NRCPFC Digital Stories from the Field-- Systems of Care
These digital stories developed by the NRCPFC represent the voices of community members who have been directly impacted by System of Care through Multnomah Education Service District and Wraparound Oregon: Early Childhood. Supported by Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), Systems of Care is a model that coordinates a network of community-based services and supports that are organized to meet the challenges of children and youth with social, emotional and behavioral health needs and their families.
*Many of these resources were developed previously by the
National Resource Center for
Permanency and Family Connections (NRCPFC).
Informational & Practice Publications, Resources, & Tools
National Technical Assistance and Evaluation Center Systems of Care Resources
The National Technical Assistance and Evaluation Center (NTAEC) is a support contract that provides programmatic and evaluation technical assistance and conducts a cross-site evaluation of the Children’s Bureau’s Improving Child Welfare Outcomes through Systems of Care grant programs. The NTAEC has produced two major products through this initiative:
A Closer Look
This series of short reports spotlights issues addressed by public child welfare agencies and their partners in implementing systems of care approaches to improve services and outcomes for children and families. These reports draw on the experiences of nine communities participating in the Children’s Bureau’s Improving Child Welfare Outcomes Through Systems of Care demonstration initiative, and summarize their challenges, promising practices, and lessons learned. Each issue of A Closer Look provides information communities nationwide can use in planning, implementing, and evaluating effective child welfare driven systems of care, and is intended as a tool for administrators and policymakers leading system change initiatives. Topics addressed include: An Overview of Systems of Care in Child Welfare; Interagency Collaboration; An Individualized, Strengths-Based Approach in Public Child Welfare Driven Systems of Care; Cultural Competency; Family Involvement in Public Child Welfare Driven Systems of Care; Community-based Resources: Keystone to the System of Care; and, Accountability.
Training & Curricula
The Art of Wraparound in the Child Welfare Environment
This presentation from a webinar by the National Wraparound Initiative included an overview of how to balance wraparound systems of care and traditional child welfare practice. Topics covered included: Understanding cultures that affect the system; key factors/strategies for communicating and collaborating with stakeholders; and, ways to develop clear roles, definitions, and expectations for wraparound team members and community partners. (January 2011)
Teleconferences, Webinars, Webcasts & Videos
National Technical Assistance and Evaluation Center for Systems of Care Webinars
The National Technical Assistance and Evaluation Center for Systems of Care hosted these webinars, which draw on the experiences of the grant communities and summarize their challenges, promising practices, and lessons learned. Webinar recordings, transcripts, and presentation slides are available online.
Understanding Systems and Organizational Change
This webinar highlights the impact of the Systems of Care initiative on building interagency collaboration among child welfare and other child- and family-serving agencies, and in integrating a system of care principle-guided approach into child welfare agencies’ policies, procedures, and practices. (June 16, 2010)
Developing the Infrastructure for a System of Care
Webinar presenters discuss the process of developing an infrastructure to support the implementation and sustainability of a system of care. (July 29, 2010)
Meaningful Family Involvement: Beyond the Case Plan
This presentation explores the transformative role of family involvement in the Child Welfare Systems of Care initiative. Discussants share the ways in which the demonstration initiative facilitated the development of parent leadership and the integration of family voices in agency policies, procedures, and practices. (September 22, 2010)
State Examples
Arkansas: Arkansas Family Support Providers in a System of Care Training Manuals
These training manuals were developed by the Arkansas Federation of Families for Children’s Mental Health, ACTION for Kids, and Arkansas Family and Youth Assistance Network, in partnership with youth and families. The manuals were developed so that System of Care sites for Arkansas could utilize this resource to train and orient individuals providing support to families of children with behavioral health challenges. They information that may be useful to those working in other locations, as well.
Family Manual: The information and examples in the manual are intended to be used as technical assistance tools for individuals who perform the variety of functions which are involved in supporting families.
Youth Manual: The information and examples in the manual are intended to be used as technical assistance tools for individuals who perform the variety of functions which are involved in supporting children and youth who are engaged in navigating multiple complex systems. The skills described are useful to help children and youth meet their behavioral health goals and remain in their homes as they function at their optimal level in their natural communities.
