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20 INNOVATIVE IDEAS BEST PRACTICES, INITIATIVES, AND MODEL COURTS
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Ideas 1 - 4 MODEL COURTS
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“ a court that deals with cases involving parental rights…which come before the court through either the criminal or civil process, which arise out of the substance abuse of a parent.” - Juvenile and Family Drug Courts: An Overview (Drug Court Clearinghouse and Technical Assistance Project at the American University, 1998) FAMILY DEPENDENCY TREATMENT COURTS
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San Diego, CA Access to Treatment Participants of FDTC get priority slots with a network of drug and alcohol treatment providers County contracts with third party providers for priority placements FAMILY DEPENDENCY TREATMENT COURTS
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Family drug treatment court that focuses on families with children age three and younger Treatment program completed in phases Completion of phases coincides with increased visitation Parents prove sobriety through frequent testing Leads to more frequent visits / unsupervised visits Parenting skills assessed by judge at each hearing Specific questions about the parent-child relationship OMAHA, NEBRASKA ZERO TO THREE DRUG TREATMENT COURT
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Based out of Miami-Dade County Juvenile Court 2 nd and 3 rd generation families involved in child protection Partnered with Dr. & Prof. of Pediatrics and Psychiatry Focus on healing parent and child relationships COURT TEAMS FOR MALTREATED INFANTS AND TODDLERS
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Phase 1: Develop partnership between the judge and a local community coordinator to establish a court-community team Build awareness of needs of children under 3 in foster care Complete a community needs assessment that identifies available services and gaps in services COURT TEAMS, CONT’D
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Phase 2: Provide additional services for infants and toddlers Court ordered: Referrals for health and dental care Quality child care Behavioral & development assessments Frequent visits with parents Evidence based services Review hearings every 30 days Utilizes visitation to promote permanent placement with parents COURT TEAMS, CONT’D
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H.O.P.E. = Helping Organize Parents Effectively Families with multiple cases before the court Cases grouped together and heard together Create a whole family plan Whole team discusses modifications to the family plan At each hearing assess where the family is at in all areas BUTTE COUNTY, CALIFORNIA H.O.P.E COURTS
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Ideas 5 - 9 SUPPORTING THE CASE PLAN
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Oregon: Fostering Hope Initiative The issue: A family in stress is a family more likely to end up in child welfare The initiative: 1) Build up the internal resources of the parents; and 2) Reinforce the external resources in the community to support families in need. PLACE BASED FAMILY STRENGTHENING
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Weekly community dinners at neighborhood churches & community centers Classes Socialization Supporting connections between neighbors In-home services Mentoring Parenting skills Health & wellness PLACE BASED FAMILY STRENGTHENING
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Therapeutic supervised visitation program Operates out of 3 converted houses Full apartments visiting rooms kitchens Program phases for increased visitation Overnight visits in the final phase NEW JERSEY FAMILY REUNITY HOUSES
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Pair parent with a seasoned foster care provider Program is voluntary – not part of mandatory case plan Mentor parents in parenting skills but also in building a healthy support network Outcomes: Families more frequently reunify Children’s length of stay in foster care is reduced Fewer children return to care after reunification WASHINGTON STATE PARENT TO PARENT MENTORING
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Participants matched with a parent mentor with previous child welfare involvement Added a class component called “Here’s the Deal” Goals: Parents become more informed consumers of the child welfare system and the services available; Parents move more quickly through their anger; Develop a good working relationship with their social worker; More quickly engage in services. WASHINGTON STATE PARENT PARTNERS PROGRAM
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Collaboration between the Police Department and the Yale Child Study Center Minimize the trauma to children at the time of the arrest of a parent: Trains police in child development Provides clinicians to work with children at the scene of an arrest Provides treatment and follow up counseling for children Provides ongoing consultation for police and child welfare staff NEW HAVEN, CONNECTICUT CHILD DEVELOPMENT-COMMUNITY POLICING
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Ideas 10 - 12 SUPPORTING FOSTER PARENTS AND RESOURCE FAMILIES
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“a supported, happy foster parent is a walking billboard for other potential foster parents” Support groups Training opportunities Monthly newsletter Including foster parents input in legislative efforts and policy efforts WASHINGTON STATE’S CHILDREN’S ADMINISTRATION FOSTER PARENT SUPPORT & RECRUITMENT
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Customer Service Training for Child Welfare Staff Data Driven Recruitment Retention Quarterly reports Data on children in care vs. resource families Rapid Improvement Events Marketing– Communications– PSAs– Support Center Online Training Curriculum Tribal Recruitment Subcommittee OKLAHOMA BRIDGE TO THE FUTURE PROJECT
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Meeting between birth parents and foster parents within 2 days of an out-of-home placement Discussions are child-focused Opportunity to share information Establish relationship of mutual respect Similar program in Virginia – meeting within 7 days of an out-of-home placement NEW MEXICO ICEBREAKER MEETINGS
