HomeMy WebLinkAbout20151098.tiff RESOLUTION
RE: APPROVE PROJECT APPLICATION FOR TITLE IV-E DEMONSTRATION WAIVER
AND AUTHORIZE CHAIR TO SIGN
WHEREAS,the Board of County Commissioners of Weld County,Colorado, pursuant to
Colorado statute and the Weld County Home Rule Charter, is vested with the authority of
administering the affairs of Weld County,Colorado,and
WHEREAS, the Board has been presented with a Project Application for a Title IV-E
Demonstration Waiver from the County of Weld,State of Colorado, by and through the Board of
County Commissioners, on behalf of the Department of Human Services, to the Colorado
Department of Human Services, Division of Child Welfare Services, commencing July 1, 2015,
and ending June 30,2016,with further terms and conditions being as stated in said application,
and
WHEREAS,after review,the Board deems it advisable to approve said application,a copy
of which is attached hereto and incorporated herein by reference.
NOW,THEREFORE,BE IT RESOLVED by the Board of County Commissioners of Weld
County, Colorado, that the Project Application for a Title IV-E Demonstration Waiver from the
County of Weld, State of Colorado, by and through the Board of County Commissioners, on
behalf of the Department of Human Services,to the Colorado Department of Human Services,
Division of Child Welfare Services,be,and hereby is,approved.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED by the Board that the Chair be,and hereby is,authorized to
sign said application.
The above and foregoing Resolution was,on motion duly made and seconded,adopted
by the following vote on the 20th day of April,A.D.,2015.
BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
WELD COUNTY,C LORADO
ATTEST:C �` fd / 44-{ra (I� ybr,
v.�W/ G vCLLo Xgar A Kirkme r,Chair
Weld County Clerk to the Board
• Mike Freeman, ro-Tem
BY: (V Q axni ). (11 Al 0
ebuty Clerkt¢the Board.i
J Se P.C nway
APPROV AS TO FORM: 01--/-s-777 X'%� A. Cozad
County Attorney EXCUSED
Steve Moreno
Date of signature: �7/
C:-H5667It
2015-1098
HR0086
,86, MEMORANDUM
r DATE: April 16, 2015
_u ,T,
TO: Barbara Kirkmeyer, Chair, Board of County Commi.ssi ers
FROM: Judy A. Griego, Director, Human Service epart�nenU f
{ J ! 1.
RE: Department of Human Services' Year 3 ( FY 2015/2016)Title
IV-E Waiver Demonstration Project Application
Enclosed for Board approval is the Department of Human Services' Year 3 (SFY 2015/2016) Title IV-E
Waiver Demonstration Project Application. This was reviewed by the Board on April 16, 2015, and was
approved for placement on the Board's Agenda.
The Department is submitting this application to continue funding the same FTE and activities as
outlined in previous Title IV-E applications. The three interventions include Family Engagement,
Kinship Supports and Trauma-Informed Screening, Assessment and Treatment. The total funding
amount requested is 51,113,990 for the term of July 1, 2015 through June 30, 2016.
Please note that additional funds are being sought to add one new FTE and additional prevention
activities under the Trauma-Informed Intervention. If funding is obtained they will assist in the
essential elements of the application.
If you have questions, please give me a call at extension 6510.
2015-1098
a-bd3
COLORADO DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN SERVICES
Title IV-E Waiver Demonstration Project
Individual County
Year 3 (SFY 2015/2016) Application
Colorado Department of Human Services encourages you to apply to participate in the third year of the Title IV-E Waiver
Demonstration Project. It is not mandatory for you to participate in all 5 interventions. Research your county's child welfare
needs and gaps in service delivery and utilize this funding to improve services to children, youth and families in need. Use
data to support needed FTE's and funding for hard goods. Structure and positions must be in place for implementation on
7/1/15. Please visit www.cdhs.state.co.us to review the "Frequently Asked Questions" section or contact Tyler Allen,
Administrator of the Title IV-E Waiver Demonstration Project at tyler.allenno state.co.us, 303.866.2154, with questions
related to this application.
Name of County/Region: Weld County Department of Human Services
Primary
Contact: Judy Griego Date: 4-17-2015
County: Weld Agency: Weld County Department of Human Services
Address: 315 N. 11th Ave City, State Zip Greeley, Co 80631
Phone: 970-352-1551X6510 Email: greigoja(o)weldgov.com
Waiver Interventions
What Title IV-E Waiver Interventions are you applying for funding?
N Family Engagement Total Funding Amount Requested: $436,690
Permanency Roundtables Total Funding Amount Requested: $
N Kinship Supports Total Funding Amount Requested: $582,200
RTrauma-Informed Screening,
Assessment, and Treatment Total Funding Amount Requested: $95,100
TOTAL: $1,113,990
Are there Title IV-E Waiver Interventions you are implementing with fidelity, to be included in the evaluation, but are not
requesting funding? Please fill out the corresponding area of this application.
Family Engagement Kinship Supports
Trauma-Informed Screening and Referral
Permanency Roundtables
Management Plan for Waiver Intervention(s) Implementation
Who will provide oversight, coaching, and supervision of the interventions?Will your management team include the data
analyst, financial manager, staff members throughout the hierarchy? If a Region, include representation from each county.
