Transcript Strengthening Families: The Key to Safe & Healthy Children

Shared Leadership: Engaging Family
Voices to Strengthen Families
Presented by:
Diana Autin, SPAN
Kathy Roe, Parents Anonymous
Sh’corah Yehudah, SPAN
On behalf of the
Prevention Subcommittee
of the NJ Task Force on
Child Abuse & Neglect
©Statewide Parent Advocacy Network
2005
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Goals & Objectives
• Assess readiness/gauge knowledge, skills and
commitment to partner with families in prevention
through shared leadership
• Review family support & parent leadership theory
& strategies
• Provide opportunities to implement/practice
effective strategies in family partnership
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Introductions
• State your name
and role within
DPCP
• Identify one thing
you would like to
learn/get out of
your participation
today
3
Experiences with Parent Leadership
• Work in groups of 5
• Discuss 3 positive &
3 negative
experiences you
have had to date in
seeking to recruit
and work with
families
• Capture on flip chart
4
Spectrum of Prevention
• Level 1:
Strengthening
individual
knowledge & skills
• Level 2: Promoting
community
education
• Level 3: Educating
Providers
• Level 4: Fostering
coalitions &
networks
• Level 5: Changing
organizational
practices
• Level 6: Influencing
policy & legislation
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Level 1: Strengthening
individual knowledge & skills
• Enhancing
individual capability
to prevent harm
and promote
wellness
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Level 2: Promoting
Community Education
• Reaching groups of
people with
information &
resources to
promote health &
safety and
minimize harm
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Level 3: Educating Providers
• Informing
providers who will
transmit skills &
knowledge to
others
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Level 4: Fostering Coalitions
& Networks
• Convening groups &
individuals for
broader goals &
greater impact
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Level 5: Changing
organizational practices
• Adopting
regulations &
shaping norms to
improve outcomes
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Level 6: Influencing Policy &
legislation
• Developing
strategies to
change laws &
policies to
influence outcomes
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Examples of Spectrum Levels
• Brainstorm one example of each level:
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Individual capacity-building
Promoting community education
Educating providers
Fostering coalitions & networks
Changing organizational practices
Influencing policy & legislation
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What is Family Support?
• A set of beliefs & an
approach to
strengthening &
empowering families &
communities
• Grassroots, communitybased programs designed
to promote family
cohesion & prevent
family problems
• A shift in service
delivery
• A movement for social
change
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How does family support work?
• Interventions are
comprehensive and
within the context of
the family and the
community
• Interventions promote
positive behaviors &
outcomes, instead of
just treating problems
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How does family support work?
• Interventions
focus on familyidentified needs &
hopes, not the
wishes of
professionals
• Interventions see
the family as a part
of its larger
community
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How does family support work?
• Interventions help
strengthen the
family’s networks
and use those
networks as the
major source of
support
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What is the goal of family support?
• To help families
learn and use the
knowledge and
skills they need to
be effective as a
family within their
community
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How can you tell if it’s
family support?
• Relationships are built
on equality & respect
• Families learn how to
get what they need
• Families are involved at
every step of the way
• Family strengths are
recognized and built on
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How can you tell if it’s
family support?
• The diversity and
cultural, racial, and
language identities of
families are
celebrated & affirmed
• Communities are
strengthened
• There is advocacy for
fair, responsive &
accountable systems
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BELIEFS:
Family-Professional Partnership
• Families &
professionals work
together in
relationships based on
equality & mutual
respect
• Families are partners
on the individual,
program, agency, &
systemic levels
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Family-Professional Partnership
• Important techniques:
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Active listening
Empathy
Sincere caring
Recognition &
appreciation of existing
knowledge & skills
– Focus on strengthening
knowledge & skills
– Shared decision-making
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BELIEFS:
Empowering & Strengths-Based
• Build on the knowledge
& skills of families &
communities
• Help families realize
their own strengths to
promote the healthy
development of their
children
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Empowering & Strengths-Based
• Recognize that
everyone has
strengths
• Create opportunities
for learning & use of
new skills & knowledge
• Support self-efficacy,
self-reliance, positive
mental health,
competency, mastery
of skills: “assetsbuilding”
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Who is a parent leader?
