Upcoming Event
2025 Spring Conference
Tensions and Trade-offs: Child Welfare and the Evolving Role of Technology
Tuesday, April 15, 2025
Heritage Center in Brooklyn Center, MN
The Carriage Hall
9:00 a.m. - 3:30 p.m.
The Center for Advanced Studies in Child Welfare is pleased to announce our 25th Annual Spring Child Welfare Conference! On Tuesday, April 15, we will host a free, all-day conference centered around Child Welfare and the Evolving Role of Technology. Areas of focus for the day will include Artificial Intelligence, Virtual Reality & Simulation, and Technology Platforms. Participants will hear about the different opportunities and limitations impacting child welfare today and into the future. Join us as we discuss how to balance innovation and ethics in this evolving technological landscape. The conference will be held in-person, with an opportunity for groups to stream live together.
This event is free and includes a light breakfast and lunch for attendees, as well as free MN BOSW CEUs.
Virtual attendance is available for off-site groups of 3 or more. Please note that virtual groups must provide contact information and emails of all virtual attendees at the time of registration.
Who should attend the event?
Front-line child welfare professionals, supervisors, administrators, allied professionals, policy makers and more!
Upcoming Events
Webinar Series - Family Well-Being and Child Abuse Prevention - April 1
CASCW is excited to announce a brand new webinar series, brought to you in partnership with the Minnesota Department of Children, Youth, and Families. Over the next several months, we will share a variety of webinar opportunities that focus on community and family well-being, including strategies to prevent child maltreatment and system involvement. The webinars are free, are one hour in length, and each one will offer something different. The first webinar in the series will feature leaders from Chapin Hall. Future webinar topics and dates will be announced soon.
Economic & Concrete Supports + Community Pathways to Support Prevention
Tuesday, April 1, 2025
12:00 p.m. - 1:00 p.m. CST
Speakers from Chapin Hall
Yasmin Grewal-Kök, J.D., M. Ed, ECE, and Policy Fellow
Yasmin’s work focuses on supporting large-scale system change efforts to positively impact the lives of children and their families, particularly those who are most marginalized. Yasmin brings expertise in cross-sector partnerships and early childhood and child welfare research and policy, and has over a decade of legal experience in both the private and nonprofit sectors. Yasmin co-leads Chapin Hall’s economic and concrete supports portfolio and is a national thought leader on economic and concrete supports as a child welfare prevention and race equity strategy. She is also currently guiding several child welfare agencies in their efforts to leverage the Family First Prevention Services Act to build child and family well-being systems.
Olivia Wilks, Senior Policy Analyst
Olivia Wilks is a Senior Policy Analyst at Chapin Hall where she partners with state and local leaders to drive transformational efforts that strengthen family outcomes. With a focus on upstream prevention and community-driven alternatives, Wilks has led and contributed to initiatives that enhance child- and youth- serving systems. Wilks is committed to bridging research and policy to ensure that children, youth, and families have the resources and support needed to thrive within their own communities. Before joining Chapin Hall, Wilks served as the Director of Juvenile Justice and Violence Prevention Initiatives at the Illinois Collaboration on Youth (ICOY), where she partnered with local jurisdictions across Illinois to implement reform efforts and reduce racial and ethnic disparities. Wilks is pursuing her PhD from the University of Minnesota, she holds a MA from the University of Chicago, and a BA from Grinnell College.
Clare Anderson, MSW, Senior Policy Fellow
Clare Anderson, MSW, is a Senior Policy Fellow at Chapin Hall. She uses research, policy, and fiscal levers to improve outcomes for children, youth, and families. Clare engages child welfare agencies, stakeholders, and constituents in large-scale system change. This includes guiding states to implement the Family First Prevention Services Act. Additionally, Clare is a national thought leader on economic and concrete supports as core to prevention of child welfare involvement, and the development of a family and child well-being system that prioritizes family support and cross-sector partnerships.
