Agenda Highlights & Conference Schedule

 

 

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Agenda Highlights

 

 

Opening Plenary Session

Monday, April 15, 2013

9:15 am – 10:45 am

Child Welfare for the Future: Raise the Bar

The time is now for the field to take responsibility for raising the bar on behalf of children, youth, and families. The safety, permanence, and well being of children and families is everyone’s responsibility. The CWLA National Blueprint for Excellence in Child Welfare provides the future vision and road map for families, caregivers, providers, organizations, communities and governments. This session presented the National Blueprint’s role in creating real change in how children, youth and families are served.

Presenters: Kevin M. McGuire, Commissioner, Westchester County Department of Social Services, White Plains, NY; Lisa von Pier, Assistant Commissioner, Division of Family and Community Partnerships, New Jersey Department of Children and Families, Trenton, NJ; and Dr. Jeremy C. Kohomban, President/CEO, The Children's Village, Dobbs Ferry, NY

Keynote Speaker: Dr. William Bell, President & CEO, Casey Family Programs, Seattle, WA

 

View Opening Session Photos

 

 

Advocacy Day - Tuesday, April 16, 2013

Going to Capitol Hill Makes a Difference!

The most important thing attendees can do while at the conference is to promote child welfare priorities on Capitol Hill! CWLA’s Advocacy Day is the largest national advocacy event of the year focused on child welfare policy in Washington. On April 16, hundreds of conference attendees from across the country boarded buses and headed to Capitol Hill. Advocacy Day activities on Capitol Hill included a policy briefing on child well-being, Congressional Advocate of the Year Awards, and a preparation session for meetings with members of Congress.  Then participants spent the afternoon conducting personal visits with Congressional representatives to advocate for policies, programs, and practices to improve the lives of America’s vulnerable children and families.

 

In recent years, Advocacy Day visits have played a pivotal role in getting major child welfare reform legislation passed—especially the health care reform legislation, the Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act, and economic recovery legislation that supported foster care and adoption assistance, kinship care, and health services for vulnerable children and youth. This year, we launched our campaign for policy initiatives drawn from the National Blueprint for Excellence in Child Welfare.

 

Advocacy Day Material:

2013 Legislative Agenda

Hot Topics

National and State Fact Sheets

 

View Advocacy Day Photos

 

 

Executive Roundtable & Dinner

Sunday, April 14, 2013

6:00 pm – 9:00 pm

*CWLA Member Exclusive*

A Conversation with Comcast Executive Vice President, David L. Cohen

Lessons Learned in Responding to Organizational Change

Mr. Cohen shared with CWLA member agency executive leaders "lessons learned" on mergers, board roles, diversity, advocacy, technology, and more. For more details, please visit Executive Roundtable Information and Photos.

 

 

Panel Discussions

Monday, April 15, 2013

12:45 pm – 2:45 pm

Leveraging Neuroscience to Inform Child Welfare

While the last 10 years has seen an increase in neuroscience literature on the impact of trauma on neurobiology, the findings of this work have not been well translated to child welfare practice and intervention development.  Members of the Administration on Children, Youth and Families’ Neuroscience and Child Maltreatment Expert Panel are engaged in a year-long process that: 1) creates a better understanding between neuroscientists and child maltreatment researchers/interventionists about each others’ work; 2) identifies critical issues in translating research from basic neuroscience to the design of child maltreatment interventions; and 3) culminates in the development of a set of principles, strategies, white papers, etc. that can inform the development of more effective child maltreatment policies, practices and interventions in order to move the field forward and achieve better outcomes for children and families.  This session brought together members of the expert panel for a coordinated set of presentations on the intersection of neuroscience and child maltreatment.

Moderator: Bryan Samuels, Commissioner, Administration on Children, Youth and Families, US DHHS, Washington, DC

Presenters: Dr. Stacy Drury, Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Neurology, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA; Dr. Joan Kaufman, Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Director of the Child and Adolescent Research and Education Program, Yale University, New Haven, CT; Dr. Joan Morrell, Professor, Center for Molecular and Behavioral Neuroscience, Rutgers University, Newark, NJ; Dr. Michael Sheeringa, Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Neurology, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA

 

View Lunch Panel Photos

 

Wednesday, April 17, 2013

10:30 am – 12:00 pm

Raising the Bar: Collaborate, Collaborate, Collaborate!

This panel presentation was a timely discussion regarding the work that is crucial to the successful implementation of the CWLA National Blueprint. Panel participants representing key stakeholders highlighted their perspectives on how collaboration promotes the greatest opportunity for all children, youth, and families to flourish. It takes all of us to raise the bar!

Moderator: Dr. Olivia Golden, Fellow, Urban Institute, Washington, DC

Presenters: Adam Robe, CEO, Foster Care Alumni of America, Alexandria, VA; Rev. Dr. W. Wilson Goode, Sr., Director, Amachi Program, Philadelphia, PA; Dr. DeForest B. Soaries, Jr., Senior Pastor, First Baptist Church of Lincoln Gardens, Somerset, NJ; Sandra A. Spencer, Executive Director, National Federation of Families for Children's Mental Health, Rockville, MD; and Alex Morales, CEO, Children's Bureau, Los Angeles, CA

 

View Wed Panel Photos

 

 

Gala Dinner

The Gala Dinner held on Tuesday, April 16 was an evening of celebration and entertainment. In addition to our featured speaker, Kevin Ryan, we also presented some special awards and acknowledgements. We were entertained by the always fresh and funny, The Capitol Steps.