Name: Heather Walker Title: Child Welfare Division Head
Agency: Weld DHS
Phone: 970-352-1551X6218 Email: walkerhd(@weldgov.com
Specific Intervention: All
Name: Veronica Cavazos Title: Resource Manager
Agency: Weld DHS
Phone: 970-352-1551X6282 Email: cavazovxa(�,weldgov.com
Specific Intervention: Kinship
Name: Robin Overmyer Title: Response Manager
Agency: Weld DHS
Phone: 970-352-1551X6250 Email: overmyrs(aweldgov.com
Specific Intervention: Family Engagement and Trauma Informed Care
Draft 3.7.14 1 ape.
Name: Title:
Agency:
Phone: Email:
Specific Intervention:
Name: Title:
Agency:
Phone: Email:
Specific Intervention:
Name: Title:
Agency:
Phone: Email:
Specific Intervention:
Describe the structure of the oversight, coaching, and supervision. If you are a region, which county will be the fiscal
agent?
(Frequency of meeting as a group, individual supervision, consultation, peer coaching, intra-county support, etc. If implementing multiple interventions
please provide separate plans as necessary.)
We meet as a management team monthly as a whole and by area bi-monthly to discuss how processes are
flowing and working together. Each Manager meets with their team of supervisors bi-monthly to assess how each
element of the Waiver is working together. The three Managers and Division Head meet monthly with North
Range Behavioral Health Organization upper management team to discuss how the Trauma Informed Care
assessment and services are functioning between organizations. There is also discussion at these monthly
meetings with NRBHO regarding any other types of services needed within the community.
For each intervention the direct supervisor provides the oversight, coaching and supervision. The manager
assists as necessary and provides the direction and guidance to stay on course. There are bi-monthly meetings
with each supervisor and manager and division head alike. The worker or employee, meet with their supervisor
weekly, generally speaking.
Have you identified any barriers or potential barriers in providing the monitoring, oversight, coaching and supervision of the
intervention(s)? If you are a region, which county(ies)will provide monitoring, oversight, coaching and supervision?
One barrier identified within the Trauma Informed Care intervention is the fact that parents are not following
through when referred to North Range for assessment and treatment. Also, NR has had difficulty in working with
other counties depending on where the child is placed.
Weld continues to educate the GAL's and Probation Officers regarding TDM/FEM process, but there is still a lack
of support in some instances.
Caseworkers are not scheduling the TDM or FEM as often as required. There is not a tracking mechanism to
remind workers when to do a meeting with the ability to hold them accountable. Supervisors do the best they can
but some are still missed.
How can CDHS support you in meeting your technical assistance, coaching, and/or training needs?
A master list of IV-E Waiver mental health and county contacts so that counties and providers can communicate
to best meet the needs of families in connecting them to the correct service.
Provide more accurate reports for all measures within the IV-E Waiver.
Draft 3.7.14 2 I
If you are part of a region, which counties will participate in this intervention?
Are you building on existing practice? ®Yes ❑No
If yes, describe current model, including target population, and efforts to ensure fidelity. Is there anything unique to your
efforts to implement Family Engagement?
Weld County participated in year two of the IV-E waiver program in implementing Team Decision Making(TDM)
and Family Team Meetings (FTM). The Team Decision Making Meetings are used as a decision point meeting
where a decision around safety and risk is discussed in a team based format that includes the family and youth
(if appropriate). The three types of TDM meetings that are currently being utilized are the Emergency Removal,
Considered Removal and the Placement Change. Once the TDM meeting has been held then the next meeting to
follow is the Family Team Meeting. Those are typically scheduled out 30-45 days and then every 90 days until
case closure. Family Team Meetings can be called at anytime, by the family or professionals. By having the on-
going FTM's every 90 days then Weld County will meet the Family Engagement criteria for both in home cases
and out of home cases. The goals of this model is to provide family engagement meetings to all Weld County
cases, with an emphasis on the youth that have been in congregate level of care for a significant amount of time
with little to no movement in achieving permanency or reducing their level of care.
Weld County will continue to adhere to both the TDM and FTM models as there have been protocols that have
been established and supported by Weld County Administration as standard practice. Weld County continues to
follow the Core Components of the Family Engagement Model, of family preparation where no FTM are held if
family is not available or present. The Family Engagement Facilitators have all been trained through Annie E.
Casey and the Team Decision Making Model and are impartial and neutral. The Family Engagement Facilitators
are all aware of Weld County Policy and Procedures along with the County's definition of safety. The Family
Engagement meetings, TDM and FTM are both strengths-based; time and location are coordinated with the best
interests of the family, child and youth. Summaries are written from the meetings that are accurate, factual and
concise and provided to the assigned Caseworker to distribute to the all team members and to include the Courts
and Attorneys for planning purposes.
The TDM and FTM protocols address the specific dynamics of the roles and responsibilities of the facilitator,
caseworker, caseworker supervisor to include pre-meeting, during meeting and post meeting actions and
responsibilities.
The Family Engagement Facilitators will continue to be responsible for inputting the information from the TDM
and FTM into the trails system with a 48 hour turnaround time for all documentation to be completed, entered and
provided to the assigned caseworker. The family and the caseworker are walking away from the meeting with a
signature sheet that has all the team members who attended, participated with their signature and their support
or non-support of the recommendation. The recommendation from the TDM and FTM is hand written on the
bottom of the signature sheet that is in triplicate carbon copy so the family and caseworker can leave the meeting
with that documentation. The original copy of the signature sheet is then attached to the TDM and FTM meeting
summary and then copies are made for the assigned caseworker to distribute to all team members.
