Form 1 State Court Improvement Program 2023 Annual Self-Assessm

OMB Control No: 0970-0307

Expiration Date: XX/XX/XXX

State Court Improvement Program 2023 Annual Self-Assessment Report

This self-assessment is intended as an opportunity for Court Improvement Programs (CIPs) to review progress on CIP projects, joint program planning and improvement efforts with the child welfare agency, and the ability to integrate (Continuous Quality Improvement) CQI successfully into practice. The self-assessment process is designed to help shape and inform ongoing strategic planning and should include meaningful discussion with the multi-disciplinary task force and candid reflection of key CIP staff. The self-assessment primarily focused on assessing efforts undertaken to date while the strategic plan maps out efforts going forward. Questions are designed to solicit candid responses that help CIPs apply CQI and identify support that may be helpful.

I. CQI Analyses of Required Projects It is ok to cut and paste responses from last year, updating according to where you currently are in the process, and, if you do so, highlight text to show anything that is new. Complete the descriptions for CQI stages you have progressed through or are in. Though some upcoming stages will be inapplicable, consider whether your team may have preliminary thoughts that are relevant to those questions. Please also indicate if you need assistance from your federal or Capacity Building partners in a particular phase.

Joint Project with the Child Welfare Agency:

Project title:

Provide a concise description of the joint project selected in your jurisdiction.

Identify the specific safety, permanency, or well-being outcome(s) this project is intended to address. If this effort is linked to any agency measures, e.g. CFSR measures, please note those.

Approximate date that the project began:

Which stage of the CQI process best describes the current status of project work?

How was the need for this project identified? (Phase I)

What is the theory of change for the project? (Phase II).

Have you identified a solution/intervention that you will implement? If yes, what is it? (Phase III)

If your solution/intervention includes training, please provide a title and brief description of any training(s).

What has been done to implement the project? (Phase IV)

How are you or how do you intend to monitor the progress of the project? (Phase V). Be specific in terms of what type of evaluation (e.g., fidelity or outcome, comparison group, etc.) and what results you have, if any. If you have already evaluated your effort, what do the data show, and how did you use these data to modify or expand the project?

Have there been notable factors that delayed or accelerated this effort?

What assistance or support would be helpful from the Capacity Building Center for Courts (CBCC) or the Children’s Bureau to help move the project forward?

Hearing Quality Project:

Project title:

Provide a concise description of the hearing quality project selected in your jurisdiction.

Approximate date that the project began:

Which stage of the CQI process best describes the current status of project work?

How was the need for this project identified? (Phase I)

What is the theory of change for the project? (Phase II)

Have you identified a solution/intervention that you will implement? If yes, what is it? (Phase III)

If your solution/intervention includes training, please provide a title and brief description of any training(s).

What has been done to implement the project? (Phase IV)

How are you or how do you intend to monitor the progress of the project? (Phase V). Be specific in terms of what type of evaluation (e.g., fidelity or outcome, comparison group, etc.) and what results you have, if any. If you have already evaluated your effort, what do the data show, and how did you use these data to modify or expand the project?

Have there been notable factors that delayed or accelerated this effort?

What assistance or support would be helpful from the CBCC or the Children’s Bureau to help move the project forward?

Quality Legal Representation Project:

Project title:

Provide a concise description of the quality legal representation project selected in your jurisdiction.

Approximate date that the project began:

Which stage of the CQI process best describes the current status of project work?

How was the need for this project identified? (Phase I)

What is the theory of change for the project? (Phase II)

Have you identified a solution/intervention that you will implement? If yes, what is it? (Phase III)

If your solution/intervention includes training, please provide a title and brief description of any training(s).

What has been done to implement the project? (Phase IV)

How are you or how do you intend to monitor the progress of the project? (Phase V). Be specific in terms of what type of evaluation (e.g., fidelity or outcome, comparison group, etc.) and what results you have, if any. If you have already evaluated your effort, what do the data show, and how did you use these data to modify or expand the project?

Have there been notable factors that delayed or accelerated this effort?

What assistance or support would be helpful from the CBCC or the Children’s Bureau to help move the project forward?

2. Projects, Activities

, and Training. For questions 1-13, provide a concise description of work completed or underway to date in FY 2023 (October 2022-June 2023) in the topical subcategories below.

Training Overall

On average, how many training events do you hold per year?