 

View Gala Dinner Photos

 

 

Exhibit Hall/CWLA Bookstore

Conference participants were able to explore new thinking and new products in the exhibit hall. The exhibit hall included our popular Bookstore and Cyber Café. The exhibit hall also again featured Booth Bingo and many conference meal functions. It was the hub of the conference!

 

Browse our 2013 Virtual Exhibit Hall

 

View Exhibit Hall/CWLA Bookstore Photos

 

 

CWLA/OPEN MINDS Leadership Institute Track

Monday, April 15, 2013

11:15 am – 12:30 pm

Future Trends Affecting Human Services

This CWLA/OPEN MINDS Leadership Institute briefing session was open to all executives attending the conference.  It focused on dynamic industry change drivers, and the infrastructure and talent necessary to keep pace with these changes.  Some of the issues discussed included:  changes in reimbursement methods (pay for performance, case rates, managed Medicaid care); Informatics and Hot Technology for 2013; integration of physical and mental health and substance abuse; tax exempt on the firing lane; new methods of fundraising; consumer focused programming; metric management; new methods of strategic planning.

Presenters:  Moncia Oss, CEO & Howard Shiffman, Senior Associate, OPEN MINDS, Gettysburg, PA; and Christine James-Brown, President & CEO, CWLA, Washington, DC

 

Monday, April 15, 2013

3:00 pm – 5:00 pm

Securing Our Financial Future

This session featured presentations and discussions in two critical areas: 1) Creating New Programs that Generate Revenue - As markets change, the services needed to be competitive are changing as well.  That is why human service organizations need a structured approach to selecting, designing, and launching new programs. In this fascinating session, participants learned how to decide which service lines are best for their organization and the steps for development and implementation using state of the art tools.  Participants heard from peer professionals in the field about their challenges and successes in establishing new services; and 2) Best Practices in Fundraising: Traditional & New Techniques - Today’s Human Service CEO must be involved in fund development.  With revenues and margins shrinking, there is a greater need to generate dollars through philanthropy.  Proven fundraising techniques are the foundation for seeking donations but new technological and social media advancements cannot be ignored as viable to seek community support.  Participants heard from peer CEOs about how they created fundraising machines that take advantage of the traditional and new methods for seeking donations and grants.

Moderator: Howard Shiffman, Senior Associate, OPEN MINDS, Gettysburg, PA

Presenters : Karen Yarberry, Executive Director, Jefferson Hills, Lakewood, CO; Bentley Smith, Executive Director, Devereux Cleo Wallace, Westminster, CO; Todd Landry, Executive Director, Lena Pope Home, Ft. Worth, TX; Donna Pressma, President & CEO, Children's Home Society of New Jersey, Trenton, NJ; and Joseph Costa, CEO, Hillsides, Pasadena, CA

(See Workshops listing B10 for presentation material)

 

Tuesday, April 16, 2013

8:30 am – 10:15 am

Future Trends Affecting Human Services Part 2: How to Plan for the Future

This dynamic interactive session focused on what leaders can do to prepare their organizations for future changes. Through a facilitated group discussion, members of the Institute were given an opportunity to participate in an in-depth look at the trends and practical ways to utilize this knowledge for their agency’s advantage.  Finding ways to meet and adapt to the trends will help to improve productivity, generate additional revenue, meet consumer demands and assist members of the Institute to strategically plan for their future.

Presenters: Rejean Carlson, President & Howard Shiffman, Senior Associate, OPEN MINDS, Gettysburg, PA

 

For additional information on the CWLA/OPEN MINDS Executive Institute, please visit www.openminds.com/cwla/.

 

 

Kinship Care Training Institute

Tuesday, April 16, 2013

11:00 am – 5:00 pm

Ensuring Safety, Well-being, and Permanency for Children in Kinship Care - The Critical Role of Public Agency Line Staff and their Supervisors

Twenty years ago, CWLA advanced the term "kinship care" and called for specific policy, program, and practice reforms.  The continued increase of kinship families coming into the child welfare system presents ongoing compelling challenges that have serious implications for how line staff work with kinship families to address legal and financial challenges; child development, especially delays; child behavior and trauma; and extended family relationships. Accessing mental health, school, and other resources so kinship families can be safely transitioned from agency supervision to community supports requires creative collaboration. This Institute demonstrated a competency-based model that agency staff can implement, taking into account practice challenges such as working with immigrant kinship families, addressing worker biases about kinship families, and the specific role of supervisors in helping their staff achieve ASFA outcomes.

