CWLA Survey on Child Welfare Reform

December 15, 2010 12:30 PM Eastern Time
Child Welfare League of America (CWLA)
Frontline Child Welfare Workers Need Voice in Finance Reform Says CWLA; Survey to Help Ensure They Are Heard 

WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--As discussions continue on Capitol Hill about reforming federal refinancing of the child welfare system, the Child Welfare League of America (CWLA), the nation’s oldest and largest membership-based organization serving vulnerable children, has launched an initiative to ensure that the debate includes the voices of frontline workers. In the coming weeks, CWLA will be surveying child welfare professionals including frontline workers who provide direct care to children, and will summarize results and recommendations in a white paper for policymakers.

“For changes of this significance, it’s vital to get on-the-ground feedback about the workings and shortcomings of the system. Change and reform that impacts millions of children needs to be based on sound information. Since frontline workers have a unique perspective, we’re committed to ensuring that their voices are heard,” said Christine James-Brown, CEO, CWLA.

The House and Senate are expected to consider child welfare finance reform early in the 112th Congress. Reform is needed to put a greater emphasis on prevention and to ensure that children being served in foster care and kinship care have access to support provided by Title IV-E of the Social Security Act, which was created to address this need. Since 1996, eligibility for IV-E has been tied to a program that no longer exists, Aid to Families with Dependent Children. Changes to the Title IV-E language are needed to correct the discrepancies created by being tied to this outdated program and to open up IV-E to prevention strategies.

In response, CWLA is putting together a white paper on child welfare for Congress that will include perspectives of frontline workers and supervisors. Child welfare professionals are experts on the strengths and weaknesses of the service delivery system at the point it reaches vulnerable children and families or fails to support them. Their firsthand input on the inner workings of the child welfare system—including family support, family reunification, foster care, kinship care, and adoption—will help inform the CWLA position.

To get feedback, CWLA is conducting a series of conference calls with small groups of child welfare workers from across the country. This group survey will capture the expertise of frontline workers and supervisors who direct the process of furthering children's safety and well-being. The survey will assess the subjective sense of workers on the state of the child welfare system. Survey findings are expected to be completed by mid-February. The findings and the white paper will be sent to Congress and posted to the CWLA website.
 
I wonder if they would like to hear back from those of us who have been wrongly victimized by the system?