TexProtects

August 24, 2020

Post-Partum Depression and Early Childhood Development

The bond between a mother and child is special. Because that connection is so profound, wellbeing for an infant is largely determined by the physical and mental health of their mother. According to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), Post-Partum Depression (PPD) is one of the most common threats to maternal mental health, affecting approximately 600,000 women a year. It is estimated that 14% to 23% of mothers will experience depression at some point during pregnancy and 5%-25% experience PPD. All women who give birth are potentially at risk. Despite that fact, many mothers with PPD struggle with guilt or shame. While PPD is highly treatable, fear of being labeled a bad mother can make it hard for women to discuss the issue or reach out for the help they need.

Symptoms of PPD include feelings of anger, crying more often than usual, withdrawing from loved ones, feeling distant from the baby, worrying or feeling overtly anxious, thinking about hurting yourself or the baby, and doubting one’s ability to care for the baby. These feelings of being unable to connect to the baby can be particularly unsettling for new mothers and particularly disruptive to the attachment and responsiveness which underlies health child development. Because the first three years of life are so foundational, untreated PPD can have lifelong consequences for children.

Simple acts of care such as hugs, smiles, and lullabies create new brain pathways for infants which develop their capacity to form memories, relationships, and logic. Post-partum depression can weaken the mother-child bond, stunting cognitive and linguistic development. A number of other negative outcomes have been linked to PPD, such as higher rates of behavioral problems and lower grades. If essential neural pathways are not formed during early childhood, they may never develop. This means that treatment is especially time sensitive; early treatment allows moms to fully bond with their children as soon as possible and to optimize their child’s early developmental period. TexProtects advocates for improving post-partum mental health and other issues which impact a child’s crucial development period through our Prenatal to Three Policy Agenda.

Destigmatizing PPD and supporting mothers with mental healthcare will help ensure every child in Texas has a strong start. Last legislative session, HB 253 mandated the creation of a five-year strategic plan to raise public awareness around PPD and to improve access to mental health screening, referral, treatment, and support services. The Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) recently released their initial draft of the Post-Partum Depression Strategic Plan for public comment. TexProtects submitted comments on that draft plan that included the following key recommendations:

Texas should continue strong investments in programs overseen by the Department of Family and Protective Services’ (DFPS) Prevention and Early Intervention (PEI) Division – such as Texas Home Visiting, Project HOPES, Project HIP, and Texas Nurse-Family Partnership – to reach more families. These voluntary programs are proven to improve maternal and infant health, strengthen referrals and connections, and promote positive parenting.
Texas should increase investments in Texas Family Connects, a short-term evidence-based nurse home visiting program that links nurses to moms with newborns. To encourage scale-up into more Texas regions, Texas should explore additional financing strategies, including Medicaid coverage for maternal mental health screenings, case management, and nurse visits delivered through Family Connects.
Texas should expand Help Me Grow, a referral line and centralized access point that helps parents with young kids to get connected to community-based resources. Department of State Health Services (DSHS) Title V has recently become a statewide hub for Help Me Grow, a national model that works to create a “Centralized Access Point” for parents with young children. Included in this work is strategic integration with statewide 2-1-1 so that families have both an effective “front door” when looking to access services and a warm handoff to regional hubs where parent navigation can ensure families get access to the right program and supports at the right time.

Increasing healthy beginnings and supporting young families are critical components of our Prenatal to Three Policy Agenda. Learn more about our work to ensure infants and toddlers (and their families) have what they need to be safe and well and maximize the potential of the early years of development.

August 17, 2020

FRONTLINE FOR CHILDREN | JULY 2020

CHILD PROTECTION POLICY – NEW AND NOTEWORTHY

Maternal and Child Health Inequities Emerge Even Before Birth (Child Trends)

Highlighting findings from the State of Babies Yearbook: 2020, this brief focuses on the evident disparities in maternal health and birth outcomes among babies and families of color: “To have a healthy pregnancy and positive birth outcomes, women and their infants require access to appropriate health care services, before, during, and after birth.”

TexProtects’ Takeaway: Black and Indigenous babies have a much higher risk of birth complications, low birthweight, and death within their first year of life in comparison to white babies. To achieve the strongest possible outcomes for all, we must meaningfully address health disparities in our communities, beginning with the earliest days of each child’s life.

Tracking COVID-19’s Effects by Race and Ethnicity (Urban Institute)

To work toward an equitable recovery for all U.S. citizens, policymakers and practitioners should pursue solutions that acknowledge and account for COVID-19’s disparate impact on communities of color. “To design these race-conscious policies, policymakers need data to gauge how the pandemic may be affecting people’s health, housing, and livelihoods. This tool uses the near-real-time Household Pulse Survey data to track a set of measures for US households as the pandemic and recovery unfold.”

TexProtects’ Takeaway: The onset of this health crisis has further exposed how systemic racism is creating harmful disparities between white communities and communities of color. The Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) is taking the first step and has recently announced that it is seeking to remedy the lack of information about how Black and Latinx/Hispanic communities are affected by the virus. All labs that test for COVID-19 are now required to collect information on race, ethnicity, and other factors.

Start with Equity: From the Early Years to the Early Grades (Bipartisan Policy Center & The Children’s Equity Project at Arizona State University)

“Millions of young children are disproportionately underserved, over-punished, and barred from high-quality education in American schools…. The Children’s Equity Project and the Bipartisan Policy Center have come together to create an actionable policy roadmap for states and the federal government—as well as for candidates at all levels of government vying for office—to take meaningful steps to remedy these inequities in early learning and education systems.”

TexProtects’ Takeaway: More than half of the children in the United States are children of color. COVID-19 is exacerbating the inequitable distribution of opportunity in our education system. This policy agenda supports fully funding programs like Head Start, requiring states to report plans on who they will work to make learning systems more equitable, supporting and funding equitable educator training, and ensuring all education legislation prioritizes racial, ethnic, linguistic, socioeconomic, and ability-based integration.

Health Care Access for Infants and Toddlers in Rural Areas (Child Trends)

“While many public reports provide indicator data on rural health care access at the national level, this brief uses data from the State of Babies Yearbook: 2020 to examine state-level differences in how infants and toddlers living in rural areas are faring. Equipped with these data, state policymakers can explore strategies to support the needs of very young children and their families.”

TexProtects’ Takeaway: Only 0.5% of infants and toddlers in Texas who could benefit from evidence-based home visiting (HV) programs are receiving those services. This upcoming legislative session, policymakers in Texas must identify why there are gaps in how existing HV programs serve rural children and families.

As schools reopen, addressing COVID-19-related trauma and mental health issues will take more than mental health services (Child Trends)

To address COVID-19 related trauma and mental health concerns amongst students, Child Trends recommends that decision-makers in education take a comprehensive approach that extends beyond offering school-based mental health services. Such an approach includes (but is not limited to) educating all school staff about trauma and mental health; acknowledging that not every community has experienced the pandemic in the same way; and ensuring that school staff know how to connect students to community-based mental health resources.

