March 2021Vol. 22, No. 3Print issueSpotlight on Youth Transitioning Out of Care

The National Child Welfare Workforce Institute (NCWWI) released a communications guide that aims to help improve the way child welfare agencies and organizations disseminate information in an effort to build public support, strengthen the workforce, improve partnerships, increase community collaboration, and enhance perceptions.

The guide focuses on the following topics:

• Positive impacts of communication and public relations efforts for child welfare programs. It is important for the general public and community organizations to have a better understanding of how the child welfare system works so they can possibly reshape their perceptions and realize that child welfare professionals work daily to prevent child abuse and strengthen families; provide critical care during a family crisis, often at a moment's notice; partner with other stakeholders to provide preventive services to the most vulnerable families in the community; are key partners with community groups, government agencies, universities, and others working to improve programs and practices; and enhance the educational preparation of the workforce.
• Examples of how to shift the narrative about child welfare programs. The pervasive narrative surrounding child welfare workers centers on the tragedies they are involved in rather than the primary prevention practices and strategies they engage in with the vulnerable families in their care. To change this narrative, it is important to articulate both the new narrative and the existing, dominant one; share the new narrative with a large and varied audience through websites, social media, infographics, and videos as well as at post offices using posters; track these efforts; and assess whether the new narrative has been put into practice and widely adopted. 
• Strategies to develop messaging that will resonate with audiences. Crafting messages that will resonate with the intended audience will enable agencies and organizations to consistently demonstrate the program's vision and values. These messages should include conversational explanations of what the program is and who it is intended for; data on the number of families and children served by the program and where they reside; quotes from families or stakeholders that demonstrate impact; the program's vision and goals for the future; and information on key partnerships and programs that help achieve the program's goals.
• Suggested channels and products to get the word out. Agencies and organizations should determine where the intended audience gets its information (e.g., social media, websites, the news media) as well as the timeliness and format of dissemination (e.g., infographics, graphics, factsheets, video).

To read more about the importance of communication in changing the narrative surrounding child welfare work, read NCWWI Communications Guide: How to Advance Organizational Goals Through Effective Messaging, Storytelling, and Public Relations.
 

The Minority Professional Leadership Development (MPLD) program at AdoptUSKids is accepting applications from candidates for the upcoming cohort now through June 7. This fellowship is designed for emerging leaders working in child welfare. It includes hands-on experience, exposure to national experts, and mentorship opportunities. If travel permits, the MPLD program will begin with a 3-day kickoff celebration in Washington, DC, in October 2021.

To learn more about the MPLD program and to get an application, visit the AdoptUSKids website.
 

CB funds several technical assistance centers to provide professionals with tools to better serve children, youth, and families.

The following are some of the latest resources from CB's technical assistance partners:

• Child Welfare Information Gateway 
  • Preventing, Identifying, and Treating Substance Use Among Youth in Foster Care (bulletin for professionals)
  • Differential Response: A Primer for Child Welfare Professionals (factsheet)
  • Determining the Best Interests of the Child (state statute)
  • The Importance of a Trauma-Informed Child Welfare System (issue brief)

Visit the Child Welfare Information Gateway website for more.

• FRIENDS National Resource Center for Community-Based Child Abuse Prevention
  • Protective Factors Survey Online Data System (PFSODS) Instruction Manual
  • "Navigating the Unknowns: Living With Young Children, Part 1"
  • "Navigating the Unknowns: Living With Young Children, Part 2"

Visit the FRIENDS website for more.

• Child Welfare Capacity Building Collaborative
  • Centers for States 
    • Then and Now: Looking Back and Moving Forward in Support of Children, Youth, and Families
  • Center for Tribes
    • Tribal IV-E Guide for Tribal Governments and Leaders: Considerations and Lessons Learned
  • Center for Courts
    • Pathways to Permanency: Expanding on Another Planned Permanent Living Arrangement (APPLA) Provisions and Youth Engagement to Improve Permanency

Visit the Child Welfare Capacity Building Collaborative website for more.

• AdoptUSKids
  • "While-You-Wait Support Groups for Parents"
  • "Engaging Youth and Caregivers in Developing Support Services"
  • "Assessing Support Services for Families: 12 Questions to Ask"

Visit the AdoptUSKids website for more.

• National Data Archive on Child Abuse and Neglect
  • Summer Research Institute 2021 Announcement and Call for Applications
  • National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System (NCANDS) Child File, FFY 2019
  • National Youth in Transition Database (NYTD) - Services File, FY2019

Visit the National Data Archive on Child Abuse and Neglect website for more.

