WEBVTT

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Want to know more about

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the Child and Family
Services Reviews?

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Well, you're in the right place!

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The Child and Family
Services Reviews,

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also known as the CFSRs,

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were established as a way
of monitoring

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state child welfare programs
to meet federal requirements

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and promote improved outcomes for children and families.

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The CFSRs enable
the Children's Bureau to:

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(1) Ensure conformity

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with federal child welfare
requirements;

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(2) Determine what is actually happening to children

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and families as they are engaged in child welfare services;

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and (3) Assist states in enhancing their capacity

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to help children and families achieve positive outcomes.

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History and Purpose
of the CFSRs.

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The CFSRs date back to 1994,

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when amendments
to the Social Security Act

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that authorized
the Children's Bureau to review

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state child and family
services programs became law.

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In 1997,

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the Adoption and
Safe Families Act, or ASFA,

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established safety,

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permanency,

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and well-being,

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as the national outcomes
for children

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in the child welfare system.

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Those outcomes serve as
the framework of the CFSR

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Onsite Review Instrument
and Instructions, or OSRI,

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which is used to conduct
case reviews,

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a major part of
the review process

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that we'll discuss
in greater detail later.

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From 2001 through 2004,
all 50 states,

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as well as the District
of Columbia and Puerto Rico,

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completed their first
review cycle, or "Round."

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Each review was structured
to help states

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identify strengths
and areas needing improvement

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within their agencies
and programs

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by measuring
substantial conformity

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across seven outcome areas

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in the safety, permanency,
and well-being domains.

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For a state to be in
substantial conformity

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with a particular outcome,

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90 percent of the cases reviewed had to be rated

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as having substantially achieved that outcome.

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The reviews also measured
substantial conformity

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across seven systemic factors:

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(1) The statewide child welfare
information system;

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(2) The case review system;

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(3) The quality assurance
system;

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(4) Staff and provider training;

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(5) The service array
and resource development;

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(6) The agency's responsiveness
to the community;

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and (7) Foster and adoptive
parent licensing,

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recruitment, and retention.

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The ultimate goal
was to improve outcomes

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for the children
and families served.

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At the conclusion of Round 1,
no state was found to be

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in substantial conformity
in all of the areas reviewed.

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As a result, each state
developed and implemented

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a Program Improvement Plan,
or PIP,

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to address those areas not found
in substantial conformity.

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The second round of reviews

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took place from
2007 through 2010.

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The Round 2 reviews
assessed state performance

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on the same outcomes
and systemic factors as Round 1.

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Once again, no state was found
to be in substantial conformity

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across all areas reviewed.

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The Children's Bureau
worked with the states

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to consider past improvement
efforts in developing new PIPs

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that would continue the work
of improving outcomes.

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Round 3 started in 2015
and will run through 2018.

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Outcomes and Systemic Factors.

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In the Safety domain,
there are two outcomes.

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Safety Outcome 1
states that children are,

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first and foremost, protected
from abuse and neglect.

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Safety Outcome 2 states that
children are safely maintained

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in their homes whenever
possible and appropriate.

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In the Permanency domain,
there are also two outcomes.

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Permanency Outcome 1 states
that children have permanency

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and stability in
their living situations.

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Permanency Outcome 2
states that the continuity

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of family relationships
and connections

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is preserved for children.

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Finally,
in the Well-Being domain,

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there are three outcomes.

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Well-Being Outcome 1
states that families have

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enhanced capacity to provide
for their children's needs.

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Well-Being Outcome 2
states that children receive

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appropriate services to meet their educational needs.

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Well-Being Outcome 3
states that children receive

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adequate services
to meet their physical

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and mental health needs.

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The review also determines
whether a state

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is in substantial conformity
with federal requirements

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for the seven systemic factors.

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To recap, the systemic
factors include:

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(1) The statewide child welfare
information system;

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(2) The case review system;

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(3) The quality assurance system;

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(4) Staff and provider training;

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(5) The service array
and resource development;

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(6) The agency's responsiveness
to the community;

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and (7) Foster and adoptive
parent licensing,

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recruitment, and retention.

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The Review Process.

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The CFSRs
are a two-phase process:

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A statewide assessment

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followed by an onsite review
of child and family services

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outcomes and program systems.

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This is followed by
the state's development,

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if necessary, of a PIP.

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The statewide assessment
is the state's evaluation

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of its own performance
on CFSR outcomes

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and systemic factors.

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It provides an opportunity
for the state

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to gather and analyze
the qualitative

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and quantitative data necessary

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for evaluating its child welfare
programs and practices.

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The statewide assessment
enables each state,

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as well as its tribes, partners,
and other stakeholders,

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to identify the areas
potentially needing improvement

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early in the review process.

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This can allow them to begin

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developing their program
improvement approach

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even before the review
takes place.

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All of this provides states
with the opportunity

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to build or expand
their capacity

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for continuous
quality improvement,

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or CQI,

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which is the process
of using data

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to continuously review performance

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and then make whatever adjustments are necessary

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to improve programs.

