Marta Pernas is a Principal at Venture Philanthropy Partners, where she supports the investment selection process and partnerships through information gathering, analysis, and reporting. In this position, Marta works closely with the Partners on all portfolio planning work and strategy development.

Marta has substantial experience in immigration, child welfare, and juvenile justice policy in the government and nonprofit sectors. As a Program Specialist in the Division of Unaccompanied Children’s Services within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services she helped develop and implement policies and procedures for the division serving undocumented children. In this role, she coordinated the home assessment process to assure safe placements for victims of trafficking and other unaccompanied children in the United States. Prior to the federal government, she was a member of the Casey Strategic Consulting Group at the Annie E. Casey Foundation where she advised the New Jersey Division of Youth and Family Services, Maine Child Welfare Division, and the Louisiana Juvenile Justice Commission on multi-stage system reform. Her areas of expertise included practice reform, financial analysis, and other aspects of organizational change work.

Marta also has research and survey experience gained during her tenure at The Urban Institute and the Center for Social Services Research, U.C. Berkeley. Her research areas include adolescent health issues, welfare reform, and child welfare system change.

Marta holds a BA from the University of Pennsylvania; earned an MSW from the University of California, Berkeley; and received her MPP degree from the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.