What is your best prediction for the number of attorneys, judges, or other legal system stakeholders that will participate in training annually?

The Family First Prevention Services Act amended the Social Security Act adding an eligibility criterion for the training of judges and attorneys on the congregate care provisions of the Act. See the highlighted portion below.

(1)¹ IN GENERAL.–– In order to be eligible to receive a grant under this section, a highest State court … shall provide for the training of judges, attorneys, and other legal personnel in child welfare cases on Federal child welfare policies and payment limitations with respect to children in foster care who are placed in settings that are not a foster family home…–

Have you been involved in planning with the agency on implementing Family First? ☐ Yes ☐ No

If yes, please describe how the CIP has been involved.

Have you developed/been developing your Family First judicial training plan? ☐ Yes ☐ No

If yes, please describe what you have done.

1. Data Projects. Data projects include any work with administrative data sets (e.g, AFCARS, CCWIS), data dashboards, data reports, fostering court improvement data, case management systems, and data sharing efforts.

Do you have a data project/activity? ☐ Yes ☐ No

Project Description	How would you categorize this project?	CQI Stage (if applicable)
(add narrative here)
Do you have data reports that you consistently view? ☐ Yes ☐ No

2. How are these reports used to support your work?

Did you hold or develop a training on this topic?	Who was the target audience?	How many persons attended?	What type of training is it? (e.g., conference, webinar)	What were the intended training outcomes?	What type of training evaluation did you do? S=Satisfaction, L=Learning, B=Behavior, O=Outcomes
☐Yes ☐No					☐S ☐L ☐B ☐O ☐N/A

2. Other Legal Representation. Legal representation projects include any efforts you have made to improve the quality of legal representation for parents, children and youth, the agency, or others. List projects here if you have any in addition to the required project.

Do you have (an additional) legal representation project/activity? ☐ Yes ☐ No

Project Description	How would you categorize this project?	CQI Stage (if applicable)

Did you hold or develop a training on this topic?	Who was the target audience?	How many persons attended?	What type of training is it? (e.g., conference, webinar)	What were the intended training outcomes?	What type of training evaluation did you do? S=Satisfaction, L=Learning, B=Behavior, O=Outcomes
☐Yes ☐No					☐S ☐L ☐B ☐O ☐N/A

3. Other Hearing Quality. Hearing quality projects include any efforts you have made to improve the quality of child welfare hearings, including court observation/assessment projects, process improvements, specialty/pilot court projects, projects related to court orders or title IV-E determinations, mediation, or appeals. List projects here if you have any in addition to the required project.

Do you have (an additional) hearing quality project/activity? ☐ Yes ☐ No

Project Description	How would you categorize this project?	CQI Stage (if applicable)

Did you hold or develop a training on this topic?	Who was the target audience?	How many persons attended?	What type of training is it? (e.g., conference, webinar)	What were the intended training outcomes?	What type of training evaluation did you do? S=Satisfaction, L=Learning, B=Behavior, O=Outcomes
☐Yes ☐No					☐S ☐L ☐B ☐O ☐N/A

4. Improving Timeliness of Hearings or Permanency Outcomes. Timeliness and permanency projects include any activities or projects meant to improve the timeliness of case processing or achievement of timely permanency. This could include general timeliness, focus on continuances or appeals, working on improvement in specific outcomes such as around reunification, guardianship, adoption or a focus on APPLA and older youth.

Do you have a timeliness or permanency project/activity? ☐ Yes ☐ No

Project Description	How would you categorize this project?	CQI Stage (if applicable)

Did you hold or develop a training on this topic?	Who was the target audience?	How many persons attended?	What type of training is it? (e.g., conference, webinar)	What were the intended training outcomes?	What type of training evaluation did you do? S=Satisfaction, L=Learning, B=Behavior, O=Outcomes
☐Yes ☐No					☐S ☐L ☐B ☐O ☐N/A

5. Engagement & Participation of Parties. Engagement and participation of parties includes any efforts centered around youth, parent, foster family or caregiver, or relative engagement, limited English proficiency, or other efforts to increase presence and engagement at the hearing.