Through the Family Engagement process Weld County will employ the "Theory of Change"belief, which is
described below;
THEORY OF CHANGE
Family Engagement
Weld County Human Services will join with families, kin and other stakeholders in a safe, family friendly location
to discuss the challenges and concerns that brought the family to the attention of Child Welfare
So That...
the family will have increased knowledge about their situation and identify barriers to safety and well-being
So That...
Draft 3.7.14 3 1 F' a y e
services and supports needed by the family can be identified with input from the family and incorporated into
their case plan
So That...
families will understand specific case process and gain awareness of the importance of permanency and family
connections and learn what they need to do to improve their situation
So That...
parents will be empowered to engage in treatment and visitation and value maintaining contact with the
Department as a support resource
So That...
time in out of home care will be reduced, children will be reunified with their families sooner achieving
permanency and successful transition to adulthood for older youth improving outcomes for children, youth and
families in their homes and communities
So That...
The overall safety and well-being of children will be achieved, families will be strengthened and reentry into the
system will be reduced.
If you have, prior to your involvement to the IV-E Waiver, practiced Family Engagement with fidelity to the model as
defined by volume 7, you are ineligible for title IV-E funding due to supplanting rules, unless you are demonstrating an
enhancement or modification (or maintaining enhanced performance from prior waiver applications of the IV-E Waiver) of
practice. How will you ensure you are enhancing or modifying current practice to eliminate the concern of supplanting?
Weld County has a designated unit that specifically handles all of the Family Engagement meetings and
therefore, there is no concern of duplication and/or supplanting a unit or staff.
Are you prepared for intervention service delivery by 7/1/15? If not, what is your intervention start date?
Yes, Weld County has increased the staff capacity in the Family Engagement Unit in year two of the IV-E Waiver
to meet the increased demand in Family Engagement Meetings and Family Finding, by adding one additional
facilitator so that there are now four Family Engagement Facilitators and one Family Finder so that there are now
two full time Family Finders.
Is your staff currently trained in a model, consisting of the core components? If not, what are your plans to train staff in
preparation for implementation by 7/1/15?
Yes, all Family Engagement Facilitators are trained to the Family Engagement Core Components and the fidelity
of the Team Decision Making Model through the Annie E. Casey Foundations. The Weld County Family
Engagement Facilitators are also going through a facilitation certification process that has been implemented
and is focusing on the key components of general facilitation and advanced facilitation skill sets. At this time,
one facilitator has completed the certification and another one will complete certification before July 1, 2015. The
goal is for the facilitators who have completed the certification to assist the other facilitators in completing the
certification in a peer to peer modality, which will continue to sharpen the facilitators skill sets.
Based on your county/region's Trails data, what is the number of families currently being served through Family
Engagement? (Regions—specify data for each county)
Weld County Family Engagement served a total of(230) families for 2014, this figure was calculated from the total
number of open cases at the end of 2014 and then divided and then multiplied by(4)as a minimum number of
meetings we would have on families throughout the year for a total of(914) Family Engagement Meetings. Weld
County also served a total of (1369) children and youth and total of(409) fathers with a (45%)participation rate in
the (914) Family Engagement Meetings at the end of 2014. These numbers were collected through an excel
database that tracks the family, number of youth, decision/recommendation and meeting type.
Based on your county/region's Trails data, what is the anticipated number of families to be served through Family
Engagement with the additional IV-E Waiver funds?(Regions—specify data for each county)
The anticipated number of families to be served through Family Engagement for the 2015 year is (379), this
number is a calculation of the current(261) open child welfare cases, plus the additional(118) combined cases
from the Compass/Prevention and Colorado Community Response Unit.
Draft 3.7.14 4 I P a a e
If you implemented the Family Engagement intervention as part of Title IV-E Waiver Demonstration Project Year 2, what
was your progress towards meeting your goals? (such as: did you meet your desired outcomes? What challenges did you
experience? How will you practice change and/or improve in Year 3?)
Based on our own data collections, using an excel database and tracking number of families, number of youth
served, decision/recommendation from the meeting and meeting type held. Yes, Weld County was able to
achieve desired outcomes. In 2014 the least restrictive recommendations where; Remain home—368, Kin/Family
—357, Return home— 189, Remain in foster home— 130, Foster home— 91 for a (83%) rate of least restrictive
recommendations for children and youth.
Last year's challenges have decreased significantly as time and consistency to the model have helped our
community partners and agency adjust to the procedural changes in what is in the best interest for children,
youth and families. The challenge with some branches of the judicial representatives is still present, but the plan
is to stay committed to the process and protocols of the TDMs and FTMs while at the same time engaging and
educating the community partners on the process, benefits and desired outcomes for the family, child and youth.
The practice will continue improving by implementing a certification process that will have two levels based on
the skill sets of the facilitators. The goal and purpose of the certification process will be to build sustainability
and continuity. There will be components of the certification process that will include a certification manual for
new facilitators so that they are clear on their role, responsibilities and expectations. The certification process
will include supervision, coaching and peer to peer support.
Increasing father's and paternal family member's participation in the Family Engagement Meetings will again be a
focus for 2015-2016 year. Consistently, fathers are not present and those numbers need to increase and by
doing so it will increase the options for placement and permanency especially through kinship options and
supports. This data on fathers is based off of the CSFR and the lack of attendance in the Family Engagement
Meetings.
