WRI is working with the New Jersey Department of Children and Families (DCF) on a process, training, and outcomes evaluation for New Jersey DCF’s Kinship Navigator Program (KNP), a program which supports caregivers who have taken on the responsibility of caring for their relatives’ children. KNP is managed by DCF, Division of Family and Community Partnerships (DFCP), and the Office of Family Support Services (OFSS), and contracts with four provider agencies across the state to implement the program. KNP provides essential support to families including helping caregivers “navigate” the complexities of government assistance programs, determining eligibility for KNP benefits to assist with short-term expenses for the child, and providing technical support and guidance through the process of Kinship Legal Guardianship if the caregiver wishes to make a legal commitment to the child. Through research design, data collection and analysis and writing, framed by recent child welfare research and additional kinship navigator program models, WRI is working collaboratively with DCF to deliver a comprehensive NJ Kinship Navigator Program training, process and outcome evaluation that includes a rigorous quasi-experimental component and all necessary fidelity and evaluation tools. WRI is co-leading the evaluation team and working closely with the DCF implementation team for the plan to implemented in Spring 2021. The evaluation will occur in year two of the project (2021- 2022).
Go to Rutgers University–Camden site
Senator Walter Rand Institute for Public Affairs
Building Knowledge for Policy and Practice in Southern New Jersey