Pictured (left to right): Lily Colby, Founder of the National Network for Foster Sibling Connections; Dr. Courtney Everson, Colorado Lab; and Maddie Lang-Silva, Colorado’s Office of the Child’s Representative Lived Experts Action Panel and member of the High Quality Parenting Time Task Force.
Youth
New Study Estimates Youth and Young Adult Homelessness in Colorado to be Three to Five Times Larger than Previous Estimates
A new research study used more comprehensive and innovative approaches to gain a clearer understanding of the reach of youth and young adult homelessness in Colorado. Unlike traditional point-in-time counts, the study linked unduplicated data from the administrative records of three major systems that identify and support youths experiencing homelessness— the Colorado Department of Education, […]
Capacity Building: Family First Continuous Quality Improvement
The Colorado Lab serves as the Family First Evidence-Building Hub, providing guidance to the Colorado Department of Human Services (CDHS) to ensure strategic investments in evidence building for child welfare programs and services that aim to keep children safe and more families together. We’re excited to celebrate an important milestone in this work: the Continuous […]
Family First Evidence-Building Hub: Annual Strategy Report
Colorado is making strong progress on implementation of its Five-Year Family First Prevention Services Plan. The plan is part of a broader strategy to further evolve the child welfare system to improve the safety and well-being of all children, youth, and families through a continuum of community-based prevention services and supports. The Colorado Lab serves […]
New Projects Underway at the Colorado Lab
In this month’s newsletter we highlight several new projects underway at the Colorado Lab. We value the opportunity to work with each partner, meeting them where they are, listening carefully to their needs and insights, and supporting them in obtaining the best available evidence to innovate, achieve goals, and use their resources wisely. We wish […]
Improving Response to Youth Who Run Away from Out-of-Home Placement
Family First Evidence-Building Hub Updates
Colorado’s Five-Year Family First Prevention Services Plan (Colorado’s Plan) promotes use of evidence-based programs and services in child welfare to help keep children safe and more families together. The Colorado Lab leads the Family First Evidence-Building Hub on behalf of the Colorado Department of Human Services. We recently released the State Fiscal Year 2024 Family First […]
Fostering Opportunities Final Report & Expansion
The Fostering Opportunities Final Report on the Colorado Lab-led randomized controlled trial of Fostering Opportunities shows the groundbreaking program helped students in foster care to be successful in school and earn timely high school credentials. The program was piloted in Jefferson County (Jeffco) Public Schools. Initial findings released last fall led to Fostering Opportunities becoming […]
Family First Evidence-Building Hub: Annual Evidence-Building Strategy Report
The newly-released Family First Annual Evidence-Building Strategy Report provides ongoing guidance to the Colorado Department of Human Services and Family First implementation partners to ensure strategic investments in evidence-building for programs/services positioned to meet the needs of children, youth, and families. The report includes: In coordinating rigorous evaluation efforts through the Family First Evidence-Building Hub, […]
Family First Evidence-Building Hub: Annual Report & Spotlight on External Research Partner, Colorado Implementation Science Unit
Colorado’s 5-Year Family First Prevention Services Plan advances evidence-based programs and services to support child welfare-involved families with the goal of keeping children safe and more families together. The Colorado Lab leads the Family First Evidence-Building Hub on behalf of the Colorado Department of Human Services. We work with cross-system prevention partners to co-create a […]