Kinship Navigators

Baltimore City Kinship Navigator Services is an information and referral program that supports kinship caregivers who are caring for their minor relative (s), who are unable to remain safe in the care of their parents. Kinship Navigator Services targets kinship caregivers who are and are not involved in the child welfare system as an outreach prevention strategy that promotes safety, permanency and well-being.

Baltimore City Department of Social Services has a designated Kinship Navigator for both informal and formal care who is available to provide services to relative caregivers. Kinship Navigators are knowledgeable about their community resources and available services.

Relative caregivers are encouraged to reach out to the kin navigators when you have questions or need guidance about processes or services. Below are the BCDSS Staff assigned to provide guidance and support to relative caregivers.

Informal Kin Navigator (Relatives with children who are not committed to BCDSS)

Nickia Bright (Informal Kin Navigator)

Since 1999, Nickia Bright has dedicated her career to serving families through the Baltimore City Department of Social Services (BCDSS). After graduating from Coppin State University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Social Work, she connected with BCDSS at a campus job fair. Born and raised in Baltimore City, Nickia’s decision to work locally felt like a natural extension of her roots. As she explained, “Why not work with the population I grew up around?” THIS QUOTE IN ITALICS

Throughout her career, she has developed a deep understanding of various program areas within BCDSS, with most of her experience rooted in Family Preservation. Nickia transitioned into the Kinship Navigator Program after being approached to help fill a critical need when the previous Kinship Navigator left the agency.

Initially, the role brought emotional challenges. Many of the families she supported were coping with the loss of a parent, which mirrored her own personal grief following the death of her mother in 2021. “I thought it was too much for me,” Nickia shared. “But then I started thinking—maybe this is a way for me to help these children with their grief, making sure they get the services they need. It also began to help me in my grieving process.”

Today, at the KinCare Center, Nickia continues to support families who are caring for children without legal custody or guardianship—offering guidance, connection, and hope with each case she touches.

Demetrius Hicks (Informal Kinship Navigator)

It wasn’t supposed to be a permanent position when Demetrius Hicks came to work with the Kin Care Center as a informal care navigator towards the end of 2022. But when he was able to see and do the work, he realized it was a good fit for him for personal reasons.

Growing up, Hicks had parents in his life, but they did not truly raise him. Hicks for the most part was raised by his grandmother and his great-grandmother on his father’s side. His maternal grandmother was also involved, speaking with him on a daily basis.

“Everything that I needed revolved around them,” Hicks said. “They made sure that I had clothes and that I had food. They also made sure that if I had any health needs they addressed it, and they didn’t get any kind of benefits to do it.”

When Hicks came to the Kin Care Center he found it to be a blessing to help the kin families and to support them with whatever they needed. Hicks works as an informal navigator with families that don’t want court involvement or are in the process of getting the courts involved.

After graduating from Sojourner-Douglass College with a Masters in Human Services, Hicks started his professional career working with children as a correctional officer at a children’s detention center. He initially joined BCDSS working in Out-of-Home Placement for Foster Care.

Hicks worked in Foster Care for around 8 years before moving to Family Preservation in 2015. Based on his work in Family Preservation, Hicks was given the opportunity to assist with KinCare Center cases.

“Starting off I didn’t really see the vision because I was still in Child Protective Services mode, but as I started to work with some of these families and some of these cases, I really fell in love with it because it always helps me remember that I didn’t have any help growing up,” Hicks said. “Sometimes it is not about being a social worker, it is about helping people and getting the response that you have made a difference.”

Formal Kin Navigator (Relatives with children who are committed to BCDSS)

Tracie Cook-Thomas (Formal Kinship Navigator)

Tracie Cook-Thomas has been with the Kin Care Center since it opened in September 2022, but has been working as a Kinship Navigator since before the pandemic in 2019.

After attending the University of Maryland and Sojourner-Douglass College Tracie received a Bachelor’s degree in Human Services. She started her professional career at Baltimore City Public Schools doing data monitoring and compliance for special education.

After her time at Baltimore City Public Schools, Tracie was working in billing for some social workers. It was through that job that she was able to make a connection with the director of BCDSS at that time. Using that connection Tracie made her way to Baltimore City Department of Social Services in 2009 starting as a Family Service Case Worker Trainee.

She was a part of a large family so she believes that she didn’t really have a choice about being anything other than a social worker.

“I was born smack dab into the middle of a whole lot of people with different personalities and challenges and issues and so I learned how to handle people early on,” Tracie said.

Being born and raised in Baltimore, Cook-Thomas stated that Kinship Care is important for the restoration of families and keeping families together. She works primarily with kinship families where the court has been involved in the removal of the child.

Cook-Thomas believes she is in a privileged position being able to help kin and help them to do what they do all of the time. To strengthen them and to let them know that they are not by themselves.

“Baltimore has gone through a lot, so if we can keep families together then we can keep neighborhoods together and we can keep communities together,” Cook-Thomas said. “It is an investment in the families of Baltimore. Kin always steps up to do what they can whether we are involved or not.”

To be connected to any of our Kin Navigators, please visit or call the KinCare Center. The center can be reached by phone at 443-423-5442 or by email: bcdss.kinshipnavigator@maryland.gov. The KinCare Center is located at 2923 E. Biddle St. and is open Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. – 5 p.m. Informal navigators can be reached through the CPS hotline 410-361-2235. The screener will forward your information to the informal kinship navigator.