Publications for caseworkers, adoption professionals, and other child welfare professionals covering research, practices, and policies
29 Bulletins for Professionals | Back To Catalog Back To Series List |
Acts of Omission: An Overview of Child Neglect
Series Title | Bulletins for Professionals |
Author(s) | Child Welfare Information Gateway |
Availability | View Download (PDF - 489KB) Order (Free) |
Year Published | 2018 |
Addresses the scope of the problem of child neglect as well as its consequences, reviews definitions and strategies for assessing neglect, presents lessons learned about prevention and intervention, and suggests sources of training and informational support. Strategies for addressing neglect, beginning with prevention, are included.
Addressing the Needs of Young Children in Child Welfare: Part C—Early Intervention Services
Series Title | Bulletins for Professionals |
Author(s) | Child Welfare Information Gateway |
Availability | View Download (PDF - 414KB) Order (Free) |
Year Published | 2018 |
Describes the intersection of child welfare and early intervention (EI), provides an overview of the EI process, and outlines the challenges and strategies for implementing EI provisions in Federal law.
Belonging Matters—Helping Youth Explore Permanency
Series Title | Bulletins for Professionals |
Author(s) | Child Welfare Information Gateway (U.S.);AdoptUSKids (Program) |
Availability | View Download (PDF - 260KB) Order (Free) |
Year Published | 2019 |
Explores how professionals can help youth in foster care consider the full range of legal and relational permanency options available to them as well as understand the feelings that may underlie a young person’s reluctance to pursue permanency.
Child Welfare Practice With Families Affected by Parental Incarceration.
Series Title | Bulletins for Professionals |
Author(s) | Child Welfare Information Gateway |
Availability | View Download (PDF - 401KB) Order (Free) |
Year Published | 2015 |
Provides an overview of the intersection of child welfare and parental incarceration; highlights practices to facilitate parent-child visits during incarceration, include parents in case planning, and work toward reunification; and points to resources to help caseworkers in their practice with these children and families.
Chronic Child Neglect
Series Title | Bulletins for Professionals |
Author(s) | Child Welfare Information Gateway |
Availability | View Download (PDF - 359KB) Order (Free) |
Year Published | 2019 |
Provides professionals with an overview of chronic child neglect, its implications for child welfare, and casework practice to address it. The bulletin also explores multisystem collaboration and partnerships, evidence-informed interventions, and the importance of hope in combatting chronic neglect. It features examples of State and local efforts to address chronic child neglect.
Concurrent Planning for Timely Permanence
Series Title | Bulletins for Professionals |
Author(s) | Child Welfare Information Gateway |
Availability | View Download (PDF - 300KB) Order (Free) |
Year Published | 2018 |
Explores concurrent planning research and practice. Examines the role of the courts, how to assess for the probability of family reunification, and caseworker training. Provides State and local examples of concurrent planning practice.
Domestic Violence and the Child Welfare System
Series Title | Bulletins for Professionals |
Author(s) | Child Welfare Information Gateway |
Availability | View Download (PDF - 416KB) Order (Free) |
Year Published | 2014 |
Discusses the extent of the overlap between domestic violence and child welfare, some of the effects of domestic violence on child witnesses, and the trend toward a more collaborative, communitywide response to the issue. It also features promising practices from States and local communities.
Family Engagement: Partnering With Families to Improve Child Welfare Outcomes
Series Title | Bulletins for Professionals |
Author(s) | Child Welfare Information Gateway |
Availability | View Download (PDF - 426KB) Order (Free) |
Year Published | 2016 |
Provides an overview of the foundational elements of the family engagement approach, followed by strategies and promising practices for implementing this approach at the case level, peer level, and systems level.
Helping Children and Youth Maintain Relationships With Birth Families
Series Title | Bulletins for Professionals |
Author(s) | Child Welfare Information Gateway |
Availability | View Download (PDF - 335KB) Order (Free) |
Year Published | 2019 |
Provides professionals with information to help children, youth, and adoptive families develop and maintain appropriate and evolving connections with their birth families. Children and youth who are adopted need to maintain relationships with their birth families, previous caregivers, or other important connections, and it is vital that their parents support them in doing so. Nurturing these relationships is in the best interests of the child, as ongoing contact with birth family members may minimize or resolve his or her feelings of grief and loss due to separation.
