Strengthening Families for a Smart Start

Strengthening Familiesfor a Smart Start May 7, 2009

Strengthening FamiliesThe Challenge • Each year nearly 1,000,000 children are confirmed victims of neglect and abuse.

Strengthening FamiliesThe Challenge • Children ages birth to1 year have the highest rates of child maltreatment; 84% of victims are less than one week old • Children ages 1-3 have the 2nd highest rate of victimization • Parenting young children is especially challenging and a critical time period where information, education, resources and support can make a difference

Strengthening FamiliesThe Challenge • Consequences for Child Poor physical health Poor mental health Social and behavioral issues Learning difficulties

Strengthening FamiliesThe Challenge • Consequences for Society • In 2007, the cost to society for intervention and care of victims was $104 billion for hospitalizations, child welfare, special education, mental health, and criminal justice. • This does not includeintervention and treatment for family members, perpetrators, or the ongoing costs associated with children as they grow into adulthood. (Wang and Holton, 2007)

Agenda • Background • The 5 Protective Factors • Public awareness and advocacy • Program and funding practices • Parent engagement Smart Start May 7, 2009

Strengthening FamiliesWhat is it? • A new approach to CAN prevention that is grounded in research • A framework for family support that has specificity and the flexibility to be applied across disciplines • A structure for integrating family strengthening into existing service settings Smart Start Mary 7, 2009 Slide provided by the Center for the Study of Social Policy

Strengthening FamiliesBackground • Strengthening Families Model • Early care and education centers are core to the Strengthening Families model and the beginning point for nationwide implementation. • Access to a large number of young children and their families • Can impact families before abuse or neglect ever occurs • Already addressing Protective Factors to some degree • Safe and trusting atmosphere for parents

Strengthening FamiliesLooking Forward • However, early education programs represent just the beginning. In order to end child abuse and neglect, it is also necessary to: • Integrate protective factors into all services for families (adult education, family supports, child welfare, etc.). • Ensure that public policy and funding integrates the protective factors and supports families. • Grow public awareness so everyone can support families. UW_Template_022704

Strengthening FamiliesNational Network • 29 States and DC • Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Washington, Washington, DC, West Virginia, Wisconsin • 7 National Partner Organizations • BUILD, FRIENDS National Resource Center for CB-CAP, National Alliance of Children’s Trust and Prevention Funds, NAEYC, NCCIC, Zero to Three, United Way • 4 National Affiliate Organizations • Midwest Learning Center for Family Support, National Registry Alliance, Parents as Teachers, Parent Services Project Smart Start Mary 7, 2009 Slide provided by the Center for the Study of Social Policy

Strengthening Families5 Protective Factors • Parental Resilience • Social Connections • Knowledge of Parenting and Child Development • Concrete Support in Times of Need • Social and Emotional Development Smart Start Mary 7, 2009 Slide provided by the Center for the Study of Social Policy

Strengthening FamiliesThe 5 Protective Factors • Programs and services that: • Facilitate friendships and • mutual support • Strengthen parenting • Respond to family crises • Link families to services • and opportunities • Value and support • Parents • Facilitate children’s social • and emotional development • Observe and respond to early warning signs of child abuse or neglect Which . . . Prevents Child Abuse and Neglect • Promote the Protective Factors: • Parental Resilience • Social connections • Knowledge of parenting and child development • Concrete support in times of need • Social and emotional development Smart Start Mary 7, 2009

Strengthening FamiliesPutting the 5PF into Practice • Is SF aligned to your organization’s mission? • If so, around which of the 5 protective factors are you already doing work? Discuss the work. Smart Start Mary 7, 2009

Strengthening FamiliesPutting the 5PF into Practice • How can you tell if your agency’s mission/activities are aligned with the protective factors? • The UWGHP has utilized an electronic data collection project of all of its local service providers in order to assess the their activities against the 5 protective factors in order to see what the community’s service climate is. How did we do this? • Because the project is well-grounded in research there are tremendous amounts of national resources available. Our team worked with a variety of those to create a survey that assesses the agency’s climate against the 5 factors. UW_Template_022704

Strengthening FamiliesPutting the 5PF into Practice UW_Template_022704

Strengthening FamiliesPutting the 5PF into Practice • What did we find and how are we going to work with it? UW_Template_022704

Strengthening FamiliesPutting the 5PF into Practice • What we see is that our focus must be drawn in the order provided by the data: • Parental resilience • Concrete support for parents • Social Connections • Nurturing and Attachment • Knowledge of Parenting • You can do the same within your own agency. We have the same survey results from staff at each of these agencies. UW_Template_022704

