Demetrius Starling

Demetrius Starling (he/him) is a program officer at The Kresge Foundation. Demetrius supports the human services program. He joined the foundation in 2026.

Demetrius is the previous senior deputy director for the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services’ (MDHHS) Children’s Services Administration (CSA), where he led Michigan’s statewide child welfare system, including children’s protective services, foster care, adoption, licensing, guardianship, family preservation, prevention and juvenile justice programs.

With nearly 30 years of experience of both public and private service, Demetrius began his career as a children’s protective services specialist in Wayne County—Michigan’s largest and most diverse urban county—and has since held numerous leadership roles across MDHHS, including continuous quality improvement manager, district manager and county director for the various county offices.

Prior to his 2021 appointment as CSA executive director, Demetrius served as the in‑home services bureau director, overseeing prevention, preservation and protection programs. In this work, he emerged as a leading champion of the Two‑Generation (2Gen) approach, advancing policies and strategies that intentionally strengthen both children and the adults in their lives. His leadership centers whole‑family wellbeing, economic mobility and equity, ensuring that child welfare practices support access to housing, mental health services, workforce pathways and family economic stability, not just safety interventions.

Demetrius has been a driving force behind statewide initiatives focused on diversity, equity, and inclusion; human trafficking prevention; fatherhood engagement; and kinship care. He has served on numerous continuous quality improvement teams and has led efforts to reduce racial disproportionality and improve outcomes for families from historically marginalized communities, including Black and Indigenous families.

He served as the Governor’s appointee to the Governor’s Task Force on Child Abuse and Neglect and as the Governor’s representative on the Human Trafficking Health Advisory Board. Nationally, he is a steering committee member on the American Bar Association’s National Advisory Board addressing overreporting and overrepresentation of children of color in child welfare. He also serves on the National Partnership for Child Safety Executive Advisory Group.

A 2022 graduate of the inaugural Sankofa Institute for African American Executive & Emerging Child Welfare Leaders, Demetrius was selected for the 2024 Aspen Institute Ascend Fellowship, where his work continues to drive 2Gen, equity-centered and mobility‑focused systems change across Michigan and nationally.

He earned his bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from Ferris State University.