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Administrative Office of Pennsylvania Courts

Supreme Court Initiative. Established the Office of Children and Families in the Courts (OCFC) within the court and a permanent Roundtable InitiativeGoal of the Initiative is to Increase Chances of Successful Lives for Dependent ChildrenTo attain this goal, it is necessary to measure how we are d

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Administrative Office of Pennsylvania Courts

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    1. Administrative Office of Pennsylvania Courts Prothonotaries’ and Clerks of Courts’ Conference Dependency Project Overview July 8, 2008

    2. Supreme Court Initiative Established the Office of Children and Families in the Courts (OCFC) within the court and a permanent Roundtable Initiative Goal of the Initiative is to Increase Chances of Successful Lives for Dependent Children To attain this goal, it is necessary to measure how we are doing as a state Not possible without a Statewide Case Management System AOPC was asked to develop an automated court-based dependency tracking system. A Statewide System would… Provide the ability for local courts to track and manage dependency cases Provide a reporting protocol that can be followed by all courts within the state

    3. CPCMS Dependency Project CPCMS was modified to provide for the gathering of dependency information with minimal disruption to county’s ongoing operations CPCMS is used statewide for Criminal Case Management Many counties are already using CPCMS for minimal Dependency Case Docketing Current Docketing does not provide for necessary reporting capabilities

    4. System Requirements In order to enhance CPCMS, it was necessary to understand the business processes and life cycle of dependency cases. Research included… Rules Rules of Juvenile Court Procedure, Juvenile Act and ASFA County Input Phone Surveys to Counties Site Visits Performance Measures for Dependency Courts JAD Committee

    5. Nine Performance Measures for Juvenile Dependency Courts* Child Safety while under Court Jurisdiction Child Safety after Release from Court Jurisdiction Achievement of Child Permanency Timeline to Permanent Placement Timeline to Adjudication Timeline to First Permanency Hearing Timeline to Termination of Parental Rights Service of Process to Parties Number of Judicial Officers per Case *National Council for Juvenile and Family Court

    6. Additional Performance Measures – National Council for Juvenile and Family Court Judges The National Council for Juvenile and Family Court Judges recommends that the following measurements be captured: Percentage of children in foster care, who are either reunified, adopted, placed with a legal guardian or APPLA. Measure case outcomes not based on permanency options. Calculate max age and identify children who have reached or exceeded age limit. Percentage of cases where the minor is receiving services but has not achieved permanency. Percentage of cases where the minor is given an adult legal status before reaching the age of majority. Percentage of cases where the minor is granted to participate in other non-permanent legal placement options before reaching the age of majority. Identify lag time between when the child enters the dependency system until permanent placement. Percentage of cases where dependents are placed in a permanent living arrangement. Number of children in foster care due to a permanent living arrangement. Number of children in foster care due to abuse or neglect case. Number of cases where the child was in foster care at some point and case was closed for any court specified reason. Number of cases where the case closure was due to a permanent placement option. Percentage of children who reached their 18th birthday while in foster care for a given FY. Percentage of children legally free for adoption who were discharged to a permanent home prior to reaching their age of majority for a current FY. Percentage of permanent placements in the current FY based on children in foster care for 24 months or longer as of the first day of FY 200x. Calculate statewide measures of permanency and non-permanency outcomes by court office. Include counts and percentages. Create graphs depicting annual case closure statistics by permanent placements and non-permanent placements. Quarterly and annual statistics on dependency caseloads. Management reports. Report to identify cases 30 days before temporary custody is set to expire. Develop reports and extracts to meet JCJC reporting requirements for dependency cases.

    7. New Dependency Functionality Established standard, statewide data values for case management and reporting New Dependency Docket Type (DP) Distinguishes between Dependency and Delinquency Cases Specific case categories for Dependency indicating Status Offense or Abuse/Neglect Standardized Docket Entries and Event Tracks Enables work flow tracking in line with the dependency business process and timelines established by the juvenile rules Standardized Dispositions Tracks the termination of court supervision and the reason for termination

    8. New Dependency Functionality, Cont. CPCMS Enhancements Dependency Case Wizard Facilitates case creation Provides “batch” and “copy” functionality Automatically associates cases Allows automated assignment of Family Unit ID (FID) Number assigned based on Mother/Custodian Links together family members for searching and scheduling Case Profile Screen Provides a “snapshot” of a case. New panels added for dependency include: FID Placement History

    9. New Dependency Functionality, Cont. Outcomes Used to record outcomes/determinations from court events Provides “accept” and “copy” functionality Allows printing of completed Orders and Recommendations Master Assignments

    10. Standardized Forms Past Practices Clerks docketing general Order with summary of narrative No means for collecting data from narrative docket entries Considerations Clerks expressed concern with interpreting existing court Orders Collection tools were necessary to facilitate the entry of outcomes that leave little interpretation for clerks Outcome values must be consistent statewide for accurate reporting

    11. Standardized Forms Solution - Standardized Forms Provides a method for entering information into CPCMS in a clear and consistent basis (statewide) Dependency Petition Includes “Cover Sheet” with Child and Case Type Information Outcome Related Orders Categorized to facilitate the entry of information into the Outcomes screen Order of Adjudication – Child Dependent Order of Adjudication – Child Not Dependent Dispositional Order Permanency Review Order Order for Termination of Supervision

    12. Design of Standardized Forms The Standardized Forms were developed through a collaborative process involving input from: JAD Session Participants Juvenile Court Judges’ Commission Juvenile Procedural Rules Committee Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare Pilot County Users

    13. County Site Visits Review Project Initiative and Measurements CPCMS Demo of Dependency Functionality Individual Meetings with County Departments (including COC, Ct. Admin, Masters, Judges, CYS) Purpose Analysis of County’s Business Process Identify potential County Dependency System users Review Standardized Forms Define County’s Next Steps Discuss Training and Go-Live Dates

    14. County Site Visit “Next Steps” Establish a County Workgroup to discuss the impact of the project, make necessary decisions and identify business process changes, if necessary. Determine specific task responsibilities Case Creation Outcomes Calendaring and Scheduling Judicial and Master Assignments Complete User Security Forms

    15. Dependency Project Timeline Analysis of Project Initiative and Juvenile Dependency Rules – January – March, 2007 Requirements Gathering – March – June, 2007 County Phone Surveys Initial Site Visits Preliminary Design Concept – Summer, 2007 JAD Session One – September 25 & 26, 2007 Phase I System Development Began – October, 2007 JAD Session Two – December 4 & 5, 2007

    16. Dependency Project Timeline Pilot County Site Visits Washington – January 14 & 15, 2008 Northampton – January 16 & 17, 2008 Bucks – February 5 & 6, 2008 Phase I Development Completed – January 25, 2008 UAT’s – February 19 – 22, 2008 Final Draft Dependency Order to Juvenile Committee for Review – February 29, 2008 Phase II Development Completed – March 3, 2008

    17. Dependency Project Timeline Roundtables for Children’s Initiative Pittsburgh - March 7, 2008 Hershey – March 18, 2008 Mechanicsburg - April 1, 2, and 3, 2008 Philadelphia – April 17 and 18, 2008 Pilot Counties – Training/Go-Live – March, 2008 Washington, March 10; Northampton, March 17; Bucks, March 24 Statewide Site Visits, Training and Go-Live March, 2008 through Fall, 2008 Phase III Development – System Enhancements Ongoing as needed through December, 2008

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