Current Issues for Child Advocates 2027 – Carlisle

Allegheny County, in November of 2015. Judge McCrady has served in the Family Division presiding over juvenile dependency, juvenile delinquency, related domestic relations, protection from abuse, termination of parental rights and adoptions. Judge McCrady was named the Supervising Judge of the Family Division in 2024. In addition, she was appointed by the Governor and currently serves on the Juvenile Court Judges Commission and serves as Secretary of the Commission. Judge McCrady was appointed by the Governor to serve on the State Council for Interstate Juvenile Supervision. She co-chairs the Pennsylvania Bar Association Children’s Rights Committee. Judge McCrady has spearheaded efforts to create a trauma informed Family Law Center. Prior to her election Judge McCrady spent 15 years at KidsVoice, the non-profit legal services organization that represents dependent and dually adjudicated children in Allegheny County. At KidsVoice, Judge McCrady worked as a Staff Attorney, a Supervising Attorney, and the Program and Policy Coordinator. While there, she represented thousands of children, supervised attorneys, and social service professionals, managed the new hire training program, and led the effort in creating specialized advocacy units to ensure that all children receive quality wholistic advocacy. Judge McCrady received her B.A.in political science from Duquesne University in 1995 and her J.D. from Duquesne University School of Law in 2002.

Marisa K. McClellan is a seasoned legal professional and accomplished administrator with a distinguished career spanning over two decades. She represents clients in custody, divorce, and adoption matters and serves as court-appointed counsel and Guardian ad Litem in parental rights cases. Before joining Tucker Arensberg as Senior Counsel, Marisa served as the Administrator at Dauphin County Children and Youth. In this role, Marisa oversaw a staff of approximately 200 employees across multiple departments, including child welfare case management, fiscal operations, legal operations, and program management. She managed an annual $55 million budget and ensured compliance with Pennsylvania child welfare regulations, fostering a safe and supportive environment for children and families in the Capital Region. Marisa’s dedication to public service is evident through her extensive leadership roles and collaborative efforts, including the establishment of innovative programs such as specialized housing for youth with special needs and multi-agency task force teams addressing mental health and substance use issues. During the COVID-19 pandemic, she spearheaded policy adaptations that ensured the safety of children, families, and staff. Previously, Marisa served as Senior Staff Attorney for Dauphin County Children and Youth, where she led litigation efforts in dependency court, orphans’ court, and administrative law hearings. Her experience spans juvenile law, child abuse and neglect, family law, and compliance with state and federal regulations. She also supervised legal teams, conducted extensive training, and contributed to statewide child welfare initiatives. Marisa’s commitment to the legal and child welfare communities is reflected in her affiliations with several boards and organizations, including the Pennsylvania Children and Youth Administrators Association, the National Association of County Human Services Administrators, and the Pennsylvania Bar Association, where she co-chairs the Children’s Rights Committee. She has also been recognized with awards such as the 2017 Pennsylvania Child Advocate of the Year.

Mr. Welshonce is an attorney at KidsVoice, a non-profit organization that provides legal representation to abused, neglected and at-risk children.  At KidsVoice, he has served as a staff attorney representing children in dependency cases and as the legal training coordinator for the organization. He is currently a supervisor overseeing a dependency team and a specialty team which works with transition age youth (TAY) through age 24, many of whom have aged out of foster care and have few supports.  That team offers  a wide range of services to provide a safety net and help remove barriers to stable employment, housing and health for TAY, including: legal representation in summary and landlord-tenant hearings in Magisterial District Court; expungement of delinquency and adult criminal records; assistance for TAY with disabilities with obtaining Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and benefits from Allegheny County’s Office of Developmental Supports and Office of Behavioral Health; workforce development support; representation of TAY in insurance grievances/appeals when they have been denied necessary medical, dental or mental health treatment; assistance for TAY who have been victims of identity theft or have other credit issues; and advocacy for TAY who are parenting and their children through the team’s Two-Generation program to ensure that TAY and their children have access to all available supports, including housing, childcare and early intervention services.  Mr. Welshonce is a member of several organizations and committees focused on children’s issues in the child welfare system, including Allegheny County’s Older Youth Workgroup.  Mr. Welshonce received his B.A. from West Virginia Wesleyan College and his J.D. from the University of Pittsburgh School of Law.

Ms. Lawrence has served as the Juvenile Court Hearing Officer for Cumberland County since December 2013. Prior to her current position, she was the Managing Attorney for the Law Offices of Women In Need, a civil legal representation project focused on representing victims of domestic violence. Following her graduation from the University of Denver College of Law, she was the Director of Public Interest Programming and a clinical instructor in the Children’s Advocacy Clinic for the Pennsylvania State University, Dickinson School of Law. She maintained an adjunct teaching position for several years as a writing instructor for a supplemental bar examination preparation workshop. Ms. Lawrence was the recipient of the Chancellor’s Scholarship Award, a public interest scholarship program through the University of Denver College of Law. She has presented as faculty for CLEs through the Cumberland County Bar Association, the Pennsylvania Bar Institute, the Administrative Office of Pennsylvania Courts, and the American Bar Association. She long served as the Chair of the Cumberland County Bar Association’s Pro Bono Section and was previously appointed to the National Advisory Committee for Equal Justice Works. She is currently active on the Cumberland County Children’s Roundtable, participating in the Congregate Care, School Attendance, and Independent Living workgroups. She serves on the Cumberland County Court Appointed Special Advocate Advisory Panel and the National CASA Judicial Leadership Council. Currently, she serves as co- chair of the PBA Children’s Rights Committee. She has been a member of the statewide Juvenile Court Hearing Officer Workgroup, the AOPC Congregate Care Workgroup, the Statewide Children’s Roundtable, and the Autism and the Dependency Courts Taskforce. In 2022, Ms. Lawrence was honored as a recipient of the Pennsylvania Bar Association’s Samuel W. Milkes Award for service to improve access to justice and earlier this year, she received the Cumberland County Bar Association’s George E. Hoffer Service to Youth Award.