• Committed to
making positive
changes in his/her
family, community,
&/or system
• Represents a
parent voice, not a
staff role
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Shared leadership is important because:
• Multiple
perspectives &
diverse strengths
and talents are
combined to
achieve goals
• Families know how
systems really work
“on the ground”
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We learn leadership in many ways
• Learn from others
who serve as role
models
• Learn from formal
training
• “Just do it”
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Practices of Exemplary Leadership
I.
II.
III.
IV.
V.
Challenging the process
Inspiring a shared vision
Enabling others to act
Modeling the Way
Encouraging the heart
In pairs, answer “I acted this way when I…”
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Why do parents get involved?
• They believe the issue is
important to them and
their family
• They believe they have
something to contribute
• They believe that they will
be listened to and their
contributions respected
• They believe that their
participation will make a
difference
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How do parents stay involved?
• Multiple opportunities
for participation, from
a small contribution of
time to progressively
larger contributions of
time and effort
• The level of
participation varies
depending on life
circumstances.
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How do parents stay involved?
• Families receive
sufficient advance notice
• Family participation is
facilitated:
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Child care
Transportation
Dinner
Compensation for time
Education & information in
understandable language &
formats
– Mentoring/pairing with
experienced family member
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How do families stay involved?
• Families are listened to;
their ideas are supported &
respected
• Families do not experience
retribution as a result of
their participation
• Family participation has an
impact
• Family participation is
consciously & visibly
appreciated
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Pathways to Parent Leadership
• Critical supports:
– Contact with other
parents in leadership
roles
– Opportunities to take
on leadership roles,
however small, & safe
settings to practice
them
– Relationship with
respected & trusted
person who provides
feedback & support
– Sense of belonging
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Ten Steps to Success
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Commitment leading to participation,
growth & change
A sense of belonging
Exposure to other parents who
demonstrate leadership behaviors & are
acknowledged as leaders
Recognition of the need to take action
Encouragement from others who view the
parent as a leader
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Ten Steps to Success
6. Taking action
7. Receiving positive feedback & support
from trusted others who “mirror back”
the strengths & leadership skills
displayed in earlier actions
8. Continuing to take action & receive
supportive feedback
9. Growing stronger & more confident as a
leader
10. Becoming a role model for other parents
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Primary Supports needed
•
Tangible (stipends, provision of or
reimbursement for childcare and
transportation and reimbursement for
lost wages).
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Tangible supports allow parents to fully
participate in parent leadership
activities, without creating an economic
burden on them.
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Primary Supports needed
•
Emotional (respect, understanding, validation,
and ongoing support to fulfill their parent
leadership roles, including times of transition
and crisis).
•
Emotional supports provide parent leaders with
the encouragement they need to feel confident
in their new parent leadership roles and to know
that others will be there for them as they grow
through these experiences
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Primary Supports needed
•
Environmental (training, equality with service
providers, and full inclusion in activities.
•
Environmental supports give parent leaders the
tools and skills to achieve shared leadership
through training in effective public speaking,
media interviews, and co-training with staff
which emphasize the full equality and inclusion
of parent leaders in agency and organizational
settings and activities.
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Roles for parent leaders
•
What roles are available or might be
created for parent leaders in New
Jersey’s child welfare system change?
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At the prevention program level
At the community level
At the county level
At the state level
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Roles for parent leaders
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Role model for other parents
Co-trainers
Contributor to materials
Participant at conferences, meeting
Paid consultant
Grant reviewer
Participant in evaluation & quality
improvement activities
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Roles for parent leaders
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•
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•
•
•
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Participant in needs/strengths
assessment processes
Advocate for individuals, families,
programs, system change
Participant in focus groups
Advisory Board or Board member
Witness at public hearings
Public speaker
Media interviewee/spokesperson
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Working together in shared leadership
•
Think of a time when you had a successful
partnership to accomplish your goals…
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What did you bring to the partnership?
What did your partner bring?
How did you know it was working?
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Essential Elements of shared leadership
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•
•
•
•
Mutual respect for
skills & knowledge
Mutually agreed upon
goals
Trust & honesty
Clear & open
communication
Shared planning &
decision-making
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Essential Elements of shared leadership
•
•
•
•
•
Shared resources
Mutual sharing of
information
Shared evaluation of
progress
Commitment to
shared leadership
Other elements?
