Navigating Child Welfare | CPS, Foster Care, Family Court, Adoption, Mandated Reporter, Burnout, Joy, Retention

The foster care system should not be the first or only place families find support. When families have help early, through neighbors, relatives, churches, community organizations, and basic-needs support, some crises can be reduced or avoided altogether. Helping families does not always require a formal title. Sometimes it starts with noticing a need and responding with care. Who in your circle, n...

Mandated reporters…you have a power that must be wielded responsibly. A knock on the door from CPS can change everything for a family. Mandated reporters are in a special position where they are required by law to report suspected abuse or neglect. But what happens when training is sporadic, there is no real understanding or grappling of poverty versus neglect, and the policy is “when in doubt rep...

In this episode, I’m talking about heart resilience, a piece of foster care support that often gets overlooked. We talk a lot about compliance, housing, employment, and services, and those things matter. But families need more. This episode invites us to consider what support looks like beyond the checklist. Why “doing it alone” is not a realistic expectation for families How support systems shape...

The phrase “foster to adopt” sounds simple, but in practice, it can create a lot of confusion and heartbreak. In this episode, I talk about why this language can be misleading when the goal of foster care is often reintegration, not adoption. This conversation is not about blaming foster parents, agencies, or families. It is about clarity. When people enter the foster care system with different ex...

In this episode, I reflect on my long, complicated relationship with DEI: the promise, the disappointment, the fatigue, and the deeper purpose underneath it all. What began as formal diversity work inside an institution eventually became something much more personal: a way of understanding justice, dignity, opportunity, and the barriers families face inside systems. I share how early DEI work taug...

In this episode, I’m talking with Lauren Welch, founder of Social Empowerment Texas, about what it means to support the people doing some of the hardest work in the child welfare and foster care system. Lauren is a foster and adoptive mom, and through both personal and professional experience, she saw a gap in support for CPS employees, case managers, investigators, supervisors, and support staff....

Before you quit, I want you to pause for a minute. In this episode, I’m talking to the people in social services, foster care, and the family and child welfare system who are tired, frustrated, overwhelmed, or wondering if their work is making a difference. I’ve been there. I’ve carried 100-plus families, I’ve felt the weight of burnout, and I know what it feels like to love the work while also wo...

In this episode, I’m talking about the deep connection between foster care and homelessness, especially for youth who age out of the child welfare and foster care system without a plan or without supportive family to lean on. I share why this should be a shared sorrow for all of us, and what shared success can look like when a community wraps support around families early and consistently. I also...

In this episode, I’m talking about shame in foster care and how powerful it is. Shame can stop people from getting help when they need it, and sometimes it keeps families quiet until a situation becomes an emergency. I share a moment from court that stuck with me, a grandmother in tears saying, “If I would’ve known, I would’ve done something.” That’s the thing about shame. People can be drowning a...

Helpers need encouragement too. In this episode, I’m talking directly to the people who carry heavy things for a living: child welfare professionals, social services staff, foster care partners, advocates, and anyone doing complex work with families. I share a few reminders I’ve had to learn the hard way: rest has to be built in, reflection keeps you honest about your pace and your impact, and rem...

A few years ago I made a post about motherhood, the Proverbs 31 woman, and the truth we forget: she had help. That same principle applies in foster care. No one can do this work alone, and pretending we can is a fast track to burnout. In this episode, I share what I learned leading a region of 400+ employees across five counties, why staffing challenges become a predictable burnout cycle, and what...

"One of the biggest threats to good outcomes in child welfare is not bad intentions…it is the broken or inconsistent communication between all the folks involved in a child's life." — Kellie Green   A true quote from our guest on the podcast today and it frames our discussion so well. In this episode of Navigating Child Welfare, I’m talking with colleague Kellie Green, who’s worked across child we...

