Meaningful Family and Community Engagement NDTAC Topical Call March 18, 2014
Meaningful Family and Community Engagement
NDTAC Topical Call March 18, 2014
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Topical Call Agenda
Welcome and Introductions
The Importance of Family/Community Engagement
First Topical Call: Family Engagement at System Intake
Introduction of Presenters Today’s Topical Call:
The Role of Families/Caregivers While Youth Are System Involved
The Importance of Keeping Family/Community Connections for Youth Who Are System Involved
The Role of State TIPD Coordinators
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Welcome!
Who’s on the call?
4The Importance of Family/Community Engagement
Research has shown that there are many benefits when families/caregivers are involved in their child’s education:
Students are more willing to learn, and they feel better about themselves
They get better grades and attend school more regularly They are more likely to graduate from grade school or high
school and are more likely to continue their education They are less likely to use drugs and alcohol, and they have
fewer instances of violent behavior and suspensions
(Henderson & Mapp,2002)
5The Importance of Family/Community Engagement
Family/caregiver visitation of youth who are system-involved is associated with improved behavior and school performance
Programs that work with families (e.g. develop effective parenting skills, provide reinforcement) have shown success in reducing problem behaviors and increasing school success
Families/caregivers are potentially the most reliable sources of information about their child’s strengths, needs, and experiences and thus should be included in decision-making
(Agudelo, 2013; Garfinkel, 2010)
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Karen Francis joined us in December 2013 to: Discuss the necessity for meaningful family and
community engagement at the point of initial contact and system intake
Share strategies for success engagement at this stage
The First Topical Call
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A Sample of Important Take-aways: Family/caregiver engagement is important in reducing
recidivism and improving academic and behavioral outcomes for children
Families/caregivers should expect to be treated with respect and dignity
Facility and educational program staff should be able to communicate effectively with families.
Families need to be empowered to help their students be successful in and out of the facility.
TIPD coordinators can encourage subgrantees to include family/caretaker engagement in their TIPD applications
The First Topical Call
8Introduction of Today’s Presentation and Speakers
Importance of meaningful family/community engagement once youth are system involved
Grace Bauer, Executive Director, Justice for Families Ryan Shanahan, Sr. Program Assoc., VERA Institute of
Justice
“FAMILIES UNLOCKING FUTURES: SOLUTIONS TO THE CRISIS IN JUVENILE JUSTICE”
A REPORT BY FAMILIES
ABOUT FAMILIES
Family Involvement Matters: The Evidence
Maximizes kids chance of success Lower rates of recidivism Improved working conditions Safer facilities Brings relevant/missing information to the table Increased options and resources Reduced use of more costly and restrictive services Families more likely to participate in treatment and follow-up care
Polling Question #1
Polling Question #2
Polling Question #3
Barriers/Challenges
Lack of Value
Lack of Authentic Dialogue
No Common Vision
Lack of Trust
Overcoming Barriers
IndividualRecognize
Assumptions/BiasesChallenge Practice
Active Listening
SystemCreate Space
InvitePrepare Staff
Provide AccommodationsEnlist Experts
Value Perspectives
NOT Family Friendly
It is our belief that the vast majority of parents care about their
children, and parent them to the best of their ability. It is also our belief that some parents, due to their life experiences, current circumstances, skill level, socioeconomic status, degree of social support, special needs
of their children, and other factors, could benefit from receiving additional information about effective parenting (e.g., child
development and the changing role of parents), skill building, resources, and social support from both professionals and other parents.
It is also our belief that the vast majority of children and adolescents want to please their parents, and are looking to them for love, approval,
guidance, limit- setting, and consistency. When these needs are not sufficiently met, children may display problematic behaviors in order to
call attention to these unmet needs.
Family Solutions, Family Voice
Provide families with peer support/family partners who can help them navigate
unfamiliar school, arrest, court, probation, and placement rules
Adopt Family Bill of Rights
Involve lived family voice at all decision-making points within the youth justice
system
Slide 18
Why Family Engagement is Key
March 18, 2014
Ryan Shanahan, PhD, Senior Program Associate, Family Justice Program
Family Justice Program
• Vera’s Family Justice Program provides extensive training and strategic support to government and community partners to help them effectively draw on the resources of families and communities. These systemic interventions are designed to benefit people at greatest risk of cycling in and out of the justice system.
• The Vera Institute of Justice is an independent nonprofit that combines expertise in research, demonstration projects, and technical assistance to help leaders in government and civil society improve the systems people rely on for justice and safety.
