Government agencies and community organizations across the United States, Canada, and globally, are increasingly aware of the benefits of engaging people with lived experience in their systems change work. The Equity & Engagement Framework represents FYJP’s commitment to recognizing and understanding that families’ experiences in the child welfare dependency courts are the key to improving the system and ultimately family outcomes. Applying a framework grounded in belonging, and with a shared vision of keeping families together, FYJP invites families with lived experience, allies, court staff, and judicial officers to expand their circles of belonging and together examine and dismantle biased perceptions, policies, and practices that keep families apart, particularly families of color.
Equity & Engagement Framework
Created by applying a Racial Equity Toolkit, the Family Equity & Engagement Framework reflects FYJP’s commitment to partnering with lived experts to create a child welfare court system of belonging, with the goal of keeping families safely together. This framework sets forth core values and practices that will guide these partnerships, grounded in respect for all families.
Types of engagements contemplated in these partnerships include:
• In-person or virtual individual meetings
• Focus group discussions
• Share story at trainings
• Audio, video or written recording
• Journey Mapping, Empathy Mapping
• Development and facilitation of educational presentations
• Interactive blogging with systems teams
• On-going membership on committees or initiative working groups
• Council or advisory boards
