Bonus Content

Parents for Parents (P4P) is an innovative parent support program in the Southwest region. In this episode, GROW Center Advisory Committee member Nathan Scott explains more about the program, and Dr. Kathy Moore shares the approach to evaluation and how it can inform the next steps for the program.

During the 2022 Florida Legislative Session, the Florida Department of Children and Families was tasked with contracting for the development and implementation of the Responsible Fatherhood Initiative. Specifically, Florida Statute 409.1464 reads, in part, “The initiative must provide an opportunity for every father in the state to be able to obtain information and inspiration that will motivate and enable him to enhance his abilities as a father, recognizing that some fathers have greater challenges than others and would benefit from greater support.” In this episode, Secretary Shevaun Harris discusses the Department’s recent and planned efforts to support fathers.

In this episode, Drs. Melissa Radey and Lenore McWey discuss their research project Power of Parents in Child Protection, including the impetus for the study, the challenges encountered, and the joys of collaborating with parents on policy-driven research. Devin Coleman, fatherhood support advocate, also shares his perspective as a member of the study’s advisory committee.

Youth participatory action research is one way in which child welfare scholars can engage youth with lived experience throughout the research process. In this episode, Dr. Lisa Magruder talks to a team that used Photovoice methodology and performance art to collect, analyze, and disseminate findings related to youths’ perspectives on the transition to independent living. Learn about the Institute-funded study, its findings, and lessons learned from the research team about meaningfully engage youth with lived experience.

HOPE Court (HOPE stands for Helping Older Teens Powerfully Engage) brings restorative justice-based court hearings and circles to youth in foster care throughout the year leading up to their 18th birthday and beyond, resulting in more community connection and increased hopefulness for our youth as they become adults. The Florida Institute for Child Welfare is currently funding an evaluation of HOPE Court in Broward County. In this episode, to Listen to Dr. Magruder discuss the exciting work with the evaluation team.

For a teen in care, turning 18 can be daunting, especially when they don’t feel adequately prepared for adulthood on their own. Caregivers and child welfare professionals are meant to support youth in developing independent life skills needed for success in adulthood. As part of SB80 in 2021, the Insitute was mandated to evaluate Florida’s approach to life skills development for youth in care. . In this episode, Dr. Lisa Magruder interviews the two lead evaluators, as well as an evaluation team member with lived experience turning 18 in care.

For youth in the foster care system, especially transition-age youth, establishing relational permanency can support youth beyond their time in care. The Selfless Love Foundation is currently piloting a relational permanency initiative, Follow the Love (FTL), with support from the Institute In this episode, Dr. Lisa Magruder interviews the FTL pilot evaluators, as well as a child welfare professional participating in the pilot in Northeast Florida.

Although Maternity homes are a small fraction of the child welfare system, they are vitally important to young mothers in care, or with nowhere else to turn. In this episode, Dr. Lisa Magruder interviews the researchers leading the Institute-funded Maternity Homes research study, a professional in the maternity homes system, and a young mother with lived experience in maternity homes.

A cornerstone of child welfare research is including the lived experience perspective, but there are many factors to consider when collaborating with those sharing their experiences. In this episode, Dr. Lisa Magruder, the Associate Director of Research at the Institute, speaks with child welfare research experts, as well as a mother with lived expertise, to learn about ways to engage, respect, and properly value those willing to share in research studies.

High turnover in child welfare has been called a “national crisis,” with many leaving the industry because training did not prepare them for reality of the difficult work. Using state-of the-art virtual reality trainings based on real case scenarios, Accenture, an information technology services company, provides realistic training opportunities to better prepare child welfare professionals to work with families in need. In this episode of Season 5, hear from Accenture’s Child Welfare Industry Lead, Molly Tierney, on the inner workings of these innovations, as well as Kellee Hicks’s firsthand experience with the software utilized in Mecklenburg County.