a visionary leader with a passion for direct service and programmatic excellence. Prior to joining Kinnect, she served as the employment services director at LEAP (Linking Employment, Abilities, and Potential) for the eight years. At LEAP, Julia redesigned programs and services to exceed budget expectations, created a regional job coach training model and sat on the board of the Employment Collaborative of Ohio. Julia is a graduate of Hiram College and holds an MBA from the Weatherhead School of Management at Case Western Reserve University.