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Shared Leadership: Engaging Family Voices to Strengthen

Families

Presented by:Diana Autin, SPANKathy Roe, Parents

AnonymousSh’corah Yehudah, SPAN

On behalf of the

Prevention Subcommittee of the NJ Task Force on Child Abuse & Neglect©Statewide Parent Advocacy

Network 2005

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Goals & Objectives

• Assess readiness/gauge knowledge, skills and commitment to partner with families in prevention through shared leadership

• Review family support & parent leadership theory & strategies

• Provide opportunities to implement/practice effective strategies in family partnership

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Introductions

• State your name and role within DPCP

• Identify one thing you would like to learn/get out of your participation today

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Experiences with Parent Leadership

• Work in groups of 5• Discuss 3 positive &

3 negative experiences you have had to date in seeking to recruit and work with families

• Capture on flip chart

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Spectrum of Prevention

• Level 1: Strengthening individual knowledge & skills

• Level 2: Promoting community education

• Level 3: Educating Providers

• Level 4: Fostering coalitions & networks

• Level 5: Changing organizational practices

• Level 6: Influencing policy & legislation

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Level 1: Strengthening individual knowledge &

skills

• Enhancing individual capability to prevent harm and promote wellness

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Level 2: Promoting Community Education

• Reaching groups of people with information & resources to promote health & safety and minimize harm

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Level 3: Educating Providers

• Informing providers who will transmit skills & knowledge to others

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Level 4: Fostering Coalitions & Networks

• Convening groups & individuals for broader goals & greater impact

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Level 5: Changing organizational practices

• Adopting regulations & shaping norms to improve outcomes

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Level 6: Influencing Policy & legislation

• Developing strategies to change laws & policies to influence outcomes

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Examples of Spectrum Levels

• Brainstorm one example of each level:– Individual capacity-building– Promoting community education– Educating providers– Fostering coalitions & networks– Changing organizational practices– Influencing policy & legislation

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What is Family Support?

• A set of beliefs & an approach to strengthening & empowering families & communities

• Grassroots, community-based programs designed to promote family cohesion & prevent family problems

• A shift in service delivery• A movement for social

change

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How does family support work?

• Interventions are comprehensive and within the context of the family and the community

• Interventions promote positive behaviors & outcomes, instead of just treating problems

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How does family support work?

• Interventions focus on family-identified needs & hopes, not the wishes of professionals

• Interventions see the family as a part of its larger community

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How does family support work?

• Interventions help strengthen the family’s networks and use those networks as the major source of support

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What is the goal of family support?

• To help families learn and use the knowledge and skills they need to be effective as a family within their community

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How can you tell if it’s family support?

• Relationships are built on equality & respect

• Families learn how to get what they need

• Families are involved at every step of the way

• Family strengths are recognized and built on

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How can you tell if it’s family support?

• The diversity and cultural, racial, and language identities of families are celebrated & affirmed

• Communities are strengthened

• There is advocacy for fair, responsive & accountable systems

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BELIEFS:Family-Professional

Partnership• Families &

professionals work together in relationships based on equality & mutual respect

• Families are partners on the individual, program, agency, & systemic levels

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Family-Professional Partnership

• Important techniques:– Active listening– Empathy– Sincere caring– Recognition &

appreciation of existing knowledge & skills

– Focus on strengthening knowledge & skills

– Shared decision-making

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BELIEFS:Empowering & Strengths-

Based• Build on the

knowledge & skills of families & communities

• Help families realize their own strengths to promote the healthy development of their children

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Empowering & Strengths-Based

• Recognize that everyone has strengths

• Create opportunities for learning & use of new skills & knowledge

• Support self-efficacy, self-reliance, positive mental health, competency, mastery of skills: “assets-building”

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Who is a parent leader?

