Janet has enjoyed a four-decade career in social work and public administration. She was the founding director of the Project Against Sexual Abuse of Appalachian Children, executive director of Girls Clubs of Dallas, and research analyst for the New Jersey Department of Human Services. She served for nine years in the cabinet for Mercer County, NJ, as the human services director and spent seven years as the executive director of the New Jersey chapter of Prevent Child Abuse America, before serving for four years as the Vice President, Research and Programs for Prevent Child Abuse America. In those roles, Janet has managed program development and evaluation, research and training initiatives, overseen multi-million-dollar operating and capital budgets, and been both a grant-maker and grant-seeker. Janet served as the acting executive director of the Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality and wrote The Sex-Wise Parent to further her strongest ambition—working to prevent the sexual abuse and exploitation of children. She serves on the board of multiple national organizations dedicated to child welfare, manages an active consulting practice with nonprofit organizations, occasionally writes for the Philadelphia Inquirer, and blogs at sexwiseparent.com.
Janet has taught at Penn State, Rutgers University, Rider University, the College of New Jersey, Montclair State University, and Temple University, and offered continuing education courses for Rutgers University and Harvard’s Kennedy School.
Janet holds a BS in family studies and an MS in health education, both from The Pennsylvania State University, a PhD in social work from Rutgers University, and a Master in Public Administration from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government.