Meaningful Family Engagement:

Nuts and Bolts

Together We Can8th Annual Conference

Lafayette HiltonLafayette, LA

October 6, 2010

Presenters

Nicole Bossard, NRCPFC Consultant

Sherry Tomlinson, NRCPFC Consultant

Overview of Today’s Workshop

Welcome and introductions Learning objectives – Intended take-a-ways

from the workshop Meaningful family engagement – key

elements Family engagement self assessment Foundation for partnership: Understanding

grief, loss, and healing

Learning Objectives for Today’s Workshop

Foundational principles for meaningful family engagement

Building blocks for meaningfully engaging families

Emerging family engagement strategies Action steps to further meaningful family

engagement in your home community

Ground Rules

Cell phones on vibrate or off Confidentiality Honest/open dialogue Respect other opinions Use of acronyms Relax One more thing…

Key Elements of Engagement

Provide all parents with children in imminent

risk of entering foster care the information they

need to successfully advocate for themselves

and for their children.

Walking In The Door

Child and Family Team Meeting

Provide parents with children in imminent risk

of entering foster care the means to participate

in all decisions made about their children’s

care, custody, and placement.

Policy and Resource Allocation

Provide parents who have experienced the

child welfare system with opportunities to

influence and improve child welfare policy,

practice, and resource allocation

New Tools for Workers

Provide all child welfare staff the skills and tools

necessary to work effectively with families and

children.

Public Information

Inform the public, legislators, and the

community at large about the struggles and

successes of families who have been involved

with child welfare.

What we’re learning…

From Principle to Practice

Meet Maria…

Grief, Loss & Healing

Birth Fathers and Mothers Feelings and Behaviors

How do birth parents feel when their children are removed and placed into foster care?

How might they behave or act?

Social Worker Feeling and Behaviors

How might a social worker feel after being involved in the removal of a child?

How might they behave or act?

Foster Parent Feeling and Behaviors

What might a foster parent feel when a child is removed from their home and returned to their parent?

How might they behave or act?

What does family engagement look like in your agency or community?

Birth Parent Engagement Assessment Tool

Engaging and Working with Fathers

Father Presence/Father Involvement

Better School Performance Attachment to School Staying Out of Trouble Delayed Sexual Activity Fewer Teen Pregnancies

Idea to action…

What policies and procedures are in place regarding family engagement within your agency, organization, etc.?

Are you actively engaging fathers? What are you doing well? What are challenges and concerns related to

family engagement?

Questions and Discussion

Additional Resources National Resource Center for Permanency and Family

Connection www.nrcpfc.org Child Welfare Organizing Project www.cwop.org Rise Magazine www.risemagazine.org Iowa Dept. of Human Services

www.dhs.state.ia.us/cppc/Parent_Partner_Program/index.html

National Coalition for Parent Advocacy in Child Protective Services www.parentadvocacy.org

Detroit Center for Family Advocacy www.law.umich.edu/centersandprograms/ccl/cfa/Pages/default.aspx

The National Resource Center for Permanency and Family Connections

Hunter College School of Social Work

LSU School of Social Work

A Service of the Children’s Bureau/ACF/DHHS

Gmallon@hunter.cuny.edu

www.nrcpfc.org