It Takes a Village Action Team

Permanency Enhancement Initiative (PEI) Strategic Plan

Vision: Encouraging and Empowering Parents to Build Stronger Families

Mission: To help empower families through community collaboration, resource enhancement, skill development, and advocacy to safely reunite children with their families thereby reducing the number of African American children in foster care.

1

Objectives

Outreach

#1 – By June 2011, increase parent and or community involvement in the action team by 10%.

Resource Development

 #2 – By April 2012, implement quarterly birthparent orientations for parents within the ITAV community.

 #3 – By July 2012, secure funding to support programmatic activities of the action team.

Policy/ Practice

 #4 – By March 2012, make recommendations based on the results of the Birthparent survey.

Strategies:

1. Promote diverse stakeholder involvement in the It Takes A Village action team (Outreach)
2. Provide birthparent orientation resources to birth parents in the ITAV community areas.
3. Secure creative and collaborative models of financial support for the ITAV action team program.

Updated by: PB March 31, 2011 Version 3 p. 1

Action Plan (action steps)

Objective #1 – By June 2011, increase parent and or community involvement in the action team by 10%.

Action Step / Person(s) Responsible / Date Completed / Resources Required / Potential barriers or resistance / Collaborators
Take the Show On the Road presentations / The TSOR subcommittee:
Ron Wynne
Dr. Dawn Dixon
Rita Houston
Tamara Hill
Jeanine Jones
Jeff Walker
Sharone Mitchell / June 2011 /
  • Outreach brochures
  • Interest cards
  • Power point presentation
/ Coordination
Time conflicts
Location / Director McEwen
Offer incentives to attract parents to the Action Team / Ron Wynne
Marsha Harris / June 2011 /
  • Incentives for parents
  • Resource development
/
  • Action Team meeting time
  • Conflict of interest
  • Parents’ availability
/
  • The Director
  • CAPS meetings
  • Birth Parent Council

Identify and present to local Parent Cafés /
Ron Wynne
Michael Byrd / April –August 2011 /
Brochures /
Parent Café location and schedules /
  • Strengthening Families Illinois
  • Local Parent Cafés

Identify and collaborate with school via social workers / Jeanine Jones / May and Oct 2011 /
  • Excel spread sheets
  • School Contacts
/ Academic calendar
Hold informational session for Intact Families on the Differential Response program / Lyn Matsey
Ron Wynne
Randy Sadler /
  • Brochures
/
  • Womazetta Jones
  • Rita Sandler

Objective #2 – By April 2012, implement quarterly birth parent orientation for parents within the ITAV community.

Action Step / Person(s) Responsible / Date Completed / Resources Required / Potential barriers or resistance / Collaborators
Draft Birth parent orientation based on birth parent survey findings /
Birth Parent subcommittee
Jeffery Walker / December 2011 / Printed materials /
Birth Parent Council
Present orientation to
Birth Parent Council and other stakeholders / Birth Parent subcommittee /
November 2011 /
  • Space
  • Audio Visual equipment
  • Food
  • Childcare
  • incentives
/
  • Birth parent Council
  • Local Parent Cafés
  • Statewide Database
  • Intact program
  • DNet

Create final orientation based on feedback / Birth Parent subcommittee / May 2012
Develop list of acronyms and terms widely used in Family Court cases / Birth Parent Subcommittee:
Randy Sadler
Charla Blanchard
Kimberlie Boone
Rita Houston
Khalid Scott /
April, 2011 /
Printing/ UIC /
  • Family Court
  • Old court documents
  • Court videos

Objective #3 – By July 2012, secure funding to support programmatic activities of the action team.

Action Step / Person(s) Responsible / Date Completed / Resources Required / Potential barriers or resistance / Collaborators
Research possible grants to support the work of the ITAV Action Team / Randy Sandler
Marsha Harris
Jeffery Walker
UIC Technical Assistance
/
Ongoing /
Donor’s forum
/
All volunteer run
No 501c3 Status / UIC Technical Assistance
Form Grants/ Development sub-committee /
Randy Sandler
Jeffery Walker
Marsha Harris
Julia Wesley
Karen Harrington
Sharone Mitchell /
March 2011
[Completed] /
Grant geared at incentives for parents / Challenging economy /
  • UIC Technical Assistance
  • Stakeholders

Research and create governance structure ` / Funding subcommittee / October 2011 /
Joint programs /
Limited funds
larger economic climate /
  • UIC Technical Assistance
  • Stakeholders

Apply for 501c3 Status or identify a parent organization / Randy Sandler
Jeffery Walker / January 2012 /
Time
Grant Writing
Skills management /
  • State of Illinois
    DHS website
  • Elite Management
  • Randy Sadler

Objective #4 – By Spring 2012, make recommendations based on the results of the Birthparent survey.

Action Step / Person(s) Responsible / Date Completed / Resources Required / Potential barriers or resistance / Collaborators
Finalize changes to the survey proposal with the IAAFC /
Jeffery Walker /
January 2011
[Completed] /
  • Time
  • Miscommunication
/
  • IAAFC
  • IRB
  • Noni Gaylord-Harden

Synthesize and present survey development back to Action Team community /
Jeffery Walker
Randy Sandler /
February 2011
[Completed] /
Survey /
  • IAAFC
  • Noni Gaylord-Harden

Training for Survey Administers / Survey Administers / May 2011 / Surveys
Training Protocols
/ Time /
  • UIC

Distribute survey to POS agencies, CPD, DCFS workers, POS agencies, and to Parent Cafes /
Survey subcommittee /
June-November 2011 /
Survey /
Time /
  • POS agencies
  • CPD
  • DCFS workers
  • Parent Cafes

Analyze finding from survey /
Survey subcommittee
Jeffery Walker /
August- September 2011 /
Survey results
Software /
IAAFC
Develop Birth parent orientation /
Birth Parent subcommittee
Jeffery Walker / March 2012 /
Printed materials /
  • Strengthening Families Illinois
  • Birth Parent Council
  • FACs

Input for the It Takes a Village Action Team VMOSA provided by the following team members:

 ___Lyn Matsey______

 ___Rita Houston______

 ___Ron Wynne______

 ___Jeffery Walker ______

 ___Tamara Hill ______

 ___Randy Sadler ______

 ___Marsha Harris ______

 ___Khalid Scott ______

 ___Charla Blanchard______

 ___Dr. Dawn Dixon______

 ___Karen Harrington______

 ___Jeanine Jones ______

 ___Ramina Velez______

 ___Renee Warren______

 ___ Kimberlie Boone ______

 ___Charlene Johnson______

 ___Sharone Mitchell______

 ___Michael Byrd______

 ___Quan Williams______

 ___Carmen Velazquez______

Updated by: PB March 31, 2011 Version 3 p. 1