Build on Family InteractionsA family-systems approach not only
reduced recidivism rates for justice-involved youth as compared with other models of treatment, but also reduced rates of siblings’ involvement in the justice system. (Klein, 1977)
The protective effect of receiving parental visits during incarceration exists regardless of the quality of the parent-adolescent relationship. (Monahan, Goldweber, Cauffman, 2011)
2 - 7 months 7 months to 1 year More 1 Year0
20
40
60
80
100
120
44
70
109
28
52
66
15
4553
No visits Less 1 Week Weekly
Time at the facility
Ave
rage
num
ber o
f inc
iden
ts
Youth who Receive Visits Have Fewer Behavior Incidents
Youth who Receive Visits Have Fewer Behavior Incidents
Never Infrequent Regularly0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
1614
6
4
Average behavior incidents per month
Visitation Frequency
Num
ber o
f beh
avio
r inc
iden
ts
Youth who are Visited Weekly Have Better GPA’s
Never Less 1 week Weekly70
75
80
85
90
80.482.0
85.0
GPA
Visitation Frequency
Continuum of Family Involvement
Small Changes • No cost, staff-led
family-focused initiatives
Medium Changes• Some cost• Administrative
buy-in
Large Changes• Creating Family-
Focused Culture throughout system
Continuum of Family Involvement
START SMALL• No cost, staff-lead
initiatives focused on family partnership
TAKE STEPS• Administrative buy-
in and small financial commitment
COMMIT• Creating a family-
focused culture throughout the system
Best Practices:• KENTUCKY
– Juvenile Justice teachers send survey home to parents to learn how they want to be contacted for school updates
• CALIFORNIA– Family dinners at camps;
Family Councils• TEXAS & DC
– Parent Bill of Rights• MINNESOTA
– No metal detectors at visitation
• NEW YORK– Close to Home Initiative;
Adolescent Portable Therapy
• INDIANA– Lifted visitation
restrictions• EPICS Family
Effective practice in community supervision– officers engaging family
• As a parent, you have the right not to be judged, blamed or labeled because of your child’s incarceration.
• As a parent, you have the right to be an active participant when decisions are made about your child.
http://www.tjjd.texas.gov/programs/parents_billof_rights.aspx
Parent Bill of Rights
Polling Question #4
Polling Question #5
Steps Educators can Take • Send home good assignments/tests/quizzes to
younger siblings • Video tape students reading a children’s book for
their child or younger siblings• Invite parents to IEP meetings and
allow them to visit before or after• Invite families to graduation and
take photos• Help students enroll in home school• Send photos of school projects home
Incorporating Family into Subjects:
• History• Family tree or family history research
project• Conversations about family’s traditions
• English/Writing• Practice writing by journaling about family• Writing plays telling family’s story• Write about successful people in family
• Science • Family DNA projects
www.vera.org/centers/family-justice-program
Ryan Shanahan, PhD Senior Program Associate
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The Role of State TIPD Coordinators
Strategies that TIPD coordinators can use include: Encourage subgrantees to include family/caretaker
engagement as a part of their TIPD applications Section I in the Nonregulatory Guidance states that "an SA [State agency]
must assure that it will work with parents to secure their assistance in improving their children's and youth's educational achievement and, as appropriate, preventing further involvement in delinquent activities…an SA, to the extent possible, must give parents the opportunity to participate in their children's and youth's educational plans.”
Include family/caregiver community as part of your monitoring plan
Support, to the extent feasible, use of TIPD funds to encourage family/caregiver engagement in programs and facilities
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Q&A
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Next Topical Calls
Meaningful Family/Community Engagement, June 24 Reminder: All topical call presentations and recordings
are available on the ND Communities website at http://www.ndcommunities.org/
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Resources
Available on the NDTAC website: NDTAC
Toolkit: Facility Toolkit for Engaging Families in Their Child's Education at a Juvenile Justice Facility
NDTAC Guide: Family Guide to Getting Involved in Your Child's Education at a Juvenile Justice Facility
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Resources
Additional resources: Families Unlocking Futures: Solutions to the Crisis in Juvenile
Justice http://us.mg4.mail.yahoo.com/neo/www.justice4families.org
"Family Comes First, A Workbook to Transform the Juvenile Justice System by Partnering with Families.“ Available for ordering online at http://www.campaignforyouthjustice.org/family-comes-first.html