Buzzwords: Moving to Behavioral Descriptors doodle video is a short, animated video that follows a child involved in a child welfare investigation. The video describes what buzzwords are and illustrates the impact they can have on children and families. It also demonstrates how to recognize buzzwords and offers strategies for transforming buzzwords into objective, behavior-based descriptors.

This publication looks at buzzwords in the context of words or phrases commonly used in child welfare reporting and documentation that can be subjective or carry negative connotations, and offers strategies to minimize their negative impact.

Examine current research and how best to build organizational capacity in five areas, and learn about possible challenges and solutions.

Identify data sources to explore how well your state’s case review system is functioning.

See how workforce satisfaction and retention are improved by emphasizing the positive differences that are made in the lives of children and families.

Learn how implementation teams can assess readiness for change and implementation and support related planning.

Use this crosswalk to start thinking concretely about prevention planning as a change and implementation process. 

Better understand your state’s performance on statewide data indicators related to the safety and permanency of children served by the child welfare system. 

Learn about the identified five dimensions of capacity, browse examples of each, and find out why each dimension is important to an organization.

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Provides a broad overview of the Child Welfare Response to Child and Youth Sex Trafficking learning curriculum and explores how the curriculum could be integrated into agency training programs.

Read about our new Young Adult Consultant team member, find helpful information about the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA), ways to engage persons with lived experience, and more!

Explore ways that jurisdictions can integrate strategies to promote equity in continuous quality improvement (CQI) and evaluation efforts. 

Listen to a judge and a child welfare agency leader discuss the challenges, achievements, and strategies of the Tompkins County Family Treatment Court. This longstanding collaboration between the child welfare, substance use treatment, and judicial systems has been steadily growing its Family Treatment Court Team and improving outcomes for families since 2001.

See how coordination can improve identification, reporting, and services for youth who are victims or at risk of becoming victims of sex trafficking.

Listen to child welfare agency leaders in the District of Columbia, service providers, partners in community collaboratives, and sister agencies talk about how they coordinate service planning and delivery, are culturally responsive to the community, and provide seamless services to families.