• Association Founded in 1998

• Comprised of 24 local Family Resource Centers

• Providing services and support to more than 50,000 Colorado families

• Mission: The Family Resource Center Association provides public advocacy, capacity building, and resource development to strengthen our statewide network of family resource centers as they bring help and hope to Colorado families. 2

Colorado Family Resource Center Association

FRCA Member Centers

FRCA members serve 45 counties across the state.

FRCA Services

• Joint Programming: Statewide Programs– Strengthening Families– Healthy Living– Capacity Building

• Advocacy and Outreach– Representation at legislature– Active participation in major statewide initiatives and coalitions

relevant to children and families

• Intermediary Organization– Capacity Building, Training and Technical Assistance to promote

organizational sustainability– Resource Development to facilitate funding opportunities for

members

• CBCAP Co-Lead from 2002-2012

The Colorado Family Resource Center Model

Foundational Frameworks• 1993: Colorado Statute - Family Support Principles &Practices• 2000: FRCA Membership Policies• 2009: Family Development Credentialing Training• 2010: Strengthening Families Protective Factors Training• 2012: Development of Family Resource Center Model• 2013: Adoption of Standards of Quality for Family

Strengthening and Support

• Founded in 2011.

• Comprised of statewide networks of two or more Family Resource Centers or Family Strengthening Programs.

• Represents more than 2,000 programs supporting USA families.

• Mission: To connect statewide networks across the United States to promote quality practice, peer learning, mutual support, and effective policies and systems that support positive outcomes for children, families and communities.

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NATIONAL NETWORK OF FAMILY SUPPORT & STRENGTHENING NETWORKS

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NATIONAL NETWORK MEMBERSHIP

FOCUS ON FAMILIES

Our focus is on families who are responsible for raising children.

These families consist of at least one adult and one child who are related biologically, emotionally, or legally. 

Families may consist of one parent, two parents, grandparents, foster parents, legal guardians or they may arise from a need for mutual support.   

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• What does it mean to be a quality Family Strengthening and Support Program?

• What common language can we use for working effectively with families?

• How can managers, direct service staff, and families work together to develop and sustain quality programs?

KEY QUESTIONS

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STANDARDS: A STRATEGIC STEP

• The first and only standards to integrate and operationalize the Principles of Family Support Practice with the Strengthening Families Approach and its research-based evidence-informed 5 Protective Factors

• Help ensure that families are supported and strengthened through quality practice

• Provide a structure for further professionalization of the Family Strengthening and Support field

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WHOM ARE THE STANDARDS FOR?

• Designed to be used by all stakeholders – public departments, foundations, community based organizations, and families – as a tool for planning, providing, and assessing quality practice.

• Create common language and expectations across different kinds of Family Strengthening and Family Support programs, such as Family Resource Centers, home visiting programs, and child development programs.

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PROGRAM APPLICATION OF

THE STANDARDS

Requires the commitment and support of all levels of Program responsibility:

• Executive Directors• Managers• Coordinators• Direct Service Staff• Parent Leaders• Families

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STANDARDS ACCESSIBILITY

The Standards are intended to be accessible to all. Download the Standards and related tools FREE of charge at www.cnfsn.org

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STANDARDS DEVELOPMENT PROCESS

• 18-month development process

• National scan of 17 sets of standards for Family Strengthening and related fields

• Decided to worked off of the San Francisco Family Support Standards

• Vetted with more than 1,000 diverse organizations

• Reviewed by the Center for the Study of Social Policy

• Approved by the California Network of Family Strengthening Networks Membership in 2012.

• Adopted by the National Network of Family Support and Strengthening Networks in 2013.

FOUNDATIONAL FRAMEWORKS

The Standards of Quality for Family Strengthening & Support integrate and operationalize the following two frameworks:

•The Principles of Family Support Practice developed by Family Support America

•The research-based, evidence-informed Strengthening Families™: A Protective Factors Framework developed by the Center for the Study of Social Policy

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FRAMEWORK #1: FAMILY SUPPORT

• Family Support is based on the premise that primary responsibility for the development and well-being of children lies within the family.

• The Family Support perspective is that all segments of society must support families as they raise their children.

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PRINCIPLES OF FAMILY SUPPORT

Principle 1Staff and families work together in relationships based on equality and respect.

Principle 2Staff enhances families’ capacity to support the growth and development of all family members– adults, youth, and children.

Principle 3Families are resources to their own members, to other families, to programs, and to communities.

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PRINCIPLES OF FAMILY SUPPORT

Principle 4Programs affirm and strengthen families’ cultural, racial, and linguistic identities and enhance their ability to function in a multicultural society.

Principle 5Programs are embedded in their communities and contribute to the community-building process.

Principle 6Programs advocate with families for services and systems that are fair, responsive, and accountable to the families served.

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PRINCIPLES OF FAMILY SUPPORT

Principle 7

Practitioners work with families to mobilize formal and informal resources to support family development.

Principle 8Programs are flexible and continually responsive to emerging family and community issues.

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FRAMEWORK #2

STRENGTHENING FAMILIES APPROACH

Guiding Principles

• All families have strengths.

• All families need support.

