{"id":23,"date":"2017-10-16T15:22:08","date_gmt":"2017-10-16T15:22:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/research.unl.edu\/annualreport\/2017\/?p=23"},"modified":"2017-11-01T15:15:14","modified_gmt":"2017-11-01T15:15:14","slug":"strengthening-child-welfare-workforce-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/research.unl.edu\/annualreport\/2017\/strengthening-child-welfare-workforce-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Strengthening Child Welfare Workforce"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure id=\"attachment_117\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-117\" style=\"width: 1500px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-117\" src=\"http:\/\/research.unl.edu\/annualreport\/2017\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/161102_Graef_006_1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1500\" height=\"1000\" srcset=\"https:\/\/research.unl.edu\/annualreport\/2017\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/161102_Graef_006_1.jpg 1500w, https:\/\/research.unl.edu\/annualreport\/2017\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/161102_Graef_006_1-600x400.jpg 600w, https:\/\/research.unl.edu\/annualreport\/2017\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/161102_Graef_006_1-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/research.unl.edu\/annualreport\/2017\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/161102_Graef_006_1-1200x800.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 709px) 85vw, (max-width: 909px) 67vw, (max-width: 1362px) 62vw, 840px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-117\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Michelle Graef<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Tending to the nation\u2019s vulnerable children and families takes a toll. Staff turnover at child welfare agencies stands out at six times the national average across all jobs. Ultimately, it\u2019s kids and families who suffer.<\/p>\n<p>Nebraska\u2019s Center on Children, Families and the Law is leading a long-term multidisciplinary project to strengthen the nation\u2019s child welfare agency workforce and improve children\u2019s lives.<\/p>\n<p>To study and test promising strategies for recruiting and retaining child welfare workers, the center is receiving $15 million over five years from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services\u2019 Administration for Children and Families-Children\u2019s Bureau.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe ultimate goal is to improve child and family outcomes, but the way to get there is to improve the workforce,\u201d said project director Michelle Graef, a research associate professor at the center. \u201cNationally, for many years, it\u2019s been an urgent issue.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Public child welfare agencies are tasked with protecting children from neglect and abuse and with strengthening families who need assistance. The job can be emotionally taxing and complex. Difficult conditions and low pay lead to burnout.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>\u201cThe ultimate goal is to improve child and family outcomes, but the way to get there is to improve the workforce.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>The national turnover rate for child welfare jobs averages 20 percent but approaches 50 percent at some agencies, Graef said. In addition to high turnover, other workforce issues include insufficient supervision and difficulties in attracting and hiring good staff.<\/p>\n<p>The center has selected a small group of state, county and tribal child welfare agencies in urban and rural areas around the nation that are dealing with a range of workforce issues.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_120\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-120\" style=\"width: 600px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-120\" src=\"http:\/\/research.unl.edu\/annualreport\/2017\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/161102_Graef_028-600x366.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"366\" srcset=\"https:\/\/research.unl.edu\/annualreport\/2017\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/161102_Graef_028-600x366.jpg 600w, https:\/\/research.unl.edu\/annualreport\/2017\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/161102_Graef_028-768x469.jpg 768w, https:\/\/research.unl.edu\/annualreport\/2017\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/161102_Graef_028-1200x733.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/research.unl.edu\/annualreport\/2017\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/161102_Graef_028.jpg 1500w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 709px) 85vw, (max-width: 909px) 67vw, (max-width: 984px) 61vw, (max-width: 1362px) 45vw, 600px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-120\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Above from left: Mark Ells, Kate Stephenson, Megan Paul, Stephanie Weddington and Michelle Graef<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignleft\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/87wCpaV49eY?rel=0\" width=\"100%\" height=\"366\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<div class=\"clear\"><\/div>\n<p>Consulting teams visit sites to assess each agency\u2019s issues. Teams work with staff to develop and implement solutions, then test the strategies for effectiveness. The center will share results nationally.<\/p>\n<p>The center, which specializes in research on workforce issues related to child welfare, is collaborating with three national child welfare consultants and researchers at the University of Colorado, Denver; the University of Louisville; and the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. The project draws on a range of expertise, from social work and human resources management to psychology and the law.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Tending to the nation\u2019s vulnerable children and families takes a toll. Staff turnover at child welfare agencies stands out at six times the national average across all jobs. Ultimately, it\u2019s kids and families who suffer. Nebraska\u2019s Center on Children, Families and the Law is leading a long-term multidisciplinary project to strengthen the nation\u2019s child welfare [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[42],"tags":[83,86,85,81,82,141,84,132],"class_list":["post-23","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-early-childhood","tag-center-on-children-families-and-the-law","tag-child-welfare-agencies","tag-children-and-families","tag-early-childhood","tag-michelle-graef","tag-public-policy","tag-u-s-department-of-health-and-human-services-administration-for-children-and-families","tag-workforce-development"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/research.unl.edu\/annualreport\/2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/research.unl.edu\/annualreport\/2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/research.unl.edu\/annualreport\/2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/research.unl.edu\/annualreport\/2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/research.unl.edu\/annualreport\/2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=23"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"https:\/\/research.unl.edu\/annualreport\/2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":355,"href":"https:\/\/research.unl.edu\/annualreport\/2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23\/revisions\/355"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/research.unl.edu\/annualreport\/2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/research.unl.edu\/annualreport\/2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=23"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/research.unl.edu\/annualreport\/2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=23"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}