FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 21, 2026
Southfield, Mich. – Orchards Children’s Services (Orchards) is thrilled to welcome Jennifer Wrayno as our Chief Operating Officer. Wrayno is no stranger to the work done at Orchards, having worked in child welfare since 1999. She has dedicated more than two decades of service to the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services.
In 2024, Wrayno received the Adoption Excellence Award from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in recognition of her innovative leadership and significant impact on permanency outcomes for children and youth. An adoptive and foster parent herself, she brings both professional expertise and lived experience to her work.
For the past 23 years, she served in a variety of leadership roles, most recently as the Regional Director for Business Service Center (BSC) 5. In this role, Wrayno provided direction and oversight for child welfare programs across the four largest counties in Southeast Michigan—Wayne, Oakland, Macomb, and Genesee. During her 13 years as Regional Director, her region was responsible for supervision and service delivery for approximately 50 percent of Michigan’s child welfare population.
Throughout her career, Wrayno has worked across all major child welfare program areas, including Children’s Protective Services (CPS), foster care, adoptions, and licensing. Her experience spans frontline practice and executive leadership, with management roles in both Wayne County and Lansing. She is widely recognized for her strong commitment to collaboration between the public and private sectors and for her consistent ability to build, mentor, and sustain high-performing teams that drive meaningful systems change. Wrayno is a graduate of Eastern Michigan University and holds both bachelor’s and master’s degrees in social work.
About Orchards Children’s Services
Orchards Children’s Services is one of the largest child welfare agencies in the state of Michigan, founded in 1962 by the National Council of Jewish Women (NCJW) Greater Detroit Section. Orchards started as a small residential group home for 7 boys with emotional impairments. Today, Orchards Children’s Services serves over 10,000 children and families throughout the state of Michigan. We are dedicated to fulfilling our mission of strengthening the community through quality services to children and families.