Weld County will continue conducting internal and external surveys on the Family Engagement process. These
surveys are completed by the family as well as professionals. The goals of the survey is to see what is working
well with the process and what is not working and how the process can be improved. The surveys will be
completed twice a year, the results will be tallied and that information will be provided to the Family Engagement
Unit as well as Weld County DI-IS Administration.
What are your specific goals and desired outcomes for this upcoming year in implementing Family Engagement in your
county/region?
Weld County specific goals and desired outcomes will be to increase engagement with families, youth and
children, reduce the number of days that youth and children are in out of home care, help youth and children
achieve permanency faster, make better decisions about level of care based on the safety, risk and needs of the
family, youth and children, increase the participation of fathers and the paternal members of the family in the
meetings, increase the kinship supports that are needed to keep children with family and in their communities,
identify and address safety and risk factors quicker and develop action steps specifically related to the safety
and risk so that cases can be closed quicker and families have a greater chance of long-term success.
FAMILY ENGAGEMENT BUDGET
Complete the table below to justify FTE funding: (Cost of FTE to include salary, benefits, mileage, and celiphone.)
(Examples are written in gray and italicized)
Position Level Function Workload Status Cost
Supervisor Supervision Supervise 7 staff Continuation from Year 2 $95,850
Facilitator 2 Family Engagement Facilitator 30/Month Continuation from year 2 $132,800
Facilitator Family Engagement Facilitator 30/Month Cont. year 2 $66,400
Facilitator Family Engagement Facilitator 30/Month Cont. Year 2 $80,100
Family Finder 2 Family Finder Cont. Year 2 $141,400
Clerk Family Services Support Clerk Cont. Year 2 $45,900
"FTE" TOTAL $435,190
Complete the table below to justify OTHER funding: (E.g., hard goods,services,travel for families)
Draft 3.7.14 5 I
Goods/Service Families Served Cost/Unit Cost
Supplies for meetings 230 $1,500 $1,500
"OTHER" TOTAL $1,500
Do you have specific infrastructure and/or start up needs that would be a one-time request? $0
(Reflected on page 1) "FTE/OTHER/INFRASTRUCTURE" TOTAL $436,690
If you are a regional model describe how staff/goods/services will be shared:
Additional Comments, Concerns, Justifications:
Draft 3.7.14 6 I P a _
PERNIANENCYROUNDTABLEV.
If you are part of a region, which counties will participate in this intervention?
Are you building on existing practice? ❑Yes ❑No
If yes, describe current model, including target population, and efforts to ensure fidelity. Is there anything unique to your
efforts to implement Permanency Roundtables?
If you have, prior to your involvement to the IV-E Waiver, practiced Permanency Roundtables with fidelity to the model,
you are ineligible for title IV-E funding due to supplanting rules, unless you are demonstrating an enhancement or
modification (or maintaining enhanced performance from prior waiver applications of the IV-E Waiver) of practice. How
will you ensure you are enhancing or modifying current practice to eliminate the concern of supplanting?
Are you prepared for intervention service delivery by 7/1/15? If not, what is your intervention start date?
As a part of the implementation of the Permanency Roundtable practice, the following training schedule is required:
Achieving Permanency through Roundtables, Permanency Roundtables Skills and Youth Centered Permanency
Roundtables. IV-E waiver funding cannot be utilized for training expenses (though the state offers alternative provisions
for PRT trainings). Is your staff currently trained in the PRT model? If not, what are your plans to train staff in preparation
for implementation by 7/1/15?
Based on your county/region's Trails data, what is the number of youth currently being served through Permanency
Roundtables? (Regions—specify data for each county)
Based on your county/region's Trails data, what is the anticipated number of youth to be served through Permanency
Roundtables with the additional IV-E Waiver funds? (Regions—specify data for each county)
If you implemented the Permanency Roundtables intervention as part of Title IV-E Waiver Demonstration Project Year 2,
what was your progress towards meeting your goals? (such as: did you meet your desired outcomes? What challenges
did you experience? How will you practice change and/or improve in Year 3?)
What are your specific goals and desired outcomes for this upcoming year in implementing Permanency Roundtables in
your county/region?
PERMANENCEY ROUNDTABLES BUDGET
Complete the table below to justify FTE funding: (Cost of FTE to include salary, benefits, mileage, and cellphone.)
(Examples are written in gray and italicized)
Position Level Function Workload Status Cost
"FTE" TOTAL $
Draft 3.7.14 7i Page.
Complete the table below to justify OTHER fundin : (E.g., hard goods,services,travel for families)
Goods/Service Youth Served Cost/Unit Cost
Tr vel for FanritylKrn Io 1 r to 20 Yuuln 275 `1;6.000.00
ul,)0y r r 1 rrcj
"OTHER" TOTAL $
Do you have specific infrastructure and/or start up needs that would be a one-time request? $
(Reflected on page 1) "FTE/OTHERIINFRASTRUCTURE" TOTAL $
If you are a regional model describe how staff/goods/services will be shared:
Additional Comments, Concerns, Justifications:
Draft 3.7.14 8 I 1 .
If you are part of a region, which counties will participate in this intervention?
Are you building on existing practice? ®Yes ❑No
If yes, describe current model, including target population, and efforts to ensure fidelity. Is there anything unique to your
efforts to implement Kinship Supports?
