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Family Development with CFSA 2.0

Category

Family Support

Child's Age

Prenatal, 0-1 years, 1-2 years, 2-3 years, 3-4 years, 4-5 years

Participant

Parents/Guardian

Languages

English, Spanish, Other

Brief Description

Family Development services include the provision of intensive development, casework, and support, building off of Family Navigation, to help families with children 0-5 navigate social services, community resources, and/or healthcare as part of working towards the family's goals related to growth and self-sufficiency utilizing the Colorado Family Support Assessment (CFSA 2.0) with the Family Pathways Framework (FPF) developed by Colorado’s Family Resource Center Association (FRCA). Must be done in collaboration with the Family Navigation with CFSA 2.0 PID.

Expected Impact

  • Improved CFSA 2.0 scores, including the domains of income, savings, debt management, secure housing, employment, food security, quality child care, adult education, transportation, and physical and mental health
  • Movement from the CFSA 2.0 “vulnerable” score of 2 and “safe” score of 3 in the domains of savings, housing, employment, child care, food security, and physical and mental health

Core Components for Model Fidelity

The Essential Service Components of the Family Development Service: 

  • Family-Centered Approach*: Family-centered practices that are responsive to family needs, are flexible and involve family choice. Based on strong relationships, where power is shared rather than used, staff help participants take steps toward change and develop respect.
    *LPs will use the Standards of Quality for Family Strengthening self-assessment to ensure high quality implementation.
  • Intake and Screening: The intake process must include screening questions to identify the urgency of a family's needs and their initial readiness to engage in goal-setting to better direct services.
  • Concrete Emergency Services: Referrals and basic needs services (i.e., food, clothing, housing) are critical for a family to access eligible resources and financial supports before setting longer-term goals that lead to their family's well-being.
  • Family Assessment, Service Matching & Goal-Setting, and Ongoing Follow-up Assessments and Goal-Setting: Trained staff use Motivational Interviewing, an interview-based approach to facilitating change, to initiate strength-based relationships to promote trust and elicit readiness to set their own goals to address priorities. Administer the Colorado Family Support Assessment (CFSA 2.0) to identify referral or direct service delivery opportunities that meet families’ unique and often complex needs. The baseline assessment responses facilitate the effective provision of services to match their needs.
  • Evaluation: An essential component of implementing FPF is evaluating progress and modifying program delivery based on outcomes. Staff collect family-level data to track goal progress and use evaluation tools and data to improve the effectiveness of services and programs.

Languages Materials are Available in

English, Spanish, Other*

*Contact purveyor about additional available languages.

Delivery Mode

In-person or virtual interview-based meetings in the home, at the agency, at community partner organizations, and at community places (library, coffee shop, park, etc.).

Dosage

Varies to meet a family’s level of need and readiness to change. The CFSA 2.0 assessment is administered at baseline and at intervals of 30-90 days for as long as the families/individual stays engaged in services. Progress is tracked through regular follow-up assessments and regular family support meetings occur between assessments.

Infrastructure for Implementation

Materials: Screening survey/form and assessment (CFSA 2.0).

Space: Confidential space for family discussions. 

Other: Establish Implementation team, leadership including board buy-in.

Staffing Requirements

Staff do not require credentials of specific education. Some of the staff delivering this model have a Social Worker background or human services background. Additionally, a good portion of staff are prior recipients/graduates of FDS. We believe our training package gives staff the training needed to work with families. We adopted and aligned the Standards of Quality for Family Strengthening and Support based on the Principles of Family Support Practice and the Strengthening Families Framework and its research-based evidence-informed 5 Protective Factors. The Standards have created a common language across different kinds of Family Strengthening and Family Support programs and support staff working with families in a strengths-based approach.

Training for Model Fidelity

There are two levels of requirements for using the CFSA 2.0. 

