ORANGE COUNTY


The Orange County CPYP project continues to work to advance a new philosophy of permanency for youth in Children and Family Services (CFS). Orange County remains committed to providing our youth with permanency. We continue to make accomplishments with the on-going support of our staff and community partners. Our team approach and enthusiasm to this project has allowed our county to continue the momentum of creating life long connections for our youth.

Below is a list of the activities and accomplishments during Orange County's first year of the CPYP project.

Activities:

  • Division meeting presentations were held introducing staff to Canyon Acres' Creating Family Connections (CFC) Program. CFC and CFS staff met with our program managers and supervisors to support the successful implementation of the CFC project.
  • We hosted the initial CPYP Technical Assistance Meeting/Permanency Orientation.
  • Power Point presentations were developed with an overview of CPYP.
  • A series of trainings were facilitated for social workers with caseloads involved in the CPYP Project training.
  • Technical & experiential training assistance was provided one day per month for six months for our CPYP workgroup members. Our CPYP workgroup has met monthly beyond the formal technical assistance meetings.
  • A series of Y.O.U.T.H. (Youth Development, Empowerment, & Updated Super Strategies for Supporting Transition-aged Youth) presentations were delivered to CFS staff. Approximately 258 staff were trained.
  • A Permanency Presentation by the Judicial Counsel was delivered to bench officers, county counsel, and defense attorneys.
  • A series of agency-wide emails highlighting success stories and sharing philosophy of family finding and engagement and permanency of CPYP project were delivered to our staff.
  • We included Permanency in Foster Family agency Contracts requiring providers to facilitate contact and encouragement of familial and non-familial relationships significant to the youth.
  • Additional CPYP-based technical assistance presentations were provided to Behavioral Health, group home providers, foster family agency providers, licensed foster care providers, Orangewood Children's Home staff members, and other community participants.
  • Monthly CPYP workgroup meetings were held to address and resolve issues; share successes regarding the implementation of the project
  • Twenty five youth were selected as CFC referrals to be involved in CPYP Project.
  • We have identified twelve youth involved in the project for in-depth data tracking reports. Quarterly progress reports were submitted to CPYP evaluation consultant Craig Evans.
  • We have utilized the Declaration of Intent to Maintain Contact, Youth Intake Form, and Permanency Scales for our youth involved in the project.
  • We have identified and completed transfer/assignments of 20 cases for processing by two permanency social workers (PSW).
  • Allocation of funds in the amount of $2,500.00 were made from the ILP (Independepnt Living Program) professional services budget to establish a fee-for-services contract with US Search in support of the search efforts on the ICS I Program cohort of 20 foster youth.
  • An additional fund allocation of $10,000.00 from the ILP professional services budget was made to establish a fee-for-services contract with US Search in support of the search efforts on the ICS I Program cohort of additional foster youth outside the formal CPYP cohort.
  • Assistance has been given to our permanency social workers in completing searches.
  • Designations of facilitators from our workgroup have been made to provide support for search and engagement of CPYP youth.
  • Establishment of a subcommittee was made to provide support and case management for those whose family members have already been found and engaged and require sustainability case maintenance.
  • Continued case mining and search efforts for families of foster youth receiving services in the CFS Court Services Program

 

As of February 2007:

Number of children served by CPYP efforts in Orange County: 246 Youth including the pilot phase of permanency work

Breakout on age and gender:

  • 120 males
  • 130 females
  • Age range 9-17 years old
  • There are mixed outcomes for the twelve foster youth identified for the CPYP Research Cohort in Orange County. On the positive end of the spectrum, one youth was returned to her biological mother under Family Maintenance Court. Another youth was placed with her adult sister, who was also a former foster youth. A third foster youth is emancipated, employed, living with an adult brother, and visiting with their biological mother and two siblings still in placement. On the other end of the spectrum, there is a foster youth who is still AWOL, and another in Juvenile Hall pending an AB 3632 placement.
  • There are 246 foster youth now receiving permanency services in Orange County. In Orange County's Phase II of CPYP, the new Application for Petition document for all foster youth entering dependency in Orange County will be implemented, identifying as many relatives on both paternal and maternal sides of the family as are known at the time of detention. In addition, each of the Continuing Dependency programs in CFS will dedicate one or more senior social workers to the process of family finding and engagement services for the foster youth who are 11 years of age and older in their respective programs with a Permanency Placement case plan. The last query showed 744 such foster youth in Orange County.
  • The county encountered almost immediate success in finding family members and significant others who had been excluded from the youth's lives, and began active engagement with the family members. An example of data captured that was shared at the annual CPYP Conference in Oakland is provided below:

