7:30 a.m. - 8:30 a.m.
Continental Breakfast at the Exhibit Fair

8:30 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.
C-1 – Regency E
Managing Up with Using Quality Assurance Data and Information
Have you ever struggled to get the attention or support of agency leadership in using data and information as part of ongoing child welfare management? This session will explore strategies for engaging agency leadership through QA reports and activities. We will discuss reporting techniques, presentation styles, anticipating child welfare leaders’ questions and needs, and other ways of overcoming resistance to the use of data and information in child welfare agencies. The session will discuss these issues from the perspective of both QA staff and child welfare executives.
Presenters: Lynda Arnold and Peter Watson (National Child Welfare Resource Center for Organizational Improvement) and Thomas Pomonis (North Dakota Department of Human Services)

C-2 – Regency F
Child Welfare XML Update
Since 2002, a workgroup comprised of representatives from the State and the vendor community has been working on ways to use XML in child welfare. This session will demonstrate the XML prototype and describe the issues involved in using XML as a means for exchanging information. This session will also outline why States would want to use XML, why States would not, and identify other child welfare processes or functions that could benefit from XML technology.
Presenters: Mary Ellen Bennard (Massachusetts Department Of Social Services), Angelo Serra (Ohio Department of Job and Families Services) and Diana King (DHHS/ACF/OA/OIS.DADS)

C-3 – Washington A
Poverty, Reporting, and Foster Care
This presentation will utilize newly available data on county-level social indicators, reporting and foster care placement rates to explore the relationship between poverty and child welfare indicators. Data from the recently released Census 2000 data, the NCANDS, and nine States from the Multi-State Foster Care Data Archive maintained by the Chapin Hall Center for Children at the University of Chicago, will be used. These data allow us to examine child welfare indicators at the county level. Preliminary analyses indicate that county level variation within a State can be significant. Practice changes will need to be applied at local levels if statewide outcomes are to improve.
Presenters: Fred Wulczyn (Chapin Hall Center for Children, University of Chicago) and Ying-Ying Yuan (Walter R. McDonald & Associates, Inc.)

C-4 – Conference Theater
What the Child and Family Services Reviews Say about Services to Indian Children and Families
Child and Family Services Reviews (CFSRs) have been conducted in every State. While the CFSRs are not comprehensive in terms of Indian child welfare, the results of these reviews provide valuable information about the Indian Child Welfare Act, the needs of Indian children and families, and the services available to them. This workshop examines national data and the available CFSR final reports to address several Indian child welfare issues, looking at where we are currently, trends, and implications for where we need to go.
Presenters: Carolyn Maple (NICWA) and Tom Hay (NRC-CWDT)

10:00 a.m. - 10:15 a.m.
Break at the Exhibit Fair

10:15 a.m. - 11:45 a.m.
D-1 – Regency E
SACWIS Interfaces
This presentation will focus on the mandatory Federal SACWIS interface requirements (Titles XIX, IV-E and IV-A), highlighting the issue of sharing information between TANF and child welfare including the identification of robust interchanges, together with lessons learned and the Federal perspective of these interfaces.
Presenters: Terry Watt (CB/DSS), David Baker and Donna Chatman-Owens (Xtria), Galina Krivoruk (Colorado Department of Human Services), Jean Swanson-Broberg (Social Services Information System, Minnesota Department of Human Services) and Mary Ellen Bennard (Massachusetts Department of Social Services)

D-2 – Regency F
Quality Improvement Centers
The Quality Improvement Center (QIC) Cooperative Agreements of the Children’s Bureau intend to demonstrate and disseminate effective child protection practices through strong program evaluation components of small demonstration projects. Use of NCANDS data may play a key role in this and other CB initiatives. The goals and methods of the QIC projects will be reviewed and methodologies discussed with data examples. A discussion will be facilitated with participants about evidence to demonstrate effective practice and how that evidence may be used.
Presenters: Myles Edwards (American Humane Association), Anne Johnson Atkinson (PolicyWorks, Ltd.), Crystal Collins-Camargo (Training Resource Center, University of Kentucky College of Social Work), Carol J. Harper (Children's Services, American Humane Association) and Elyse Kaye (James Bell Associates)

D-3 – Washington A
Recent Findings on the SSBG Program
The Social Services Block Grant (SSBG) program provides flexible funds to assist States in delivering social services for children and adults. The Office of Community Services (OCS), within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, administers the program. This presentation will discuss findings reported in the Social Services Block Grant Annual Report 2002, and from four SSBG site visits conducted during 2003.
Presenters: Marsha Werner (HHS/OCS), Gila Shusterman and Ann Elizabeth Montgomery (Walter R. McDonald & Associates, Inc.)

