History of the Initiative
In the summer of 2002, the Agenda for Children Tomorrow (ACT)
was invited by a funder's collaborative (consisting of The
Child
Welfare Fund, The Open Society Institute, The New York Community
Trust, The Hite Foundation, The FAR Fund, and The Ira W.
DeCamp
Foundation) to facilitate a collaborative process of developing
a child welfare reform initiative in the Highbridge community
of the South Bronx. The prevalence children entering the
child
welfare system in this community presented a special concern
for these funders: In Highbridge alone, children under age
1
were more likely to be reported as maltreated than in the rest
of CD 4, of which Highbridge is a part of, and allegations
of
maltreatment were more likely to involve substance abuse, both
for infants and older children. However, while Highbridge
has
many of the statistical indicators of neighborhoods under stress – high rates of poverty and unemployment, a large population
of children, and low school performance of children on citywide
reading and math tests – this community has also sustained
and even built up over decades of economic pressure a culture
of concern for children, families, and community. Therefore,
a resident-focused initiative building on the strengths of
the
community and its residents was clearly the ideal approach
to reducing foster care placements in Highbridge.
Committed to the collaborative approach identified by the
funders, ACT convened a series of meetings with more than
60 community
leaders, service providers, public agencies, and interested
residents to stimulate ideas and identify needs and concerns.
Three focus group discussions – targeting parents, young
people, and service providers – were held in February
2003. The basic framework and approach of the initiative were
conceptualized at an all-day community retreat in March 2003.
Several planning meetings were conducted in May and June 2003
to design the individual components of the Initiative. These
preliminary steps have begun the process of drawing residents
and professionals into the reform of the child welfare system
in Highbridge, while building a coalition among community residents,
service providers and public agencies.
Goals of the Initiative
-
To reduce first time and repeat foster care
placements.
-
To reduce the time that children spend
in foster care.
-
To increase the proportion of foster care
children who are placed within the Highbridge community.
-
To reduce the actual incidence of child
abuse and neglect.
Key Components
These four key components, described further below, will collectively
serve to meet the initiative’s goals:
- Empowerment of Parents and Youth
- Increased Family Supports
- Diversion of Cases from the Child Welfare System
- Increased Legal Education and Services for Community Residents
Within this initiative, self-selected and specially trained community
residents will become a bridge between the community’s families
and the professionals and organizations that are designed to –
but cannot always effectively -- serve them. The theory is that
trained, empowered and informed parents and young people will
be able to reach out sensitively to their neighbors. In particular,
parent education about child welfare rights will be led by parents
who have themselves been involved with the child welfare system
and are thus sensitive to the issues of surveillance and privacy.
The initiative will focus on early identification and response
to signs of family trouble. The initiative’s approach to
improving parents’ awareness of their rights in the child
welfare system and improving their representation is its primary
lever to reduce the length of time children spend in care. Additionally,
the initiative’s team model of legal services, including
an attorney, case manager/administrator and parent advocate,
is
expected to facilitate more timely and efficient review by the
Family Court of the cases of children in care, with the goal
of
expediting the return home of some of the children placed.
ACT will also facilitate bringing appropriate outside influence
to bear on community conditions when Highbridge residents and
network agency staff identify safety, sanitation, crime, housing,
and other conditions that present barriers to improved child
outcomes.
Integrating features
- A common set of values (e.g., respectful interactions with
residents by service agencies; participation by families is
voluntary);
- A key role for community residents; and
- A governance structure that integrates residents and service
providers while maintaining sustainability with assistance from
ACT
Evaluation
- A research and evaluation committee made up of residents
will target researchable questions regarding the initiative
and will develop programs based on GIS database and asset maps
- The Chapin Hall Center for Children at the University of Chicago
will conduct an impact evaluation.
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