Policy & Practice | Winter 2023

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communities to address long-standing challenges. Furthermore, administration of the CSNS program for cohort 2 is guided by APHSA’s Community Impact Council, a team of six consultants with lived expertise participating in SNAP. These consultants bring invaluable participant perspectives, and their involvement has been instrumental in embedding human-centered design and community engagement throughout the cohort. Their guidance has helped cohort 2 sites prioritize equity and engage the community in a holistic and positive manner. By setting this example, APHSA and Share Our Strength aim to showcase how human services agencies can seamlessly incorporate community engagement and co-creation into the CSNS initiative, fostering a more equi table future for all involved. Learn more about the impact of cohort 1 at bit.ly/3PtFzbo (scroll to Cohort 1, Impact Reports). Reference Notes 1. https://aphsa.org/APHSA/Policy_and_ Resources/csns.aspx 2. https://food-security.fordschool.umich.edu/

collaborate and effectively document family-finding efforts is crucial in improving efforts. Unlocking the Power of Technology The evidence in favor of kinship care placements for children in foster care is compelling, leading to a national effort to increase kinship placements and support kin in other roles. However, achieving success in this area comes with challenges, such as garnering buy-in, defining kinship policies, mea suring success beyond placement rates, overcoming biases, and addressing resourcing issues. To overcome these obstacles, technology can play a vital offered innovative ways in which human services agencies can forge partnerships to meet communities where they are, thereby providing more effective services, particularly those aimed at dismantling persistent barriers to SNAP and WIC access for under-enrolled communities. The program team at APHSA and Share Our Strength reflected on the experiences and lessons of cohort 1 to deploy exciting changes in our shared approach to the second CSNS cohort, which launched in Spring 2023. This time, SNAP agencies were explicitly required to embrace a community-driven approach by sub mitting proposals co-created in equal partnership with a trusted commu nity organization that works directly with people experiencing hunger. Applicants were also encouraged to be specific about the communities they intended to serve, resulting in projects tailored to the unique needs of populations that are underserved. This collaborative spirit sparked inno vative project proposals that advance key process changes in human services systems, drawing from the strengths of both agencies and

Ohio’s Youth-Centered Permanency Round Tables and New Hampshire’s Permanency Pact, facilitated through Foster Club, exemplify successful efforts in this area. To facilitate these promising Family Finding practices, technology tools have proven to be indispensable. Binti's Family Finding & Engagement module, designed in partnership with leading experts in the human services sector, complements these practices with various capabilities, including an exhaustive in-app search, automated outreach and documenta tion, end-to-end documentation, and dynamic genograms. Technology that empowers workers within agencies to Learning from Community and Evolving Our Approach Cohort 1 of the CSNS program highlighted the value community organizations can offer to state agencies in advancing their equity priorities and improving program par ticipation. Community-based partner organizations offered CSNS teams flexibility and community-driven perspective that government agencies often lack, and played a pivotal role in enhancing project design and impact. Community Navigators can serve as key connectors between human services agencies and their communi ties, especially in areas with significant participation gaps or where there is a heightened mistrust of government services. Prioritizing lived expertise in these positions cultivates community trust, leading to positive enrollment outcomes and opportunities to further enhance human services agency responsiveness and effectiveness for the communities they serve. Both Mecklenburg and Kansas tested com munity navigation models, which

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role in assisting practitioners in iden tifying and engaging kin, ultimately leading to improved outcomes for children in foster care. By leveraging technology and implementing best practices, agencies can move closer to achieving the goal of providing stable and nurturing kinship care placements for children in their communities.

Felicia Curcuru is the Co-Founder and CEO of Binti.

Duke Storen is the Vice President of Child Welfare Strategy at Binti and the Former Commissioner of the Virginia Department of Social Services.

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