Weld county is utilizing the Kinship Supports Logic Model. The target population is non-certified Kinship families
providing out of home care for youth and children. Weld County has two Kinship Coordinator positions that are
separate from the family caseworker. Due to the growing need of non-child welfare kinship providers needing
more support other than TANF and PA-3 services can provide, we are re-organizing the Kinship Supports Unit.
There will now be two Kinship Coordinator positions that are solely focused on providing support and services.
There will no longer be a Kinship Resource Specialist. The Kinship staff are completing an initial assessment and
working collaboratively with the family caseworker to provide assistance and support to the Kinship care
provider. Services include a needs assessment, initiating the process for hard good assistance when needed,
attending family engagement meetings with kinship providers, screening background information, documenting
in TRAILS and sharing information with kin about available resources. Weld County has also been collaborating
with Annie E. Casey to assist in further developing the practice and policies surrounding our Kinship protocols.
This will assist in streamlining how Kinship families are identified and served from Caseworker to Kinship
Supportive services.
The purpose of the kinship supports is to increase permanency by reducing time in out of home care;promote
successful transition to adulthood for older youth; increase outcomes for children, youth and families in their
homes and communities to improve the safety and well-being of children.
So that: Family and kin will be more knowledgeable about their children/youth needs
So that: increased awareness and knowledge in accessibility to community resource s and support networks
So that: Family and Kin seek out supports and assistance more frequently
So that: Kinship placement for children increase
So that: Children are more stable and able to adjust with kinship placements and family involvement and support
So that: Children and Youth can achieve legal permanency
If you have, prior to your involvement to the IV-E Waiver, practiced Kinship Supports, you are ineligible for title IV-E
funding due to supplanting rules, unless you are demonstrating an enhancement or modification (or maintaining enhanced
performance from prior waiver applications of the IV-E Waiver) of practice. How will you ensure you are enhancing or
modifying current practice to eliminate the concern of supplanting?
Weld currently has a separate unit for Kinship which was created through the IV-E Waiver. Since the onset of the
Waiver Weld has worked closely with the state to determine what areas could be approved upon to assist the kin
more efficiently and more quickly. Weld Continues to enhance and look at new ways of doing business since the
onset of the Waiver. Weld recognizes the need for more staff to better assist the growing Kinship population.
We have five Foster Care Coordinator positions that we have modified their title and job description to
Foster/Kinship Care Coordinator. This will allow for overflow, for assisting more kin after hours, assisting kin
who may have a need and not know who to reach out to in the County and developing our program and training
needs.
Are you prepared for intervention service delivery by 7/1/15? If not, what is your intervention start date?
Yes Weld has one supervisor and two kinship workers.
Is your staff currently trained in a model, consisting of the core components? If not, what are your plans to train staff in
preparation for implementation by 7/1/15?
Yes. Kinship staff is trained to the Kinship supports logic model and adhering to the core components.
Draft 3.7.14 9 r' .
Based on your county/region's Trails data, what is the number of kinship families currently being served through Kinship
Supports? (Regions—specify data for each county)
We are currently serving 104 non-certified kinship families. However, given the continued enhanced working
relationship between the kinship unit, family engagement unit, prevention unit and TANF support unit kin
continue to be more aware of resources and support and our kinship numbers are increasing. Last year at this
time, we were serving 63 families. Due to family team meetings, diligent search efforts, and an emphasis on
placing with kin families initially, Kinship providers are actively participating and being identified earlier in the
out of home process. In addition, due to having more support and resources kinship families are successful at
maintaining placements of older youth and are more willing to allow older youth into their homes. Kinship
supports have assisted in helping more children and youth maintain and sustain permanent connections. Weld
County data suggests that we should expect to increase kinship families in our program next year by at least 45
families, so a total of 149.
There are also several kin we have served through phone assistance that we are not open with in Trails but have
assisted them in preventing a placement or involvement with the Department.
Based on your county/region's Trails data, what is the anticipated number of kinship families to be served through Kinship
Supports with the additional IV-E Waiver funds?(Regions—specify data for each county)
We anticipate serving 149 non-certified kinship families through the IV-E Waiver.
If you implemented the Kinship Supports intervention as part of Title IV-E Waiver Demonstration Project Year 2, what was
your progress towards meeting your goals? (such as: did you meet your desired outcomes? What challenges did you
experience? How will you practice change and/or improve in Year 3?)
This second year, challenges included clarity of roles regarding kinship coordinators and caseworkers.
Developing clear kinship policy and procedures, providing ongoing support, and training to kin providers when
placements last more than 60 days. We continue to run into barriers regarding affordable childcare especially for
those children over the age of twelve who continue to need supervision before and after school and during the
summer months while kin providers are working. We also continue to have challenges identifying and helping kin
access community supports with immediate needs such as food, clothing, furniture, transportation, and home
repairs.
We have made great progress in engaging kin families once we are aware of them through a referral process that
is initiated by caseworkers. Generally, when the Kinship Coordinator is notified of a new provider, initial contact
is made by phone within forty-eight hours and an initial home visit within five to seven days. Caseworkers are
doing a much better job notifying the kinship unit through a form or email that a child is being placed with kin.
Not only does this provide additional support to the provider timely, it also helps the caseworker with their
processes as well.
We have been able to attend the majority of family engagement meetings where kin providers are involved.
