Family Connection Discretionary Grants: 2011-Funded Family Group Decision-Making Grantees Cross-Site Evaluation Report

In 2011, the Children’s Bureau awarded 3-year grants supporting the use of family group decision-making (FGDM) to help reconnect families with children in or at risk of entering foster care.

The seven grantees conducted evaluations to improve processes and services and demonstrate linkages between project activities and improved outcomes. They also participated in a national cross-site evaluation that documented the progress and outcomes of each project and the grantee cluster as a whole.

This report presents the evaluation findings organized around questions such as—

• What are the characteristics of the children, parents, and families served by the FGDM projects?
• To what extent do the projects collaborate with key partners, particularly child welfare agencies, to serve children and families?
• How do the projects pursue continuous quality improvement as a way to improve services?
• What facilitators and challenges do the projects experience in implementing and evaluating services?
• How have the projects impacted child welfare practice in the community?
• What new policies and procedures were developed as a result of the projects?

An executive summary of the report is also available.