This article describes qualitative findings regarding lessons learned from research and demonstration projects in four states focused on the implementation of clinical supervision within their public child welfare agencies. This was part of a larger mixed methods study of the effectiveness of these new clinical supervision models on practice,…

The Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) provides a framework for achieving positive outcomes for youth and families served in residential and community programs. Founded on core principles, an emerging evidence base, and acknowledged best practices, the BBI emphasizes collaboration and coordination between providers, families, youth, advocates, and…

This paper describes an effort to bridge research and practice in residential care through implementing a program model titled Children and Residential Experiences (CARE). The strategy involves consulting at all levels of the organization to guide personnel to incorporate CARE evidence-based principles into daily practice, and fostering an…

The National Quality Improvement Center on the Privatization of Child Welfare Services selected Illinois as a demonstration site in 2007 to evaluate performance-based contracting in residential treatment services. This article discusses the first two years of project implementation including developing residential treatment performance indicators,…

Privatization has been used to address the limited capacity of government to achieve positive results in child welfare systems. Privatized systems have not realized better outcomes than their public counterparts, however, and many states continue to struggle with implementation. In order to demonstrate that privatization is in fact an investment…

Presents the results of telephone interviews, self-questionnaires, and site visits of 48 state child protective service offices regarding policies, procedures and protocols for handling complaints of abuse and neglect in children's institutions. Institutional child protection is seen as a relatively unformed appendage of interfamiliar child…

Suggests that systemic child welfare reforms must ultimately encompass all systems that serve vulnerable families and children. Argues that in addition to developing new approaches to service, current reform initiatives should also demonstrate the feasibility of using existing data for longitudinal analyses that are critical to evaluating…

From an administrative view, reports an experience in implementing the Goal Attainment Scaling (GAS) technique at a residential treatment setting for children. (MP)

Studies the Urban Youth Network, a network of agency centers located in eight of Chicago's most deprived neighborhoods. Provides information about inner-city children and the difficulties of reaching them and holding their attention. Discusses the degrees of funding and staffing that are needed to enable centers to realize their potential. (BB)

Describes program assumptions and goals, key design features, and implementation problems of an agency-supported independent adoption program called cooperative adoption. The program's impact upon an agency's traditional adoption program is discussed, as well as concerns that have been raised about the ethicality of independent adoption practices.…

Details implementation of the Family Group Decision Making Project in Canadian Newfoundland and Labrador among residents from Inuit and European backgrounds. Notes how the program offered solutions to problems of fostering cultural autonomy, measuring family violence, unifying families and protecting family members, and integrating child welfare…

Describes treatment activities at the Boys Town Emergency Shelter Program for runaway and homeless youths. An examination of data collected from 100 shelter users indicated a high number of teaching interactions between staff and youths high levels of youth satisfaction with the staff; and a low frequency of youth disruptive behaviors in the…

Project Confirm aims to address the problem of foster children ending up in detention because of police and probation officers' difficulty in locating guardians to appear on behalf of arrested children. Project Confirm locates juveniles' caseworkers and informs them of their legal responsibilities. The program reached most of its implementation…

The process of supervision plays an important role in developing the skills necessary to respond effectively to reports of child maltreatment. Specifically, educational supervision prompting discussion and critical thinking can enhance the analytic skills needed to consider the complexity commonly found in child welfare practice. To this end,…

Most foster parents in the United States are required to participate in training, yet no empirical support exists for the training's effectiveness. During the past two decades, high-quality clinical trials have documented that parent management training (PMT) programs produce positive outcomes for children and families in clinical and school…