Pretty much the last place you’ll find Hope & Home’s CEO is behind a desk! His approach during his 18 years with this ministry has always been hands-on. He likes meeting potential new families when they tour our facility; helping current foster parents navigate individual challenges; personally teaching new foster parent classes; celebrating children’s adoptions; and anything else that lets him “see kids thrive and watch families’ dreams come true.” His greatest joy is seeing children who were toddlers while they were in foster care come back to visit Hope & Home, all grown up and happily adopted.

Ross is the creative force behind a number of Hope & Home’s distinctive programs. He pioneered Hope & Home’s proprietary and highly successful “Love to Nurture” parenting method, which served as the basis for his groundbreaking book, Kids in Crisis (B&H Publishing, 2007). His vision for “The Launch,” a team-building weekend orientation held once a month for new parents, has resulted in nearly 50 graduating classes of parents who trained together and went on to become important sources of support for each other. He also implemented the popular “Summer O’ Fun” series of Friday-afternoon themed picnics that have become a staple of the Hope & Home culture, and the “Zoondoogle Factory,” where kids can trade in special “zoondoogle” currency they’ve earned in exchange for toys and other esteem-building rewards.

His greatest joy is seeing children who were toddlers while they were in foster care come back to visit Hope & Home, all grown up and happily adopted.

Ross was invited in 2009 by the governor to chair the state’s Child Care Licensing Committee, making Hope & Home the only foster care agency in the state to be represented at this level.

Before assuming the helm at Hope & Home, Ross received his degree in philosophy and psychology with an emphasis on religious studies from the University of Colorado. He brings strong behavioral health and child and family services experience running facilities from psychiatric inpatient hospitals and residential treatment centers to day-treatment programs. He has appeared on countless radio talk shows across the nation, including Haven Today, Christian Satellite Radio, American Family Radio News, Prime Time America, and United News and Information. Ross is a registered tribal member of the Cherokee Nation and is considered an expert in ICWA (the Indian Child Welfare Act). He has two grown daughters, Alex and Kelsey.