• Committed to making positive changes in his/her family, community, &/or system

• Represents a parent voice, not a staff role

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Shared leadership is important because:

• Multiple perspectives & diverse strengths and talents are combined to achieve goals

• Families know how systems really work “on the ground”

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We learn leadership in many ways

• Learn from others who serve as role models

• Learn from formal training

• “Just do it”

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Practices of Exemplary Leadership

I. Challenging the processII. Inspiring a shared visionIII. Enabling others to actIV. Modeling the WayV. Encouraging the heart

In pairs, answer “I acted this way when I…”

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Why do parents get involved?

• They believe the issue is important to them and their family

• They believe they have something to contribute

• They believe that they will be listened to and their contributions respected

• They believe that their participation will make a difference

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How do parents stay involved?

• Multiple opportunities for participation, from a small contribution of time to progressively larger contributions of time and effort

• The level of participation varies depending on life circumstances.

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How do parents stay involved?

• Families receive sufficient advance notice

• Family participation is facilitated:– Child care– Transportation– Dinner– Compensation for time– Education & information in

understandable language & formats

– Mentoring/pairing with experienced family member

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How do families stay involved?

• Families are listened to; their ideas are supported & respected

• Families do not experience retribution as a result of their participation

• Family participation has an impact

• Family participation is consciously & visibly appreciated

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Pathways to Parent Leadership

• Critical supports:– Contact with other

parents in leadership roles

– Opportunities to take on leadership roles, however small, & safe settings to practice them

– Relationship with respected & trusted person who provides feedback & support

– Sense of belonging

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Ten Steps to Success

1. Commitment leading to participation, growth & change

2. A sense of belonging3. Exposure to other parents who

demonstrate leadership behaviors & are acknowledged as leaders

4. Recognition of the need to take action5. Encouragement from others who view

the parent as a leader

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Ten Steps to Success

6. Taking action7. Receiving positive feedback & support

from trusted others who “mirror back” the strengths & leadership skills displayed in earlier actions

8. Continuing to take action & receive supportive feedback

9. Growing stronger & more confident as a leader

10.Becoming a role model for other parents

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Primary Supports needed

• Tangible (stipends, provision of or reimbursement for childcare and transportation and reimbursement for lost wages).

• Tangible supports allow parents to fully participate in parent leadership activities, without creating an economic burden on them.

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Primary Supports needed

• Emotional (respect, understanding, validation, and ongoing support to fulfill their parent leadership roles, including times of transition and crisis).

• Emotional supports provide parent leaders with the encouragement they need to feel confident in their new parent leadership roles and to know that others will be there for them as they grow through these experiences

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Primary Supports needed

• Environmental (training, equality with service providers, and full inclusion in activities.

• Environmental supports give parent leaders

the tools and skills to achieve shared leadership through training in effective public speaking, media interviews, and co-training with staff which emphasize the full equality and inclusion of parent leaders in agency and organizational settings and activities.

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Roles for parent leaders

• What roles are available or might be created for parent leaders in New Jersey’s child welfare system change?

– At the prevention program level– At the community level– At the county level– At the state level

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Roles for parent leaders

• Role model for other parents• Co-trainers• Contributor to materials• Participant at conferences, meeting• Paid consultant• Grant reviewer• Participant in evaluation & quality

improvement activities

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Roles for parent leaders

• Participant in needs/strengths assessment processes

• Advocate for individuals, families, programs, system change

• Participant in focus groups• Advisory Board or Board member• Witness at public hearings• Public speaker• Media interviewee/spokesperson

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Working together in shared leadership

• Think of a time when you had a successful partnership to accomplish your goals…

– What did you bring to the partnership?– What did your partner bring?– How did you know it was working?

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Essential Elements of shared leadership

• Mutual respect for skills & knowledge

• Mutually agreed upon goals

• Trust & honesty• Clear & open

communication• Shared planning &

decision-making

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Essential Elements of shared leadership

• Shared resources• Mutual sharing of

information• Shared evaluation

of progress• Commitment to

shared leadership• Other elements?