Human Trafficking and Child Welfare: A Guide for Caseworkers
Series Title | Bulletins for Professionals |
Author(s) | Child Welfare Information Gateway |
Availability | View Download (PDF - 278KB) Order (Free) |
Year Published | 2017 |
Due to their potentially unstable living situations, physical distance from friends and family, traumatic experiences, and emotional vulnerability, children involved with child welfare are at risk for being targeted by traffickers who are actively seeking victims to exploit. This bulletin explores how caseworkers can identify and support children who have been victimized as well as children that are at greater risk for future victimization. It provides background information about the issue, strategies caseworkers can use to identify and support victims and potential victims, and tools and resources that can assist caseworkers.
Human Trafficking and Child Welfare: A Guide for Child Welfare Agencies
Series Title | Bulletins for Professionals |
Author(s) | Child Welfare Information Gateway |
Availability | View Download (PDF - 357KB) Order (Free) |
Year Published | 2017 |
Due to their potentially unstable living situations, physical distance from friends and family, traumatic experiences, and emotional vulnerability, children involved with child welfare are at risk for being targeted by traffickers who are actively seeking children to exploit. This bulletin is intended for child welfare agency leadership and explores how child welfare agencies can support children who are victims of human trafficking, as well as children who are at greater risk for future victimization. It provides background information about the issue, including its scope and relevant Federal legislation and initiatives, and strategies that agencies can implement to address the trafficking of children. State and local policy and program examples also are provided.
Parental Substance Use and the Child Welfare System
Series Title | Bulletins for Professionals |
Author(s) | Child Welfare Information Gateway |
Availability | View Download (PDF - 413KB) |
Year Published | 2014 |
Provides child welfare workers and related professionals with information on the intersection between substance use disorders and child maltreatment and describes strategies for prevention, intervention, and treatment, including examples of effective programs and practices. The bulletin also discusses the impact of parental substance use on children, child welfare laws related to parental substance use, service delivery challenges, systems change and collaboration, and innovative prevention and treatment approaches.
Preparing Adoptive Parents
Series Title | Bulletins for Professionals |
Author(s) | Child Welfare Information Gateway |
Availability | View Download (PDF - 388KB) Order (Free) |
Year Published | 2020 |
Provides caseworkers with information and resources about the importance of preparing adoptive parents as well as how they can help prepare them for this journey. Information in this bulletin also may be pertinent for working with families formed through other types of permanency, such as guardianship. Caseworkers can support families adopting children from foster care by being upfront with them about what they might expect regarding bonding with the child, parenting a child who has experienced loss and grief, how parents and children may emotionally process the adoption, the supports available to both the child and parents, and other important topics.
Preparing Children and Youth for Adoption or Other Family Permanency
Series Title | Bulletins for Professionals |
Author(s) | Child Welfare Information Gateway |
Availability | View Download (PDF - 343KB) Order (Free) |
Year Published | 2020 |
Helps child welfare professionals better understand the feelings and emotions children may experience regarding permanency and prepare them for placements with permanent families. Its focus is on adoption, but much of the information is also applicable to children with other permanency goals, such as kinship care or guardianship. Children, including youth, leaving out-of-home care for adoption or other family permanency require preparation and support to help them understand past events in their lives and process feelings connected to their experiences of abuse and neglect, separation, and loss.
Preventing, Identifying, and Treating Substance Use Among Youth in Foster Care
Series Title | Bulletins for Professionals |
Author(s) | Child Welfare Information Gateway |
Availability | View Download (PDF - 464KB) |
Year Published | 2020 |
Youth in foster care often face multiple challenges that place them at increased risk of using substances. This bulletin provides child welfare professionals with information about the extent and effects of substance use among youth in foster care, ways to identify substance use, how to support youth in care who currently use or are at high risk for using substances, and strategies for prevention. It also addresses why and how you can collaborate with professionals in other fields.