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Idea 13 POST PERMANENCY
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Idea: Coordinate a large team of professionals and volunteers in a highly effective way Prior to Extreme Recruitment: Social workers checked in once a month Other stakeholders were rarely in the same room Under Extreme Recruitment: Stakeholders are in constant contact Weekly 30 minute meetings per child/case Checklists and action items SAINT LOUIS, MISSOURI EXTREME RECRUITMENT
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Agency hired full time private investigators Sole job is to track down members of child’s biological family Goal for each child is to identify 40-60 family members Find two key individuals in every family: The informant The family gem EXTREME RECRUITMENT
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Ideas 14 & 15 CROSSOVER YOUTH
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“Youth who have experienced maltreatment and engaged in delinquency” -Center for Juvenile Justice Reform, -Crossover Youth Practice Model CROSSOVER YOUTH
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More likely to exit care from a group home rather than with relatives or a foster family More than twice as likely to be heavy users of public systems Three times as likely to experience a jail stay 50 percent less likely to be consistently employed Will earn less than half in first four years after exit The average per-person cost of crossover youth who access public services was more than double D. Culhane, Young Adult Outcomes of Youth Exiting Dependent or Delinquent Care in LA County (LA, CA: Univ. of PA, 2011) CROSSOVER YOUTH – AS COMPARED TO YOUTH IN ONLY DELINQUENCY OR CP
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School based intervention program: school districts ↔ child welfare ↔ probation Determine gaps in services Support timely transfers of records when placements and/or schools change Provide direct service and referrals Advocacy and collaboration CALIFORNIA FOSTER YOUTH SERVICES
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Overall objectives and outcomes: Improved academic achievement Reduced truancy Reduced expulsion rates CALIFORNIA FOSTER CARE YOUTH SERVICES
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Collaboration project between child dependency and delinquency courts Cross-over training between child welfare & probation staff Whole family assessments – regardless of which avenue the family enters into court One judge one family Hold review hearings for delinquency and child welfare matters at the same time Engage in joint case planning across cases PIMA COUNTY, ARIZONA
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Ideas 16 & 17 ENGAGING AND SUPPORTING KIDS IN FOSTER CARE
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Youth ages 15-19 did a year long study of NYC’s permanency planning process Goals: Youth to have a sense of responsibility and influence in their own case More youth attend their hearings The best decisions made for youth and their family Turn going to court into a positive experience for youth Improve chances of success for youth who age out of foster care NEW YORK CITY YOUTH JUSTICE BOARD
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Created a report with 14 recommendations to improve court experiences and outcomes for kids in foster care in 3 major areas: To prepare youth to take a more active role in their cases To create stronger partnerships between, guardians, case workers, and youth To create a court environment that facilitates meaningful youth involvement YOUTH JUSTICE BOARD
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Quarterly print and online publication Contributors all current or former foster care youth Editors on staff who work one-on-one with youth in care NEW YORK REPRESENT
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REPRESENT
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RISE
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Ideas 18 - 20 COURTHOUSE ENVIRONMENT
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Provides a space for children to be engaged in activities Court hearings/meetings with social workers or attorneys may be more efficient without kids Utilize staff and/or volunteers to supervise the room CHILDREN’S WAITING ROOMS
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Free Arts for Abused Children Partnered to operate at 2 sites in LA County Courthouse provides space Free Arts provides volunteers and art supplies during blocked dependency calendar time LOS ANGELES COUNTY, CA
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King County, Washington: Ellie, assigned to the Special Assault Unit in 2005 Nation’s first service dog matched full time with a county attorney’s office Can be utilized at the interview and investigation stage of child abuse cases Can be used to reduce stress during for children while waiting for a court hearing or while testifying COURTHOUSE DOGS
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THANKS!
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WEBSITES AND RESOURCES: Oklahoma Bridge to the Future http://www.okbridgefamilies.com/ Courthouse Dogs www.courthousedogs.org Place-Based Family Strengthening www.ctfalliance.org Washington Parent Partners/Mentoring Program http://pocweb.cac.washington.edu/publications/parent- engagementmentoring-models-washington-state Fostering Hope Initiative http://fosteringhopeinitiative.org/ Extreme Recruitment www.adoptuskids.org Represent www.representmag.org Youth Justice Board – New York 2007 Report http://www.courtinnovation.org/sites/default/files/YJBreport%20fi nal_2007.pdf Free Arts for Abused Children www.freearts.org Zero to Three Initiatives http://www.zerotothree.org/ Crossover Youth https://www.childwelfare.gov/systemwide/youth/collaboration/dua lsystem.cfm National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges http://www.ncjfcj.org/ Reunity Houses – New Jersey http://familyconnectionsnj.org/reunity.html Rise http://www.risemagazine.org/
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