A Legacy of Shared Purpose: Strengthening the Path to Reunification

In September, I had the privilege of presenting at the 2026 Florida Children & Families Summit alongside professionals who share a commitment to strengthening Florida’s child welfare system. Our workshop, “Case Management 2.0: Permanency Primers© Model,” focused on an issue that has shaped so much of my work: how we can better engage and support parents as they work toward reunification. 

This year’s Summit theme, “A Legacy of Shared Purpose,” resonated deeply with me.

A legacy is not built by one person, organization or program. It is built through the collective work of people willing to ask difficult questions, learn from one another, challenge the status quo and remain focused on the families at the center of our work.

For me, that is what shared purpose in child welfare looks like.

Starting With the Future We Want

During our workshop, we began by looking at the current state of permanency in Florida. Reunification continues to face significant challenges. Parent engagement remains difficult, systems are under-resourced for reunification support, and only 33% of children statewide achieve permanency within 12 months. 

But I don’t believe we can talk about challenges without also talking about what we want to create.

We asked attendees to imagine a future in which children can safely return home through Conditions for Return within six months of removal; visitation begins early and happens often; parents maintain hope that reunification is possible; and parents develop greater knowledge of trauma and attachment along with practical skills that strengthen their relationships with their children. 

That future requires all of us—case managers, courts, community-based care organizations, providers, researchers, policymakers, funders, parents and organizations like 4 Sisters Solutions.

Our roles may be different, but our purpose is shared: helping children and families safely heal, strengthen and, whenever possible, reunify.

What If Parents Need More Than a Case Plan?

One of the questions behind the Permanency Primers© model is simple: What additional support does a parent need to successfully move from understanding a case plan to accomplishing it?

Parents involved with child welfare are often navigating one of the most traumatic periods of their lives. They may be separated from their children while simultaneously being asked to attend appointments, complete services, maintain employment, secure housing, appear in court and demonstrate behavioral change.

We cannot ignore what trauma and chronic stress can do to a person’s ability to prioritize, regulate emotions, solve problems and make decisions.

That understanding helped shape Permanency Primers©.

Permanency Primers© is a specialized parent engagement model designed to improve permanency and reunification outcomes. We partner with case management organizations to provide consistent support throughout the reunification process, helping parents understand and prioritize requirements and work toward their case plan goals. The model uses a trauma-informed coaching approach grounded in Trust-Based Relational Intervention® (TBRI®) and child welfare best practices. 

Importantly, Permanency Primers© do not replace case managers. We work alongside them.

Primers maintain frequent contact with parents through texts, video and calls, coaching them through court-ordered tasks and Conditions for Return. Our approach emphasizes teaching rather than simply telling, while providing parents with consistent encouragement and accountability. 

That partnership is shared purpose in practice.

Relationships Create the Conditions for Change

Throughout my career in child welfare, I have learned that meaningful change rarely begins with a checklist.

It begins with a relationship.

Our seasoned certified child welfare professionals work directly with parents to build relationships that can decrease fear and increase hope while helping parents develop the skills necessary to move forward. Our work also creates opportunities to mentor case managers and build greater capacity for parent engagement within the system. 

One parent described beginning the process feeling as though everyone was against their family and not knowing what to do or even what questions to ask. After connecting with a Permanency Primer, that parent described finally reaching a point of thinking, “I got this.”

Those three words matter to me.

When parents believe change is possible, understand what is expected of them and have someone consistently helping them navigate the path forward, we create better conditions for meaningful engagement.

Pairing Stories With Evidence

Stories tell us about the human experience behind our work. Data helps us understand whether an approach is working and where it needs to improve.

I was grateful our Summit workshop brought together both perspectives. I was joined by Dr. Jean Elder of J.K. Elder & Associates and Dr. Vivian Ko of the Florida Institute for Child Welfare. Together, we discussed the Permanency Primers© model, evaluation findings, the next phase of research and stories from implementation.

Our initial CAPTA-supported evaluation served 185 parents across 140 unique cases. Of the 127 cases included in the analysis, 25% achieved reunification, while another 39% remained open with reunification as the goal at the end of the grant period. The cases analyzed represented 252 children, including 69 who had reunified with one or more parents by the end of the grant period. 

Family surveys also reflected increased hope for reunification and greater confidence navigating the child welfare system. Most parents reported understanding their case plans well or very well, while many reported improved relationships with their primary case manager. Case managers generally viewed Permanency Primers© as adding value to their work and reported positive change among participating families. 

These findings are encouraging. They are also the beginning, not the end, of our learning.

Shared Purpose Means Shared Learning

Innovation in child welfare cannot mean creating a model and assuming we have all the answers. We must evaluate our work, listen to families and professionals, identify opportunities for improvement and continue learning.

The next phase of Permanency Primers© evaluation, in partnership with the Florida Institute for Child Welfare, will help us understand what is working, where improvements can be made and how we can continue building evidence around the model.

This evaluation will compare outcomes for families receiving Permanency Primers© services with those receiving traditional case management approaches. It will explore parent engagement and relationship building, parents’ understanding of their case plans and next steps, the experiences of families and professionals, and patterns and outcomes that emerge over time. 

To me, this is another expression of shared purpose: being willing to learn together.

The Legacy We Leave

The phrase A Legacy of Shared Purpose invites us to think beyond today’s caseload, today’s challenge or even today’s organization.

What will the system we leave behind look like?

I hope our legacy is one in which parents are seen not simply through the circumstances that brought them into the child welfare system, but through their capacity to learn, heal and change.

I hope trauma-informed practice is not an initiative, but a way of working. I hope case managers have strong partners around them and families receive consistent support rather than having to navigate a complicated system alone.

And I hope we continue to measure our work honestly celebrating what works, learning from what doesn’t and using evidence and family voice to make our practices stronger.

At 4 Sisters Solutions, our purpose remains clear: empowering parents with the support, skills and accountability needed to work toward successful reunification.

The Florida Children & Families Summit reminded me that this work is bigger than any one organization or program. Across Florida, professionals, organizations, researchers and advocates are working toward the same fundamental goal: stronger families and better outcomes for children.

Our approaches may differ. Our roles may differ. But when we bring those perspectives together around families, we have the opportunity to create something bigger than any of us could accomplish alone.

That is our shared purpose. And the families we serve will be our legacy.

Want to learn more about how Permanency Primers© strengthen parent engagement and support the path towards reunification? Visit Permanency Primers© to explore the model and learn how 4 Sisters Solutions can partner with your organization.