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Enhancing Delivery of Services Steering Committee Information & Process Guide

In June 2022, the CYFD Steering Committee assembled with a clear mission: Take an informed measure of the child welfare system in New Mexico, then use those insights to help CYFD enhance the delivery of services to state’s children and families.

 The  Steering Committee is charged with finding ways for CYFD to respond to concerns our clients and constituents have raised, without bogging down its ability to serve them in unnecessary and cumbersome layers of bureaucracy.

Casey Family Programs is mediating and guiding the work, with the goal of keeping the committee on track.

While the background of the membership is broad, the focus is tight.

 

The key is to concentrate on six specific areas – Courts (And Children’s Court Improvement Commission); Schools, Advocates and Community Supports; Parents’ Voices; Youth with Lived Experience; Native Children & Families, and Resource Families, Adoptions & Guardianships.

 

The Steering Committee meetings are intended to develop a report, ultimately finalized to include public comment, that will inform CYFD enhancements to the monitoring of its services. The committee intends to review and adopt the final report, delivered to Cabinet Secretary Barbara J. Vigil and released to the public.

 

If you would like additional information or if you have any questions please contact:

CYFD Office of Children’s Rights Director

Eli Fresquez, Esq.  

505-629-9626

Eli.Fresquez@state.nm.us

Image of a timeline arrow displaying the committee timeline: January 2022 Introduce Establishment of the Committee June 2022 First Steering Committee, July 2022 Focus Groups Begin, July 2022 Steering Committee Meetings, August 2022 Focus Groups End, September 2022 Steering Committee Meetings, September 2022 Final Report Issued

The Department will then work to implement recommendations.

 

Meantime, here is where you can find a set of materials and resources about the committee’s work.

 

Mission Statement

The mission of the Steering Committee will be to identify and recommend ways in which we as the Department can more effectively provide services to our clients.

We want to find the most efficacious means of responding to concerns our clients have raised, without bogging down our ability to serve them in an unnecessarily cumbersome layer of bureaucracy or inefficient diversion of resources.

 

Enhancing Delivery of Services Committee Purpose Overview

The purpose of the Steering Committee shall be as follows:

 

  • Review CYFD’s internal processes, procedures, and practices for responding to communications and complaints.
  • Ensure that appropriate communications are taking place to keep the Steering Committee fully apprised of any workgroup activities.
  • Establish workgroups as needed to complete the Steering Committee’s efforts within the established timeframe.
  • Explore potential solutions used in other jurisdictions, states, and territories.
  • Make recommendations for CYFD to better respond to communications and complaints.

The development of recommendations to CYFD is a four-step process:

 

  • First phase: Establish the Steering Committee, agree on agendas and purpose, and establish workgroups as needed.
  • Second phase: Conduct six statewide focus groups, facilitated by Case Family Programs to inform the Steering Committee or any decided upon workgroups about how CYFD’s processes, procedures, and practices are experienced by our constituents.
  • Third phase: Synthesize focus groups’ input with research and information garnered throughout the Steering Committee process.
  • Fourth phase: Draft and finalize a report to the CYFD Secretary with recommendations for enhancing the monitoring of the delivery of its services and programs and responsiveness to constituent concerns.

 

 

Enhancing Delivery of Services Steering Committee Meeting Schedule:

 

Meeting Date/Time

Proposed Topic(s)

Focus Group Topic

Topic leads

June 29th

In-Person Zoom

10:00-12:00 p.m.

Kick-Off meeting to meet members, welcome by Secretary Vigil, explanation of communication and discourse, presentation, and review of the Steering Committee Information & Process Guide, agree on the schedule and focus groups

N/A

Carl Ayers

July 13th

In-Person Zoom

10:00-12:00 p.m.

Discussion of CYFD’s policies, procedures, and practices for addressing grievances and complaints (including Office of Children’s Rights, Employee Relations Bureau, Constituent Affairs), other NM agency approaches

N/A

Eli Fresquez, Kaitlyn Eichers, Edward McCorkindale

July 27th

In-Person Zoom

10:00-12:00 p.m.

Formation of retaliation working group, discussion on community outreach, focus groups, and information session 

 

N/A

Carl Ayers

August 10th

In-Person Zoom

10:00-12:00 p.m.

Substitute Care Advisory Council, Input and Recommendations by the Steering Committee

 

Courts and CCIC, Schools Advocates, and Community Supports

 

TBD

August 17th

In-Person Zoom

10:00-12:00 p.m.