TexProtects’ Takeaway: Through the passage of HB 18, the Texas Legislature took a step last session to ensure that all school staff are adequately trained to understand the impact of trauma on students, implement strategies to minimize the negative impacts, and maximize academic opportunities in an environment of safety and connection, making referrals when needed and with parental consent. Policymakers and organizations like TexProtects must hold school districts accountable and ensure that these mandatory trainings are taking place in a timely fashion.

To support infant development, states can encourage parents to read, sing, and tell stories with their children (Child Trends)

“Here’s an easy, evidence-based, and low-cost investment for early childhood leaders and policymakers to promote young children’s development, empower parents, and strengthen families: Encourage parents and other caregivers to read, sing, and tell stories to their children. It’s that simple.”

TexProtects’ Takeaway: Building the caregiver-child bond through singing, reading, and telling stories contributes to strengthening resiliency and encouraging literacy skills and cognitive and socioemotional intelligence in young children.

CHILD PROTECTION RESEARCH – NEW AND NOTEWORTHY

Different brain profiles in children with prenatal alcohol exposure with or without early adverse exposures (Andre, Q., McMorris, C., Kar, P., Ritter, C., Gibbard, B. Tortorelli, C., & Lebel, C.)

“Prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE) has been linked with widespread brain abnormalities including reduced brain volume, altered cortical thickness, and altered white matter connectivity. Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD), the neurodevelopmental disorder associated with PAE, is the most common cause of preventable developmental disabilities in children… The goal of this study was to determine how PAE in the presence or absence of postnatal adverse exposures is associated with brain structure and mental health symptoms in children.”

TexProtects’ Takeaway: This research contributes to a long line of research on adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and how they shape the physical and mental brain health of children. TexProtects is working with policymakers on legislation that would create a framework in Texas on how to mitigate and treat ACEs on a statewide level to ensure the health of every child.

Father-child play: A systematic review of its frequency, characteristics and potential impact on children’s development (Amodia-Bidakowska, A., Laverty, C., & Ramchandani, P.)

This paper reflects a systematic literature review of publications in psychological and educational databases (until the year 2018) to “characterize the nature and potential impact of father-child play” for children ages 0-3. Given their findings, the authors suggest that father-child play can substantially benefit children’s development, which “provides a clear imperative for policy makers and practitioners to facilitate and support fathers, as well as mothers, in developing more positive and playful interactions with their infants.”

TexProtects’ Takeaway: Fathers matter! Encouraging strong father-child relationships is part of building protective factors for resiliency in children. This report enforces that early father-infant play is linked to positive social, emotional, and cognitive outcomes.

CHILD PROTECTION IN PRACTICE – NEW AND NOTEWORTHY

African American, American Indian, and Alaska Native children are all more likely to live in grandfamilies – “families in which grandparents, other adult family members or close family friends are raising children with no parents in the home” – than other racial or ethnic groups. The following two reports by Generations United are intended to support child welfare or other government agencies, as well as nonprofits, to better serve the grandfamilies with which they work:

TexProtects’ Takeaway: Children of color are dramatically overrepresented in kinship care both within and without the formal foster care system. Historically, there has been a severe lack of support and services for these families – especially those that are culturally appropriate.

Road to Resilience: Raising Healthy Kids (Mayo Clinic Health System)

“This six-week virtual program will help you and the youth in your life combat the effects of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs). There are a variety of resources in linked pages on this site that you and your youth should review at your own pace. You can read content, watch videos or do activities.”

TexProtects’ Takeaway: Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) can lead to negative mental and physical health effects later in life. This tool is a great way to help build resiliency against these potential negative outcomes so that ACES do not dictate a child’s future.

Using Media Effectively with Young Children and Virtual Visitation (Youth Law Center & Quality Parenting Initiative)

“While in-person visitation is the best way to support families, it isn’t always possible during this emergency. Now more than ever, it is critically important that birth and foster parents partner together to ensure that children experience continuity of relationships and can maintain contact with the people they love.” This brief shares research and practical suggestions from Dr. Rachel Barr, an expert in media and young children, to help parents navigate and make the best of virtual visitation with their young children.

TexProtects’ Takeaway: Virtual visitation can be used to maintain and strengthen relationships for young children. Learn how to navigate difficulty holding a child’s attention, problems with eye contact and sharing attention, loss of physical contact, technical problems, and toddler independence.

July 16, 2020

TexProtects Stands Up | Disproportionality in Maternal and Child Health Care

TexProtects’ vision is one where every child is safe, nurtured, and resilient — no matter the color of their skin. This vision cannot be realized while families of color continue to be wounded by systemic racism and injustice. As part of our effort to speak out and stand up against injustice, this blog is part of a series to highlight existing inequalities in our child protection systems. A deepened understanding of these issues can help us know better and do better so that Texas is a safe place to be born – where families can thrive and where every individual is seen and valued equally.

TexProtects takes a comprehensive approach to the prevention of child abuse and neglect and recognizes the Center for Disease Control’s Essential for Childhood framework which includes the following strategies: strengthening economic supports for families, changing social norms to support parents and positive parenting practices, providing quality care and education early in life, enhance parenting skills to promote healthy child development and intervening to lessen harm and prevent future risk and occurrence.

As our communities have been challenged by COVID-19, Texas families of all kinds have had to find enormous strength and resilience. This moment is an opportunity to reflect upon how our own wellbeing is related to the health of everyone in our community.

Evidence shows that children and mothers of color have long faced stark health disparities, which now may be worsened by the effects of COVID-19. Black and Native American babies have a much higher risk of birth complications, low birthweight, and death within their first year of life in comparison to white babies. Black mothers face even more pronounced health disparities: maternal mortality among Black mothers is more than three times higher than among their white peers. These disparities are driven in part by the fact that families of color often have less access to healthcare. According to Zero to Three’s 2020 State of Babies, 7.7% of Latinx/Hispanic women and 9.9% of Black women in the United States receive late or no prenatal care whatsoever compared to 4.5% of white women. In Texas, these disparities are particularly pronounced: 15.1% of Black women and 10.5% of Latinx/Hispanic women receive insufficient prenatal care compared to 6.3% of white women.

Racial discrimination is a distinct factor that drives both low healthcare access and poor health outcomes for families of color. Researchers from Zero to Three affirm that racism accounts for huge differences which cannot be explained by other contributing factors such as poverty, lack of local resources, or low education levels. As a result, mistrust of medical systems is common among people of color. According to Zero to Three’s State of Babies, nearly 1/3 of Black Americans report that they have personally experienced racial discrimination during a healthcare visit and 22% report sometimes avoiding care because they fear discrimination. These fears are warranted. Rates of maternal mortality and delivery complications demonstrate that minority women and children often receive lower-quality hospital care. Racial health disparities have persisted over multiple decades and are not improving over time. In fact, the racial health divide may actually be deepening because of COVID-19.