Race has always mattered in America. The family and child welfare system is not exempt from history. In this episode of Navigating Child Welfare, I'm sharing what I've learned from creating Skin Deep and leading the Going Deep Together workshop, and why these discussions are essential for anyone serving families in the foster care and child welfare system and how to equip the next generation of fa...

On this episode of Navigating Child Welfare, I’m talking with Judge Karen Braxton and honestly… I loved this conversation. She describes judges as a catalyst for collaboration, and she actually shows up that way. We talk about the role a judge can play in reducing confusion in the family and child welfare system, why acronyms leave parents glassy-eyed, and what it looks like to lead a courtroom wi...

Episode summary I want you to sit with a real question: when are you ever in the room with the people who impact your work and the environment is actually collaborative? Not a courtroom. Not a crisis case. Just a room where everyone is trying to understand each other and work better together. In this episode, I talk about how easy it is for foster care and child welfare work to turn into assumptio...

When you’re involved in foster care and the child welfare system, adding special education on top of everything else can send everybody into a spiral.   In this episode, I’m talking with Krystal from The Advocacy Circle (through Kay Altman Law Firm) about practical support for IEPs and 504 plans. We break down what these are, how parents and caregivers can get started, and how their virtual advoca...

Reducing frustration in foster care starts with the stuff we don’t always name: trust, roles, and real partnership across the family and child welfare system.   In this episode, I share a story from a major project where we were stuck waiting on pieces outside our control. The shift was simple: I prepared everything I could control so we were ready the moment the missing pieces landed. That same m...

Beauty and harm can coexist in our history, and healing starts with honest reflection and shared action. This episode focuses centers on healing from racial trauma and why honest history is essential to repair. She traces how race has shaped American law and memory, then connects that history to daily practice in the family and child welfare system. From the Declaration and Constitution to the Civ...

Sometimes our help looks good on paper but doesn’t help in practice. In this episode, Shanelle names “fake help,” shows how to co-create real solutions with the people affected, and explains where 360° Family and Child Welfare Workshops solves a specific problem by strengthening partnerships and prepares a community for service in the family and child welfare system. You will learn: What “fake hel...

Shanelle and guest Steve Gonyea wrap up their conversation by digging into why many agency-run “support groups” have good intentions, but miss the mark, especially when supervisors or case managers are in the room. Caregivers, parents, and youth will not share real concerns when the people who evaluate them are listening, so the space is not actually supportive. The conversation covers what new an...

Shanelle sits down with advocate and long-time therapeutic foster parent Steve Goneya to talk about what is not working and what communities can build right now. Steve has welcomed 178 children through respite and high-needs care, fought for supports for high health needs children, and learned the hard truth about bureaucracy, turnover, and waitlists. Instead of waiting, he built solutions: an Aut...

What does partnership and collaboration look like in your organization? Often times we focus solely on our role and job- but in the family and child welfare system all the systems matter.   The 360º Assessment is HERE! Take it today to understand…   -Recognize where you fit on the 360º family and child welfare map -Determine how you work with other partners -Gauge how supported or overwhelmed you...

Episode summary A caseworker’s anonymous post about hard relationships with foster parents sparks a real conversation about communication, role clarity, and burnout. Shanelle explains why case workers (& no one!) cannot hold everything at once, how conflicting goals show up, and what it takes to align teams so families move forward. She also introduces the SYNCing Child Welfare approach, inclu...

Families need information fast, in plain language, and backed by real partnerships. In this episode of Navigating Child Welfare Shanelle shares what is coming in 2026 and how SYNCing Child Welfare will help parents, foster and kinship caregivers, and partners move through the family and child welfare system with less confusion and more confidence. She discusses prevention services that keep famili...

Episode summary Hair isn’t “extra.” For many youth in foster care, it’s identity, culture, memory and a daily signal of dignity. Shanelle talks with Aisha Walker, founder of The Walker Foundation, about why a lack of hair care can trigger bullying, low self-esteem, “hair depression” and how culturally competent care helps children feel connected and confident. You’ll hear concrete tips for foster/...