TENTATIVE

Special Information Session: Kevin S. Report, House Joint Memorial Task Force, Collaborative Safety Review, LFC Memos and State’s Response 

N/A

 

August 24th

In-Person Zoom

10:00-12:00 p.m.

Input and Recommendations by the Steering Committee

 

Resource Families, Adoptions, and Guardianships and Parents Voices

TBD

September 7th

In-Person Zoom

10:00-12:00 p.m.

Input and Recommendations by the Steering Committee

 

Parents’ Voices and Youth with Lived Experience and Multi-disciplinary Team Advocacy Center

TBD

September 21st

In-Person Zoom

10:00-12:00 p.m.

Input and Recommendations by the Steering Committee

 

Native Families Children and CYFD Workers

TBD

September 28

In-Person Zoom

10:00-12:00 p.m.

Review and Adopt Final Report, next steps if any 

N/A

Carl Ayers

 

Focus Groups

 

Casey Family Programs in collaboration with the Steering Committee is hosting a series of focus group discussions to (1) identify where we are doing well and where we need to improve our responses, (2) our goals for responsiveness, and (3) how we’ll know if we’ve succeeded.  We are looking for ways to respond to the concerns raised by the children, families, and the community, without bogging down our ability to serve them in an unnecessary cumbersome layer of bureaucracy or inefficient diversion of resources. 

Focus group discussions will be faciliRtated by Carl Ayers of Casey Family Programs.  

If you would like to provide feedback on how CYFD can better respond to communications and complaints, please participate in the focus groups.

To participate, please email Carl Ayers, cayers@casey.org or (206) 378-4662 who will send you a link to the focus group.

Meeting Date/Time

Casey Family Programs - Focus Group

August 1st 

Zoom 11:00–12:30 p.m.

 

 CYFD Workers

August 2nd

Zoom 11:00– 12:30 p.m.

Courts and CCIC

 

August 2nd

Zoom 2:00– 3:30 p.m.

Schools, Advocates, and Community Supports

August 2

Zoom 6:00– 7:30 p.m.

Resource Families, Adoptions, and Guardianships

August 3rd

Zoom 6:00– 7:30 p.m.  

Parents’ Voices

August 10th  

Zoom 6:00– 7:30 p.m.

Youth with Lived Experience

August 12th  

Zoom 8:30– 10:00 a.m.

Multi-disciplinary Team/Children Advocacy Center

August 15th 

Zoom 6:00–7:30 p.m.

Native Families and Children

August 16th

Zoom 6:00–7:30 p.m.

 

 CYFD Workers

 

 

 

 

 

Membership

 

 

 Name

Affiliation

1

Shelly Bucher

Director of the Substitute Care Advisory Counsel

2

Linda Lopez

State Senator

3

Candie Sweetser

State Representative

4

Jerry Ortiz Y Pino

State Senator

5

Gay Kernan

State Senator

6

Meredith Dixon

State Representative

7

Judge Marie Ward

Chief Judge

8

Judge Catherine Begaye

Presiding Children's Court Judge

9

Judge Angie Schneider

Chief Judge

10

Deannah Neswood-Gishey

Navajo Nation Division of Social Services

11

Jacqueline Yalch

Pueblo of Isleta

12

Gary Housepian

Disability Rights NM

13

Arika E. Sánchez

NMCAN

14

Maralyn Beck

Child First NM Child First Network

15

Annie Rasquin

CASA First Judicial District

16

Veronica Ray Krupnik

CASA First Judicial District

17

Sean Scates

Chaves County CASA

18

Alison Endicott-Quinones

Advocacy Inc.

19

Queva Hubbard

NM Family Advocacy Program

20

Shelley Repp

NM Dream Center

22

Melissa Ewer

NM Coalition of Sexual Assault Programs

23

Leticia Tafoya

High Desert Family Services

24

Marsha Vallo

Acoma Pueblo

 

 

Accessibility and Language Access Information:

If you would like additional information, have questions, or need captioning, a qualified sign language interpreter, or other access services such as Spanish language services to participate in a focus group or access a Steering Committee meeting, please let us know at least five days in advance or as soon as possible by contacting:  

CYFD Office of Children's Rights Director

Eli Fresquez, Esq.  

Call or text 505-629-9626

Eli.Fresquez@state.nm.us

accessibility information below

Committee Agendas

Agendas from the Enhancing Delivery of Services Steering Committee meetings are made available for public inspection.

Committee Recordings

Recordings from the Enhancing Delivery of Services Steering Committee meetings are made available for public inspection.

Committee Notes

Notes from the Enhancing Delivery of Services Steering Committee meetings are made available for public inspection.

Committee-Related Reports