New mothers often rely upon a trusted network of family and friends. Robust social supports such as these are a crucial protective factor for families of color. Unfortunately, due to social distancing, mothers of color currently have less access to social support. Black women in particular have an elevated risk of postpartum depression and more severe postpartum conditions including postpartum post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), which can develop if childbirth is especially traumatic. Low social support is a significant risk factor for such conditions and isolation has negative impacts on overall health. These facts suggest that pregnant women and mothers of color have a heightened risk of serious physical and mental health complications during this pandemic.

As communities come together to take care of each other, we must ensure that Black, Latinx/Hispanic, and Native American families are not left behind. To achieve the strongest possible outcomes for all, we must meaningfully address health disparities in our communities, beginning with the earliest days of each child’s life. TexProtects is proud to be a part of the Prenatal to Three (PN-3) Collaborative which works to ensure more young Texas children benefit from effective and well- funded programs that promote healthy beginnings, supported families, and quality early care (learn more).

COVID-19 has forced us all to reimagine what normal looks like on an individual level. Our health systems are also reimagining how they will protect us through and beyond this health crisis. Although that process will be challenging, it has the potential to foster new innovations. Now is the time to overturn the status quo of a system which has failed to provide equal care to all children. TexProtects is committed to a future where equality in child and maternal healthcare is the new normal.

July 15, 2020

TexProtects Stands Up | Disproportionality in the Child Welfare System

TexProtects’ mission and vision are to prevent children from the trauma of abuse and neglect and to keep families together when children can be kept safe. However, due to various circumstances impacting child safety and risk, some children and families come into contact with the child protection system. Unfortunately, data shows that from intake (recognizing and reporting abuse) to permanency, Black families and children are disproportionately represented and disparities in outcomes are present in the child protection system in Texas.

Black children are 1.8 times more likely to be reported as abuse victims, 2 times more likely be investigated, and 1.7 times more likely to be removed from their home than their White counterparts due to biases and racism at personal, community, and systemic levels. The stakes are higher the further Black children move through the system. They experience more placements, wait longer to be adopted, and are more likely to age out of care.

Tackling disproportionality in the child protection system cannot be done in isolation. Families often interact with so many other systems: healthcare, education, juvenile justice, criminal justice, and more. Therefore, it is crucial we collaborate across systems when addressing disproportionality. Unfortunately, targeted efforts to do this in a thoughtful, systematic way were defunded in Texas in 2018.

The Office of Minority Health Statistics and Engagement was initially created in 2010 to work in the context of Child Protective Services (CPS) but later recognized the value of working across systems so it expanded to include other state agencies. Housed within the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC), the office was tasked with studying and solving the issue of racial inequities and providing context to the issue of disproportionality. After it was disbanded, CPS subsequently created the role to continue the work within their own agency (Department of Family and Protective Services). Tanya Rollins, the State Disproportionality Manager, now leads the agency’s efforts to address institutional racism. CPS continues to provide its workforce with training on racial and ethnic identity and cultural awareness, as well as poverty simulations.

Despite these activities, the system clearly continues to produce more negative outcomes for Black families and their children. To do better, to create long term change, there must be increased dedication, support, and resources toward both describing and solving the problem.

We all have a part to play and plenty of areas for growth and change: on an individual level, on a policy and practice level, and on a systems level. TexProtects will continue to speak up and stand up against injustice and inequality, and we commit to addressing inequities through our policy and programmatic work to help ensure that the child welfare system no longer disproportionately produces outcomes that negatively impact Black children. We call on you to participate in and support this work too.

July 14, 2020

TexProtects Stands Up | The Disproportionate Impact of COVID-19

We will only be able to grasp the full negative effects of COVID-19 once the pandemic is behind us, but the disproportionate affect the virus is having on children and families of color is already apparent. The onset of this health crisis has further exposed how systemic racism is creating harmful disparities between white communities and communities of color. The ways in which Black and Latinx or Hispanic communities are negatively affected by the fallout from COVID-19 translate into potentially negative outcomes for their children.

Instances of COVID-19 cases and deaths are disproportionately affecting Black and Latinx/Hispanic communities. Based on the COVID Racial Data Tracker by the COVID Tracking Project, the nation has lost at least 25,932 Black lives to COVID-19 to date. Deaths of Black people from COVID-19 are nearly two times greater than what would be expected based on their population percentage. Latinx/Hispanic people also make up a greater share of confirmed cases than their share of the population. In Texas, 15% of all COVID-19 cases and 16% of all deaths were Black people, when Black people make up just 12% of the total state population. For Latinx/Hispanic people, cases are also disproportionately higher, making up 47% of all COVID cases, when Texas is 39% Latinx/Hispanic.

But these are just the tested and reported numbers available in Texas. Of all tested cases and instances of deaths, Texas has only reported race data for 11% of positive cases and 23% of deaths. This means that the percentages of Black and Latinx/Hispanic deaths could be much greater than what is reported.

But it is systemic racism, not race, that is the risk factor for these communities.

Racism is playing out during the pandemic through examples like a disproportionate number of COVID-19 testing sites in predominantly white communities compared to Black and Latinx/Hispanic communities, and yet they are still disproportionately impacted. One data analysis found, for example, that Dallas had 15 more testing sites in whiter areas and Austin had 7 more. Experts are saying these testing disparities are problematic – if we aren’t testing our most marginalized people, we could miss pockets of infection and have new large areas of virus outbreak.

Given that there is a higher prevalence of chronic health conditions like hypertension and diabetes in communities of color, Black and Latinx/Hispanic communities are especially vulnerable to COVID-19. These chronic health conditions are a result of centuries of intergenerational trauma and a lack of resources inflicted on these communities. A lack of health insurance, poor access to medical care, and other systemic inequalities also undermine virus prevention efforts in these communities.

Living conditions (e.g. food deserts, minimal nearby medical facilities) in predominantly Black and Latinx/Hispanic areas may also contribute to underlying health conditions. These underlying health conditions may complicate people’s ability to follow health guidelines to prevent getting sick with COVID-19.

The likelihood that a person will test positive for COVID-19 increases in areas where the population of Black residents is higher. This may be attributable to higher concentrations of Black people living in densely populated areas, which are due to institutional racism in the form of residential housing segregation and fewer access to services. This is also known as redlining — a racist practice denying or putting up barriers to services like for residents of certain areas based on their race. These circumstances make guidelines for social distancing almost impossible to follow safely.

Black and Latinx/Hispanic individuals are also more likely to hold jobs that are deemed “essential”. Essential workers are continuing to work outside the home, putting themselves and their families at risk. According to the CDC, nearly a quarter of Latinx/Hispanic and Black workers are employed in service industry jobs compared to just 16% of non-Hispanic whites nationally. Latinx/Hispanic workers make up 17% of total employment in the U.S. but constitute 53% of agricultural workers. Black workers account for 12% of all employed workers nationally but make up 30% of licensed practical and licensed vocational nurses. Both sectors are areas of work that have continued outside the home during the pandemic.