Do you have an engagement or participation of parties project/activity? ☐ Yes ☐ No

Project Description	How would you categorize this project?	CQI Stage (if applicable)

Did you hold or develop a training on this topic?	Who was the target audience?	How many persons attended?	What type of training is it? (e.g., conference, webinar)	What were the intended training outcomes?	What type of training evaluation did you do? S=Satisfaction, L=Learning, B=Behavior, O=Outcomes
☐Yes ☐No					☐S ☐L ☐B ☐O ☐N/A

6. Well-Being. Well-being projects include any efforts related to improving the well-being of children and youth. Projects could focus on education, early childhood development, psychotropic medication, trauma, social network support, cultural connections, or other well-being related topics.

Do you have any projects/activities focused on well-being? ☐ Yes ☐ No

Project Description	How would you categorize this project?	CQI Stage (if applicable)
	Choose an item.

Did you hold or develop a training on this topic?	Who was the target audience?	How many persons attended?	What type of training is it? (e.g., conference, webinar)	What were the intended training outcomes?	What type of training evaluation did you do? S=Satisfaction, L=Learning, B=Behavior, O=Outcomes
☐Yes ☐No					☐S ☐L ☐B ☐O ☐N/A

7. Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEIA). These projects include any efforts related to improving equity in child welfare systems around race, sexual orientation or gender identity, national origin or immigration status, religion, persons with disabilities, geographic or otherwise.

Do you have any projects/activities focused on DEIA? ☐ Yes ☐ No

Project Description	How would you categorize this project?	CQI Stage (if applicable)

Did you hold or develop a training on this topic?	Who was the target audience?	How many persons attended?	What type of training is it? (e.g., conference, webinar)	What were the intended training outcomes?	What type of training evaluation did you do? S=Satisfaction, L=Learning, B=Behavior, O=Outcomes
☐Yes ☐No					☐S ☐L ☐B ☐O ☐N/A

8. ICWA/Tribal collaboration. These projects could include any efforts to enhance state and tribal collaboration, state and tribal court agreements, data collection and analysis including of ICWA practice.

Do you have any projects/activities focused on ICWA or tribal collaboration? ☐ Yes ☐ No

Project Description	How would you categorize this project?	CQI Stage (if applicable)

Did you hold or develop a training on this topic?	Who was the target audience?	How many persons attended?	What type of training is it? (e.g., conference, webinar)	What were the intended training outcomes?	What type of training evaluation did you do? S=Satisfaction, L=Learning, B=Behavior, O=Outcomes
☐Yes ☐No					☐S ☐L ☐B ☐O ☐N/A

9. Preventing Sex Trafficking. These projects could include work around domestic child sex trafficking, a focus on runaway youth, collaboration with other agencies around this topic, data collection and analysis, data sharing, or other efforts to fully implement these sections of the Preventing Sex Trafficking and Strengthening Families Act into practice.

Do you have any projects/activities focused on preventing sex trafficking/runaways? ☐ Yes ☐ No

Project Description	How would you categorize this project?	CQI Stage (if applicable)

Did you hold or develop a training on this topic?	Who was the target audience?	How many persons attended?	What type of training is it? (e.g., conference, webinar)	What were the intended training outcomes?	What type of training evaluation did you do? S=Satisfaction, L=Learning, B=Behavior, O=Outcomes
☐Yes ☐No					☐S ☐L ☐B ☐O ☐N/A

10. Normalcy/Reasonable and Prudent Parent. These projects could include any work around normalcy or the reasonable and prudent parent standard or practices, collaboration with other agencies around this topic, data collection and analysis, data sharing, or other efforts to fully implement these sections of the Preventing Sex and Strengthening Families Act into practice.

Do you have any projects/activities focused on normalcy/reasonable prudent parenting? ☐ Yes ☐ No

Project Description	How would you categorize this project?	CQI Stage (if applicable)

Did you hold or develop a training on this topic?	Who was the target audience?	How many persons attended?	What type of training is it? (e.g., conference, webinar)	What were the intended training outcomes?	What type of training evaluation did you do? S=Satisfaction, L=Learning, B=Behavior, O=Outcomes
☐Yes ☐No					☐S ☐L ☐B ☐O ☐N/A

11. Prevention. Prevention projects include work around preventing child maltreatment including primary prevention (preventing maltreatment from occurring in the first place), secondary, and tertiary prevention.

