New & Noteworthy

Grants and Awards

The University of Kansas School of Social Welfare and the Kansas Institute for Educational Research and Public Service are working collaboratively with the Kansas Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services and the Kansas State Department of Education on The Kansas Partnership for Educating Kids in Care, a 17-month initiative funded by the US Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Children’s Bureau. The purpose of this initiative is to build a sustainable child welfare-education system collaboration to increase education stability for youth in foster care aged 10-17. Alice Lieberman is co-Principal Investigator. Michelle Levy and Cheryl Holmes are involved in the research and training components.
 
Terry Moore recently received a contract from TFI Family Services to document, develop, and evaluate the agency’s practice model in two areas: matching children with foster care placement resources and the use of data for improving client outcomes.  TFI is one of the four major child welfare contractors in Kansas and serves two of the five regions in the state. 
 
The Kansas Workforce Initiative was highlighted in a KU News Release, January 17, 2012, Researchers tackle turnover in child welfare http://www.news.ku.edu/2012/january/17/childwelfare.shtml

Conference Presentations

Akin, B., & Bryson, S. (2011, January). Psychotropic medication patterns among child and youth Medicaid beneficiaries. Presentation at the Society for Social Work and Research Annual Conference, Tampa, FL.

Akin, B., Bryson, S., & McDonald, T. (2012, January). Using qualitative and quantitative methods to define a target population for intervention. Presentation at the Society for Social Work and Research Annual Conference, Washington, DC.

Akin, B., Bryson, S., McDonald, T., & Walker, S. (2012, January). Using quantitative and qualitative methods to explore barriers to permanency for children with SED and their parents. Presentation at the Society for Social Work and Research Annual Conference, Washington, DC.

Bryson, S., & Akin, B. (2011, August). Lessons from a university-child welfare agency partnership: Successfully selecting an EBP to reduce long-term foster care.  Presentation at the National Child Welfare Evaluation Summit, Washington, DC.

Levy, M. (2011, June). Professionalism in child welfare’ agency/educator dialogue. Presentation at the National Child Welfare Workforce Institute’s Annual Traineeship Meeting, Chicago, IL.

Levy, M., & Lieberman, A. (2011, January). The Kansas child welfare workforce profile.  Presentation at the Society for Social Work and Research Annual Conference, Tampa, FL.

Levy, M., Thaw, J., Holt, K., & Emmert-Davis, R.  (2011, October-November). Voices from the field—An inside look at the child welfare profession. Presentation for the Kansas BSW and MSW programs, including Bethel College, Fort Hays State University, Kansas State University, Pittsburg State University, University of Kansas, Washburn University, and Wichita State University.  

Moore, T. (2012, January). Building capacity for child welfare research through improving data infrastructure and culture around data usage.  Presentation at the Society for Social Work and Research Annual Conference, Washington, DC.

Sedlak, A., Judkins, D., Akin, B., & Webster, D. (2011, August). Identifying and refining the target populations for a national initiative to reduce long-term foster care population. Presented at the National Child Welfare Evaluation Summit, Washington, DC.

Thaw, J. (2011, November). Supervisor actions to improve worker performance, staff retention, and client outcomes in child welfare.  Workshop presented at the Excellence in Supervision Conference, Wichita, KS.

Thaw, J., Emmert-Davis, R., & Levy, M. (2011, November). Evidence-based supervision strategies for improving child welfare performance. Workshop presented at the 35th Annual Governor’s Conference for the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect, Topeka, KS.

Publications

Akin, B. (2011). Predictors of foster care exits to permanency: A competing risks analysis of reunification, guardianship, and adoption. Children and Youth Services Review, 33, 999-1011.
 
Akin, B., McDonald, T., & Tullis, L. (2010). An inventory of risk assessment in child protection: Instrument usage and key features. Protecting Children, 25(3), 35-51.
 
Levy, M., Poertner, J., & Lieberman, A. (in press). Work attitudes and intention to quit among workers in private child welfare agencies operating under performance-based contracts. Administration in Social Work.
 
Kathleen Holt, Michelle Levy, & Roxanne Emmert-Davis developed training curricula, Introduction to Child Welfare and Child in Need of Care Courts in Kansas, through support from the Kansas Office of Judicial Administration and the Supreme Court Task Force for Permanency Planning.

Staff Involvement

Kari Cronbaugh recently joined our research staff.  Kari brings over 20 years of experience in child welfare services, both in direct services and administration.  She comes to us from Kids TLC in Olathe.  Kari will work on our new TFI Family Services project to develop practice models.