Promoting Permanency for Older Youth in Out-of-Home Care
Series Title | Bulletins for Professionals |
Author(s) | Child Welfare Information Gateway |
Availability | View Download (PDF - 719KB) Order (Free) |
Year Published | 2019 |
Provides information for child welfare professionals about the importance of permanency for youth and strategies for achieving it. Permanency efforts for youth should include both legal permanency (e.g., reunification, adoption, kinship care) and relational permanency (i.e., a relationship or connection with a caring adult, such as a relative, neighbor, service provider, teacher, or other important person in the youth's life). These adults may provide lifelong support that can help youth transition to adulthood and may even become a legal permanent option for the youth.
Providing Adoption Support and Preservation Services
Series Title | Bulletins for Professionals |
Author(s) | Child Welfare Information Gateway |
Availability | View Download (PDF - 462KB) Order (Free) |
Year Published | 2018 |
Draws from available literature and practice knowledge to summarize key issues related to providing effective services to support the stability and permanency of adoptions. It is intended to support adoption professionals in addressing adoptive parents' and children's needs for services, recognizing key considerations in providing services, addressing emerging issues, and meeting common challenges in delivery.
Providing Background Information on Children to Prospective Adoptive Parents
Series Title | Bulletins for Professionals |
Author(s) | Child Welfare Information Gateway (U.S.) |
Availability | View Download (PDF - 0KB) |
Year Published | 2018 |
This bulletin on providing child background information is designed to assist child welfare professionals who work with families interested in adoption and/or who are about to receive a referral for an adoption placement. It begins by explaining how complete disclosure benefits the child, the family, and the adoption agency by helping families make a fully informed decision, ensuring the adoption child will have full knowledge of his or her family, medical, and genetic history, helping prospective parents understand what supports and services might be needed, and helps agencies protect against wrongful adoption lawsuits. The types of information that should be provided is then reviewed, including material information on the child’s history, written disclosure of background and health information, acknowledgement of the limitations of disclosure, and information regarding the child or youth’s potential Tribal heritage. Questions to consider about the birth family, child health, placement history, educational history are listed, and considerations for international adoption are discussed. Additional resources are listed. 6 references.
The Risk and Prevention of Maltreatment of Children with Disabilities
Series Title | Bulletins for Professionals |
Author(s) | Child Welfare Information Gateway |
Availability | View Download (PDF - 404KB) Order (Free) |
Year Published | 2018 |
Examines the statistics and research related to maltreatment of children with disabilities, risk factors, and strategies for prevention. Issues encountered when assessing a child with a disability for maltreatment are explored; and information about promising prevention, collaboration, and training approaches are outlined.
Sibling Issues in Foster Care and Adoption
Series Title | Bulletins for Professionals |
Author(s) | Child Welfare Information Gateway |
Availability | View Download (PDF - 328KB) Order (Free) |
Year Published | 2019 |
Explores relevant research, strategies, and resources to assist child welfare professionals in preserving connections among siblings. Sibling relationships can provide positive support and improved outcomes for children involved with child welfare as well as for those in the general population. Connections with siblings can serve as a protective factor for children who have been removed from their birth homes, but for a variety of reasons, siblings may not be placed together or may not have regular contact.
Supervising for Quality Child Welfare Practice
Series Title | Bulletins for Professionals |
Author(s) | Child Welfare Information Gateway |
Availability | View Download (PDF - 821KB) |
Year Published | 2020 |
Presents an overview of child welfare supervision and explores the dimensions of supervision that agencies may want to consider as they seek to strengthen the effectiveness of their services to children and families. This bulletin is designed to provide child welfare supervisors, managers, and related professionals with examples of States' efforts to strengthen supervisory capacity and with tools and resources to enhance supervisory skills.
Supporting Brain Development in Traumatized Children and Youth
Series Title | Bulletins for Professionals |
Author(s) | Child Welfare Information Gateway |
Availability | View Download (PDF - 281KB) Order (Free) |
Year Published | 2017 |
Summarizes the effects of early trauma on brain development and steps child welfare professionals can take to screen for developmental delays and identify the trauma-affected children and youth in their care. Looks at ways to access cross-sector, therapeutic, and evidence-based treatment to encourage healthy recovery for trauma-affected children and youth.