• National Child Welfare Workforce Institute
  
  • Critical Workforce Needs
    
  • COVID-19 Workforce Needs Assessment (WNA) Cross-Site Report for Workforce Excellence Public Child Welfare Sites
  • Supporting the Virtual Workforce Participant Summary

Visit the National Child Welfare Workforce Institute website for more.
 

The Capacity Building Center for States offers a video learning experience featuring firsthand accounts from adoptive parents, kin caregivers, and a young adult who was formerly in foster care about their involvement with the child welfare system. Each individual featured in the series has two videos that were taken several years apart in order to identify actions and services that made a difference as well as missed opportunities for what might have been helpful.

The series aims to spur on discussions about the following topics:

• Promoting child and family well-being through connections, supports, and services
• Building youth, caregiver, and worker resilience
• Integrating protective factor approaches into family strengthening and workforce development

The series is intended for foster care and adoption program managers, supervisors, training managers, and recruitment and licensing specialists to support group learning or individual coaching with child welfare workers and current or potential resource parents. Those who participate in the course can earn continuing education units in social work, clinical psychology, counseling, and marriage and family therapy.

To learn more about this learning experience and to watch the videos, visit the Center for States website for Then and Now: Looking Back and Moving Forward in Support of Children, Youth, and Families.
 

Evidence continues to emerge to support the relationship between running away from foster care and sex trafficking victimization. There are promising programs and approaches to reduce the risk of a youth running away and their subsequent risk of being trafficked. The Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation, within the Administration for Children and Families of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, published a brief that summarizes and expands on a 2019 report to Congress that covers the child welfare system's response to child sex trafficking. It discusses some of the possible reasons that youth run from care, statistics of those who run, factors to consider when looking at the numbers, and evidence about the correlation between youth in foster care running from care and sex trafficking victimization.

Taking findings across multiple studies, the brief finds that there are several factors that contribute to a youth's risk of running away, including age, sex, race and ethnicity, sexual orientation and gender identity, and others. However, there are also factors that decrease runaway behavior, such as placement in a family-like setting. There are several promising evidence-informed approaches to preventing and reducing the risk of youth running from care. The brief highlights two research-informed programs—Behavior Analysis Services Program and Children and Residential Experiences. Both programs resulted in reductions in runaway incidence rates. 

To learn more, read Examining the Link: Foster Care Runaway Episodes and Human Trafficking.
 

COVID-19 has created circumstances that have increased many families' stress levels, such as stay-at-home orders; job loss; or other health, economic, or social stressors. There is also a concern that children being home from school diminishes their exposure to adults who might detect and report maltreatment and there will be a spike in reports once they return to school. A Chapin Hall issue brief used data from the National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System, the Statewide Automated Child Welfare Information System, and other sources to analyze trends and respond to concerns of a surge in maltreatment reports that could overwhelm the child welfare system once children and youth return to school full time.

Based on monthly maltreatment report data from 2018, the researchers determined that hotline reports from education personnel typically return to their typical levels each fall when children return to school rather than increase to higher than typical levels. They also acknowledge, though, that there is a higher risk of child maltreatment during the pandemic and that additional community-based concrete supports may be needed. The data analyzed in this report led to the creation of the Latent Event Simulator—a tool that can be used to help plan system responses.

The issue brief also includes recommendations for adaptive system changes, including the following:

• Refine child maltreatment categories to distinguish and address poverty-related neglect from child endangerment or abuse.
• Broaden the array of community-based supports and partner with families directly.
• Leverage technology to improve access to needed services and supports.
• Create alternative pathways to enhance the ways in which mandated reporters can support families.
• Expand the responsibility for child and family well-being beyond the child welfare system.

Read the Chapin Hall issue brief, COVID-19 and Child Welfare: Using Data to Understand Trends in Maltreatment and Response, to learn more.

 

Written by the Capacity Building Center for States

Engaging and empowering families as partners and decision-makers has the potential to improve child welfare quality and outcomes (Child Welfare Information Gateway, 2016). While family engagement is a valued practice in child welfare and has steadily increased over time, the Family First Prevention Services Act (FFPSA) emphasizes the importance of family connections across the child welfare continuum and establishes a set of engagement requirements for qualified residential treatment programs (QRTPs). To create a family engagement culture, programs should reach out to families, include them in their child's treatment, and provide 6 months of family-based supports after discharge (Children's Bureau, 2018).

The literature makes a strong case for this approach. Family engagement in congregate care settings is linked to shorter stays in care and increased reunification (Hess, 2003). Children and youth who have frequent contact with their families adjust more easily to out-of-home care, experience less depression and increased well-being, have an increased sense of normalcy, and have fewer behavioral challenges (McWey et al., 2010).

The information and tips below are adapted from the Capacity Building Center for States' forthcoming publication, Congregate Care in the Age of Family First: Family Engagement, which is designed to help state agencies, QRTPs, and other child welfare stakeholders understand the family engagement requirements of the FFPSA and thoughtfully plan for meaningful partnerships with families and youth in residential treatment programs.

