Resource Library

The Center for States designs products, services, and learning experiences to increase understanding and awareness, and build knowledge and skills. The Center focuses its attention on developing products and resources on several core organizational and practice topics.

If you are interested in our series and learning experiences, please use our search bar or explore our topics.

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Library and Information Services

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The Center for States provides research assistance and responds to information requests on building capacity in child welfare.

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Email: info@childwelfare.gov 
Phone: 1.800.394.3366

Visit the Center for States' Contact Us webpage for more information.

Showing 1 - 15 of 37 resources
PDF

Use the activities in this tool to create a plan to replicate, adapt, or design an intervention to improve outcomes for children, young people, and families.

Publication Year 2024
PDF

Use this tool to help your child welfare agency develop a communication plan to support your change and implementation efforts. 

Publication Year 2024
PDF

Explore concepts, terms, and foundational information about psychological safety on child welfare teams.

Publication Year 2024
PDF

Use this assessment tool to identify strengths and areas for growth to enhance your team’s psychological safety.
 

Publication Year 2024
PDF

Identify data sources to explore your state’s system of foster and adoptive parent licensing, recruitment, and retention.

Publication Year 2023
Video

Learn strategies to address the mental health needs of children, young people, and families.

Publication Year 2023
Video

Learn why the Indian Child Welfare Act and the historical trauma Indigenous people have experienced are important to understand when working with Indigenous families. 

Publication Year 2022
PDF

Use this brief to explore actionable strategies for meaningful partner engagement in child welfare agency strategic planning, monitoring, and review processes.

Publication Year 2022
PDF

Use this brief to help your agency coordinate strategic and long-term planning, monitoring, and reporting processes—such as the Child and Family Services Plan (CFSP) and Child and Family Services Review (CFSR)—with agency continuous quality improvement (CQI).

Publication Year 2022
Video

Recorded webinar of youth with lived expertise and child and family serving agency leaders discussing strategies to support meaningful youth engagement and integrating family and youth voices at individual, practice, and system levels.

Publication Year 2021
Infographic

Illustrates the four thematic pillars necessary for organizational capacity supporting engagement with young people currently and formerly in foster care. Each of the four segments succinctly defines an element of organizational capacity building for youth engagement.

Publication Year 2021
Podcast

Explore a family-focused program that embodies many of the changes that Kentucky wants to see throughout its child welfare system in this podcast. The START, program demonstrates a shift in organizational culture to focus on family and serves as an example of a truly collaborative team that uses early intervention and a shared decision-making model to work with families.

Publication Year 2020
Video

Listen in as parents and workers share their perspectives on the value of and approaches to improving comprehensive assessment of parents. 

Publication Year 2017
Video

Desiree is an alumna of the foster care system. She lived with the same foster care family for 14 years. She entered foster care with three of her siblings, and wants to use her experiences growing up in foster care to make a difference for those still in the system.

Publication Year 2017
PDF

Learn the characteristics and results that describe the right people to engage youth and get guidance for recruiting, hiring, and retaining these employees.

Publication Year 2017