NCPC recommends the following additional training options: 

  • Institute for the Advancement of Family Support Professionals (institutefsp.org)
  • Children's Trust Fund Alliance - Protective Factors  
  • REACH - Cultural Humility Toolkit
  • Additional training on specific referral and tracking data management system

Contact Information

https://www.cofamilycenters.org/service-delivery-model/

Teri Haymond: Co-Executive Director; thaymond@cofamilycenters.org, 303-388-1001 ext. 104

Cost Estimates

The cost for implementing the Family Pathways Framework varies and is based on a Comprehensive Assessment of Readiness. The Family Resource Center Association (FRCA) offers monthly virtual informational sessions. To attend one of these informational sessions, please, use this link to register. For more information and to contact the FRCA team, please use this link: https://www.cofamilycenters.org/consulting-services-inquiry-form/. 

Optional Evaluation Support:

FRCA hosts a customer relationship management platform (FRCAforce Affiliate Community), a web-based social platform to assist nonprofit organizations, social enterprises, and charities in implementing the FRCA Family Pathways Framework for improving stability, health, and well-being of families facing challenges. A subscriber-based Annual Subscription to the FRCAforce Affiliate Community platform includes:

  • 10 Authorized Users
  • Virtual training for users new to the system (up to 20 hours)
  • Training Materials (manual, videos)
  • Ongoing technical support from FRCA’s Database Administrator (up to 36 hours)
  • Built-in workflows and reporting.

Subscribing to the FRCAforce Affiliate Community platform costs $10,000 per year. Additional expenses may include:

  • Additional Authorized Users: $50 per user
  • Platform Customizations (less than 1 hour): $0.00
  • Platform Customizations (1 hour or greater): Separate SOW

Purpose Service Code (PSC)

5506 - Family Support and Well-Being Services

Program Identifier (PID)

Family Development with CFSA 2.0

Minimal Outputs for NCPC Reporting

FY 24-25:

  • Number of parents/guardians participating†    

†Select Family Support Programs data collection will include basic demographic data for parent/guardian participants including Race, Ethnicity. Data on interpretation and transportation will be collected when appropriate.  

Minimal Outcomes for NCPC Reporting

FY 24-25:

  • Increase in parent use of services 
  • Increase in Parent Social Support

Minimal Measures for NCPC Reporting

FY 24-25:

  • Parent use of services calculation AND
  • CFSA 2.0

NCPC Evidence Categorization

Evidence Informed- 2 evaluations.

Research Summary

Two of the most relevant publications on Family Development include an evaluation of the Family Pathways Framework1 and an evaluation of the Colorado Family Support Assessment (CFSA 2.0).2 These evaluations sampled primarily White and Hispanic or Latino families and families with an annual household income at or below 200% of the federal poverty level. Both evaluations used the CFSA 2.0, as administered by a family development worker at a family resource center in the Colorado Family Resource Center Association (FRCA). Results indicated gains in the domains of income, savings, debt management, secure housing, employment, food security, quality child care, adult education, transportation, and physical and mental health. In fact, families moved from the CFSA 2.0 “vulnerable” score of 2 and “safe” score of 3 in the domains of savings, housing, employment, child care, food security, and physical and mental health. 