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Benefits of shared leadership

• Benefits to:– Parent leaders– Staff– Families– Agencies– Larger society– Others

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Why can’t we get “the parents?”

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Barriers to shared leadership

• Possible barriers– Lack of time– Lack of funds– Difficulties in

creating roles– Language,

literacy, knowledge barriers

– Work status of parent leaders

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Am I ready for shared leadership?

• Do I really want to work in a shared leadership model?

• Will my supervisor support me?

• What policies and practices will be a problem?

• What costs will be involved and how will I pay for them?

• How does this fit my approach to working with parents now?

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Am I ready for shared leadership?

• How much time am I willing to commit?

• What other help do I need?

• What other tools and information do I need?

• Is there anything else I should think about?

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Are we ready for shared leadership?

• How will we work in partnership with parent leaders to further our mission?

• What successes have we had in working with parent leaders?

• What policies & practices will support our work with parent leaders?

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Are we ready for shared leadership?

• What will it cost?• What resources will

we commit?• What are

opportunities to engage parent leaders at:

– Community– County– State/systems level

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Are we ready for shared leadership?

• How will the Department, governor’s office, Child Welfare Panel, legislature support our work with parent leaders?

• What specific staff will be assigned to support parent leaders?

• What else should we think about/plan for?

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Parents’ Panel

• Be thinking about:– How was this

parent engaged? At what level(s)?

– What was the impact of their engagement on their family? On other families? On the program?

– How does this related to family support standards?

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Overcoming the Barriers:Recruiting, Selecting, Supporting

• Brainstorm places where Parent leaders might be recruited

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Recruitment

• Prevention programs• Parents Anonymous• SPAN• Head Start Policy

Councils• Community-based

organizations• PTA• Churches, temples,

mosques• Mental health, DD

Councils• Other

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Recruitment Strategies

• Brainstorm strategies that might be useful in recruiting parents to work in Shared leadership roles

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Recruitment Strategies

• Word of mouth• Media stories• Referrals from staff

in public & private agencies, schools, clinics

• Radio/TV PSAs• Letters to editor• Articles in

community, agency newsletters

• Bulletin boards

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Recruitment Strategies

• Role descriptions:– Specific tasks &

expectations– Critical expertise &

experience– Available supports

from staff & other parent leaders

– Amount of time required

– How expenses will be reimbursed

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Selecting Parent Leaders

• What things should you consider in identifying parents to serve as parent leaders?

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Possible Selection Criteria

• Currently in a parenting role

• Experience as a program participant

• Ability to relate to other parents

• Can relate personal experiences to broader social issues

• Ability to participate• Reflect the ethnic,

cultural, gender, religious diversity

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Providing Support

• What tangible, emotional, & environmental supports can you provide initially and/or on an ongoing basis to parent leaders?

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Examples of Support• Child care• Transportation• Reimbursement for lost

wages• Information re: issues,

systems, policies, practices, personnel so can participate from a fully formed perspective

• Training• Clear information on

responsibilities & decision-making authority

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Creating an Action Plan

• Objectives• Action Steps• Who’s responsible• Resources/

Supports needed• Target Completion

Date• How will we know

it’s been achieved?• Date achieved

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EFFECTIVE ADMINISTRATION:Collaboration with Families &

Communities• Advisory groups,

collaborations, & input foster family & community involvement

• Families & communities are involved in all program activities: planning, governance, administration, & evaluation

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EFFECTIVE ADMINISTRATION:Collaboration with Families &

Communities• The engagement & support

of families & communities is key to sustaining & funding family support programs

• Participation ideas:– Focus groups– Family/community

surveys– Follow-up questionnaires– Advisory groups– Participation of families

& community representatives on boards of directors

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Family Strengthening & Support:

Critical for Child Welfare• The most effective way to

keep our children safe & healthy is to ensure that their families are strong from the start.

• The most effective intervention is promotion & prevention.

• The best way to ensure policies, procedures & programs that work is to engage families from the beginning!