Notes from September 27, 2007 Child Welfare Network Meeting

Attendees

The following individuals attended Child Welfare Network meeting at the Las Vegas Country Club:

• Ms. Jennifer Bevacqua, Olive Crest Homes
• Mr. Chris Brooks
• Ms. Stephanie Charter, Children's Attorney Project, Clark County Legal Services
• Ms. Donna Coleman
• Ms. Adrienne Cox, Adrienne Cox Consulting
• Ms. Heather duBoef, Nevada Women's Philanthropy
• Ms. Anya Earl, SAFY
• Ms. Sharon Feeney, The Adoption Exchange
• Ms. Jill Galloway, Department of Family Services - Caregiver Services
• Ms. Amanda Gillespie, AHEC of Southern Nevada
• Ms. Nancy Gillis, Center for Independent Living
• Ms. Cindy Gower, Foster Connect
• Ms. Cyndy Ortiz Gustafson, CMO Consulting
• Mr. Eric Hilton, Conrad Hilton Foundation
• Dr. Stephanie Holland, Child Focus
• Ms. Toby Hyman, State of Nevada Family Resource Center
• Ms. Flora Jackson, Through the Eyes of a Child Foundation
• Mr. Gard Jameson, Children's Advocacy Alliance
• Ms. Debbie Kehl, Center for Independent Living
• Mr. Larry Lovelett, Nevada Partnership for Homeless Youth
• Ms. Beth Marek, Department of Juvenile Justice
• Ms. Juanita Maxwell, Bridge Counseling Associates
• Ms. Patty Merrifield, State of Nevada Division of Family and Child Services
• Mr. Tom Morton, Clark County Department of Family Services
• Ms. Phyllis Murray, Postosi Pines Camp
• Ms. Sandi Nathan, Change, Inc.
• Ms. Suzanne Orlando, Las Vegas Home Health Agency
• Ms. Shelia Parks, Eighth Judicial District Court, Family Division
• Mr. Scott Reynolds, CCSD
• Ms. Mary Rosenthal, AHEC of Southern Nevada
• Judge Cynthia Dianne Steel, Clark County Family Court
• Ms. Chris Sutherland, Sutherland ~ Edwards, LLC
• Ms. Denise Tanata-Ashby, Nevada Institute for Children's Research & Policy
• Ms. Karen Taycher, Nevada P.E.P., Inc.
• Ms. LeLisa Watkins, The Adoption Exchange
• Ms. Stacey Wedding, Professionals in Philanthropy, LLC
• Ms. Susan Westbrook, Nevada Community Foundation
• Ms. Hilary Westrom, Children’s Advocacy Alliance
• Mr. Kenton Williams, 100 Black Men
• Mr. Reshard Wilson, St. Judes Ranch for Children
• Ms. Candace Young-Richey, Consultant

Welcome and Introductions

Chris Sutherland opened the meeting and had everyone introduce themselves.

Vision & Mission Update and Feedback

Chris Sutherland explained that while the group had originally convened through efforts of the Ritter Charitable Trust and the Nevada Community Foundation, the group is independent of both entities and has indicated their desire to keep meeting and has begun developing a mission and vision to define how they want to move forward.

At the May meeting, a small task force was formed to concentrate on refining the language of the vision and mission statements based on the consensus reached during the meeting. The task force is comprised of Lien Bragg, Flora Jackson, Natalie Filpic and Gard Jameson.

Chris Sutherland brought forward the task force’s recommendations and questions for the larger group to discuss. Through a facilitated discussion, the following was agreed to:

VISION

The Child Welfare Network has at its core the interests of every child in Nevada’s child welfare system: we seek to create public accountability and better outcomes for the children and their families that it exists to serve.

MISSION

The Child Welfare Network’s mission is to:

• Support information-sharing by providing a forum where individuals and organizations concerned about children in Nevada’s child welfare system can exchange resources, ideas,problems and solutions through learning from one another and providing all members an opportunity to be heard;
• Promote collaboration among service providers, county and state administrators, educators, parents and foster parents, youth, private funders and concerned citizens with the collective focus on the best interests of children who are fundamentally our constituents; and,
• Take action that leads to real results by advocating with a united voice on child welfare issues to improve services and supports that respond to the needs of (improve the lives of) children and families in Clark County.

