The Center for Children and Families is a resource center for education and information about children and families. The major funding for CCF comes from a Title IV-E contract with the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services. Dr. Karen Brown (kb01@txstate.edu) and Dr. Nancy Feyl Chavkin (nancychavkin@txstate.edu) are the Co-Directors of the Title IV-E Contract. Additional funding comes from a rural child welfare grant through the Department of Health and Human Services, a grant to educate first-generation college students who want to pursue child welfare careers, and a variety of other grants and contracts.

Goals of Title IV-E Contract

Because fewer than 25% of child protective service workers in Texas hold a Bachelors (BSW) or Masters degree in Social Work (MSW), the aim of the Title IV-E Project is to expand the contractual relationship between the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) in Region 7 and Region 8 and the Center for Children and Families. The primary goals are to:

1) Increase the qualifications and numbers of BSW and MSW graduates who enter public child welfare practice.

2) Enhance the skills of selected PRS employees through graduate social work education.

University and agency field supervisors worked cooperatively to enhance the curriculum at the university and the training at the agency. Newly developed curriculum modules focus on the most current theories and techniques associated with foster care management, permanency planning, placement, and case management in a multicultural society. The training includes content relevant to Title IV-E child and family services policies, programs and practices such as referral to services, preparation for judicial determinations, placement of children, development of case plans, case reviews, case management and supervision, and the recruitment and licensing of foster homes and institutions.

Career Opportunities

If you are interested in a career in child welfare, please contact our Grant Specialists, Martha Wildberger mw38@txstate.edu for the Austin region or Rhonda Smith rs32@txstate.edu for the San Antonio region. If you are already employed in child protective services, please contact your supervisor for application information about employee stipends at the agency and the MSW Director at Texas State for graduate school information. Our brochure has additional information about Child Welfare Career Opportunities.