These barriers not only make people of color more vulnerable to COVID-19, they also impact how families are able to care for their children during this crisis. This systemic racism apparent in our healthcare and housing systems trickles down to Black and Latinx/Hispanic children. Placing more stressors on parents and caregivers in turn places stressors on children, who are then less able to cultivate protective factors that build resilience.

Protective factors — including social connections, concrete supports for basic needs, knowledge of parenting and child development, social and emotional development of children, nurturing and attachment, and resilience — provide the key to ensuring that risk and adversity in childhood are not predictive of negative outcomes later in life.

We have a lot of work to do to ensure all children and families stay healthy through this pandemic and into the future. The state of Texas is making a small start: the Texas Health and Human Services Commission has recently announced that it is seeking to remedy the lack of information about how Black and Latinx/Hispanic communities are being affected by the virus and will work to study this. But answers must also come from communities themselves so that those of us working toward child protection can learn how to best empower community work and strengthen families to ensure they have access to the right supports at the right time. We must use a holistic approach to ensure that their access to resources is distributed equitably.

Another way we can help is through supporting the Texas Prenatal to Three (PN-3) Collaborative (learn more). Through PN-3, TexProtects, Children At Risk, and Texans Care for Children – along with many other organizations across the state – have come together to urge policymakers to ensure all Texas children have equitable access to healthy beginnings, family supports, and high quality early care and education.

July 9, 2020

FRONTLINE FOR CHILDREN | June 2020

CHILD PROTECTION POLICY – NEW AND NOTEWORTHY

State of Babies Yearbook 2020 (Zero to Three & Think Babies)

“The State of Babies Yearbook: 2020 compares national and state-by-state data on the well-being of infants and toddlers. The current state of babies tells an important story about what it is like to be a very young child in this country, and where we are headed as a nation. By nearly every measure, children living in poverty and children of color face the biggest obstacles, such as low birthweight, unstable housing, and limited access to quality child care.”

TexProtects’ Takeaway: Texas state ranked 43^rd on the list for child wellbeing and our ranking for economic wellbeing, family & community, health, and education were not much higher on the list. With one in ten American children living here in Texas, we MUST do better. Our Prenatal to Three (PN-3) Collaborative has an ambitious policy agenda to improve services for 300,000 low income infants and toddlers in Texas.

Integrated data can help states better respond to and recover from crises like COVID-19 (Child Trends)

“State policymakers and program administrators need access to reliable and continuous data about early childhood services to understand what services have been disrupted, where services are most urgently needed, and how to deploy resources during and after the crisis to best support children and families.” Early childhood integrated data systems afford states access to comprehensive data, which may assist them in more efficiently responding to and recovering from crises like the global pandemic.

TexProtects’ Takeaway: The early childhood work in Texas is fragmented across multiple state agencies including TEA, HHSC, TWC, DSHS, and DFPS. To understand the way forward will require integrated data systems in order to better identify gaps and needs and coordinate and deliver services efficiently and effectively.

States Are Using the CARES Act to Improve Child Care Access during COVID-19 (Child Trends)

“The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act included $3.5 billion in emergency funds for the Child Care and Development Block Grant, and the federal Administration for Children and Families issued guidance to allow states more flexibility in meeting Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) requirements to mitigate the effects of the pandemic.… A new policy scan from Child Trends shows that states are using these emergency funds to improve the affordability of care and increase provider compensation.”

TexProtects’ Takeaway: As the nation continues to struggle with the COVID-19 pandemic, child care plays an even more vital role for working parents and caregivers needing respite. Texas is one of the states continuing to pay child care providers who accept subsidies, which is especially crucial due to closures of care centers and low attendance and enrollment in programs. Texas is also providing additional funding to providers who are taking care of the children of essential workers so that they will continue to serve families in need.

CHILD PROTECTION RESEARCH – NEW AND NOTEWORTHY

Addressing Racial Disparity in Foster Care Placement (National Child Welfare Workforce Institute – NCWWI )

This resource summary examines a recent case study in county-level public child welfare practices that attempt to address racial disparity in foster care placement. NCWWI concludes: “Child welfare systems need case-level strategies and community-supported interventions to reduce racial disparities in removal decisions and disproportionality in foster care systems. Child welfare administrators should consider development and training on case-practice and decision-making processes that reduce racial bias and increase racial equity. Additionally, it is critical to create collaborative community partnerships to develop systems of care that impact racial disparity within the larger community.”

TexProtects Takeaway: Tackling disproportionality in the child protection system cannot be done in isolation. It is crucial we collaborate across systems when addressing this disproportionality. There must be increased dedication, support, and resources toward both describing and solving the problem. Stay tuned for an upcoming blog series on disproportionality in our child protection systems.

A Review of the Literature on Access to High-Quality Care for Infants and Toddlers (Child Trends)

“While we know that high-quality early learning experiences that begin early in life can promote young children’s development and help reduce achievement gaps, much of the literature has focused on child outcomes related to attendance in early care and education programs for preschool-age children; less is known about how quality child care contributes to the development of infants and toddlers.” This literature review examines the existing research on access to high-quality care, specifically for infants and toddlers.

TexProtects’ Takeaway: Quality matters and access and affordability are continued challenges. COVID-19 has made the problems clearer than ever. If we want to do better and do something different, the time is now.

Resident Hispanic Fathers Report Frequent Involvement in the Lives of Their Children (Child Trends)

“To date, limited research has examined father involvement among Latinos — the largest racial/ethnic minority group in the United States today. Documenting levels of father involvement for Latino fathers, as we do in this brief, provides one important piece of the story needed to understand contemporary patterns of Hispanic fathering…. This brief uses data from the 2013-2017 NSFG [National Survey of Family Growth] to look more closely at levels of involvement for Hispanic fathers who live with their children.”

TexProtects’ Takeaway: Information on how fathers of color are involved in their children’s lives is important to providing community resources to further support families in caring for their children. Protecting kids mean supporting their families (and that means mothers AND fathers AND other caregivers)

Home Visiting Career Trajectories: Snapshot of Home Visitor’s Qualifications, Job Experiences, and Career Pathways (Office of Planning, Research & Evaluation – Administration for Children & Families)

Research on home visiting staff and the opportunities available for their professional development is relatively scarce. The study highlighted in this report sought to assess “the home visiting workforce in MIECHV Program-funded local implementing agencies (LIAs) to gather needed information about home visitors’ backgrounds and career paths. This snapshot highlights findings on home visitors’ qualifications, job experiences, and career pathways.”

TexProtects’ Takeaway: Home visiting is a critical community service and proven prevention strategy for families with young children. Home visitors in MIECHV Program-funded agencies have strong educational backgrounds and job-related experience and the majority of home visitors are likely to continue their jobs for the next two years. This is good news for communities who have access to these programs!

