Explore every episode of the podcast National Child Welfare Workforce Institute (NCWWI)

Listen in on the September 15, 2020 Child Welfare Worker Recognition Event to get reconnected to the heart work and hear Robin Leake, Jerry Milner, Victor Sims, Courtney Canova, and Dr. Lakeya Cherry express their appreciation for how you've adjusted your practice to serve families and children under such unprecedented and challenging conditions. Thank you for all you do!

During the COVID-19 crisis, child welfare workers are using technology to communicate with families, and foster parents are using technology to connect youth in their care to services and maintain connection between youth and their biological families. This webinar offers considerations and best practices to support child welfare workers as they use technology with the families they serve.

Coaching in the child welfare workforce often happens face-to-face or in context of daily work activities. With our shift to virtual work, face-to-face contact may have been curtailed but connecting and supporting growth does not need to stop. This session explores what stays the same and what adjustments must be made when coaching remotely.

Much of child welfare professional development, especially foundational training for new workers, takes place in-person. Because of the current situation, training needs to be available online in order to continue to meet the needs of our workforce. This webinar provides information on converting in-person experiences to virtual learning platforms, as almost anything that can be taught in the classroom can also go online (really!). Learn tips, tricks, and ways to overcome barriers.

During the COVID-19 crisis, child welfare workers provide critical services to their communities. As essential public servants, it is important that they have systems in place to ensure their safety during home visits and working in the field. This session explores how child welfare programs are innovating to protect their frontline workers’ physical, emotional, and psychological safety.

In these uncertain times, we are all presented with new concerns about ourselves, our teams, and those we love. With the unprecedented global crisis, our national child welfare workforce and leaders also find themselves facing new challenges and stressors as everything about the old “normal” is changing. In this session, Dr. Amelia Franck Meyer provides hopeful perspectives, concrete action steps and tools, and words of comfort and support for our workforce to help them manage through this crisis. Participants receive ideas to cope and prepare to be in the best position and condition possible as we begin to rebuild together.

With the child welfare workforce currently working from home, supervision is more important than ever to ensure continued quality service provision and to keep children safe and families together. Listen to this recording to hear how supervision is changing to respond to this new virtual world and what adjustments are being made in this environment.

This webinar, held on September 26, 2019, highlights the workforce development efforts of the Indiana Department of Child Services

Within the world of child welfare, we have been given the task of empowering children, youth, and families who are faced with a variety of life challenges and obstacles. No matter how difficult the situation, when we focus on the mission and serve from the heart lives are positively impacted and transformed. This highly informative, inspirational and purpose-driven message addresses how every person within the child welfare system has the power to be a difference maker when their heart is emotionally connected to the jobs they perform. Furthermore, participants will be taught a variety of skills designed to enhance their professional abilities in the areas of building relationships, valuing others, exhibiting leadership and mastering service excellence. Individuals will leave this session motivated, recharged and with a renewed sense of purpose.

This one-hour combined webinar and learning exchange focuses on Ramsey County’s collaborations with internal and external partners in their perseverance of sustainable change that positively impacts families and children. Ramsey County, Minnesota colleagues propose that continual and dedicated attention to racial disparities in child welfare must be at the core of any sustainability plan if child welfare agencies are to address, reduce, and ultimately eliminate race-based disparities in child welfare and their related systems.

This webinar, held August 23, 2018, is the fifth in a 5-part series of interactive and informational webinars where the NCWWI team helps participants explore NCWWI resources and efficiently locate just the right ones to make positive changes in your teams or organizations. During this session, NCWWI staff review the components of NCWWI's Leadership Academies for Supervisors and Middle Managers and provide implementation recommendations.

This webinar, held July 25, 2018, is the fourth in a 5-part series of interactive and informational webinars where the NCWWI team helps participants explore NCWWI resources and efficiently locate just the right ones to make positive changes in your teams or organizations. During this session, NCWWI staff demonstrate the Learning and Living Leadership Tool Kit.

