40th Anniversary of Intensive Family Preservation Services
Click here to see photos from the 40th Anniversary Event »
Over the next weeks we will continue to share memories and thoughts about IFPS from some of its key players:
- Patrick McCarthy, Remarks at the IFPS 40th Anniversary, July 18, 2014 »
- Judge Richard (Fitz) Fitzgerald: Reflections on the Intensive Family Preservation Initiative »
- Elizabeth (Betsy) S. Cole: What Family Preservation Services Mean To Me »
- Charlie Bruner: My Personal Legacy from IFPS »
2014 Marks the 40th Anniversary of Intensive Family Preservation Services.
On July 17, past and present leaders in the IFPS movement from many national organizations (e.g. Annie E. Casey Foundation, Children’s Defense Fund, Child Welfare League of America, National Conference of State Legislators, Edna McConnell Clark Foundation, National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges) and from many states (e.g. Indiana, Louisiana, New Jersey, New York, Kentucky, Missouri, Washington) gather at Talaris Conference Center in Seattle to celebrate and chronicle the history and stories of one of the most important systems reform initiatives in child welfare in this country.
Opening Remarks by Charlotte Booth at the IFPS 40th Anniversary Gala Event »
Click here for the audio version »
Press Release
Pioneering Child Welfare Program Celebrates 40 Years
Nationally Acclaimed Program Began in Washington State in 1974
Read the press release »
40th Anniversary Schedule of Events »
Intensive Family Preservation Services 40th Anniversary 2014 Participants List »
Children’s Bureau Express
Intensive Family Preservation Turns 40 »
“Families First,” PBS
Douglas W. Nelson, Retired President and CEO of the Annie E. Casey Foundation shares his thoughts on the 40th Anniversary of IFPS and its impact on the child welfare system in the U.S.
It is an honor to join you in celebrating the Institute for Family Development’s 40th Anniversary. For many years, I had the privilege of working with the leaders that developed, supported and conducted the valuable and important work of family preservation. Due to the dedication of so many committed child welfare experts, child welfare systems now go far beyond the provision of protective investigations, foster care placements and adoption services to provide a much wider array of programing that incorporates multiple supports to both ensure children’s safety and strengthen families. This shift to better integrated service delivery – with the family at the heart of these services – would not be possible without the development of family preservation services.