Not in the Same Boat – The Pandemic Is Reducing Childcare Availability for Lower-income Families (University of Oregon Center for Translational Neuroscience – UOregon CTN)

As part of their Rapid Assessment of Pandemic Impact on Development Early Childhood Household Survey Project (RAPID-EC Project), UOregon CTN is updating this site weekly with new reports on survey findings that assess how COVID-19 is impacting young children and their families across the US. In addition to this report, the project has recently published findings on the decline of well-child visits and young children’s mental health difficulties during COVID-19.

The full list of RAPID-EC Project reports can be found here.

TexProtects’ Takeaway: We must do more to ensure lower-income families get the child care resources they need during the COVID-19 crisis. We must take action through policy change in order to prevent child care providers who serve lower-income families from shuttering. Stay connected with our PN-3 Collaborative to be part of the solution.

CHILD PROTECTION IN PRACTICE – NEW AND NOTEWORTHY

Resources to Support Children’s Emotional Well-Being Amid Anti-Black Racism, Racial Violence, and Trauma (Child Trends)

In this resource, Child Trends offers “… several steps that caregivers can take to support all children, and especially those who have experienced direct or secondary racial trauma. While the evidence strongly suggests that caregivers need a holistic understanding of how, and in what ways, racial trauma impacts children and youth of all races and ethnicities, our recommendations focus primarily on anti-Black racism and the racial trauma experienced by Black children and families. These recommendations can provide caregivers with a foundation for speaking with children about racism and racial trauma.”

TexProtects’ Takeaway: Learning to be anti-racist and unlearning systemic oppression of Black individuals must start at an early age. Parents and children can use these resources to learn together what it means to move past changing beliefs into taking action to ensure a safer and more just world for people of color.

Healing and Supporting Fathers: Principles, Practices, and Resources for Fatherhood Programs to Help Address and Prevent Domestic Violence (Child Trends)

“Domestic violence (DV) is a widespread problem in the United States. Experiencing and/or witnessing violence in relationships can negatively affect the health of parents and their children. Therefore, any program that works with families should play a part in preventing and addressing domestic violence. Fatherhood programs provide an opportunity to engage fathers in these efforts. This document includes: Background information to help fatherhood programs better understand DV; Foundational principles fatherhood programs can adopt to address and prevent DV; Descriptions of promising practices already being used by some fatherhood programs; Recommended future directions for fatherhood programs, based on current challenges in the field.”

TexProtects’ Takeaway: Family violence is correlated with poor outcomes for children. Fathers who may be perpetrators and/or survivors of violence need a safe space to educate themselves and unlearn these behaviors. Families and children are stronger when fathers are engaged and healthy.

June 10, 2020

FRONTLINE FOR CHILDREN | MAY 2020

Where Science Meets Policy

Child Protection Policy – New and Noteworthy

COVID-19 recovery presents an opportunity to fill critical gaps in knowledge about equipping schools to address trauma

“Many students will return to school having experienced increased adversity and trauma related to COVID-19, including increased risk of child maltreatment, domestic violence, food insecurity, and homelessness. With timely investments in evaluation, we can leverage this experience to determine the best ways to equip teachers and other non-clinical staff to support students experiencing trauma.”

TexProtects’ Takeaway: 60% of schools were not offering mental health treatment services before COVID-19. House Bill 18, a bill championed by TexProtects last session, will help ensure that school staff have training to understand the effects of trauma as well as strategies and supports to help struggling students be healthy and continue learning.

Nationwide Survey: Child Care in the time of Coronavirus (Bipartisan Policy Center)

A new survey conducted by Bipartisan Policy Center and Morning Consult explores child care needs amidst COVID-19 in terms of balancing work and the need for care; parents’ caregiving activities and approaches; the search for and return to care as states reopen; provider closures; and child care as an essential service.

TexProtects’ Takeaway: While work situations have changed for 86% of surveyed families, the need for child care has not. Just 22% of essential workers have been able to maintain their previous child care placement since COVID-19, 60% of programs are closed, and 21% of those still doing in-person work have reduced their hours to care for children. In order for families with young children to get back to work, Texas must invest in a child care infrastructure that increases access and affordability.

Child Protection Research – New and Noteworthy

Evaluating an Enhanced Home Visiting Program to Prevent Rapid Repeat Pregnancy Among Adolescent Parents (Family & Youth Services Bureau, OPRE, and Mathematica)

“A small but growing body of evidence suggests a combination of individualized support services and improved access to effective contraception can promote healthy birth spacing among adolescent mothers. To build on this promising research, the Administration for Children and Families partnered with Mathematica to conduct an evaluation of Steps to Success.” Steps to Success is a home visiting program in San Antonio, Texas.

TexProtects’ Takeaway: Innovations in the field of home visiting allow programs to better ensure that the program is tailored to the needs of unique communities and clients for maximum impact. In this example, program elements and intensity were adjusted to increase a specific outcome. Stay tuned for our upcoming report on Innovations and Future Directions in Home Visiting for more on precision home visiting approaches.

Researchers Find Association between Participation in Extended Foster Care and Reduced Risk of Homelessness (Chapin Hall at University of Chicago)

Extended care — allowing foster youth to stay in care beyond 18 years old — is intended to improve foster youth’s outcomes as adults. Because foster youth face disproportionate rates of homelessness as compared to other youth, providing them with stable housing while in extended care is crucial. This memo highlights a study to better understand “youth’s homeless experience and predictors of homelessness after the implementation of extended care” so that we may support policymakers and practitioners in securing appropriate housing for older foster youth and keep them from homelessness.

TexProtects’ Takeaway: The number of foster youth who face homelessness during their transition to adulthood is unacceptable. However, staying in care past age 18 decreases the odds of experiencing homelessness, as does increasing protective factors such as strengthened relationships and tangible community supports. In policy and practice, we must do more to ensure that foster youth have access to housing and programs that can better ensure their safety and successful transition to independence.

Exploring New Research on Pre-K Outcomes (Education Commission of the States)

“This Policy Brief analyzes 15 research studies on the effectiveness of pre-K outcomes in programs across the country and finds evidence of sustaining effects beyond kindergarten.”

TexProtects’ Takeaway – Pre-K return on investment is between $2 and $13 (depending on quality) with short- and long-term effects on not only academics but social emotional skills. This reduces grade level retention and increases on-time graduation rates. Investing in children early in their lives makes dollars and sense.

Being Healthy and Ready to Learn is Linked with Socioeconomic Conditions for Preschoolers

“Families’ social, demographic, and economic circumstances can have direct and indirect effects on children’s development.… The question addressed in this brief is whether children ages 3 to 5 from families of different backgrounds differ with respect to their health and readiness to learn.”

TexProtects’ Takeaway – A child’s environment and access to resources affect their development and ability to be school ready. To support our youngest Texans, we must support their families.