Through these meetings, we have been able to advocate for the needs of the kinship provider and help to
stabilize and maintain placements. The monies that were granted through the IV-E Waiver have assisted in
stabilizing placements through services and hard goods for forty families. The communication between the
kinship unit and TANF workers has improved tremendously and together, we have improved the process and
timeliness for kinship providers receiving benefits.
Our emphasis for next year is to focus on not only stabilizing children and youth initially in placement with kin,
but to help kin sustain placement of children who need placement out of home longer than sixty days. Our data
suggests that while we are doing a much better job identifying and placing with kinship providers, we continue to
struggle with maintaining those children with kin providers for longer than three months. We also know that older
children are more likely to be disrupted in kinship homes than younger ones. We recognize that kinship
providers begin to feel the impact of the trauma that children placed out of their home have experienced after
they have been placed for a couple of months. Kinship providers are often unaware how much this affects their
own lives, relationships, finances, and health. Kinship providers are not prepared in the same way as foster
families who receive ongoing training and counseling before ever taking a child into their families. Helping kin
identify respite, specialized therapy, education and training regarding children who have been impacted by abuse
and neglect remains to be one of our biggest challenges. Helping kinship providers with the unique supervision
needs and requirements for older children who may or may not have legal issues has also been an area we have
identified as needing to improve in order for kinship providers to maintain these youth in their homes while they
continue to work and support the family.
What are your specific goals and desired outcomes in implementing Kinship Supports in your county/region?
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Weld County will continue to develop positive working relationships with community businesses and service
providers to educate them on the importance of kinship providers and how our community benefits as a whole
when children are able to remain with kin and how our community can support kin in various ways. Securing
resources such as discounted services for kin, discounted fees for activities, and other resources that could
ease the financial burden to families that are often stretched very thin.
Weld County will continue to collaborate with Weld County District 6 to educate them on how many children are
living with kin providers and the unique challenges and opportunities this brings to their classrooms. We would
like to focus on building kinship providers support circles so that they are able to remain healthy, energized and
able to meet the very demanding needs of our system and children. We would like to have family engagement
meetings that focus solely on the kinship providers needs and how best to support them in providing care to
children and youth in their home. These meetings would include family members, community members, and
other support people identified by the kinship providers.
Weld County wants to build on kin's strengths and self sufficiency, children and youth will have more kin
engaging them as they transition into adulthood. They will have sustained quality relationships that are intended
to last a lifetime. This would be achieved by having kin-focused family engagement meetings through the life of a
case that focuses on the entire family taking a role in a child's life. The Department would help the family identify
lasting connections and supports so that once the Department is out of the kinship's lives they are able to have
supports that can sustain children on an ongoing basis.
KINSHIP SUPPORTS BUDGET
Complete the table below to justify FTE funding: (Cost of FTE to include salary,benefits, mileage,and cellphone.)
(Examples are written in gra and italicized)
Position Level Function Workload Status Cost
Supervisor Supervision of Kin staff 149 Families Continuation from Year 2 $95,850
Caseworker 2 Kinship Coordinator 75 Cont from Year 2 $188,600
Caseworker 5 Kin/Foster Coordinators Overflow New for year 3 $235,750
TOTAL $520,200
Complete the table below to justify OTHER funding: (E.g., hard goods,services,travel for families)
Goods/Service Families Served Cost/Unit Cost
Cribs, Beds, Bedding, Furniture, Food, Clothing 100 $400 $40,000
Car repairs and gas cards 10 $500 $5,000
Youth programming for youth 12 years of age or older $13,000
(Day camps in the summer, before and after school
activities, recreation programs) 13 $1000
Energy bills/rent 4 $1000 $4000
"OTHER" TOTAL $62,000
Do you have specific infrastructure and/or start up needs that would be a one-time request? $0
(Reflected on page 1) "FTE/OTHER/INFRASTRUCTURE" TOTAL $582,200
If you are a regional model describe how staff/goods/services will be shared:
Additional Comments, Concerns, Justifications:
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If you are part of a region, which counties will participate in this intervention?
Are you a current SOC community of excellence? If no, please identify your collaborating local mental health provider(s)
and describe what efforts you are making to ensure ongoing collaboration with them? Is your local mental health
provider(s) willing to participate in the evaluation processes of the IV-E Waiver?
Yes we are an SOC community and currently partner with our North Range Behavioral Health. North Range
Behavioral Health has been identified as our referring agency for all trauma screens, assessment and treatment.
North Range Behavioral Health and Weld County Department of Human Services have a history of collaboration.
Regarding the IV-E Waiver project, we share responsibility for attending planning meetings and have additionally
met on a quarterly or more frequent basis, to discuss implementation and other issues.
Describe the prioritization of your target population with consideration of your local mental health provider's capacity to
assess and treat.
North Range has the capacity to provide trauma-informed treatment to children and youth ages 0- 18. To date
North Range Behavioral Health has been able to meet the needs of the identified and screened in children.
Formal trauma assessments have been implemented since 10/1/2014, for ages 3-18.
Are you building on existing practice? ZYes ❑No
If yes, describe current model, including target population, and efforts to ensure fidelity. Is there anything unique to your
efforts to implement Trauma-Informed Screening, Assessment and Treatment?
