This curriculum is designed to educate social workers about the experiences and needs of families involved with both public welfare and child welfare services so that they can provide high-quality case management services within a post-welfare reform environment. Based on research from a longitudinal, ethnographic study of families living in an urban environment, the curriculum includes: a review of child welfare outcomes in the welfare reform era; a description of welfare reform as implemented in one county, including examples from the client's perspective of managing within a welfare-to-work environment; a cost of living analysis of life on welfare; a set of case examples illustrating pathways from welfare to child welfare, with special attention to aspects of welfare reform which may play a role in child welfare outcomes; and a discussion of how to apply qualitative research methods toward improving child welfare practice, as well as an explanation of the research methods used for the study. (187 pages)Frame, L., Berrick, J. D., Sogar, C., Berzin, S. C., & Pearlman, J. (2001).

This curriculum focuses on child maltreatment issues and effective practice strategies among immigrant Asian families. Specifically, it elucidates demographic and behavioral characteristics of child abuse victims and perpetrators in four major immigrant Asian communities (Cambodian, Chinese, Korean, and Vietnamese), factors contributing to the selection of two types of placement (in-home and out-of-home) by child protective services workers, and effective child welfare practice with immigrant Asian families. (106 pages)Rhee, S., Chang, J. (2006).

This module offers classroom instruction with the opportunity for students to observe child welfare workers, judges and referees, and attorneys during actual court proceedings. It provides approximately six hours of classroom content and addresses competencies in ethnic sensitive and multicultural practice, core child welfare skills, social work skills and methods, and workplace management. The curriculum provides a history of the system; cultural insights; background on the differing roles of professionals in the juvenile court setting; a glossary of court terms; and guidelines for proving maltreatment, and for providing effective testimony. (50 pages)Foster, D., & Woods, B. (1995).

Offering a wealth of information, this module introduces the historical, cultural, and social factors that influence a social worker's ability to skillfully interact with Hmong, Lao, Vietnamese, and Cambodian families. It provides approximately 30 hours of classroom instruction and includes sections on: Southeast Asian history, escape, refugee, and resettlement experiences; legal and health issues; mental health and education issues; the Southeast Asian family; and child welfare practice and the Southeast Asian family. The curriculum includes pre- and posttests and materials that may be reproduced as handouts. (175 pages)Himes, H., Lee, S., Foster, D., & Woods, B. (1995)

This curriculum focuses on the implications of California's changing welfare policy on public child welfare practice and addresses welfare policy, child welfare practice, and the impact of welfare reform on child welfare clients who are also involved with the public welfare system. Chapters include: a summary of welfare reform in California, a look at the differences between the old approach to welfare and workfare (AFDC and GAIN) and the new approach under CalWORKS, a history of welfare and child protection policy, a look at families who have been involved with both the welfare and child protection systems, an analysis of interviews with child welfare workers and administrators that explores the myriad ways in which the new federal and state policies are likely to impact their clients and themselves as professionals, and the implications of welfare reform for child protection and child welfare practice. (318 pages)Frame, L., Berrick, J. D., Lee, S., Needell, B., Cuccaro-Alamin, S., Barth, R. P., et al. (1998).

This multi-component project studied the impact of the implementation of the Child Welfare Services/Case Management System (CWS/CMS) on child welfare practice by examining the casework practices affected by computerization, measuring the extent to which these practices were affected by computerization, and identifying organizational and individual factors that influenced the effect of computerization on these practices. Findings showed that the implementation of CWS/CMS did not lead to drastic changes in the ways in which CWSs carried out their daily work; time spent with clients was unchanged. However, the study demonstrated that CWS/CMS led to modest but crucial changes in how workers spent their time on the job, affected the quantity and quality of relationship with coworkers, and changed some workers' attitudes toward their agency and job. (Research Report: 135 pages; Curriculum: 154 pages; Training Academy Curriculum: 111 pages)Weaver, D., Furman, W., Moses, T., Linsdey, D., & Cherin, D. (1999).

This curriculum introduces the Family Group Decision Making (FGDM) model of working with families in child welfare and is based on a core belief that within families lies the wisdom to find solutions to protect their own children and resolve other issues of concern. The six modules cover the historical perspective of FGDM; models of FGDM; cultural competency; micro, mezzo, and macro level skills utilized in FGDM; practice; and outcome measures. In addition to lecture content, modules include instructional guides and suggestions, interactive exercises, topics for discussion, video and other resource suggestions, and a pre- and posttest instrument with answer sheet. An appendix of handouts, workshop evaluation form, references, and list of information sources and resources is included. (128 pages)Okamura, A., Quinnett, E. (2000).

National, state, or local-level data are limited with respect to the characteristics of immigrant children in the child welfare system, the proportion of immigrant children who reunify, or the constellation of services that may be associated with family reunification among immigrant families. To fill these gaps in the literature, practice, and policy, this project examined family reunification among Mexican and Vietnamese immigrant and non-immigrant children and identified promising practices to improve service availability and effectiveness. This study used quantitative and qualitative methods and was conducted in two counties in Northern California. This curriculum has five overall goals: (a) to understand common characteristics among Mexican and Vietnamese immigrant families in the U.S. and California and connections among parenting and acculturation; (b) to understand distinctive characteristics of Mexican and Vietnamese immigrants in the child welfare system, compared to non-immigrants; (c) to understand factors that contribute to reunification among Mexican and Vietnamese immigrant families involved in family reunification services; (d) to understand how the work of a child welfare worker influences service availability for Mexican and Vietnamese immigrant families; and (e) to understand the basic components of cultural competence and how these relate to service effectiveness with immigrant families involved in the child welfare system. Video clip (coming) and PowerPoint Presentation (coming).Osterling, K. L., & Han, M. (2013).

This project provides a comprehensive overview of interagency collaboration in child welfare practice: it's three modules address the what, where, why, when, who, and how of collaborative practice; define collaboration in this context; provide a sound rationale for developing collaborations; outline strategies for overcoming barriers; explain the various stakeholders and systems involved; and describe the skills needed to build effective collaborations. The curriculum can be used on its own, or to augment existing courses or training sessions, and incorporates newly developed competencies on interagency collaboration in addition to CalSWEC core competencies. (149 pages)Black, J. (1998).