D-4 – Conference Theater
Using AFCARS Data for Cohort Analysis
This session will focus on using AFCARS data for entry cohort analysis. The session will focus on the data issues to consider and assumptions necessary in using AFCARS data in entry cohort analysis. A step-by-step presentation will take place regarding the computer programming, with a focus on the logic utilized to generate various demographic characteristics and outcomes of an entry cohort, as well as data quality issues identified during the processing of the data.
Presenter: John Hargrove (ACF/CB)

Part two of the presentation is “TEACCH: Technology Efforts Affecting Children’s Case History.” Alabama juvenile justice and child welfare agencies have developed a seven-module case management system that enables inter-agency data sharing to support all juvenile case types. The CIP staff involved in this project will explain the technical architecture of the system, including the database vision and concepts, data sharing, data security and encryption, and web access. Program staff will also discuss the CIP components of five modules.
Presenters: Gary J. Waint (Missouri Office of the State Court Administrator, Division of Juvenile and Adult Court Programs) and Cary McMillan and Bob Maddox (Alabama Administrative Office of the Courts)

D-6 – Potomac 6
NCANDS In-Depth: Lessons for Program Improvement (Part II)
This session continues the themes from Part I (C-6), and further examines the computations and approaches to calculating national standards by discussing re-sampling methods, and standard setting. The session will also use NCANDS data and methods to present examples of additional safety indicators.
Presenters: John Gaudiosi (ACF/CB), John Fluke and Bill Sermons (Walter R. McDonald & Associates, Inc.) and Myles Edwards (The American Humane Association)

11:45 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
Light Lunch at the Exhibit Fair

1:00 p.m. - 2:30 p.m.
E-1 – Regency E
The Pew Charitable Trusts’ Home-at-Last Initiative: The Pew Commission on Children in Foster Care and Fostering Results
The Pew Charitable Trusts launched a targeted grant making initiative in 2002 to help move children in foster care more quickly and appropriately to safe, permanent families and prevent the unnecessary placement of children in foster care when possible. This presentation will provide background on the purposes of the initiative and give an update on current activities and future plans. In specific it will discuss the data improvement activities being undertaken.
Presenters: Mark Testa (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign), Judge Nancy Salyers (Fostering Results), Carol Emig and Sue Bandeau (The Pew Commission on Children in Foster Care) and Jess McDonald (Fostering Results)

E-2 – Regency F
Enterprise Integration: Transformation Through Reuse
This presentation will provide a strategy of how SACWIS agencies can integrate and provide a common browser interface to legacy applications through Web Services and Enterprise Application Integration brokers. Web Services are software components that dynamically interact with each other using open Internet standard communication protocols. Legacy applications can be transformed into Web Services through open technologies such as XML and SOAP. This approach was taken at the Texas Department of Protective and Regulatory Services IMPACT (Information Management Protecting Adults and Children in Texas) Project that was implemented on August 31, 2003. The Texas project will be used as the case study during the presentation.
Presenters: Donna Marler (Texas Department of Protective and Regulatory Services) and Don Grier (Accenture Government Operating Unit)

E-3 – Washington A
System Design For Increased Data Quality, Reliability, and Integrity
This session will address moving beyond requirements to get the highest quality data. Presenters will answer the question: Are there any ways to design systems to increase system use, reliability, and integrity for making programmatic decisions?

Presenters: Brian Kelley (Unisys), Karen Edgecomb (Maximus) and Dicy Perry (American Management Systems, Inc.)