Engaging Families in Congregate Care

Child welfare agencies can help QRTPs meet FFPSA requirements and meaningfully engage families throughout the course of treatment. They consider how QRTPs engage families along the following touch points:

• During initial contact: At the time of admission, families may feel uncertain, anxious, exhausted, and afraid. Staff members with lived experience, sometimes referred to as professional parent partners, can help a family feel welcome.
  
  • Do families have the opportunity to tell their story, ask questions, and learn about next steps without being overwhelmed?
  • Are staff focused on what it will take for the child or youth to return home?
• During treatment: Consistent connections to family throughout a stay in congregate care can improve treatment outcomes and prepare families for a successful reunification (Child Welfare Information Gateway, 2016). QRTPs need to have clear, consistent guidelines for partnering with families in the day-to-day care of children and youth.
  
  • Are families engaged as partners and decision-makers?
  • Is there thoughtful preparation for family visits and clinical support afterward to help families and youth process their emotions?
  • Are there opportunities for concrete skill building to facilitate a smooth transition home?
• During discharge and aftercare: Discharge planning should begin at the time of admission. Staff should consider what will help a family feel hopeful and excited about reunification. Families should have a clear understanding of next steps and expectations for the transition home.
  
  • Do staff clearly communicate with families about the discharge and aftercare processes?
  • Are families connected to supports in their community?
  • Do families have the opportunity to inform aftercare service delivery?

Planning for Family Engagement

Engaging families in congregate care requires vision and organizational commitment highlighted in policy and practice, along with workforce development.

Articulating a Vision and Organizational Commitment

Creating a vision for family engagement in collaboration with youth and families sets the tone for authentic partnership.

• Consider how congregate care leaders model and communicate the vision and commitment to family engagement. For example, do they encourage youth and families to participate in hiring, training, and organizational policy development?
• Has the program budgeted sufficient funds to support family engagement activities? Consider compensation for family and youth consultants at agency and system levels as well as tangible supports at the case level such as transportation and technology for family visits.

Building Workforce Readiness

Supporting meaningful family engagement through staffing and clinical practice embeds family-centered practice and support for authentic partnership.

• Does the program use equitable and inclusive hiring practices that result in a diverse workforce that is representative of the families served?
• Does the program offer family-centered training and skill-building opportunities?
• Does the program provide clear expectations that hold staff accountable for authentic family engagement?

Thoughtful planning for family engagement takes work, but by partnering with each other—and with families—agencies and QRTPs can increase the likelihood of a more positive experience and improved child and family outcomes.

Want to Learn More?

The Center for States' forthcoming 2021 series, Congregate Care in the Age of Family First, will offer more strategies for implementing FFPSA provisions in a congregate care setting. (Visit the Center for State's website for updates). Agencies can also work with the Center for States to develop and implement successful approaches to family engagement. Visit the Child Welfare Capacity Building Collaborative Liaisons webpage to find your state's tailored services liaison.

References

Children's Bureau. (2018). Information memorandum: ACYF-CB-IM-18-02. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration on Children, Youth, and Families. https://www.acf.hhs.gov/cb/policy-guidance/im-18-02

Child Welfare Information Gateway. (2016). Family engagement: Partnering with families to improve child welfare outcomes. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Children's Bureau. https://www.childwelfare.gov/pubs/f-fam-engagement/

Hess, P. (2003, October). Visiting between children in care and their families: A look at current policy. The National Resource Center for Foster Care and Permanency Planning. http://www.hunter.cuny.edu/socwork/nrcfcpp/downloads/visiting_report-10-29-03.pdf 

McWey, L., Acock, A., & Porter, B. (2010). The impact of continued contact with biological parents upon the mental health of children in foster care. Children and Youth Services Review, 32, 1338-1345. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2010.05.003
 

Shifting to more trauma-informed practices in family court has been shown to improve outcomes for families. A report presented on the Rise website details the importance of using a trauma-informed approach in working with child welfare-involved parents, especially families of color, who may have had negative experiences with courts that resulted in systemic distrust.

Intended for family court officers and child welfare professionals, the report provides introductory information on a trauma-informed approach and the impact of language in the courtroom. At its core, a trauma-informed approach involves a shift away from asking "What is wrong with you?" to asking "What happened to you?" Principles of this approach include safety, collaboration, and empowerment.

The report emphasizes the importance of using this approach when working with families of color. Most parents who get involved with family courts in urban areas are people of color from the lower socioeconomic strata of American society. As such, many of these parents have faced personal trauma, community violence, societal racism, and exclusion from economic opportunity. As court settings often foster tense and confrontational encounters, systems that are not trauma-informed run the risk of retraumatizing these parents.

