Attachment E-Stakeholder Interview Consent Form

Appendix E. Stakeholder Interview Consent Form

Contact After Adoption or Guardianship: Child Welfare Agency and Family Interactions

OMB Control Number: xxxx-xxxx

Expiration Date: XX/XX/XXXX

	Contact After Adoption or Guardianship: Child Welfare Agency and Family Interactions
	Case Western Reserve University, Ohio East Carolina University, North Carolina RTI International, North Carolina Sponsored by: Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families

Attachment E. Stakeholder Interview Consent Form – Adoption

Consent to Participate in a Research Study

Who is conducting this research?

The Administration for Children and Families (ACF) Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation (OPRE) and the Children’s Bureau (CB) is funding a study of child welfare agencies across the country. RTI International (RTI), a not-for-profit research organization in North Carolina, in conjunction with Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) in Ohio and East Carolina University (ECU) in North Carolina, are conducting interviews with staff from 6 child welfare agencies across the country. Up to 7 interviews will be completed with staff from each selected agency.

What is the purpose of this study?

This part of the study is a follow-up to a web survey completed by your agency recently. Based on those responses, we are following-up with agencies to learn more about innovative and important work they are doing with adoptive families.

This study seeks to understand how and what information a child welfare agency tracks about children and youth who have exited the foster care system to adoption. This will include procedures that identify children and youth who have reentered foster care after adoption. We will also ask about services provided to adoptive families, and the systems that track those services. The federal government is funding a study to explore the various ways child welfare agencies are in contact with or receive information about families after adoption from the foster care system.

What will I be asked to do?

We are asking you to participate in a 90-minute video conference interview with our research team. The interview will focus on how your agency is in contact with or receives information from families after adoption, and the data systems in place to track that contact. In addition, we will ask if you track any information about children who exit foster care to adoption, including information about children who reenter foster care after adoption. Our hope is to learn how child welfare agencies are engaging with adoptive families, tracking processes, and using cutting-edge practices to support families after adoption.

We are asking to record the video conference interview to help our study team note key discussion points. These recordings will only be for the research team members to improve our notes and will be deleted once our notes are completed. These recordings will not be shared with the Children’s Bureau nor the Administration for Children and Families (ACF).

What are the possible risks and discomforts?

We do not anticipate any possible risks or discomforts related to your participation in this survey.

Will I benefit from taking part in this study?

You will not get any personal benefit from taking part in this study. However, the success of the study depends on the input of those who participate, and the information obtained from this study will be used to inform and guide child welfare practices related to post adoption in the U.S.

Do I have to take part in this study?

Your participation is completely voluntary. There will be no penalty and your agency will not lose any federal benefits or program support if you choose not to participate. If you do participate, you can refuse to answer any questions.

We use quotes from our interviews in the site report.  If there is anything that you share during the interview that you do not want us to use as a quote in the site report, please alert me.  You can let me know during the interview or you can e-mail or call me after the interview.

What will it cost me to participate?

There are no costs associated with taking part in this study.

Will I receive anything for taking part in this study?

You will not receive any payment for taking part in this study.

Who will see the information I provide?

We will not identify you by name. However, it is possible that our federal partners (or those reading the reports that are produced from this study) will be able to discern the identities of respondents based on the states that participate, and the limited number of adoption specific staff in each location. We cannot guarantee confidentiality. As such your agency name and your position are likely to be knowable to interested parties. The purpose of the visits is to highlight promising practices. Your interview will not focus on your personal opinions, but rather focus on a description of your agency procedures.

What if I have questions?

Before you decide whether or not to participate in the study, please ask any questions that come to mind. If you have questions about the study, you can contact the researcher, Nancy Rolock at 216-368-6014. If you have any questions about your rights as a research participant, contact the RTI Office of Research Protection at 1-866-214-2043.

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 for this information collection is XXXX-XXXX and the expiration date is XX/XX/XXXX.

	Contact After Adoption or Guardianship: Child Welfare Agency and Family Interactions
	Case Western Reserve University, Ohio East Carolina University, North Carolina RTI International, North Carolina Sponsored by: Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families

Attachment E. Stakeholder Interview Consent Form – Adoption & Guardianship

Consent to Participate in a Research Study

Who is conducting this research?