E-4 – Conference Theater
Building Analytical Capacity Grants Within the States - Rhode Island’s Experience
This presentation summarizes the use of Rhode Island’s AFCARS files to create an entry cohort to identify predictors of reunification and re-entry using Cox regression/survival analysis. These results were then compared to data for the same children derived directly from Rhode Island’s SACWIS and similar results were obtained. Rhode Island has used these analyses as well as others based on entry cohorts from their SACWIS system for program planning and policy development. This presentation illustrates how States without access to a fully-operational SACWIS may use AFCARS to generate entry cohorts for longitudinal analyses that willinform planning and policy. Currently, Rhode Island is one of five States in receipt of a grant entitled, “Building Analytical Capacity for Child Welfare in the States” funded by ACF through the Children’s Bureau. This funding has enabled Rhode Island to expand its data analytic capacity and to enhance data-driven decision making throughout the Department.
Presenters: Jacob Kraemer Tebes and Christian M. Connell (Yale University)

E-5 – Washington B
Planning, Designing, and Developing Juvenile IT Systems
Part one of this presentation, “SQUARE PEGS: The Inter-Agency Systems Development Process,” discusses the partnership between the Utah Courts and Utah’s various child welfare agencies to develop “CARE” (Courts and Agencies Records Exchange).” In its early stages, CARE was oriented toward juvenile delinquency cases and was not designed to track child welfare timelines or ASFA-specific findings. This inter-agency effort has ensured that the needs of all participating agencies are understood and addressed.
Presenter: Alicia Davis (Utah Administrative Office of the Courts)

Part two of the presentation is “Planning, Designing and Developing ‘MYCIDS,’ the Mississippi Youth Court Information Delivery System.” Mississippi has developed and is implementing a statewide-automated case management system to serve all juvenile case types. The system utilizes a centralized database that is accessed remotely through the use of a thin client system. The database is an Interbase design and the user interface combines HTML and Windows-based application screens. Data is transmitted over the Internet, from the clients to the central database, over a secure VPN. This session will address concerns of both technical and non-technical attendees who are interested in understanding the design and operational issues posed by a statewide system.
Presenters: Jamie McBride and Michael Jones (Mississippi Supreme Court)

E-6 – Potomac 6
The Next National Incidence Study (NIS) of Child Abuse and Neglect
This session summarizes the ongoing efforts in planning for the next NIS, with special focus on the accomplishments to date. Under contracts to Westat, the Children’s Bureau has identified a number of enhancements to the NIS design that could improve the usefulness and quality of the NIS-4. The session details the evaluation process and overviews the enhancement options that were considered, describing the rationale for incorporating them into the NIS design, the issues and problems that would arise by including them, and the work done to evaluate them.
Presenter: Andrea Sedlak (Westat)

2:30 p.m. - 2:45 p.m.
Break at the Exhibit Fair (Last Chance to Visit the Exhibit Fair)

2:45 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.
F-1 – Regency E AFCARS: “Waif” Elements
ACF uses AFCARS data for a number of reasons, but some AFCARS elements have received less attention over time. All AFCARS data are important and as such, this session will include a discussion of approaches to utilizing all AFCARS data elements for ongoing trend analyses and short and long-term planning. Time will be made available for the audience to ask questions and share lessons learned on tools, such as frequency reports, that are useful for analyzing these data.
Presenters: Angelina Palmiero (ACF/CB) and Alice-Lynn Ryssman (ACF/CB)

F-3 – Washington A
Use of Research-Based Data to Examine Child and Adolescent Well-Being: An Assessment Tool for Child Welfare Agencies
This presentation provides a demonstration of findings from data collected on 1,500 urban youth in Virginia. Emphasis is placed on protocols examining violence, post-traumatic stress disorder symptomatology, and coping mechanism in an effort to provide effective intervention strategies for youth exposed to adverse situations. Data have been analyzed using a statistical package that allows for examination of linkages between violence and adjustment outcomes. Demonstrations from these analyses will be presented to assist child welfare agencies with developing programs and procedures that are research-based to provide services to youth and their families.
Presenters: Ebone’ Joseph (School of Counseling and Education, Regent University) and Zina McGee (Department of Sociology, Hampton University)

