Evaluating the Authentic Family Engagement and Strengthening Approach

Authors

• Morgan E. Cooley, Florida Atlantic UniversityFollow
• Vaughn J. Crichlow, University of ConnecticutFollow
• Gabriel T. Cesar, Florida Atlantic UniversityFollow
• Marianna L. Colvin, Florida Atlantic UniversityFollow
• Corey B. Best, Mining For Gold, LLCFollow
• Kristin Smyth, Florida Atlantic UniversityFollow
• Robin Jimenez-Bean, Florida Atlantic UniversityFollow

Abstract

Persistent racial disproportionality of Black and brown families in the child welfare system across decades and generations highlights the need for a comprehensive understanding of the consequences of child removal and the urgency of authentic family engagement initiatives. The primary purpose of this study was to examine whether a group of child protective investigators who received (1) specialized training and (2) monthly family engagement and antiracism coaching during supervision sessions demonstrated fewer monthly removals of children from families compared to a group of investigators in the same service area who did not receive specialized training or coaching. The secondary purpose of this study was to examine (a) parent engagement outcomes of the pilot of the AFES approach, and (b) compare parent engagement reports from the AFES pilot compared to a group of parents involved in a child protective services investigation who were not in the pilot group. Data included both administrative and primary data collection in an urban county in south Florida. The findings of this evaluation provide initial support that racial justice, family engagement, and protective factors training and coaching may be helpful in reducing child removals by child welfare investigators; however, there was no significant different in parents’ reports of family engagement comparing the special unit despite higher descriptive scores of family engagement. Implications for research, child welfare worker development and training, work with families, and program and policy are addressed within the scope of the findings and limitations of this study.

Recommended Citation

Cooley, Morgan E.; Crichlow, Vaughn J.; Cesar, Gabriel T.; Colvin, Marianna L.; Best, Corey B.; Smyth, Kristin; and Jimenez-Bean, Robin (2025) "Evaluating the Authentic Family Engagement and Strengthening Approach," Journal of Justice-Informed Social Work Practice and Research: Vol. 1: Iss. 1, Article 1.
Available at: https://spark.bethel.edu/jiswpr/vol1/iss1/1

Terms of Use and License Information

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.