North Range has multiple staff trained in TF-CBT, DBT, and TF-PCIT. They have qualified supervisors
overseeing these modalities. Thus far, training and consultation has been monitored by a program evaluator
associated with an in-house program. Service provision has been overseen by the program director whom staff
report to. Ongoing supervision has been provided by trained and licensed EBP-specific staff and/or the
Program Director. These efforts will continue, as North Range will be adding a position entitled, Administrative
Director for Compliance and Quality, which will oversee outcomes and fidelity standards that might be requested
by Weld County OHS. North Range plans to have staff additionally trained therapists in Child Parent
Psychotherapy(CPP), which is on the list of approved trauma-informed EBPs. Weld County Department of
Human Services currently has a process for referrals to North Range to obtain services for clients and will
continue to utilize this process however it will be identified as Trauma Informed Care for tracking purposes.
If you have, prior to your involvement to the IV-E Waiver, practiced Trauma-Informed Screening, Assessment, and
Treatment, you are ineligible for title IV-E funding due to supplanting rules, unless you are demonstrating an
enhancement or modification (or maintaining enhanced performance from prior waiver applications of the IV-E Waiver) of
practice. How will you ensure you are enhancing or modifying current practice to eliminate the concern of supplanting?
We did not provide this prior to the Waiver. Weld would like to build the Trauma Informed Care into the
prevention side of child welfare. A case manager would be hired to help in facilitating the process of completing
the screening tool and assisting the family with connecting to services. Weld has a Prevention Unit and this
would be a great addition to the work that is currently being done and can bring the Trauma Informed Care into
practice with prevention at the forefront.
Are you prepared for intervention service delivery by 7/1/15? If not, what is your intervention start date?
Yes, all staff have been trained on how to administer the screens. North Range staff have been trained on the
assessment tools and have already been practicing the EPB services.
Is your staff currently trained in using the screening tool? If not, what are your plans to train staff in preparation for
implementation by 7/1/15?
Yes all staff have been trained.
Implementation and evaluation of the IV-E Waiver requires that participating mental health providers include in their client
assessment:
• The Trauma History section of the Mental Health Referral Tool in the NCTSN/CTISP Child Welfare Trauma
Training Toolkit, and
• one of the following three (age dependant) tools:
Draft 3.7.14 121Pa g
o Trauma Symptom Checklist for Young Children,
o The Child Post Traumatic Stress Checklist, or
o PTSD Checklist.
Is your local mental health provider prepared to administer these assessments? What additional assessment tool(s)will
be utilized?
North Range Behavioral Health currently uses all the above assessment tools in addition are also utilizing
Trauma/Loss Exposure History from the Child Welfare Trauma Training Toolkit.
Implementation and evaluation of the IV-E Waiver requires that participating mental health providers include at least one
of the following treatment modalities:
• Child Parent Psychotherapy (0-5)
• Trauma Focused Parent Child Interaction Therapy (2-7)
• Trauma Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (3-18)
• Alternatives for Families Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
• Adolescent Dialectical Behavioral Therapy
• Skilled therapist trained in sensory integration and the Neurosequential Model of Therapeutics
• Complementary supports addressing goals from assessment
Is your local mental health provider prepared to utilize at least one of these treatment modalities? What additional
treatment modalities may be utilized?
Our Mental Health provider is currently using the below treatment modalities:
Child Parent Psychotherapy(0-5)
Trauma Focused Parent Child Interaction Therapy(2-7)
Trauma Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy(3-18)
Adolescent Dialectical Behavioral Therapy
Neurosequential Model of Therapeutics
EMDR
Individual Psychotherapy
Based on your county/region's Trails data, what is the anticipated number of families to be served through Trauma-
Informed Screening? (Regions—specify data for each county)
There have been 37 referrals sent to NR for assessments. The tracking system wasn't working initially in Trails
so there may have been more. At present the state is working on the Trails system to help track the screens,
assessments and treatment more effectively.
Are your local mental health providers prepared to implement Trauma-Informed Assessment and Treatment?What is
their capacity to assess and treat?
North Range Behavioral Health is currently implementing the IV-E process established including assessment
and a treatment. North Range Behavioral Health currently has the capacity to serve up to 20 children per month.
What are your specific goals and desired outcomes in implementing Trauma-Informed Screening, Assessment and
Treatment in your county/region? Do you anticipate needing any technical assistance in the implementation of this
intervention?
The overall goal will be to prevent children and youth from being placed on medications which tend to be
prescribed for trauma behaviors. Instead the hope will be that through narrowing down the actual trauma we will
be able to address the exact behavior to assist the child/youth in moving through the trauma so there is no
recurrence in the Child Welfare system. Also, in assisting the family as a whole, as well as staff in identifying
the differences between a trauma response and a disruptive behavior.
TRAUMA-INFORMED SCREENING, ASSESSMENT, TREATMENT BUDGET
Complete the table below to justify FTE funding: (Cost of FTE to include salary, benefits, mileage, and cellphone.)
(Examples are written in qra and italicized)
Position Level Function Workload Cost
Prevention Manage a caseload of families 25 Families over a year $80,100.00
Casemanager referred for TIC Services
TOTAL $80,100
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Complete the table below to justify OTHER funding: (E.g., hard goods,services,travel for families)
Goods/Service Families Served Cost/Unit Cost
Funding to assist with Co-Pays or services not $15,000
covered by Mediciad Those which qualify
"OTHER" TOTAL $15,000
Do you have specific infrastructure and/or start up needs that would be a one-time request? $0
(Reflected on page 1) "FTE/OTHER/INFRASTRUCTURE" TOTAL $95,100
If you are a regional model describe how staff/goods/services will be shared:
Additional Comments, Concerns, Justifications:
Draft 3.7.14 14 1 P a a
COMMUNITYPARTNERS
Rate each of your major community partners and their knowledge and support of the Title IV-E Waiver in you
county/region on a scale of 1-5 with 1 being the least knowledgeable, supportive, etc. Use additional columns to add
other major partners specific to your county/region.