In addition to an overview of trauma-informed approaches, the report includes the following:

• Definitions of key terms, including shared trauma, a relatively new term that refers to a collective traumatic reality that is shared universally, such as a pandemic
• Recommendations for trauma-informed practices that best support families during a period of shared trauma
• Input from parents on their experiences with family courts
• A case vignette that compares traditional language to trauma-informed language

Read the full report, Supporting Families of Color: How Racial and Complex Trauma Affect Parents of Color Navigating Family Court During the Time of COVID and Beyond, to learn more.

 

When integrating an older child into their home, adoptive families can use several strategies to ease the transition. While necessities such as food, shelter, and education are all important, there are various other areas of focus that can help an older child or teen adjust to their new home.

The AdoptUSKids article "How to Help an Older Child or Teen Adjust to Your Home" shares the following tips for helping adopted children acclimate:

• Be trustworthy. Because adopted children might not have previously had trustworthy adults in their lives, it is important that new adoptive parents tell the truth, behave predictably, and admit when they make mistakes.
• Communicate expectations. Clearly explain household rules and think about making changes that will help the new child feel more comfortable.
• Encourage honesty. Families can promote positive communication by encouraging children to express their thoughts and feelings. When listening, parents should respond without judgement and without taking the child's words personally.
• Give them alone time. Alone time can give a child a chance to relax and express their emotions in private.
• Be open-minded and accepting. It's important to prioritize relationship-building before attempting to correct bad habits, such as inappropriate language. 
• Let them be a kid. Some children who enter the child welfare system have faced more responsibilities and hardships that other kids their age. New families should be aware of this and parent to their child's needs, not their age.
• Serve familiar food and make food available. A child might have eaten different foods or had limited access to food before they were adopted.
• Plan for a good night's sleep. Some children might not be used to having their own room, or they might have certain bedtime rituals that are comforting.
• Provide opportunities for therapy. There are various group, family, and individual therapy options for adopted children that families can discuss with their social worker.

To learn more, read "How to Help an Older Child or Teen Adjust to Your Home."  
 

iFoster, a nonprofit that serves children in foster care, recently partnered with Learn to Be, an organization that provides one-on-one virtual tutoring for students, to provide free tutoring for its members. The free, virtual program is accessible via a Chromebook, laptop, or desktop. To sign up, a caregiver, social worker, or someone familiar with the child can fill out an enrollment form for the program. Most students are matched with a tutor within 24 hours. iFoster prioritizes referrals made by and on behalf of its members. However, signing up for a membership is free.

Since the partnership launched in November, iFoster members have received almost 3,000 minutes of free tutoring in various subjects.

For more information, visit the iFoster website or contact iFoster at 855.936.7837 or support@ifoster.org.

 

The National Training and Development Curriculum (NTDC) is a new training program for foster and adoptive parents. The curriculum provides potential foster and adoptive parents with information and strategies for parenting a child who has experienced trauma, separation, or loss. It also provides parents with access to information and resources postplacement.

The program, which was funded by the Children's Bureau, is based on research and input from experts, families who have experience with fostering or adopting children, and children who have experienced foster care or adoption.

There are three components of the NTDC program:

• Self-assessment: An online tool that prospective foster and adoptive parents complete twice
• Classroom-based training: Training in both in-person and online settings 
• Right-time training: On-going learning and skill development of themes not covered during classroom-based training that parents can utilize after a child is placed in their home

For more information, visit the NTDC website.


 

Upcoming conferences and events on child welfare and adoption include the following:

March

• Touchstones of Hope: Self-Determination (Part 1) [Webinar]
  National Indian Child Welfare Association
  March 16, online, 1 p.m. ET
   
• Opioids and the Courts: Difficult Conversations Around Preventing Overdose and Death [Webinar]
  National Council on Juvenile and Family Court Judges
  March 17, online, 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. ET
   
• 2021 National Conference on Juvenile Justice [Virtual]
  National Council on Juvenile and Family Court Judges
  March 21-24, online
   
• 2021 National School Social Work Conference [Virtual]
  School Social Work Association of America
  March 22-24, online

April

• 39th Annual Virtual Protecting Our Children National American Indian Conference [Virtual]
  National Indian Child Welfare Association
  April 11-14, online
   
• Opioids and the Courts: Difficult Conversations Around Recovery
  National Council on Juvenile and Family Court Judges
  April 21, online, 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. ET

May

• 2021 Virtual Conference
  Child Welfare League of America
  May 4-6, online

• Touchstones of Hope: Self-Determination (Part 2) [Webinar]
  National Indian Child Welfare Association
  May 18, online, 1 p.m. ET