 

Cases Received from September 2005 to May 2006
Data as of 10/31/06

  • Number of CPYP Youth: 20
  • Number of CPYP senior social workers (SSW): 2
  • Average caseload per SSW: 10 CPYP; 17 total
  • Average months to work the case between receipt and termination (or present): 7.5
  • Average number of known family members prior to services: 5.25
  • Average number of family connections prior to services: 4.7
  • Average number of known family members after services: 17.3
  • Average number of family connections after services: 9.15
  • Number of youth moved from long-term foster care to permanent plan: 3
  • Number of youth returned to parent: 1
  • Number of youth placed with new connection: 0
  • Number of youth emancipated: 5
  • Number/Percent of emancipated youth who had:
    Home 5/100%
    Back-up home/plan 5/100%
    Connection 5/100%
    Job 4/80%
  • Percent of CPYP Social Workers who think CPYP work is worthwhile: 100%
  • Percent of youth who think program was helpful: 100%
  • Percent of final caretakers who think program was helpful: 100%

 

Additional Updates

  • Implementing the work of family finding, engagement, and an overall focus on permanency involves many challenges. Some of these challenges faced during the first year of CPYP include: workload volume and conflicts, initial broad focus, visitation resistance, social worker resistance and anti-bio-family bias.
  • Orange County CPYP has helped to develop and participate in a meeting with several community providers, including staff from many Los Angeles Department of Children and Family Services offices. The meeting was well received with approximately 25 staff from various agencies (including state CPYP) in attendance to discuss permanency-related concepts. This multi-agency/county meeting may develop into ongoing quarterly meetings designed to share and receive information about ongoing permanency related projects occurring in the Southern California region. Other southern counties may be interested in participating in these quarterly meetings.
  • Orange County CPYP efforts have been positively received by many organizations who have asked for presentations regarding the work. The conferences at which presentation have been given or will be given include:
    State of California Independent Living Conference 2007
    Child Welfare Directors Association Meeting 2007
    19th Annual Raise Foundation Conference 2007
  • Orange County's Adoptions program has teamed with CPYP and other agency staff in the development and submission of a proposal to the state for funds regarding increasing adoption outcomes for older youth. The proposal incorporated many of the services and activities that CPYP staff is currently implementing with youth (such as family finding and engagement strategies). Although the agency did not get the funding to implement the project, it has been stated by the Adoptions program that they would like to continue to see if elements of the proposal could be implemented in their program. The agency's Adoption program then requested a presentation on the permanency efforts being made in the agency. Orange County CPYP staff gave the presentation in April 2007. Adoptions program staff participates on the CPYP committee and the discussion about how to implement CPYP practice in Adoptions work will continue throughout this second year.
  • On March 7, 2007 Dr. Darla Henry provided a full-day presentation of the 3-5-7 Model to an audience of 75 individuals, representing case-carrying senior social workers, supervisors and managers, psychologists from CCPU, CEGU, and community clinics, CASA, foster care providers from the community, and two Family Search representatives from the State of Hawaii.
  • Orange County CPYP understands the incredible challenges youth who emancipate from dependency face in order to successfully transition to adulthood. This is a serious concern within CFS about youth growing up in out-of-home care with few or no caring adults in their lives. We are pleased to be a part of CPYP addressing the needs of these most lonely youth in CFS who desire and deserve to have loving, caring, and permanent adults in their lives.

 

Success Story

Julie (not her real name), a seventeen-year-old girl, entered the system when she was twelve. She experienced nine placements. Her mother died in 2005, and according to her case worker, her relationship with her father (prior to the project) was "non-existent." By using funds that her agency had set aside for "CPYP trips," the case worker was able to arrange for Julie to visit her father and stepmother (who live on the east coast) over Thanksgiving and Christmas, 2006. The father/daughter relationship blossomed. According to the worker "(Julie) has gone from not having any relationship with her father and stepmother to . . . speaking to them several times per week on the phone, as well as e-mailing." Approval has been obtained for Julie to live with her father and stepmother.

 

County Documents

June 2006 ER Training (PowerPoint)

Orange Second Year Plan

 

Contact:
Bob Malmberg
714.940.3935

Bob.malmberg@ssa.ocgov.com

06-2007

 

Back to Top

Home | Site Map | Contact Us