Being Healthy and Ready to Learn is Linked with Preschoolers’ Experiences

“A preschool child who is healthy and ready to learn demonstrates the ability to regulate their behavior and emotions, key social and emotional competencies, motor skills, health, and early learning skills…. The analyses in this brief examine the associations between a young child’s experiences and the extent to which parents report that the child is healthy and ready to learn.”

TexProtects’ Takeaway: Experiences in the early years shape biology, behavior, and health across the lifespan. Preventing adverse childhood experiences while increasing positive parenting behaviors like reading and singing together, limiting screen time, and ensuring adequate sleep would increase the number of children who are healthy and school ready.

Child Protection in Practice – New and Noteworthy

How to Help Families and Staff Build Resilience During the COVID-19 Outbreak (Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University)

This guide uses the science of child development to suggest three ways in which we can build up and strengthen resilience to improve current conditions and plan ahead for future times of crisis.

TexProtects’ Takeaway – Resilience is not something we are born with – it is something that is built over time and in relationship with a healthy community. With the increasing stress on many families right now, it is more important than ever that we “tip the scales” by offsetting those negative experiences with safe communities, supportive relationships, and access to care when needed. If that balance is not maintained, chronic stress can have negative impacts on child development, safety, and health.

New tools released by Chapin Hall help health care providers address social needs (Chapin Hall at University of Chicago)

“Health care providers are increasingly serving families whose economic and social needs are escalating due to COVID-19. Today, Chapin Hall is releasing two Practice Bulletins with evidence-based tips on how health care providers can sensitively and effectively engage families about their social needs and referrals to ensure that they get the services they need.”

TexProtects’ Takeaway – Pediatric primary care is one of the strongest access points for families with young children. The opportunities of a doctor’s visit extend beyond vaccinations and check-ups. When physicians are able to engage with their patients about their social needs and refer to community providers if appropriate, that visit can decrease childhood adversity and better impact long-term health outcomes for families and their children.

June 1, 2020

Providing Input to the DFPS Legislative Appropriations Request

TexProtects collaborated with the Child Protection Roundtable to provide budget input to the state

TexProtects has been working with our partners as part of the statewide Child Protection Roundtable to understand the effects of this pandemic on children and families, the possible fiscal implications, and the history of legislative budget cuts and their impacts in the past during times of economic challenges.

The Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) Legislative Appropriations Request (LAR) is the budget request made from the Department to the Legislature which details the funds that will be needed to continue their services for the next biennium. This LAR includes the projected budgets for Prevention and Early Intervention, Statewide Intake, Child Protective Investigations, Child Protective Services, and Adult Protective Services. One of TexProtects’ main focuses on providing input for the LAR was looking at prevention dollars.

Historically, when child abuse and neglect prevention funding has been cut, more money has ultimately been spent longer-term and there have been more confirmed child abuse victims. This is not wise-investment and not right for the children TexProtects aims to protect. We know there are strategies that work, and we worked thoughtfully and carefully with our partners to lay those out in our recommendations for the DFPS LAR.

Read the full Child Protection Roundtable DFPS LAR input below.

May 29, 2020

On behalf of The Child Protection Roundtable (CPRT), a consortium of statewide advocates, research organizations, health and education interests, direct service providers and other key stakeholders from over 50 organizations with child protection expertise, we greatly appreciate the opportunity to provide recommendations for the FY2022-2023 biennium Legislative Appropriations Request (LAR) of the Texas Department of Family Protective Services (DFPS).

The Child Protection Roundtable serves as a convener for member organizations engaged in child welfare which share a child-centered, common vision and leverage data, resources and strategy to achieve more progress collectively than could be achieved individually. The Child Protection Roundtable works in partnership with DFPS, the state legislature, and other stakeholders to improve the safety, health, and well-being of children.

More specifically, the goal of the Child Protection Roundtable is to be the leading voice and driving force in child protection public policy and governmental action in Texas that:

Helps prevent child abuse and neglect before it occurs;
Ensures protection and well-being of children and youth who come into state care; and
Heals the ongoing trauma and other adverse consequences experienced by children and youth as the result of maltreatment.

In light of the public health crisis that has left so many in our state economically unstable, investment in the safety of our children at risk and in vulnerable situations must remain a priority. Please consider the following LAR recommendations for prevention and early intervention, supports for transition-age youth and young adults, children with developmental disabilities, Community-Based Care (CBC), CPS workforce, implementation of a trauma-informed system, and the Family First Prevention Services Act (FFPSA). In several instances, we have recommended increased investment; however, we would not want any of these increases to come at the expense of reduced investment in any of the other areas as they are all important to the overall system and the infants, toddlers, and children of all ages, and families, being served.

Prevention and Early Intervention

To break the cycle of child abuse and neglect and reduce the long-term strain on our child welfare system, we need to break the cycle of cutting child abuse prevention funds under DFPS’ Prevention and Early Intervention (PEI) division in times of fiscal challenge. Given the depth and breadth of the economic recession underway, coupled with stay-at-home orders and recommendations, we know from history that child abuse is likely occurring at higher rates even though reports may temporarily be down.

When the FY2004-2005 prevention budget was cut in 2003 by 35%, we saw a 20% increase in confirmed child abuse victims between 2004 and 2005. Once again, after the Great Recession in 2008-2009, we saw a 44% increase in confirmed victims in 2011. Maintaining our investment in prevention and early intervention is our best hope for avoiding yet another spike in abuse, associated costs, and strain on the CPS system.

Given the social isolation and increasing stress and risks for families due to COVID-19, the work of strengthening families and ensuring child safety must begin before a crisis occurs. Economic instability, domestic violence, substance use, and mental health challenges are highly correlated with increased risk for child abuse and neglect. While mitigating the health effects of the virus is primary, these longer-term risks will continue to affect families and child safety for years to come. As such, investment in the front end of the system is needed now more than ever.

The investments made in these prevention networks are critical lifelines of support during this crisis and should continue to be rolled out through existing contracts with community providers. These prevention services will keep children safe now and save the state money later, with an average return of investment between $1.26-$8.08. Further investment in family preservation, or secondary prevention, also saves money.

As noted by the DFPS 2018 Prevention Task Force Report, “Diverting 5% of families from Family Based Safety Services (1786) would save the state more than $9.4 million. Preventing 3% of removals (593) would save upwards of $20.3 million.”

The Child Protection Roundtable encourages the state to continue to increase investment in primary prevention programs through PEI to prevent child abuse and neglect, strengthen and support families, increase connections to community resources, and decrease truancy and delinquency for older youth. The current PEI strategic plan indicates that to adequately protect families, a 20% increase in prevention funds is needed every biennium. Currently, DFPS allocates 5% of their budget to the PEI division.

