DCDDC March Newsletter

Stay informed. Read the March Meeting Minutes.

You are invited to the second annual 2017 Texas Fatherhood Summit: Strengthening Services to Support Fathers hosted by the Child and Family Research Partnership at The University of Texas at Austin LBJ School of Public Affairs and the Texas DFPS Prevention and Early Intervention Division.

The 2017 Texas Fatherhood Summit Summit will be held on Friday, March 24, 2017, at the AT&T Conference Center at The University of Texas at Austin from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM, followed by a networking reception.

Also, on Thursday, March 23, colleagues of the Fatherhood Research and Practice Network are hosting a special free workshop and CEU opportunity, “Program Evaluation 101″, for attendees of the Texas Fatherhood Summit

CPS is developing a Kinship Collaboration Group. This group will bare many similarities to the Parent Collaboration Group, including its goals and objectives. In short, the group will give input on how to improve upon our practice and service delivery to families by serving as a link between CPS and all kinship caregivers. The Kinship Specialist, Debbie Bouldin, is seeking Kinship Caregiver Representatives. Please contact Ms. Bouldin at Debbie.Bouldin@dfps.state.tx.us with the names and contact information of potential representatives.

Kinship Caregiver Representatives should be:

• Culturally sensitive

• Passionate about child welfare and families

• Willing and able to be active and a vocal participant ( we will meet in person 3 times per year and in various parts of the state)

• Committed to change

• Willing to develop skills to support their successful participation

Requirements:

1. Must be Kinship caregiver with a closed CPS case.

2. Must be active in their community (church, support groups, etc) or must have shown an ability to be a strong advocate for themselves and the children they cared for.

3. Willing and able to make a commitment to attending the KCG and believe in its mission.

• April 1, 2017-Border Crossers Racial Justice in Education Talking about Race in the Classroom Meadows Conference Center 2900 Live Oak Street, Dallas, TX Early Bird Discount Tickets until March 17!
• May 22-24, 2017-Equity Conference-Altering the Level of Consciousness at SPI Convention Center, South Padre Island, Texas

• Subscribe to the CEDD listserv at: CEDD@hhsc.state.tx.us. Texas Health and Human Services Commission Center for Elimination of Disproportionality and Disparities (CEDD) keeps you informed of current events related to addressing disproportionality and disparities in health and human services systems.
• The Beyond the Bench Summit was on December 14, 2016 in Dallas, Texas. The Summit brought together Texas judges, law-enforcement officers, and national, state, and community leaders with the objective of strengthening trust and confidence in our justice system. Here is an article with more information and a toolkit for creating your own Beyond the Bench Summit. Beyond the Bench Article and Beyond the Bench Toolkit
• The new interactive databook is here! CPS Interactive Databook

  As of yet, it does not have all the measures included in the printed databook but the measures that it does have can be drilled down by county, age, race/ethnicity and other factors.

The number of homeless people living on the streets of Dallas, Collin counties is up drastically. by Tasha Tsiaperas
Dallas Morning News 3/9/17

Want to know more information about Homeless Youth and their rights? Check out the Region 10 ESC McKinney-Vento Homeless webpage.

The Dallas Disproportionality and Disparities Advisory Council is an action-based committee that addresses the issues of disproportionality and disparities within Dallas County by developing community-based initiatives to increase awareness about the issue through advocacy, education, and changes in policy.

To help us achieve this goal, representatives from health and human services agencies, community representatives, leaders, parents, and youth join us in an advisory capacity. Our vision is to create a system in which children, youth, families and other vulnerable citizens’ best interest are met and they have a strong, informing voice. Inclusive partnerships and shared leadership across systems and the community will help us realize the vision for the children, youth and families for whom system improvement efforts exist.

Meetings will be held from 2:00-3:30pm at Dallas CASA 2757 Swiss Ave., Dallas, TX 75204 on the second Thursday of each month with the exception of August and December or as approved by the committee members.

Email: pamela.baker@region10.org
Website: http://www.texasdispro.com/
Phone: 972-348-1654