Prior to joining Chapin Hall, Anderson was Deputy Commissioner at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Administration on Children, Youth, and Families (ACYF). There, she provided leadership for federal programs including child welfare, runaway and homeless youth, domestic and intimate partner violence, and teen pregnancy prevention. During her tenure at ACYF, Anderson co-led the development and implementation of a national well-being policy agenda. She was among the chief architects of the effort to address trauma, adverse childhood experiences, and toxic stress in children known to child welfare.
Past Events
Refresh your knowledge from past events hosted by the Center for Advanced Studies in Child Welfare. Contact [email protected] to request information or materials from past events.
2024 Esther Wattenberg Policy Forum
2024 Esther Wattenberg Policy Forum
In honor of the late Esther Wattenberg, the Center for Advanced Studies in Child Welfare and the Center for Urban and Regional Affairs (CURA) will host the 2024 Esther Wattenberg Policy Forum.
Thursday, December 12, 8:30 a.m. - 10:30 a.m.
Humber H. Humphrey School of Public Affairs
Hubert Humphrey Atrium
2024 Esther Wattenberg Policy Award Recipient - Nikki Villavicencio
The Esther Wattenberg Policy Award recognizes exemplary policy work and contributions impacting children and families in Minnesota. We will honor the 2024 Esther Wattenberg Policy Award recipient, Nikki Villavicencio, the disability culture and leadership specialist at Advocating Change Together. She is also the chair of the Minnesota Council on Disability, a disability rights advocate, and a Maplewood, Minnesota city council member.
2024 Keynote Speaker - Dr. Marjorie Aunos
Dr. Marjorie Aunos will deliver the keynote address. Dr. Aunos is a researcher, speaker, and consultant on accessibility and inclusion. She teaches organizations and educators to solution-find and build environments that are accessible, inclusive, and welcoming to families with disabilities - in particular families headed by parents with disabilities.
2024 Be@School Conference
2024 Be@School Conference
From Awareness to Action:
Uniting Efforts to Address the Attendance Crisis
August 1, 2024 – 9:00 to 4:00
McNamara Alumni Center
2024 Spring Conference
The Center for Advanced Studies in Child Welfare is pleased to announce our 24th Annual Spring Child Welfare Conference. On Tuesday, April 23, we will host a half-day conference on COVID-19’s impact on families, the workforce, and the delivery of child welfare services.
Participants will hear from a variety of speakers, as well as each other, as we explore lessons learned related to crisis response, child maltreatment, virtual engagement, family preservation, emerging promising practices and more. We hope to better understand how this collective experience over the past few years has both shaped and informed the current landscape of child welfare work. The conference will be in-person, with an opportunity for groups to stream live.
Conference Agenda
| Time | Topic |
|---|---|
| 8:30-9 | Registration, Breakfast and Networking |
| 9-9:15 | Welcome |
| 9:15-9:30 | Morning Reflections |
| 9:30-10:30 | A Workforce in Transition: We're Better Together (Amelia Franck Meyer) |
| 10:30-10:45 | Break |
| 10:45-noon | Panel Presentation - Lessons Learned from Minnesota Service Providers |
| Noon-12:45 | Child Protection and the COVID Pandemic: The Forgotten Frontline Responders (Stacy Hennen) |
| 12:45-1 | Closing and Evaluation |
2023 Permanency and Child Welfare Fall Conference
The 2023 Permanency & Child Welfare Fall Conference took place November 14-16, 2023 at the Radisson Blu Mall of America in Bloomington.
This conference brings together professionals and advocates alike to expand perspectives on what permanency means, the “what” and “who”, as well as how modern advances in many areas impact the relationships children and youth have with their family – birth adopted, and/or chosen. In centering the advancement of child/youth wellbeing, we’ll talk through the layers of permanency from reunification, policy and legalities of permanency, and TPR or aspects of parental rights to workforce development, complex needs, and the impact of areas such as sexual health and technology in development of identity and relationships.
Reach out to [email protected] for more information and materials from the conference.