Presenters:   Eileen Mayers Pasztor, Professor, School of Social Work, California State University, Long Beach, CA and CWLA Consultant/Trainer; and Donna D. Petras, Director, Training and Models of Practice, CWLA, Washington, DC

 

 

Listening Session

Wednesday, April 17, 2013

7:15 am - 8:45 am

Childhood Under the Gun

The shots fired in Newtown, Connecticut have ricocheted through every classroom, living room and community in this country. We are simultaneously seeing an emerging concern that the unmet mental health needs of children and adolescents pose more of a threat to America’s well-being than the possibility of terrorism from without. This is of particular concern when we consider the significant unmet mental health needs of children involved with child welfare.  CWLA’s Mental Health Advisory Board facilitated a Listening Session as an opportunity to hear from concerned attendees on the implications for our children and families affected by gun violence including unmet mental health needs of children and adolescents. We looked at how trauma caused by violence affects the emotional lives of children and families, especially those involved in or at risk of child welfare involvement, and our capacity to meet their needs.

 

 

Post-Conference Session

Wednesday, April 17, 2013

2:00 pm - 5:00 pm

Managing Risks in the Home Study (Family Assessment) Process

One of the most critical duties of a family foster care and/or adoption agency is licensing or certifying prospective foster and adoptive (aka resource) parents. Agencies need staff who have the willingness, ability, and resources to fulfill this "gatekeeping" function, making a difference between whether children are placed with resource families who will protect and nurture them, or neglect and reject them, or worse.

 

The post-conference session: (a) overviewed the inter-relationship among agency mission, and resource family recruitment, development, and support; (b) described why and how home studies/family assessments and preservice training must be inter-connected; (c) identified the qualifications of family assessment/home study staff; and (d) documented the policies, supervisory skills, and a model of practice that must be in place to have an evidence-informed process to recruit, retain, develop, and support resource parents.

Presenters:   Eileen Mayers Pasztor, Professor, School of Social Work, California State University, Long Beach, CA and CWLA Consultant/Trainer; and Donna D. Petras, Director, Training and Models of Practice, CWLA, Washington, DC

 

 

Conference Schedule

Sunday, April 14, 2013

11:00 am – 6:30 pm

Registration/CEU Desk

 

1:00 pm – 3:00 pm

National Commission on Public Policy

 

3:30 pm – 5:00 pm

CWLA Annual Meeting

 

6:00 pm – 9:00 pm

Executive Roundtable & Dinner

 

Monday, April 15, 2013

7:00 am – 6:00 pm

Registration/CEU Desk

 

7:30 am – 9:00 am

Exhibit Hall Grand Opening with Continental Breakfast

 

7:30 am – 9:00 am

Executive Roundtable Breakfast

 

9:15 am – 10:45 am

Opening General Session

Child Welfare for the Future: Raise the Bar

 

10:45 am

Coffee Break in Exhibit Hall/CWLA Bookstore

 

11:15 am – 12:30 pm

Workshop Sessions A

 

12:45 pm – 2:45 pm

Panel Discussion with Lunch

Leveraging Neuroscience to Inform Child Welfare

 

3:00 pm – 5:00 pm

Workshop Sessions B

 

5:15 pm – 6:30 pm

Opening Night Reception in Exhibit Hall

 

7:00 pm

Enjoy a Night on the Town

 

Tuesday, April 16, 2013

7:30 am – 4:00 pm

Registration/CEU Desk

 

7:30 am – 8:45 am

Breakfast in Exhibit Hall

 

9:00 am – 10:15 am

Workshop Sessions C

 

10:30 am

Buses leave for Capitol Hill

 

11:30 am – 1:00 pm

Capitol Hill Briefing on Well-Being /Advocacy Session

 

1:00 pm – 5:00 pm

Congressional Visits on Capitol Hill

 

4:30 pm – 5:00 pm

Buses return to Hyatt Regency

 

**For attendees not participating in Capitol Hill activities**

 

11:00 am – 5:00 pm

Kinship Care Training Institute

OR

11:00 am – 12:15 pm

Workshop Sessions

 

12:30 pm – 1:30 pm

Lunch in the Exhibit Hall

 

2:00 pm – 3:30 pm

Workshop Sessions

 

******

 

6:00 pm – 7:00 pm

Gala Reception in Exhibit Hall

 

7:00 pm – 9:00 pm

Gala Dinner, Awards & Entertainment

 

Wednesday, April 17, 2013

7:00 am – 3:30 pm

Registration/CEU Desk

 

7:00 am – 8:45 am

Continental Breakfast in Exhibit Hall/CWLA Bookstore

 

7:15 am - 8:45 am

Childhood Under the Gun Listening Session

 

9:00 am – 10:15 pm

Workshops Sessions D

 

10:30 am – 12:00 pm

Panel Discussion

Raising the Bar: Collaborate, Collaborate, Collaborate!

 

12:00 pm - 1:30 pm

Closing Lunch

 

Post-Conference Sessions

2:00 pm – 4:00 pm

National Commission on Practice Excellence

 

2:00 pm - 5:00 pm

Faith-Based and Child Welfare Partnering

 

2:00 pm – 5:00 pm

Managing Risks in the Home Study (Family Assessment) Process