F-4 – Conference Theater
Going Beyond the Child Maltreatment Report: Secondary Analysis Using the NCANDS Data
This session is targeted for individuals who are interested in using data from the National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System (NCANDS) in their own research. The session will begin with an overview of what NCANDS data are available to the research community through the National Data Archive on Child Abuse and Neglect. New procedures for gaining access to the data will be described, including discussion of the eligibility requirements and responsibilities of data users. The session will conclude with several examples of secondary analysis projects that have gone beyond the tables presented in the Children Bureau’s Child Maltreatment series.
Presenter: Elliott G. Smith (National Data Archive on Child Abuse and Neglect at Cornell University)

F-5 – Washington B
Dependency Case Performance Measurement for Courts
This panel presentation will cover the process of developing and implementing a system to collect and analyze performance measures at the State and local levels, implementing standardized data entry protocols and training court staff to collect data. The process of designing and developing report formats to measure selected goals, the monitoring process and lessons learned will be highlighted.
Presenters: Leola McKenzie (Oregon Judicial Department), Mark Hardin (ABA National Child Welfare Resource Center on Legal and Judicial Issues) and Susan Koenig ( On-Target Information Technology Consulting)

4:00 p.m. - 4:15 p.m.
Break

4:15 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.
G-1 – Regency E
CFSR PIP Progress/Close Out
The first round of the CFSR has drawn to a close, as are the earliest Program Improvement Plans. This session will cover issues related to PIP closeout process and the next round of CFSRs.
Presenters: Will Hornsby (ACF/CB CFSR Team) and John Hargrove (ACF/CB Data Team)

G-2 – Regency F
The Impact of IV-E Status on the Length of Stay in Foster Care: A University and Child Welfare Agency Collaborative
This presentation will accomplish two objectives. First, this presentation will demonstrate the results of a study that examined the length of stay of children in foster care focusing on the IV-E status of children as an explanatory factor. Second, it will describe the collaborative process of the Louisiana Department of Social Services (DSS) and the Louisiana State University, School of Social Work. The analysis demonstrated that IV-E children stay in foster care longer overall and for reunification outcomes. However, IV-E children were adopted in slightly less time than the non IV-E children. Children aging out of foster care also had longer lengths of stay. This study is used to describe the collaborative process of LSU and DSS focusing on collaborative relationship building, setting mutually beneficial goals, the use of small, initial projects and setting goals in times of shrinking budgets.
Presenters: Joseph V. Keegan (Louisiana Department of Social Services, Office of Community Services) and Linda Lee (Louisiana State University School of Social Work)

G-3 – Washington A
An Approach to Linking Training Systems, Data and Evaluation to Achieving Outcomes for Children
This workshop highlights a training curriculum, Bringing Together the Child Welfare Team, which is grounded in practice and designed to enhance the skills of child welfare supervisors in using State/county child welfare data to improve outcomes for children. The workshop describes the approach used to create this curriculum—an approach that includes surveying the needs of 47 child welfare agencies, gathering content input from practitioners and trainers, piloting the curriculum in four sites and field testing a variety of approaches to evaluating the impact of the training. The presenters will discuss how this curriculum and other supervisory team training supported the Kentucky Cabinet for Children and Families as it prepared for the CFSR, developed its Program Improvement Plan and implemented a new practice model.
Presenters: Vivian Hurt (Kentucky Cabinet for Families and Children) and Susan Kanak (Muskie School of Public Service, University of Southern Maine)

G-5 – Washington B
Management Information
Participants will learn about Arkansas’ experience in developing a juvenile justice case management database, including who collects and reports the information, the type of information that is collected, and how the information is utilized to assist the AOC Division of Dependency-Neglect Representation. Participants will also receive copies of the reporting forms and samples of the types of reports that have and will be generated to aid the Arkansas Court Improvement reassessment.
Presenter: Connie Hickman-Tanner (Arkansas Juvenile Courts)

5:30 p.m. - 7:30 p.m.
NRC-CWDT Project Advisory Group Meeting (by invitation only)