Effective supervisors must zoom in and out to get the full picture of any situation. Twan Stokes from Indiana Department of Child Services wanted to do something about the big issue of retention and she did it by zooming in and developing a mentor appreciation day. Listen to this seven minute story to learn more about her leadership journey and how it started when she participated in the Leadership Academy for Supervisors.

Cherokee Nation Indian Child Welfare faced big challenges to move their agency forward. NCWWI signed on to assist and to do so had to change the way they operated, too. Hear how together they faced these challenges to make a difference for children and families.

Understanding the personal journey – or context - that leads people to a career in child welfare is an important part of being an effective leader. This story explores how the Director of Missouri’s Children’s Division has shaped his leadership style around understanding the life stories of workers.

For decades, the approach to workforce issues in child welfare was crisis-driven. Workers were not sufficiently supported, and states struggled to meet outcomes. In 2008, this began to change when the Children’s Bureau funded the National Child Welfare Workforce Institute (NCWWI). By bringing together tribes, states, agencies, and universities in partnership, NCWWI has transformed the field by developing purposeful interventions that have the workforce at the forefront of sustainable change. Listen to learn how NCWWI has accomplished this in their purposeful approach.

This webinar, held June 26, 2018, is the third in a 5-part series of interactive and informational webinars where the NCWWI team helps participants explore NCWWI resources and efficiently locate just the right ones to make positive changes in your teams or organizations. During this session, NCWWI staff demonstrate the Workforce Development Planning and Assessment Tool Kit along with it's companion Facilitator's Guide.

As an MSW student at the University of North Dakota, Skye Albert received a NCWWI traineeship that sent her to work in a rural part of the state that was facing a child welfare crisis. Skye not only tackled the unique challenges facing the county, but inspired her MSW program to re-think how they prepare students to work in the field.

The Missouri Children’s Division faced big challenges prior to 2014. Too many children were in out-of-home care, child welfare workers approached practice inconsistently, and the state was plagued by high staff turnover rates. This is the story of how the Division collaborated on a Workforce Excellence project to design and implement a new practice model to address these issues.

Learn about New York State’s work with local counties, in collaboration with the University at Albany, on race equity and cultural responsiveness and how their partnership with local colleges and universities is part of a promising strategy to address, reduce, and ultimately eliminate race-based disparities in child welfare and other systems. Handouts are available here: http://bit.ly/REquity5Archive

This episode of Tools of the Trade explores the use of NCWWI Microlearnings

The decision to embrace a system-wide workforce development approach may come from agency leaders, but sometimes the best ideas to deliver and sustain change can come from staff directly serving on the frontlines of child welfare. In this podcast episode, hear how frontline child welfare professionals were empowered to design solutions that improved office culture, partnerships, and outcomes for the children and families they serve.

This episode of Tools of the Trade explores the MyNCWWI resource portal.

This is the story of 3 graduate students from the UC Berkeley School of Social Welfare who were able to connect their research to practice through their NCWWI traineeships. After their research uncovered areas for improving local practice, they presented their findings to a group of managers from the field, who were compelled to act on what the students had found.

Anne Graham, a child welfare middle manager from New Hampshire, developed a much needed change initiative during her participation in the LAMM. Although her project addressed a serious gap in worker pre-service training, it took several years until she was able influence and enact change. This story explains how her preparation met the opportunity to be realized.

Hear about a NCWWI university-agency partnership between the University of North Dakota Department of Social Work and the North Dakota Department of Children and Family Services. The Child Welfare Scholars program funds B.S.W. and M.S.W. trainees who are current members of the child welfare workforce. This funding aims to help social work students grow their leadership and practice skills, help meet the increased child welfare demands of the state, and provide direct feedback for the university to shape its curriculum.

