This guide is designed to support administrative leaders in states and other jurisdictions in using data to assess and identify ways to improve their service array.

Learn about the range of practices comprising the continuum of youth engagement to youth empowerment.

Explore how independent verification and validation services for title IV-E agencies are used for child welfare information systems projects.

Learn about a framework for applying safety science to promote a culture of safety in child welfare agencies.

Learn about various instruments used to measure well-being for program, case planning, and evaluation purposes.

Explore how data reported in AFCARS about youth who run away from state custody can be used to inform interventions.

Get guidance, tips, and strategies for assessing agency culture and climate. 

Use this guide for tips, and strategies concerning the critical role leadership plays in creating and sustaining positive organizational culture.

Learn the importance of effective, ongoing collaboration between child welfare agencies and community-based partners.

Browse the themes and key takeaways from the How We Partner With the Community to Improve Service Options podcast series.

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.

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

This manual examines the roles and responsibilities of child protective services (CPS) workers. It describes the purposes, key decisions, and issues of each stage of the CPS process and strategies for casework supervision, training, and support.

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