Child Welfare Reform in New York

CURRENT AND RECENT PROJECTS:

(Click links to navigate to ACS websites for more information) 

CARES: Action Research is providing implementation support as ACS expands New York City’s differential response program, called Collaborative Assessment, Response, Engagement & Support (CARES). Instead of investigating alleged child maltreatment, when there is no immediate danger to children ACS CARES staff partner with families to assess child safety and family needs, encourage families to develop their own solutions to their challenges, and identify supportive resources to help care for and protect their children. 

Fiscal models: Federal and most state financial models for child welfare reimburse public and private providers based on the number of days children spend in foster care.  This payment structure creates perverse incentives by paying providers more money the longer children stay in foster care.  Action Research provides research and analysis to assist ACS’s efforts to align the agency’s fiscal models with the child welfare goal of moving children in foster care to permanent, loving, and safe families—preferably by reunifying with their family—as soon as possible. 

Home Away From Home: Since 2015, Action Research has provided on demand data analysis and expert advice to ACS on a wide range of foster care issues.  These issues include setting foster home recruitment and kin placement targets, examining initial placement stability, and analyses of the foster home pool.  

Reunification: At ACS’s request and with support from the Sirus Fund, Action Research studied how New York City can improve the policies, practices, and processes concerning the reunification of children with their parents or guardians after a period in foster care.  In the coming months, Action Research will work with ACS to implement recommendations from the first phase of research.  

Smart Placement: Entering foster care or moving from one placement to another are traumatic experiences for children.  ACS aims to minimize trauma by placing children with their siblings, with foster parents who are located in their home communities and who speak their language, and without disrupting their school placements.  Action Research works with ACS leadership and front line staff to meet these placement goals more often by making better use of data and fine tuning the placement process.