The Connecticut Department of Children and Families (DCF) has strived to address implicit and explicit bias, interpersonal and internalized racism, and institutional and structural factors. The team shares DCF’S work related to agency and workforce development, sustainability, and their experiences on what it seems to take to keep the work of racial justice at the forefront, in the background, and at all levels—in ways that ultimately impact children, families, and communities.

The Connecticut Department of Children and Families (DCF) has strived to address implicit and explicit bias, interpersonal and internalized racism, and institutional and structural factors. The team shares DCF’S work related to agency and workforce development, sustainability, and their experiences on what it seems to take to keep the work of racial justice at the forefront, in the background, and at all levels—in ways that ultimately impact children, families, and communities.

Hear about an example of how one state changed its approach to staff development, along with the “must-haves” and lessons learned in moving away from isolated interventions and toward a targeted and cohesive strategy.

Hear about how addressing your workforce can impact challenges facing child welfare agencies and learn about the essential elements and implementation of the NCWWI Workforce Development Framework.

Community collaborations and data sharing from the Allegheny County Office of Children, Youth, and Family Services (OCYF) led to an in-depth understanding of the inequities facing black girls in all areas of life. Black Girls Equity Alliance brought together several community agencies in response to black adolescent girls faring the worst in all child welfare outcomes.Allegheny County (PA) Department of Human Services

Community collaborations and data sharing from the Allegheny County Office of Children, Youth, and Family Services (OCYF) led to an in-depth understanding of the inequities facing black girls in all areas of life. Black Girls Equity Alliance brought together several community agencies in response to black adolescent girls faring the worst in all child welfare outcomes.Allegheny County (PA) Department of Human Services

The Iowa Department of Human Services in Sioux City (Woodbury County) discusses their Community Initiative for Native Children and Families (CINCF) which was formed in response to the disproportionate and disparate number of Native American children in the child welfare system. This collaboration was built on a grassroots effort started by the Native American community, gaining the attention of Iowa Department of Human Services and building partnerships, and how it continues to be sustained today. 

The Iowa Department of Human Services in Sioux City (Woodbury County) discusses their Community Initiative for Native Children and Families (CINCF) which was formed in response to the disproportionate and disparate number of Native American children in the child welfare system. This collaboration was built on a grassroots effort started by the Native American community, gaining the attention of Iowa Department of Human Services and building partnerships, and how it continues to be sustained today. 

Hear from Fairfax County (VA) and the Center for the Study of Social Policy about how they used an Institutional Analysis (IA) to help partners understand the “story behind the numbers.” Key components of the IA methodology, and how the change framework organizes strategies that make a difference in the lives of families and children are discussed.

Hear from Fairfax County (VA) and the Center for the Study of Social Policy about how they used an Institutional Analysis (IA) to help partners understand the “story behind the numbers.” Key components of the IA methodology, and how the change framework organizes strategies that make a difference in the lives of families and children are discussed.

Learn about the New Jersey Department of Children and Families, Division of Child Protection & Permanency Worker2Worker (W2W) Program is a confidential peer-counseling helpline and support approach for to help manage the unique stressors of frontline child welfare practice. W2W provides a 7-day-a-week helpline reflective of a Reciprocal Peer Support model. The program offers clinical care telephone assessments, a network of referral/treatment services, and psychological first aid with crisis response services following traumatic events.

Learn about the New Jersey Department of Children and Families, Division of Child Protection & Permanency Worker2Worker (W2W) Program is a confidential peer-counseling helpline and support approach for to help manage the unique stressors of frontline child welfare practice. W2W provides a 7-day-a-week helpline reflective of a Reciprocal Peer Support model. The program offers clinical care telephone assessments, a network of referral/treatment services, and psychological first aid with crisis response services following traumatic events.

The Center for the Study of Social Policy (CSSP) discusses applying a racial equity lens to child welfare change efforts including how to build an anti-racist organization as well as reduce racial inequities to become more just, fair and reflective of the communities they serve. Topics addressed: levels and types of racial inequity; core staff competencies; frameworks to achieve racial equity.