Do you have any projects/activities focused on prevention? ☐ Yes ☐ No

Project Description	How would you categorize this project?	CQI Stage (if applicable)

Did you hold or develop a training on this topic?	Who was the target audience?	How many persons attended?	What type of training is it? (e.g., conference, webinar)	What were the intended training outcomes?	What type of training evaluation did you do? S=Satisfaction, L=Learning, B=Behavior, O=Outcomes
☐Yes ☐No					☐S ☐L ☐B ☐O ☐N/A

12. Safety. Safety projects are those that focus on decision-making around safety including decision-making practices in substantiation, removal, family time/visitation, and decisions about safety in out of home placements.

Do you have any projects/activities focused on safety? ☐ Yes ☐ No

Project Description	How would you categorize this project?	CQI Stage (if applicable)

Did you hold or develop a training on this topic?	Who was the target audience?	How many persons attended?	What type of training is it? (e.g., conference, webinar)	What were the intended training outcomes?	What type of training evaluation did you do? S=Satisfaction, L=Learning, B=Behavior, O=Outcomes
☐Yes ☐No					☐S ☐L ☐B ☐O ☐N/A

13. Other. Please list any projects you have that do not fit in any of the categories above.

Do you have any other projects/activities? ☐ Yes ☐ No

Project Description	How would you categorize this project?	CQI Stage (if applicable)

Did you hold or develop a training on this topic?	Who was the target audience?	How many persons attended?	What type of training is it? (e.g., conference, webinar)	What were the intended training outcomes?	What type of training evaluation did you do? S=Satisfaction, L=Learning, B=Behavior, O=Outcomes
☐Yes ☐No					☐S ☐L ☐B ☐O ☐N/A

14. Project materials. From any of the work described above, do you have any documents or other materials that feel would be helpful to share with the national CIP community? For example, rigorous research, innovative approaches, compelling outcome data, etc. Please link here or note and include in your submission.

2. CIP Collaboration in Child Welfare Program Planning and Improvement Efforts

1. Overall Legal System Structures. This section collects overall information about how legal systems are structured in your state. This information is designed to help partners understand the overall landscape of legal services. This will also be shared with the national CIP community to allow more targeted peer connections and technical assistance. We recognize that some responses may vary across your state, so we have set up items so that you can estimate percentages that would apply to the question at hand.

1. What kinds of judicial officers preside over your child welfare cases? (check all that apply)

☐ Judges

☐ Magistrates

☐ Referees

☐ Commissioners

☐ Other:

2. Approximately how many judicial officers oversee child welfare cases in your state?

3. What percentage of your courts have a dedicated child welfare docket?

☐ 0%

☐ 1-25%

☐ 26-50%

☐ 51-75%

☐ 75-99%

☐ 100%

4. Regarding child representation and advocacy in your state, thinking about the practice in all courts in your state, please estimate what percentage do the following:

What percentage of the courts in your state….	0%	1-25%	26-50%	51-75%	76-99%	100%
Appoint an attorney for children	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐
Appoint an attorney guardian ad litem for children	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐
Appoint an attorney and a lay advocate for children	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐
Do not appoint legal representation/advocates for children	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐
Use in-house staffing for child representation	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐
Use contract attorneys for child representation	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐
Have multi-disciplinary child representation offices or “specialty” offices	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐

5. Do you have standards of practice for children’s attorneys/attorney GALs? ☐ Yes ☐ No

If yes, can you provide a link? ________________________

6. Where does the funding for child legal representation primarily come from in your state? _________________

7. Regarding how children's attorneys are compensated in your state jurisdiction: (It’s okay to estimate your answer.)

What percentage of children’s attorneys in your state are compensated…	0%	1-25%	26-50%	51-75%	76-99%	100%
at an hourly rate, with no cap per case.	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐
at an hourly rate, with a per case cap.	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐
as a salary	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐
at a flat rate per case	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐
at a per hearing rate	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐
other	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐
I don’t know	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐

8. Regarding any lay advocacy your jurisdiction provides to children or youth: (It’s okay to estimate your answer.):

What percentage of courts in your state have…	0%	1-25%	26-50%	51-75%	76-99%	100%
peer advocates for children or youth	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐
Court Appointed Special Advocates	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐
non-attorney guardians ad litem	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐
Other_____	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐

9. Do you have standards of practice for parents’ attorneys? ☐ Yes ☐ No

If yes, can you provide a link? __________________________________

10. What percentage of your courts have the following parent representation organization? (It’s okay to estimate your answer.)

