Intervening in multiple states: findings from the Western Regional Recruitment Project

Area of Science:

• Social Work
• Organizational Psychology
• Public Administration

Background:

• Child welfare agencies experience significant workforce challenges.
• The Children's Bureau initiated projects to explore workforce improvement interventions.
• Recruitment and retention are critical for service delivery.

Purpose of the Study:

• To test innovative organizational interventions for child welfare workforce improvement.
• To assess the efficacy of collaborative university-agency teams in addressing workforce needs.
• To describe the organizational process and outcomes of a regional recruitment and retention project.

Main Methods:

• Utilized collaborative university-agency teams across six western sites.
• Conducted assessments of organizational needs.
• Designed and implemented intervention strategies.
• Tracked organizational outcomes using qualitative and quantitative data.

Main Results:

• Qualitative and quantitative findings indicate the approach is effective.
• The collaborative model facilitated needs assessment and intervention design.
• One site's experience provides specific examples of the process and outcomes.

Conclusions:

• Collaborative university-agency teams are an effective strategy for child welfare workforce improvement.
• The tested interventions show promise in addressing recruitment and retention challenges.
• This approach offers a replicable model for other agencies.