Kristen Hamilton practices in Franklin County, handling cases in all aspects of family law and additionally has criminal trial experience, including prior capital case certification. Ms. Hamilton served as the Juvenile Public Defender from 2010-2020, Franklin County guardian ad litem from 2010-2024 and now serves as the Juvenile Hearing Officer. Ms. Hamilton received her undergraduate degree from Gettysburg College, gaining employment at Abraxas Youth Center as a Senior Treatment Supervisor working with juvenile firesetters and sexual offenders. Ms. Hamilton graduated from Widener Law Commonwealth, receiving commencement awards from the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers and Widener in the areas of Children and the Law and Families. She has served as a panelist for various CLEs with topics ranging from civility within the profession to child advocacy. Ms. Hamilton began as Chair Young Lawyers’ Division of Franklin County, a delegate to the Statewide Children’s Roundtable. She continues to be heavily involved in the FCBA, and currently serves as a Secretary of the Franklin/Fulton Children’s Roundtable, FCBA Committee Chair and is a past-President. Ms. Hamilton continues to be active in the PBA, as its current Vice President and a tri-chair of BLI. Ms. Hamilton serves on multiple other local and statewide committees and organizations to improve the practice of law, as well as positively impact the lives of children and families in Pennsylvania through the juvenile delinquency and dependency systems.

Judge Bush has served in the Family Division of the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas since 2014. Previously she practiced child welfare law for approximately 20 years. During that time, she represented individual children in juvenile court, supervised attorneys who represented abused and neglected children, consulted to Pennsylvania counties, trained hundreds of social workers and worked collaboratively on the state and local levels with government agencies, child advocates and providers of services. Judge Bush’s previous positions have included work with Pennsylvania’s Statewide Adoption and Permanency Network, KidsVoice, Juvenile Law Center, the ABA Center on Children and the Law, and the Pennsylvania Department of Education. Judge Bush holds her law degree from Yale Law School and a Master’s Degree in Public and Private Management from the Yale School of Management. 

Sydney Groll is a Child Advocate Attorney with the Support Center for Child Advocates, representing children and youth in both the dependency and criminal justice systems in Philadelphia. She started her legal career in 2021 as an Independence Foundation Public Interest Fellow with a project focused on preventing unnecessary removals of children from their communities and homes, strengthening kinship connections, and empowering community. In 2023, Sydney worked with a client who needed the support of the dependency system but was fearful of losing her Survivor’s Benefits if she entered foster care. This experience inspired Sydney to join Philadelphia’s Social Security Stakeholder group and pursue statewide legislation alongside advocates across Pennsylvania. She is an active member of the Philadelphia Bar Association, serving on the Executive Committees of both the Young Lawyer’s Division and the Family Law Section, and the Pennsylvania Bar Association. She has a Bachelor’s of Arts in Psychology and Spanish from Loyola University Maryland, and a Juris Doctorate from Rutgers Law School in Camden, NJ.

Ms. Johnston-Walsh is a clinical professor and the director of the Children’s Advocacy Clinic at Penn State University Dickinson School of Law. The Clinic receives court appointments to represent children in various civil matters, including dependency, high conflict custody actions, domestic violence actions and contested adoptions. The Clinic provides an experiential opportunity for law students to practice in the courtroom, and also to focus on policy reform and legislative developments. Prior to directing the Children’s Advocacy Clinic, Ms. Johnston-Walsh served as a supervising attorney in the Family Law and Disability Law Clinics, and as a staff attorney at MidPenn Legal Services. Ms. Johnston-Walsh also served as a policy director for a statewide child advocacy organization. Ms. Johnston-Walsh now directs the activities of the inter-disciplinary Penn State Center on Children and the Law. Before attending law school, Ms. Johnston-Walsh worked as social worker in the public school system of Virginia. She received her Juris Doctor from The Dickinson School of Law and her Masters in Social Work from the University of Pennsylvania. She previously served as chair of the Pennsylvania Bar Association Children’s Rights Committee and was the Child Advocate of the Year in 2007.

Nora DiBuono is Solicitor for Lawrence County Children and Youth Services. Before this position, she was an instructor at Butler County Community College and an Assistant County Prosecutor. She is a graduate of Cleveland State University – Cleveland-Marshall College of Law, J.D., and Notre Dame College of Ohio, B.A.