Building a Model and Framework for Child Welfare Supervision

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• Hiring diverse staff• Training all staff to be alert to bias• Requiring objective measures of family capacity (such as consistent use of risk andreunification assessments)• Strengthening the voice of a variety of representatives from communities of color• Providing supervisory oversight with training• Alerting educated judicial oversight• Using alternate decision-making processes (such as family group conferencing)• Employing placement resources (such as kinship care or culturally-based programs) thathonor cultural ways of caring• Tracking services offered to kin, parents and families by race (King County Coalition onRacial Disproportionality, 2004).For more information or a copy of the report, please contact Catalyst for Kids at 206-695-3238 or marikoo@chs-wa.org.Provide training for supervisors and direct service workers on what the Multi-Ethnic Placement Act(MEPA) was designed to do and how to implement it. The general lack of knowledge about MEPAand confusion over its guidelines suggests that there may be a gap between policy and practicewhen it comes to understanding, interpreting and implementing MEPA (Chibnall, et al, 2003).Recognize the importance of a strong agency infrastructure (experienced workers, propersupervision and oversight, strong peer relationships, and manageable caseloads) in reducingdisproportionality by allowing supervisors and workers alike to do their jobs more effectively. Ifsupervisors are able to supervise properly, then workers will be able to do their jobs moreeffectively, leading to better outcomes for children and families, including fewer children cominginto the system in the first place (Chibnall, et al, 2003).• Communicate the rationale behind administrative decisions. Supervisors find it difficult tosee the big picture if they lack important information regarding changes in practice or policy(Chibnall, et al, 2003).Roles and Responsibilities of Supervisors Related to Quality ImprovementActively promote continuous quality improvement (CQI) through organizational culture:• Supervisors, managers, administrators, and other agency leaders are champions ofcontinuous quality improvement work, as reflected by their decision-making andcommunications with staff.• Clear communication and regular feedback occurs between agency leaders, managers,supervisors, staff, children, youth, families and stakeholders.Empower supervisors and staff to advocate for, test, and implement changes in policy, practices,programs, and/or training, based on priorities of strengths and best practices.Train, prepare, and support staff on how continuous quality improvement should be the way theagency does its work. The support must be consistent and come from all levels of the agency,including supervisors, managers, and leaders (Casey Family Programs, National Child WelfareResource Center for Organizational Improvement, 2005).62
For more information, contact Peter Watson, Director of the National Child WelfareResource Center for Organizational Improvement, at pwatson@usm.maine.edu or (207)228-8330.Use structured methods of clinical casework supervision in child protection to positively impactsatisfaction with supervision, organizational culture, preventable worker turnover, worker practicein assessment and intervention, and client outcomes. Agency administrators, supervisors, andworkers alike have expressed a desire for quality supervision and techniques focused on theeducational and supportive roles of supervision. The SR QIC Supervision Learning LaboratoryProjects were implemented in:• Arkansas Mentoring Family Service Worker Supervisors: focused on the mentoring ofsupervisors by field educators, and had four primary components: 1) classroom training ona model of clinical casework supervision; 2) mentoring by field educators every other week,utilizing a structured process; 3) On-line auto-tutorials on theory and research in the field;4) Peer group supervision in which information from on-line offerings is appliedcase/supervision situations. Contact: Debbie Shiell, Division of Children and FamilyServices, 501-682-1554• Mississippi Child Protective Service Casework Supervision Project: involved three majorcomponents in which the intervention group will participate: 1) assessment of supervisorcompetencies through cultural consensus analysis and development of supervisor-drivenlearning; 2) small group learning on a clinical casework supervision model; 3) establishmentof a peer support system to promote transfer of learning and peer problem-solving. Contact:Kim Shackelford, University of Mississippi, 662-915-1563• Missouri Role Demonstration Model in Child Protective Service Supervision: involved thetraining and provision of consultation on-site with supervisors to implement a four stage roledemonstration model: worker observation of the supervisor providing clinical services;cooperative provision of clinical services; observed provision of clinical services by thesupervisee; and independent provision of services by the supervisee with clinical feedbackfrom the supervisor via case discussion and group consultation. Contact: Paul Sundet,University of Missouri, 573-882-0915• Tennessee: Child Protective Services Supervisors Development Project: focused on twoprimary components: 1) classroom training focused on clinical decision-making; 2) amentoring system to provide learning reinforcement in the field; 3) Use of auto-tutorials tomake practice information readily accessible in the field. Contact: Jenny Jones, VirginiaCommonwealth University, jljones2@vcu.edu .For more information about the SR QIC, contact: Crystal Collins-Camargo, MSW PhD, ,Training Resource Center, University of Kentucky College of Social Work , 859-257-5476 or Crystal.Collins-Camargo@uky.eduLiterature Review ReferencesAllnoch, A. (1998, February). Clarity, communication reduce corporate conflict. IIE Solutions, 30:2, 8.Annie E. Casey Foundation. (2001, July). The Need for Self-Evaluation: Using Data to Guide Policy andPractice Family to Family: Tools for Rebuilding Foster Care. Baltimore, MD.http://www.aecf.org/MajorInitiatives/Family%20to%20Family/~/media/PDFFiles/FamilytoFamily/evaluation%20pdf.ashx [accessed 2/29/08]63
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AcknowledgementsThis report, Buildi
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Executive SummaryA Call to Action f
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IntroductionWhy is a Model of Child
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• a continuum of professional dev
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• providing knowledge and securit
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necessary, and providing permanency
Page 16 and 17: Table 1. Job Responsibilities Ranke
Page 18: Manage caseloads in the supervisor
Page 22 and 23: Supportive Supervision Responsibili
Page 24 and 25: Element 4Mandate explicit, manageab
Page 26 and 27: Element 7Support supervisors in the
Page 28 and 29: Several activities are included to
Page 30 and 31: Table 2. Job Responsibility Data Co
Page 32 and 33: include "acknowledging effective pe
Page 34 and 35: Component 2A model of supervisory p
Page 36 and 37: • assigning ongoing cases to an e
Page 38 and 39: • Develop an internal process to
Page 40 and 41: A Continuum of Initial and Ongoing
Page 42 and 43: Helpful Child Welfare and Training
Page 44 and 45: Sources CitedAllnoch, A. (1998, Feb
Page 46 and 47: welfare practice serving Indian com
Page 48 and 49: Whittaker, J. & Maluccio, A. (2002)
Page 50 and 51: The project team contacted potentia
Page 52 and 53: Appendix BLiterature ReviewThe foll
Page 54 and 55: Providing leadership within organiz
Page 56 and 57: Ensure manageable staff/supervisor
Page 58 and 59: prepared to move into permanent pos
Page 60 and 61: • Place ASPIRE (TANF welfare to w
Page 62 and 63: Facilitating Communication and Coll
Page 64 and 65: • Document worker performance rel
Page 68 and 69: Bernotavicz, F. (1997). Retention o
Page 70 and 71: O’Connor, M. (1997). Building Sup
Page 72 and 73: 5h. If there is a discrepancy betwe
Page 74 and 75: Job Responsibilityissues, confident
Page 76 and 77: 13a. Does your supervisor effective
Page 78 and 79: SUPERVISOR JOB RESPONSIBILITIES6. I
Page 80 and 81: Job ResponsibilityMost importantto
Page 82 and 83: 11. Are there written resources (tr
Page 84 and 85: esponsibilities as “most importan
Page 86 and 87: Job responsibilityMost importantto
Page 88 and 89: Appendix DSample Job DescriptionJOB
Page 90: Data Conception: Requires the abili
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