Kids Need Their Dads Pennsylvanias Father Engagement Strategy
State Childrens Roundtable Priority June 28, 2011 1
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2 Building the Foundation Assumptions: Statewide issues &
solutions (no pilots) Administrative Collaboration (Courts/Agency)
Voluntary process (no Supreme Court directives just gentle pressure
applied relentlessly) Focus on strengths & solutions
Relationships, relationships, relationships
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3 Building the Foundation Pennsylvanias CIP structure: Local
Childrens Roundtables Leadership Roundtables State Roundtable:
Workgroup Structure
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Pennsylvania Childrens Roundtable Structure Local Childrens
Roundtable County Commissioners Hearing Masters Solicitors
Guardians ad Litem Parent Attorneys Youth & Families County
Child Welfare Staff Juvenile Probation Staff 8 Leadership
Roundtables (LR) comprised of like size counties grouped together
LR 1 LR 2 LR 3 LR 4 LR 8 LR 7 LR 6LR 5 Lead Dependency Judge &
Children &Youth Administrator plus one additional designated
stakeholder from the Local Childrens Roundtable advance to a
Leadership Roundtable Lead Dependency Judge and Children &Youth
Administrator (co-chairs) advance to the State Roundtable and act
as representatives for each LR (additional representation for some
LRs). Office of Children and Families in the Court Leadership
Roundtable Co-Chairs Directors of Human Services Guardians ad Litem
Solicitors Child Advocates Special Invited Guests State Supreme
Court Justice Secretary of Public Welfare Deputy Secretary of OCYF
Pennsylvania Legislators American Bar Association American Humane
Association Pennsylvania Bar Association Pennsylvania County
Commissioners Meets Annualy Meets Semi-annually Meets regularly as
determined by lead dependency judge and child welfare administrator
Law Enforcement Medical Professionals County Agencies School
Districts Other Community Stakeholders Other Service Providers
Office of Children & Families in the Courts Program
Analyst
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6 Pennsylvanias Timeline Honorable Max Baer, Supreme Court
Justice 2004 Supreme Court assumes oversight of CIP 2006 OCFC
created July 2006 Inaugural meeting of State Roundtable June 2007
CPCMS Outcome tracking data system roll-out 2008 Permanency
Practice Initiative (Phase One) begins March 2009 Family Group
Decision Making Family Finding Family Development Credentialing
Mission & Guiding Principles for Pennsylvanias Dependency
System created May 2009 Father Engagement selected as State
Roundtable Priority May 2009 Dependency Bench Book created 2010 PPI
Phase Two begins August 2010 PPI Phase Three begins February
2011
10 Building the Foundation for Father Engagement State
Roundtable presentation May 2009 Karen Jenkins, AHA & Mimi
Laver, ABA Father Engagement Workgroup established 2009 Bringing
Back the Dads distributed at 1 st Childrens Roundtable Summit
September 2009 First Report to State Roundtable & York County
Panel presentation May 2010 Father Engagement Keynote at 2 nd
Childrens Roundtable Summit September 2010 - Distributed Green Book
- Father Engagement Plenary Session: Ron Clark, NFI & Jessica
Kendall, ABA - County Planning document Second Report to State
Roundtable May 2011
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Pennsylvania Childrens Summit September 28, 2010 Philadelphia
http://www.ocfcp acourts.us/assets/ files/page-
329/file-547.jpg
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QIC Tools Used Bringing Back the Dads: Engaging Non-Resident
Fathers in the Child Welfare System Advocating for Nonresident
Fathers in Child Welfare Court Cases (Green Book) National Expert
Presenters ABA Center on Children and the Law National Quality
Improvement Center Policy Roundtable Washington DC Best Practice
Conference Washington DC 12
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QIC Policy Roundtable February 8, 2011 Washington DC
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Father Engagement Workgroup Honorable Kim Berkely Clark,
Committee Co-chair Honorable Maria Musti Cook, Committee Co-chair
Ann Marie Cucinotta, Berks Hearing Master Barbara Ash, Philadelphia
HS Legal Dept. Bill Phifer, Allegheny CYS CarrieAnn Frolio, York
CYS Honorable George Hartwick, III, Dauphin Commissioner Dan
Worley, York Parent Advocate Gene Detter, CWTP Karen Jenkins,
American Humane Association Lisa Chambers, Allegheny CYS Tonya
Burgess, CWTP Parent Ambassador Tina Zanis, Provider Steve Suknaic,
Dauphin JPO Honorable Flora Barth Wolf, Philadelphia
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Workgroup Activities Researched state and national best
practices (2008-2010 QIC) Conducted Pennsylvania survey of courts
and child welfare professionals (2009) Conducted focus group of
non-resident fathers (2009) Created Key Areas for Fathers in Child
Welfare (2009) Created protocols for agency, attorneys, & court
(2010) Created Father Brochure (2011) Creating regional training
(2011) 15
To What End: Change Perceptions, Change Behavior, Change
Outcomes Incorporated as overarching theme in Judicial Bench Book
Judicial Bench Book Incorporating Father Engagement in all
Workgroup discussions & planning: Legal Representation,
Visitation, Bench Book Collecting data to conduct evaluation of
efforts & impact (CPCMS Module & focus groups) Included in
Pennsylvanias Performance Improvement Plan (PIP) 18
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19 Establishing Paternity One Father per Child!!!!!
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Engagement Requires a Cultural Change We must recognize and
acknowledge the value of fathers in the lives of their children
Leadership from the top is needed to accomplish this but change at
all levels needs to occur 20
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Engaging Fathers Engagement with a non- custodial father is an
ongoing, strength-based, solution focused process It takes more
than sending him a letter! 21
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2011/2012 Activities Developing a plan for the dissemination of
the fathers brochure Developing Fatherhood component for all
judicial, legal and child welfare education sessions Developing
father support groups in counties 22
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2012 Workgroup Activities Send request to Juvenile Court
Procedural Rules Committee revised CPCMS order forms to: include a
checkbox that would require the court to find that paternity has
been established and how paternity was established collect data to
measure outcomes with respect to father engagement 23
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Protocols & Best Practice Child Welfare Agency Parent
Attorney Court 24 http://www.ocfcpacourts.us/about-
ocfc/father-involvement
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Kids Need Their Dads! Pennsylvanias Father Engagement Work
Thank You!! 25