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Family Connection Discretionary Grants, 2011-Funded Family Group Decision-making Grantees, Cross-site Evaluation Report – FINAL.
James Bell Associates.
United States. Children's Bureau.
Grantee Product
vi, 118 p.
Public Domain
Published: May 1, 2015
James Bell Associates
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Arlington, VA 22209
Tel: 703-528-3230
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Download: http://go.usa.gov/xDhB9
This report presents the findings of a cross-site evaluation of the Family Connection Discretionary Grants that examined the effectiveness of seven 3-year grants awarded by the Administration for Children and Families, Children’s Bureau (CB) in September 2011 with funds authorized by the Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act of 2008 (Public Law 110-351). The grants supported demonstration projects to help reconnect family members with children who were in or at risk of entering foster care using Family Group Decision-making (FGDM). Grantees conducted evaluations to improve processes and services and to demonstrate linkages between project activities and improved outcomes related to safety, permanency, and well-being. Grantees also participated in a national cross-site evaluation that documented the progress of each project and the seven grantees as a whole (i.e., cluster). The evaluation addressed process and outcome questions at the parent, child, family, and organizational and systems levels. Data sources included grantee summaries and profiles, grantee evaluation reports of aggregated process and outcome evaluation results, and discussions with key grantee representatives. Quantitative data provided in grantee evaluation reports were synthesized by categories of safety, permanency, and well-being. Qualitative coding software (ATLAS.ti) supported organizing and producing reports by grantee/project and cluster. Coded data were categorized at the cluster level to identify similarities and commonalities across grantees; identify relationships, patterns, and themes; identify clusters and categories; and incorporate differences and outliers. Findings indicate Family Connection-funded FGDM projects positively impacted the safety, permanency, and well-being of children over time, and site visit discussion data suggest that FGDM projects made a positive impact on child welfare service delivery systems in local communities. Lessons learned from the grantees are shared and recommendations are made. 31 tables, 16 figures, and 53 references.
Keywords:
Family engagement; Family preservation; Family relationships; GRANTs; demonstration programs; family reunification; foster children; promising practices; child safety; well being; permanency