This video tells the story of how a family court judge in Hancock County, Mississippi, works with families and stakeholders to support reunification through a trauma-informed, family-centered approach.

Frankie is 14 years old and lives with his sister, brothers, and moms. He and his sister were adopted when they were 2 years old and 4 years old, respectively. He loves spending time with his aunts, uncles, and cousins and loves being part of a big family.

Learn about negotiating boundaries, communication, support, and normalcy from a young person formally in foster care and her adoptive parents.

Explore the supportive relationship between a youth and her attorney.

Highlights the role agency resources and family support can play in helping kinship families face challenges. This video discusses an aunt's decision to become a full-time caregiver for her niece and her niece's daughter, and the importance home visits played in the transition.

Reveals how advocating for youth makes a difference in system change and in the advocates’ own lives. The Director of Policy and Advocacy at NMCAN and a youth advocate talk about their shared experience in testifying as expert witnesses for state legislative committees and how it created a strong bond between them.

This video highlights the story of a therapeutic foster care social worker in North Carolina and how her own experience in kinship care helps her connect with kinship caregivers and engage families.

Learn about Catherine’s journey recovering from trauma and addiction to be successfully reunified with her daughter.

Use this discussion guide with the Fostering a Healthy Workforce videos to access a description of each topic, individual and group reflection questions to facilitate on-demand learning, and an action-planning tool for teams to bring knowledge into action.  

The Center for States’ virtual Exhibit Hall booth features several products that focus on workforce development, including a variety of publications, videos, and learning experiences to help agencies foster healthy and supportive environments for child welfare professionals.

CWVE 2019 Closing Session Presentation Maximizing Our Collective Impact

Use this discussion guide with the Effectiveness in Child Welfare: Our Role in Improving the Lives of Children and Families videos to access a description of each topic, individual and group reflection questions to facilitate on-demand learning, considerations for use with partners, and an action-planning tool for teams to bring knowledge into action. 

Becoming a Workforce of Everyday Scientists: Frontline Staff in Agencies and Tribes

Becoming a Workforce of Everyday Scientists: Frontline Staff in the Legal Community Legal Presentation

This session is designed to explore strategies for creating an organizational culture that values feedback and incentivizes learning from data and evidence. The session highlights the importance of including the perspectives of the workforce and children, youth, and families, all of whom have an important stake in evaluation and continuous quality improvement.