Strengthening FamiliesParent Education and Engagement Tools • Nurturing Parenting • Triple P (Positive Parenting Program) • Parent Services Project • Parent Leadership Institutes • Stronger Together curriculum (for EC field) • Parent Cafes • Community Cafes Smart Start Mary 7, 2009

Strengthening FamiliesParent Education and Engagement Tool • Community Cafes • Parent hosted • Guided conversations based on needs and interests of community • Builds community wisdom and parent voice Smart Start Mary 7, 2009

Strengthening FamiliesParent Education and Engagement Tool • Community Café partners • Early learning centers • Schools • Faith-based organizations • Family and social service programs • Community Café topics • 5 protective factors AKA the 5 inalienable rights of every child • Leadership development • Community partnership Smart Start Mary 7, 2009

Strengthening FamiliesPublic Awareness and Advocacy • United Way of Greater High Point Children’s Initiatives SFU • Building the Foundation of Change • Community Description • Situation • Assessment • Strategies • Keys to Success • Benefits

Strengthening Families Initiative United Way of Greater High Point’s Children’s Initiatives was one of only 6 United Ways in the United States awarded a grant from United Way of America for Strengthening Families United. The grant was for $99,000. Anchorage, AK Spokane, WA High Point, NC Atlanta, GA San Antonio, TX Brownsville, TX

Strengthening FamiliesPublic Awareness and Advocacy Smart Start May 7, 2009

Strengthening FamiliesPublic Awareness and Advocacy • Local Advocacy • City Government • Court System • County Government • State Advocacy • QRIS-Idaho, Pennsylvania,Tennessee • 211 • Division of Child Development • Department of Public Instruction • Smart Start Smart Start May 7, 2009

Strengthening FamiliesEvaluation • What is Participatory Action Research? • Participatory action research is a recognized form of experimental research that focuses on the effects of the researcher's direct actions of practice within a participatory community with the goal of improving the performance quality of the community or an area of concern (Dick, 2002; Reason & Bradbury, 2001; Hult & Lennung, 1980; McNiff, 2002). Action research involves utilizing a systematic cyclical method of planning, taking action, observing, evaluating (including self-evaluation) and critical reflecting prior to planning the next cycle (O'Brien, 2001; McNiff, 2002). The actions have a set goal of addressing an identified problem in the workplace, for example, reducing the illiteracy of students through use of new strategies (Quigley, 2000) or improving communication and efficiency in a hospital emergency room (Eisenberg, Baglia, Pyrnes, 2006). UW_Template_022704

Strengthening FamiliesEvaluation • Participatory Action Research Approach for SF • “Strengthening Families United will utilize a participatory action research that emphasizes: shared decision-making and mutual trust; learning and ongoing improvement; high levels of usefulness of evaluation data; and building capacity to conduct evaluations at the local level. The goal of the evaluation process is to define a set of models and tools that United Ways and communities around the country can use to integrate protective factors into their work.” • This was required in the grant application…what does that mean “on the ground”? Smart Start Mary 7, 2009

Strengthening FamiliesEvaluation • I think the most challenging, but probably the most powerful aspect of taking a participatory approach is the need to let the project actually define its own processes. (Just ask Barbara!) • As a project director, this can be very difficult since we as a service sector are so used to taking a “research based” approach and running with it. Ironically enough, the Strengthening Families model is exactly such an approach. • But, the UWA had the foresight to understand that communities vary and therefore a one-size-fits approach will not work. UW_Template_022704

Strengthening FamiliesEvaluation • Local communities, and even agencies, need to be allowed to do what they already do well and yet be given the guidance from the SF model to add in bits of improvement where they will be most effective. • Because this approach is emergent among most service providers in the USA it is often necessary to partner with and evaluator who is trained in the approach. • The benefit of the investment is that the improvement based on the process tends to be sustainable and long lasting instead of the typical “latest” reform fad that we are all used to. UW_Template_022704

Strengthening FamiliesPutting it into Practice • Identify one area in which your organization could be doing more intentional work to instill the protective factors even in today’s environment of constrained resources. Smart Start Mary 7, 2009

Strengthening FamiliesReferenced Resources www.ctfalliance.org (Our WorkEffective Partnerships with ParentsCommunity Cafes www.friendsnrc.org www.strengtheningfamilies.net www.nurturingparenting.com www.parentservices.org www.preventchildabuse.org/index.shtml Parent Cafes- www.strengtheningfamiliesillinois.org www.triplep.net www.cdc.gov/injury Samantha Wigand, United Way of America Samantha.wigand@local.unitedway.org Barbara Frye, United Way of Greater High Point Barbara.Frye@unitedwayhp.org Aimee Sickels, Custom Evaluation Services aimee@customevaluation.com Smart Start Mary 7, 2009

Thank you

Strengthening Families for a Smart Start