2023 Be@School Conference: Nothing About Us Without Us
2023 Be@School Conference: Nothing About Us Without Us participants will hear current and former student’s reflections on their experience with the education system and what they need from adults, particularly related to school attendance. We’ll also dig into the results from the 2022 Minnesota Student Survey. A current teacher will reflect on how he uses student input to engage middle school youth. There will be opportunities for discussion and networking with other professionals. A light breakfast and lunch will be provided.
Conference Materials
Examining Haaland v. Brackeen
On November 9, 2023, SCOTUS heard the case of Haaland v. Brackeen regarding the future of the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) in the United States. While many, many child welfare professionals and advocates support upholding ICWA, the approach to legal arguments can be complex and difficult to understand. CASCW hosted a forum in which speakers helped attendees understand what is at stake in this case as well as broke down the arguments each side presented to the court both written and oral. Tribal perspective and judicial perspectives also played a vital role in this forum.
2022 CASCW Annual Spring Conference
The 2022 Spring virtual CASCW conference featured speakers and panelists as they explore how child welfare workers can best facilitate and support birth and foster parent relationships to improve outcomes for children and families. The audience learned current strategies and best practices from those with professional and personal experience.
Day 1
What is Your Why with Shrounda Selivanoff and Katie Biron
It's Possible: Cultivating Positive Relationships Between Birth and Foster Parents with Dr. Ericka Lewis
Relationships Matter: Building Lasting Birth and Foster Parent Partnerships with Robyn Robbins, Jody Rodgers, Paula Bibbs-Samuels and Marquetta King
Day 2
Quality Parenting Initiative Minnesota Panel Discussion
Respecting and Protecting Communities of Color Involved in the Family Regulation System with Maleeka Jihad
Family Connections: Linking Parents and Family to Support Children in Care with Renee Banas and Patrick Pisani
Indinawemaagan: You Are All My Relations (Closing remarks by Minnesota Associate Justice Anne K. McKeig)
Resources
Training, Videos, Podcasts
Why Relationships Matter - a training course from Amara Family Connections that explains why investing time and energy into relationships is essential to protecting children who have entered the foster care system
A series of four videos from Amara Family Connections discussing how birth parents and caregivers developed support systems with and for each other to coparent for the well-being of system-involved children:
- Yuvia’s Story
- A Network of Family
- The Power of Relationships: Sarah, Josh, and Samantha
- Grayson’s Story
Seen Out Loud Podcasts by Institute for Family ( Episodes 2 and 4)
Voices from the Field Audio Series by Casey Family Programs “How can birth and foster parents partner to achieve reunification?”
Video about Including Fathers produced by the University of Washington that addresses the barriers that fathers and male family members face when building and maintaining relationships with children.
Caregivers, Families and Substance Use Disorder
Family Connections Program training course to help gain understanding about SUD, what the science tells us about recovery and tips for partnering with parents struggling with SUD.
Video Role of Resource Parents in Supporting Family Recovery and Reunification produced by Children and Family Futures that outlines how Family Treatment Courts are engaging resource parents to better support families affected by parental substance use.
Supporting Family Relationships for Incarcerated Parents-Parenting Inside Out - Parenting Inside Out (PIO) Curriculum developed for criminal justice involved parents that focuses on rebuilding and improving family relationships and parenting skills.
Protecting Relationships During Transitions Training Video - QPI workshop that gives tips on the elements and implementation of effective transition plans for seamless transitions of a child from one caregiver to another. Examples of tips include how to maintain relationships between child, relatives, and caregivers.
Article from Rise Magazine - Structures of Oppression in the U.S. Child Welfare System: Reflections of Administrative Barriers to Equity. Authors illustrate how systems of oppression in regulating family life that take the form of practices, policies, and laws or regulations contribute to racial disparities, reinforce economic hardships and support policies of family separation.
Organizations and Programs
Quality Parenting Initiative - A strategy of the Youth Law Center that focuses on strengthening foster care and refocusing on excellent parenting for all children in the child welfare system.