The Center for the Study of Social Policy (CSSP) discusses applying a racial equity lens to child welfare change efforts including how to build an anti-racist organization as well as reduce racial inequities to become more just, fair and reflective of the communities they serve. Topics addressed: levels and types of racial inequity; core staff competencies; frameworks to achieve racial equity.

The Indiana Department of Child Services discusses a range of inter-connected supervisory initatives including: (1) Indiana Training Needs Assessment (ITNA) and the Deloitte/3P Consulting Report; (2) Onboarding Process for new supervisors; (3) Supervisory Core Training Series; (4) Coaching Supervisors For Successful Supervisory Practice; (5) Quarterly Supervisory Workshops; (6) NCWWI’s Leadership Academy for Experienced Supervisors (LAS); (7) Ongoing Partnership with Indiana University; and (8) Supervisory Mentoring Program.

The Indiana Department of Child Services discusses a range of inter-connected supervisory initatives including: (1) Indiana Training Needs Assessment (ITNA) and the Deloitte/3P Consulting Report; (2) Onboarding Process for new supervisors; (3) Supervisory Core Training Series; (4) Coaching Supervisors For Successful Supervisory Practice; (5) Quarterly Supervisory Workshops; (6) NCWWI’s Leadership Academy for Experienced Supervisors (LAS); (7) Ongoing Partnership with Indiana University; and (8) Supervisory Mentoring Program.

The Illinois Department of Children and Family Services and the University of Illinois - Urbana Champaign discuss implementation Evidence-based Practices including: Birth to Three (IB3) Waiver flexibly uses Title IV-E funds in order to provide one of two evidence-based and developmentally informed interventions (Child-Parent Psychotherapy or Nurturing Parent Program) to targeted children and caregivers in an effort to improve attachment, reduce trauma symptoms, prevent foster care re-entry, improve child well-being, and increase permanency for children in out-of-home placement.

The Illinois Department of Children and Family Services and the University of Illinois - Urbana Champaign discuss implementation Evidence-based Practices including: Birth to Three (IB3) Waiver flexibly uses Title IV-E funds in order to provide one of two evidence-based and developmentally informed interventions (Child-Parent Psychotherapy or Nurturing Parent Program) to targeted children and caregivers in an effort to improve attachment, reduce trauma symptoms, prevent foster care re-entry, improve child well-being, and increase permanency for children in out-of-home placement.

Hear from Waupaca County, WI Department of Health and Human Services as they share how they used nine principles of trauma-informed care to move an entire human services agency to a trauma-informed approach to human service practice and administration. Principles can be successfully incorporated into the environment and operations of organizations.

Hear from Waupaca County, WI Department of Health and Human Services as they share how they used nine principles of trauma-informed care to move an entire human services agency to a trauma-informed approach to human service practice and administration. Principles can be successfully incorporated into the environment and operations of organizations.

Join us to learn from Case Commons about Casebook, an innovative technology solution that includes powerful data analytics and evidence-influenced decision-making.

Join us to learn from Case Commons about Casebook, an innovative technology solution that includes powerful data analytics and evidence-influenced decision-making.

The Institue for Human Services, along with Franklin and Athens County Children's Services (Ohio) share their competency-based Training Program that uses competencies & core learning objectives as the basis of its training system. Rhode Island Dept. of Children, Youth and Families and Center for Human Servcies also discuss their Individual Learning Needs Assessment Survey which is used to support on-the-job training and assessment by supervisors.

The Institue for Human Services, along with Franklin and Athens County Children's Services (Ohio) share their competency-based Training Program that uses competencies & core learning objectives as the basis of its training system. Rhode Island Dept. of Children, Youth and Families and Center for Human Servcies also discuss their Individual Learning Needs Assessment Survey which is used to support on-the-job training and assessment by supervisors.