Our Work
New Solutions for Helping Vulnerable Children
When the Michigan Department of Human Services was seeking to re-examine its entire child welfare system, it turned to PPA. PPA was selected as project manager for the 85-member Child Welfare Improvement Task Force, whose charge was to recommend ways to improve programs and processes to better the lives and life prospects for vulnerable children.
PPA Team: Dr. Paul Elam was the Project Manager. PPA brought in outside consultants with unique skills to strengthen the team.
Our work: The PPA team worked with the Task Force steering team members, co-chairs, and workgroup co-chairs to oversee Task Force meetings and workgroup sessions between June 2008 and February 2009. PPA conducted focus groups to ensure that all voices were heard, including children in the child welfare system and biologic mothers of children who were removed from their homes.
PPA provided expert facilitation to the Task Force as well as to each workgroup, helping diverse groups achieve consensus. The team worked with the Task Force to vet the work group recommendations and produce a final report. PPA surveyed task force members after each meeting to gather feedback and make adjustments where necessary to improve the process.
Results: The Child Welfare Improvement Task Force made dozens of recommendations with measurable outcome goals for improving the child welfare system. Many of them were implemented by the Michigan Department of Human Services, resulting in improvements of children who enter the child welfare system.