Welcome!

Streaming audio is available through your

computer. If you are not able to listen via

your computer, you can call in by phone.

Phone number (toll-free): 866-740-1260

Conference ID: 9236072

First Impressions:

The Power of an Effective Response System

Webinar | March 30, 2016

#NRCDR

Welcome and introductions

Jill Marshall May, director

National Resource Center for Diligent Recruitment at

AdoptUSKids (NRCDR)

jillmay@adoptex.org

#NRCDR

Housekeeping

– This webinar is 90 minutes long, including time at the end for

questions and answers.

– We will record this webinar and have it available on the NRCDR

website.

– Your lines will be muted during the presentation.

– This webinar is interactive—you can ask questions by using the

chat function and respond to questions through the polls.

– If you’re on Twitter, use the hashtag #NRCDR to tweet about the

webinar.

– We want your feedback—there will be an evaluation at the end

of the webinar.

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Chat feature

Raise-hand

feature

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Agenda

– Welcome and introductions – Jill Marshall May, NRCDR director

– Key qualities of an effective response system – Marie

Youngpeter, NRCDR consultant

– Response system panel

• New Jersey – Gilbert Soto

• New Mexico – Renee Fitts

• Cherokee Nation – Hettie Charboneau

• Michigan Adoption Resource Exchange – Heidi Raubenolt

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Agenda

– Ideas from the field

– Key takeaways

– Resources

– Questions and answers

– Closing remarks

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What do we mean by response system?

Recruitment Initial Inquiry Orientation Application

Pre-service

Training

Mutual

Assessment/

Home StudyPlacement

Licensing /

Approval

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Poll question

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Key qualities of a response system

– Engaging and accessible

– Data-driven

– Consistent messaging

– Develops and supports families

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Engaging and accessible

– Response is welcoming and supportive.

– Communication is consistent, respectful, and informative,

strengthening understanding of role and process.

– Orientation and training are convenient in time/location.

– Agency provides good customer service.

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Consistent messaging

– Communicate with families about agency goals, needs, and

values.

– Use data to inform messaging.

– Ensure that messaging and practice are consistent.

– Provide accurate, clear, and consistent messaging at each stage

of the process from all parties.

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Data-driven response

– Collect data on children, youth, and families.

– Track data on the process.

– Analyze data to understand the story it tells about the strengths

and challenges of your system.

– Use data to inform changes to your response system.

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Poll question

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Development and support

– Remember that development and support are needed

continuously throughout the process.

– Develop and support families and staff (parallel process).

– Use data to learn about the development and support needs of

families and staff.

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Presenter panel

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Presenter panel: New Jersey

– Gilbert Soto, supervising program support specialist, Office of

Resource Families, New Jersey Division of Child Protection and

Permanency

– New Jersey child welfare system and response system overview

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Presenter panel: New Jersey

– Standards for time frames for response and licensing

– http://nrcdr.org/_assets/files/NRCDR-org/NJ-150-DAY-

TIMELINE-11-09.pdf

DAY 1 - 7

The resource family (RF) supervisor reviews and

approves the cleared, completed application, sends a

copy to the Office of Licensing (OOL), and has an initial

conference with the assigned resource family support

worker (RFSW).

The RFSW contacts the applicant(s) to schedule an

appointment to review the home study process.

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Presenter panel: New Jersey

– Strengths and challenges of this structure and approach

– Strategies for addressing challenges

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Presenter panel: New Jersey

– Connecting recruitment, response, development, and support of

families

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Presenter panel: New Jersey

– Collecting and using data and feedback to inform and improve

response system

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Presenter panel: New Mexico

– Renee Fitts, foster care program manager, New Mexico

Children, Youth and Families Department

– New Mexico child welfare system and response system overview

– Changes to New Mexico’s response system: reasons and results

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Presenter panel: New Mexico

– Collecting data from initial inquiry through licensure

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Presenter panel: New Mexico

– Using response system to support and develop families

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Presenter panel: New Mexico

– Responding to web inquiries

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Presenter panel: Cherokee Nation

– Hettie Charboneau, foster care program manager, Cherokee

Nation Indian Child Welfare

– Cherokee Nation child welfare system overview

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Presenter panel: Cherokee Nation

– Inquiries from prospective resource families

– Role of technology

– Cherokee Nation Children, Youth & Family Services

http://www.cherokee.org/Services/HumanServices/Children,Yout

hFamilyServices.aspx

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Presenter panel: Cherokee Nation

– Working with relative caregivers

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Presenter panel: Cherokee Nation

– Partnering with the State of Oklahoma

– Working with Cherokee families in other states

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Presenter panel: Cherokee Nation

– Using response system to develop and support families

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Presenter panel: MARE

– Heidi Raubenolt, program manager, Michigan Adoption

Resource Exchange (MARE)

– Overview of MARE’s role and response system

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Presenter panel: MARE

– Strengths and challenges of MARE’s approach

– Adoption Navigators:

http://www.mare.org/ForFamilies/AdoptionNavigators.aspx

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Presenter panel: MARE

– Partnering with the State of Michigan

– Partnering with private agencies

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Presenter panel: MARE

– Collecting and using inquiry and response system data:

considerations for systems

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Ideas from the field

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– Use your response system as a tool to work toward addressing

your system’s challenges.

– Example:

• Helping families support reunification

http://www.nrcdr.org/develop-and-support-families/ideas-

from-the-field/supporting-reunification

Ideas from the field

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– Explore new ways to be more responsive to the needs of diverse

communities.

– Example:

• Engaging the deaf community in Washington State

http://www.nrcdr.org/diverse-populations/ideas-from-the-

field/recruiting-in-the-deaf-community

• Engaging Latino families

http://www.latinola.com/story.php?story=3184

Key takeaways

#NRCDR

– Connect efforts to recruit, respond to, develop, and support

families.

– Consider strategies for strengthening your system’s current

response system within your existing structure.

– Be creative in thinking about how you collect data.

Resources to strengthen response systems

– Nuestra Familia, Nuestra Cultura (Our Family, Our Culture):

Promoting and Supporting Latino Families in Adoption and

Foster Care

http://www.nrcdr.org/_assets/files/NRCRRFAP/resources/nuestra

-familia-nuestra-cultura.pdf

– LA County / Five Acres video: Recruitment in the deaf and hard-

of-hearing community

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bXV9ygOhfBs

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Resources to strengthen response systems

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– Using Customer Service Concepts to Enhance Recruitment and

Retention Practices

http://www.nrcdr.org/_assets/files/using-customer-service-

concepts-to-enhance-recuitment-and-retention-practices.pdf

– Data-Driven Recruitment: Key Data Elements on Foster and

Adoptive Families

http://www.nrcdr.org/_assets/files/NRCDR-org/data-driven-

recruitment-110514.pdf

READiS model

– Respond

– Engage

– Assess

– Develop

– inform

– Support

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Questions and answers

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Closing remarks

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