Chief Executive Officer Amy Rashba, LCSW is excited to announce that Jewish Family Service of Greater New Haven has welcomed several new staff members.  Andrea Joseph, LCSW, Hannah Leiterman, LCSW, and Maria Gaudet, MSW all bring a diverse set of skills and experience to the agency.

JFS welcomes New Haven native Andrea Joseph, LCSW as the Coordinator for Aging Adult Services. Andrea has over 20 years of experience in behavioral health, most recently focusing on the aging population.  Andrea earned her Master’s in Social Work from The University of Connecticut.  She began her career as a psychiatric social worker at Connecticut Mental Health Center of West Haven where she worked for ten years.  After raising her two daughters, she returned to the field in 2009 providing therapy to older adults.  She was recently employed at Masonicare’s Behavioral Health Clinic as well as other consulting agencies for nursing homes and assisted living environments.  Andrea also has strong ties to the New Haven Jewish community.  She attended Hebrew Day School, was a member of The Westville Synagogue and her parents were the owners of Gutkin Kosher Caterers.  Andrea is excited to “be back home” and is grateful to have the opportunity to expand the Aging Adult Services at JFS.

Hannah Leiterman, LCSW joins the JFS staff as the Mental Health Clinical Director.  Hannah earned her Master’s Degree from the University of Chicago. Non-profit work has always been important to her, as she spent two years in Armenia as a member of the Peace Corps.  Hannah moved to New Haven in 2006 where she completed post-graduate fellowships at Yale-New Haven Psychiatric Hospital and the West Haven Veteran’s Hospital (VA). She went on to work in psychiatric emergency services at Yale, and outpatient psychiatry at the VA.  Prior to joining JFS, Hannah worked at St. Raphael’s in the emergency and maternity departments.  Hannah is excited to build the mental health program, having seen firsthand in the emergency rooms the need for more social support in our community.

Maria Gaudet, MSW joins the JFS team as the Therapeutic Foster Care (TFC) Recruiter. Maria earned her Master’s in Social Work from the University of Connecticut. She brings a wealth of experience as she previously worked at the Department of Children and Families (DCF) and understands the issues facing children involved in the foster care system. Maria hopes to bring an awareness to these issues and is excited about forming new community connections as she recruits more foster parents.