Joanne MacDonnell became Ombudsman on July 1, 2022.  She joined the office as Deputy Ombudsman in 2005 after serving nearly eight years as the Arizona Corporation Commission, Director of Corporations.  Before working in government, Joanne worked in the private sector at FCC Investors, Inc. serving on the Board of Directors and as an accountant.  She also worked in real estate as a licensed Realtor associate and real estate appraiser.

Joanne has Bachelor of Science degrees in Business Administration and Real Estate from the University of Arizona, is an investigator certified by the Council on Licensure, Enforcement & Regulation (CLEAR), and completed mediation training through South Mountain Community College.  She has additional training including the ADOA Executive Course, Project & Investment Justification Training, the Leadership Module through Rio Salado College and Arizona Government University; and ombudsman training prescribed by the U.S. Ombudsman Association (USOA).  She has trained, been certified, and uses the DCS database “GUARDIAN.”

She is active in the U.S. Ombudsman Association, having served multiple years as a Board Director and Officer and as a Conference Committee and Outreach Committee Member.  She is currently USOA’s Secretary/Treasurer.  She was Chairman of the USOA Children and Family Chapter for four years.  She was a member of the Association for Conflict Resolution, qualified in the “Practitioner” category.  She was a member of the DCS Citizen Review Panel Committee for seven years and was a member of the Supreme Court’s Special Committees on Parent Representation and Guardian Ad Litem Standards.  She has served on the Arizona Juvenile Court Improvement Committee since 2011.  She has served as a judge for the Central Arizona Better Business Bureau (BBB) Business Ethics Award for the past 14 years.