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The Children's Bureau
transmits to the state

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the Statewide Assessment Instrument,

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which includes
the state's data profile,

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at least six months
before the onsite review phase.

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The state then uses the
Statewide Assessment Instrument

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to document the most recent
assessment information available

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before its scheduled
onsite review.

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This information is used to:

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(1) Assess the effect of
state policies and practices

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on the children and families

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being served by the state
child welfare agency;

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(2) Identify
the state's strengths

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and areas needing improvement;

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and (3) Identify areas
that need further examination

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through the onsite review.

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The state submits the completed
Statewide Assessment Instrument

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to the Children's Bureau,

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no later than two months
before the start

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of the onsite review period.

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The Children's Bureau
then uses the completed

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statewide assessment
to begin making decisions

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about the state's
substantial conformity

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with the seven systemic factors.

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This includes identifying areas
that need additional examination

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through stakeholder interviews, and

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preparing
for those interviews

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by determining what questions
should be asked.

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It also includes
identifying state practice

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or performance issues
that may require clarification

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before or during
the onsite review period.

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After the statewide assessment,

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a review team conducts
the onsite review portion

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of the CFSRs.

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The reviewers use the OSRI
to conduct reviews

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of a sample of
actual child welfare cases

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on which the state
child welfare agency worked

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during
a specific period of time,

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known as the period
under review, or PUR.

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These case reviews also include
case-related interviews

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with children,

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families,

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caseworkers,

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foster parents,

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and service providers

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involved in the cases
in the sample.

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These case-related interviews
are a crucial component

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of the case review process,

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and information
obtained from them

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is considered equally
alongside information

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from the case record

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in determining
substantial conformity

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with the seven outcomes.

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While the case reviews
are happening,

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the review team
also interviews key stakeholders

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about the seven
systemic factors.

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These stakeholder interviews
may include

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representatives from Tribes,

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courts,

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community agencies,

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foster families,

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caseworkers,

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service providers,

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and parents and youth
served by the agency.

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The extent
of these interviews varies

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depending on
the information obtained

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from the statewide assessment.

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Information obtained from
these stakeholder interviews

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is collected in
another federal instrument,

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known as the Stakeholder
Interview Guide, or SIG,

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and is used to inform the
state's systemic factor ratings.

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While every CFSR will include
case reviews,

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case-related interviews,

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and stakeholder interviews,

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states actually have
two different review paths

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to choose from.

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In a Traditional Review,

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the review team consists of both state and federal members

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who review
a total of 65 cases

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at three locations in the state.

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One of those locations
will be the state's

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major metropolitan area.

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The other two locations
are selected

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in partnership
with the Children's Bureau

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using federal or state data
to determine sites

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that are representative
of the state.

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Traditional Reviews take place
over one intensive week.

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The other review path is called
a State Conducted Case Review,

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in which the state conducts
its own case reviews

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using its own state reviewers.

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Also, instead of conducting
those case reviews

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within a 1-week time frame,

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states are allowed
up to six months

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between April 1
and September 30,

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to complete the review.

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They are still required
to review

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a minimum of 65 cases
during this time,

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but they can choose
to review more.

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Although federal staff
participate

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in the state's
case review process,

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their role is focused
more on oversight

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and conducting
the stakeholder interviews.

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States who wish to conduct
their own reviews

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must receive approval from
the Children's Bureau to do so.

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If a state requests
a State Conducted Case Review

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but does not receive approval,

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it must undergo
a Traditional Review.

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Following its review,
each state receives a:

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Final Report
from the Children's Bureau

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that documents
whether it is in:

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Substantial conformity
with the seven outcomes

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and seven systemic factors.

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States determined not to have
achieved substantial conformity

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in all the areas assessed,

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must address those areas
by developing and implementing

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a Program Improvement Plan.

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Program Improvement Plan.

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A PIP must be submitted to the
Children's Bureau for approval

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within 90 calendar days
from the date

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on which the state receives
its written notification

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that it is not in
substantial conformity

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with any one
of the seven outcomes

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or seven systemic factors.

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If the Children's Bureau
does not approve

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the state's initial
PIP submission,

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the Children's Bureau will
provide additional information

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to help the state revise it.

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The PIP's full implementation
must be complete

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no later than two years
from the commencement date,

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although not all components
of a PIP

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will necessarily
require this much time.

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Once the PIP is complete,

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the state is ready
for the next round of the CFSRs.

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If the state is unable
to demonstrate improvement

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as outlined in the PIP,

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the Administration
for Children and Families

00:14:59.720 --> 00:15:02.480
is required to assess
a financial penalty,

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which is taken from
a portion of the state's

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federal child welfare funds.

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At its core, the CFSRs
are designed to help states

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enhance their own ability
to monitor, self-evaluate,

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and improve their practices
and programs

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through a CQI process.

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The ultimate goal of the CFSRs

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is to help states improve
their child welfare services

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and achieve safety,

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permanency,

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and well-being,

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for all the children
and families

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served by the system.

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This concludes our overview

00:15:48.879 --> 00:15:52.200
of the Child and Family
Services Reviews.

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Thank you.