To preserve families and decrease the number of children entering the child welfare system, the state should preserve and increase investments in the following:

Healthy Outcomes through Prevention and Early Support (HOPES)
Helping Through Intervention and Prevention (HIP)
Texas Nurse-Family Partnership (TNFP) and Texas Home Visiting (THV)
Family and Youth Support (FAYS)
Military Families and Veterans Pilot Prevention Program (MFVPP)

These programs have established infrastructure and community contracts/networks that can be leveraged to quickly and efficiently deliver proven programs to families who choose to enroll. To cut these programs would result not only in increased risks for children and long-term costs to the state, but local nonprofits and networks would be threatened, leaving even more Texans out of work and the state without a system by which to empower community family support and prevention programs.

Transition-Age Youth and Young Adults

The Child Protection Roundtable encourages DFPS to increase support for transition-aged youth and young adults. As DFPS has noted in the LAR for the current biennium, “[w]ithout such consistent services, youth are more likely to be involved in the criminal justice system, are at higher risk of teen pregnancy and parenting, have lower reading and math skills and high school graduation rates, are more likely to experience homelessness, and have higher rates of unemployment and likelihood of long-term dependence on public assistance.” Most services for older youth are federally funded through the Chafee program, which requires a 20 percent state match. The Chafee program allows DFPS to offer services that help youth and young adults pursue their education and employment, secure housing, and meet many other needs they have as they transition into adulthood. Unfortunately, DFPS has not had the funding to meet the projected needs of this population and those needs have increased substantially with the COVID-19 pandemic. The state should invest more in these youth and ensure youth who age out of care are able to succeed and receive support when they face crises.

Children with Developmental Disabilities

The Child Protection Roundtable supports ensuring access to long-term services and supports to children with developmental disabilities and their families in lieu of relinquishment of custody. These vital long-term services and supports include Medicaid-funded Community First Choice, behavioral supports, personal care services and Medicaid waivers. For its part, DFPS should provide access to training for families on how best to support the mental health needs of their children with developmental or intellectual disabilities, ensure Prevention and Early Intervention (PEI) programs assist families of children with developmental disabilities to access needed long-term services and supports, and comply with the Texas Promoting Independence Plan by seeking funding for Medicaid waivers for children currently living in DFPS-funded General Residential Operations so children with developmental disabilities can either return home, or move to a family-based alternative setting. Further details on these requests are set forth in EveryChild’s separate submittal of input to DFPS.

Community-Based Care

The Roundtable encourages DFPS to request full funding for continuing Community-Based Care (CBC) operations and contractual commitments in the present CBC catchment areas and to support the continued expansion of CBC during the upcoming FY2022-23 biennium. CBC has demonstrated early promise during Phase I service delivery and recently began to move into Phase II case management in the first of the four catchment areas under contract. As CBC moves forward into further phases and additional catchment areas, it will be important for DFPS to have the necessary resources to advance multi-contractor system characteristics such as data management and interoperability. It will also be important for DFPS to have the resources and supports to assure accountability and transparency to all system stakeholders, building further confidence that CBC is achieving its promise, as we all hope will prove to be the case. To the extent the present level of available resources is not sufficient to achieve these vital needs, the Child Protection Roundtable encourages DFPS to request those resources and will support those requests.

CPS Workforce

CPS workers perform selfless work for children and families in the child welfare system, even under normal circumstances. However, in the midst of COVID-19, CPS workers have had to make dramatic adjustments in how they work with families. When the rest of us have been told to stay home and stay safe, CPS workers have been asked to go out and keep other families and children safe. In addition to adjusting their practice, CPS workers are facing some of the most challenging cases of their career as COVID-19 has only amplified the stressors and challenges in many families who were already struggling. To effectively ensure child safety, the CPS workforce must be adequately supported, including the provision of appropriate supports to address their own mental health needs resulting from secondary trauma.

Texas has worked hard to improve salaries and reduce caseloads the past few years. It is vital that caseworkers have the ability to provide families and children in care with targeted case management. Cuts to CPS funding and salaries will result in more turnover and retention issues and will directly equate to declining outcomes for children and youth in care. The Child Protection Roundtable urges DFPS to continue investing in the CPS workforce by maintaining funding for their salaries and benefits and expanding secondary trauma services such as counseling complimented by debriefing with trained supervisors who can recognize the signs of secondary trauma and can refer for help when needed.

Trauma-Informed System

The Child Protection Roundtable supports DFPS’ continued leadership efforts to transform the Texas child welfare system into a trauma-informed and trauma-responsive system. DFPS was a leading partner in helping to develop the report Building a Trauma-Informed Child Welfare System: A Blueprint as part of the Statewide Collaborative on Trauma-Informed Care (SCTIC). There is broad support among Child Protection Roundtable membership and other stakeholders for ongoing efforts to improve training and use of trauma-informed practices throughout the child welfare system. There is also a clear understanding of the benefits of trauma-informed practices for children, families, and other system participants. The work of the SCTIC continues with the Implementation Taskforce, including the adoption of a DFPS rule to define trauma and trauma-informed care, and the creation of a website as a centralized location for information on trauma. The Child Protection Roundtable supports DFPS maintaining this priority in planning and budgeting for the next biennium.

Family First Prevention Services Act

The Child Protection Roundtable recommends that DFPS include adequate funding for successful implementation of the Family First Prevention Services Act (FFPSA) in its LAR Request. This funding should maximize opportunities to keep more children safely with their parents, prioritize placing more children in family-based foster care settings, and improve the quality of congregate care, especially in Residential Treatment Centers.

The DFPS LAR should include a placeholder for state funds needed to pull down a federal match to cover services that will prevent children from entering the Texas foster care system. DFPS should ask for state funds needed for more evidence-based substance use disorder, mental health, and in-home parenting skill building services. About 1.6 million Texans have lost health insurance during COVID-19 so far, meaning they might have lost access to mental health medications or other critical services that support children and their caregivers. During this difficult budget time, we encourage DFPS to maximize FFPSA dollars to help families at risk of having their child removed and placed in foster care. These investments will not only help families get through these difficult times, but they will also save money down the road in the budgets for CPS and other state services.

While crafting its LAR, DFPS should protect existing federal reimbursement for foster care placements by prioritizing strategies that would move children out of congregate care into family-based settings. When the FFPSA takes effect in Texas on October 1, 2021, Texas is at risk of losing federal reimbursement for its congregate care providers. The Child Protection Roundtable especially encourages three strategies:

Establish a kinship navigator program using FFPSA dollars to enhance support for kinship caregivers, who accounted for more than half of Texas’ placements during FY19;
Request funding to recruit more foster homes and anticipate increases in licensed foster homes resulting from the FFPSA requirement to align Texas’ minimum standards with the new model licensing standards, which may remove or reduce some barriers to licensure; and
Shift funding to Treatment Foster Family Care to serve more children with high needs in family-based settings. The Roundtable also encourages DFPS to ask the legislature to expand eligibility for Treatment Foster Family Care to older youth. Treatment Family Foster Care is only available to children under 10, and about 90 percent of children and youth in Residential Treatment Centers were 10 and older in FY19.