Supporting Child, Caregiver, and Family Well-Being in Times of Crisis: Strategies to Promote Effective Virtual and Phone Engagement
Series Title | Bulletins for Professionals |
Author(s) | Child Welfare Information Gateway, Child Welfare Capacity Building Center for States |
Availability | View Download (PDF - 370KB) |
Year Published | 2020 |
This bulletin for child-serving professionals outside of child protective services discusses ways to support children and their caregivers and connect them with appropriate resources that may mitigate any risks for harm during crisis situations. This document is organized by the five protective factors that build on family strengths to foster child and youth well-being and development. Each section contains questions that professionals can address with parents/caregivers and with children/youth in the course of their work with families, with an emphasis on content appropriate for virtual visits.
Supporting Successful Reunifications
Series Title | Bulletins for Professionals |
Author(s) | Child Welfare Information Gateway |
Availability | View Download (PDF - 275KB) Order (Free) |
Year Published | 2017 |
Offers information to help child welfare agency managers achieve successful reunifications. This bulletin includes a description of the benefits of supporting reunification and preventing reentries, statistics, factors that affect reunification and reentry, and relevant strategies and approaches. It also includes examples of promising practices being implemented by States and localities.
Tips for Supporting Virtual Family Time
Series Title | Bulletins for Professionals |
Author(s) | Child Welfare Information Gateway |
Availability | View Download (PDF - 393KB) |
Year Published | 2020 |
Provides child welfare professionals with an overview of how they can promote successful virtual family time, including research about virtual interactions, how to prepare children and families, and tips and activities for visits. Family time, also known as parent-child visits, is a key factor in promoting family bonding and setting the stage for successful reunification after a child has been placed in out-of-home care. Although in-person contact is the preferred method for family time, there are extreme occasions when in-person contact is not appropriate or safe, such as during the COVID-19 pandemic. Virtual family time, during which contact is established through video or streaming services, offers a safe alternative.
Working With Kinship Caregivers
Series Title | Bulletins for Professionals |
Author(s) | Child Welfare Information Gateway |
Availability | View Download (PDF - 355KB) Order (Free) |
Year Published | 2018 |
Helps child welfare professionals promote kinship care by providing kinship caregivers with information, referral, and support services to ensure the safety, permanency, and well-being of children in their care. Topics covered include the types and benefits of kinship care, training for caseworkers and caregivers, specific strategies for supporting kinship caregivers, and examples of successful State and local child welfare programs that provide services to kinship caregivers.
Working With Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Questioning (LGBTQ) Families in Foster Care and Adoption
Series Title | Bulletins for Professionals |
Author(s) | Child Welfare Information Gateway |
Availability | View Download (PDF - 770KB) Order (Free) |
Year Published | 2016 |
Helps child welfare and adoption professionals expand their cultural competence and skills when working with LGBTQ individuals and same-sex couples. It examines laws and policies and provides tips to engage this vital and distinct community effectively. This bulletin includes information about challenges faced by LGBTQ adoptive parents, challenges faced by professionals when working with LGBTQ families, supporting transgender parents, and how to create a welcoming agency.
Working With Military Families as They Pursue Adoption
Series Title | Bulletins for Professionals |
Author(s) | Child Welfare Information Gateway |
Availability | View Download (PDF - 315KB) Order (Free) |
Year Published | 2016 |
Discusses the benefits and potential challenges of working with military families who are pursuing adoption, and it describes the many resources available inside and outside of the military support structure. Benefits include the flexibility and diversity of military families, while deployment and frequent relocation can add challenges to the adoption process. Adoption professionals should be aware of the different resources available to military families who wish to adopt.
Working With Youth to Develop a Transition Plan
Series Title | Bulletins for Professionals |
Author(s) | Child Welfare Information Gateway |
Availability | View Download (PDF - 287KB) Order (Free) |
Year Published | 2018 |
Helps child welfare professionals and others who work with transitioning youth to understand the Federal legislative requirements for transition plans and partner with youth to develop a plan over time and through close youth engagement that builds on their strengths while supporting their needs.