What percentage of the courts in your state….	0%	1-25%	26-50%	51-75%	76-99%	100%
Use in-house staffing for parent representation	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐
Use contract attorneys for parent representation	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐
Have multi-disciplinary parent representation offices or “specialty” offices	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐

11. How are parents’ attorneys compensated in your jurisdiction? (It’s okay to estimate your answer.)

What percentage of parents’ attorneys in your state are compensated…	0%	1-25%	26-50%	51-75%	76-99%	100%
at an hourly rate, with no cap per case.	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐
at an hourly rate, with a per case cap.	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐
as a salary	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐
at a flat rate per case	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐
at a per hearing rate	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐
other	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐
I don’t know	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐	☐

12. Organization: How is your agency's legal representation organized in your jurisdiction?

☐ state department of human services staff

☐ county department of human services staff

☐ non-department of human services state or county office (e.g. district attorney’s office)

☐ Other_____________________________________

13. Do you have standards of practice for agency attorneys? ☐ Yes ☐ No

1. If yes, can you provide a link? ______________________

14. Who does the agency attorney represent; that is, who is the client?

☐ the child welfare agency

☐ the “people” of the state

☐ the state itself

☐ Other, please specify _________________________________

15. How are agency attorneys compensated in your jurisdiction?

☐ salary

☐ hourly rate

☐ other ________________

16. Does your state utilize Title IV-E funding to pay for representation?

Representation type	Yes, in a single jurisdiction	Yes, in multiple jurisdictions	Yes, statewide	No
Agency	☐	☐	☐	☐
Child	☐	☐	☐	☐
Parent	☐	☐	☐	☐

If yes, what are the administrative structures for accessing these IV-E funds?_______________

17. Please describe how the CIP was involved with the state’s CFSP due June 30, 2023.

Does the CFSP include any of the following:

☐ the CIP/Agency Joint Project

☐ the Hearing Quality Project

☐ the Legal Representation Project

☐ other judicial strategies

☐ other attorney strategies

If yes, please describe.

18. Please describe how the CIP was or will be involved in the most recent/upcoming title IV-E Foster Care Eligibility Review in your state.

19. Please describe how the CIP was or will be involved in preparing and completing round 4 of the CFSR and PIP.

2. Only states that will be participating in round 4 of the CFSR and PIP in your state this reporting year need to complete the remaining questions in this section. However, working to organize meaningful engagement of a broad array of legal and judicial stakeholders and to support collaboration with other system partners is useful for other major CIP projects as well, so others may wish to consider these with your teams. See the PI at page 9 for further explanation.

1. Regarding engaging the legal and judicial stakeholders with a broad representation of perspectives in CFSR/PIP processes:

i) What barriers do you foresee in engaging stakeholders at an appropriate breadth and depth?

ii) What do you believe will facilitate engaging stakeholders at an appropriate breadth and depth?

2. Are there other leadership structures for legal and judicial stakeholders and how can those facilitate the processes around the CFSR/PIP?

3. How will legal stakeholder involvement in the CFSR/PIP be managed? e.g. CIP is the lead, via the Multi-Disciplinary Task force, a sub-committee established by the child welfare agency, etc.

4. What court, judicial, or attorney data could be integrated into the CFSR/PIP process?

5. How might participation vary in stages of the process?

6. What feedback loops will be needed to keep stakeholders informed?

7. What supports do you need from the Children’s Bureau or Capacity Building Centers for participating in the CFSR/PIP?

C) Collaboration with the Child Welfare Agency in General

1. What strategies or processes are in place in your state that you feel are particularly effective in supporting joint child welfare program planning and improvement?

2. What barriers exist in your state that make effective joint child welfare program planning and improvement challenging?

3. Regarding collaboration on training with the child welfare agency…

a. Regarding training needs across the child welfare system, what is your process to work with the agency to consider how to maximize the impact of complementary resources and ensure there is no undue duplication of efforts?

b. Does the state child welfare agency currently offer professional partner training to judges, attorneys, and court personnel as part of its Title IV-E Training Plan?

If yes, please provide a brief description of what is provided and how.

If no, have you met with child welfare agency leadership to discuss and explore utilizing professional partner training for judges, attorneys and court personnel?

