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42 | RIVERSIDE COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SOCIAL SERVICES

Bridgette Hernandez Honored for Her Profound Impacts in the Field of Child Welfare A fter Bridgette Hernandez graduated from the Title IV-E Child Welfare Training Project at Cal State University San Bernardino in 2000, she brought her passion, expertise and innovation to

several different roles within Riverside County Children’s Services. She served as a social worker for youth placed in group homes, supervisor for the 24-hour child abuse hotline and Metro Region, assistant regional manager of the Training, Adoptions, and Metro regions and regional manager of Placement/Resource Family Approval. She rose to become Deputy Director for a variety of regions, to include both operations, centralized, and administrative programs. In 2023, Hernandez was appointed Assistant Director of Children’s Services, overseeing a children’s social services workforce of more than 1,300 professionals. Her two-plus decades of service were honored in March 2024 when Hernandez was named CSUSB’s Title IV-E Alum of the Year. The Title IV-E project offers educational stipends each year to a handful of students who are determined to make a positive difference in the public child welfare system. The award recognizes Hernandez’s “exceptional dedication and profound impact within the field of child welfare, spanning over two decades of exemplary service.” Hernandez was credited for her leadership in areas such as staff training, extended foster care, relative placements, and implementation of the Welcome Center for youth experiencing challenges in their foster placements. Hernandez was celebrated during a special ceremony at the CSUSB Obershaw Dining Hall. Her “compassion, and unwavering commitment to excellence serve as an inspiration…a beacon of hope and inspiration for all those who aspire to make a difference in the lives of others,” Stephanie Schneider, Title IV-E Project Coordinator for the School of Social Work at Cal State University San Bernardino, wrote in a letter.

Hernandez says she was thrilled and humbled by the recognition from CSUSB. She credits her peers and mentors in Children’s Services for supporting her journey, and the children and families who are at the core of her professional mission to make a meaningful difference in their lives. “At the end of the day, we are all here to promote the well being, permanency, and safety of children and families in Riverside County,” she said. “They are always at the forefront of our work, our mission, and decision making. When we improve the lives of children and youth, we are improving our whole community.” Nathan, alongside his mom, Children’s Services Division Assistant Director Bridgette Hernandez, her mom Eva, and husband Jamie, join DPSS Director Charity Douglas in celebrating the award from Cal State University, San Bernardino.