DFPS should also protect existing federal funding by elevating the quality of Residential Treatment Centers by requesting funds for enhanced provider rates and start-up grants to incentivize providers to meet the FFPSA’s Qualified Residential Treatment Program standards.

Federal Pandemic Emergency Assistance

We acknowledge the considerable recent and ongoing federal activity directed toward providing emergency aid and support to states in responding to the global pandemic, and we hope DFPS will take full advantage of these supplemental resources for their intended purposes as they are enacted and thereafter disbursed. Most if not all of the areas of concern addressed in this letter have been impacted by the pandemic, and our hope is that these supplemental resources will help Texas make continued progress across the child welfare system, building on the momentum of the past three sessions.

Conclusion

Thank you again for the opportunity to provide input on the DFPS LAR for the FY2022-2023 biennium and for the dedication of DFPS to the safety, health, and well-being of the children and families of Texas. We look forward to our continued partnership and a productive 87^th Texas Legislature. For any questions or concerns, please contact Knox Kimberly at knox.kimberly@upbring.org or (512) 567-6929.

May 12, 2020

Frontline for Children | April 2020

Where Science Meets Policy

Child Protection Research

Touchpoints for Addressing Substance Use Issues in Home Visiting: Phase 1 Report (Office of Planning, Research & Evaluation – OPRE)

“Minimal research has focused on the ways home visiting programs can effectively engage and support families affected by substance use issues. This report describes what is known and what needs to be learned about this topic based on a literature review and review of current practices around six ‘touchpoints’ and four ‘implementation system inputs.’”

TexProtects’ Takeaway: The Family First Prevention Services Act (FFPSA) presents unprecedented opportunity to expand home visiting programs to better meet the needs of families at risk of entering the foster care system. By preventing, identifying, and addressing behavioral health, these programs can put families on a safer and more secure trajectory. With 68% of removals linked to substance use, we must do better at providing families with help before a crisis occurs.

Being Healthy and Ready to Learn is Linked with Family and Neighborhood Characteristics for Preschoolers

This brief uses a new pilot, National Outcome Measure of Healthy and Ready to Learn, to “understand how family characteristics, the activities in which families engage, and their neighborhood circumstances are associated with preschool children’s health and readiness for learning.” The authors found that strong family characteristics, healthy parents, and supportive neighborhoods all play a role in being ready to learn.

TexProtects’ Takeaway: Protecting children means supporting the families and neighborhoods in which they live! A parent’s physical health and mental health as well as the presence of anger, routine, or family strength all impact a child’s health and school readiness.

Continuity and change in the home environment: Associations with school readiness (Korucu, I. & Schmitt, S.)

“This study examined the continuity and change in the level of the quality of the home environment across ages 3 and 5 and its association with school readiness outcomes (i.e. attention regulation, language skills, social–emotional skills) at age 5.”

TexProtects’ Takeaway: The quality of the home environment influences a child’s development and learning. Even during change and instability, families with protective factors and responsive relationships can help children develop healthy social emotional skills and executive function for success in school and life.

Child Protection Policy

Top Federal Child Welfare Officials: Family is a Compelling Reason (Chronicle of Social Change)

This article, by Jerry Milner, associate commissioner of the U.S. Children’s Bureau, and David Kelly, special assistant to the associate commissioner, describes the importance of strong continued family connection for children in foster care during the COVID-19 crisis. “As we struggle to develop responses and adapt [to social distancing], we cannot forget the simple fact that children miss their parents, parents miss their children, and that absent aggravated circumstances, they deserve a fair shot to be together or get back together as soon as there is not a safety risk. Further, it is not merely a matter of longing for contact, it is a matter of healthy brain development, maintaining critical bonds, and prevention of trauma that can persist for generations.”

TexProtects’ Takeaway: Now, more than ever, we must protect and support parent-child relationships which are so primary for resilience and health. We have been presented an opportunity to innovate and reimagine systems that will better reflect our values to protect children, preserve families, and prevent trauma. May we use the teachings of this crisis to do better for our children.

The State of Preschool 2019 (National Institute for Early Education Research – NIEER, Rutgers Graduate School of Education)

In partnership with Rutgers University Graduate School of Education, NIEER covers the national state of preschool in 2019, including enrollment, access, quality, and important developments across all 50 states. The report also offers recommendations for federal and state governments to support preschool programs through the current economic crisis.

TexProtects’ Takeaway: Students are eligible to participate in the Texas Public School Prekindergarten program if they meet at least one of the following conditions: qualify for free or reduced-price lunch (185% of Federal Poverty Line), are homeless, are in foster care, have a parent on active military duty or who was injured or killed on active duty, are unable to speak or comprehend English, and/or have a parent eligible for the Star of Texas Award. Only 9% of 3-year-olds and 49% of 4-year-olds are enrolled in public Pre-K in Texas. Based on the Child Maltreatment Risk Mapping done by UT Population Health, community rates of school enrollment for 3- and 4-year-olds can be protective – one factor that may contribute to decreased risk for child abuse and neglect in a community.

Child Protection Practice

Ways to Promote Children’s Resilience to the COVID-19 Pandemic

This fact sheet explores the ways in which families and communities can jointly promote protective factors to buffer children from harm and increase their chances of adapting positively to adversities like COVID-19.

TexProtects’ Takeaway: Protective factors like meeting basic needs, social connectedness, and support for caregiver well-being may be especially difficult during COVID-19. That’s why it’s important to remember that it’s ok to ask for help. Protective factors grow with connection and support.

Topic: Child Protective Services

Share:

Post-Partum Depression and Early Childhood Development

Share:

FRONTLINE FOR CHILDREN | JULY 2020

CHILD PROTECTION POLICY – NEW AND NOTEWORTHY

CHILD PROTECTION RESEARCH – NEW AND NOTEWORTHY

CHILD PROTECTION IN PRACTICE – NEW AND NOTEWORTHY

Share:

TexProtects Stands Up | Disproportionality in Maternal and Child Health Care

Share:

TexProtects Stands Up | Disproportionality in the Child Welfare System

Share:

TexProtects Stands Up | The Disproportionate Impact of COVID-19

Share:

FRONTLINE FOR CHILDREN | June 2020

CHILD PROTECTION POLICY – NEW AND NOTEWORTHY

CHILD PROTECTION RESEARCH – NEW AND NOTEWORTHY

CHILD PROTECTION IN PRACTICE – NEW AND NOTEWORTHY

Share:

FRONTLINE FOR CHILDREN | MAY 2020

Where Science Meets Policy

Child Protection Policy – New and Noteworthy

Child Protection Research – New and Noteworthy

Child Protection in Practice – New and Noteworthy

Share:

Providing Input to the DFPS Legislative Appropriations Request

TexProtects collaborated with the Child Protection Roundtable to provide budget input to the state

Share:

Frontline for Children | April 2020

Where Science Meets Policy

Child Protection Research

Child Protection Policy

Child Protection Practice