What are child protection agencies learning about supporting virtual engagement with children and families as well as staff?
Learn how the COVID-19 pandemic leveraged new ways of engaging virtually to support children and families.
Healthy organizations
We believe that a skilled and stable child welfare workforce supported by quality-focused agency environments are key to improved outcomes for children and families. Leaders from the field have asked for resources on building healthy organizations. The documents featured here reflect responses to inquiries about developing an effective workforce and building data-informed infrastructure so that child welfare agencies function at their best.
How could behavioral design improve frontline child welfare practice?
ideas42 outlines strategies from behavioral science for reducing stressors on child welfare staff.
How can longitudinal data support child and family well-being?
Explore best practices for collecting and using longitudinal data to assess outcomes for families.
How does New Jersey maintain a stable child welfare workforce?
Learn about key strategies New Jersey DCF has implemented to keep a low rate of turnover among its child welfare workforce.
Safety science and safety culture
Explore a variety of our resources related to safety science and promoting a safety culture within child welfare agencies.
How do some child protection agencies approach coaching?
Learn how applying methods of coaching within child protection agencies can have significant positive effects on professional development.
How do some child protection agencies approach coaching? (APPENDIX)
Read summaries from several jurisdictions that use coaching models to train and develop their child protection agency staff.
What has been New York’s experience with casework teaming?
New York has found that casework teaming can help child welfare staff better meet the needs of the children and families they serve.
How have counties in New York approached implementation of casework teaming?
Learn how a casework teaming model for child welfare have been implemented in counties across New York.
Do higher standards of proof for child abuse and neglect impact rates of substantiation?
Learn about findings from a study that examines the outcomes related to having higher standards of proof for substantiation.
How can child welfare agencies use safety science concepts during a crisis?
Presenters at the National Partnership for Child Safety Collaborative describe how safety science has been applied during COVID-19.
How have some child protection agencies successfully recruited and retained resource families?
Learn how child protection agencies in New Jersey, Oklahoma, and Washington recruit and retain resource families for children in foster care.
What are some strategies for finding and keeping traditional and therapeutic resource families?
Explore effective strategies that child protection agencies can use to recruit and retain traditional and therapeutic resource families.
How did Michigan’s Children’s Services Agency develop executive performance dashboards?
Learn how Michigan developed performance dashboards to visualize metrics and trends that help inform decision-making.
How can executive performance dashboards support child welfare agency effectiveness?
This brief shares a framework for developing performance dashboards that include key measures to support decision-making.
How can child protection agencies respond to litigation?
Learn about strategies child protection agencies can pursue as they move through a consent decree litigation process.
How can child protection agencies use safety science to promote a safety culture?
Explore ways that agencies can implement the principles of safety science in order to encourage a workplace culture of safety and trust.
How are child welfare leaders applying the principles of safety science to prevent harm to children?
Learn from the experiences of child welfare agency leaders who are applying the principles of safety science within their organizations.
How did Connecticut’s Department of Children and Families and the state Legislature advance a strong relationship to the benefit of children and families?
Learn about the partnership between Connecticut’s Department of Children and Families and the state Legislature, and why it is essential.
Are there parallels between hiring and child protection processes that can help reduce bias and narrow child welfare’s front door?
This brief examines the parallels that exist between strategies for hiring staff and decision-making processes in child protection.