Wayne Carson has more than 30 years of experience working with children and families in a variety of roles, the last 21 years as Chief Executive Officer of ACH Child and Family Services (ACH).  With a focus on “Protecting Children and Preserving Families,” ACH operates 17 different programs and services in several counties. Wayne leads a team of more than 650 who are dedicated to both preventing and treating child abuse, neglect, homelessness and family separation.  

Wayne has led substantial growth for ACH in response to community need: In 2021, the agency brought hope to more than 21,000 children and families. In 2014, Wayne successfully positioned ACH as the state’s first urban implementation of Community-Based Care, bringing much needed improvement to some of the chronic problems in Texas’ foster care system. When ACH delivered improved outcomes, he championed the “Our Community Our Kids” approach as the model for state-wide Foster Care Redesign, which has now expanded to three other regions in Texas. Thanks in part to the pioneering efforts of ACH, the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services began replicating the Community-Based Care model throughout the state. In 2020, Our Community Our Kids became the first contractor to enter Stage II of Community-Based Care, caring for both child and family.

Wayne holds a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from the University of Missouri-Rolla, and masters and doctorate degrees in social work from the University of Texas at Arlington.  He serves on the board of the Mental Health Connection of Tarrant County and is past president of the Texas Alliance for Child and Family Services in Austin, TX.  Wayne was recognized as a Distinguished Alumni of the University of Texas at Arlington in 2009, and Not-for-Profit CEO of the Year by the Fort Worth Business Press in 2015. In 2019, Texas Governor Greg Abbott appointed him to the Health and Human Services (HHS) Transition Legislative Oversight Committee to make recommendations regarding the reorganization of HHS into a system that is more efficient and effective in client service delivery.  He is the father of three fantastic kids and has been married to his wife Vickie for 34 years.