Please note that there was not consensus on the third bullet above, so the original task force agreed to re-work it to present a final version at the next meeting.

Review of 2007 Legislative Session, Q&A and Planning for Next Session

Stacey Wedding reminded the group that they had indicated an interest in advocating around a particular child welfare issue and that we had invited an expert to share outcomes from the most recently ended legislative session and to assist us in better understanding the legislative process and timeline we should be using as we move forward. Stacey introduced Denise Tanata Ashby, Executive Director at UNLV’s Nevada Institute for Children’s Research and Policy, School of Public Health.

Denise provided a list of child welfare bills from the 2007 Nevada Legislative Session. She highlighted four major bills: AB147, AB261, AB263, and AB507. Attached is the comprehensive list of child welfare bills along with the document further detailing the four bills highlighted during her presentation. The descriptions are directly from the Legislative Counsel Bureau and provide a broader explanation for each. You can also click on the bill numbers to go directly to that bill’s page on the Nevada Legislature website.

Stacey asked Denise how soon to get started on identifying an issue the Network can rally around and bring forth in the 2009 Legislative Session. Denise emphasized that it is never to early to educate legislators on issues and that it is rather important to start this work as soon as possible. She also mentioned that her organization is working with Every Child Matters to broaden and promote awareness and action around children’s issues in the upcoming presidential campaign.

Chris Sutherland thanked Denise Tanata for the report and asked the Child Welfare Network if they wanted to play a role in the next legislative session.

Gard Jameson informed the group that the Children’s Advocacy Alliance is hiring an educator to facilitate the process of educating legislators. He recommended a think tank where members of the group and others could review of the bills that passed, those that didn’t but should have, as well as what other groups are advocating for. The smaller group agreed would develop a short list of priorities for everyone to rally around. Several individuals indicated their interest in attending that this was a sound approach, and a few people noted the strength of a large and representative group like the Network in rallying behind an issue. Others recommended that we all agree on the Network’s position and expand our bandwidth by partnering with other agencies who are interested in the same issues. It was noted that Tom Morton is in a position to have ideas about legislation that could and should be moved forward. It was also noted that the Citizen’s Advisory Committee has been revitalized, which might provide additional leverage in this process. The smaller group would develop a short list of priorities and recommendations to bring back to the entire Network at the next meeting in January. Several individuals indicated their interest in attending the smaller group meeting that will take place on November 13 from 11:00 a.m. — 2:00 p.m. The Nevada Community will send out an invite and coordinate details and logistics. Those who agreed to attend include:

• Adrienne Cox from the Ritter Charitable Trust
• Stephanie Holland from Child Focus
• Juanita Maxwell or Jackie Harris from bridge counseling Associates
• Scott Reynolds from CCSD
• Mary Rosenthal or Rose Yuhos from AHEC of So. NV and Prevent Child Abuse Nevada
• Karen Taycher from NV P.E.P. and Children’s Mental health Consortium
• Cherie Townsend (or Beth Marek) from Dept. of Juvenile Justice
• Hilary Westrom from Children’s Advocacy Alliance and Children’s Mental Health Consortium

It was also suggested that an invitation be extended to Tom Morton and Lien Bragg, Judge Steele, a representative from the Citizen’s Advisory Committee, Assemblywoman Susan Gerhardt and Assembly Speaker Barbara Buckley.

The next meeting of the entire Child Welfare Network is to be held January 31, 2008 at which the group will be presented with the preliminary recommendations of the smaller working group.

Other Helpful Information Shared at the Meeting

• Into the World Washoe & rural counties will be available soon. Please provide comments to Hilary regarding the current books.
• The annual report on Clark County Child Death Review is available on-line at http://nic.unlv.edu/pdf/2006 Clark County CDR Report Final 7.25.07.
• Heather DuBoef representing the NWP announced that they are in their last stages of outreach for grant applications. Next year they hope to award $500,000. Applicants must be invited to apply. If anyone has a major collaborative project and is not in current discussions with a member of NWP, you should reach Heather by e-mail nwp@nevadacf.org as soon as possible.
• There have been changes to the regulations on sex offenders. Visit the website at www.nvsexoffenders.gov.
• Referencing her role as a Nevada legislator, Judge Diane Steele offered to be a resource and help us however possible.

Closing