Appendix G: Caseworker Advance E-mail

OMB #: XXXX-XXXX

Expiration Date: XX/XX/XXXX

Identifying and Addressing Human Trafficking in Child Welfare Agencies:

Caseworker Advance E-mail

Dear [NAME],

Thank you for agreeing to talk with our study team about [site’s] approach to human trafficking screening and service provision. We look forward to talking with you on [Date] at [time]. Below are a few things to review in advance of the discussion.

This interview is part of a research study sponsored by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families. The study is being carried out by RTI International, an independent, non-profit research institute. The study is intended to describe child welfare practice in screening for human trafficking and connecting children and youth to services that meet their needs.

[SITE] is one of up to eight sites selected for this study. In these sites, we will interview local human trafficking coordinators and casework supervisors about screening for human trafficking, specialized services for children and youth who are identified as trafficked or at high risk of trafficking, and training related to screening.

Your agency has identified you as someone who is familiar with case histories of one or more children or youth who have been identified as trafficked. For each of these case histories, we will conduct an interview that walks through the youth’s history in terms of maltreatment experiences, out-of-home care, identification of the youth as trafficked, and services that the youth received. We expect that all the information we ask will be included in case files; you do not need to do any special preparation for the interview.

Someone in your agency will have identified these children or youth for you. Please do not give us names or other information that will identify this child or youth. We will use a made-up name during the interview. Below is some additional information about your participation in this study. We can discuss this when we talk on [date].

• Participation in this interview is completely voluntary

• The information that we collect from you is private to the extent permitted by law. We keep your interview answers on a secure computer and all staff involved in this research signed a Privacy Pledge.

• In the future, information from this study may be securely shared with qualified researchers to help improve supports for children and youth who have experienced trafficking.

• When we summarize what is learned from this study, we will report on innovative practices and challenges described by different states and counties (jurisdictions). If you prefer that we not identify your state and agency in relation to anything you describe, let us know and we will be sure that it is not reported. We will not use your name in any reports.

• Reports will not include your name or any identifying information of any child or youth.

• With your permission, we will audio-record the interview. This recording will be a backup to our written notes, and only shared with the study team.

• You may choose to not answer certain questions or to not take part in the interview at any time.

• We expect this interview to take about sixty minutes.

• If you have any questions, you may contact Melissa Dolan, the director for this study, at 312.456.5247 or mdolan@rti.org.

Sincerely,

[STUDY STAFF]

The described collection of information is voluntary and will be used to improve supports for children and youth who have experienced trafficking. Public reporting burden for the collection of information is estimated to average 60 minutes per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and reviewing the collection of information. An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. The OMB number and expiration date for the described collection are OMB #: XXXX-XXXX, Exp: XX/XX/XXXX. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden to Melissa Dolan, 230 W Monroe St., Suite 2100, Chicago, IL 60606.

Caseworker Advance E-mail, Page 1