Behavioral School Domestic Substance
Court Health System Probation Violence Abuse
Understanding of the 3 5 2 1 2 5
Title IV-E Waiver
Understanding of 5 5 4 4 2 5
Family Engagement
Understanding of
Permanency 4 4 4 4 2 4
Roundtables
Understanding of 3 4 2 1 1 4
Kinship Supports
Understanding of
Trauma-Informed 2 5 1 1 1 4
Screening/Referral
Willingness to work
with county/region re: 4 5 4 3 3 5
implementation
Commitment of staff to
intervention 5 5 4 2 1 4
implementation
Describe your county/region's effort to increase community understanding and engagement in Waiver interventions.
Weld has worked on the relationship with the main school district in Greeley by meeting with them monthly. They
have in turn attended several TDM/FEM when their students have been involved and have learned more about all
the services offered through the Department. Weld has also met with the court on a regular basis to continue the
conversation and education surrounding all the interventions. Recently the management team has set up a
meeting with Probation to begin to engage them in conversations about practice and the interventions.
Describe how your county/region envisions the connections between the Title IV-E Waiver and the following initiatives.
Collaborative Management Program: Families are provided Family Engagement Meetings at the onset of a
case. Our staff input information into the ETO system for CMP on Family Engagement Meetings to serve
for ISST meetings. This data is used as part of CMP. A goal is to have collaborating agencies with CMP
further assist our families through extended community outreach.
Differential Response: Weld is not a DR county. However, we have implemented the elements of DR and
utilizing group supervision has been an added help to workers and supervisors making decisions. The
Family Engagement Unit has begun to learn about how to facilitate these meetings which has assisted
with the overall understanding of cases and resources.
Permanency by Design:
Trauma-Informed Systems of Care:
Additional Comments:
Describe your county/region's expertise and capacity for data management.
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Weld County has a data analyst that assists in running reports monthly or on an as needed basis. The Family
Engagement Supervisor also maintains Excel database that keeps track of the type of meeting, father's presence,
number of kids in the family, and recommendations. Based on new information we will now begin to keep track
of new families and existing to determine how many families we are working with versus number of meetings.
Will your county/region complete evaluation activities independent of the statewide evaluation of the Title IV-E Waiver and
identified interventions?
Yes as stated above.
Additional Comments, Concerns, Justifications:
Do you foresee barriers internally in implementing the Title IV-E Waiver? In engaging community partners? In participating
in the statewide evaluation? In collaborating with CDHS to ensure the success of Title IV-E Waiver?
While we have seen an increase in the number of meetings which is a sign that workers are utilizing the meetings
more, we are not where we need to be in regards to number of meetings. We have worked on engaging
community partners during this year. We are still working on the judicial collaboration. The FEM staff are
holding meetings offsite as needed to meet the needs of the youth or family. We will continue to work with DYC
staff to have them at the table when we are talking about those youth are on the fence between the two systems
to determine best outcomes.
How may CDHS assist with addressing any of these barriers?
CDHS can assist us in the education of judicial staff. We do obtain feedback from them throughout the year and
some is positive and some is negative which usually leads back to lack of understanding. Provide more accurate
reports in Trails.
Additional Comments, Concerns, Justifications:
COST SAVINGS AND . : ,. .
Current Data as of 3-15-15
NUMBER OF OUT OF HOME PLACEMENTS
d
Foster Homes C rtregive Kinship Group Homes Residential Care Facilities
Caregiver Homes
105 3 21 30
AVERAGE LENGTH OF STAY
Foster Homes Certified Kinship Group Homes Residential Care Facilities
Caregiver Homes
567 days 257 days 170 days 298 days
Proposed Reduction
NUMBER OF OUT OF HOME PLACEMENTS
Foster Homes Certified Kinship Group Homes Residential Care Facilities
Caregiver Homes
2.1 (2%) .06 (2%) .42 (2%) .6 (2%)
AVERAGE LENGTH OF STAY
Foster Homes Certified Kinship Group Homes Residential Care Facilities
Caregiver Homes
11.34 days 5.14 days 3.4 days 5.96 days
Projected Cost Savings: Amount
Foster Homes
Certified Kinship Caregiver Homes
Group Homes
Residential Care Facilities
Draft 3.7.14 16 I P a a
TOTAL:
The IV-E Waiver funding is a time-limited resource. Describe your county/region's plan to reinvest the savings and to
sustain the intervention efforts beyond the IV-E Waiver.
Weld superseded the 2%In meeting the goal for all elements above except for average length of stay in foster
homes. However, our number of placements decreased in foster homes. Our goal is to continue to provide the
same level of interventions with or without the Waiver.
Please accept this signature as verification of the information in the application as correct and support of my county's
participation in the Title IV-E Waiver Demonstration Project, SFY 2014/201 . Regional Models must include each county's
Director's signature. JAI,. (.. (
Printed Name ) Si g nature D e
ATTEST: d.�d; G: ey y
WELD or/ CLERK TO �� ` ' !>� � ! 11�
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air, Board of Co my Comm ssioners
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