Family Support and Empowerment Projects
Many families share circumstances that require interaction with multiple government agencies and systems of support (e.g. working poor families, families with children with special needs, immigrant/refugee families, families involved in the child welfare system). Too often, however, the perspectives of these families are not heard in the policy arena. To better inform policymakers, we employ mixed methods, including participatory research with families, to gain a thorough understanding of the challenges families face in navigating these systems and how these challenges affect their ability to care for their children and balance work and family. We apply our understanding of these needs to policy recommendations and a wide variety of workforce and organizational development initiatives (e.g. public assistance programs, including TANF, MaineCare, and Food Stamps, child support enforcement; education and child care). The following projects are examples of our work in this area.
Resources
new: nrcoi publishes practice model guide
The National Child Welfare Resource Center for Organizational Improvement's Guide for Developing and Implementing Child Welfare Practice Models offers an overall framework for developing, implementing, and/or strengthening a child welfare practice model; cites specific examples from the field; and provides additional information to help child welfare agencies and their partners make informed choices in selecting their approaches to this important work.
State and Wabanaki Tribes Sign Truth and Reconciliation Mandate
On June 29, 2012, five Wabanaki Chiefs and Governor Paul LePage signed a Mandate document commencing the Maine Wabanaki-State Child Welfare Truth and Reconciliation Commission to examine Maine child welfare practices affecting Wabanaki people.
The ceremony represents a historic agreement between Wabanaki Tribal Governments and the State of Maine to uncover and acknowledge the truth, create opportunities to heal and learn from the truth, and collaborate to operate the best child welfare system possible for Wabanaki children, a goal shared by all the signatories to the Mandate.
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