Gretchen Russo

Gretchen J. Russo has spent over 28 years working in the child welfare and juvenile justice fields. Currently, she serves as the Judicial and Legislative Administrator for the Office of Children, Youth and Families at the Colorado Department of Human Services and is an appointed member of the Juvenile Parole Board. In her work, she focuses on issues across systems, including child welfare, juvenile justice, judicial and legal partners, and the legislature. Prior to her current role she was the Permanency Manager for Division of Child Welfare and the Colorado Department of Human Services for just over two years where she managed several programs including Adoption, Foster Care, Kinship Care, and Permanency programs. Gretchen spent over 7 years as a liaison between the Denver Juvenile Court and the Denver Department of Human Services. Gretchen graduated from Gonzaga Law School, in Spokane, Washington in 2004; prior to attending law school, she worked as a nurse case manager for foster children in Utah. She earned a Bachelor’s of Science in Nursing and Psychology from Weber State University.