  1. ^ See Office of Early Childhood Family Support Services Grantees (2018). This report evaluates the Family Pathways Framework used in Colorado's Family Resource Center Association (FRCA), as well as the Colorado Family Support Assessment (CFSA 2.0) for identifying family needs related to family well-being, protective factors, and readiness to change. All family resource centers (FRCs) in the FRCA follow the Standards of Quality for Family Strengthening and Support and are trained in motivational interviewing skills and use of the CFSA 2.0. Members of the FRCA follow the Colorado Family Pathways Framework to guide the provision of services and tracking data. This framework includes three paths: General Services ("light touch" services such as referrals or brief emergency assistance); Center Services (participation in programs and services like parent education programs or training classes); and Family Development (greater involvement, including working with a family development worker, setting goals, and using the CFSA 2.0 to track progress). Families may move between paths at any time to ensure their needs are being met. All families complete a brief screening after entering the FRC to identify their needs. FRCs first address families' immediate needs by providing referrals and basic services. When appropriate, family development workers administer the comprehensive CFSA 2.0 tool within the first two weeks of working with the family to establish a baseline and use this assessment to work with families to set goals using motivational interviewing. Follow-up assessments are conducted within 30-90 days after the first evaluation and roughly every 90 days thereafter. Based on CFSA 2.0 assessments completed in 2017-2018, the FRCs primarily served White (64%) and Hispanic or Latino (28%) families with 2 or more family members (81%). Most participating families (78%) reported an annual income of $29,999 and 89% of families indicated a household incomes at or below 200% of the federal poverty level. The majority of families (88%) reported 1 or more unmet needs, such as stable housing, full-time employment, reliable transportation, health insurance, and quality child care. Families reported high readiness to change, with an average score of 8.37 on a ten-point scale. Results of the CFSA 2.0 at follow-up indicated statistically significant gains in the domains of income, savings, debt management, secure housing, employment, food security, quality child care, transportation, and physical and mental health. In fact, families moved from the CFSA 2.0 "vulnerable" score of 2 and "safe" score of 3 in the domains of savings, housing, employment, child care, food security, and physical and mental health. Families in the Family Development Path also demonstrated significant increases in the Protective Factors Survey subscales of Concrete Support, Family Functioning/Resiliency, and Social Support, and maintained high scores on the Nurturing/Attachment subscale.
  2. ^ See Family & Intercultural Resource Center (2019). This report evaluates use of the Colorado Family Support Assessment (CFSA 2.0) at the Family & Intercultural Resource Center (FIRC) between 2018-2019. The CFSA 2.0 is administered by family development workers in an interview format and used to identify family strengths and unmet needs. It includes three sections: a domain matrix assessing family stability in 13 categories such as housing, income, and food security; the Protective Factors Survey; and an assessment of family readiness to change. The CFSA 2.0 is administered within the first two weeks of a family and family development worker beginning their work together. Follow-up assessments are completed every 3-6 months thereafter. Of the 234 individuals who completed the CFSA 2.0 on behalf of their family, most identified as Hispanic or Latino (61%) and White (40%). Participants could select multiple options for their race/ethnicity. The majority of respondents identified as female (84%), were ages 24-45 (77%), and had two or more family members (96%). At baseline, the majority families scored below the prevention line for income (68%) and cash savings (66%). Additional areas of unmet needs include adult education (47%), housing (39%), and health coverage (48%). At follow-up, significant gains were made in the domains of cash savings, income, housing, mental health, and physical health. Of note, significantly more respondents reported movement from the CFSA 2.0 "vulnerable" score of 2 to the "safe" score of 3 on the income, cash savings, housing, employment, and child education domains.

Researched Population

  • Families who identified as White or Hispanic or Latino
  • Families with 2 or more family members
  • Families at or below 200% of the federal poverty level

Office of Early Childhood Family Support Services Grantees. (2018). Family Pathways & CFSA 2.0 Evaluation Report. https://earlychildhoodframework.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/CO-Family-Resource-Center-Association-Family-Pathways-CFSA-Evaluation-11.8.18.pdf

Family & Intercultural Resource Center. (2019). CFSA 2.0 Evaluation Report. https://www.summitfirc.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/2019-Family-and-Intercultural-Resource-Center_Center-Level-Report-1.pdf

Family Development Service (FDS), the more service-intensive path in the Family Pathways Framework, is a family support model centered on establishing a goal-setting partnership between families and trained staff. The FDS approach recognizes all families have strengths on which to build, supports families to recognize and exercise their power, and promotes access to resources that are available in their communities to help them achieve their immediate, short- and long-term goals toward family and child well-being.



Local Partnerships Currently Implementing

Local Partnerships in purple have adopted Family Development with CFSA 2.0. Local Partnership contact information can be found here.