More on QPI from Casey Family Programs
CHERISH Kindering - Program offering services to promote the social and emotional well being of children involved in the child welfare system that are in out-of-home placements. Services are for birth parents, relative caregivers and resource parents.
Children and Family Futures - Provides consulting, technical assistance, strategic planning, evaluation and training for child welfare, courts and substance use disorder treatment.
Children’s Trust Fund Alliance - National membership organization for state children’s trust funds. The Children’s Trust Fund Alliance provides support to state children’s trust and prevention funds.
Family Connections Program - A collaboration among parents, caregivers, and child welfare organizations designed to build and support relationships between the people in a child’s life experiencing out-of-home-placement.
Foster Kinship - Nevada based organization that provides evidence informed programs that strengthen kinship caregivers capacity to provide safe, permanent and nurturing homes. Foster Kinship provides kinship caregivers with information, advocacy, case management, and training to help caregivers access legal, financial and support services.
Research and Evaluation
Children and Families Affected by Parental Substance Use Disorders - National Center on Substance Abuse and Child Welfare’s highlighted resource to help reduce the stigma of Substance Use Disorders.
CoParenting and Healthy Relationship and Marriage Education for Dads (CHaRMED) - ChildTrends Federal evaluation effort designed to better understand how Responsible Fatherhood Programs support healthy marriages/relationships and coparenting. This study helped to identify gaps in services, and outline recommendations for addressing gaps.
Structures of Oppression in the U.S. Child Welfare System: Reflections of Administrative Barriers to Equity - Authors illustrate how systems of oppression in regulating family life that take the form of practices, policies, and laws or regulations contribute to racial disparities, reinforce economic hardships and support policies of family separation.
Supporting Successful Reunifications - Child Welfare Information Gateway’s bulletin for professionals providing examples of frameworks and practices that support family reunification. The bulletin also provides resources for casework frameworks and practices, parent support systems, and legal system involvement.
2020 Be@School Three-part Webinar Series
Part One: Inequitable School Absenteeism Policies: Causes, Consequences, and Strategies for Reform
In many school districts, White students get their tardies and absences excused more often than do students of color. In this webinar we document the scope of the inequity in five large Minnesota school districts, describe how it is caused by normal, day-to-day implementation of colorblind attendance policies, and suggest some initial remedies. The presentation will be followed by breakout sessions to develop and share additional ideas for immediate and long-term strategies to eliminate the structural racism embedded in attendance policies.
Clea McNeely, DrPH, has been studying truancy policies and interventions in Ramsey County, Minnesota since 2015. Her research has been funded by the National Institute of Justice and the Spencer Foundation.
Part Two: Making it Work: Serving Students with Disabilities During COVID-19
Join us for a closer look at special education for students with disabilities during COVID-19. This presentation will include a brief overview of the legal framework schools operate within, including an update on the most recent COVID-19 guidance from the Minnesota Department of Education. With our colleague, Christina Gonzalez, we take a pragmatic look at how schools and service providers are getting it right based on real-world examples. We will also discuss the challenges schools are facing. Please bring your questions and big ideas for making it work!
- Laura Tubbs Booth, Attorney, Ratwik, Roszak & Maloney, P.A.
- Elizabeth M. Meske, Associate Attorney, Ratwik, Roszak & Maloney, P.A.
- Christina Gonzalez, LCSW, Director of Student Support Services, Richfield Public Schools
Part Three: Education Partnerships for County-Involved Youth During COVID-19
Join us for a closer look at special education for students with disabilities during COVID-19. This presentation will include a brief overview of the legal framework schools operate within, including an update on the most recent COVID-19 guidance from the Minnesota Department of Education. With our colleague, Christina Gonzalez, we take a pragmatic look at how schools and service providers are getting it right based on real-world examples. We will also discuss the challenges schools are facing. Please bring your questions and big ideas for making it work!
Lynne Penke, Youth Education, Hennepin County Health and Human Services