Kayla Baillargeon ’25 ’28MSW used her personal experiences and passion for helping others to advance a career in parent advocacy, founding a nonprofit, and supporting families facing complex challenges. Now, by earning her online bachelor's degree and pursuing a master's at Simmons, she is gaining the skills and credentials needed to shape the growing field.
In the living room where a state agency is making a decision about a family or child’s placement, the air is often filled with tension, confusion, and maybe anger. To diffuse the situation and support a family, an advocate needs more than training. They need a deeply ingrained “why” and a skillset rooted in compassion."
That’s what Kayla Baillargeon ’25 ’28MSW brings to her role as a parent advocate.
The ‘Why’ That Started It All
“I went through some lived experience of my own, dealing with the Department of Children and Families,” says Baillargeon. “That experience is what led me to become an advocate. I wanted to further my education with a social work degree.”
Her personal journey became her ultimate "why" — inspiring her not only to become a parent advocate, but also to get an education that would allow her to shape the field of parent advocacy.
Baillargeon earned a human services degree from Simmons’ Online Degree Completion Program, which offers women and gender-expansive students flexible program options and the ability to transfer up to 96 credits.
A former computer information systems major at another institution, Baillargeon paused her degree in 2015 to focus on motherhood. Now, she’s happy to have a bachelor’s degree in a field that helps her better support parents navigating the family and child services system. She is continuing her studies with an online Master of Social Work at Simmons.
Advancing Parent Advocacy
Baillargeon’s passion for advocating for parental rights and policy reforms has led her efforts to improve the system’s effectiveness. She began advocacy work in 2021 and founded the nonprofit Proactive Families Advocacy Inc. in January 2022. She currently works on an interdisciplinary legal team alongside attorneys and case managers at Community Legal Aid’s Family Preservation Project.
Proactive Families Advocacy Inc. provides peer-led advocacy, education, and support services to families involved in or at risk of involvement with the child protection system, helping them manage legal and social challenges. It aims to keep families together and improve outcomes by offering resources, guidance, and policy advocacy focused on family preservation, equity, and reunification.
Baillargeon says she loves being a part of the parent advocacy field in child welfare services, which she describes as “a new but growing” area.
“Even though you don't need a degree to be a parent advocate, having that [social work] degree behind me can better help the parents I work with,” says Baillargeon. “I want to be able to help parents further, clinically.”
Women-Centered Environment
Baillargeon feels her passion was welcomed in the classrooms at Simmons.
“I work with families who are dealing with substance use disorder, domestic violence, [and] homelessness, issues that are addressed through social work and through that social justice lens. I have a strong pull towards the macro work of social work. I'm very involved in policies and community organizing in that field,” says Baillargeon. “The things that we discussed in class resonated with me.”
She also received support and encouragement from Simmons faculty and the staff. While earning her BA, she was in constant communication with her student advisor, who helped her navigate ups and downs.
“I felt really supported by the Simmons community,” she says.
That encouragement is helping her as she works to achieve her goals, and also allows her to be an inspiration to her four children; to show them the value of hard work and continuing your education.
Flexible, Connected Learning
Baillargeon chose Simmons because of its clinical accreditation, along with the flexible online bachelor’s degree option in her home state of Massachusetts.
“I love the online degree, but I also love the fact that I'm able to drive to Boston for my graduation or to go get my books, to go to the campus and actually see my campus,” she says.
“That personal touch, along with the online learning, that mixture is what I valued from Simmons,” she adds.
She successfully graduated with her BA in human services in May 2025 and immediately transitioned into the Simmons Master of Social Work (MSW) program, which she is on track to complete in 2028.
Balancing her degree while working, running a nonprofit, and raising four children has not been easy, but she credits her success to strict time management, boundary setting, self-care, and strong support from her family and the Simmons community.
Skills That Support Families, and a Growing Career
Baillargeon is actively applying what she learns at Simmons to her daily work. This includes developing leadership skills that she can use in advocacy for the profession, and for the parents with whom she works.
“I have to step in as that leader and say, we can be angry, but there's a way to express that anger where you're not risking your kids being removed or getting somebody upset because they can't do their job,” she says. “I have to also provide tools to parents … to advocate for themselves and for their family while they're trying to navigate a complex system.”
Additionally, Baillargeon often facilitates support groups for the community. “I feel that Simmons has also definitely helped me in that specific area on how to facilitate groups more appropriately and professionally,” she says.
Ultimately, the Simmons Online Degree Completion Program and now the Simmons online MSW program are equipping her with the skills she needs to reach her future goal of becoming a director, and officially shaping this new field of parent advocacy for others.
“I envision this field of parent advocacy growing. Creating this field for other parents is a personal and professional goal I have.”