Building a Model and Framework for Child Welfare Supervision

managers, state foster care managers, Children’s Bureau staff, recruitment and retentiongrantees, and the Southern Regional Quality Improvement Center. Based on consultation withthe working group and a comprehensive review of the literature in child welfare practice andsupervision and other relevant fields, a list of supervisory responsibilities was developed. Thislist became a core component of a protocol used to interview frontline practitioners, supervisors,and administrators regarding their perspectives about the relative importance of theseresponsibilities and the obstacles to and supports of effective child welfare supervision.Additional information was collected through interviews with other experts in child welfaresupervision and a survey of the National Child Welfare Resource Center for OrganizationalImprovement’s Peer Training Network members. The data collected from these sources andongoing consultation with working group members resulted in an emerging model for and anorganizational framework to support effective supervision in child welfare. Further detailconcerning the methodology is provided in Section III.Organization of this ReportThis report, Building a Model and Framework for Child Welfare Supervision, is organized intothree sections. Section I introduces the following seven elements of an emerging model ofsupervision in child welfare:• the organization’s practice philosophy and approaches, clearly articulated in writing, andthe statutory and policy requirements that shape agency practice;• the identification of the functions and current job responsibilities of child welfaresupervisors and acknowledgement of similarities and differences in staff members’perceptions of the relative importance of those responsibilities;• the centrality of building and maintaining supervisors’ relationships with theirsupervisees as well as with others in the organization and community to carrying outtheir responsibilities effectively;• the necessity for explicit and manageable standards for caseload size and supervisorsuperviseeratios;• specific expectations with regard to the frequency and format for supervision;• the organization’s expectations for ongoing evaluation of frontline practitioners;• support for supervisors in their roles as unit leaders and change agents.Section II presents an integrated organizational framework consisting of four componentsrequired to empower child welfare supervisors to effectively carry out their administrative,educational, and supportive functions. These components include:• an organizational culture that values and demonstrates support for the vital rolesupervisors play in ensuring positive outcomes for children, youth and families;• a model of supervisory practice that reflects how the organization views the roles,responsibilities, and expectations of supervisors and includes accurate, written jobdescriptions;• systematic recruitment and retention of individuals who are a “good fit” as frontlinepractitioners and supervisors and;4