The Administration for Children and Families (ACF) Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation (OPRE) and the Children’s Bureau (CB), is funding a study of child welfare agencies across the country. RTI International (RTI), a not-for-profit research organization in North Carolina, in conjunction with Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) in Ohio and East Carolina University (ECU) in North Carolina, are conducting interviews with staff from 6 child welfare agencies across the country. Up to 7 interviews will be completed with staff from each selected agency.

What is the purpose of this study?

This part of the study is a follow-up to a web survey completed by your agency recently. Based on those responses, we are following-up with agencies to learn more about innovative and important work they are doing with adoptive and guardianship families.

This study seeks to understand how and what information a child welfare agency tracks about children and youth who have exited the foster care system through adoption or guardianship. This will include procedures that identify children and youth who have reentered foster care after adoption or guardianship. We will also ask about services provided to adoptive and guardianship families, and the systems that track those services. The federal government is funding a study to explore the various ways child welfare agencies are in contact with or receive information about families after adoption or guardianship through the foster care system.

What will I be asked to do?

We are asking you to participate in a 90-minute video conference interview with our research team. The interview will focus on how your agency is in contact with or receives information from families after adoption or guardianship, and the data systems in place to track that contact. In addition, we will ask if you track any information about children who exit foster care to adoption, including information about children who reenter foster care after adoption or guardianship. Our hope is to learn how child welfare agencies are engaging with adoptive and guardianship families, tracking processes, and using cutting-edge practices to support families after adoption or guardianship.

We are asking to record the video conference interview to help our study team note key discussion points. These recordings will only be for the research team members to improve our notes and will be deleted once our notes are completed. These recordings will not be shared with the Children’s Bureau nor the Administration for Children and Families (ACF).

What are the possible risks and discomforts?

We do not anticipate any possible risks or discomforts related to your participation in this survey.

Will I benefit from taking part in this study?

You will not get any personal benefit from taking part in this study. However, the success of the study depends on the input of those who participate, and the information obtained from this study will be used to inform and guide child welfare practices related to post adoption and guardianship in the U.S.

Do I have to take part in this study?

Your participation is completely voluntary. There will be no penalty and your agency will not lose any federal benefits or program support if you choose not to participate. If you do participate, you can refuse to answer any questions.

We use quotes from our interviews in the site report.  If there is anything that you share during the interview that you do not want us to use as a quote in the site report, please alert me.  You can let me know during the interview or you can e-mail or call me after the interview.

What will it cost me to participate?

There are no costs associated with taking part in this study.

Will I receive anything for taking part in this study?

You will not receive any payment for taking part in this study.

Who will see the information I provide?

We will not identify you by name. However, it is possible that our federal partners (or those reading the reports that are produced from this study) will be able to discern the identities of respondents based on the states that participate, and the limited number of adoption and guardianship specific staff in each location. We cannot guarantee confidentiality. As such your agency name and your position are likely to be knowable to interested parties. The purpose of the visits is to highlight promising practices. Your interview will not focus on your personal opinions, but rather focus on a description of your agency procedures.

What if I have questions?

Before you decide whether or not to participate in the study, please ask any questions that come to mind. If you have questions about the study, you can contact the researcher, Nancy Rolock at 216-368-6014. If you have any questions about your rights as a research participant, contact the RTI Office of Research Protection at 1-866-214-2043.

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 for this information collection is XXXX-XXXX and the expiration date is XX/XX/XXXX.

	Contact After Adoption or Guardianship: Child Welfare Agency and Family Interactions
	Case Western Reserve University, Ohio East Carolina University, North Carolina RTI International, North Carolina Sponsored by: Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families

Attachment E. Stakeholder Interview Consent Recap – All

Consent to Participate in a Research Study: Recap

Before the stakeholder interview begins, the PAGI study team member will read the consent recap aloud to the stakeholder who is being interviewed. The stakeholder will be asked to provide a verbal consent over the phone.

• This research study is voluntary. This means that there will be no penalty and your agency will not lose any federal benefits or program support if you choose not to participate. If you do participate, you can refuse to answer any questions.

• We will use quotes from our interview in the site report.  If there is anything that you share during this interview that you do not want us to use as a quote in the site report, please alert me.  You can let me know during the interview or you can e-mail or call me after the interview.

• We would like to record the video conference interview to help our study team with our notes. These recordings will only be for the research team members to improve our notes and will be deleted once our notes are completed. These recordings will not be shared with the Children’s Bureau nor the Administration for Children and Families.

Do you have any questions?

Are you willing to participate in this interview?

Stakeholder Interview Consent Form, Page 5