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Benefits of shared leadership
•
Benefits to:
– Parent leaders
– Staff
– Families
– Agencies
– Larger society
– Others
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Why can’t we get “the parents?”
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Barriers to shared leadership
•
Possible barriers
– Lack of time
– Lack of funds
– Difficulties in
creating roles
– Language,
literacy,
knowledge
barriers
– Work status of
parent leaders
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Am I ready for shared leadership?
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Do I really want to work in
a shared leadership model?
Will my supervisor support
me?
What policies and
practices will be a
problem?
What costs will be involved
and how will I pay for
them?
How does this fit my
approach to working with
parents now?
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Am I ready for shared leadership?
•
•
•
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How much time am I
willing to commit?
What other help do
I need?
What other tools
and information do I
need?
Is there anything
else I should think
about?
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Are we ready for shared leadership?
•
•
•
How will we work in
partnership with
parent leaders to
further our mission?
What successes have
we had in working
with parent leaders?
What policies &
practices will
support our work
with parent leaders?
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Are we ready for shared leadership?
•
•
•
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What will it cost?
What resources will
we commit?
What are
opportunities to
engage parent
leaders at:
Community
County
State/systems level
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Are we ready for shared leadership?
•
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How will the
Department, governor’s
office, Child Welfare
Panel, legislature
support our work with
parent leaders?
What specific staff
will be assigned to
support parent
leaders?
What else should we
think about/plan for?
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Parents’ Panel
•
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Be thinking about:
How was this parent
engaged? At what
level(s)?
What was the impact
of their engagement
on their family? On
other families? On
the program?
How does this
related to family
support standards?
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Overcoming the Barriers:
Recruiting, Selecting, Supporting
•
Brainstorm places
where Parent
leaders might be
recruited
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Recruitment
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Prevention programs
Parents Anonymous
SPAN
Head Start Policy
Councils
Community-based
organizations
PTA
Churches, temples,
mosques
Mental health, DD
Councils
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Other
Recruitment Strategies
•
Brainstorm
strategies that
might be useful in
recruiting
parents to work
in Shared
leadership roles
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Recruitment Strategies
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Word of mouth
Media stories
Referrals from staff
in public & private
agencies, schools,
clinics
Radio/TV PSAs
Letters to editor
Articles in
community, agency
newsletters
Bulletin boards
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Recruitment Strategies
•
Role descriptions:
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Specific tasks &
expectations
Critical expertise &
experience
Available supports
from staff & other
parent leaders
Amount of time
required
How expenses will be
reimbursed
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Selecting Parent Leaders
•
What things
should you
consider in
identifying
parents to serve
as parent
leaders?
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Possible Selection Criteria
•
•
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•
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Currently in a
parenting role
Experience as a
program participant
Ability to relate to
other parents
Can relate personal
experiences to
broader social issues
Ability to participate
Reflect the ethnic,
cultural, gender,
religious diversity
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Providing Support
•
What tangible,
emotional, &
environmental
supports can you
provide initially
and/or on an
ongoing basis to
parent leaders?
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Examples of Support
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Child care
Transportation
Reimbursement for lost
wages
Information re: issues,
systems, policies,
practices, personnel so
can participate from a
fully formed perspective
Training
Clear information on
responsibilities &
decision-making
authority
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Creating an Action Plan
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Objectives
Action Steps
Who’s responsible
Resources/Supports
needed
Target Completion
Date
How will we know it’s
been achieved?
Date achieved
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EFFECTIVE ADMINISTRATION:
Collaboration with Families & Communities
• Advisory groups,
collaborations, & input
foster family &
community involvement
• Families & communities
are involved in all
program activities:
planning, governance,
administration, &
evaluation
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EFFECTIVE ADMINISTRATION:
Collaboration with Families & Communities
• The engagement & support
of families & communities
is key to sustaining &
funding family support
programs
• Participation ideas:
– Focus groups
– Family/community
surveys
– Follow-up
questionnaires
– Advisory groups
– Participation of families
& community
representatives on
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boards of directors
Family Strengthening & Support:
Critical for Child Welfare
• The most effective way
to keep our children safe
& healthy is to ensure
that their families are
strong from the start.
• The most effective
intervention is promotion
& prevention.
• The best way to ensure
policies, procedures &
programs that work is to
engage families from the
beginning!
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