- Jeyanthi Rajaraman, JD, Public Knowledge, Family Justice and Integrity Works (moderator)
- Malena Arnaud, MSW, Center for Family Representation
- Leah Curran, JD, Neighborhood Legal Services Program of DC
- Itta Englander, JD, Neighborhood Legal Services Program of DC
- Iesha Hammons, Parent Ally, Legal Services of New Jersey
Increasingly, advocates and policy makers recognize that providing advocacy to parents during a child protective investigation can be a successful avenue to avoiding family separation and court prosecution. This workshop:
- focuses on community outreach and education for parents, partnering with parents to assess their needs and goals for their families, asserting parents’ rights during an investigation, and challenging child protective workers when parents disagree with services required by a worker.
- focuses on assessing and addressing needed advocacy that is collateral to but may be related to the investigation, such as in the areas of housing, immigration, public benefits and food security.
- addresses strategies for building support for early defense work with local leadership and relevant child protective, political and judicial leaders.