Northeast and Caribbean Implementation Center

The Northeast and Caribbean Implementation Center (NCIC) is one of five regionally-focused Child Welfare Implementation Centers currently in the Children’s Bureau Training & Technical Assistance Network. We engage with State and Tribal child welfare agencies in Regions 1 & 2 (New England States, New York, New Jersey, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands) to provide resources and support aimed at improving the quality and effectiveness of child welfare services for children, youth and families. The NCIC Team works with child welfare leaders and managers to:

• enhance agency and tribal capacity to effectively implement and sustain systemic change;
• facilitate communication and peer-to-peer networking;
• contribute knowledge about effective implementation in the child welfare field; and
• support intensive implementation projects.

Current NCIC State and Tribal Projects:

• Massachusetts: Enhancing Supervisory Capacity to Support and Sustain the New DCF Integrated Casework Practice Model
• New Hampshire: Statewide Family-Centered Practice Model for Child Welfare and Juvenile Justice
• New Jersey: Managing with Data to Improve Outcomes for Children and Families
• New York: Building a System of Sustainable Supports for Child Welfare Supervision
• Vermont: Comprehensive Statewide Practice Model Implementation
• Penobscot and Passamaquoddy Tribal Consortium: Building Tribal Practice Models and Compatible Data Tracking Systems

Child Welfare Implementation Centers were created by the Children’s Bureau to offer more intensive, longer term training, technical assistance and support for states and tribes to implement projects requiring systemic change to improve safety, permanency and well-being outcomes for children, youth and families. This work is grounded in implementation science and adaptive leadership theory. Through project experience, networking, and dissemination of learning by centers, the intent is that agencies will build capacity to implement future systems change.

Project website:  http://muskie.usm.maine.edu/ncic/