(FOR CWLA MEMBERS ONLY)

What Will it Take to Make FFPSA Work for Your Agency? A Facilitated Dialogue

Current and future leadership of public and private agencies, including management, staff, and board members of CWLA member agencies, are encouraged to attend. This special session will include presentations and discussions about the impact of the Family First Prevention Services Act (FFPSA) of 2018. The FFPSA funds and emphasizes prevention of children coming into care and family-based services when children do enter care. It also creates a new national standard for residential treatment intervention called the Qualified Residential Treatment Program (QRTP). Implementation of the Act will require agencies to provide increased support for children and families to prevent children from entering foster care through the provision of mental health and substance abuse prevention and treatment services, as well as in-home, skill-building services. The FFPSA makes some reforms to the federal child welfare financing streams, Title IV-E and Title IV-B of the Social Security Act, to allow flexibility to provide these evidence-based and evidence-informed prevention and intervention services when a child is deemed to be a candidate for foster care. However, finance reform alone is insufficient. 

Organizations will need to shift and deliver their services to align with the goals of the FFPSA, and success will require that agencies work in collaboration with organizations in other sectors. Come prepared to listen to your peers who were early advocates for the FFPSA, as well as from some of those who are in the first group to implement FFPSA.  The session also will provide an opportunity for you to share your ideas about what’s needed to ensure that, with the type of system change required, we continue to provide a full array of services and supports to meet the needs of children and families.

This special session was organized by Donna C. Pressma, LCSW, President and CEO, The Children’s Home Society of New Jersey and Jeremy C. Kohomban, PhD, President and CEO, The Children's Village. It will include presentations from each of them as well as from Carl E. Ayers, Director, Division of Family Services, Virginia Department of Social Services and CWLA Board Member; John Sciamanna, Vice President, Public Policy, CWLA; and Julie Collins, MSW, LCSW, Vice President, Practice Excellence, CWLA.