IV. CQI Current Capacity Assessment

1. Has your ability to integrate CQI into practice changed this year? If yes, what do you attribute the change to?

2. Which of the following CBCC Events/Services have you/your staff engaged in this past year?

☐ Attorney Academy

☐ Judicial Academy

☐ CIPShare 2.0

☐ CQI Consult (Topic:_______________________________)

☐ CQI Workshop

☐ Constituency Group - Data/Evaluation

☐ Constituency Group - Family First Prevention Services Act

☐ Constituency Group - Hearing Quality

☐ Constituency Group - ICWA

☐ Constituency Group - Legal Representation

☐ Constituency Group - New Directors

☐ Constituency Group - Race Equity

☐ Constituency Group – Regional CIP Calls

☐ Constituency Group - Virtual Hearings/Court Processes

☐ Constituency Group - Other _____________________

☐ CIP All Call – What % of All Calls does your CIP participate in? ____%

2. Do you have any of the following resources to help you integrate CQI into practice?

☐ CIP staff with data expertise

☐ CIP staff with evaluation expertise

☐ CIP staff with CQI expertise

☐ a University partnership

☐ a statewide court case management system

☐ Contracts with external individuals or organizations to assist with CQI efforts

☐ Other resources:_________________________________________

a. Do you record your child welfare court hearings? ☐ Yes ☐ No

If yes, are they ☐ audio ☐ video

b. Can you remotely access your court case management system? For example, Odyssey systems often allow remote access to case files.

☐ Yes ☐ No

c. What court case management software does your state use? If multiple, please indicate the most common:

d. Have you employed any new technology or applications to strengthen your work?

e. Do any of these systems include an electronic filing system?

4. Please describe any continuity planning the CIP has led or has been involved in if not noted above. Continuity planning includes prevention and recovery planning for threats such as public health crises, natural disasters, or cyber-attacks. This may include, for example, technology support for remote hearings or legal representation, developing guidance, coordinating with other agencies, or otherwise ensuring back-up approaches are in place to ensure needed services are able to continue.

5. Considering the phases of change management and how you integrate these into practice, are there phases of the process (e.g., Phase I-need assessment, Phase II-theory of change) that you struggle with integrating more than others?

6. Is there a topic or practice area that you would find useful from the Capacity Building Center for Courts? Be as specific as possible (e.g., data analysis, how to evaluate trainings, more information on research about quality legal representation, how to facilitate group meetings, etc.)

Definitions

Definitions of Evidence

Evidence-based practice – evidence-based practices are practice that have been empirically tested in a rigorous way (involving random assignment to groups), have demonstrated effectiveness related to specific outcomes, have been replicated in practice at least one, and have findings published in peer reviewed journal articles.

Empirically-supported- less rigorous than evidence-based practices are empirically-supported practices. To be empirically supported, a program must have been evaluated in some way and have demonstrated some relationship to a positive outcome. This may not meet the rigor of evidence-base, but still has some support for effectiveness.

Best-practices – best practices are often those widely accepted in the field as good practice. They may or may not have empirical support as to effectiveness, but are often derived from teams of experts in the field.

Definitions for CQI Phases

Identifying and Assessing Needs – This phase is the earliest phase in the process, where you are identifying a need to be addressed. The assessing needs phase includes identifying the need, determining if there is available data demonstrating that this a problem, forming teams to address the issue.

Develop theory of change—This phase focuses on the theorizing the causes of a problem. In this phase you would identify what you think might be causing the problem and develop a “theory of change”. The theory of change is essentially how you think your activities (or intervention) will improve outcomes.

Develop/select solution—This phase includes developing or selecting a solution. In this phase, you might be exploring potential best-practices or evidence-based practices that you may want to implement as a solution to the identified need. You might also be developing a specific training, program, or practice that you want to implement.

Implementation ­– the implementation phase of work is when an intervention is being piloted or tested. This includes adapting programs or practices to meet your needs, and developing implementation supports.

Evaluation/assessment – the evaluation and assessment phase includes any efforts to collect data about the fidelity (process measures: was it implemented as planned?) or effectiveness (outcome measures: is the intervention making a difference?) of the project. The evaluation assessment phase also includes post-evaluation efforts to apply findings, such as making changes to the program/practice and using the data to inform next steps.

Paperwork Reduction Act

Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (P.L. 104-13), 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 Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Control Number. The OMB control number for this collection is 0970-0307 and it expires XX/XX/XXXX. The estimated time to complete the Self-Assessment is 79 hours.

1 42 U.S.C. § 629h(b); Social Security Act § 438(b)