Marisa Nicely, LMSW, Chief Operating Officer at Starfish Family Services, provides leadership, guidance, and oversight to the broad range of programs at Starfish Family Services that focus on the holistic development stages of children and their families.
Marisa has long been a part of the Starfish family. She began her tenure with Starfish in 1997 as a Masters of Social Work intern at Northwestern Community Services. In 1998, Northwestern Community Services and Youth Living Centers merged and created Starfish Family Services. While still an intern in the clinical branch of the newly created agency, Marisa was hired on by Starfish Family Services’ Safe Stay Crisis Nursery and Respite Center and was offered a clinical position upon her graduation in 1999.
During her tenure as the Director and Vice President of Clinical and Youth Services (the former Behavioral Health Services division of Starfish), Nicely along with her team, implemented and launched numerous innovative initiatives at Starfish. Her team created one of the largest Infant Mental Health units in the country whose work has been presented at the national and international levels. The clinical team has also enhanced the organization’s approach to care and is a State leader in the development and implementation of Pediatric Integrated Health Care models.
In 2022, Marisa took on the role of Chief Program Officer at Starfish Family Services and began creating a unified program team composed of both educators and behavioral health professionals that comprehensively address the needs of children and families. She now continues that work as the Chief Operating Officer leading a team of over 400 dedicated program employees and partnering with her colleagues on the Executive Leadership Team.
Marisa earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Behavioral Science from the University of Michigan Dearborn and a Master’s Degree in Social Work from the University of Michigan Ann Arbor.
Marisa has served as s a volunteer peer reviewer for the Council on Accreditation. She served on the Detroit-Wayne County Community Mental Health Agency Workforce Development Committee and Community Planning Council and is currently co-chairing the Michigan Behavioral Health Provider Collaborative’s Workforce and Children’s Services workgroups. She is a past board member of the Western Wayne Family Health Center and Services to Enhance Potential (STEP). She also serves her local community as a Recreation Commissioner focusing on Youth Engagement. Marisa was the first recipient of the Starfish Family Services’ Ouida Cash Leaders as Learners Award for her dedication and contributions to the agency and was selected as one of Crain’s Detroit Business 40 under 40 in 2009. She is a graduate of the Detroit Regional Chamber’s Leadership Detroit Class XXXIII.
Originally from San Juan, Puerto Rico, Marisa is still very connected to her family and culture. She is proud of being a Latin American and sets a high standard for herself as a representative of a minority that continues to grow amongst women in the workplace. She resides on Grosse Ile.