ECORTC's Annual

Leadership Conference                  

• Caseworker Readiness
• New Employee Orientation
• Supervisor Readiness
• Priority Training Opportunities Webpage: A webpage listing great training opportunities for staff and caregivers
• Supervisor Station: A listing of OCWTP supervisor resources
• CAPMIS Tool Kit

By Darren Varnado, Southeast Ohio Regional Training Center

Taking Advantage of "Teachable Moments"

By: Jeff Shafer, Cuyahoga County Department of Children and Family Services

When I think of teachable moments, I consider nearly every aspect of my role as a supervisor in child welfare. However, there are very concrete opportunities. Whether it is processing how workers respond to an emergency or supervise a scheduled family visit, I evaluate performance and encourage workers to build on their excellent skills. With the inception and implementation of SACWIS, workers have been challenged by taking on responsibilities of data entry that were previously managed by support staff. This in and of itself creates many opportunities for supervisors and experienced colleagues to model quality responses to CAPMIS tools and narratives in activity logs. Each agency has its own standards for quality, but one thing remains constant: a timely approach to state and federal standards that are governed by AFCARS and CPOE. It is critical for supervisors to juggle the demands of their agency's mission and the standards set forth by the governing bodies that critique our work. This is why it is so crucial for us to encourage and support the work and workers as often as possible. 

Click Here to read the full article and learn how to create teachable moments.

Dear Supervisor is our take on the well-known "Dear Abby" advice column. This segment is devoted to helping supervisors meet the challenges of the job.  The questions come from you, child welfare supervisors. If you have a challenge you'd like us to address, email us at supervisor@ihs-trainet.com.

As Supervisors we often sit with at least one degree of separation from our clients. Really understanding what our clients need is dependent upon a competent assessment by our staff. Hopefully, we've made the most of teachable moments up to this point, and our staff have benefited from a learning culture within the unit. Assuming these elements are in place, we approach the situation with the benefit of understanding the family's needs. Parents' ability to provide for their children's safety and well being often depends upon our understanding of the need and our ability to help them access matching resources.   

Click Here to read tips and strategies to connect the families we serve to the resources they need. 

After a lengthy hiatus, the Ohio Child Welfare Training Program will be launching an automated Individual Training Needs Assessment (ITNA) process soon! The ITNA and Individual Development Plans (IDP) are an important part of your staff's development and help to ensure they have all the skills and knowledge required to perform their jobs. 

Click Here to learn more about the new, automated ITNA process and what you can expect as it launches statewide.