Statewide Steering Committee

The grant calls for a statewide steering committee in order to promote interagency partnership and ownership of the Family Centered Systems of Care initiative. The steering committee represents a broad variety of stakeholders in child welfare as well as a critical mass of family partners. The committee provides oversight and feedback to the grant team’s work in the two pilot communities (Cherokee, Reno) and in developing and implementing Family Centered Systems of Care principles in child welfare practices across the state. The steering committee assists the grant team by reviewing practices for consistency and by holding the grant team accountable for results and timely accomplishment of objectives. The steering committee has representation from each pilot community and will receive and review regular progress reports from their steering committees.

The current co-chairs are Larry Dixon and Daisy Deknight.

"The members of the Kansas Systems of Care Statewide Steering Committee look forward to working with the pilot communities to implement the Family Centered Systems of Care model. You are not only working to improve the level of support for families of you communities, but your successes will influence the level of support for families throughout the state.
Thank you for allowing us to take the first step towards our mission of "Partnering for the continual growth of families one community at a time".

Larry Dixon
Co-Chair-Kansas Family Centered Systems of Care Statewide Steering Committee

Kinship Advisory Stakeholders Group

The Kinship Advisory Stakeholders Group recognizes families are the experts on their own strengths and needs. The family is strongly encouraged to identify resources including relative and non-related kin (kin) to be included in the process. T he Kansas Code for Children in Need of Care 38-1502 (p) “relative” to mean “a person related by blood, marriage or adoption but, when referring to a relative of a child’s parent, does not include the child’s other parent,” and (t) defines “kinship care” to mean “ the placement of a child in the home of the child’s relative or in the home of another adult with whom the child or child’s parent already has a close emotional attachment.” It has been proven, goals for permanency are achieved rapidly and youth/families receive better services, when birth families, youth, resource families and workers understand the roles and expectations of each other and work as members of the “Family Team.”

A statewide Kinship Advisory Stakeholders Group has been established to assist regions to develop a strategic plan to implement statewide in conjunction with Family Centered Systems of care (FCSOC) model to educate their communities about Kinship Care and identify support systems available for Kinship care givers. The members of the group will include birth families, youth/alumni (of relative care), kin, community providers and resource families. The group will provide support to strengthened policies and procedures addressing involvement of relative and kinship care, in order to facilitate placement of children with non-related kin as early as possible.

The group will be involved with, but not limited to:

• Collection of data concerning youth in Out of Home Placement (OOHP) with relative/kin, which will provide information concerning Kinship and drive the process for further improvement.

• Messages, brochures and other communication methods that can be developed to increase public awareness about the need for kinship care:

• Providing websites and other methods of communication to obtain information concerning the needs of Kinship Care givers.

• Collaborate with agencies, providers and families to effectively meet the needs of birth parents, children, youth, and their kin by building on community leadership and strengths.

• Providing Best Practices to identify and support the needs of Kinship Caregivers
  

Family Advisory Council

The Family Advisory Council (FAC) is a subcommittee of the FCSOC Statewide Steering Committee. The purpose of the FAC's is to further define, design, support, and sustain meaningful family involvement in the Kansas child welfare system. The family partners on the Council also servce in an advisory capacity and/or provide member representation on other advisory boards, committees, or workgroups affiliated with SRS/Children and Family Services. Cherokee and Reno counties also have an FAC.