• Developed by the Center for the Study of Social Policy in 2005

• Research-based, evidence-informed

• Focuses on building 5 Protective Factors with families

• Increases family stability, enhance child development, and reduce child abuse and neglect.

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THE PROTECTIVE FACTORS FRAMEWORK

Parental Resilience

Social Connections

Concrete Support in Times of Need

Knowledge of Parenting and Child Development

Social and Emotional Competence of Children

For more information, please see www.cssp.org/reform/strengthening-famlies 21

LET’S TAKE A LOOK AT HOW THE STANDARDS ARE ORGANIZED

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5 SECTIONS OF THE STANDARDS

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Family Centeredness

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Program encourages families to participate in program development and implementation

Family Strengthening

Program recognizes families as significant resources for their own family members and each other

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Embracing Diversity

Program acknowledges and respects the diversity of families, including their cultural traditions, languages, values, socioeconomic status, family structures, sexual orientation, religion, individual abilities, and other aspects

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Community Building

Program is involved in, and engages families in, the larger community building process

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STRUCTURE OF THE STANDARDS

Standards 17 Standards

Indicators Each Standard includes 1-2 sets of Indicators of both Minimum Quality and High Quality.

The Minimum Quality Indictors demonstrate the basic application of the Standard.

Programs build upon the Minimum Quality Indicators to achieve the High Quality Indicators, which represent ongoing and deeper commitment to the application of the Standard.

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STRUCTURE OF THE STANDARDS

Examples

Each Indicator is followed by 2-4 examples from the field that illustrate its application.

These examples are not meant to be an exhaustive list or a specific checklist.

As Programs apply the Standards, they are encouraged to identify their own examples that demonstrate the Indicators in ways that are relevant to their communities.

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QUALITY INDICATORS

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- Formal Structure- Staff Training- Family Partnership

MOVING FROM MINIMUM TO HIGH QUALITY

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EVALUATION SECTION

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IMPLEMENTATION TOOLS

The Standards are part of a suite of materials that are used for their implementation, all of which can be downloaded for free at www.cnfsn.org:

• Program Self-Assessment Tool – designed to be used as a critical thinking exercise by Program teams of managers, direct service staff, parent leaders, and other stakeholders as appropriate.

• Staff Self-Reflection Checklist – consists of 15 self-reflection questions

for staff members to use as a daily reminder to implement the Standards.• Standards Participant Survey – consists of 14

questions for Program participants to indicate how well a Program is meeting the Standards from the families’ perspective. Available in English, Spanish, and Chinese.

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TRAINING

Training is a fundamental strategy for implementing the Standards effectively.

• Certification Training: This full-day training is designed for all management and direct service staff, as well as for funders. Each individual who completes the training receives a certificate that is valid for 2 years.

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APPLICATION OF THE STANDARDS

Family Strengthening and Support Programs• Blueprint for implementing best

practice• Self-Assessment• Demonstrate Quality

Policy Makers• Endorse for application in their

areas of influence

Direct Service Staff• Reflect on and enhance their

work with families

Funders• Integrate into requests for

proposals, monitoring and quality assurance

Networks of Family Strengthening and Support Providers• Quality Assurance• Capacity Building• Adopt as criteria for membership•

Families• Partner with Programs to apply

the Standards• Provide feedback about how well

Program is applying the Standards

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STANDARDS ON THE MOVE

• Adopted by the National Network of Family Support & Strengthening Networks in 2013. 

• Independent research, a literature review commissioned by the Family Resource Association in Colorado and conducted by the OMNI Institute in Denver, identified seven key components for effective Family Resource Centers - all of which are represented in the Standards.

• Included on the Center for the Study of Social Policy’s list of Tools to Support Strengthening Families Implementation.

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STANDARDS ON THE MOVE

• Incorporated into the Family Engagement Enhanced Pathway of California’s Race to the Top Family Quality Ratings and Improvement System for Early Care & Education programs.

• Selected by the Children’s Bureau/Office on Child Abuse and Neglect for presentation at the National Conference on Child Abuse and Neglect in New Orleans in 2014.

• Selected by the Coalition for Community Schools for presentation at the 2014 Community Schools National Forum “Community Schools: The Engine of Opportunity” in Cincinnati, OH.

• Selected for presentation by Prevent Child Abuse America and Healthy Families America at the 2014 National Conference for America's Children in Jacksonville, FL. 37

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• Trained over 150 Family Resource Center directors, managers, and front line workers; 2 Trained Trainers

• Adopted into Membership Policies

• Working with the Office of Early Childhood to implement Standards throughout Early Childhood and Family Support Programs

• Standards integrated into our Family Resource Center Model

• Statewide data collection for Quality Standards

STANDARDS IMPLEMENTATION IN COLORADO

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STANDARDS CERTIFICATION TRAININGS NATIONWIDE

Total # of Trainings by State:

Total # of Certified Individuals by State:

CA: 34 CA: 830

CO: 5 CO: 150

FL: 2 FL: 60

AZ: 1 AZ: 30

Total: 42 Total:1,070

FEEDBACK, QUESTIONS, THOUGHTS?

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CONTACT INFO & FUTURE TRAININGS

Brenda McChesney–BMcChesney@cofamilycenters.org

303-388-1001 x 102

Rachel Shuck–RShuck@cofamilycenters.org

303-388-1001 x 106

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